Fifth Ghost Story - The Endless 4th Period (1)
Mi-jin, the administrative office staffer at Nakseong High School and mother to a two-year-old, was on the verge of losing her mind from stress lately.
It all started on Monday during the entrance ceremony when the school experienced a brief blackout. Someone hijacked the broadcast in the darkness, announcing that the ceremony would proceed on the playground. The admin staff, all hands on deck including the public service workers, scrambled to set up equipment and were utterly exhausted by the end of it.
Just when they finally wrapped up the ceremony, the welcome pamphlets handed out to new students turned out to have some bizarre message printed on them: "Beware the smiling woman." They had to rush around collecting them all back, breaking a real sweat.
'If this gets posted on SNS, the school will be in an uproar!'
The strict vice principal stormed into the office, veins bulging in his neck, leaving Mi-jin feeling like her postpartum depression was about to return. All they did was hand over the documents for printing—what right did they have to yell at us? And who the hell decided to move the ceremony to the playground anyway? She wanted to flip the table, but teachers ruled the school. All she could think about was the cigarettes she'd quit after giving birth.
March was already insane with the new semester and staff reassignments, and now these weird incidents kept piling up. It was enough to drive anyone mad. Take this morning, for instance.
'This must be what they mean by "the devil's on your back."'
A long-forgotten storage room had been discovered on the school's fifth floor. In a building almost 36 years old.
'This is insane. It doesn't make any sense.'
Even the teachers were baffled and stayed quiet this time. But for the admin office, which also handled facilities management, it was a nightmare. Mi-jin was so flabbergasted that she skipped lunch with her colleague and pored over old blueprints to double-check.
She imagined someone sneaking in last night with tools, giggling maniacally while doing renovations. Unfortunately, the room was right there on the plans, labeled "Multipurpose Room 3."
'No one really knew about it?'
It had always been there, but everyone just shrugged it off like, "I don't know, but it must be for something." For 36 years. That was the conclusion the admin staff had to accept.
They passed the message along that the teachers could decide what to do with it, washing their hands of the matter, and heard vaguely that some club had turned it into their clubroom.
'Can you split parental leave into two chunks?'
As she walked across the playground, plotting her escape from this school full of bizarre happenings on her way home, Mi-jin happened to glance up at the infamous "Multipurpose Room 3."
There stood Lee Joon by the window, gazing down at the playground with his club members, fretting over his future.
'We found it this morning and locked it up tight, so how...' Mi-jin decided to stop thinking about it.
2019 March 8, Friday, 11:35
Lee Joon - Round 2
Ghost Story Points: 110
Causal Rate: 8%
'Phew, why won't time move?'
Today was Friday. Just one more 4th period, then lunch, and finally the long-awaited first club activity during CA time!
I was fidgeting in the classroom, dying for the bell. Our hanbok-clad Korean history teacher was ranting about how universities were increasingly ignoring Korean history in admissions, dragging out the lesson.
Through the classroom door, I could see students from classes that ended early sprinting to the cafeteria, hair whipping in the wind.
"And! Those Japanese bastards drove stakes into our land everywhere, draining our vital energy..."
'Fuck, just end it already...'
Ding-dong-da-dong~ ♬
The bell rang, and a few impatient guys bolted out the door, joining the rush to the cafeteria. The teacher looked bummed, like he had more to say, but for students, survival trumped history.
I dashed into the hallway too, with Seon-ah and Gyeong-won sticking close.
"Hurry and eat lunch, then to the clubroom—let's go!"
"Heh. Maintain some dignity, President."
Gyeong-won adjusted his glasses as he replied, while Seon-ah smiled with flushed cheeks. I nodded playfully at her, and she giggled back.
As we raced down the hall, some uncle-type dude overtook us in a flash and plunged into the cafeteria first. It was our homeroom teacher, Park.
We sat side by side eating. Through the cafeteria windows, I spotted delivery guys coming and going.
5th and 6th periods were CA time, when clubs had full autonomy. Plenty of seniors skipped lunch and ordered food to their clubrooms, apparently.
Seon-ah paused mid-bite, staring enviously.
"Next time, we'll order in too. We've got a proper clubroom now."
"Yeah!"
As we left the cafeteria, I saw Homeroom Teacher patting his belly contentedly. Spotting us, he made an "oh-ho-ho" sound effect with his mouth and greeted us cheerfully.
"Joon and friends! Lunch tasty?"
"Yes, delicious. Haha."
"Good. Heading straight to the clubroom?"
"Yep."
His face suddenly turned serious. He glanced around to ensure no one was listening and spoke cautiously.
"In that case, there's something you all should know."
What nonsense is this now?
"Something evil lurks in that clubroom right now. You'll probably need this to get in."
He pulled a key from his back pocket and handed it over.
"Forgot to give it during morning homeroom. Hohohot!"
Then he patted his belly again and waddled off.
"Um, we already... opened it yesterday..."
Seon-ah muttered.
"But we can lock it when we're not using it, so not a bad idea," Gyeong-won pointed out. I nodded in agreement.
"Gotta watch for thieves."
"R-right..."
I thought he was building suspense for something big. What a letdown.
"Same here."
The clubroom basked in lazy lunchtime sun filtering through pure white curtains. The three of us sat sharing scary stories at random.
"This guy was hiking, got lost, and stayed overnight in a cabin. It was covered in creepy portraits of ugly faces. But when he woke up, the portraits were gone—replaced by windows."
"Hmm, got it."
"Yeah..."
I nodded at Seon-ah. Gyeong-won's turn.
"Divers have a few taboos. Besides obvious ones like not diving in rain, there's a weird one: if you find a floating corpse underwater, never touch it if it's standing upright."
"Hmm, got it."
"That's the one."
Seon-ah again.
"Friends went camping, took a group photo while everyone was asleep... but everyone was already in the picture."
Gyeong-won: "In certain Seoul areas, tuning your radio picks up this endless stream of a woman mumbling random numbers no one can decode..."
"Something under the bed..."
"Moon landing was faked conspiracy..."
Seon-ah stuck to ghost stories; Gyeong-won was all urban legends and conspiracies. I nodded solemnly each time, committing them to memory.
"President won't share?"
I answered honestly. "Sorry, I don't really know many scary stories."
"Hm, figured as much."
Gyeong-won groaned.
"Then why pick Ghost Story Club out of all clubs? I've been dying to ask."
"...Me too."
They stared at me blankly.
"You don't seem that interested..."
"Nah, it's not that. How to explain... hmm."
Yeah, I recruited them, so they assume I had some grand reason for this weird club. In reality, I just followed the Tutorial quest!
'Umm...'
I pondered. As the central figure, I couldn't look clueless. Leaders hold small groups together. Especially a niche club like this—without a strong leader, they'd scatter.
I put force into my voice.
"I don't know scary stories well, but I've experienced plenty of weird shit."
"Weird shit?"
Seon-ah echoed, and I nodded.
"Yeah. Let's just say I'm an experiencer."
Her eyes widened. Gyeong-won looked intrigued too. But I couldn't dive deeper. Would they even believe me now?
"...Kinda hard to explain right now. I'll tell you details later, sorry."
I glossed over and got to the point.
"Anyway, that's why I made the club. I've had tons of strange experiences, and I figured digging into ghost stories might explain them."
Not thrilled with my lukewarm "experiencer" pitch, Gyeong-won crossed his arms and leaned back.
"So you won't spill the details, huh?"
"...Sorry."
Silence fell over us. Awkward vibe.
I tried changing the subject. "More scary stories?"
"Nah, not really feeling it."
Gyeong-won drew a line with a curt tone.
"...Why?"
"You just listen."
Hurt because I held back? But spilling about my past lives would get me labeled crazy. 300 heads exploding at Nakseong High. The smiling woman. The ghost mimicking Mom. Sorry, but silence it is.
"You uncomfortable 'cause I'm holding back?"
Straight ball. He eyed me boredly.
"Kinda. But that's personal. Can't force it. I get that."
"Then? What's the issue?"
He sighed.
"President, I got into a special-purpose high school, but I chose here on purpose for better grades. Better snake head than dragon tail, y'know."
Already knew that. What’s it got to do with now?
"Get it? I slacked on school a bit to build specs through extracurriculars for comprehensive admissions to a top uni."
"...You told me before."
"Normally, I'd endure freshman year and lead an academic club next year for my resume. But now I'm in Ghost Story Club."
"Be honest. I know more ghost stories—shouldn't I be president?"
The refined young master raised his nose arrogantly.
"...Wanted to think that. But you pulled off making a club as a freshman and snagged a room. I respect the hustle, so I accept you as president."
That's what's bugging him.
"But now that I'm in, you're not just ignorant—you know nothing, and your motivation's vague. Can't I be dissatisfied?"
To befriend this prideful guy, I knew I'd need to prove myself, but not this much. He joined with bruised ego after all.
Irritated myself, my words sharpened instead of explaining.
"...Like I said, I'm an experiencer. You might lead in knowledge, but I live it. Don't downplay that."
"That's just your claim. I haven't seen it. I only respect you as president for that freshman hustle."
"...Got a problem?"
"Yeah. A big one."
Tension crackled. Seon-ah fidgeted.
'Sigh.'
I leaned back. Guess I need to prove leadership chops to smooth this over.
'His tone's annoying, but convince him on that, and he'll follow calling me president.'
But the current me is overrated compared to the original. My only talent's quick wits.
'As long as I don't show my hand...'
We sat in uneasy silence.
'Didn't expect this. How'd it come to this?'
The trigger? Stories ran dry, so we got personal. Meaning...
"We've talked this much, and 5th period still hasn't started?"
We looked around. Lazy sun still filtered through white curtains.
"No bell during CA time?"
"Dunno."
I glanced at the playground. Something off.
"Hey, guys. Check the playground."
"Huh?"
Seon-ah came first; Gyeong-won, still sulky with arms crossed, followed to the window.
"What do you think?"
The playground was...
Empty.
"Why's no one there?"
Soccer team, basketball, walkers—should be bustling, but dead silent.
'Status Window.'
'Status Window?'
Habitually called it for time, but nothing. Checked my phone instead.
"No way... we got so into talking... it's too late... everyone's gone home..."
Seon-ah fretted.
"Opposite, actually."
"Huh?"
I showed them the screen.
"Time hasn't moved at all."
2019 March 8, Friday, 11:35