Chapter 1: The Last Call
644 Words
The morning sun poured through the curtains of Han Seo-yeon's tiny apartment, painting golden streaks across the stacks of textbooks scattered on the floor.
Today marked the beginning of her final year at university.
She stood in front of the mirror, adjusting the sleeves of her cream-colored cardigan before letting out a slow breath.
"You can do this," she whispered to her reflection.
The apartment was quiet—too quiet.
She reached for the framed photograph sitting on her desk.
It was old.
Faded.
Two smiling children stood between their parents in front of a cherry blossom tree.
Her fingers gently brushed over the faces of her mother and father.
"I miss you..."
The words escaped before she could stop them.
Four years had passed since the accident.
Four years since she had gone from being an ordinary eighteen-year-old girl to becoming the only family her little brother had left.
Life hadn't been kind.
Between endless lectures, late-night shifts at a convenience store, and bills that never seemed to end, Seo-yeon barely had enough time to breathe.
Still...
Every sacrifice had been worth it.
Because somewhere only ten miles away, Han Min-jae was finishing his final year at boarding school.
She smiled softly.
Today, she'd call him.
Maybe they'd finally have a proper conversation.
---
Miles away, inside the crowded dormitory of Haedong Boarding High School, Min-jae sat alone on the edge of his bed.
His roommates laughed loudly as they argued over a football match playing on someone's phone.
He barely listened.
Instead, he stared at the notification lighting up his screen.
Noona Calling...
His thumb hovered over the answer button.
After a few seconds...
He pressed decline.
One of his roommates glanced over.
"You gonna call her back?"
Min-jae shrugged.
"Maybe."
"You guys fight or something?"
"...Not really."
"So why do you always ignore her?"
Min-jae forced a laugh.
"She's busy living her dream."
He slipped the phone into his pocket.
"She doesn't need to waste time pretending to care about me."
His roommate frowned but didn't reply.
---
Back in her apartment, Seo-yeon looked at the unanswered call before forcing a smile.
"He's probably in class."
She wanted to believe that.
She really did.
She opened her messages.
Seo-yeon: Did you eat breakfast?
A minute later...
Delivered.
No reply.
She typed another message.
Study hard. Don't skip meals.
She hesitated before deleting it.
Instead, she simply sent:
Have a good day. ❤️
---
That evening, after another exhausting shift at the convenience store, Seo-yeon stepped outside into the cool autumn air.
The city glowed beneath countless neon lights.
She dialed Min-jae again.
This time...
He answered.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
"...Hi," she said softly.
"What?"
"I just wanted to hear your voice."
Silence.
"How's school?"
"Fine."
"Are your grades okay?"
"They're fine."
She smiled weakly.
"I'm coming to visit this weekend if you're free."
"No."
"...What?"
"I'm busy."
"I can come another day."
"You don't have to."
Her smile slowly faded.
"Min-jae..."
"You chose your life."
His voice was calm.
Almost emotionless.
"So stop acting like you didn't."
The words hit her harder than she expected.
"I never—"
"You don't have to pretend anymore."
Another long silence.
Then—
Click.
The line went dead.
Seo-yeon lowered the phone from her ear.
For a long time, she simply stood there beneath the streetlights.
"I never left you..." she whispered to no one.
At that exact moment...
A man across the street suddenly stopped walking.
He grabbed his head.
Blood trickled from his nose.
He looked around wildly.
"...Can you hear them too?" he whispered.
Then he screamed.
The sound echoed through the night.
Seo-yeon froze.
People turned to look.
Another person collapsed.
Then another.
Sirens began wailing in the distance.
None of them knew it yet.
But by sunrise...
The world they knew would be gone.
- Writer
