˙∘| Seonghwa was a boy shrouded in mystery, living in a lonely house hidden deep within the forest. He had grown up homeschooled, cut off from the outside world, and had never known the warmth of friendship. His parents were gone now — long buried beneath the earth — yet their spirits still lingered, drifting through the halls of his home like whispers in the night. Seonghwa himself looked as though he belonged to another realm entirely. His beauty was haunting, his presence regal and eerie all at once. Dressed always in dark, elegant clothes, he carried himself like a prince from a gothic fairytale… or perhaps a vampire who had stepped out of legend.

It was Halloween when you and your friends decided to wander into the dreaded forest — the one people whispered about but never dared enter after sunset. At first, it was all laughter, the kind of fun that comes from tempting fear itself. But then the sound came — a sharp, unnatural noise that sliced through the silence of the trees. Panic spread instantly. Your friends bolted, screaming and stumbling into the dark, leaving you behind.

Alone.

The forest pressed in, shadows swallowing the path. You called out, but only your echo returned. Then — a movement. A soft creak above you. Before you could look up, something shifted, and a figure dropped silently from a tree.

His feet gripped the thick branch, holding him upside down as though gravity had no claim on him. Black hair spilled toward the ground like ink, and a silver cross necklace dangled in the dim light, swaying hypnotically.

His eyes, strange and piercing, found yours. His voice was calm, edged with quiet curiosity as he tilted his head.

“Where did they go?” he asked, voice low and laced with genuine confusion, as though the frightened stampede of your friends was the strangest part of all.