Kim Do-Yoon stood in the quiet library, holding the strange book in his hands.
He was just about to open it—
But then he stopped.
"…Wait."
He looked at the cover again.
"Maybe I should check this first."
The book felt old. Very old.
He wiped some dust from the cover with his sleeve.
Slowly, the surface became a little clearer.
There was a design.
A star.
A strange, dark star.
The background of the cover was completely black, like an endless night sky.
But something felt off.
Do-Yoon frowned.
"…Where's the title?"
There was no name.
No words.
Nothing.
Just the star and darkness.
"That's weird…"
He flipped the book around and checked the back.
Nothing.
No author.
No description.
No information.
Only dust.
A lot of dust.
"This book is seriously old," he muttered.
The cover was dirty, worn out, almost like it had been forgotten for years… maybe even longer.
Do-Yoon looked around the library.
Everything was normal.
Students reading.
Pages turning.
Silence.
But in his hands—
This book felt different.
"…Why was this hidden?"
He looked at the shelf again.
"That place… it was almost invisible."
For a moment, he hesitated.
"…Should I even read this here?"
He glanced at the clock.
"…No."
He closed the book slowly.
"I'll take it home."
By the time Do-Yoon reached home, the sky had already started to darken.
He opened the door.
"I'm back."
From inside, his younger sister Ji-Eun replied, "You're late."
She walked into the living room and looked at him.
"Where were you?"
Her voice was normal.
Not worried.
Just curious.
Do-Yoon lifted the book slightly. "Library."
Ji-Eun blinked.
"…Library?"
She looked at him carefully.
"You?"
Do-Yoon scratched his head. "Yeah."
She crossed her arms. "You hate books."
"…Not all books," he said quickly.
"And you hate studying."
"…Not always."
"And you hate anything related to knowledge."
"…Okay, that one is true."
Ji-Eun sighed.
"This is strange…"
But after a moment, she just shrugged.
"Whatever. Dinner will be ready soon."
"Okay," Do-Yoon said.
After eating, Do-Yoon quickly went to his room.
He closed the door.
Locked it.
And sat on his bed.
The book was in his hands again.
The room felt quiet.
Too quiet.
"…Let's see what's inside."
He took a deep breath.
And opened it.
The pages were old.
Yellow.
Fragile.
He turned the first page carefully.
Then the second.
Then the third.
At first—
It looked normal.
Just a story.
Simple writing.
Simple words.
Do-Yoon started reading.
"…A boy… lazy… always late…"
He paused.
"…That sounds familiar."
He continued.
"The boy lived with his younger sister…"
Do-Yoon's fingers tightened.
"…No way…"
He kept reading.
"One night… he saw a man get hit… but the man stood up like nothing happened…"
Do-Yoon's eyes widened.
"…What?"
His heartbeat started getting faster.
He flipped to the next page quickly.
"The boy told his friend… but his friend didn't believe him…"
"…This…"
His voice shook.
"This is…"
He kept reading.
"Then one day… the boy decided to prove it…"
Do-Yoon stood up from his bed.
"No… no… no…"
His breathing became heavy.
He turned another page.
"The two friends went out at night… searching for the man…"
His hands started shaking.
"This is the same…"
The same events.
The same story.
Everything—
Was exactly like his life.
He flipped faster.
Page after page.
His eyes moved quickly.
Then—
He stopped.
The sentence ended.
"…When they saw—"
That was it.
Nothing more.
The page ended.
The next page was blank.
Completely blank.
"…What?"
Do-Yoon stared at it.
"Where's the rest?"
He flipped again.
Empty.
Another page.
Empty.
All blank.
"…No… this doesn't make sense…"
His whole body felt cold.
Slowly, he stepped back.
The book slipped slightly in his hands.
"This… this is my story…"
His voice trembled.
"It's not just similar…"
"It's the same…"
His mind started racing.
"If this book already knows everything…"
"…then what happens next?"
Silence filled the room.
Do-Yoon looked at the book again.
His eyes were full of fear.
"…Something is wrong."
A chill ran down his spine.
Deep.
Cold.
Unnatural.
He slowly whispered—
"Something is very wrong…"
And for the first time—
He realized—
This wasn't just an accident.
This wasn't just bad luck.
This was something bigger.
Something planned.
Something watching him from the beginning.
And now—
It was getting closer.
Kim Do-Yoon sat on his bed, staring at the closed book.
The room was silent, but his mind was not.
Everything he read was still repeating inside his head.
A lazy boy. A strange man. A friend who didn't believe him. A night search. The same events as his life.
And then… the blank pages.
"…This is not normal," Do-Yoon whispered.
His hands were still slightly shaking. He didn't know what to do, what to think, or even what to believe anymore.
For the first time in his life, Do-Yoon felt like he had no control.
Not over school.
Not over people.
And maybe… not even over his own life.
He looked at the book again.
It was just sitting there.
Quiet.
Still.
But somehow, it felt alive.
Like it was watching him.
Do-Yoon stood up quickly.
"No…" he muttered. "This is too weird."
He walked around his room, trying to calm himself down.
"I should just… forget this."
But even as he said that, his eyes kept going back to the book.
It was like something inside him was pulling him toward it.
Then suddenly, he shook his head.
"No. I'm done."
He grabbed the book.
"This is dangerous."
His breathing got faster.
"I don't know what this is… but I don't want it."
He walked toward the door.
His steps were heavy.
Each step felt like something was pressing on his chest.
He opened the door slowly.
The house was quiet.
His sister was in her room.
No one noticed him.
Do-Yoon walked outside.
The night air hit his face.
Cold.
Sharp.
He looked around the street.
And then he saw it.
A garbage truck.
It was slowly moving down the road, collecting trash from bins.
Do-Yoon stared at it.
"…Yeah," he said softly. "That's it."
His grip on the book tightened.
"I'll throw it away."
For a moment, he hesitated.
Just for a second.
But then—
"I don't want this anymore."
He walked closer to the truck.
The sound of the engine filled the air.
He raised his arm.
Looked at the book one last time.
"…Goodbye."
And then he threw it.
The book flew through the air and landed inside the garbage truck.
Do-Yoon stood still.
Waiting.
Nothing happened.
No sound.
No light.
No reaction.
"…It's gone," he whispered.
He felt a small relief.
Like a weight had been lifted.
But at the same time…
Something inside him still felt wrong.
He turned back and walked home.
Back in the Room
Do-Yoon closed the door behind him.
He leaned against it for a moment.
"…It's over," he said quietly.
He slowly walked to his bed and sat down.
The room felt normal again.
But his mind didn't.
He kept thinking about the book.
The story.
The blank pages.
"…Was it real?" he asked himself.
He shook his head.
"No. It has to be fake."
He tried to relax.
He tried to breathe normally.
But his chest still felt tight.
Minutes passed.
Then an hour.
Do-Yoon lay down on his bed, staring at the ceiling.
"…I'm just tired," he said.
Slowly, his eyes started to close.
"I'll forget it tomorrow…"
And then—
He fell asleep.
The Dream
Darkness.
That was all he saw.
No sound.
No light.
Only silence.
Then suddenly—
A page turned.
Do-Yoon's eyes snapped open.
He was standing in an endless white space.
"…What is this?" he whispered.
In front of him—
A book.
The same book.
But now it was open.
Pages flipping by themselves.
Fast.
Faster.
Do-Yoon stepped back.
"No… I threw you away…"
The pages stopped.
And then—
Words appeared.
Slowly.
Like someone was writing them in real time.
"YOU CANNOT REMOVE WHAT IS WRITTEN."
Do-Yoon's body froze.
"…What?"
The words disappeared.
And new ones appeared.
"THE STORY IS STILL RUNNING."
Do-Yoon backed away.
"No… I'm not part of this…"
Suddenly—
A sound.
Footsteps.
Behind him.
Slow.
Heavy.
He turned around—
But saw nothing.
Only darkness.
Then a whisper came.
Very close.
"You already are."
Do-Yoon's eyes widened.
His breathing stopped.
"I didn't choose this…" he whispered.
The book slammed shut in front of him.
Everything went dark.
"Oppa! Wake up!"
Do-Yoon opened his eyes suddenly.
He was in his bed.
Sweating.
Breathing heavily.
His sister was beside him.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
Do-Yoon didn't answer immediately.
He sat up slowly.
His hands were shaking again.
"…It wasn't a dream," he whispered.
His sister tilted her head. "What?"
Do-Yoon looked down at his hands.
"…Nothing," he said quietly.
But inside him—
He already knew.
Throwing the book away changed nothing.
It was still there.
Somewhere.
Watching.
Waiting.
And now…
Do-Yoon understood one thing clearly.
This was not something he could escape