The next day, the village felt even more quiet than usual. It was like the sky was holding its breath, waiting for something bad or maybe something big to happen. Coker walked slowly, the red coat he always wore dragging lightly on the ground behind him. He had not slept well. All night, he kept thinking about the silver-haired girl. Her face. Her voice. The way she hugged him. It all played again and again in his mind like a memory that didn't want to fade.
He didn't even remember her name. But her eyes were burned into his heart.
He passed by houses where people had locked their windows, doors shut tight. A mother dragged her child inside when she saw him. A group of boys who used to throw stones at him just ran this time. Nobody spoke to him. Not because they didn't want to, but because they was scared. He was cursed. And they all knew it.
Coker didn't care anymore. Not really. What was there to care about? Except her.
He reached the old well in the middle of the village square. The water inside was still, like a mirror, but darker. He leaned over and looked at his own face. His eyes were tired. His hair messy. He looked... like a ghost. A living ghost.
"I miss her," he whispered to the water. "And I don't even know her name... why is that?"
His voice shook a little. Not from cold. Not from fear. But something deeper. Like something lost and can't be taken back.
Then... he heard it.
Soft footsteps. Not the kind from shoes. Barefoot. Light. Almost like floating. He turned slowly.
She was there.
Standing by the tree, same silver hair shining like snow under sunlight. Same long dress, moving with the wind like it was dancing. Her eyes looked at him like she already knew he would be here.
"You always come here," she said.
He blinked. "Y-You remember me?"
She smiled. That same smile. It wasn't just a smile. It was something warm. Something that burned through the cold in his chest.
"I never forget the people who protect me," she said, stepping closer.
Coker looked down fast. His heart beat too loud. His hands trembled a little. "But... why you not scared of me?"
She was right in front of him now. Her hand touched his shoulder, gentle. "Because I saw your curse... and your curse is crying."
That made Coker look up.
"W-What do you mean?"
"I mean," she said, sitting beside him near the well, "your curse isn't evil. It's just... hurting. And you keep locking it away. But maybe... it don't wanna be alone."
Coker couldn't speak. His throat was tight. His chest heavier than before. No one had ever said things like this to him.
"I think you're like fire," she said. "But you don't want to burn people. You just want to warm them."
He turned his head away. "I don't want to hurt nobody. But... I always do. The curse... it always wake up. And when it does... I disappear inside."
She leaned closer. "Then maybe, next time it wakes up, I'll hold your hand. So you don't disappear."
His heart stopped for one second.
"Y-You mean... you'll stay with me?" he whispered.
She nodded. "Until the curse gets tired."
Silence followed. Not awkward. Not scary. Just... peaceful.
Then the wind changed. Colder. Sharper.
From the far end of the village, a loud scream broke the moment.
Coker stood up. The girl too. The villagers were running, shouting.
Something... or someone... had entered the village. Something not human.
The curse inside Coker moved. He felt it.
The girl grabbed his sleeve. "Don't go alone."
But he knew he had to.
Coker ran toward the danger, heart beating fast. But this time... her hand had touched him before he ran.
And for some reason, that small touch made the curse inside him... hesitate.
Like even it was afraid to hurt her.
Like even the curse... remembered her smile.
And in that moment, Coker started to believe maybe... just maybe... he wasn't alone anymore.