In the dread of the night, three girls are standing in front of the cemetery's gates.
"It's locked." Sayuri isn't surprised. It would be surprising if it was open for night visitors like them.
"That's not a problem." Natsumi turns her back to her sisters. "Follow me."
Wakana can already sense things that she shouldn't sense. The night is cold. There's no moon tonight. It's even darker than it usually is. She has the urge to turn around and run with her tail in her hand. Why did she say that she wanted to become a police officer? Her sister is crazy.
"Even as a traffic officer, you will come across many situations that would demand you to stay calm and collected," Natsumi speaks as she walks toward ahead of them. "If you are swayed each time you feel strong emotion or see something that you shouldn't be able to see, you will get into trouble. You might even get kicked out for saying things that you should never ever see."
Wakana jumps when she hears a sound behind her. Her two sisters can't hear it. She bites her lower lip and keeps walking. She's not afraid. She's not afraid... not afraid...
"Here, it is." Natsumi stops in front of the wall with a slight opening. "Do you have the whistle with you?"
Wakana gives her a nod while having second thoughts about this.
"Whistle if you can't bear it anymore. We will come." Natsumi stares at her. Wakana's face is pale. She didn't visit their mother's grave because she would always get sick whenever they came here. Will she go to the cemetery now? "After one hour is over, you can come out. We will wait for you here."
"Wakana, are you sure?" Sayuri asks her. "If you are scared, don't go."
"You are not being forced. You have a choice." Natsumi crosses her arms.
Wakana looks at the crack in the wall. The memories from the past can't hurt her. She's not sure about ghosts. It's not like she can always see them. For now, she can sense them only. If she pretends to not sense them, they will probably ignore her.
"I am going." Wakana fists her hands and goes to the wall. She doesn't want to go to college. She can't live her life being afraid. The dead can't hurt her.
Natsumi and Sayuri watch her slide through the crack in the wall. Natsumi is looking calm, but she is clenching the torchlight too hard.
The usual jolly Sayuri isn't doing any better. When she notices something, her face turns white. She exclaims, "She forgot to take the torchlight."
***
It's dreadfully quiet inside the cemetery. Wakana takes slow and cautious steps, making sure not to step on any spot that is pulsating with strong emotional energy. She is getting dizzy just being there. She opens her bag and takes out the wood first. Using it as a shield in front of her, she starts walking toward her mother's grave.
"ehehehehehehehe~"
A sharp high pitched laughter echoes through the cemetery. Wakana's body becomes tense. She is feeling someone's cold breath on the back of the neck. The ghost repelling wood is useless.
"Don't look back." She tells herself, "If you look back, you die."
She grabs a fistful of salt and throws it behind. The feeling is suddenly gone. Relaxed, she starts sprinkling salt on the way as she walks toward her mother's grave.
Something clutches her arm. She looks to her right. A white shadowy thing is standing there. It has no face or other features. But it is holding her arm tightly. It's long dirty nails are digging inside Wakana's flesh. She pours the entire box of salt on that thing. It disappears with a blink.
She's out of salt now.
Without delay, she brings out her next weapon -- The Holy Book(s). She turns the page to start reading. Then, she realizes a crucial problem. It's too dark to read.
She didn't bring the torchlight either.
She has her phone. She uses the light from the flashlight on the page. A loud shriek raises the hair on her flesh. She looks in that direction. Around 12 feet above a grave, she sees a woman floating in the air. Her white dress is swaying, but there's no wind.
Wakana freezes on her spot. The book drops on the ground.
"Brave little girl who shines like a lamp in the dark." The woman in white floats toward her. Wakana can't see her facial features. She steps backward, putting her hand inside her bag to pick out the second holy book.
"That won't work." The woman laughs at her. "You have no faith."
Wakana swallows. That's true. She's not an atheist, but she's not a firm believer in god either. Still, holy books must be useful. She hurls the book at the woman. It passes through her and falls on a grave. The woman tilts her head in amusement.
"You can't see the others yet." She inches closer to her. "You are not completely awake, little girl."
She has no idea what the ghost lady is saying. She looks down at the watch. It takes all of her to check the time on her wristwatch. There's still 20 minutes left. She raises her head and finds the ghost lady gone. Relieved, she starts laughing. The dead can't hurt her. She read somewhere that ghosts are lingering strong emotions of souls left behind on the earth. It must be true.
Still laughing in a low voice, she rubs the tears off in the corner of her eyes. She blinks when she sees a white hand emerging out of a grave. She closes her mouth and looks around. All the graves have pale arms rising out of them.
She throws items from her bags toward the arms moving toward her. Desperate and drenched with fear, she hurls her phone and the whistle at them before she realizes what she has done. The pale arms have surrounded her completely. There's no path to escape.
She squats on the ground and covers her head. If she survives tonight, she's never ever coming to a cemetery again.