Hannah sits in front of the computer, nervously tapping her fingers on the table-top. She keeps thinking about the words of the illusion; that Joseph is probably involved in Solar's death.
Something doesn't sit well with the girl. If her boyfriend contributed to the suicide of this schoolgirl, why did she point out in the letter that he was trustworthy? After all, there was a reason why she called Jin — a liar — on the same sheet of paper. He was deceiving her. He played a game with her from the very beginning, knowing full well that she was Hannah. He protected her sister, and the truth regarding the events of first grade.
What happened when they were seventeen years old each?
Hannah, in excerpts, begins to recall that one evening she read the notes from a notebook she found in her room, in which she discovered the horrifying truth. Hannah learned the story of the dead girl, and the main reason why she decided to kill herself.
The brunette closes her eyelids and massages her forehead, wanting at all costs to regain her memories, but at that time her illness had already taken an advanced state, so she was often not herself.
That's why she can't remember the day she discovered everything. Her mind blocks her memories. It protects her from knowing the truth.
She opens her eyes and observes Joseph pacing around the apartment. He looks as if something is not giving him a break. He forgets what he was supposed to do a moment ago and thus walks from one place to another.
His facial expression signals that he is not in the mood today.
— I've had enough of all this! — Hannah finally can't stand it and closes the laptop too tightly, not caring that she might have damaged it. She stabs a fulminating look at her boyfriend, who ignores her outburst and drinks water from the glass with a choke. — I'm sick of the lies! The fact that you and your friends have been continuously hiding something from me for seven years! It is because of you that I have a relapse, my mind hides something from me. I know that when you were in first grade, something happened at Horace Mann. The room I lived in for half a year hides a secret, there is a reason why everyone talked about it. Why did people claim that Halsey went crazy because of it? They were sure that something happened there, and it all passed on to me!
It hits her when she sees that he remains indifferent to her words. She sets the empty glass down on the countertop.
— You are the one with the problem.
— I have an issue? — She presses her hand to her chest, looking at him with disappointed eyes. — I think you're trying to make an idiot out of me, Joseph.
— I didn't do anything in the past! — His shriek leads Hannah to open her eyes wider. — You continually tell yourself something. I don't know... Is this your way of trying to discourage me from myself? I've been getting the impression for a long time that you no longer trust me. You call me during meetings, even though you know very well that I am working. Now you are attempting to make me believe that I am involved in past events. Are you serious? You have a relapse, you're destroying yourself, and you don't want to go to the doctor, even though I continually tell you so. You trust your illusions more than I do, and you remember very well what they contributed to seven years ago. You narrowly missed it, and you would have hurt yourself. — He shakes his head and looks at her with an exasperated gaze. — Your behavior is starting to get tiresome. You realize that something is happening to you, but you ignore it. You are not acting like an adult, but a teenager, as if you are still stuck in high school!
The girl crinkles her eyebrows. She doubted that Joseph would put it all in her face.
— Your behavior yesterday confirmed that you are hiding something after all. Don't try to blame it on my illness.
— Stop it, damn it! — Hannah is surprised by his outburst. She can't remember the last time she brought him out of balance like that. — Yes! There was a girl named Solar at Horace Mann, and she committed suicide eight years ago, but I had nothing to do with her death!
— Prove it. If you can not, I will go to Horace Mann and try to find the notebook that Solar hid in that room.
Joseph looks at her with disappointed eyes. He presses his lips together and impulsively pulls his jacket off the hanger.
— If you don't believe me.... ok. Go, but remember that by doing so you will prove to me that your trust in me reaches zero. I don't know if I will still be able to be with such a person.
Hannah feels a strange stabbing sensation in her left breast. A shiver runs through her body, signaling that something bad is happening in her relationship.
— Are you really concerned about trust, or are you just afraid that I will discover the truth? — she asks in a whisper.
This is the first time she sees pain in his eyes. He is disappointed in her actions.
— Do what you think is right.
He leaves the apartment, slamming the door.
Hannah watches the place where Joseph was standing just a moment ago for a long moment. She doesn't know what to do. Should she jeopardize her relationship and visit Horace Mann? She wants to believe him, but curiosity eats her from the inside out. After all, there is a chance that she might learn the secret of the cursed room.
But how should she do it without jeopardizing her relationship with Joseph?
*
Danielle stands with her arms crossed over her chest, mirroring with her eyes her mother, who does not look satisfied with Jin's presence. It's no secret that she's not fond of him, and her hatred for the boy grew with the death of his father, when he took over his entire inheritance.
She won't let go until he is in his rightful place in the company. She will try to destroy Jin at all costs until she gets her way.
— You seem to be out of humor. — The girl turns to her mother, ignoring her cool gaze. — Is it because of me? Have you thought things through and realized that taking me back home is not the best idea after all?
— You should be grateful to me that I want to take you back after what you put away seven years ago. I'm your only resort. It is thanks to me that you will lick yourself of your criminal transgressions. Tomorrow I have a meeting with Stephan's brother.
Jin forces a crooked smile. He might have expected his stepmother to use his uncle, the prosecutor, who was the only one who extended a helping hand to Danielle over seven years ago and helped her make it all go away.
— He has already messed up his resume enough. My guess is that now he is supposed to straighten it all out? Save Danielle's ass and provide her with a clean slate, in a way bringing judgment on himself? Do you realize what consequences she will suffer if all this comes out?
Her boorish smile drives him crazy. He hates this woman with all his heart.
— She is the attorney general. She has her people everywhere. Do you think she will bring trouble on herself? Apparently you don't know your uncle because I know about his left business, but that's irrelevant. You should be happy that I will provide Danielle with a clean slate, and by the way, you will benefit from it. Do you think I don't know that you helped her seven years ago? — Her eyes betray what a false viper she is. — If I wanted to, I would have found a way to take away your business long ago, so obey me, Jin. I don't know when I'll want to sit in your place.
The boy snorts under his breath.
— You say that to make me stop watching you at every turn, but I'm not an idiot. I know you're up to something all the time and will hit me unexpectedly. — She shrugs her shoulders, sipping coffee from a cup. — You need Danielle for something. I won't believe that you took her back into your home and are trying to keep her safe after how you treated her reproachfully in the past. Why do you think she ran away from you? So that you could marry my father? At first, Danielle tried to tell me that, but I'm no fool. The last thing she would have wanted was your happiness. Not after the way you treated her in the past.
— And you think I treated her badly? — She glances fleetingly at her daughter, who then measures her with a hateful gaze. — I attempted to raise her properly, since she was disobedient. I attempted to make her a cold, ruthless woman so that she could achieve a lot in the future. As you can see, I succeeded, but she misused her strong personality.
Jin feels like telling her stepmother how perfidious a woman she is, but refrains from doing so for her own good. He would rather not incite her more. Not now.
— That's exactly right. It's your fault that Danielle grew up to be such a person. You have made her into the heartless person you are. Be careful that one day she doesn't overcome you with her strength. What will you do if the monster in her turns out to be bigger than yours?
Danielle stares at the boy, unable to believe that he is defending her so fiercely against her mother. This is a sign that he still cares about her. He wants the best for her.
— So try to make her fall in love with you again because you're too good to fight me. — He gets up from the table and puts the money on the counter. — I'll see you at home today. We have a lot to discuss, daughter — he turns to Danielle, then heads for the exit.
The girl puts her hand on Jin's shoulder and sends him a slight smile. Currently, she looks the same as when he saw her for the first time.
— Let's help each other. Let's free ourselves from this woman. Together, it will be easier for us.
He leans his elbow against the table-top and closes his eyelids, massaging his forehead.
— I would do it if I could really trust you, Danielle.
*
It's that evening when Hannah sits at the bar and drenches her sorrows in alcohol. It's been a long time since she's reached for a drink, but tonight she can't focus on a single thought and wants to forget everything. She is angry with herself for provoking Joseph and causing the boy to be completely disappointed in her.
What should she do?
She trusts him and wants to believe that he had nothing to do with Solar's suicide, but her mind is not fooling her after all. Seven years ago, she discovered something and Joseph must have some connection to it, even if he didn't contribute much.
He is undoubtedly hiding something and is trying to turn the cat on its head, blaming everything on Hannah's illness.
— It's been a long time since the two of you argued. What happened? — The brunette looks with sad eyes at Bella, who sits down next to her. The girl puts her hand on her friend's shoulder, seeing how broken she is. — Is it so bad that he didn't come to your apartment after work?
— So bad that he preferred to deal with his father rather than come to me — she replies in a snotty voice, putting her glass to her lips — He thinks that I stopped trusting him. I just want to get something out of him because I know he is hiding a secret, but he turns it against me.
— Maybe this is the secret he can't say out loud?
— We've been together for so many years. We should tell each other everything, but Joseph is still a man who prefers to keep something deep in his heart rather than reveal it. Isn't a relationship about supporting each other?
Bella picks up the drink she ordered from the bartender.
— Tom doesn't tell me many things either, and consider how long his tongue is. Men are already like that. You won't get everything out of them. If Joseph would like to, he will tell you himself because pressuring him can complicate everything. Do you want to destroy your relationship? You know best how tough he is.
The brunette lowers her gaze to the glass, playing with it in her hands.
— I'm afraid that something is burning out between us.
The girl, who accompanies her, lifts her face and stares at the ceiling for a long moment.
She feels like smacking her friend upside the head.
— Are you stupid? He loves you. You can see it in his eyes. You won't play the look of love.
— You mean that special glint? — The brunette smiles slightly. — If so, he still has it when he looks at me.
— Well, that's right, so stop talking nonsense. Unless, of course, you're starting to freak out.
— I can't imagine life without him.
Bella rests her head on her shoulder.
— What the hell, but you guys are the last couple that would be able to part. You are made for each other, like Flip and Flap.
— Not a bad comparison. — Hannah refills her drink and bursts into loud laughter.
— Every couple has some conflict in their relationship from time to time. This is normal. You don't have to worry and, worse, get it into your head that he doesn't love you anymore.
Hannah looks over her shoulder, but chooses the wrong moment because in the entrance she sees the person who somehow drove her to psychosis seven years ago.
How she remembers today what a nightmare she experienced at Horace Mann.
This woman seemed to her from the beginning to be a cheerful, understanding youth boarding school caretaker, and turned out to be a mental flounder, obsessed with her boyfriend.
The brunette squints as she walks up to the bar and, not recognizing her, sits down next to her. She orders a glass of wine, nervously playing with her toes.
— I'd like to say it's wonderful to meet you again, but we said goodbye in a rather chilly atmosphere, so....
The woman shifts her gaze to Hannah and looks at her face for a long moment. She lifts the corners of her mouth in a smile as she realizes that this is the girl she oppressed at school because of jealousy.
— It's surprising that we met just now, in this bar. The last time I saw you, we're a teenager.
— And Joseph was not yet my boyfriend then. We have been in a relationship for more than three years.
The woman pulls her eyebrows together, clearly curious about the former student's words.
— So my intuition didn't fail me? I sniffed out that something was brewing between the two of you.
She picks up a wine glass from the bartender and takes a small sip.
— I wish that your appearance exactly on this day when I am here, was just a strange coincidence, but I believe it is not.
With curiosity written all over her face, Bella looks at the older woman, wondering who she is.
— I think it's simply a coincidence. I just came here to drown my sorrows in alcohol.
Irene seems to be an entirely different person or just being herself.
— It's just like me... Lately, I have begun to be plagued by nightmares related to Horace Mann. It's funny that this place has been haunting me for seven years. I get the impression that that room was indeed cursed and that you were not the only contributor to my nightmare.
The woman twists her lips in a slight smile.
— I am ashamed when I think about it. I behaved immaturely, especially since I tormented you and Halsey, taking advantage of the death of a student.
— What are you talking about? — A bright light comes on in the brunette's head. Could it be that the woman is coming down on the subject of Solar's suicide?
— I mean the girl who was Halsey's roommate. It was said that she was the one who initiated the curse of the room there.
A shudder runs through Hannah's body.
There is a chance that today she will learn more about Solar's death. Is the appearance of this woman in the bar just a strange coincidence?
She looks over her shoulder, feeling a burning gaze on her.
Solar is here.
What if the suicidal woman is not a figment of her imagination? What if Hannah doesn't have any relapse, and she really exists? Is it possible that she can see ghosts?