Childhood Friend Who Sees the Future Utters Nonsense

1 – It Can’t Be a Prophetic Dream!

I, Han Yu-na, have the ability to see the future at the age of 19.

If someone heard me say that, they’d tell me to stop reading so many novels and webcomics. It must be a side effect from consuming too much fantasy media, right? To be honest, I think so too sometimes. Could I be going crazy? Maybe it really is just a coincidence. I still live each day wondering about that.

At least until the end of elementary school, when I was 12 years old, I didn’t fully believe it. Maybe I was too young back then to take it seriously. Even when a dream I had two days ago played out exactly – two classmates fighting, then spaghetti being served for lunch just like in my dream – I dismissed it as a scene I’d seen somewhere before, a type of déjà vu.

But when the contents of my dreams started revealing important real life events instead of mundane, everyday happenings, I realized I could no longer write them off as mere dreams.

If I remember correctly, the incident that triggered this realization happened in my third year of middle school, the day I became a trainee after being scouted off the street.

In the dream, I was watching news with my dad in our living room. It was reporting a dating scandal between a male artist from my new company and a female artist from another company. Three days later in real life, the exact same scene played out in my family’s living room.

The day after the dating news broke and the company atmosphere turned gloomy, I finally understood as I practiced. I could no longer brush off my dreams as coincidence.

Fortunately, this prophetic ability doesn’t indiscriminately manifest. I don’t have to live each day worried about every future event I see happening.

The interval between visions is usually around once a month, sometimes going as long as half a year with no prophetic dreams at all. So when they sporadically pop up, it actually adds some fun excitement to my life. As long as the contents are positive, that is.

For example, if I dreamed that a classmate’s pants would fall down in P.E. class, I could just pretend not to know, or even laugh in anticipation with my hands on my stomach, delighting in both the foreknowledge and the humor of the situation when it happened.

So while burdensome at times, this power isn’t all bad.

But just like in any fictional work about powers like mine, sometimes my prophetic dreams reveal shockingly unpleasant futures. The protagonist struggles desperately to reshape their fate and break out of destiny’s shackles. But I’ve never had thoughts like that.

At least so far, the events in my dreams have unfolded in real life exactly as I dreamed them, without fail. My philosophy is that the future must follow its original course.

But that philosophy may need rethinking after the shockingly disturbing dream that came to me recently. It was so shocking that I bolted upright in bed before my alarm even went off, eyes wide like a scene from a comic book.

“…What was that just now?”

A half-asleep voice rasps out from my throat, strained after yesterday’s vocal training.

Wait, calm down Yu-na. Try to remember exactly what you just saw. You might be confused and your mind played a trick on you.

Yes, that must be it. Yesterday’s intense dance practice overloaded my brain, so I momentarily hallucinated a strange scene.

It doesn’t make any sense. Why would I, Han Yu-na, marry that idiot Park Si-yoon? He’s insensitive, inconsiderate, unwilling to share even a single ice cream cone… Why would I trust my future to a Neanderthal like that?

Deep breaths…calm your mind…

– Honey, I love you.

– hehehe, me too.

“Kyaaah!”

Whoosh. Thud.

The moment the scene from my dream surfaced again, I let out a bloodcurdling scream in the early morning quiet. I grabbed my pillow and hurled it at the wall. As the pillow flopped limply to the floor, my mind cleared a little.

Horrible, just horrible! What was that scene?! Why was that fool blurting out shameless sweet talk without blinking an eye, and why was I, a madwoman, happily receiving it and playing coy?!

Something is definitely wrong with the world. Or if not the world, then something in my head or mind must be off. Otherwise, I’d never dream such an impossible thing.

Slam.

“Yu-na! Why are you screaming so early in the morning! You woke me up!”

Lost in denying reality, I’d forgotten about the aftermath of my scream. My younger sister Yu-jin, who was sleeping in the next room, came barging in to complain. We’re only a year apart, but she never calls me “big sis.” I bet she sold off that privilege. If this was any other day, I’d have dumped water on her by now. Consider yourself lucky today.

“Oh shut it. I’m in a really awful mood so go away and close the door.”

“Who was the one shrieking loud enough to wake the dead first thing in the morning?! How dare you call me out when you’re the one at fault! I wanted to sleep in because it’s School Anniversary day!”

Thud. Thud.

Yu-jin stomped away, slamming the door with enough force to bring down the house.

Oh right, it’s their School Anniversary today. She was calling so sweetly for her angelic big sister earlier. Tch.

“Haaa…”

The ruined late sleep improved my mood for a moment, but once she left, the memories from earlier flooded back, sinking me into worry again.

Just what was that dream? A random nonsense dream? It’s possible but…the issue is, ever since my prophetic dreams started, I’ve never had an ordinary meaningless dream. So whenever I dream, it’s always a prophetic vision.

“And why Si-yoon of all people…?”

I grumbled into my pillow, my voice turning coquettish against my will.

No, the more I think about it, the more unfair it feels. There are so many good men in the world, competent men too. So why, out of all those people, did I have to dream that with Park Si-yoon? Is the world mocking me?

I don’t know. For now, I’ll take a shower to clear my head and think of a way to change this tragic future first and foremost.

It’s just nonsense for someone like me, a perfect high school girl, to marry Park Si-yoon of all people. The gods are sure to recognize this unfair deal and twist the future somehow.

Yes, have hope Yu-na. Move forward.

***

Still shaken by the shocking prophetic dream, I skipped breakfast and shoved down some bread instead before leaving the house. If it was a normal day, I would’ve walked to school with my younger sister who attends a nearby school. But thanks to the blessed School Anniversary, I had to head out alone today.

If I pass through the apartment gate now, Park Si-yoon will be waiting as usual. I don’t know why, but my face heats up just imagining it. How am I supposed to face that fool today?…I’m so worried.

“Hurry up already. Why do you always make me wait?”

“What, why are you here?”

Surprise!

The moment I opened the front door, I came face to face with Park Si-yoon in the hallway and gaped at him. Didn’t he say he was 185cm? Anyway, I always tell him to shrink his unnecessarily tall height because having to look up at him is annoying. But today, I don’t feel annoyed at all.

It’s not just not annoying. When I look up at Park Si-yoon standing in the halo of the hallway light, my face grows hot. No, what am I thinking Yu-na! Get a grip! That’s Park Si-yoon, Park Si-yoon! He’s not a man, he’s an ant crawling around the playground!

Anyway, why is he here? Although we’re next-door neighbors, we’ve always silently agreed to meet at the apartment gate entrance on the way to school. If my memory is correct, this is the first time Si-yoon has ever waited for me in the hallway outside my home.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t dislike him waiting at my house. It just feels oddly unsettling after the strange dream I had. Isn’t it too much of a coincidence that right after, Si-yoon is waiting for me at my door? Is this the gods’ prank?

In contrast to my confusion, Si-yoon regards me with his usual impassive eyes and shrugs his shoulders casually. As always, his cheeky attitude pisses me off.

“Do you have a problem with me waiting outside my own house?”

“No, it’s just…you always wait at the apartment gate. So I wondered why you’re here today.”

His family’s home does face mine across the hallway. But that’s not why I asked! If he’d never done this before, of course I’d be startled by the sudden change! At least try to understand the implication behind my question! As expected, he’s clueless as ever!

After twisting up my insides twice already this morning, I glare at him with sharp eyes, mentally demanding he make up some excuse.

“No particular reason. I just felt like waiting here today.”

“Wha…Huh?”

But I was the one left bewildered by his sudden statement.

He felt like waiting here? What does that mean? Does he just prefer this spot? Or does it mean he wanted to see me a little sooner…?

“Anyway, let’s get going. Where’s Yu-jin?”

After messing with my head, Si-yoon pressed the elevator button and asked about Yu-jin’s whereabouts. Since we always go to school together, he must have found it odd she wasn’t here today.

“Oh, uh…it’s School Anniversary day for her.”

“Ah right, you mentioned that yesterday. Must be nice. When’s our school’s Anniversary celebration?”

Si-yoon smiles jokingly and asks in a sarcastic tone, ‘If we don’t have school on Anniversary day, should we just go to a cafe instead?’ For some reason, his smile looks especially radiant today.

Seriously, what’s wrong with my head? Or am I just hyper-aware of Si-yoon after seeing that future? Like a placebo effect, am I mistakenly seeing this fool as a man because of the awkward fluttering?

“Hey, what are you doing? Aren’t you getting on?”

“Oh, yeah.”

Somehow we’d arrived at the elevator. I follow Si-yoon on as he gestures for me to enter. As the voice announces “1st floor” and I feel my body sink down, I unconsciously glance up at Si-yoon next to me.

I must be going crazy. Me, feeling flutterings for Park Si-yoon? That can’t happen unless I’ve lost my mind.

I hit my cheeks as I step onto the elevator. Si-yoon looks at me strangely, as if wondering what I’m doing. But as always, he seems to dismiss it as another one of my foolish antics. For some reason, that irritates me more.

Ding dong.

We arrive on the 1st floor and exit the elevator. The fresh spring air greets us in the lobby. Just a few days ago, the lingering winter chill made me want to wear a cardigan, but as we move further into mid-April, it seems the weather is finally warming up.

“…Shoot, missed it.”

Unlike me, relishing the morning air, Si-yoon is as usual absorbed in his phone game without appreciating the nice weather at all. Normally I’d also take out my phone and scroll webcomics as we walked, but today my gaze keeps drifting to his profile.

Maybe because of the dream this morning, I can’t help imagining what kind of life would await if we really married. I also become curious about his thoughts on it.

“Hey…Si-yoon.”

Unable to restrain my curiosity, I tentatively call out to him. As expected, his reaction is the same as always. That dismissive gesture and curt tone annoy me, but it can’t be helped. I’m just too curious.

“Uh, if we got married, how do you think it would feel?”

“…What?”

When I finally ask the question, sure enough, Si-yoon looks at me with an expression like ‘What’s she been eating this morning?’ He seems completely incredulous that I would imagine something so preposterous.

Alright, just this once I’ll acknowledge it – that was a really stupid question. Even I think marrying you would be nonsense.