Sora's POV
Thank God I made it to the bank before closing. For once, luck, real, tangible luck, seemed to be on my side. I practically floated while walking towards the plaza, my steps light, my mood lighter.
Halloween decor and warm lights flickered overhead, mixing with the festive sounds of the bazaar early in the evening.
Thanks to Yejin pulling her usual strings, I managed to join a group that has a booth for tarot card readings, just a perfect fit for the occasion. A little magic, a little mystery… and a little extra cash I desperately needed.
I was halfway to the plaza when I spotted a group of children dressed in Halloween costumes, and one kid was bawling his eyes out. I squinted, slowing down, and that's when I saw it: five bigger kids ganging up on three smaller ones over… candies and chocolates. Classic. Humanity at its finest.
Then one of the bigger kids shoved the tiniest one so hard he flew forward, hitting the ground face-first.
"Hey!" I sprinted toward them, heart pounding. I helped the little guy up, wincing when I saw blood drip from his nose.
"Look at what you did!" I snapped, grabbing a tissue from my bag. "Didn't your parents teach you anything about being decent human beings? Bad actions come back to you. Good and bad karma don't skip anyone."
The bigger kids huddled together, whispering. I didn't think anything of it… until I heard it.
"She's cursing us," one of them gasped, eyes wide with terror. "She's the cursed auntie my mom told me about!"
And suddenly, emotional meltdown. Two of them burst into tears.
"I don't want to die like her husbands!"
"My family's gonna get cursed too!"
…What the actual fuck?
How does stopping a fight turn into a full-blown local horror story reenactment?
No matter what I do, no matter how ordinary I try to be… the world already decided what I am.
The cursed auntie.
"I'm not cursing anyone," I said, forcing my voice to stay calm even though my patience was thinning. "I'm just saying what you did was wrong. When you hurt someone, you apologize, and you make sure you don't repeat it."
I gently reached out to wipe the little boy's bleeding nose, and then... he slapped my hand away.
My jaw nearly hit the ground. What in the world...
"Don't touch me!" he sobbed, scrambling back. "I don't want to get your curse! Stay away from us!"
For a second, I forgot how to breathe.
Kids these days… do they even know what they're saying? Or are they just parroting whatever garbage adults feed them?
"Look… I'm not—"
"What is going on here?!"
A woman's voice cut through the chaos. I turned just as she rushed forward, eyes widening when she saw the blood on the boy's face.
"Oh my God! You're bleeding!" she cried, pulling him into her arms.
"Mommy! Waaaah!"
"That woman is the cursed auntie!" one of the bigger kids shouted, like he was announcing the arrival of a demon. And that demon is me.
The mother shot me a look, and I instinctively touched my face.
The mask! The one I had to remove for identity verification at the bank, and stupidly forgot to put back on.
My face was out in the open.
"You!" the mother snapped, stepping between me and her son like I was rabid. "What did you do to my child?!"
"I—I was trying to help him. He fell and—"
"Mama!"
"Papa!"
More adults arrived, a whole crowd of them, kids running into waiting arms as if escaping a crime scene.
I pushed myself to my feet, keeping my movements slow, non-threatening. I held out the tissue toward the boy's mother, my hand steady even though my chest wasn't.
"Here," I said quietly. "You can use this."
But the air had already shifted.
The whispers were already spreading.
And that familiar, heavy feeling, the one I've carried for years, settled on my shoulders again.
Cursed auntie.
Once people decide who you are… even the truth starts sounding like a lie.
*SLAP!*
The sound echoed before the sting even registered. My head snapped to the side, the world tilting for a heartbeat. My palm flew to my cheek, heat and pain flooding beneath my fingers.
"What the hell was that for?!" I snapped, my patience dangling by a thin, fraying thread.
"You did this to my son, you bitch!" the mother shrieked.
Just… wow.
I've been called names.
I've had stones thrown at my windows, curses whispered behind my back, kids vandalizing my gate just for fun, and raw eggs were thrown at my car.
But this?
This was the first time someone actually laid a hand on me because of a stupid, baseless rumor.
"I didn't!" I shot back. "I was helping him." I gestured to the bigger kids, all dramatically clinging to their parents like little Oscar nominees. "They were the ones bullying them!"
And right on cue, as if someone yelled, lights, camera, action!—the bigger kids erupted into synchronized wailing.
Just absolutely perfect. Another beautiful day in my cursed life.
"We did not!" shouted the boy who pushed earlier. "We were just talking about our treats, and that cursed auntie came to us! She cursed us! She said we'll have bad karma, something bad will happen! She wants us punished!"
Liar!
Little Pinocchios!
Gods, what is wrong with this generation?
"I didn't say it like that—AHH!"
Before I could defend myself, fingers tangled in my hair, yanking hard. Pain shot across my scalp.
"What are you doing?! Let me go!" I cried out.
"I'll let go once you take back your curse!" the mother spat, pulling harder.
"But I didn't curse anyone! I don't even know how to put a curse on someone!" I struggled, clawing at her grip, but she was relentless.
"Then maybe we should punish her until she removes whatever curse she put on our families!" someone else shouted.
Then—a kick. Another kick….
And another.
My knees buckled. The ground rushed up to meet me.
I quickly covered my head and face.
Air knocked out of my lungs.
Ribs throbbing.
Skin burning.
It hurts.
God, it hurts.
But not as much as my heart ached.
All I did was try to help a crying boy with a bleeding nose.
That's all.
I didn't even realize the tears streaming down my face were mine until everything went eerily still.
No more yanking.
No more kicking.
Just me, curled on the cold ground, breath trembling.
Then—
"This is assault. And I got it all on video. Should I call the police?"
That voice!!!