Hexed Intention

I wish that girl were dead.

She didn’t deserve a peaceful death. She deserved to die of a terrible disease, to feel her body and mind crumble one agonizing day at a time.

That’s the way it should be.

Yoonmin Seo sat in the back of his tenth grade classroom, glaring at Haein Ju. His pretty classmate sat just ahead of Yoonmin, off to the right. Her long hair gleamed under the classroom lights, and her eyelashes were so long you could rest a piece of pencil lead on them. Her face was small and delicate, like a smoothly rounded apple. When she stood next to others, her tiny features almost seemed to distort the perspective of the viewer. There was an aura of mystery about Haein, with her taut lips and serious gaze. All the kids in their class, or possibly in the entire school, liked Haein.

That fact made Yoonmin seethe with hatred.

They have no idea how malicious she is. Even if I told them, they’d never understand. Yoonmin brought his utility knife down on his eraser. Just die, Haein Ju, die!

The red letters reading “Haein Ju” split under the repeated assault of Yoonmin’s knife.

O Abremelin, God of Shadows, and Madame La Voisin, who consorted with Asmodeus, cast a terrible curse on the wicked Haein Ju. Let her suffer from illness for three years then die in a hideous state, buried in soil swarming with maggots and corpse flies…

A soft voice drifted through the air. “Yoonmin…Yoonmin… look… up…”

The voice did not reach Yoonmin’s ears.

Wait, three years… Is that too much? Yoonmin debated. Hold on, hold on. I take back that last prayer. Let’s make it one year. Yes, just one year.

Just as he finished his prayer, Yoonmin felt a sharp pain on his forehead.

“Ah!” he yelped. Damn it.

Mr. Song, infamous for nagging his students, stood over Yoonmin.

“Yoonmin Seo, how old are you? Are you seriously playing with an eraser instead of getting your textbook out?”

His classmates burst into laughter. He’d forgotten he was currently in Korean class.

Damn it, calling a sacred black magic ritual “playing with an eraser!”

Behind Mr. Song, Yoonmin could see Haein staring at him blankly. That face again, that annoying face! What is she thinking? Is she mocking me? Do I look pathetic? One year isn’t enough. It has to be three years. No, let’s make it five years!

“Do you think good grades excuse that kind of attitude?” Mr. Song continued. “Mindset comes before grades! I’ll see you in the teacher’s office after class.”

Yoonmin gritted his teeth.

Haein Ju, this is all your fault.

***

The bell rang, signaling the end of morning classes. A herd of boys shot out the classroom door like colts with their tails on fire. The girls formed smaller groups and made their way into the corridor at a decidedly slower pace. Yoonmin didn’t bother to get up from his seat. If he went to the cafeteria now, there would be far too many people and nowhere to sit. Even if there were seats, he still wouldn’t be able to sit down. The cafeteria tables sat six. If he tried to sit at a table alone, larger groups of friends would shoot him dirty looks, as if his existence was taking up too much space.They might even outright ask him to leave so they could have his table. Even worse, they may sit anyway and pretend he wasn’t there: an unbearably awkward way to spend his lunch period.

High schoolers had a pack mentality. Everyone attached themselves to a friend group, and those who didn’t were ostracized. Yoonmin was one of those lone wolves, always pushed to the outskirts of school society.

The behavior of his schoolmates baffled Yoonmin. There were likely plenty of kids who weren’t even close with the people they spent their time with, yet they remained. There was always one person at the center of each group that acted as the Sun, pulling their planetary friends toward them. Then there were those who lingered at the edges, likely just afraid of being alone, and reduced to watching their Sun’s every move. It was pathetic. They were so scared of being alone that they would mindlessly wander along behind any group that would have them. What was so wrong with being alone?

After all, weren’t independent people more mature than those constantly trailing after others? Needing others around them to perform basic tasks like eating, going to the bathroom, or having fun—doesn't that just show how immature they are?

Good, great rationalization of myself. Yes, yes, that's right. I'm a mature person, and that’s why I’m fine on my own. Yes.

Yoonmin nodded slightly to himself, satisfied with the outcome of his mental debate, and grabbed a book from his backpack. Printed across the cover was The History of Occultism, Sorcery, and Magic. Admittedly, the title sounded ridiculous, but in actuality, it was a serious, academic text. The curse he’d been working over his eraser was nowhere near complete. He still needed to study the principles and concepts behind curses in general before he would be fully prepared to bring down that malevolent Haein Ju.

He was deeply engrossed in his studies when someone spoke.

“Yoonmin. Yoonmin Seo.”

Yoonmin raised his head, a frown tugging at the corners of his mouth as he realized who it was.

“Aren’t you going to eat?”

It was Haein Ju. But it wasn’t just Haein. Behind her were five of the most popular girls in the school, members of Haein’s little lunch clique. Each one of them was staring at Yoonmin with open dislike, wearing expressions that said, “Why is Haein talking to someone like him? Disgusting.”

“I’m not hungry,” Yoonmin muttered.

“...I see.”

With that, Haein simply turned her back on him. She and her five friends shoved their desks together and settled in to chat.

Are you happy, Haein? Are you happy, damn it?

Yoonmin lowered his head again. His face felt hot. Shit, he had just finished justifying his isolation to himself, only to have the school queen bees’ stares tear it all down. Not a single one of them was an outsider—each one of them was exceptional.

Why had Haein spoken to him? The answer was obvious to Yoonmin. She wanted to remind him of her superiority.

“See who I hang out with? I’ve become part of a group. I’ve made friends with these incredible girls. But what about you? Sitting alone in a corner, reading some creepy book. Pathetic. How long are you going to stay like that?”

That was probably what she was thinking. Anyone else listening in on his thoughts might think Yoonmin was paranoid. Not at all. Haein was just that kind of person, even if Yoonmin was the only one in the school who knew her true nature.

If someone said Haein used to be a loser like him, no one would believe it now. But it was true. The beautiful Haein was once an outcast, no better than Yoonmin.

Haein transferred to Seorim Middle School in her second year and ended up in the same class as Yoonmin. At first, she got a lot of attention. Everyone wanted to talk to the stunning, doll-like new student. But Haein’s response quickly killed any interest her looks attracted.

She would look terrified and even cry in class. To make matters worse, she never spoke, not even a word. It was enough to make anyone second-guess their efforts to befriend the new girl. Even Yoonmin didn’t bother talking to her, even though she sat right next to him.

Haein was always alone. She ate alone, and went home alone... until she became friends with Yoonmin. It happened by complete coincidence. Haein dropped her notebook and Yoonmin picked it up. While trying to smooth out the crumpled pages, he saw what was written inside.

“Why did the gingerbread man go to the doctor? Because he was feeling crummy!” Yoonmin read aloud.

“Oh,” Haein said, going red.

“What’s a vampire’s favorite fruit?” Yoonmin continued, unable to stop himself.“A blood orange! Oh my.”

“No…” Haein whispered. “Please… don’t read it out loud…”

Come to think of it, Haein was always scribbling in her notebook during breaks. Yoonmin had thought she was writing poetry or something... but she had been writing bad jokes instead.

“What kind of clothes do clouds wear? Thunderwear?” Yoonmin snorted. “That’s kinda funny,”

“Oh… really?” Haein laughed. It was the first time Yoonmin had seen her smile.

Haein and Yoonmin grew close in the days that followed. They once got caught by a teacher passing notes in class.

“You two back there, what’s so funny?” the teacher demanded, snatching the note away.“Why don’t skeletons fight each other? Because they don’t have the guts… What? What are you two… doing?’”

Yoonmin and Haein ate lunch and walked home together each day. They were friends, right? But Yoonmin later realized; he was the only one who thought they were friends.

He had trusted Haein, but she had betrayed him. She used him as a stepping stone to propel herself up the social ladder. She achieved the status of a popular girl, denying their friendship over and over, just as Peter denied Jesus three times before the crucifixion.

“Oh, no. I’m not close with Yoonmin. We just sit next to each other.”

Yoonmin had heard her say it loud and clear. He tried to think of other reasons she might be saying something so cruel, other interpretations, but no matter how he thought about it, her meaning was apparent. They weren’t friends.

In their third year of middle school and even after they became high schoolers, Haein continued to ignore Yoonmin. She pretended that she’d never even met him. Yoonmin knew what her actions meant. He wished he were either too dumb to understand or smart enough to have seen it coming from the start.

To Haein, Yoonmin was worth nothing. To her, the popular crowd she gossiped with about TV shows, celebrities, makeup, and fashion was far more valuable than Yoonmin had ever been. The occult books he lent her and the horror movies they watched together... She probably never enjoyed them to begin with. The times they spent coming up with lame jokes together? Just a way to kill time.

Yeah, I knew. I knew I wasn’t an exciting person. I knew how others saw me. But you could’ve just left me alone. You should have left me alone. Why did you pretend to be my friend? Why did you ask me to eat with you? To walk home together? Were you bored? Were you lonely? If that was the case, how could you abandon me, knowing how it feels to be lonely?

Yoonmin’s spiraling thoughts made it nearly impossible to focus on his book. He hadn’t even managed to get through two pages and now, there were only 15 minutes left of lunchtime. He wouldn’t be able to eat today.

Forget it, I wasn’t hungry anyway.

But then, it happened.

“Hey… you know…” Haein said, moving toward him.

Why does she keep bothering me?

Yoonmin wished Haein could feel his hatred. Saying it out loud would only cause trouble with Haein’s friends.

Yes, Haein’s “friends.”

“I have an energy bar…” She hesitated. “Do you want it?”

Yoonmin shook his head, pressing his lips tightly together against the deluge of curses he wanted to unleash against her.“Not hungry,” he said instead.

Die, Haein Ju. Just die already.

***

There are people who cringe and shake their heads in disapproval at the mere mention of black magic. Yet black magic also has its own significance in cultures across the world. The act of cursing someone was a widespread practice until the early 20th century. Even in modern times, some people go to shamans in search of retribution against those who wronged them.

There are two fundamental laws in black magic: the Law of Similarity and the Law of Contagion. The Law of Similarity holds that, if you perform an action on something that shares attributes with the target, the action will affect the target as well, like a voodoo doll. The Law of Contagion states that, if you perform an action on a part of the target or something that has been in contact with the target, the effect will also reach the target.

The method Yoonmin intended to use was the Law of Contagion. He planned to obtain a piece of Haein’s body, or something that had been in close contact with her in order to place his curse upon her. When it was his day to be the teacher’s assistant, he would have the perfect opportunity to obtain what he needed.

After sending the other students ahead, Yoonmin moved to inspect Haein’s desk. Her drawer was stuffed with textbooks and workbooks. No notebook? That joke notebook... Well, she probably didn’t need it anymore. She was never truly interested in that kind of thing to begin with.

Isn’t there anything? he thought desperately. Like a strand of hair or something?

Yoonmin glanced at the floor around Haein’s desk. It occurred to him that he probably looked like some kind of pervert, digging around in Haein’s desk, alone in an empty classroom. Of course, that wasn’t the case. He just wanted to cast a curse on her. Still, trying to explain that wouldn’t help. He had to finish quickly.

Luckily, it took less than 10 minutes for Yoonmin to find something. He picked up a crescent-shaped fragment of fingernail that had been lying near the leg of Haein’s chair. She had an anxious habit of biting her nails whenever she was stressed. There had been a pop quiz in math today, clearly triggering her nerves. She was terrible at math.

I’ll cast the most painful curse I can find, Yoonmin thought viciously.

He wrapped Haein’s nail in a tissue, sealed it in a ziplock bag, and grabbed his backpack. He was able to escape the classroom unnoticed. Everything seemed to be going smoothly.

But of course, it couldn’t stay that way. Nothing in Yoonmin’s life ever went smoothly. He scowled when he spotted Haein standing by the school gate.

“Oh… Yoonmin,” Haein called.

Yoonmin didn’t bother to respond, but Haein grabbed his wrist.

“Can we… talk for a minute?” she asked.

She’s gotten good at talking now, huh? Must be from hanging out with the popular kids.

There was no one around to reprimand him, so Yoonmin shook her hand off and spat, “Screw off.”