It wasn't that I didn't reply
While eating dinner, another stranger messaged me. The chat I deleted was waiting for me on another screen the next day.
When someone she met online pressured Jimin to reply and threatened to share their private conversations, the anxiety that didn't end when she closed the screen followed her to the dinner table and into class the next day.
During dinner, Jimin gets messages from someone she met online, urging her to reply. Even after she deletes the chat, the same pressure returns through another account. After hearing her counselor's questions, she finally says what she has kept inside in front of a friend the next day.
Because I’m afraid it will spread if I don’t reply
Rather than rushing to reply, it’s okay to check on your safety first when the pressure keeps coming.
As we talk about what to protect first in a situation like this, you’ll gradually see one safe step you can take now.
Even after deleting the messages, I can't stop thinking about the hand that turned the screen back on. It seems less like that hand was choosing a reply and more like it was holding on so it wouldn't lose track of what happened. What do you want to look at first on that screen?
Scenes
- 01 · A New Notification at Dinner A New Notification at Dinner — The message from someone she met online urges Jimin to reply and says they will show others what she believed was a private conversation between the two of them. Jimin: Do I have to reply now?
- 02 · The Screen After Deleting It The Screen After Deleting It — Jimin deleted last night's chat. Yet before falling asleep, and again after waking in the morning, she opened the deleted chat room to look at it. Suho: Why did you turn the screen back on after deleting it?
- 03 · The Same Words the Next Day The Same Words the Next Day — The other person appeared again through a different account. This time, part of the conversation with Jimin was included in a message sent to Daon. Jimin: This came to you? Daon: Yeah. Someone you know?
- 04 · The Words That Finally Burst Out The Words That Finally Burst Out — Jimin wasn't simply someone who kept putting off replying. She couldn't leave the screen all day because she didn't know what else the other person might reveal if she didn't answer. Jimin: It wasn't that I didn't reply. I couldn't. Daon: Why are you saying that only now?
Stories by Suho
- Suho
- On the first night, should I open the door when someone says we have a mutual friend?
- Every lunch break, when I’m alone, I want to know who they really are.
- I used someone I knew as a go-between at the supermarket.
- Even after the family gathering, those words are still online.
- Someone I hadn’t heard from in a long time got in touch, and now I need to gather traces of the altered photos spreading.
- They keep offering me gifts even after I said no
- I want to wait before replying to my online friend
- As I get ready for work, that nickname comes back to me.