The living room of the Sentalos family looked more like a battlefield than a cozy home. Empty snack bags, soda cans, and crumpled tissues lay scattered everywhere, evidence of the hours Terra, Layla, and Tobas had spent debating and despairing over their curses.

“We’ve tried everything,” Terra muttered, flopping face-first into the couch cushion. “We begged my dad, we threatened him, we even asked him with puppy eyes.”

Layla nodded solemnly, munching on what was left of her chips. “Yeah. And all he did was sip tea like he was starring in some stupid commercial and say, ‘Oh, curses aren’t that bad, they build character.’”

Tobas clutched his chest dramatically. “Build character? Look at me! I sneezed this morning, and three pigeons landed on my windowsill like I was some tragic anime heroine. The neighbors clapped. I’ve lost my dignity, Terra!”

Before Terra could reply, a calm voice cut through the chaos.
It was her mother, Mrs. Sentalos, who had been quietly folding laundry in the corner.

“You three really are hopeless,” she sighed, setting down the clothes. “Don’t you realize? There’s only one way to find someone who can break your curses.”

The trio sat up in unison, eyes sparkling with desperate hope.
“HOW?!”

Mrs. Sentalos crossed her arms. “You must curse them.”

The room fell silent.

“…Excuse me, what?” Layla blinked.

Mrs. Sentalos explained patiently, like she was teaching three particularly dumb goldfish:
“The one who can break curses is immune. If you curse them, nothing happens. They don’t suffer, don’t fall ill, don’t even flinch. That’s how you’ll know who they are.”

Terra’s jaw dropped. Tobas gasped like someone had spoiled the ending of his favorite K-drama. Layla just stared.

“So let me get this straight,” Terra said slowly, rubbing her temples. “We have to… curse random people… out of eight billion… just to find ONE who doesn’t react?”

Mrs. Sentalos nodded. “Exactly.”

Layla burst out laughing. “HAHAHA! That’s not a plan, that’s a death sentence! At this rate, we’ll all die of old age before we find anyone!”

Tobas fell to his knees. “It’s hopeless! We’re doomed to live forever as tragic background characters in our own lives!”

For a moment, the three of them sat in stunned silence. Then, because there was nothing else to do, they cried.
Ugly, loud, snot-dripping tears.

“WHYYYYY?” Terra wailed, face red and puffy.
“I JUST WANTED TO HAVE A NORMAL LIFE!” Tobas sobbed, shaking his fist at the ceiling.
Layla wiped her nose with her sleeve and sniffled, “I haven’t even had my first kiss yet, and I already sound like a grandma!”

But just as suddenly as the tears came, they stopped.

Terra stood up, fists clenched. “No. We can’t give up. We’ll find this curse-breaker. Even if it takes years. Even if we have to curse half the world.”

Layla’s eyes lit up. “Yeah. We’ll make it an adventure. A mission.”
Tobas sniffled, wiping his tears dramatically. “A tragic yet noble quest… very fitting for me.”

They looked at each other, fire burning in their eyes. For the first time, they felt ready.

And then—

“Oi, Terra!”

The voice came from outside. The three froze. Slowly, they turned toward the window.

Standing at the fence was Mr. Tallo, their nosy neighbor. The man was in his fifties, wore sandals with socks, and always smelled faintly of barbecue smoke. He leaned against the fence with a smug grin.

“So,” Mr. Tallo drawled. “Almost eighteen, huh? And still no boyfriend?”

Terra’s face darkened.

Mr. Tallo chuckled, shaking his head. “At this rate, kid, by the time you go on your first date, the guy will already have grandkids. Maybe even great-grandkids! HAHAHA!”

Layla gasped. Tobas covered his mouth. Terra’s eye twitched.

“Say that again,” she whispered, trembling with rage.

“Oh, don’t be mad!” Mr. Tallo smirked. “It’s just funny, is all. You’re practically destined to be the town’s—”

“ENOUGH!” Terra roared, her voice crackling with cursed energy. She pointed at him like a judge passing sentence.
“I CURSE YOU! From 8 PM onward, every single day—you will desperately need to poop. And when you do, there will be no toilet paper. No water. No help. Nothing but your own suffering!”

The air trembled. A pulse of cursed energy shot toward Mr. Tallo.

Layla and Tobas clutched each other, horrified. “TERRA! That’s—That’s pure evil!”

But Mr. Tallo… just laughed.

“Heh. That’s it? Oh, kid. You think that scares me?” He slapped his belly and wheezed with laughter. “You young folks don’t know real suffering until you’ve used a public restroom at a gas station! HAHAHA!”

And with that, he walked away whistling, as if Terra hadn’t cursed him at all.

The trio stared after him, dumbfounded.

“Did… did that just happen?” Tobas whispered.

Terra’s hands shook. She pulled out her notebook and scribbled furiously. “Neighbor cursed. Time of curse: 20:00. Condition: bathroom-related. Reaction: none. Status: POSSIBLE IMMUNE.”

Layla blinked. Then she leaned back on the couch, grinning wickedly. “Well. Should I go buy every roll of toilet paper in the neighborhood, just in case?”

Tobas nearly fell off his chair. “LAYLA!”

“What?” she shrugged innocently. “If he actually IS cursed, it’ll be hilarious. If he’s immune… well, then we might’ve just found our guy.”

Terra buried her face in her hands. “This is insane. My life has turned into a toilet paper prophecy.”

Layla smirked, then leaned closer, her voice softer. “Hey, Terra. Even if you don’t find the curse-breaker until you’re eighty, even if your first date happens when you’re old and wrinkly, I’ll still love you.”

The room went quiet. Tobas’s jaw dropped.

“…Wait, what?”

Terra’s cheeks flamed. “L-Layla! Why do you always say stuff like that out loud?!”

Layla winked. “Because I can’t help it. Blame the curse. But hey… it’s still true.”

Tobas covered his face with both hands. “Dear god, I’m trapped in a romantic comedy written by Satan.”

Outside, Mr. Tallo could be heard humming as he watered his plants, completely unaware—or completely unbothered—by the curse Terra had thrown his way.

And inside the Sentalos household, three cursed teenagers sat together, laughing through their tears, unsure if they had just taken their first real step toward breaking the curse… or their first step into absolute chaos.