Episode 311
It was a typical day when Ha Seong-yoon was trying to become a better doctor.
“It’s been a while. I haven’t heard from you in a while.”
―Seong Yun-ah.
“…what’s the matter. Is anyone hurt? Help me?”
-Sorry.
“….”
―I’m sorry….
I received a phone call with unknown context from a friend I hadn’t heard from in a while.
“…What on earth?”
The content was so absurd. My parents, who were alive and well, died because of an old classmate I was talking to on the phone. Ha Seong-yoon truly wondered if this guy was suffering from mental illness. I don’t know much about it because it’s not my specialty, but I heard that there is a disease of accepting facts that don’t exist as reality.
But my friend’s voice is too much to treat me like a crazy person…
-I’m really sorry. I’m sorry I didn’t mean to… I’m sorry….
“I’m really sorry, but I don’t understand right now. I spoke with my father on the phone an hour ago, and he was fine. What does this mean when you suddenly call me? “Do you know that this is rude?”
―Seong Yun-ah. Ha Seong-yoon.
“okay.”
-Was that really your parents?
What should I say?
“….”
Damp?
‘…what?’
Cool? dry? Devastated?
The voice, as if mold had grown on water-soaked fur, shook the spirit of the listener. It was a voice that made it impossible to guess what kind of expression the other person was making. Around that time, Ha Seong-yoon realized that whatever the truth, his classmate had gone crazy.
“…I’ll hang up.”
-Sorry.
“I’m busy, let’s talk later.”
I hung up the phone like that, but the strange feeling of discomfort did not go away.
“….”
The young Ha Seong-yoon, who was looking at his cell phone with a frown on his face, sent a text message to his father and mother. The two people didn’t think it was strange at all because they had sent it often, but they laughed and asked why they were sending such a text message when they had only talked on the phone an hour ago.
“…Then that’s right.”
Ha Seong-yoon turned off his cell phone screen when he received a text message from his parents who seemed fine. Thinking that the friend he hadn’t spoken to in a long time must have really gone crazy, he momentarily forgot about the phone call he had been having with his friend.
But that didn’t last long.
“…Seongyoon.”
“…Do we have to go this far?”
That crazy friend had come to my hospital.
“I’m sorry I didn’t answer your phone until now. But it was because I was too busy. I didn’t even want to hear your strange stories. “Hurry back home before you get misunderstood.”
“Monsters live in my house.”
“…Please… I don’t know much about that. You know I’m a surgeon. He’s a beginner who hasn’t even found his place yet. I heard you were waiting in front of the hospital, so I barely made time to come see you. “Let’s just go in now.”
“….”
My friend, who was dazed, nodded.
“…Sorry.”
Ha Seong-yoon’s discomfort rose again because he seemed to be truly sorry.
The unpleasant sensation became more severe as time passed. It would be hard to simply dismiss him as crazy, but aside from saying strange things, his clothes were fine and he was going about his daily life without difficulty. I heard from my classmates that ‘he’s been in a bad mood these days’, but it wasn’t to the point where they said he was crazy.
‘Then why on earth did you say that to me?’
What if there was even just a little bit of truth in those words?
“…What am I thinking…”
It was a ridiculous delusion, but I couldn’t shake it off easily.
This heavy, heavy ominous feeling that bloomed from a small suspicion did not leave Ha Seong-yoon’s mind and eventually led him to head to his parents’ home. He lived at his parents’ home for several months and stayed by his parents’ side.
“Seongyoon, we are glad you came, but isn’t it difficult? “It’s far from work.”
“Still, I’m sure it’s nice to see your son’s face.”
“That’s right. “It’s been a while since we’ve been together, and your mom seems to like it that much.”
“What about your father?”
“It’s no different from me. “It felt like it had been a long time since the whole family was together…”
It was a conversation like any other, but as time passed, I felt a strange sense of discomfort.
“What’s wrong son?”
“…No, I guess I’m tired these days.”
I began to hear subtle sounds as if a wooden doll was moving.
‘Are they auditory hallucinations?’
It was vaguely regular to be called tinnitus, and it seemed like the sound was coming from outside rather than inside my ears. If I listened to that tiny noise, I would soon see a vision that made no sense.
“….”
“Seongyoon?”
“Hands are mother.”
“hand?”
“…No….”
Like seeing a tree pattern reflected in a parent’s hand in the mirror.
“Oh my, my joints are sore these days…”
“Are you okay?”
“Uhm, it hurts a little. “I guess it’s because I’m tired.”
“…Do not work too hard.”
“That’s right.”
The heels you see occasionally have joints that look like those on a doll,
or
something like that.
“…Am I crazy too?”
In the end, Ha Seong-yoon called his friend again.
At that young age, Ha Seong-yoon lost both his parents and the doctor he respected.
* * *
“…Are you okay?”
Ha Seong-yoon answered the tattered patient’s question.
“That’s something I have to ask Jaeheon Lee.”
“I know you may not be able to speak well because you are tired, but I am asking sincerely. “The expression on his face isn’t all that bad.”
“I’m always okay…”
Ha Seong-yoon bit his lip.
“….”
“….”
He, who had been unable to speak for a while, opened his mouth.
“…I’m sorry. I don’t think it’s okay.”
Ha Seong-yoon thought that if his parents were to die, it should be a more proper ending.
A happy ending next to a loving family, or a heroic death that is respected and praised by more people. Otherwise, even if it was a death in a hidden world that was not recognized by people, it had to be an ending that was lost in someone’s gratitude and sadness.
Ha Seong-yoon jumped into this crazy world with the enthusiasm of his youth, and by the time it occurred to him that his dead parents would not like him, Ha Seong-yoon had already become a madman.
“It was too much. I know, I know. “I know it’s ridiculous that I’m only doing this because I’m curious about my parents’ deaths… and because I want to find the person who killed them.”
“If we were on good terms, we could do that.”
“There was no need for me to be forced to go crazy and die in a place like this. But I also had no choice. “At the time, I was so focused that I thought this was the right answer, and although I came to my senses later, I was already crazy at the time… so I couldn’t back down.”
I muttered self-deprecatingly.
“Where can I run away now?”
He became a maniac who killed people with a scalpel when he felt like it. The reason why he, who is disqualified both as a doctor and as a human being, has not committed suicide until now is because he is curious about the deaths of his parents. Also, despite this, I had pride in being a better doctor than others.
“The only way for me to escape is to continue to be a doctor in real life. That’s what sustains me. “It’s not that I don’t have a reason to live, but I felt like I would commit suicide if I didn’t do something like this.”
Lee Jae-heon, who heard the story, frowned and said.
“You’re in no condition to say anything to me, are you? From now on, Ha Seong-yoon, please don’t say anything when I say I want to go out and die. “Because it hurts my pride.”
“I’m surprised there was more pride to be hurt here. “A person who suffered torture, which is the ultimate in human rights violations and insults…”
“So, that’s why you said it wasn’t torture.”
“I have no intention of living like Jaeheon Lee, so please don’t treat me the same way. Even though it looks like this, I worked hard to live a normal life. “I tried my best to become a proper ‘doctor’ while understanding the underworld with my friends.”
Ha Seong-yoon tapped the corner of my mouth with his finger, smiling softly.
“I also learned this smile back then.”
“You really don’t want to say anything to me.”
“No, it’s different. “I…”
he said, rolling his eyes.
“…I’m smiling because I still respect my parents.”
“….”
Lee Jae-heon, who quirked his eyebrows without saying a word, slowly opened his mouth.
“…I wonder what kind of person your friend is.”
“He is a good person. Even if you’re crazy.”
“It’s not common for someone to be crazy but still be a good person. “When can we meet again?”
“I’ll ask about it when I have time.”
“Does Garam Yoon know the story of Seongyoon Ha?”
“….”
Ha Seong-yoon, who was blinking quietly, answered.
“…no.”
“It seemed like you cared for it quite a bit.”
“There are some things you can’t tell me because you love me. I also know very well how Garam views me. “That kid kind of deifies me… a little bit.”
“Huh.”
“I don’t know since when it started like that. But I couldn’t tell my life to a child like that. “It wasn’t a matter of my reputation, it was because I felt like Garam would even admire my crazy behavior.”
“… Well…”
Lee Jae-heon muttered.
“President Yoon looks a lot like Ha Seong-yoon.”
“It wasn’t like that from the beginning. However, the more I meet him, the more he resembles me. I don’t know if it was intentional or not, but a corner of my heart feels cold. Moreover, Garam was already different from ordinary people. “I couldn’t expose a life like this to a child who was trying to be normal.”
Ha Seong-yoon smiled softly and continued.
“Still, I feel relieved because I feel like I’ve made a good friend these days.”
“…Are you talking about Team Leader Woo?”
“Garam liked it a lot. Of course, I’m not saying that other people are lacking, but each person has their own like-minded relationship. Woo Woo-young is a little different from the other survivors…”
“He’s ordinary.”
“Yes, I think I like it even more because of that aspect. Like Jaeheon Lee, I feel at ease because Garam’s world seems to be gradually expanding. I was wondering when I would let him become independent, but if he continues like this, I think he can become a great adult. Fortunately, the.”
Ha Seong-yoon said that and immediately wiped the smile from his face.
“…To get back to the point, I want to go back to reality. “The perverts at Unhak High School are a problem, but I won’t be able to maintain my sanity if I continue to stay here.”
“….”
“I killed someone.”
“…That is….”
“No matter how much the person you said was your former colleague is an attempted murderer who tried to kill Lee Jae-heon, I am still a murderer. A scalpel that was supposed to save people was used as a crime tool. Treatment tools that should always be clean have turned into mere blades.”
Ha Seong-yoon’s hands were shaking a little as he said that.
“I brought this because I knew it would end up like this, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t care. “I didn’t want to kill you, I didn’t want to…”
“I think Ha Seong-yoon needs to get some rest too.”
“You seem tired.”
Ha Seong-yoon muttered.
“All together.”
“….”
That was correct.
“Let’s go back. Anyway, I don’t know any more information, so you’ll have to call In-ho Jeong or Da-hoon and have a conversation. Before that, we need to comfort other survivors. Thankfully, Woo Soo-young worked really hard and had really good subordinates.”
“…That’s true.”
Jaeheon Lee blinked his eyes slowly.
“Good employee.”
Lee Jae-heon, who was muttering like that, suddenly felt a sense of discomfort.
Woo Woo-young was an ordinary and good subordinate.
“….”
Both in reality and in the other world.
(Continued in the next part)
