Unruly Son, Grieving Mother

And so, the figure opens the first page of the book. Then, it begins to read from the first line in a gentle—almost soothing voice drastically contrasting its earlier uncanny tone. For some reason, you feel inclined to listen to it, and listen, you do—earnestly.

The pages flutter softly… and the story begins.

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South Korea, 201x.

A relentless fury of clicking sounds can be heard. A boy is repeatedly pressing his filthy fingers with dirty long nails into the letters of the glowing keyboard.

His greasy black hair, brown eyes with dark circles drawn under it and an excessively slouched posture—all glued themselves into the blue screen in harmony.

Until… the teen’s body suddenly detached from the screen with a screeching scream and a loud bang on his wooden desk.

“Fuck!”

“…What do you mean it’s my fault?!” he shouted loudly in a hoarse voice, overwhelmed with anger and frustration, smashing his tightly clenched fist into the desk again.

His chunky hands filled with past bruises and injuries immediately rushed towards the keyboard contaminated with a swarm of dirt, mold and remnants of food all over—inside-out.

The boy’s unsightly fingers violently dug into each and every key his now bloodshot eyes intensely gazed at.

Soon, a loud bang was heard again—but this time, in a different pitch. With the bang, a wide group of keys pressed themselves spontaneously, adding to the loudness of it.

A message suddenly appeared in the screen of the monitor.

Your account has been temporarily suspended for 14 days due to violations of our Code of Conduct, specifically related to…

“Shit! Fuck!! Fuck you!!!” he screamed almost to the top of his lungs in a fury as his blood seemed to boil. A relentless stream of bangs—of both wooden and plastic sound could be heard all over the dark room. Minor bruises formed on his hands, past bruises resurfaced and rectangular keys flew across the desk, some falling to the ground.

Just then, as the sound of screams and bangs rang across his room—into the entirety of the house, the door opened in a swift motion, and an older woman showed herself.

“Kim Do-Hyun! How many times do I have to tell you—” his mother yelled at him to scold him for his havoc, before being interrupted by her own son.

“What?! Shut the hell up!” Do-Hyun shouted as he turned only his head towards her, his voice even rougher and hoarser—his breathing unsteady from the anger that boiled within.

The mother flinched at his violent reply. She was frightened, but she still stood her ground—she tried. And before she could even speak, he took the initiative, turning his obese body and office chair towards her as he stared with a look of pure apathy and indifference.

“Hey. Give me some money to buy a new keyboard,” he said—commanded her in a rough voice that held no regard whatsoever for his dear mother.

The mother mustered up her courage and inhaled quietly, suppressing her fear to the best of her ability, replying in an equally strong voice, “’Hey’?! Is that how to address your mother? I’ve told you many times not to break your own stuff!”

His already ugly and distorted expression somehow worsened at her reply. His entire face glared at her in sheer frustration and rage. Immediately, he stood up from his chair and aggressively walked over to his mother with long, loud steps.

“W-what are you doing?” the mother mumbled almost unconciously, her frail and delicate body trembling with fear as her own son approached her.

“Give me the money!” he shouted directly to her face as his tall body towered over her shorter height.

The mother froze in fear, she looked up to him in silence, utterly terrified.

The silence bothered Do-Hyun, and he began violently pushing her around by her weak, tiny shoulders. He repeated his sentence over and over as the pushes slowly increased in strength.

She was unable to speak. The pain she felt in her feeble body, and the deafening shouts that ringed in her ears all suffocated her.

Until… a strong push sent her flying to the hard, wooden floor in her back with a loud thump. Now, genuinely fearing for her life, she managed to utter.

“A-alright… stop it…” she barely said in a faint voice, averting her gaze to the ground.

“Tch…” he clicked his tongue loudly with a cruel expression that felt completely indifferent to her mother’s pitiful state, before walking back to his chair.

The mother, feeling devastated, slowly stood up from the cold floor and left the room in complete silence.

Shortly after, she returned to the room, grabbing three bills of $10 from her small leather purse, before hiding it away in her pocket.

She carefully approached Do-Hyun as she still shivered, and quietly placed the money on his desk.

When she was about to leave, Do-Hyun quickly turned his head towards her and with a look of contempt he exclaimed, “Only $30?! What the hell am I supposed to buy with this?”

The mother, unable to do anything or to go against his whims, uttered, in a quiet, frightened voice, “I’ll give you more…”, before walking out of the room as she closed the door.

The moment the door closed itself, she pulled out the purse from her pocket, grabbing $15 worth of bills. She then opened the door again, re-entering the room to hand him the extra money.

At Do-Hyun’s desk, only his rough and steamy breaths and the violent typing of keyboard could be heard.

When she carefully placed the money on his desk, he quickly grabbed it, along with the other $30 and stormed off past her, without showing a single hint of gratitude or regret.

With heavy, long steps, he left the house through the main entrance door.

And when the door in the living room shut off with a loud clank… the mother fell down to her knees, and gazing at the family photo that showed two bright, cheerful smiles, tears gently ran down her eyes. Clenching her chest with both hands, she cried, in silence and pain.

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Ah, poor—pitiful lady. All she longed for was to be a good mother. All she wished for was to keep that bright smile in his face.

To bring back the once cheerful child she cherished deeply. But now… it was all broken, shattered—lost.

◆ ━━━━◇◆◇━━━━ ◆

By the time Do-Hyun had returned in a more relaxed mood, with a new mouse and a plastic bag that contained all sorts of fast-food. The mother had finished preparing the dinner that she had paused due to his outburst earlier.

He seemed to be hiding a rectangle shaped item within his pocket, to which the mother hadn’t noticed it.

When he closed the door behind him, the mother said to him in a careful voice as she sat on the dining table, “Do-Hyun, come eat dinner,” she seemed to be mustering up the courage to finish her sentence, after a brief pause, she continued, “I made your favorite—”

Before she could even finish her sentence, he cut her off with a loud and clear, “Don’t want to,” as he coldly walked past her without taking a single glance at her or the warm food she had thoughtfully cooked.

When she heard the loud clank behind him, this time, she surrendered herself and simply picked up the fork, before dropping it in a powerless, weak motion.

The mother was all by herself, even when she had a child—even when she had prepared two meals.

She mindlessly stared at the meal opposite to her, and lowering her head in both sadness and fatigue, she closed her eyes, losing herself in her thoughts—in the memories of the past.

…

3 years ago.

The sun shone gently upon the room, its rays penetrating the wide windows in the corner, giving life to the otherwise dark and gloomy room.

At the centre of the room, cheerful voices could be heard—and they too, gave life to the place. Three silhouettes occupied the wooden chairs at the dining table.

The first was that of a tall and handsome young teen, he had a wide—charming grin on his face as he talked to the other figures in such joy and affection. He grinned like the happiest child on earth.

The second was that of a beautiful woman who appeared to be the boy’s mother. She had a serene and quiet smile on her face as she listened to her child attentively. Every action of hers seemed to be carried out with the utmost grace. And though her smile was faint, she smiled like the happiest mother on earth.

The third and last was that of a tall and vigorous man who was the boy’s father. He had a grin on his face that matched the zest and charm of his son. Playfully laughing from time to time at the boy’s comments, he too, had the face of the happiest father on earth.

As they happily talked with each other, a monotonous beeping sound coming from the rice cooker in the kitchen paused their conversation.

“Looks like the rice’s done! Dad will go get it,” the father said in an eager voice, standing up from his chair.

“I’ll help you out, Dad!” the son said in a cheerful voice as he too quickly stood up from his chair.

“Ahaha! Looks like our Do-Hyun’s already grown into a respectable man!” he praised his precious son, before looking at the mother and asking in a gentle voice, “Right, honey?”

“Of course. He’s our son, after all!” she gently proclaimed in a soft smile.

They both headed towards the rice cooker, and grabbing a few pairs of chopsticks and bowls, they brought back a pile of warm and soft white rice, along with several plates filled up with tasty-looking meals, among them Kimchi as side-dish and Sundubu-Jjigae as the main dish.

The pleasant aroma of all the dishes neatly placed on the wooden table pervaded the room.

“Alright then… let’s dig in!” the father said with a grin, picking up a pair of chopsticks. The other two followed him with a smile on their faces, grabbing a pair as well.

And so…

They enjoyed their meal to the fullest, like the happiest family on earth.

…

Present.

When the pleasant and comfortable meal ended in her reminiscence, as if life itself condemned her—it immediately dragged her back to this harsh reality that she faced… that same dining table from her memory that now felt excruciatingly painful.

When she squinted her eyes from having closed it for long, tears had long formed in her eyes. She quietly whispered to herself in a pained voice.

“Dear…”

And like mourning the death of a child… the grieving mother cried, in silence and pain.

When night came and darkness filled the house, Do-Hyun had left. He was at a cyber café playing games with two of his friends that were around his age.

“Hey, hey! Behind you!” Do-Hyun said loudly to the friend sitting at his right, hastily pressing on the keyboard as he desperately moved the mouse around.

“…Got him!” Baek-Hyeon replied to him after a brief moment of silence as he concentrated on his screen.

“Ah shit! He’s at your left where I died!” Heecheol—who was sitting at Do-Hyun’s left, said in an urgent and frustrated voice.

“Let’s fucking go!!!” Do-Hyun exclaimed in ecstasy as he took off his headset in a rough manner, tossing it at the desk. Heecheol also took his part in the miserable celebration of their meaningless triumph.

But above all, Do-Hyun’s hoarse and loud voice clearly resonated throughout the entire café—that albeit relatively quiet, still had the workers, the owner and a few customers. They all seemed to completely ignore the three unruly boys with a look of disdain, and some of shock.

Shortly after, to everyone’s relief and comfort, they had left the place walking like obvious deliquents. They had left their seats dirty and disordered, except for Baek-Hyeon—who, deserving the bare minimum of admiration, had actually tidied up everything.

When they left the place, they promptly headed towards a dark alley that was located in the vicinity of the café.

The walls stood tall between the relatively tight space of the alley, blocking out most of the already faint light that shone from above.

They reached deeper into the alley, and when they were clearly hidden away from the public’s eyes—the entrance, they immediately leaned their backs against the solid, stone wall, heaving sighs like they had done something meaningful and productive.

“Ahhh… life fucking sucks,” Do-Hyun mumbled to the night sky above, sighing in his hoarse, muffled voice.

“Ey… hurry up and gimme me one,” Heecheol said to him in an equally exhausted voice.

Do-Hyun then reached for his pocket, pulling out the rectangular shaped item he had brought home earlier—a pack of Marlboro Red. He roughly opened the case, pulling out a single stick and handing it to Heecheol.

Heecheol grabbed the cigarette, carefully placing it in his mouth as he said in a genuinely curious voice, “How do ya even buy these every time?”

“Just look at me. Who the hell would think I’m a student?” he answered as he laughed mischievously.

Heecheol laughed as he agreed with him. Do-Hyun then pulled out a lighter from his other pocket and lit up the stick in his mouth.

He immediately coughed a few times as he inhaled the smoke. “Fuck… how strong is this shit…?” he said, the cigarette still in his mouth.

“Man, don’t be a pussy,” Do-Hyun replied in a playful mocking voice as he laughed, before continuing, “I’ve bought the strongest one. You scared or what?”

Heecheol then smirked at him, “Check this out,” he said, before taking a deep breath and inhaling, then exhaling the cigarette over and over with all his strength. He appeared to be taking this lamentable challenge seriously.

He happily decreased his lifespan until he began coughing violently as his head bent to the floor. When the coughs stopped, he began catching his breath. Do-Hyun looked at him with approving small nods and a faint smirk.

“Oh~ Not bad, not bad.”

“Baek-Hyeon, you want to try one? Or you a pussy too?” Do-Hyun’s gaze turned to Baek-Hyeon, who had been watching the entire interaction in silence and indifference.

“Nah, I’m good. Rather than wasting my time with that, how ‘bout we drink now?” he said to Do-Hyun who had somehow already lit up a cigarette and placed it in his mouth. He put down his small bag that he had been carrying on his back and eagerly reached out to it.

The two’s gazes quickly turned to the colorful contents within the black bag. Inside it was two relatively big glass bottles. The first was a vodka and the second was a whiskey.

“Holy shit! Is that actually a vodka?!” Do-Hyun exclaimed, reaching out to grab the white glass bottle with a red tip written “Vodka”.

“I’ve heard of that one before! How the hell did you even get these??” Heecheol exclaimed with an astonished look as he grabbed the remaining rectangular reddish bottle with a deer’s head drawn on it. “This is a whiskey, ain’t it?!” he continued in a loud voice.

“Call it… ‘connections’,” Baek-Hyeon said in a confident, self-inflated voice as he smirked in satisfaction.

He then carefully pulled out three luxurious wine glasses from the bag, handing one to each.

“Fuck… now this is the real deal,” Do-Hyun said, as he grabbed the wine glass, his expression filled with curiosity and excitement.

Shortly after, Baek-Hyeon pulled out the pin of each bottle and they began drinking. Relentlessly gulping from their refined wine glasses that drastically contrasted their barbaric demeanor.

Their initial reactions were that of slight repulsion, even disgust at the overwhelmingly strong taste of alcohol. But as they kept forcing themselves to drink, telling each other that “they felt like proper adults,” their distorted expressions slowly morphed into that of pure ecstasy while their eyes turned blood red and their bodies danced around like mindless beasts.

By the time Do-Hyun had separated from his friends, the sky was darker and it was well into night, but he did not care in the slightest—he never did.

He walked down the empty road with faint lights emitting from the sparse light poles surrounding the street.

Each step of his shook him to the core, his body twirled around like an unstable flag. He barely managed to keep his eyes open as he walked with his gaze glued to the black floor.

But as he walked on the dark road…

A low, screeching noise seemed to follow his back.

Utterly mindless of his surroundings, he simply continued forward, until a splashing sound of liquid, loud enough to alert him resonated in front of him.

A black ink-like puddle had formed on the ground.

Slowly, the unknown substance began ascending from the puddle, forming the sinister shape of a human.

Its silhouette was as dark as the pitch black lighting that surrounded the place.

Do-Hyun slowly stopped his steps, he squinted his eyes with his hand, trying to get a better look at the dark lines that were barely visible in the mist of darkness in front.

“W…w-what…?” he mumbled to himself in a dizzy voice.

Just as his eyes slowly adapted to the darkness around and tried their best to make out the silhouette ahead…

The figure collapsed into the ground, and the puddle quietly rushed towards him with faint splashing sounds.

This time, even with the quiet of the empty street and the night, Do-Hyun hadn’t noticed the sounds that approached him. When the black substance reached his legs…

It disappeared.

Do-Hyun felt a small tingle in his body, but it was briefly overwhelmed by the multitude of raw emotions he was feeling.

When he saw nothing in front of him, he walked past the floor ahead—the black puddle gone without a single trace left.

When he reached his home—somehow. He immediately collapsed on his bed.

…

It was the next day.

The morning light gently caressed the windows, filling the room with its bright rays. The birds were singing as well.

It was a truly beautiful morning. Unworthy of the hideousness that lurked in this house.

With the sunshine, he had woken up on his bed, but in complete silence.

He did not utter a thing—not a yawn, not a sigh. He was motionless—not a stretch, not a twitch.

The only thing he did was to open his eyes, and he did not blink once.

Suddenly…

He abruptly stood up from the bed. Slowly, he walked towards the big floor mirror, with each step like that of a lifeless robot—cold and uncanny.

When he reached the mirror…

The wide glass reflected a disfigured face.

Its eyes wide open, not having blinked yet.

Its sinister smile stretching in an uncanny way across its face.

“It” stared into the mirror with its unfaltering eyes and began touching its face as if to adjust—fix his expression. It moved its fingers in a robotic way, somewhat fixing its lips into a more natural state. Then it blinked—forcefully, until even that became more natural.

And for the first time, as it gazed into the mirror with its soulless eyes, “it” repeated a sentence in a low and monotonous voice that echoed throughout the room.

“I have to be a good son… for my mother...”

…

“I have to be a good son… for my mother...”

◆ ◆ ◆ Author’s Notes ◆ ◆ ◆
- Sundubu-Jjigae: A traditional Korean stew made with uncurdled tofu, vegetables, sometimes meat or seafood, and a spicy broth. It's served boiling hot and often comes with a raw egg cracked in at the end.
- Kimchi: Fermented vegetables, typically cabbage, combined with garlic and seasoning. It is spicy and sour at the same time and is known as the soul of Korean cuisine.
- Cyber café (PC bang): An establishment located throughout Korea meant for playing video games using top-notch laptops. These places are extremely popular among students and gamers.