BBS (72)

Translator: Wan ED/PR: Personal Ghost

 
 

⟨Chapter 72⟩
 

“Did none of you watch TV? I raked quite a bit of money running events all over the place. But having to make people laugh is an enormous burden, you know? As I kept losing my temper, people around me left one by one, and my popularity also dropped. I was drinking alone at night, when suddenly an angina flared up. There was no one to call an ambulance, so I died.”

“But what has it to do with sprinkling rice?”

“That’s just showmanship.”

“Showmanship?”

“Personal skill.”

“Ah. Ghost’s personal skill.”

The words ‘You really do all sorts of things’ were swallowed.

“Anyway, when I came back to my senses, I became the rice grain ghost. Well, it matched me very well. I get annoyed when I see someone living happily. I especially hate families. I enjoy thinking of their ruin.”

“Anyway, doesn’t uncle-ssi have a last wish?”

“I don’t know. I’ll think about it.”

“Hmm…”

Yu Dan turned his head. His eyes met with the eyes between bamboos.

“Are you going to keep hiding?”

“No.”

A girl with bobby hair stepped out. Putting aside that her face was blue, and her body was transparent here and there, she was a very normal middle-schooler.

“How did you die so young?”

“Aren’t I just a year or two younger from oppa?”

“What does it matter?”

“I was born with a rare disease. I just kept laying in the hospital, so it’s good that I became a ghost. It’s very fun to watch how others live.”

“You’re a strange kid. Anyway, is your wish to meet a singer and get an autograph?”

“Yes. But. After thinking about it, Li Shimin is so popular that it would be difficult even for an exorcist.”

“I’m not an exorcist.”

“Anyway, I changed my wish. It can just be an entertainer. But, it must be an entertainer I saw on TV.”

“Well, okay. Got it.”

Yu Dan looked at the last ghost. The clown doll.

“What is your last wish?”

“There is nothing.”

A lifeless reply came back.

“It was annoying to even breathe, so what wishes could I have?”

“Ah, you committed suicide too?”

The video ghost asked. Everyone looked at her with eyes wide open. Yu Dan asked.

“Why did you commit suicide?”

“I failed SAT. Three times.”

Silence fell again.

“Which university did you want to go to?”

“…”

“Do you want to go there just once?”

“I guess so?”

She replied half-heartedly.

Yu Dan stood up. Luckily, he might have found a clue to begin somewhere. He took the subway right away.

The private university the Video Ghost wanted to go to was quite close. Looking at the university students entering the main gate, majestic like that of a castle, she started to react.

“Now that I think about it, I never came here while I was alive.”

The video ghost entered the university.

At first, she hesitated, checking her surrounding, but after confirming a few times that no one bothered with her, she began sightseeing in the earnest. The banners opposing the tuition raise hanging between trees. Job fair posters. Students busily walking to and from the library building, holding thick books. People gathered on the lawn and were gobbling up Zha Jiang Mian noodles. She looked at all of it with unfamiliar eyes.

“Haa, this is the university, huh?”

Yu Dan and the ghosts followed after her without a word.

After peeking into the buildings, she sat down on the bench. She looked at the coffee someone drunk up and left, and then stood up.

The male and female university students wearing lab coats brushed past her, while laughing and smiling. She looked at their backs. Her disheveled hair peacefully settled down. The outline of the mourning clothes blurred and changed into a white lab coat.

Did that appearance mean she would be able to leave?

Yu Dan opened the book to read the ghost story.

She appeared in front of a poster bulletin. It was very natural, like she was standing there since before. A group of highschool girls looked at her and approached.

“Where is the Student Council building?”

She flinched. But soon, she calmly replied.

“This is the Student Council Building”

“Thank You.”

“Thanks.”

The highschool girls bowed and thanked. They poked themselves, while whispering something, and then one kid shouted:

“See You next year, senior-nim!”

While giggling and hitting themselves on the back, they left. The ghost stared blankly at that sight.

Yu Dan approached.

“How is it to become a university student?”

“Aah…”

She mumbled after a while.

“Nothing much.”

“Yes?”

“Ye. It’s really nothing much. But why did I feel like my entire life was finished because I failed? I should have just let it go and coolly try again.”

She looked at him with a bitter face.

“Now it’s too late, right?”

“Well. Don’t people usually reincarnate? I don’t know much, but I don’t think it will be as bad as the entrance exam.”

“Good. Then I should finish it before the third attempt this time, right?”

She smiled at Yu Dan.

“Don’t live like me. Always live coolly.”

Leaving behind those words, she walked away with lively steps. She mixed among the university students and soon disappeared.

It really wasn’t difficult, huh? As the fox said, they need just a little push on the back, huh?

The other ghosts stated at the place, where she disappeared, without a word. The soul of the comedian abruptly spoke up.

“I suddenly want to go somewhere.”

“Where?”

“There is a woman I got pregnant and abandoned in the past.”

“What?”

Yu Dan was startled. The other ghosts were startled too. The comedian shrunk back right away.

“I know. That’s very wrong. I was immature at that time.”

“How old were you?”

“Thirty eight.”

“Are you joking?”

“Don’t be angry. It’s scary, you know? In fact, I really was scared. I was too scared of having a child.”

“What scary!? Wasn’t that child born because of what uncle-ssi did? I really hate child abandonment! Come here! I’ll just annihilate you!”

“Calm down. I gave them a lot of money instead. I think it was overall hundreds of million. And I gave them an apartment in Gangnam[1].”

“What about a lot of money! The kid doesn’t have a father!”

“Don’t worry about that. She met a much better man than me, and they’re currently raising him together and living well.”

What? Yu Dan looked at the comedian with a new realization.

“You said you abandoned her in the past, so why do you know about their current living conditions so well?”

“They say that even if you stay quiet, you hear the news. Anyway, I think after going there and seeing him, I’ll let things go and leave. Isn’t today Friday? If we go now, we will get there when he finishes the kindergarten English intense class.”

“You hear even such news if you stay quiet?”

The comedian avoided his gaze.

They took the subway and headed to the Gangnam this time. The man guided the way in familiar manner.

“Let’s use exit no. 5. The no. 3 is closer, but there is a large temple in front of it, so it’s a bit ill-favored.”

Yu Dan threw him a sharp gaze.

“As expected, you didn’t come to see him once or twice, did you?”

“Actually, I came to see the kid a few times.”

“A few times?”

“Ah, gracious, you’re so stubborn. Yeah! I saw him quite a bit! But it was just in secret! I didn’t have the courage to speak up or even take a step toward him. But what time is it?”

“One o’clock.”

“That’s too early. We will have to wait thirty minutes. Hey, can you just buy one strawberry juice from the convenience store?”

“Why are you giving me such a look when talking!? I’m going to try to grant your wish anyway!”

Yu Dan bought a strawberry juice, while spitting fire.

The comedian entered the apartment complex and without even looking around, he sat down on a certain bench.

“Then please call me.”

“Got it.”

Yu Dan read the Rice Grain Ghost’s story.

The ghost materialized. At some point throwing away the wig and hanbok, the comedian looked like a goofy, fat middle-aged man.

Yu Dan and the ghosts sat down at the bench and waited.

From time to time, a baby’s mom would pass them with a stroller. They saw a family load a mat and icebox into a trunk, perhaps they were going somewhere. The comedian watched them blankly.

“Why is the car not here yet? They’re late today.”

At forty minutes, a yellow van slowly appeared. The comedian kept clenching and unclenching his fists in nervousness.

A blond, blue-eyed teacher dropped children off one after another. Since they were in the apartment complex, everyone went to their own homes. One child among them caught his eyes. Small and goofy.

The comedian looked at him with a nervous face, and when the kid passed them, he abruptly stood up, in the sign of determination. However, he sat right down.

“As expected, I don’t have the courage.”

“Didn’t you say you were a comedian? You were standing on many stages.”

“That’s different. I’m a very bad bastard.”

Yu Dan quickly jumped and blocked the way of the kid, who was just about to enter the apartment. The kid was startled. His eyes grew big like saucers because of fear.

“Hyung, I was wrong.”

“Jihong-ah.”

The comedian approached. The kid was even more surprised.

“Uncle-ssi, do You know me?”

“Right, I know you. I know all about you. You like strawberries, right?”

The comedian stretched out a bottle of juice towards him. The kid promptly accepted it with an expression of winning a jackpot.

“It’s my first time drinking it!”

“What? Your dad doesn’t buy such things?”

“Yes. He never buys them. He only buys me organic.”

The comedian was pissed to tears.

“Ah, that dude! I’m much richer than your stepdad… I was richer.”

“Uh! It’s a secret that he is a stepdad! I also just pretend not to know!”

The kid’s eyes almost popped out. The comedian was embarrassed and suddenly turned around.

“Is my butt really so big?”

“A little.”

“Hihi. Study hard. Bye.”

The kid tilted his head, tightly grabbed the juice bottle and ran home. The comedian watched the bobbing up and down back of the child like he left his soul behind.

“Coming here now was all useless, right?”

“You should’ve done well when the time was right.”

“You said that.”

He looked at Yu Dan with a bitter face.

“Don’t live like me. You have to treat people at your side well. Then at the very least you won’t beat your chest in regret. That alone means you were successful in life, right?”

“…”

“Bye. And thank you.”

He suddenly disappeared.

Almost at the same time, the kid from a moment ago came out again. The woman with a towel wrapped around her head, who seemed to be a mother, was hurriedly following him.

Aghr, that’s trouble.

Yu Dan grabbed the book of ghost names and hurriedly fled. He didn’t commit any crime. His heart raced at the thought that the kid may recognize him.

After fleeing the apartment complex, he calmed down.

With that, he sent two away, now there were two left. The Gap Ghost and the Doll Ghost. When he met eyes with the girl, she promptly said.

“Being an exorcist is really difficult.”

“How many times do I have to tell you I’m not an exorcist for you to understand?”

“Anyway, I changed my wish.”

“Again?”

“Make me your assistant.”

“Don’t make me laugh. You also have to be sent back.”

But she didn’t listen and asked the doll.

“How did you die?”

“I…”

The clown doll looked gloomy and listless just before. However, he was a bit different from a moment ago. At least he seemed willing to hold a conversation.

“Should I call it a passive suicide?”

“What does that mean?”

When Yu Dan asked, he shrugged.

“That’s actually it. It was on the news. I was a hikikomori.”

“Aah.”

“There was nothing I particularly wanted to do. Even so, I thought I have to get a job, so I applied here and there, but it all failed. Did I spend an entire year like this? One day, I suddenly thought about throwing all of it away. I locked myself in the room and only used computer. My father and hyung gave up on me. At the last stage, my mom gave up too. Perhaps she hated to feed me, she brought me meals once a day, or sometimes once in two days. Things like overcooked noodles…”

“If you were dissatisfied with that, you should have gone cook in person.”

Yu Dan couldn’t stand to listen to it, and spoke up. The girl also chimed in.

“Right. You should’ve been grateful. What mom can unconditionally sacrifice herself? Even my mom was tired of nursing me to the last stage.”

“You said that. Who was the one who locked himself up in the room in the first place? Who broke her heart first?”

“You should know how lucky You were to be healthy. Even if I wanted to go out, I couldn’t.”

When criticisms poured, the doll ghost slumped his head.

“Yeah. You’re right. When I think about it now, I also think I should’ve gone out at that time. However, I didn’t have any energy to do so at the time. Then one day, the computer turned off, I stood up to turn it on again, but I stepped on something and slipped. Blood poured from my head. Somehow, I felt relieved. I thought that once I just die, everyone will be happy, so I just stayed quiet.”

He sighed.

“Everything is annoying. So I guess I have changed into a ghost doll. Because people will be scared even if I just stay quiet. But after wandering around so much today, I abruptly want to see mom just once.”

“Okay. You have to go to apologize. Where is your home?”

“I think she has moved after that. However, I can find her. I feel like I have a map in my head and there is a light that keeps blinking on it. It’s probably in the direction of Nowon District.”

“I’m going to make a full circle around Seoul today.”

Yu Dan got into the subway again.

He said he could find her, but those words weren’t very trustworthy. The hikikomori ghost kept wandering. He kept coming out of the station, only to turn back, he rode a bus, only to walk in the opposite direction. Unlike the comedian, it really appeared like he didn’t visit her even once. He was also tired of the Gap Ghost yapping about what they should do, or worse, will he take her as his assistant.

“How far?”

“We’re almost there.”

The doll that had been repeating it for over two hours, finally found his way. Floating, he took the lead and guided them.

“Here.”

Wasn’t it strange that it wasn’t an apartment or a residential area? The place the hikikomori ghost stopped at was a small hospital. A large name sign ‘sanatorium’ was visible.

The ghost was visibly flustered. He could feel him tremble in shock.
 

*~*~*
 

[1] Gangnam — It’s a very wealthy district.
 

Translator’s note: *has Lewis Capaldi’s ‘Survive’ blasting in their ears as they translate* One more, folks.

 

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