Inside The Devil | M.yg × P.jm✓

II

It was nearly 6:00 pm when he arrived home. The lights on the house are turned on and giant clouds are gathering ominously above with a slight mist dribbling down the car's window.

Dr. Park got off the driver's seat and turned off the engine. He jingles with the key in his hand whilst he hummed a melody under his breath, walking behind the trunk and grabbing his stuff. In the line of his vision, he thought he saw his neighbor walk out. He turned to his side and spotted Mr. Chou standing by the mailbox.

He smiled at him and raised his hand, bowing his head lightly. The cranky man nodded shortly in return, blowing the smoke through the light fog of mist. Dr. Park had known Mr. Chou for a long time. That great neighbor of his was once his nightmare when he was ten.

It is funny to think about it now, but Dr. Park would not deny that he once thought that Mr. Chou is a murderer. Mr. Chou appeared to be a big guy with his round tummy bumping in front of him, a long silver beard, a black bandana tied on his head invariably, and an eye patch on his left eye. He always has that chemical stick in his mouth, blowing through it as though it's oxygen he can't live without. And he often wears that sullen expression on his face. He looks like a guy who can beat ten bears with each one punch. His voice was deep and powerful which made him look scarier.

As a kid, Dr. Park was afraid of him. Besides his cantankerous appearance, there's a rumor about him going around the town. They said Mr. Chou kidnapped kids, and he grilled them alive, and fed their remains to his pigs. However, it was just a tale made by adults to scare kids and deterrent them from wandering out of the street at night. As he grew more curious about Mr. Chou, he learned that he was just a lonely man with no family.

His wife left him with their two daughters because of his morbid addiction to alcohol. Dr. Park could not help to feel sad for him and his family, but he was just a kid at the time he found out about those realities and he can't do anything about it but wishes for Mr. Chou and his family to gather together again and start a new life. And until now, he still wishes and prays for him.

He couldn't help but sigh, remembering the tragic story of his neighbor.

As Dr. Park stepped his foot onto the doormat, he was struck with the appetizing smell of the kimchi stew simmering on the stove. He quietly went to the living room and left his bag on the couch.

"You're home!" Mrs. Park exclaimed as she took notice of her son. "Yeah, there's not much work in the hospital so I got home early. What are you cooking? Is that some kimchi I'm smelling right there?" He teased as he darted beside his mother. Mrs. Park giggled and picked up the food, and placed them on the table.

"Yeah, I cooked your favorite because I think that you have been skipping meals lately. Look, you're getting skinny!" She rebuked, frowning her brows as she acted mad. Park Jimin pulled a seat in front of the table, beaming.

"I was super busy with my job and stressed all about my patient and those gossips lingering around. So eating is no longer on my list-" Mrs. Park sighed. "That's the thing I feared the most, Chim. When you get drowned out with your work and you neglect your health."

"Alright, I'll leave you here. I still have to fold the laundry. Finish your food, okay?" Mrs. Min said as she took off the apron and placed it on top of the counter. Dr. Park only nodded slightly in response. Mrs. Park walked past him and he heard the footsteps gone into the living room.

He stopped eating and the taste of the food seemed to vanish on his tongue, as a memory of something crossed his head. The file... Right, the file... He kept it under the drawer on top of the cold yellow and white-colored folders. Fidgeting with other people's life has now been always Dr. Park's business — but the truth screams on his dream. They sing like crickets of the lonely mysterious night, waiting to be heard by righteous ears and sentient minds.