How to Survive the Horror Novel I Wrote
Chapter 31
We arrived at the cabin in no time.
After parking in a wide clearing and stepping out of the car, I saw a Western-style wooden building standing quietly against the backdrop of the vibrant, autumn-tinted mountain.
It was a building I had never seen before in my life. The sense of déjà vu I had felt in the car seemed to have been a trick of the mind after all. The anxiety that had sprouted in a corner of my heart melted away.
“The caretaker said he had something urgent come up today and had to step out. He won’t be back until tonight, so he said he’d leave the key here.”
Climbing the steps, Ugeum lifted a flowerpot next to the front door and produced a key with a flourish.
As if her motion sickness had vanished, On-dam—who had perked up the moment we got out of the car—bounced up the stairs. Smiling, I followed behind her.
The two-story cabin seemed newly built, with a stylish, sophisticated interior. The furniture looked brand new as well.
We unpacked our things first. But the suitcase Ugeum had brought was monstrously large—big enough for a person to fit inside.
That bag isn’t going to become my coffin, is it?
“Are you immigrating?”
When I asked in utter bewilderment, Ugeum shook his head with a smile.
“Of course not.”
And with that, he opened the suitcase to show me. Inside were all sorts of miscellaneous items.
A bulky camera. Badminton rackets. A mini table tennis set. Various board games like Blue Marble, Halli Galli, and Rummikub. A mat and deck for hwatu. Playing cards. Slime. And so on…
Alongside the variety of entertainment, it was packed to the brim with all kinds of food.
“Oppa, are you a recreation instructor?”
When On-dam teased him with a dumbfounded laugh, Ugeum replied with an amused smirk.
“For today?”
His nonchalantly smiling face seemed to say: I didn’t know what you’d like, so I prepared everything.
My jaw dropped. Of course, Ju Ugeum was a meticulous, calculating character. But I never imagined his setting of being thoroughly prepared and striving for perfection in everything would manifest like this.
But this… Going this far was a bit… much, wasn’t it?
Regardless, thanks to Ugeum, there wasn’t a single dull moment.
We played two-on-one badminton in the open yard in front of the cabin, where On-dam and I suffered a crushing defeat against Ugeum. Returning inside, the three of us played Halli Galli, frantically slamming the silver bell and the backs of each other’s hands. We munched on our favorite snacks while playing Go-Stop and poker—and every single time, Ugeum won.
“Oppa, are you a card sharp?”
That is, until On-dam finally snapped in suspicious outrage.
Right. Ugeum also had a gambler setting. In the rough drafts of the Night Series, there was an episode where he lured out a villain who loved to gamble.
“Me? No way. I was just lucky.”
After On-dam called him out, Ugeum began throwing games on purpose to manage the win-loss ratio. But quick-witted On-dam didn’t let go of her suspicious gaze easily.
As we spent the day playing one thing after another, dusk fell before we knew it, and dinner time arrived.
However, when we got ready to barbecue, there was no charcoal. It was supposed to be provided by the cabin, but with the caretaker away, the charcoal had vanished with him.
Ju Ugeum, ever the perfectionist, looked thoroughly anguished by the oversight.
“I’ll go buy some and be right back.”
Declaring this with a dark, determined look in his eyes, Ugeum brushed aside my protests that we could just cook the meat on the induction stove, and drove off anyway.
Clutching our hungry bellies, On-dam and I sat side by side on the sofa, fiddling with slime to soothe our hunger and boredom.
Amidst that, On-dam spoke up out of the blue.
“Teacher, there’s something I’m curious about.”
“What is it?”
“Why did you take me in?”
“Earlier you said you were grateful I brought you along.”
“Not here. To your house.”
“Ah.”
My mouth closed. She was asking why I had picked her up.
On-dam waited for an answer with a serious look on her face. I didn’t want to brush it off half-heartedly. That would be deceiving this child.
Thinking ’I saw the news about the body on Naegong Mountain and was worried about you running away from home’ was, in truth, merely a surface reason.
But telling her the real reason… meant talking about my miserable childhood. Frankly, I didn’t want to talk about it. I didn’t even want to think about those days.
But this girl had the same wounds as me. Better than anyone else, I knew just how painful, frightening, and lonely it was.
That was why I wanted to comfort her. To tell her she wasn’t alone, and that everything would be okay.
Because I had needed that. Someone who would say those words to me.
I carefully chose my words. Not to rashly poke at On-dam’s wounds, but to gently caress them.
“Because I wanted to save myself.”
“Pardon?”
“I was similar to you. In the past.”
Calmly, I opened up about the old days.
How I was beaten by my Stepfather after my mother remarried; how in the second grade of elementary school I went to the police substation to report it, only for the police to send me right back home; how my nickname throughout my school days was ‘penis fish’; how I was bullied at school because of the abuse; how I was beaten up by bullies and dragged into the Teachers’ Room with them; and so on…
On-dam listened intently to my story, chiming in over shared experiences and getting outraged as if it were her own.
It was a story I had never told anyone except Jung-an, but once the floodgates opened, the memories poured out like a torrent, and I could hardly stop.
In the middle of pouring my heart out as if possessed, I heard a sniffle. When I looked over, On-dam was crying. Huge teardrops welled and rolled from eyes red like a rabbit’s.
Taken aback, I quickly reached out to wipe away her tears.
“Why are you the one crying?”
“Because I feel so bad for you, Teacher. I feel so sorry for you. At least I have my mom.”
Overcome with emotion, On-dam began to sob out loud. A lump rose in my throat as well—feeling both grateful and apologetic toward the child crying for my sake.
I wrapped On-dam in my arms and patted her back. My chest grew warm and damp. The comfort I had meant to give was being given right back to me instead.
On-dam’s crying slowly subsided. Having stopped her tears, On-dam brought up her mother in a wet voice.
“My mom is my guardian angel. She always protects me. She can’t even divorce my dad because of me… But, Teacher, I wish Mom would just get a divorce. I wish she would protect herself a bit instead of only protecting me.”
I had needed a guardian angel too. But in reality, I had none. I had wished my mother would protect me a little, instead of only protecting herself.
Perhaps my thoughts showed on my face, because On-dam read my expression and asked tentatively,
“Why do you think your mom was like that, Teacher?”
I spoke quietly.
“My mother was… a weak person. Someone who needed someone to lean on… and didn’t have the strength to support anyone else.”
Looking at me with pity, On-dam suddenly spoke up spiritedly.
“Teacher. I can’t be a mom to you, but I can be your dongsaeng.”
A chuckle slipped out. Here it was again. Another applicant for sisterhood. Maybe the three of us with Jung-an should go find a peach garden or something later.
“There’s a twelve-year age gap between us. I’m practically your aunt.”
“Who cares? Still, wouldn’t you prefer unnie over aunt?”
“Don’t even dream of calling me unnie.”
Watching On-dam pout, I added,
“Until you graduate.”
“Yes!”
On-dam beamed brightly.
Just then, the sound of a car echoed from outside. Without a word between us, we both got up and headed out. We saw a black SUV parking in the clearing. It was Ugeum’s car as well—the one we had ridden here in.
Watching the car, On-dam said,
“Now I get it.”
“Get what?”
“Ugeum oppa said it before. That he knew why you brought me along.”
“He did? What did he say?”
“He told me to ask you directly. Since it was a sensitive topic.”
Truly a thoughtful man.
Getting out of the car, Ugeum took a cardboard box down from the passenger seat. He seemed to have bought charcoal by the entire box.
Why so much…? He’s not planning to roast a person, is he? I rubbed the goosebumps on my forearms, calming my paranoia.
A short while later, we went out onto the terrace behind the cabin and grilled meat on the barbecue.
Beef, pork, lamb, chicken, and even duck… Even the meat came in every variety. Why did he buy so much when we couldn’t possibly eat it all?
We gave On-dam cola, while Ugeum and I drank beer. Clinking cans with Ugeum gave me a strange sensation. Who could ever understand this feeling of toasting with a character I created?
Amidst the billowing smoke, the cozy chatter naturally drifted toward On-dam.
“On-dam-ah, what do you want to become when you grow up?”
Ugeum asked casually.
“An adult.”
I froze and looked at On-dam. That had been my future dream long ago, too. To become an adult. As quickly and safely as possible.
“You can become an adult just by standing still. Not that, I mean your dream for the future.”
On-dam gave a cynical smile.
“I don’t have anything like that. I have no dreams and no hope.”
I had been the same. Did all abused children lose their dreams and hopes? A bitter taste filled my mouth.
“Guess I asked for nothing.”
Ugeum murmured, looking somewhat sheepish.
On-dam chuckled lightly and asked in return:
“And what about you, oppa? What do you want to be in the future?”