"Do you feel better?"
"Y-Yes! I feel very good."
"Alright, I'll give you another prescription."
A young doctor was typing rapidly on the keyboard, his focused gaze fixed on the computer screen. Anyone who saw him would think he wasn't just a skilled physician but also undeniably handsome.
"Done." He exhaled deeply, then glanced at a nearby printer.
Rustle. Rustle. Rustle.
A medical order slid out slowly. The young doctor took it with a weary sigh and examined it carefully, hoping no mistakes had slipped through.
Once finished, he looked back at his patient.
The boy looked fragile—thin, unsteady, standing on trembling legs.
So unlucky.
The poor boy had a severe condition: lung cancer that had already spread to his brain. His fate was sealed, though the end wouldn't come quickly—just eventually.
"Here. This is yours," the doctor said, forcing a faint smile as he handed it over.
The patient returned a weak smile.
"T-Thank you very much…"
He took the paper and tucked it into his pocket.
But then, he spoke again.
"D-Doctor… did you read my novel yet? A-And... could you give me your thoughts on it?"
The doctor scratched his head awkwardly. Clearly uncomfortable. He didn't answer—lying wasn't his strong suit.
"Y-You still haven't read it!" The patient's face began to twist.
"D-Doctor! W-Why?!"
Silence fell between them.
Suddenly, the boy grabbed a nearby IV pole and smashed it against the glass divider between rooms.
Crash.
Shards flew everywhere, and the doctor jumped back in alarm.
Fortunately, his long sleeves had shielded him. Otherwise, he would've been cut for sure.
He lowered his arm from his face, only to find the patient glaring at him like a demon.
The young doctor swallowed hard and cursed silently.
"I wasn't trained for this shit."
Then came the scream.
"FUCK YOU! Why didn't you read it? I'LL KILL YOU!"
In an instant, the boy lunged forward and grabbed the doctor's neck through the broken glass.
"Aahh…"
"G-Guards! N-Nurse! Anyone?!"
But then the doctor realized something—
"Shit… I forgot where I am."
He tried to fight back, but the grip was too strong.
'I-Impossible!'
The boy was all skin and bones—how was he this strong?
'Die! Die! Die!'
The patient's crazed eyes burned as he slammed the doctor's head into the floor again and again.
The doctor, helpless, looked like a cat mauled by a rat.
"It hurts!" he groaned.
Everything around him started to blur. His chest burned—he couldn't breathe.
"If I knew it'd be like this, I never would've taken this job."
"If I survive this, I swear I'm quitting."
"Damn it."
Then—nothing.
Darkness took over.
But the boy wasn't done. His fury kept pouring out, beating and choking with no pause—until a thunderous voice shattered the room:
"You lunatic! What the hell are you doing to my son?!"
***
"Aahhhh!"
A loud sound suddenly erupted throughout the small room. It was sharp, angry, and unbearable. The noise echoed again and again until—
Slap! Slap! Slap!
"STOP! Don't shout anymore! You're fine now!"
An old man, his face twisted with rage, was slapping the young doctor's face repeatedly. And he did it again.
"N-No!" The young doctor tried to resist, but all his efforts were in vain—until the old man realized the madness of his actions and finally stopped.
"Oops! Sorry, son! I'm just… too old."
The doctor slowly rolled his eyes, trying to regain his senses. He struggled to get up from the shabby hospital bed where he had been lying. Everything in front of him was gradually becoming clear.
"Mr. Guard! What are you doing here?"
As the young doctor looked at the man, he began to piece together what had happened. Yet one thing still puzzled him.
The old guard hadn't worked at this worn-out hospital for a long time. Basically, the place had so few patients that old guards could show up anytime if they wanted to work without pay.
But this old guard had said he wouldn't be coming anymore.
He was going to enjoy his retirement.
"Oh, nothing. I just wanted to give this to you."
The old guard smiled and handed over a cake.
"Cake?" the young doctor said in surprise, but still took it.
After all, refusing a gift was rude. Besides, this old guard had helped a lot in the past.
"Eat it!" the old man urged.
"Uh, okay." The young doctor sighed, then took a bite.
Suddenly, the sweetness covered his tongue. It made him freeze.
"Amazing!" he exclaimed.
"Hehehe… So, what do you think about marrying my daughter? The cake's from her," the guard puffed out his chest proudly.
The young doctor sighed again.
"Haizz! I'll think about it."
Turned out, the old guard had come just for this, but in doing so, he'd also saved the doctor's life.
As the doctor reflected on this, his expression turned serious. He suddenly remembered the patient.
He quickly looked around, worried, searching for anything related to that lunatic.
"Don't worry. He's been restrained to a hospital bed nearby," the guard reassured him.
Then, he leaned closer and asked, "But more importantly, why did that patient act like that?"
A few seconds passed.
The young doctor let out a deep sigh and replied in a bored voice, "He asked me if I'd read his novel yet."
Hearing this, the old guard chuckled softly. He walked to a chair, settled in, and fixed his gaze on the doctor.
"Well, that makes it simple."
"You just need to read it."
Hours later, things calmed down. The patient had taken a few pills and was in deep sleep. However, later, he resisted with incredible strength.
After that, the old guard took over the night shift. The young doctor really needed rest.
Finally, he could sleep without worrying about that damn patient. Yet, he still read the patient's novel—he didn't want his neck gripped again.
Once was enough.
—
"This is such shit!" the doctor shouted in anger. "Why did I waste hours on this garbage?"
He threw the book into the trash bin in the corner of his bedroom. Then, he sighed and stood up from his chair.
"This time, I'm going home."
He slowly took off his hospital blouse and tossed it on the table.
Anyway, he was a messy person. Swift action was always his thing.
He reached the door and opened it.
Creak.
He glanced back at the room one last time and muttered with frozen eyes:
"Goodbye… forever!"
Creak!
On a remote path in a big village, the surroundings were filled with rice fields on the right and a long river on the left. The surface of the water reflected the large half-moon. And beside it—another shadow.
A human shadow.
"Fuck! I had to quit my job just because of that lunatic," the young doctor cursed while driving his motorbike.
"I guess the guy's brain was eaten by cancer cells or something."
Actually, the main reason he quit the hospital was his inability to lie.
Everything would've been simpler if he could.
He only needed to say: "Yeah! I read it. It's good. You'll be famous someday."
But that was something he just couldn't do.
If he wanted love from others, he had to be able to lie.
That was why he ended up in this remote place.
Yet, things weren't as simple as he thought. If he went back to the hospital now, his neck might be gripped again.
"Maybe it's my damn genes," he muttered. After venting all his anger through swearing, he calmed his breathing.
He took a deep breath and thought:
"Maybe… I'll agree to Mr. Guard's request."
"I'm not young anymore…N-No, I'm still young!"
Blink.
Blink.
Blink.
…
"Motherf*er! Fucking headlight!"
"Go on!"
The young doctor shouted angrily when the headlight of his motorbike stopped working.
"What the hell!"
"I paid 3,000 dollars for this thing? I'm going to sue that damn Honda company!"
He sighed again, glanced ahead at the road, and tried to widen his eyes.
"Too dark."
Everything in front of him blurred. He couldn't make out anything clearly anymore. It felt like he was riding through endless darkness.
"No way…"He looked up and was stunned.
"The clouds swallowed the moon!"
"My luck is absolute shit!"
Suddenly, a cold wind hit his body.
"Freezing! This is getting creepy…"
By now, the scene felt like something out of a horror story. It truly made his hair stand on end.
"Come on! I'm already 25. I'm not a child!"
The young doctor tried to reassure himself, clinging to his age for comfort. But his trembling body betrayed his words.
A few seconds passed, and his face grew increasingly stiff. He finally admitted what he'd been avoiding.
He was scared of ghosts.
He began to speak, his voice shaking.
"M-My motorbike! I'm begging you! Please, turn the light back on!"
"I swear I won't sell you for anyone or smash you into pieces!"
It seemed the motorbike heard his desperate plea. The headlight began to flicker.
Blink.
"Hahaha! I knew you'd work!"
Blink.
Suddenly, the path ahead lit up. He could see again.
Light.
"Aahhhhhhh!"
The young doctor screamed as a white figure appeared out of nowhere, sending his heart into a frenzy.
Instinctively, he swerved the motorbike left, trying to dodge the terrifying shape.
Unfortunately, the left side of the path led straight into a long, deep river.
Boom!
…
Over time, the river grew still again.
As if nothing had happened.