September 23, 2018
 

Jin’s POV
 

                The lock clicked shut to a small turn of the key. Upon release, it dropped onto the chains that sealed the doors. Rattling against each other, the metals created a somber chime of emptiness and despair. Inside, the room was dark. The chairs and tables were perfectly paired, waiting for someone to come and sit at them–but that wasn’t going to happen for a while. Sighing, I turned my back to the bakery to avoid feeling worse. Watching families of all sizes scurry into cabs and buses with hefty bags and suitcases made it seem like we were running from war. Hell, it might as well have been a war. Seoul was only as lively and youthful as the people made it; now that it was emptying, the atmosphere became unbearably lonely.

                Lucifer whined, curiously tilting his head at me as if questioning why we weren’t on the road yet. He was only a dog but yet seemed to have a bigger sense of responsibility than his owner, who was still caught up in his inability to let go of the city he grew up in and the girl he was in love with. As the sky darkened into a somber blue, I forced myself to come to terms with not finding Jisoo. She was a smart woman–given these circumstances, she probably already left rather than foolishly trying to buy time in hopes of seeing me again. Patting him on the head, I tightened my grasp on Lucifer’s leash and beckoned, “Alright alright, c’mon boy, let’s go. Mr Nahm is waiting for us."

                From a block away, a sea of people spilled from outside in–everyone pushing and shoving through the tiny gates to enter the the subway station. Mr. Nahm agreed to meet me at the flagpole in the front so we could avoid the crowds until we found each other. Following the majestic South Korean Flag waving in the wind, Mr. Nahm and I soon came to an intersection.

                “Hey,” he shouted over the thousands of murmuring conversations, “You got everything?” I nodded in affirmation as we started our merge into the flocks. After an hour of weaving through countless people, we were finally able to purchase our tickets and find seats on a bench next to a sleeping homeless man. Lucifer sniffed at him then sneezed in surprise.

                We sat in silence for some time, presumably thinking about what would happen from here–that was the case for me, at least. Mr. Nahm was staring off somewhere with his arms crossed, unfazed by the clusters of chattering people bumping into him every few minutes. This was the first time I had seen him this quiet.

                “So,” I awkwardly babbled. “What’s your plan when you go east?”

                He briefly looked at me through his sunglasses then then resumed a blank stare, “I don’t know yet.” Mr. Nahm never responded with an ambiguous answer. It was either a firm yes or a hard no–which got me to think that he probably had something in mind but was hesitant to share.

                “Do you… Have family anywhere?” a daring question slipped from lips. Realizing that it may have been a little too invasive, I quickly corrected myself, “I mean, if that’s too personal to answer I totally get it. I was just… Curious I guess.”

                Dryly chuckling, he responded, “Not really. Had a wife a few years back but she died during delivery. Popped out a little daughter before she left. She was a bundle of joy but we weren’t close ‘cause of my drunkard . Missed my wife so much I couldn’t be sober without thinking ‘bout her. At eighteen my daughter just left. I still think about her every day but she probably don’t wanna see me again.”

                “Wow, uh I’m really–” I began, shocked that the perpetually jolly guy had a painful past of his own.

                “You’re really sorry, I know” Mr. Nahm finished my sentence perfectly, mechanically smiling at the response he has heard a hundred times over after telling his story. “I felt sorry for myself for years. But whaddaya know, I stopped drinking and I’m a healthy ole guy now. Thinkin’ I should go find her.”

                “Yeah,” I encouraged. “She’s probably waiting for you.”

                As if realizing that was actually a possibility rather than wishful thinking, he looked at me with hope glimmering in his eyes and smiled. Then, giving my shoulder a few pats, he nodded affirmatively before pushing onto his feet, “Looks like our ride is here. Let’s go.” So immersed in deep conversation, it hadn’t occurred to me that our train had come. I snapped back to reality and grabbed my backpack along with Lucifer’s leash and lined up behind the others waiting before me. Several people pushed into me, ruining the line formation. Mr. Nahm and I were now separated, although he was only one door away. Nervous that we would lose each other, I waved at him over the crowds and received a thumbs-up back in return, signaling that we would join again once we were on the train.

                As soon as the subway pulled up to the platform, people huddled closer and closer to the edge of the platform, anxious to board. From outside, the vehicle seemed empty–with the exception of two peculiar-looking people who were getting ready to exit through the door before me.

                Why would anyone want to go BACK to Seoul? Haven’t they heard the emergency warning?

                The bus came to a complete halt and the doors slid open. Immediately, everyone began to spill in–the women, elderly, and kids occupied the seats while the men held onto straps and poles. I watched as the two departing forced their way through the crowds; one was a middle-aged man with rat’s nest hair and a filthy lab coat, frantically pushing past people like he wanted to leave the scene as soon as possible. The other, presumably his wife, wore over-sized sunglasses and a face mask like she had undergone some type of surgical procedure. Even more so suspicious was how staggered and wobbly her steps were. With a hunched back, she moved like a sloth behind him which seemed to heighten his impatience, “Move faster will you?! We have to leave now!” The woman was unfazed by her husband’s irritability, her body unsteadily swaying back and forth like weeds in the wind. Seeing her unresponsiveness, the man aggressively tugged forward on her arm, causing her to nearly trip over herself. As the two struggled through, the woman sharply turned her head at every person she passed–like a dog sniffing out crooks. Suddenly, Lucifer began to growl viciously in response. I silenced him with a light smack on the head.

                In a race against the clock, the pushing and shoving from behind reminded me to keep moving forward so everyone else could board the train. Whatever that couple was up to was none of my business and I had more to worry about than to question whether they were going the right direction or not. Just as I was about to take my first step onto the bus, a woman shrieked, “A-Aaah! What the are you doing? Get off me you crazy b–” Then, the sharp sound of punctured flesh silenced the crowd for a few seconds before everyone broke out in screams of bone-chilling fear.

                The next moments seemed to play in slow motion. People were running in every direction; some shoved past everyone to get to the furthest and safest car, some ran out of the station, and others were lifeless on the ground in a pool of scarlet. What the hell was happening? It was nearly impossible to rack my brain for answers when all it wanted was to shut down.

                In the midst of it all, as the count of citizens began to dwindle along with my awareness, a familiar voice shouted at me, “Jin! Jin, snap out of it! Run!”

                All at once, my senses came rushing back and hit me like a truck. The cries for help grew louder, the pungent smell of iron fuming in my nostrils. I could hear Lucifer’s deafening barks, urging me to get moving. My eyes began to frantically search for whoever called me. Finally, they landed on Mr. Nahm who was jumping up and down and waving, beckoning me to hurry and get on the train. What was the big deal? Now that the station was clearing out, we could take our sweet time right? I smiled at him for being so naive.

                Just several feet behind him, the odd woman from earlier was busying herself with a squirming body on the ground–maybe checking for pulses, I thought. She was no longer wearing her sunglasses or mask. Although most of her back was turned towards me, I could still see as she brought the man’s arm to her face then, one-by-one, chewed off his fingers–each one leaving trails of dripping blood down her chin. Body stiffened in fear, the words I wanted to say translated to a mere lump in my throat. A nauseating wheeze escaped from the woman’s lips before she turned her head towards Mr. Nahm, a full view of her mangled face came into view. Like a human, she had all the facial features–but there was nothing remotely human about her. All I could see were white scaleras, a collapsed nose, a half-bitten ear, and a sickening brown and green skin tone. Roaring, she got on her feet and lunged at him.

                “Mr. Nahm!” I hollered with all my might as I ran full force towards him. “Behind you!” The pitiful old man only had a split second to turn his head before the fiend latched onto his back and bit down onto his neck, commencing a fountain of red that soaked his body before he fell limp onto the ground.

                “NO!” I cried out in anguish. Before the devilish thing could continue eating at him, I kicked it to the ground, severing one of its arms. The man in a lab coat from earlier came scurrying out of nowhere like he had spent this whole time looking for his beloved wife, picking up the monster and caressing it like it was a newborn baby while the thing continued chomping at his face in search for its next meal, “Oh honey, I am so sorry… Did I keep you waiting long? Your arm… It must hurt right? These people don’t know how you right. Come, let me fix it.” With much force, he masked her and ushered her up where the two fled the scene. Lucifer angrily barked after them while my head spun in incoherence.

                Knees buckled, I fell straight to the ground. Slowly crawling over to Mr. Nahm who was grinning at me teary-eyed, I made a mental note to ingrain that iconic toothless smile for as long as I lived. The closer I came, the more I hurt. I should have never gone with him. This was all because of me. Holding him in my arms, I nearly hurled at the blood that continued to flow from his neck, covering my forearms in its warm stream. Then, I began to bawl.

                “Don’t cry you bastard…” he croaked with pride, struggling to swallow. “An old man like me dying is bound to happen. Didn't expect it to happen like this though,” he let out a strained chuckle. Even in chaos, he tried to make light of the situation.

                “Mr. Nahm. I’m s-so sorry, it was all my fault…” I stuttered with deep regret, watching as he fixed his eyes on the ceiling instead of looking at me. “Your daughter… I know she’s waiting for you–I can’t believe I was so ing stupid to have blanked out like that.”

                “Not your fault,” he reassured with a blank stare, obviously stifling the pain as tears trickled down the sides of his face. “I love you like my very own son, you know that… You’ll make it through this. I’ll be watching over you with my Hula girls in heaven haha…”

                Resting my forehead against his, I closed my eyes and prayed. Prayed that he wouldn’t die, that he would make it through this, that we would keep having engrossing conversations to come. But I couldn’t even find peace in religion. The only father I had was dying and there was nothing I could do about it. Taking my hand in his, Mr. Nahm pulled off his necklace and placed it into my palm. I took a good look at the pendant–a glossy ivory tusk–that glistened even under the dim subway lights. The gold chain was always visible on his chest, but that was all anyone could ever see. It was tucked away like his best-kept secret, “Give this to my daughter if you ever find her. Tell her I’m waiting for her forgiveness.”

                Nodding affirmatively, I secured the pendant around my neck as the most valuable thing I owned. “What’s her name…?”

                “Lisa,” he weakly muttered as his grasp on my hand began to loosen. Staggered breath, he managed to whisper, “Go Jin. It’s starting… It’s starting now.” He shakily pointed at the bodies on the ground, each and every one of them now convulsing into seizures.

                “I can’t leave you. We need to get you out of here,” I stubbornly insisted, the floodgates of tears commencing once again when I realized that wasn’t possible. I waited a few seconds for a response but all I got was silence. Daring to glimpse at the man in my arms, I found his eyes the same cloudy white as the others, his mouth agape as his mind and body slowly became prisoner to an unknown entity. With shaky hands, he reached for something his pants and pulled out a pocket knife attached to his keys. The next words uttered shattered my heart into pieces, “E-End it.”

                Spiraling into a state of numbness, I mustered up the little confidence I had and took the knife. Although desperate to buy more time, the surrounding bodies have now contorted into standing positions, their joints cracking into place as they became more and more cognizant of their endless hunger. I couldn’t wait any longer. Holding the dagger just over his forehead, I inhaled and released it upon exhale. His body fell limp onto the ground as I dropped the knife and forced my unsteady self to rise. I didn’t dare to look down once.

                Shutting my brain off, I grabbed Lucifer’s leash and made a run out of the station as fast as I could, blocking out the hundreds of rumbling voices thundering behind me.