237 A Bug On His Forehead 5 (1/2)
Translated by: ShawnSuh
Edited by: SootyOwl
”Is this going to be written from a first-person point of view?”
”Yes. It'd be better that way.”
Nam Kyung was deeply impressed. The young author was on to something. As long as it was properly executed, the novel would be superb. Brilliant. As long as the author managed to pull the pieces of the story in his head out to reality, the results would be quite promising. It would be a fine story, and the author would be able to remain unhindered by the Nebula Award. As the editor barely managed to calm himself, he focused on listening to the author some more.
”Is this going to be all right?” Juho asked as if seeking Nam Kyung's affirmation, and the editor nodded heavily.
”I think it'll be more than all right. The closed-off image is brilliant, and the claustrophobic nature will only add to the suspense,” he said, tactfully catching on to what the young author was emphasizing. It simply made sense when considering the bug's final destination. Then, imagining the boy swallowing his insect friend, Juho said, ”There's nothing more cramped than a person's heart.”
The boy was all alone, oppressed by the parents who had given birth to him. It was a commonly seen phenomena, and it was in that very environment that the insect had hidden.
”I think the fact that the bug doesn't resist really adds to the story somehow. On top of that, it's easy to make the connection that it could be a person, which also makes it creepy.”
The insect chooses the safer life by willingly going into the boy's body. Unfortunately, it quickly turns out to be a bad decision. Its new home grows increasingly insane. Then, looking at the egg salad in his sandwich, Juho said, ”Frankly, I think the bug was already dead.”
”Dead? Because it got eaten?”
”No, even before that. After being neglected, without proper care.”
After getting dragged out of the mountains, the insect found itself in a new prison: the fishbowl. The boy had never seen an insect like that, not to mention he was raising it without his parents knowledge. There was no way that the boy would be able to find food for his little friend. As the bug grew weaker, the pressure would grow in the boy's mind, leaving only the extreme choice in the end.
”Sounds like the bug and the boy have a lot in common,” Nam Kyung said, and Juho nodded. That was precisely the reason why the boy had loved the insect.
”What about the characters in the outer story?” the editor asked with an apparent look of antic.i.p.ation, urging the young author to tell him more. Juho imagined the two people conversing on the train. Though headed for the same destination, the significance of arriving there was different for the two.
”She's from the same town as the guy, and she's the one who came across the fishbowl.”
”You mean, the one where the boy kept his bug?”
”Yes. He's bound to throw the fishbowl out no matter what. Then, he goes missing. Word of it spreads through the town, and the story becomes known to every single person in town. Thought it isn't clear what happens to him afterward.”
Then, after brief contemplation, Nam Kyung asked, ”Is this after he gets trapped in his house?”
”Probably.”
The fishbowl was the connecting piece between the outer and the inner story. It was also the first house the boy had used to trap the insect, as well as the one he abandoned. Instead of being filled with water, the fishbowl was filled with dirt and tree branches.
”So, what happens after he goes missing?” Nam Kyung asked, getting slightly impatient.
Juho thought carefully. 'What happens to him?' It wasn't hard to imagine the man going into the mountains, and it was always possible that he would go on living under another person's protection and care. He might be wandering aimlessly, yearning for the insect for the rest of his life, or simply, collapse, choosing not to do anything about his yearning. Or, he could get on a train heading away from his hometown.
”Don't you think he might even come back home?” Nam Kyung asked, unable to resist any longer. Juho thought back on the looped videos he had watched. He had been trapped, repeating the same, daily life, saying the same, exact things, meeting the same, exact people. The couple Juho had met in the theme park had asked him to take a picture of them because they had wanted to treasure that moment forever.
”I don't think that's very likely.”
”Why is that?”
”Because he forgot,” Juho said. After swallowing the bug, the boy forgot about his tiny friend, further proof that he hadn't thoroughly trapped the insect in a photo. If he were to have taken photos of the insect, he wouldn't have had to worry about forgetting his tiny friend. If anything, it was a possibility, the possibility for a change. A possibility that he could always raise the insect in a more open environment. Nothing was as wide and broad as a person's heart.
”Well, it seems like that character has fully taken shape in your mind, Mr. Woo,” Nam Kyung said, looking at the young author predicting the character's life in its entirety. Yet, Juho shrugged it off, saying, ”Things can change, of course, but that's how I see it at the moment.”
With those words, Juho paused for a brief moment. Memories were part of the outer story as well. 'I,' who had forgotten something, and the lady who remembered what she had been forgetting. There had to be a reason that she had remembered. Why was she recently able to think of the story about the child who had gone missing?
”Maybe she found the fishbowl that was lying around her house somewhere.”
The fishbowl would serve as the clue. Upon finding it, the lady tried to remember where it had come from. In that case, why did she have to take it out in the first place?
”Because she came across a new animal, one that would be living in it.”
That indicated that she was ready to accept another life. She was on the way home, while 'I' was going away from his hometown. Going back home was only possible for those who had left their home. She had to have come across a new lifeform to occupy the fishbowl.
”Forgetting can also be a form of protection. She was probably the same as 'I,' who she met on the train. She had to have forgotten her story when she first left her hometown.”
Then, Nam Kyung asked, ”That means there will be a day when 'I' finally remembers what he has been forgetting, right?”
”Yes. As long as he's still alive.”
With that, the editor carefully put the pieces of the story together in his head.
”As long as you can turn it into writing, it should be great. Oh, you mentioned making a reference to a drunk person? If you need help with that, don't hesitate to let me know. I might be able to take you to a company dinner.”
”That doesn't sound like a bad idea at all!”
As their discussion neared its end, the two picked up their sandwiches.