Stranded with Mother on a Deserted Island (1)
The summer night air at the forward operating base was surprisingly chilly. My breath came out in white puffs that dissolved into the darkness. As I stared blankly at the fading mist, the private standing guard with me spoke up.
“Corporal Kang Changjae, sir. What are you thinking about so hard?”
“My family.”
The junior on duty with me was Private First Class Han Seungpil. He could be a smartass, but at least he wasn’t completely useless. I actually liked that about him.
“Why don’t you catch a quick nap, sir? I’ll keep watch.”
“Hah. And what exactly am I supposed to trust you with?”
“I can handle it, sir. I really can.”
“Bullshit.”
Silence fell between us again. For a while, the only sound was the croaking of frogs.
“Speaking of family, sir… Your mother is incredibly beautiful, isn’t she?”
“Ah~.”
A few days ago, my mother had shown up at the base without warning. Thanks to the company commander’s permission, I was able to meet her, but the truth was it had been awkward as hell. Of course, if she’d told me in advance, I would’ve stopped her from coming. The guys in the unit had swarmed her like a pack of dogs at a circus. Come to think of it, this bastard Seungpil had been one of those gawkers.
Damn. This kid’s got it bad. I can’t even beat his ass for it. Back when I was a private—
“I’m jealous, sir. Having such a young mother.”
“Jealous my ass. What good is a young mother?”
“Still, the younger she is, the longer she’ll live. That’s enviable. My own mom passed away already.”
“Hah… You little shit. Are you doing this on purpose?”
Seungpil was a funny guy, but he had a knack for killing the mood out of nowhere. I couldn’t even punch him for it. I kicked at the ground with my combat boot and muttered casually.
“My birth mother passed away too. When I was ten.”
“Wait, seriously?”
“Yeah, dumbass. That young lady is my stepmother. Happy now?”
“Whoa! A young stepmom is even more enviable!”
“What the hell is wrong with you? You wanna die?”
I smacked Seungpil’s helmet with my palm for that sneaky mother-related jab. The little shit just laughed like an idiot even as I hit him. My hand was the only thing that hurt. Damn it.
“Ah~ I wish I could stand guard with you every day, Corporal Kang Changjae.”
“You’ve lost your mind. Seriously, stop saying creepy shit. Please?”
“I’m being serious, sir. Time passes so much faster when I’m with you, doesn’t it?”
“Faster my ass. It hasn’t even been an hour yet.”
There were still over thirty minutes left until shift change. And even after that, we wouldn’t get to rest. It’d be time to start the daily routine again. Argh! I just want to desert! Fuck!
“You’re my role model for military life, Corporal Kang Changjae.”
“What the hell are you on about all of a sudden? Did you eat something weird? You’re scaring me, man.”
“I mean it. The juniors look up to you, and the seniors respect you. My only wish is to live my military life exactly like you do, sir.”
My back itched for no reason.
“No matter how much you suck up, I’m not introducing you to my mother.”
“Haha, that’s not what I meant.”
Seungpil scratched the back of his head, then suddenly went “Ah!” like he’d just remembered something.
“Instead of that, Corporal Kang Changjae, sir… Have you ever thought about becoming in-laws with us?”
“What? You little—!”
“No! No no! That’s not what I meant!”
No matter how backwards the military was, what kind of junior would ever dare touch his senior’s mother? The joke had crossed the line so badly that I reached for my rifle. Seungpil flinched and waved his hands frantically. Then he rummaged through the upper pocket of his combat uniform and pulled out a worn, tattered photograph. Film photography? In this day and age? What a weirdly analog kid.
“Actually, I have a younger sister who looks a lot like me. Would you like to see her picture, sir?”
“If I look at your sister one more time, it’ll be the twelfth time. Han Seunghee. I even memorized the name, you idiot.”
“Oh, really? Corporal Kang Changjae, sir… It seems like you’re secretly interested after all?”
“Who the hell wanted to memorize it? I’ve heard it so many times I could probably memorize the transport unit’s yellow dog too.”
The moment his sister’s name came up, Seungpil’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. Han Seunghee—that sister he brought up every chance he got. From the photos, she was pretty enough that I couldn’t deny it. A pure beauty with a lovely smile. Because I’d heard she was sick, she gave off a delicate, fragile heroine vibe. Though that was probably just because I’d been stuck in this damn military for too long. At this point, even the flat-chested female platoon leader from the next platoon was starting to look attractive.
“She’s my sister, but she has a really pretty face and a genuinely kind personality. Girls like her are rare these days.”
“Seungpil. Do I look like the kind of guy who wants to spend his life taking care of someone else’s sick patient?”
“While my friends are off enjoying campus life in college, our Seunghee has been stuck lying in a hospital bed. Don’t you feel sorry for my sister, sir?”
“Sorry my ass. My life—stuck in the military while other people enjoy campus life—is way more pathetic.”
I’d lost count of how many times I’d heard the tragic story of Seungpil’s sister, Seunghee. She’d always been frail, and the moment Seungpil enlisted, she collapsed. She barely survived after receiving a heart transplant, but she’d been hospitalized ever since.
“Ah, come on, sir. Think about it seriously for once.”
“Haa~ Seungpil, do you really want to introduce such a pretty and kind girl to trash like me?”
“Corporal Kang Changjae, sir. I don’t say this to just anyone. I’m only telling you because I trust you enough to leave her in your care.”
And it would make my own military life a little easier too. Seungpil must have felt embarrassed by his own words because he quickly added a lame joke. I let out a small chuckle.
“Yeah, yeah. Enough nonsense. I’m going to sleep, so wake me up when the relief arrives.”
“Aww.”
“Aww?”
“Cough. Never mind, sir.”
Thanks to my long time in the service, I’d even learned how to sleep standing up. Especially during these exhausting night shifts, I was confident I could fall asleep just by leaning my head against the wall. The important thing in moments like this wasn’t falling asleep easily—it was waking up easily. I was unusually sensitive to presence, so I was sure I’d wake up even if the duty officer tried to sneak up on me in a low crawl.
“Huuah—.”
With that, I left Seungpil on watch and leaned into the corner of the guard post. Until the next shift arrived, I’d be off in dreamland—
“—Corporal Kang Changjae, sir?”
“Ah! What now?”
I’d barely closed my eyes when that bastard Seungpil called me again. I cracked my eyes open blearily and saw him pointing at the sky.
“What?”
“Take a look at that, sir.”
“Look at what?”
“There’s something like… a UFO?”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
I barely swallowed the curse that almost flew out. Our Seungpil had finally gone crazy. Even if he ended up in a mental hospital, I’d make sure no one said I was the one who drove him there. It had better be nothing. Grumbling, I pushed myself off the wall.
—And then I saw it.
“……What the hell is that?”
Floating in the air not too high up, right where Seungpil was pointing, was a sphere about the size of a human head. It was… a burning volleyball? A volleyball glowing bright white like a lamp. With my limited vocabulary, that was the best I could describe it.
“Isn’t that a real UFO, sir?”
Private First Class Han Seungpil muttered with a dumb look on his face. The fact that he could stay so calm after seeing something like that made me wonder if he was secretly a big shot. My heart was pounding like crazy.
“Hey, send a radio message right now! No, I’ll—”
I quickly reached for the radio, but my hand never touched it.
— Connection established —
-Kiiiing—!
An intense light that felt like it would burn out my optic nerves. A metallic screech that threatened to tear my eardrums. The light pouring from the volleyball-shaped UFO swallowed the entire world.
“Ugh, ah……”
My head spun. I couldn’t see anything. I couldn’t hear anything. Right before my hand reached the radio, I collapsed and lost consciousness.
*
“—Changjae? Changjae, wake up.”
Someone was shaking me awake.
“Ugh……”
My throat was dry. My mouth was so parched that my voice wouldn’t come out properly. I was exhausted. My head felt like it was going to split open.
“Mmm……”
I forced my dizzy head up and sat. When I finally opened my eyes, a faint light entered my vision. It looked like a stone cave. Against an unfamiliar backdrop, a pair of round eyes were looking down at me. They belonged to someone familiar—someone who had no business being here.
“M… Mom……? Cough!”
My voice cracked. It sounded like I hadn’t spoken in months. I forced the words out and immediately started coughing violently.
“Changjae, are you okay?”
My stepmother rubbed my back with a worried expression. A warm energy spread from her hand throughout my whole body.
That’s right. This person is my stepmother. If my eyes weren’t broken, this was definitely my mother.
“……How are you here, Mother?”
I finally stopped coughing and spoke with great effort. I was definitely at the base. Just moments ago I had been standing guard at the ammunition depot post. There was no way Mother could be with me, so why was she here?
Instead of answering, Mother simply shook her head. As if she had no idea either. Her eyes were trembling with anxiety. None of this made sense. I was confused. But Mother looked even more confused than I was. At the very least, I needed to pull myself together.
I decided to assess the current situation first. The uneven gray limestone floor and walls. An environment untouched by human hands. It was a completely natural cave. I was still wearing my combat uniform and boots—the exact same clothes I’d had on during guard duty. But my body armor, rifle, and ammo belt were nowhere to be seen.
……Did I lose them?
A bad feeling stabbed at my chest. Leaving my post during guard duty and losing my weapon. It wouldn’t be strange if I were dragged off to a military prison. No… I shouldn’t jump too far ahead when I didn’t even understand the current situation. This was closer to an abduction than going AWOL. Right now, figuring out what was going on and responding appropriately came first. I could worry about the rest later.
Unlike me, who was still in uniform, Mother was wearing thin pajamas. Was this what they called a negligee? It was an elegant white nightgown made of slightly see-through material. Wasn’t she cold? It was quite revealing. The moment that thought crossed my mind, a strange notification sound rang out from somewhere.
You have successfully stolen a peek at your partner’s bra. You have earned 1 Coin.
“……What?”
-Whoosh!
With a sound like something snapping into place, Mother quickly covered her chest. She stared at me with wide, startled eyes and took a step back as if retreating from a dangerous person.
…………What the hell is this?