Chapter 10 – Grandmother Mi-seon (1)

“It is a superstition. Nothing to pay attention to.”

“Superstition or whatever, tell me since I’m curious.”

“What? A person who is more rational than anyone in the world? Why do you care about this kind of thing?”

Kim Yun-seok looked Kim Ji-hyuk up and down as if he were strange.

“No. I’m just curious. What kind of superstition is it?”

“Mmh, believe it or not, there’s a rumor that it’s a haunted rock.”

“Haunted?”

“Yes. Was it two years ago? There was a soldier who fought in this war……”

A soldier who had participated in the war, got seriously injured, and was discharged. Since he could no longer fulfill his role as a soldier, he was discharged, and when he returned home, he found his wife was having an affair with another man. The rumor was that the enraged soldier dragged the woman up to Fairy Rock and pushed her down into the sea.

Since then, mysterious fall accidents had continued there, and thus the villagers called Fairy Rock a cursed rock.

“So such a thing happened.”

“Yeah. But it’s all superstition. Actually, although Fairy Rock looks fine, it has steep slopes with lots of moss, and the wind is quite strong, you see? So it’s easy to drink alcohol, climb up carelessly, and fall.”

“So you’re saying they were simple accidents?”

“Of course. That’s why falls are frequent.”

“I see.”

“Planes are flying around, and it is a ridiculous rumor, but they say the Soviet Union is developing a satellite. Does it make sense to launch something out of the Earth? And that it is the Soviet Union, not the US! At any rate, ghosts my foot in today’s world! It’s not like we are in the Joseon dynasty.”

Kim Yun-seok was dismissing it lightly.

“Indeed, it is a superstition. If it’s such a dangerous place, shouldn’t the military authorities or the hospital control it?”

“Well. I heard the hospital did inform the military side. But given that the current situation is what it is, would they have the luxury to care about such a place?”

“I see.”

Kim Ji-hyuk nodded.

‘That’s not true, Grandfather! The date recorded in your diary and the date Mi-seon’s grandmother warned me about are the same. And Fairy Rock! This is definitely linked to me. Of course, it must be a date linked to you too. Anyway, since there is time, I must slowly unravel the story behind Fairy Rock. What kind of secret is hidden there! First, I think I must check whether Mi-seon’s grandmother really has dementia or not.’

* * *

“Grandmother, please wait here for a moment! You must absolutely not go anywhere, okay?”

“Alright. I won’t budge from here.”

To confirm whether Grandmother Mi-seon had dementia, Kim Ji-hyuk came to see Professor Cho Dong-ki.

Since Professor Cho Dong-ki was the only professor-level doctor in the hospital, he had no choice, reluctant though he was.

After finishing his consultation, Kim Ji-hyuk seated the grandmother on a hallway bench and went back inside.

A pale pink skirt flutters in the spring breeze~

Today too, biting on the coat strings~

On the road to the shrine where mountain swallows fly~

Grandmother Mi-seon was humming the song, sitting demurely on the bench.

Professor Cho Dong-ki’s office.

“Professor, how is she?”

“How else? She’s gone senile.”

Professor Cho Dong-ki said dismissively.

“You mean she has dementia?”

“It’s as clear as day. She has definitely gone senile.”

“Shouldn’t we run some tests?”

“What tests?”

“Shouldn’t we do a neurocognitive test, or at least a blood test? Usually in the case of vascular dementia……”

Even if the environment was poor, shouldn’t they be able to perform at least a neurocognitive test and a blood test? That was Kim Ji-hyuk’s thought, but.

“I’m so dumbfounded I can only laugh. What damn neurocognitive test? I don’t even know how to do that, and we don’t have such equipment in our hospital. There’s nothing else. Having talked to her a bit, she is definitely senile. She has auditory, visual, and language impairments, and even cognitive dissonance. Senility is certain.”

‘I was crazy! To bring Grandmother to a person like that! I had a feeling, and indeed my suspicions were right.’

“Yes. Understood.”

“By the way, who is that grandmother?”

“There is an admitted child named Mi-seon, and she is that child’s grandmother.”

“Where you would find a sane elderly person in this chaos? They don’t even know if their sons dragged into the war are alive or dead, and everyone abandoned their old parents to flee as refugees, so it would be stranger if they didn’t go crazy. At any rate, she definitely has dementia, so just know that. And why are you sticking your nose into everything? Is this the time to worry about such elderly people? Mind your own business.”

‘The reality that someone like you is wearing a doctor’s gown is too depressing. I will never bring a patient to see you again.’

“…… silence/dots

“What are you doing? I have an appointment and must head out right now.”

As Kim Ji-hyuk showed no signs of getting up, Cho Dong-ki snapped bluntly.

“Yes. Understood. I will leave now.”

“I’ll give you just one piece of advice: live with some wits. Don’t look at anything else. Filter your patients. Judge whether they are patients who bring money, or patients who can be of some help. Just evaluate that. Now, leave.”

“Yes.”

Like that, Kim Ji-hyuk walked out shaking his head.

Chill-

However, the grandmother who should have been sitting there was not to be seen.

“Grandmother? Grandmother Mi-seon!”

Kim Ji-hyuk looked around, searching for the grandmother.

Immediately, Kim Ji-hyuk thoroughly searched the entire hallway, but the grandmother was nowhere to be found.

“Ah! Where on earth did she go?”

Feeling troubled, Kim Ji-hyuk began to search for Grandmother Mi-seon.

* * *

A moment later, the empty lot behind the hospital.

“Grandmother!”

After wandering around for a long time, he finally found Grandmother Mi-seon. Wasn’t she playing on a swing set up behind the hospital?

Seen from afar, a man was pushing the swing.

“Grandmother, what on earth are you doing here!”

Out of breath, Kim Ji-hyuk ran toward the swing.

“Teacher!”

“Cheol-woo?”

The man pushing the grandmother’s swing was Jang Cheol-woo.

“Shh! I’m not Cheol-woo right now!”

Cheol-woo placed his index finger on his lips.

“Honey, what are you doing? Push me with a bit more strength! I want to fly high up into that sky!”

Grandmother Mi-seon seemed to mistake Cheol-woo for her husband.

“Yes. Understood! I will make you fly high like a butterfly!”

Heave-ho!

Jang Cheol-woo smiled brightly and pushed the swing up vigorously.

The swing soared up toward the sky, cutting through the blue air.

Each time, Grandmother Mi-seon’s face, smiling brightly, looked happier than ever.

As if she had returned to the flower of her youth.

‘They look like the sweetest lovers in the world. But if so, does that mean she really has dementia? Still, it is too strange! To call it a coincidence.’

For a while, Kim Ji-hyuk watched the grandmother swinging and Jang Cheol-woo pushing her back.

‘Alzheimer’s is a degenerative disease caused by abnormal protein accumulation in the brain. It can be easily diagnosed with just an SNSB test, but that is difficult right now. We have no choice but to judge indirectly based on the grandmother’s behavioral patterns. Usually, when one contracts dementia, the functions of sight, smell, and hearing themselves decline. Of course, the same goes for motor skills. However, being able to swing while maintaining balance like that means her sensory functions are fully intact……’

Around the time Kim Ji-hyuk was watching Grandmother Mi-seon swinging closely like that.

“Honey, you must be hungry, right?”

Stepping off the swing, Grandmother Mi-seon said looking at Cheol-woo.

“Indeed. I pushed the swing too hard, so I am very hungry.”

Cheol-woo slyly pretended to be the grandmother’s husband.

“Just wait a moment. I will cook a delicious meal.”

“Haha, alright. I will look forward to it.”

“Yes.”

At that, the grandmother headed to the vegetable garden behind the swing.

“Doctor!”

As the grandmother headed to the vegetable garden, Jang Cheol-woo ran over to Kim Ji-hyuk.

“Yeah. Your body isn’t fully recovered yet, will you be okay?”

“I’m fine! I’m completely recovered.”

“You rascal, don’t you know your heart is bad? You shouldn’t overexert yourself yet.”

“Yes. I’ll be careful.”

“By the way, what is going on with that grandmother? Why are you pushing the swing for her?”

“Well, that is……”

Jang Cheol-woo began to explain the situation to Kim Ji-hyuk.

Leaving the hospital, Grandmother Mi-seon wandered around the hospital premises, and happened to meet Cheol-woo, who was out for a walk.

According to Jang Cheol-woo, the grandmother mistook Cheol-woo for her husband.

So Jang Cheol-woo had no choice but to pretend to be the grandmother’s husband and play along.

“Your acting was good, though. Worthy of an Academy Award for Best Actor?”

“Oh! Really? There are so many elderly folks who lost their husbands in the midst of the chaos like that grandmother. They are so pitiful that I tried acting a bit.”

“Fufu, our Cheol-woo is so kind.”

“By any chance, does that grandmother have dementia?”

“Mmh, probably?”

“That’s strange……”

Cheol-woo tilted his head.

“Why?”

“Usually, when I see elderly folks in our neighborhood who suffer from dementia, their speech is slurred, their senses are slow, and they ramble. But that grandmother is a bit different.”

“How?”

Curiously, Kim Ji-hyuk stepped closer to Cheol-woo.

“Her speech is very clear and dignified, and she balances well while swinging… Above all.”

“Above all what?”

“She is acting right now. Though I don’t know the reason.”

“How do you know that?”

“I slipped my foot slightly by mistake, and in that split second, she called me ‘student’. Like, ‘Are you okay, student!’”

‘What? If so, does it mean she didn’t actually mistake Cheol-woo for her husband?’

“Ah, really? She said that?”

“Yes. I heard it clearly.”

‘Mmh, with her clear speech and no signs of impaired cognitive ability, it means she doesn’t actually have dementia. But why on earth?’

“Well, even with dementia, there are moments of temporary lucidity. It doesn’t mean she doesn’t have dementia.”

“I see. Later, if I study hard and become a doctor, I want to be a doctor who cares for grandmothers and grandfathers like her.”

“Yes. You are a smart child, so you will definitely be able to do so.”

Kim Ji-hyuk stroked Cheol-woo’s head proudly.

“Anyway, Doctor. Does that grandmother have a family?”

“Mmh, she lives with a pair of young siblings called Mi-seon’s siblings.”

“Ah! I see.”

“Why do you ask?”

“Mmh, just… somehow I feel attached to the grandmother. I am an orphan too. I thought briefly that it would be nice if I could look after the grandmother and care for the children.”

“Why do you only think about it?”

“Pardon? I have nothing……”

“What do you mean you have nothing? You possess a heart warmer than anyone else in the world. I think it’s a good idea. The kids are young, and the grandmother is weak, so wouldn’t it be nice if you live together?”

“Really? Would that be possible?”

“There’s no reason we can’t. Yun-seok will probably think the same as me. I will push for it. It’s good to rely on each other in the midst of the chaos.”

“Wow! How wonderful would it be if that really happened?”

It was at that very moment.

“Honey! Come over here! Even though the weather is cold, a strangely pretty flower has bloomed?”

Grandmother Mi-seon waved her hand toward Cheol-woo.

“Understood, honey! I will be right there! Doctor, the grandmother is calling me?”

“Yes. Go ahead quickly.”

“Yes.”

‘I should definitely look into the grandmother more!’

Kim Ji-hyuk felt a deep curiosity about her as he watched Cheol-woo running toward her.