The Game of Life (BTS: Rap Monster)

Two

On the first night in my apartment I realize how lonely I really am. When I look up I see an empty ceiling. When I look to my right I see my parents' cracked photo- my parents whom are no longer here. When I look to my left I see an unpacked box and a couple of suitcases. When I look ahead of me all I see is myself looking back at me through my mirror on my wardrobe. I know that in all the other rooms of this apartment it'll be exactly the same. Four walls and only me inside.

It's never been like this. I lived with my family until I moved out for college. When I was in college I had a roommate and two years later when I moved back in with my mom I still wasn't alone. There was always someone there. 

One time when I was fifteen, I dropped one of the ceramic dishes while I was washing the dishes. The white ceramic shattered into maybe forty pieces right in front of me. I looked behind me and there was my dad coming to my rescue. He made sure I didn't step on any pieces and told me to wait for him to finish cleaning up my mess. I never noticed how kind he was until after he died. He would always be the one to make both my mother and I smile.

After I dwell a while in my loneliness I finally drift off to sleep.

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I wake up and feel the intense light peering through a strip of space between my blue curtains. I get out of bed and walk over to the curtain squinting my eyes the whole way. As I close the curtains I look to the clock on my bedside table to see that it's 7:30. I need to be at work by nine and it takes about an hour to get there by train. 

I haven't been to work in a little over three weeks since my mom's death. My boss knew that my mother was the last person I had in my immediate family so he allowed me as much time as I needed. I work at the local wildlife hospital as an assistant vet and this isn't typical for an employer at this kind of place to allow their employee this amount of time off. I think he sees my potential and wants to give me time to recuperate so that I can continue my job as well as I can. 

I get to work at 8:54 giving me enough time to clock in, put on my gloves, and meet doctor Lee Hyungjee in his office. 

I bow and say, "Hello Lee sajang-nim." He's sitting down at his desk reading what seems to be an article from Animals Weekly. Doctor Lee is a short man in his fifties who squints through his glasses most of the time. His lips are thin and his face is starting to get a few stress wrinkles her and there. His hair is graying, but he still manages to make himself look younger by parting his hair from the side. He's wearing his white doctor's coat and a light blue shirt with a tie of a darker blue and an elaborate geometric design. 

He said hello and waved me into his office. "How are you doing Seulbi-ah?"

"I'm doing getting better. I'm going back to school, but I'll be doing it online," His eyes open a wide which is a rare thing for him. "I'm going to finish the two years I had left."

He smiles,"Well, that's great. I was hoping you would go back to school soon. With an assistant as great as you are I think it would help quite a bit if you were to extend your knowledge." 

I think it would be great, too. I already knew so much and it would definitely be beneficial to my future if I were to learn more. In college, I was on the Dean's list and one of the top students in each of my classes. It wasn't strange that I was given a good job only two years into college.

I thank him for his compliment and dismiss myself into the staff room. In the staff room we usually study or do research. There are desks and books free for the employees' use. I remember a year ago doing research on bottle-nosed dolphins in this room. It's funny how they can't survive without their pod and here I am forced to survive without mine. But that's all just part of the game.