Can a selkie mend his broken heart?
After a car accident results in the loss of his family, memories, and empathy, Lee Kangmin finds himself trapped in a colorless world. Once considered a miraculous recovery case of retrograde amnesia, he is now on...
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• Ariadne •
He carried me to a monstrous structure, and memories of my father resurfaced.
"This is where you live, Papa?" I asked. "It's so big!"
"It's just an apartment complex, Ariadne. Once I get enough money, I can buy a house big enough for you, me, and your mother. We'll be one big, happy family."
Had I known his words held no meaning or truth, I would've asked a sorceress to turn back time and erase the past.
"Hey, stop daydreaming. You know you weigh a ton? Women are supposed to be elegant," the human said.
His comments forced me back to the present, and I was not happy. I could only think of how much I'd love to smack him in his grumpy face. 'Bonehead. Wait, I just understood what he said. How is that possible? Is the cloak's magic that powerful?'
He threw me over his shoulder before I could analyze the situation any further, eliciting a loud huff from me. We drew closer to the door, and my anxiety only grew. I didn't know what to expect on the other side, and my childhood memories only increased my wariness. I closed my eyes and thought of countless apologies to everyone I felt wronged me in all my life.
When pain didn't come, I opened my eyes just in time to be plopped against a soft surface. The apartment was messy, with empty cans lying about in various areas, and thin wisps of cobwebs hanging from the ceiling. It had been a while since the place was cleaned, but it also seemed like he hadn't been here in quite some time. The air was stuffy and dry, making my nose tickle with every inhale. It was hardly a home. Did every human live like this?
I couldn't remember how my father's house looked, and my memories of the surface world disappeared shortly after the apartment complex. A part of me always knew Mother used the cloak to erase my memories, but some were harder to destroy.
My mind wandered to the polluted shores of American beaches, remembering how inhabitable the waters were. Human waste infiltrated the ocean, creating a toxic environment for anyone and anything swimming within its depths. If all humans insisted on living in such filth, why would the selkie want to leave their homes? Seeing the garbage scattered throughout his home only made my heart ache, knowing that where I was before was better compared to the dump I was in now.
"Mwo (What)? I have some clothes that may fit you... eumsigeul jumunhalgaeyo (I will order food). Use the bathroom to clean up," he ordered. Korean and English phased intermittently through my ears, like a constantly disconnecting telepathic call. Whatever allowed me to understand him wasn't working all the time.
