Sineater

Five

"The message I got said suicide," Jin told the morgue attendant as he pulled the sheet back, away from Namjoon's face. He was glad he had asked Brielle to wait for him in the parlor.

The attendant settled the sheet around Namjoon's neck. "Sleeping pills, sigñore.

Jin backed up a step, gazing upon Namjoon's corpse. He was so pale, so empty looking. Jin was used to seeing his mentor, his friend, with a smile upon his face, a kind word for everyone, warmth in his skin and eyes.

Now his eyes were closed, his lips pulled taut, still. He looked at peace. He could almost, almost, fool himself into believing Namjoon was simply sleeping. He knew differently.

"Is that him?" the attendant asked, holding his hands together in front of his body and lowering his head in respect.

Unable to look away from Namjoon, Jin answered, "Yes, that is him."

The attendant fidgeted a little before looking up at the ceiling and sniffling. Jin broke his gaze away from Namjoon to look to the attendant, who looked as if he was trying not to cry. He studied the young man, listened as he exhaled hard, and reached into his own pocket. He pulled out a fifty dollar bill and handed it to the young attendant.

"Thank you," the young man said, pocketing the bill before reaching across to pull the sheet back up over Namjoon's face.

Jin quickly grabbed hold of the attendant's hands, "No, no. I didn't pay to look at his face. If you don't mind." He gently pushed the young man away from his friends body as he muttered in Italian, something not flattering most likely.

Jin took hold of the sheet, slowly revealing more of Namjoon's naked flesh, but he stopped when he saw a mark upon his gray flesh. It was positioned on the left side, exactly where his heart would have been.

It appeared as if small pieces of flesh had been carved away from the rest of his body in a semi circle, right above his pectoral.

Jin leaned closer to examine the marks a little easier, brows creasing in concentration. Turning to the attendant, Jin asked, "What are these?"

The attendant attempted to recover Namjoon, saying, "Okay, let's go, please. Hurry up."

He looked up at Jin who had interrupted him. "No, no, no. What are these?" He was more insistent, this time, with his question. He pointed at them. "Do you know what these are?"

The attendant replied, "Maybe a birthmark. I really do not know. I am no doctor."

Jin shook his head in disbelief, the anger radiating from him in waves. "That's not a birthmark." He reached for the sheet, pausing the look up at Namjoon's face, toward where he held the sheet, back and forth for another moment. Studying Namjoon's prone corpse, he pulled his shoulders straight. Jin had made his decision. "When is the body due to be released to the church?" The gears in his head could almost be heard grinding.

"It is not," the attendant said. "When we are done with it, it goes to the state for burial in the state cemetary." He seemed to have had enough and covered Namjoon entirely again.

Jin crossed himself quickly, sticking his hands into his pockets. He still stood there, studying Namjoon again.

The attendant tried rushing him from the room again. "Okay. Please, let's go." Jin faltered for a moment, allowing the attendant to lead him from the room. "Please. Come with me." He led Jin back down the hallway and to the door that led to the exit.

Reaching the parlor, Jin took Brielle by the hand, practically dragging her behind him as he hurried from the building.

"What's wrong?" Brielle asked him, hurrying to keep stride with him. He was so much taller than she, and she was having trouble keeping up. "Where are we going?"