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Looking back on it, it was originally a scary experience.
There's vague memories in his mind of people talking about it. The orphanage where he somehow ended up in wasn't a huge one, nor did it have enough funding to give each kid high quality things. But still, when there was a baby left at the doorstep, swaddled in blankets and loudly crying, any normal human being with a sense of sympathy would take that kid in.
They're an orphanage. It was natural for them to do that as well.
There was a card tucked inside the blanket where he was swaddled in, which was why people knew to call him Kim Soleum. However, there had been no clues on where he came from. No one knew who his parents were, or who left him by the door. No one came looking for him either.
Unluckily, it wasn't a strange thing for orphans. More than half of the kids in the place don't have any relatives to name. The relationships they must've had once were cleanly cut off.
Kim Soleum stayed at that place for a handful of years. However, not once did anyone think to adopt him.
Usually, couples who would stop by the orphanage have their eyes on the younger ones. It's easiest to get taken by someone as long as they're not too old. But for some reason, the moment they lay their eyes on him, they'd end up trying their best to avoid him with pale faces like they'd seen a ghost.
Kim Soleum would always explain that he didn't do anything, but it happened so many times that no one believed him anymore.
There are times when the entire orphanage goes out to the park or somewhere similar so that the kids would be able to stretch their legs and run around in contrast to being stuck in the building for too long. It was on one of those days, Kim Soleum only being six years old, did that scary thing happen.
He'd strayed a little further from their group because the other kids felt scared being with him. They formed this sort of idea that because the adults steer clear of him, then he must be a scary person. So he dejectedly kept away, lowering his head and playing by himself in the grass.
When he looked up, there was no longer any noise around him, and the grass changed to what seems to be concrete.
“Huh?”
♩♪♬♬~♩♬♬~♩♪♪
A cheerful tune played in the air, as if it was beckoning him to run around and explore. However, it did the complete opposite of what it must be intended for.
♩♪♬♬~♩♬♬~♩♪♪
The place he was in…was no longer the grassy park!
Instead, there were structures that he's unfamiliar with, all seemingly with a blue theme. Shadow figures of people walk past him, not glancing his way as they talk to each other and laugh merrily. The theme song of the place played again and again with the bustling activity of the area.
Kim Soleum sank further back, eyes dilating as he looked around in fear. A squeaking sound escaped his lips despite his best efforts to stay silent. A hand automatically reached up to cover his own mouth.
Where?
One minute, he had been at the park with the adults and the others. Now…where is this?
Despite how inviting everything looks, he only sat where he was, frozen in fear. It came to the point when some of the ghostly figures noticed his odd state, glancing his way curiously and muttering.
One of them tried to approach him. A short scream leaves his mouth as he scrambles away, heart pounding loudly with his entire body trembling in fear.
Kim Soleum normally can't even go to the bathroom at night because it was dark! What was he supposed to do in a scary, unknown place where there was no one to help him around?
He crouches behind what seems to be a photobooth, trying his best to not be seen by anyone. Their mutterings reach his ears and keep spooking him, so he shrinks further behind the booth like he was trying to blend with the walls.
At that moment—
♩♪♬♬~♩♬♬~♩♪♪
!!
There was a shadow casting over the small light from in between the booth and the wall. Kim Soleum, curious of what happened, glanced up quickly.
A large blue thing stared back at him.
Another scream was quickly muffled by him covering his mouth, but his eyes were blown wide and shaking with fear. Because he'd squeezed himself in the furthest corner, there was nowhere else for him to go.
The thing, which seemed to have the face of a cartoony blue dragon wearing a lifejacket, stared at him unblinkingly for a while.
Then, it tilts its head and points directly at the quivering boy.
C r y i n g c h i l d
W h y?
It doesn't move from where it was, like it was blocking the only path that could be taken to get out. However, it didn't make any more attempts to get closer.
Was…was it talking to him?
D o n o t c r y
N o t f i t
Although still a child, Kim Soleum was a smart one.
He understood what the mascot was trying to say even with the limited vocabulary. He quickly closes his mouth to stop himself from making any more negative sounds, forcibly smiling despite his tremors.
“I—I—”
He tried to say he wasn't crying, but his voice shook too much to express this.
He thought the mascot was a really scary one, even though it was clearly designed to be as exaggerated and friendly as possible. There was just a feeling of wrongness that was settling underneath his bones, telling him that something could go wrong.
The mascot still didn't leave, like it was deliberating something.
Then, after a long pause, it asked the next question.
G u a r d i a n w h e r e?
Ah! Was it asking where his guardian was?
Kim Soleum quickly shakes his head, because he had no idea where the adults went. He was with them for a moment, that's something he was sure of. But the next, he was alone and he is in this theme park and everything is too scary and too big and—
F r i e n d s w h e r e?
That was…another thing he didn't have, not just after ending up in this strange place. Not many people wanted to be friends with him in the orphanage anyway.
He shakes his head again, and the mascot seemed to take a step back, like it was shocked by his answer. There is now a small gap where Kim Soleum could probably squeeze himself into if he tries, as long as he moves quick enough to not get caught. His eyes briefly flickered to the direction, muscles tending to get ready to run—
But then he sees the mascot turn sideways, facing the wall. It began to move sideways, squeezing itself on the small gap between the photobooth and the wall, closer to where Kim Soleum was frozen in terror.
It's approaching! It is trying to get him!
He tries to move away even more, but his back has already hit a dead end. Meanwhile, the blue dragon mascot keeps squeezing its way closer and closer to him, until it could easily reach out for the terrified child.
There's some confused sounds coming from the photobooth. It was likely that they were shocked everything was suddenly shaking slightly. Of course, this was because of the massive mascot trying to squeeze itself behind the booth.
Kim Soleum’s eyes closed, out of both fear and anticipation.
At that moment, he feels the ground beneath his feet vanish. There was a force tugging at the hem of his shirt by the neck, lifting him up a little shakily. A surprised eep! left his mouth.
Kim Soleum opens his eyes again, watching as the blue dragon slowly squeezes its way out of that cramped place this time.
After a while, he was back again in the open, where he could see the shadowy figures stealing glances at him out of curiosity. The mascot still held him like it was disciplining a stubborn cat, rendering him unable to struggle free.
N o t i n t r u d e r
N o t t h i e f
The mascot raises him a bit closer to its face, like it was inspecting him. Nervously, Kim Soleum realized it was trying to look for something in his wrist.
“No!” He frantically answers, finally able to blurt out words. He felt that if he didn't answer quickly, something might go badly. “I didn't steal, really! I got lost! Lost!”
L o s t c h i l d ?
“Yes!”
Typically, mascots won't be able to display much emotion since their faces are set. However, the child had a feeling that the blue dragon was expressing some sort of bafflement.
What? Could it be that no one has gotten lost in this place before? Is that even possible? With how big everything looks, surely this isn't the first time?
Woah!
Suddenly, he was set back down to the ground. There was a weight that landed gently on top of his head, not forceful enough to hurt him. He belatedly realized that the blue dragon was patting his head.
He states blankly at the massive mascot, who stared right back.
L o s t c h i l d
P l a y m o r e w h i l e w a i t
It stares expectantly at him, like it was waiting for him to happily nod his head and agree. But Kim Soleum was terrified of what would happen if he answered. In the first place, would the adults of the orphanage really find him here? He doesn't go outside much, but he was pretty sure there are no theme parks anywhere near the park where he lost them.
Then the mascot tilts its head as if wondering why he didn't respond to its words. He hurriedly agreed, but faltered immediately.
“I…I don't have…tickets…” he mumbled, his voice becoming smaller with each word.
The blue dragon paused again for a while, probably wondering if he really was an intruder. It states blankly at the short child, and for a moment, Kim Soleum thought that he was going to get kicked out.
Instead, his hand was gently grasped, and the mascot’s paw passed over it.
Before his eyes, a bracelet appeared around the wrist that was taken. He could, with some difficulty, make out some words that said something about a ticket to the theme park.
The blue dragon was still looking at him, like it was waiting for him to express his gratitude. Which was why he hurriedly lowered his head and said a small ‘thank you.’
P l a y m o r e w h i l e w a i t
The blue dragon kept insisting to him until he conceded, trudging along to one of the rides. Because it was a theme park with many fun rides, he was supposed to be happy to play around as much as his heart desires. But the fact that he didn't know where he was and where everyone went was stopping him from letting loose.
For some reason, however, the mascot that found him kept following him around. It didn't get on the rides whenever he got in, but it would always wait for him just by the exit, like it was keeping a close eye on him.
The reason for this was probably because in its eyes, he's a lost child.
As promised, he played around the theme park until someone he knew came to pick him up.
But that was the problem.
No one ended up coming.
The blue dragon had been confused when the park closed, but no one came to pick him up. It patted Kim Soleum’s head again and told him to wait for another day. But the same result had occurred, and there wasn't anyone that came looking for him that day. Or the day after. Or the day after.
It's been three years since Kim Soleum got lost in the theme park.
As for how he knew, that was something he can't explain himself. It wasn't that he counted if a thousand nights had passed. In fact, he was pretty sure there's been less number of closing times for it to be three years. But something told him that it has been.
There is a wall just by the outskirts of the theme park. Kim Soleum wandered off around that area once before, since the blue mascot no longer followed him around. Sometimes, he could hear a different set of theme park music, not quite the same as the one that constantly plays in the waterpark. Naturally, as a child with healthy amounts of curiosity, he'd wondered about what's behind that wall.
The blue dragon had accepted his presence by then, having upgraded his ticket to be a membership one. It still insisted that they wait for someone to pick the child up, though. Still, it got used to him enough that it didn't mind when Kim Soleum approached it.
However, the mood seemed to change when he asked about the music behind the wall.
D a n g e r
That was the only answer he was given. The mascot didn't elaborate further on his response. But because a child gets easily scared anyway, Kim Soleum heeds the warning and doesn't approach that side for a long time.
Hm.
At least, not until after a few more years.
By the time he was thirteen (or so, his intuition told him so), the cautiousness had faded a little. He was still scared, that was true. However, he's gotten so used to the sights of the ghostly silhouettes that wander around the theme park that the warning felt more intangible and less scary to him now.
He finds himself back to that wall where the sounds were coming from. Kim Soleum looks up, trying to see if he could get a glimpse of what was out there.
And then a bloody hand appeared from the top of the wall.
A scream erupted from his mouth due to his shock. Kim Soleum stumbles back, his heart pounding loudly against his ribcage. He witnessed with shaking eyes as another bloodied hand appeared from behind the wall, the red liquid dripping down and staining the blues of the theme park.
A man’s face soon emerged from behind it, with eyes dazed and red rimmed. His eyes stopped on the frozen child in front of him for a moment, before a different kind of frenzy overtook his features.
“Help me. Help me. Help me. Help me.”
The man chanted endlessly at him, climbing up the wall more and more. When his full body had completely scaled that spot, he tilted forwards, seemingly reaching out for Kim Soleum.
He must've forgotten that the nearest flat surface was too far to save him.
Splat!
A sickening sound cut through the happy music of the theme park. Kim Soleum stared at the body in front of him, twisted in uncomfortable ways that sent bile rising up his throat. Some parts of his flesh, too, seemed to have been melted away by something. His fingers shook in uncontrollable fear.
Oh. Oh, that was terrifying.
The urge to puke overpowers him. Kim Soleum bends over to the side and ends up throwing up out of sheer disgust. There was something uncomfortable brewing in his stomach, and the hairs on the back of his neck rose in a way that it does if someone was watching him. With a queasy expression, he glanced back, finding the body’s soulless eyes watching him without moving.
There was a sudden silence around the place.
Kim Soleum realized what must've happened. He screamed in fear earlier and had just finished emptying his stomach. It was likely that his actions caught the attention of the mascots, who had always vehemently insisted on keeping a happy and cheerful atmosphere inside the theme park.
…It's okay, it's okay. They'll forget about it after a while…
He really should've listened to the blue dragon's warning…
Unsure of what to do now, Kim Soleum stared blankly at the wall, where he could still see the trail of blood from the top until halfway through the bottom. He couldn't find it in him to take another look at the person who now lay motionless in front of him. But at the pit of his stomach, he felt a faint sense of…pity.
Right. That guy was begging for help.
There wasn't anything Kim Soleum could've done for him, though. It was obvious from his state, even before falling down to his death, that it was a hopeless case from the beginning.
He takes a deep breath, taking utmost care to not glance down at the man. Then, he stands up and puts his hands together, praying that the man gets to a much better place in the afterlife.
That was how the blue dragon mascot found him. It stared at his clasped hands for a while, wordless, then at the dead body that tainted the happy theme park that it looks over. It seemed to have understood what transpired.
He feels the mascot pat his head again, turning him away from the body so that he would no longer have to look at it.
L o s t c h i l d
The familiar address somehow managed to calm his panicked head a little. Kim Soleum focused on the dragon mascot, which is a more familiar sight to him now.
“...Sorry,” he mumbled, knowing fully well that he went against its warning just to satisfy his curiosity.
The blue dragon didn't respond for a while. Instead, it guided him away from the scene, as more of the other mascots came over to clean up the body.
Back at the main zone of the theme park, he was made to sit on one of the benches. There were snacks being shoved to his direction, probably an attempt of the blue dragon to cheer him up.
L o s t c h i l d
S a d ?
“That wall…” His bottom lip trembled slightly as he picked up one of the items given to him. It was a pack of churros. “What's…what's behind it?”
D a n g e r
E v i l
P r o t e c t
The blue dragon was promising to protect him from the evil thing that was behind the wall.
Kim Soleum felt slightly relieved now, even though he knew that the mascot was only saying this because he promised to let him stay in the theme park until someone comes to pick him up. It may look a little scary, but the truth was that there's something benevolent in the blue dragon.
He feels the mascot pat his head again, like it could sense the conflicting thoughts running through his mind.
G o o d c h i l d
It had seen him feel sad, praying for a better life for the man he'd found, even when they don't know each other. Maybe in the eyes of the blue dragon, it was a sort of display of humanity that hasn't been done in this place for a long, long time.
Kim Soleum purses his lips and accepts the gentle comfort this time, acknowledging the effort he made to do the only thing he could do in that situation.
G o o d c h i l d
There's weird people in the theme park.
They've been coming and going a lot these days, too. They're not really causing trouble, per say. In fact, they've been following the rules of the theme park well, so the mascots find no reason to stop them from coming.
But Kim Soleum had a feeling about it that he didn't like. Every time he looks towards their direction, he feels a creeping feeling on his spine that tells him to stay away from them.
Some times, the visitors were twins with wide smiles on their faces. They would get on the rides for most of their stay, and then wander around the place for the rest of it. They never bought any souvenirs, nor did they talk much to the mascots. They leave just as abruptly as they appeared.
He heard a word of what they've been mumbling about, though.
Ireum-nim.
The way they repeat that name under their breaths almost sounds like obsession. So whenever he feels that they would be visiting the theme park, Kim Soleum takes care to stay out of their way.
They weren't the only ones. There are also other people who mumble the same things to themselves as they wander around the place. It was a very chilling thing, that even the other visitors would pause to look at them weirdly.
Sometimes, less scary than the weird people with a strange obsession, there are teenagers who wore school uniforms. Most of the time, they're terrified whenever they appear in the place. He'd witnessed one of them with a face full of snot and years being dragged away by a mascot once.
If not students, there's people wearing animal masks.
The first time that he encountered them, he mistook them for a new personnel at the theme park. Kim Soleum greeted them first, although he found it odd why they weren't wearing the usual mascot costume that every other worker of the theme park would usually wear.
They stared at him for a long time when he'd talked to them. But when one of them responded, it wasn't with the usual echoing voice of the other mascots.
“There's a kid here.”
In fact, he was about seventeen already, which made him feel a bit indignant about being called a kid. But instead of focusing on that, he took notice of how they spoke normally, just like him and the students who ended up in the park. Not at all like how the mascots usually does.
“...?” Kim Soleum stared at them blankly. “You're not employees.”
There was a sharp laugh from the one on the left-hand side of the group. “Sure we are.”
His instincts warned him later than it had with the weird people that were mumbling about Ireum-nim, but it still definitely came. Kim Soleum didn't answer them after that. He simply scrambled away, looking for the nearest mascot so that he could hide behind it.
Right. So what if he's seventeen already? He's scared, so of course he's going to hide! He's not an idiot.
He thinks something might have happened had he chosen to stick around a little longer. He could hear them calling out for him to come back, but Kim Soleum didn't even dare to look behind him.
He asked the blue dragon about those people the next time they'd had a conversation. However, the mascot only tilted its head at his words.
N o t f a m i l i a r ?
Ah!
Could it be that the blue dragon was asking if the people he came across were familiar to him?
He remembered his original reason for being in that place. Kim Soleum was a kid when he got dropped into this amusement park without warning, and he'd been staying here for a long time to wait for some people to pick him up.
However, it's already been ten years. He was sure that no one would come looking anymore.
He said that the faces weren't familiar, so the blue dragon told him not to worry and to just play in the theme park. So that's what he did, only stopping to munch on some food when he got hungry.
The weird people still came. It won't be long before he becomes an expert at avoiding them.
Then, something even weirder happened.
A man gets dropped in front of him. Literally.
He was a neat-looking man who seemed to be in his early twenties, with a strange scar on his neck. Kim Soleum peered down at him curiously, wondering what was going on and why that happened when everyone that visited the theme park got in normally. But at that moment, a hand grabbed his wrist.
“!!”
Kim Soleum tried to wrestle free, but the grip was too firm. The stranger’s eyes opened after a while, and eye contact was made.
“...”
“...”
The new person sat up immediately, letting go of him.
“Were you the one who sent the request for help?” The newcomer asked smoothly, smiling as if trying his best to keep the other person calm.
However, Kim Soleum, who doesn't remember doing such a thing, furrowed his eyebrows.
“Who are you?”
There was a pause.
The other person seemed to take the time to observe him carefully. There was a flash of wariness in his eyes for the briefest moment, but it was quickly subdued as he quickly wore that smiling face again.
“No, I don't think you were,” he answered his own question. “But you're a civilian.”
Kim Soleum stared at him, confused.
“Yes?”
“There's something weird, though…” The newcomer furrowed his eyebrows together. “How long have you been here? Why didn't you send a request for help? Didn't you see the posters?”
“I've been here for ten years,” Kim Soleum answered blandly. He can't figure out what position to take, since his instincts didn't tell him to run away like it did with the mumbling visitors and those who wore animal-styled masks. “And what posters?”
The person who fell—His face completely turned blank.
“Ten years?”
There was an incredulous tone in his voice when he repeated the number. He looked at Kim Soleum closely for the second time, like he was looking for something.
“That doesn't make sense…How are you not contaminated, then? No…maybe he is, it's just that it's not obvious. A mental contamination, maybe…?”
He looks at Kim Soleum with a pitying expression, like he's looking at a dead man.
“It might be too late.”
“....?”
“Still, communication might be possible.”
Of course it was? Why was this person talking like Kim Soleum wasn't standing in front of him?
There is now a solemn expression on the newcomer's face. “Do you, perhaps, know where some teenage kids went after coming to this place?”
Oh, now he's talking normally.
Kim Soleum’s eyebrows furrowed together, unsure of which ones this person is talking about. Teenagers typically fall into this place a lot of times, so it will be difficult to tell which is which. Most of the time, too, they're too scared to talk to him. He relays this sentiment to the other man, who looked even more troubled.
“You…” the stranger said. “Do you think of at least leaving this place?”
Oh!
The question was unexpected. A slightly embarrassed expression comes over to the teenager’s face.
“In fact, I was waiting for someone to pick me up before. But there's no one yet.”
“...Is that so?” The other person’s eyebrow jumped up slightly. “How did you end up here anyway?”
“I just…did.”
The stranger looked like he wanted to ask more, but he shook his head and turned the conversation back to the people he was asking about earlier. Kim Soleum, because he somehow had a kind heart which earned him the nickname of good child from the blue dragon, tried his best to assist with the search.
That person was a little strange. He explained that he was an agent who went to the theme park to pick up two lost students who contacted the number on the posters plastered around the place. Kim Soleum felt surprised hearing this, because he didn't know until this moment that there was something on the posters.
They found the two people after some time, just a few hours before the closing time of the theme park. They seemed to be in tears, trying their best not to make any sound that might clue on to their negative feelings about the situation.
Kim Soleum looked at them and felt strange. While it was true that being in the massive theme park for the first time could feel scary, he doesn't understand why they were so scared. After all, the blue dragon is a kind mascot.
[Good child.]
Just as the three people were talking to each other, he heard a mascot calling out for him. Judging from the tone, it wasn't the main body of the blue dragon. Still, he turned his head to look.
“Wait—” the man who he'd met earlier called out for him, but seemed to have bitten back his words at the last minute.
The mascot held another pack full of churros in its hands. It probably realized that this was around the time when Kim Soleum would get hungry, so it brought snacks for him. He forgot for a moment because he'd focused his attention on looking for the people that the other man was asking about.
He thanked the mascot with a smile, then turned around with the intention to give some to the people he was just with.
As he turned around, though, it seemed the trio had already gone.