The salt-laced wind whipped at Ji-woo's hair, tugging at the edges of his worn jacket. He stood at the precipice, the jagged cliffs of Busan falling away beneath him, a dizzying drop to the churning sea below. The roar of the waves was a constant, mournful drone, a soundtrack to the ache in his heart. He closed his eyes, the image of twisted metal and shattered glass flashing before him – the last, horrifying tableau of his parents' car accident.
Three weeks. It had only been three weeks since the world had tilted on its axis, since the familiar warmth of his family had been ripped away, leaving him adrift in a sea of grief. His parents were gone, taken in an instant, leaving him alone in the world. The police had called it a "tragic accident," a "wrong place, wrong time" scenario. But for Ji-woo, it was a gaping hole in his life, a wound that refused to heal.
He opened his eyes, the vast expanse of the ocean mirroring the emptiness within him. He had inherited their house, a small, weather-beaten cottage perched precariously close to the cliff's edge – a constant reminder of their proximity to the sea, a sea that now seemed to mock him with its indifferent vastness. He had wandered through the empty rooms, touching their belongings, inhaling the faint scent of their cologne and perfume that still lingered in the air. Each object was a shard of memory, a stab of pain.
He had tried to go on, to attend classes at the university, to pretend that life could return to normal. But the faces of his classmates, the lectures, the bustling city streets – they all felt distant, unreal. He was a ghost, moving through a world that no longer held meaning for him. Sleep offered no respite, only a replay of the accident, the screech of tires, the shattering glass, the silence that followed.
He had come to the cliff's edge countless times in the past few days, drawn by its stark beauty, its sense of finality. The drop was a clean break, an end to the pain. The sea promised oblivion, a return to the nothingness that had existed before he was born. He had imagined the fall countless times, the rush of wind, the impact, the merciful darkness.
Today, he wouldn't just imagine it.
He took a deep breath, the salty air filling his lungs. He thought of his parents, their laughter, their love, their hopes for his future. He thought of the dreams they had shared, the future they had planned together. A tear rolled down his cheek, mixing with the wind and the salt spray. He couldn't do this to them. He couldn't throw away the life they had given him, the life they had cherished.
But the pain was too much. The emptiness was too vast. He couldn't bear it any longer.
He closed his eyes again, picturing their faces one last time. "I'm sorry," he whispered, his voice barely audible above the roar of the waves. "I can't… I just can't."
He took another step closer to the edge, the wind tugging at his clothes, urging him forward. He spread his arms, as if to embrace the sea, to welcome the end. He leaned forward, his center of gravity shifting, his body falling…
And then, nothing.
He expected the cold rush of air, the sickening drop, the crushing impact. But there was nothing. He felt… soft. He opened his eyes, expecting to see the churning waves below, but instead, he saw… a ceiling. A wooden ceiling, with intricate carvings he didn't recognize.
He was lying on a bed. A soft, comfortable bed, with a thick, quilted comforter. He sat up, his head swimming, his senses disoriented. He looked around the room. It was unfamiliar, yet… cozy. There were strange symbols on the walls, unfamiliar furniture, and a faint, sweet scent in the air.
He stumbled out of bed, his legs unsteady. He walked towards the window, his heart pounding in his chest. He looked out, and his breath caught in his throat. It wasn't the sea he saw, but a world unlike any he had ever imagined. Buildings with soaring towers and glowing runes, people dressed in strange, colorful clothing, and… were those flying creatures in the sky?
He was no longer on the cliffs of Busan. He was somewhere else. Somewhere… impossible.