Squid Game: A New game
************** Survivor's Guilt ************
"What a piece of shit."
Seong Gi-hun awoke every day with this thought in his head.
"I'm a piece of shit."
Sitting on a small stretch of beach he looked up into the nighttime sky. The stars were beautiful, and, as numerous as they were….he knew that he had more money than all of the little sparkling twinkles that his eyes could see. Still, it did not make him happy.
"I should not be alive. I should be dead…..how in the world am I still here?"
These thoughts of guilt passed through his middle-aged brain. He was almost consumed with the shame of it.
"I cheated Ho II-nam….and he knew it the whole time. I didn't save Kang Sae-byeok. I wasn't there for my mother when she needed me. And, even though I came to see that Sang Woo could be a bastard, he was my "chingu" (at one time). A neighborhood friend…..and I watched as he took his own life."
Seong Gi-hun brought his hands up and rubbed his face. His life was miserable…..and all the money in the world couldn't change that. He reached down and took ahold of a bottle of beer he had sitting next to him. He brought it to his lips and took a big swallow.
"For the love of life…..how did I get myself into this mess? If I could only turn back time I could change it all. Change my life. Get things back on track. That guy in the train station…..he started this nightmare. If I had not met him…..then I wouldn't know what I know now."
Still, there was no going back. No changing things. And even if he could, this….cruelty, this game he had been tricked into playing, would have still gone on. Just as it was continuing to be played even now…he was sure of it.
************** Blood Money **************
Seong Gi-hun looked down into the dark sand. Sure he was rich now. Sure he wealthy above so many peoples' dreams. But what did it mean? What value did it have when so many people had to die? He rarely used any of his money. He was still living more or less the way he had before, before he'd even knew of the game. The only difference now was that he had a ton of won…Still, he resorted to bumming the cash he needed from people around him. He shunned away from the money he had in the bank. Refused to even go there (most of the time). It seemed like poison, like it was cursed. Like it was Blood Money….something that he didn't want to touch.
He picked his head up and scanned the darkness over the water. This was one place he could come to get a little peace. This was one place where he could find a little serenity. He knew that he would have to go home soon. Walk through the streets of his city late at night. However, he wasn't scared. There was no fear. People avoided him like the plague. Even those who used the night to conduct their illicit business. They all view him as nothing, as trash, as beneath the lowest. A homeless guy with nothing to live for….and that's how he felt.
"Sir….would you care to buy a flower?"
Seong Gi-hun turned his head and looked over at an older woman approaching him with a bucket of flowers. She gave him the clue that she had to sell all the flowers or that things would be very bad for her. He reach in and gave her what he had in his pocket. She…with a small grin, thanked him and handed him a single rose. A good deed done. It didn't happen often these days…..but once in a while it did.
He took the offering and watched her walk away. A moment later he found a note wrapped around the stem. He unrolled it and saw that it was an invitation from a friend, a good friend, (a Ganbu) a friend that was supposed to be dead. He read the note and than followed the message to the address it had given.
********** A Choice to Be Made **********
Seong was back in his apartment. He had come very close to boarding an airplane and traveling to the United States to see his daughter. It was something that he had wanted to do for some time but his reproach had kept him from it. Like was said…..he had come close. He had almost gone through with it, but something had made him turn back. Something had told him that he wasn't ready, that he had something else to do first.
What that something was….was that he had to make things right. He had to correct what almost seemed uncorrectable. He had to change "Squid Game". How could he face his little girl knowing what he knew? And, also knowing that he'd done nothing to fix it, or at least attempt to fix it.
Yes, that was the only way he would be able to look into his daughter's eyes and not be filled with shame.
Anyway, closing the door to his room and placing his travel-bag on the bed and walked over to his laptop sitting on the deck. He opened it. He was going to send his daughter an e-mail explaining and apologizing to her that something had come up. That his trip was going to be delayed. He was just about to begin typing whenever a message popped up. It informed him that he'd just received an important e-mail. This was odd. He had no friends and no close correspondence with anyone other than Sang-woo's mother and Kang Sae-byeok's younger brother. So, what could this be?
Opening the e-mail he began to read…
"Hello player 456, and welcome. You have been chosen to participate in the next "Games" venue. The next exercise with be conducted in America, U.S., and as luck would have it this time, you will not be a player….but a VIP. We hope that you will accept this invitation and we certainly will be looking forward to your arrival. However, there are a few things that will need to be taken care of first. A separate correspondence will be sent in a few days with more instruction and detail. Enjoy your winnings (even though you have not been doing so), and we will contact you again soon. Have a great day."
Seong Gi-hun's eyes were as wide as saucer plates. He was stunned.
End Part 1