Chapter 9: Echoes of Early Morning

After kicking the bear cub enough, I enjoyed a night’s sleep sweeter than hot cocoa and honey bread.

On that day, when I was allowed to lie in bed until late, transitioning from Saturday to Sunday, and the tiny bit of a public holiday, it was a day of a quiet apartment where even the alarm on my smartphone did not ring.

The room was perfectly darkened with curtains, with no light turned on, and no elements to disturb my sleep. Instead of thinking about getting up from bed, I turned over…

Thud, thud, thud, thud.

‘…?’

The unwelcome noise coming from the ceiling made my eyes open, which had been unwilling to wake up. The half-opened eyes began to close again in the calm and silence. I thought maybe something was happening upstairs. It was time to close my eyes again and fall into sleep. This drowsiness was the perfect condition to fall asleep…

Thud, thud, thud, thud.

‘Damn it…’

With the persistent noise from upstairs that couldn’t be ignored, I eventually cursed inwardly and propped myself up. I hunched over, showing my irritation at being disturbed from the pleasant sleep.

As I turned on my smartphone, the bright light hurt my eyes. Squinting one eye and barely opening the other, I only checked the time displayed in big numbers.

8:49 AM.

Not in the afternoon past lunchtime but almost close to early morning. ‘What kind of fucking asshole…’ The palm of my hand that was on my forehead moved to rub my eyes.

Thud, thud, thud, thud, again the running footsteps from upstairs.

This time, I definitely heard it. The sound from above was more distinct because of the close proximity of my bed to the ceiling. Thinking back, I remembered a moving truck being parked at the apartment yesterday. It must have been the apartment directly above us.

“Damn it…”

Rubbing my eyes with the palms of my hands, I twisted my whole body and groaned in agony. Now I had to worry about the upstairs neighbors as well? Don’t lie, really. With sleepless eyes, time flowed to 11 AM.

“Yawn…”

Siyeon, who couldn’t hear surrounding noises as well when sleeping, was now awake. I welcomed her with a light morning greeting.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yeah, did you sleep well too?”

Her casual response made it difficult for me to answer. “No.”

“Why?”

At Siyeon’s question about my unnatural reply, thud, thud, thud, thud—the unsettling noise happened to ring at just the right moment. While the noise continued, my gaze naturally went up, feeling discomfort.

“Because of that.”

He rested his chin on the low desk and pointed at the ceiling with his opposite index finger.

“Ah, who did you say moved in?”

“Hah.”

Sighing briefly and understanding. There was no need for further explanation, just a short exhale.

The teddy bear, noticing the deep sigh, poured a glass of cold water and added a few words.

“Do they have a child, maybe?”

“They should.”

In a daze, so exhausted that she didn’t even feel like getting angry, she agreed with the bear’s remark. At the same time, she voiced sis honest feelings inscribed in her weary mind.

“If it’s an adult causing this, they should be taken care of…”

Running around recklessly would be a nuisance to the neighbors downstairs. It’s a given, and even a primary school student would know not to run around in the house if they weren’t taught otherwise. It was proper behavior for a human being.

She didn’t want to believe that the source of the noise was an adult. No, it couldn’t be an adult.

“Please, just bear with it…”

The teddy bear, reacting to the mention of killing, came close to her legs as if to stop her.

“I’m still holding on.”

“How? Is there no way to solve this with words?”

At the statement of still holding on, the mascot of the character, slowly moving towards her head, twirled around, suggesting a solution in its own way. Perhaps because it was a magically pure mascot, its head seemed just as clear.

“I wish that were the case, but…”

she sighed deeply, along with an unanticipated hope. she briefly explained to the mascot the uncomfortable truth about human nature.

“Usually, a person with that level of education and common sense wouldn’t let a child run around like that.”

…Ah!

“Ugh.”

The mascot’s eyes widened in realization. The obvious common sense led to anger turning into resignation and a sigh.

she should go to the store and buy earplugs. If she couldn’t avoid it, she might as well adapt with tools. Using tools is a symbol of humanity, after all.

“Alright, I’m going to Daesung to get some.”

With that decision made, she immediately got up and dressed. It would take quite a walk to Daesung with his small frame. she needed to hurry.

“I’m hungry…”

Siyeon, whining about being hungry. Since she had only prepared for himself all morning, she thought if she went out to buy tteokbokki or kimbap, it would be just in time for lunch.

Thinking it was the perfect timing, he asked what he wanted to eat.

“What should I get?”

“Tteokbokki… and kimbap!”

Seeing Siyeon’s quick response as if she had been waiting, she felt a bit tricked. Food from outside is indeed delicious.

“Got it, wait and watch TV or something.”

I packed my wallet into a small, shallow pocket that suited my small frame and headed outside. The pocket, sticking out a bit, was particularly noticeable to my own eyes. I shoved my feet into my sneakers haphazardly and adjusted the heel. With a series of taps, I hit the ground with the front of my sneakers and made my way to the market.

Just as I stepped out onto the ground floor of the apartment building, I noticed a small, four-legged animal darting quickly into the apartment’s flowerbed. Given the size of the animal in this urban area, it had to be a cat. It wasn’t usual for a stray cat to come this close to the entrance, so I wondered why it was here.

Looking around, I saw two animal feeding bowls that clearly seemed to have been placed there by someone—a food bowl and a water bowl. “What’s this…?” I wondered aloud.

At that moment, a chilling feeling crept over me as my eyes caught a coated piece of paper attached near the entrance:

[Stray Cats: Neighbors of the Urban Ecosystem]

[1. Stray cats are valuable lives.]

Some explanation followed.

[2. Stray cats are pest control officers.]

They catch rats, etc.

[3. Stray cats are residents of our neighborhood.]

So, don’t remove the bowls, etc.

“Wow, this is really something,” I said with a mix of amazement and disbelief, feeling as though I was losing my mind. Was there a cat-loving person in this apartment complex? Even if I set aside who it might be, I was on the verge of dizziness. How do I describe this complex mix of sighs, amazement, hatred, and anger?

‘Stay calm, stay calm…’

I clenched my fists tightly and tried to control the boiling rage within me. Even though I wouldn’t be legally punished as a minor delinquent, I should at least avoid killing them. I wanted to kick the feeding bowls immediately, but for now, I decided to hold back.

“Breathe in, breathe out… breathe in, breathe out…”

Taking two deep breaths, I remembered the old saying that three deep breaths could prevent murder. I thought to myself, “It might not be a human, but it is technically a person under the law.” I had to control myself. I had to.

For now, I should just go buy some earplugs. After a long walk through the market, I stopped by Dais. I bought some portable earplugs and put them into the opposite pocket of my wallet. Now, I just needed to pick up a serving of tteokbokki and about three rolls of kimbap on the way back.

Though two rolls would be enough for just Siyeon and me, I decided to buy one more roll for the mascot of Bear and Siyeon.

“That’ll be 13,000 won.”

A serving of tteokbokki was 4,000 won. Each roll of kimbap was 3,000 won.

“Really expensive…”

I paid, lamenting the days when a cup of tteokbokki was 500 won and a roll of kimbap was 1,000 won, and took two black bags with me.

Lately, I’ve heard that Americans have come to appreciate the taste of kimbap, and I’m wondering how much the price of kimbap will rise.

Anyway, when I happily returned to my apartment carrying two black bags, there were three cats around the communal entrance that hadn’t been there when I left. Feeling a bit annoyed, I ran over to shoo them away.

As expected of wild animals, their senses were incredibly sharp, and they quickly scampered off.

“Hey! You shouldn’t do that!”

A deep, sharp female voice followed soon after.

“If you run like that, they’ll just run away!”

“Oh, I just wanted to pet them, so sorry.”

With a forced smile, I looked at the cheeky face of the woman. It seemed like she thought of me as a kid, and didn’t even try to hide her cat-loving demeanor.

So, you’re a cat lady, huh?

“Ah, I see, you need to approach cats slowly. Got it?”

“Oh, I see. This is my first time seeing you. By the way, where do you live?”

“Well, I just moved in yesterday. See that place over there?”

Following her pointing finger, I realized it was the apartment right above ours.

“Ah, I see.”

She sighed in a way that suggested understanding, and replied with a lifeless gaze.

It seemed like all the bad luck of the day had been concentrated on this crazy woman. In my mind, the judgment was already made.

A cat lady plus a noise-maker, she must be out of her mind. And judging by her appearance, she must be in her thirties, yet she calls herself ‘sister’? Even a lack of conscience has its limits.