Ghost Story Club

I gave GyeongWon a call as I quickened my pace home.

[Hello?]

“Hey, GyeongWon. Did you finish with cram school?”

[Nope. I picked up because it’s break time. What’s up?]

“I wanted to ask you something. Are you okay on time?”

[I only have about five minutes left. What do you want?]

“It’s about a ghost story where a certain existence pretends to be my mom. Do you know anything?”

[Ghost story?]

GyeongWon paused, as if it was a ridiculous situation.

[That’s what you were curious about? Right now?]

“Yeah. Sorry. If there is anything you remember, can you tell me now?”

[You sure are… You have a lot of peculiar questions.]

“So how is it? Is there anything that comes to mind?”

[Of course there is.]

Although he liked to boast a lot, at least he answered questions straight.

[You’re keeping up the airs that you’re the club president of the Ghost Story Club now, huh? I like your attitude.]

GyeongWon acted like he understood, before he quickly began to spit out the info.

[Although there are innumerable stories involving ghosts pretending to be family members, if we exclude the individual encounters people claim to have been in, of the most common ‘standardized’ ghost stories going around… the ‘Mother Dilemma’ is definitely the most popular.]

“Mother Dilemma?”

[It’s an urban legend that crossed over from the United States, so listen up.]

[On a certain night, I was studying on the second floor.

Suddenly, my mother shouted out to me from the first floor kitchen, telling me to come see something quickly.

On my way to the stairs to go to where my mother was, I heard a startled voice come from my parent’s bedroom on the second floor.

“Don’t go down to the kitchen! Mom also heard that voice!”

Which mom should I trust?]

… That was the ‘Mother Dilemma’ ghost story?

“The fact that it’s a dilemma means that there is no answer, right?”

[Of course.]

Damn.

But it wasn’t possible for there to be no answer. The ghost stories up to that point all had a solution.

Following the rules set up by the stories the beings were based on, the ghosts showed great power. However, there definitely had to be a strategy or rule within the story that could be used against them.

“You said it was a famous ghost story, right? Is there anything that other people have theorized about it?”

[Theory, huh…?]

At that moment, I could hear the bell from over the phone.

It seemed like break time for the cram school was over.

[There are several theories out there. From deductions made based on the order that the moms called out, to deductions made from where the moms were located.]

Although I would need to listen more to know for sure, I felt that those types of deductions wouldn’t help me in my current situation.

“Any other theories? Is there no other hint within the story that could help with finding the real mother?”

[I have to go back to class now.]

“Sorry, really sorry. I’ll buy you something good to eat tomorrow.”

[I’m not too interested in eating, but…]

GyeongWon let out a sigh and continued talking.

[As a joke, they suggest saying something that would make your mom react violently—such as news of a pregnancy or failing grades—and try to use their reaction to differentiate between the two.]

“……!”

At that moment, a light bulb went off in my head. I had a sudden burst of intuition.

That was it.

I felt that if I started digging into that aspect, something good would come from it.

[Now I really have to go. If you have anything else you’re curious about, please ask me next time—]

“Okay, I get it. Thanks! GyeongWon, thank you so much! Work hard!”

[Okay. See you soon.]

Beep-

Soon, the sun began to set again and it turned to evening. In the distance, I could see the entrance to my apartment complex.

I began to think very hard.

The ‘Mother Dilemma’ ghost story… What was important wasn’trevealing which one was my real mom.

Why was the mother on the first floor in the kitchen in the middle of the night? Also, why was the mother on the second floor calling out much later, as they were about to walk down the stairs?

If we dug into those questionable points endlessly, it would only end up with both sides looking increasingly suspicious.

That would be falling into the trap that the ghost story had set up.

Rather, the more fundamental method would be to make the fake mother reveal herself.

The point of the ghost story was that someone was pretending to be the mother.

Then, using that against them, we just needed to make it so that they could no longer pretend to be the mother.

‘What method would work?’

I fell into deep thought. After stepping into the apartment complex, I could see the entrance to my apartment building far ahead.

I could also see that someone was standing on the veranda.

‘What method could I use to prevent her from pretending to be my mom?’

I already tried insisting that it wasn’t my mom, but it didn’t work.

What method would work?

Give them something to react to, and then try to differentiate the two……

Ah!

‘Is that it?’

I hastened my pace and headed towards the building entrance.

I could see my dad lost in thought at the first floor entrance.

I quietly got close behind him and spoke.

“Dad.”

“……!”

Dad turned around in surprise and, after seeing that it was me, let out a sigh of relief.

“So it was you, Joon. Did you just get back home? You scared me, you punk.”

“There’s something weird at home, Dad.”

Dad’s eyes grew round.

“… What do you mean by weird?”

“Someone keeps pretending to be Mom.”

“……!”

Dad nodded his head quickly, to the point that you could see him drool.

“Me too, Joon! I also saw them.”

“We should solve this together before Mom gets back, Dad. I have a good plan.”

“A good plan? What do you mean?”

‘If I try explaining it here, I don’t think he would understand, anyway……’

I could only show it to him when we met the fake mother face-to-face. Since Dad had good sense, he would be able to catch on quickly.

“Let’s go up for now. I’ll tell you about it after we get there.”

“Okay, I get it. I’m sure two grown men should be able to handle it somehow.”

Dad nodded and followed after me. This time, I was leading.

All of a sudden, after getting on the elevator, I felt scared again.

‘Will this really work?’

My will weakened. I turned my head and looked at my dad. He also looked a bit tense. I steeled my will again and looked forward.

‘I have no choice but to try it out.’

I was suddenly reminded of the strong image my dad had left behind before I had died.

[You bitch! Why are you throwing a fit in someone else’s house?! Leave!]

How scared had Dad really been? I clenched my fist tightly.

‘This will work. I have to believe it.’

The elevator doors opened.

I steeled my will and slowly walked up to our front door. Then I pressed the doorbell.

Ding Dong~♪

“……”

“……”

Silence followed afterwards. I tried ringing the doorbell again.

Ding Dong~♪

“……”

“……”

‘Respond, please……’

Ding Dong~♪, Ding Dong~♪, Ding Dong~♪, Ding Dong~♪, Ding Dong~♪, Ding Dong~♪

I put some strength into my pointer finger and repeatedly pressed the doorbell.

Then, at that moment…

Click-

I could hear the sound of the intercom activating. It meant that someone had pressed the intercom button.

“……”

I quietly began to recite.

“Open the door, daughter-in-law.”

“……”

My dad stared at me with wide eyes. There was only silence on the other end of the intercom. But as long as the button was held on the intercom, they could definitely hear me.

I calmly spoke again.

“Open the door, daughter-in-law.”

“……”

It was quiet inside. In annoyance, I began to press the doorbell again.

Ding Dong~♪, Ding Dong~♪, Ding Dong~♪, Ding Dong~♪, Ding Dong~♪, Ding Dong~♪

“I CAME HERE KNOWING YOU’RE ALREADY HERE, SO OPEN THE DOOR!!!!!! ONLY YOU WOULD LEAVE A MOTHER-IN-LAW OVER SEVENTY WAITING AT THE DOOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

As I was shouting and continuously pressing the doorbell, the door lock finally opened.

Beep, beep, beep~

I quickly opened the front door and went in. Dad seemed a bit dazed as he followed behind me.

There was no need to try to differentiate between the real and fake mothers in the ‘Mother Dilemma’ in the first place. It was over once you pressured the fake mother to the point that she was unable to continue pretending.

The answer that I came up with was to throw her into a situation where she would have the worst reactions, over and over.

‘Let’s see who’ll win, fucker.’

* * *

* * *

I continued to recall the lines of the mother-in-laws that I saw on many of the morning dramas on TV.

It was night. The inside of the house was completely dark, with only the orange sensor lights near the shoe rack revealing the living room.

Around the corner towards the kitchen, Mom stuck out just her head and neck and stared at us.

She began to spit out her complaints at us.

“How does someone like you, who is so bad at studying, walk in with their head up?”

“Daughter-in-law, at this point just teach me the passcode to the front door.”

I didn’t lose out and spouted another line.

“Every time I press the bell, it feels like I’m coming to someone else's home. I don’t like that. Teach me the passcode to the front door.”

Mom looked around this way and that, before shouting out another complaint.

“How is it that there is nothing you are good at? If this—”

“Is it an issue that I’m saying I want to come to my own house?”

I cut her off and shouted, as if I were annoyed.

“……”

“……”

Mom stared straight at me.

In order to not lose to her pressure, I stared right back at her.

“……”

“……”

A stalemate of silence continued. As we continued the staring contest, Mom slowly looked down and began to avoid my gaze.

“…Also, didn’t you say you would do some chores? You never did. You are so indecisive, so indeci—”

“IS IT WRONG FOR ME TO SAY THAT I WANT TO COME TO MY OWN HOME?!!!!!!! THE PASSCODE!!!! IS IT TOO HARD FOR YOU TO UNDERSTAND BECAUSE YOU ARE UNEDUCATED??!!!”

“……”

“……”

The soundless battle over the flow of momentum started again. After staring at each other for a while, Mom again looked around before slowly looking down. Then she responded.

“Mother-in-law… What… Do you mean……?”

“Didn’t I give birth to my son?! My son’s house is my house! What else would it be??!!!! WHAT ARE YOU, TO HAVE SUCH SHALLOW THOUGHTS??!!!!!!”

She gave in!

“If you are the daughter-in-law, you should have quickly come out to greet us and opened the door. Is it that you don’t like it when I come by? Is that it?”

“Noo… That isn’t it……”

“What do you mean that isn’t it, you bitch?! Weren’t you making a fuss, like you’re extremely annoyed that I came over?!”

“That isn’t it… It’s a misunderstanding……”

I was overcome with adrenaline as I began to channel the soul of the mother-in-laws from the morning dramas. I shout out even more firmly.

“You bitch, I got you now!!! Did you even know what today was when you stayed at home?!!!! What the hell are you doing??!!!!”

“Ummm… umm……”

The thing that was pretending to be mom completely lost the will to fight and could only begin shifting her eyes around.

“What day… Is it… Mother-in-law……?”

“Are you asking me this now?!!!!! What even are you?!!! Is that how your parents taught you??!!??!! I was completely wrong about you this entire time!!!!!!!”

“……”

“How can there be such a big difference in class?! Seriously, what are you doing?! What will you do?!”

Mom stopped shifting her eyes and began to look at me again. Then she asked again.

“So what day is it today, Mother-in-law?”

“……!”

Fuck.

What do I say to that? I was so engrossed in acting that I shouted whatever came to mind.

“… Are you talking back to me right now? How can someone like you—”

“So. What day is it? Today.”

Mom slowly responded.

My mind suddenly started to go blank.

Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. How do I respond…? Do I say it’s a birthday……?

The flow was interrupted. Damn it. I couldn’t remember my next lines! We were almost finished. We were right there! Fuck…

Then, at that moment…

“Hey!!!! Today was the day that you promised to pick up my kid from daycare!!!!!”

Dad shouted, using a fake voice and pretending to be female.

“Sister-in-law, is your memory really that bad?!! Or is it sooooo difficult for you to look after just one more child, to the point that you decided to ghost my kid completely?”

“……!”

I looked at Dad in surprise. Dad looked back at me with a knowing look and nodded firmly. The thing pretending to be Mom paused, then slowly returned to shifting her eyes around and speaking.

“Sister-in-law… how could you make such a request…? Taking care of a child… is so hard……”

“Hey!!! Are you insane?!!! Because of you, my kid was crying nonstop at the daycare center!!!!!!!”

Dad’s face went completely red as he shouted, still using the fake voice.

“I want compensation for the emotional distress you caused me and my kid!!!!!! Hand over $500, immediately!!!!!”

“Sister-in-law, what is……?”

The speed that she was shifting her eyes around became much faster. The flow of momentum had returned to us!

“Why are you requesting that I take care of your child…? You could have asked… a babysitter……”

“A babysitter? You really must be out of your mind. How could I trust my kid to someone else?”

“Then why are you asking me……?”

“Sister-in-law! Am I just ‘someone else’ to you?!! Are we not family?!!! Are you just ignoring us when things are difficult, while you take a share when things are well?!! You were like that during the ancestral rites, as well! Che, you’re such a sly fox.”

“Sister-in-law… Please stop……”

“$500!! The compensation for the emotional distress my kid and I went through, $500!! Cough the money up, or just leave this house immediately!”

“Why do I… have to leave… this house……?”

I quickly put myself back into the conversation.

“What do you mean, why?!!! It’s because it’s my son’s house, so it’s essentially our house, you bitch!!!”

“Mother-in-law… What does that……?”

“Leave right now, you bitch!!! I don’t even want to see your face!!!”

“I… don’t want to leave, Mother-in-law……”

Dad took this opportunity to shout at the thing pretending to be Mom.

“Sister-in-law!! Will you really be like this??!! Pay up the $500!!!! Or go fuck off to your parent’s house!!!!!!!”

“That’s right, you bitch!! You were always asking to go visit your parents, over and over!! I bet inside you think this is a great chance, right?! I know it all!!!”

At that point, the ghost was darting her eyes about and unable to do anything in response. My dad joined in and began to shout.

“Return to your parent’s house, you bitch!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“Return to your parent’s house!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“Ugh… ugh… aacckk……!”

We shouted louder and louder, demanding she leave our home.

“Return to your parent’s house!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“Return to your parent’s house!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“Ugh… ugh… aacckk……!”

Mom began to open her mouth wide.

“Return to your parent’s house, you bitch!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“Return to your parent’s house!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“Ugh, aacckk… AAAAACCKK……!”

“Return to your parent’s hoooooooouse!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“Return to your parent’s hoooooooouse!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“Ugh… ugh… aacckk……!”

“KYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Flash-

Bright rays of light began to flash from the ghost’s eyes, nose, and mouth. Cracks began to appear all over her body.

Soon, light began to spill out from the cracks.

“KKKKKYYYYYYYAAAAAAAA—!!!!”

The lights became brighter and brighter, to the point that I could no longer keep my eyes open from the brightness.

KABOOOOOOMMMMM—!!!!

Fake Mom exploded and turned into powder. It fluttered throughout the house and then disappeared.

“……”

“……”

And then, silence.

The woman disappeared without a trace. The living room was dark, but it was still the same as it usually was. Dad and I lost all strength and just collapsed on the spot.

“Huff, huff……”

“Haaah……”

Within the dark house, the orange sensor lights vaguely illuminated two collapsed men.

[You have come across and survived the B-rank Ghost Story - Mother Ghost Story.]

I was just sitting there, feeling exhaustion overwhelm me as I stared at the message window.

Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep. Bebeep~

The sound of the passcode being put in could be heard, followed by the front door opening.

Creak~

“Oh my! What in the world?”

It was Mom!

“… Honey.”

“… Mom.

Mom came in with a surprised expression on her face.

“Why are two grown men just sitting around in front of the door? Joon, hurry and get up! The floor is all dirty!”

“… Mom.”

“Why are you like this? Did something happen?”

“Mom! I missed you! Uwaaaaaaahhhh~!”

I shamefully began to cry, tears and snot running down my face as I went to hug Mom.

“Oh my! Look at this boy, really!!”

Mom laughed aloud before hugging me back.

“You were like this the other day, too! Did something happen? You’re making me embarrassed~!”

“Mom, Mom… waaaah, uwaaaaah……!”

Dad also got up and slowly came up to us, shyly speaking up.

“Honey, I missed you.”

“What? Why are you also being like this, dear…? My gosh. Why are the men in this household suddenly acting like this?!”

“Haha, hahaha.”

“Uwaaaaaaah~!”

“It’s getting creepy now, stop it! Hahaha……”

And that was how our family ended up hugging each other, right by our front door.

[You have come across and survived the B-rank Ghost Story - Mother Ghost Story.]

[You have earned 15 Ghost Story Points.]

[You have exerted great wit and repelled the mother ghost!]

[You have earned 70 Ghost Story Points.]

[You have earned sufficient Ghost Story Points! By spending Ghost Story Points, you can gain special abilities and speed up your growth!]