Shadow in the Water

It took thirty minutes to find the entrance. Even in broad daylight, somewhere deep within the bustling Hanyang Noraengjin Market in Seoul, there was an eerie presence. Amidst the fishing boats, remnants of meat and fish scales sparkled on the coarse asphalt. Despite the fluorescent lights being on, the shops were surprisingly dark. A grip tightened around the camera that Park Ji-ho was holding. He was hunting for the bizarre in this old market.

Worryingly, the lights began to flicker. And every six steps, puddles formed on the floor, where did that water come from when it hadn’t rained? Droplets splashed upward. Not far away, a piercing scream echoed, but it was impossible to discern whether it belonged to a person or an animal. A silent atmosphere wrapped the air desolately, and all of this was hard to ignore.

Cold water seeped beneath Ji-ho’s feet. Something was stirring behind him - a repetitive water sound. Reacting like a reflex to the reflections on the water's surface, he faced the mirror; there he stood, yet the only thing that remained in the water was the edge where he had reached out. A hand broke free from the mirror and crawled towards his arm. His scream was not reflected, and the space distorted, the walls seeming to narrow in on him.

In the moment fear consumed courage, Ji-ho broke through the confusing space, half swimming, half running as he whipped himself onward. He stumbled and let out a terrified scream in a corner of the frightening downtown. Finally, the bright light from a convenience store brought back some sanity. Looking back towards the back of the market, it still lay under a veil — eerily quiet as if a monster were imprisoned within.

Having escaped the brink, Ji-ho limped into a cozy café. He turned the camera back on to investigate. The last scene recorded on the screen was that of him struggling alongside his reflection in the water — immediately plunging straight into it. Yet what he couldn’t fathom were the things beyond that simultaneity, the afterimage of the moment he had stepped outside — where a droplet brushed against his finger.