Chapter 202 - Small House-III

Seoyeon saw on the man's hands were the chain while there was no lock. The caretaker who entered his house then placed the chain on the table, the heavy sound startled her as the man had placed the chain roughly.

"Did you not find the man too, sir?" asked Jung Hwa even though he could tell the man was unable to find their illustratious thief. 

"He was not there. I also saw your car," the man started and Seoyeon once again felt her heart in unease. Did the man notice the car was not broken. "Was it the tire that ran out of air? I saw the two tires on the back were depleted."

"Yes it was the tires, we didn't expect the tire to break even though the tires had just changed days ago. It must had been pricked by a sharp stone or nails," explained Jung Hwa who had stood up to look around the house, finding no picture of family, and how the house held more dusts and spider webs on the corner of the house without Seoyeon knowing when he saw a spider, he pulled and crushed it before throwing the spider somewhere else. "Could I ask if you live alone here sir?"

"Yes, dead people can't stay in the living world anyway," the man replied huffing when he took a seat on the chair before rubbing his back. Seoyeon wondered what the old man's words meant or that he had talked without any in depth meaning. "What will you two do then?"

"We would like it if you can provide us shelter until my friend arrive to bring a new tires, I have one prepared in the back of my car but a car can't move with three tires only," said Jung Hwa with a smile. "Have you worked here for long sir? I take that it's not easy to take care of a cemetery or living alone here, my friend over here had been scared since she entered the cemetery."

On the words, Seoyeon frowned and look at Jung Hwa and he grinned in reply. 

"I see," she heard the old man replied unamused and he added, "I clearly thought that you two were a couple. There had been rumors of how couples love to do things that are not right in the cemetery or that people stealing things that are buried along with the body inside the coffin."

Thankfully Seoyeon was sitting with her face looking across Jung Hwa or she would have looked startled by the old man's words. Do things in the cemetery? What things? 

"Maybe they love the thrill of being with the dead and being found by others which I don't understand and not something that I would like to. They do not know there still many things one could do on bed," and saying the words, Jung Hwa looked at her. It took her a moment to realize what it meant and her cheeks blushed to the tips of her ears. "I am still wooing this lady over here and it's not an easy event. Maybe you could give me some advised? I see that you were married."

The old man looked somewhat startled and he looked at Jung Hwa's eyes that were watching his left hand, ring finger were there was a sign of the man using a ring. "This is and old stuff of history. My wife died ten years ago and she was buried here," said the man who then gave a pointed look to their dirty clothes, "What happened with your clothes? Did you two run around the mud?"

Seoyeon didn't know if Jung Hwa could answer and he gave silence while staring at her as if waiting for her to be the one to talk. "I fell and Hwa helped me."

"And you both fell?" The old man questioned and she nodded. She wasn't a good liar but she knew this was believable and the old man seemed to have taken the idea. 

Jung Hwa walked toward the door which was left open by the man, and his eyes went to look at the gate before saying, "When we came I see there was no name of the cemetery, is that normal?"

The man pulled his brows subtly but Jung Hwa didn't missed the man's exchange of expression, "Not all cemetery has name, this cemetery is very different from any other cemeteries out there. Would you like a drink?"

"No thank you, my friend here is not able to drink water without proper knowledge of where the water came from," Jung Hwa raised his hand to halt the man who was about to stand from the chair to sit down again. "I'm also worried if it would make her feel painful after drinking it."

The caretaker frowned, "I wouldn't put something like that inside a drink."

"Who knows," Jung Hwa shrugged his shoulders. "I can't trust people easily."

Seoyeon, on the other hand, was still curious and she asked, "Is the cemetery different because there is no plate name?"

"Or because what the cemetery's soil buried under?" chided Jung Hwa again, leaning to the wall, he crossed his arm to look at the expression of the old man who was startled. His grin widened, and a wicked expression came on his face.

Somewhere Seoyeon hope Jung Hwa could control his words without turning the air awkward but would that ever happen with him around? He had a habit of picking fight and Seoyeon didn't know if he does it for the love of fighting of that he has enough confidence he would win. Maybe the latter because Jung Hwa had always been a confident person.

"What else would we bury under the ground of a cemetery than bodies?" The old man responded back, standing up he huffed, "If you are searching for treasures it's not there."

"Of course not treasures, aren't there many things that are better to be found than treasure? Like secret," Jung Hwa twisted his lips as the man's eyes fell on him with a defensive expression. "Which reminds me don't this remind you of your parents' grave, Seoyeon?

Being called Seoyeon who was immersed in their conversation had a pause. She noticed the old man's eyes fell on her, looking as if in thought and she recalled the words said by Jung Hwa before she entered and what he had told her to say. After a thought, she pulled a faint smile, "Yes, my parent's grave. It does look like one but I was too small to ever remember my parent's grave. It's a shame that I was taken to the orphanage and lost contact with people who knows my parents. I would like to visit their graves just once."

"Many graves look the same, miss. I can tell you that this must be the wrong grave you are searching of," said the old man and Seoyeon wondered what he meant. How could he be so sure this wasn't her parent's cemetery? 

She was still unsettled after seeing how her parents coffin was empty without anything inside. Jung Hwa told her is possibilities but somewhere she had a premonition that something twisted was about to take place in her life and she wasn't sure if she was ready to learn it. 

"How can you be so sure, sir? There could be a chance. Some times coincidence happens like how the car I rode on broke down and I find myself in my parent's cemetery," explained Seoyeon. She can't put into words but the moment she questioned, the old man gave a look to her as if she was a foolish person for asking.

"Most dead people who are buried here have no family and that I can say for sure. Seeing that you are still alive, your parents would be buried somewhere else," the caretaker's words made Seoyeon to doubt and she turn her eyes to see Jung Hwa whose expression was harder to read as his smile was wide.

Seoyeon could only tell that Jung Hwa was holding an amusement in this.

She then heard him say, "Sounds to me as if this whole cemetery is booked for one single village or family."

"You are not much wrong," the man answered, "When will your friend be coming? I would have to sleep. As a man with age, it's getting harder to keep myself awake late at night."

"But old folks usually sleep less. I have a grandfather so I know. Don't worry he is not here yet," Jung Hwa answered without looking at his phone which had the man to pull his brows deeper, "Ah, but I remembered Seoyeon had received the name of the cemetery?" questioned Jung Hwa who saw the man walking to the corner of the room, pouring water from the jar. "Do you remember what was the cemetery name?"

The caretaker continued to give an unpleasant expression while looking at Jung Hwa. He had deliberately steer the conversation from the cemetery but the man brought back the topic, as if wanting to continue discussing the matter.

"Before you answer, can I know what's the name of this cemetery, sir?" questioned Jung Hwa to the old man, his eyes shifting from Seoyeon and the old man sighed.

"The name is Slumber Cemetery," the man replied to see Seoyeon's face without noticing Jung Hwa had smiled.

"How odd, the name of Seoyeon's parent's cemetery is also Slumber Cemetery," Jung Hwa brought his thumb to rub his lower lips, "Is possible there are many cemetery with the same name, I wonder?"