[Short Story] The Crack, Part 1

1. The Crack

When I first saw it, I laughed.

 

A thin line running diagonally from the corner of the ceiling down toward the floor. It looked as if someone had casually scribbled it in pencil on the white wall of my newly purchased apartment. Thirty-two pyeong, 23rd floor. It was on the outskirts of the Seoul metropolitan area, but I had a view where I could faintly make out the Han River. I didn’t think much of that crack. I thought I’d heard somewhere that new buildings always have things like this. Shrinkage cracks that form as the concrete settles. It was a major construction company—surely not.

 

I invited my friends over: Jae-hoon, So-young, Min-cheol, and Ji-soo. The five of us planned to gather in the empty apartment to grill pork belly. Sitting in the bare living room, which didn’t even have furniture yet, we tore into our delivery chicken and looked out the window. The city’s night view looked impressive.

 

 

2. Thud

So-young had gone ahead to the bathroom. Min-cheol and Ji-soo were checking out the master bedroom. I was leaning against the balcony chatting with Jae-hoon when he suddenly walked toward me.

 

“Hey, look at that wall over there. Doesn’t it seem wider than before?”

 

It was just as I was about to turn my head.

 

Thud——.

 

It wasn’t a sound. It was a vibration. A heavy tremor rising from the soles of my feet shot up my spine to the very top of my head. And then I saw it. The floor near the master bedroom collapsing entirely. The concrete slab crumbling downward as limply as wet paper. Dust billowed up. Min-cheol’s scream vanished into the dust.

 

I grabbed Jae-hoon’s arm. Jae-hoon grabbed me. We pushed each other toward the wall and froze in place.

 

The master bedroom was gone. Min-cheol was gone. Ji-soo was gone.

 

 

3. Escape

The stairs were at the far end. In the opposite direction from where the collapse had occurred. We walked, holding onto the wall. With every step, I couldn’t be sure the floor would hold. So-young came out of the bathroom, and our eyes met. There was no time to explain. We just ran.

 

When we got outside the apartment building, a truck was parked in the alley behind the complex. Two men in work clothes were loading boxes. It looked like an ordinary moving scene, but something felt off. It was 2 a.m. And even though part of this building had just collapsed, they didn’t seem surprised at all.

 

I moved closer. The lid of one of the boxes was open. It was full of documents: blueprints, structural calculations, and internal reports stamped with a red seal. The title caught my eye.

 

“Excessive Load on Building B Slab — Internal Review Report (Do Not Disclose Externally)”

 

While the men were away, I grabbed the entire box and ran.

I don’t know.

 

 

4. Blackmail

The next morning at 10 a.m., I received a text message on my phone. The number was withheld.

 

“Return it, and we’ll pretend this never happened. You have 48 hours.”

 

At 2 p.m., a piece of paper was tucked under the windshield wiper of my car. It didn’t say a word. Instead, it had a clear, high-resolution photo of me running down the alley last night, carrying a box.

 

I unfolded the documents. I read them all night. The structural engineer’s internal review report contained clear statements: Slab thickness below standard. Reinforcement spacing non-compliant. Constructed at 73% of the design load. And the team leader’s signature was stamped next to it. Approved.

 

Min-cheol and Ji-soo were in the ICU right now. Min-cheol had lost both legs, and Ji-soo her left arm. They were alive. That was all.

 

 

5. Choice

I’m in a convenience store bathroom right now. I left the box in a coin locker. Jae-hoon told me to pretend I didn’t know anything. So-young just kept crying. I’m holding my phone in my hand.

 

Three windows are open on the screen.

 

The first is a tip-off email address for a TV station. The second is the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s complaint page. The third is the personal number of that construction company’s CEO. I got it from somewhere.

 

The media is fast. But they can’t protect me. The government is slow. But a record remains. The construction company has a lot of money. But if they can let me live quietly, I can also secure compensation for Min-cheol and Ji-soo.

 

Someone outside knocked on the bathroom door.

 

Three times.

 

Slowly, steadily.

 

I placed my thumb over the send button. I don’t know yet which window it’s on.

 

 

● Next : https://tota-books.tistory.com/58

[Short Story] The Crack, Part 2