The Temple of Love

The Temple of Love

Author: sage_anubis

Narrator: Kim Soo-yeon

If I ask, what is a lover? What is a friend? And what exactly is a family? What will you answer? I doubt that anyone reading this will ever be able to answer properly, because nothing is permanent; everything changes with time and emotion. I don’t know how I would explain my story, but I will try my best.

This story involves my friend Han Mi-ra. We were both childhood friends. Our families were close, so we knew each other from kindergarten. We both study at Seoul University. I study Clinical Medicine, and Mi-ra studies History. We are both in our second year. We used to live in the Seoul University dorms, but she moved out with her third-year boyfriend, Lee Dong-hyun, a few months ago, and since

then, I have not seen her.

One evening, I was doing my usual reading of horror stories online. I heard rapid knocking on my door. I got scared for a moment, but when I heard Mi-ra’s voice, my fear decreased. I opened the door, and she was crying very heavily. I asked, “What happened to you? Why are you crying?” She could not speak properly. She showed me a news article that said a guy died in a car accident in Bali, Indonesia. She replied, “Dong-hyun is gone.” I was shocked to hear that. She continued, “He was on an expedition while working in a cave in Bali. He got sick and was hospitalized. For unknown reasons, he fled from the hospital, and while crossing the road, he was run over by a truck.”

She fell on her knees and started crying loudly. I felt bad; I could feel her broken heart. We are like twins. My other friends came over, hearing her crying. We all sat beside her, trying to calm her down. Losing someone you love is really hard. After a while, everyone left. She was calm and was about to leave. I asked her to stay with me in the university dorm for the night. She agreed.

She was not talking at all. She was sitting still, looking at the wall, with tears flowing down her cheeks. I tried to feed her, but she rejected everything. I said, “If you don’t eat at all, you will get sick as well.” I tried to force-feed her, but she didn’t even bite.

For the night, she stayed with me. She slept beside me. When I was almost asleep, she asked me, “His family is already in Bali right now. Maybe his funeral has already been completed. Soo-yeon, I have known you for years. In many ups and downs, we have been together. For the last time, can you help me honor my late boyfriend’s wish and finish his expedition to reveal an ancient god of love?” I replied, “Let’s sleep tonight, get some rest. We will talk tomorrow morning.”

The next morning, Mi-ra was no longer crying. She seemed calm, perhaps because she had finally slept well. Mi-ra woke up before me and cooked breakfast. She has always been a good cook. After I woke up, I asked, “What about the god of love you were talking about last night?”

Mi-ra said, “Finish your breakfast first. We have a lot of talking and packing to do.”

As we ate, Mi-ra began to explain, “You may or may not know this, but throughout the history of mankind, humans have always wanted to love and be loved. But with love comes hate, envy, and jealousy. Some may show it, some may not, but there is always hate on the other side of love. There is always war to protect the ones we love. To stop unnecessary bloodshed and war, an ancient god of Bali ordered an angel to descend to this world and create a safe place for humankind to thrive. But other gods hated this idea and caged that angel in a cave.”

I was intrigued by her story. “Is this the same cave Dong-hyun was working in?” I asked.

“Yes,” she replied.

“When are you planning to go to Bali?” I asked.

“In three days. We have a connecting flight. On 2nd September, we will be in Bali,” she said.

“And money?” I asked.

She replied with a V sign, “Everything is under control.”

Mi-ra seemed happier, her mood much better than the previous night. She left after a few hours, saying she needed to finish some important business before leaving for Bali. After she left, I took a shower. While showering, I thought about what she had said: with love comes hate, envy, and jealousy. Am I envious of her? Am I jealous of her? Do I hate her? Maybe, or maybe not. But when Dong-hyun chose her instead of me, there was a little sting inside, no matter how much I showed happiness on the outside.

The death of Dong-hyun made me sad too. Maybe I would have been a better partner than Mi-ra. Possibly that’s why I agreed to go with her to fulfill Dong-hyun’s last wish. He was my friend first, and Mi-ra knew I had feelings for him. But when he proposed to her, she accepted, which felt like a big slap of betrayal to me.

I may be distant from him now, but I still have feelings for him.

We took a connecting flight to Bali. Our hotel was booked in Tegalalang for three days. I had never been to Bali before; this place is truly beautiful. Bali is a province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. It feels like a place where gods might descend.

Bali is not a big island, and it’s easy to explore all of it, but we didn’t have much time. I wanted to see famous places in Bali, but that could wait for another time.

Mi-ra spent all her time following Dong-hyun’s digital notes, which were given to her by Dong-hyun himself. I wanted to see what was written in those notes, but she didn’t show me. She said, “You won’t understand this language, so it’s pointless.” When she was in the washroom, I tried to sneak a peek at her phone, but I couldn’t understand a thing written in it. I admitted to sneaking a look, thinking she might be furious, but instead, she started teaching me the language. She said, “These notes hold the location of the cave where the angel was caged.”

The first day was tiresome, and we slept well, but I realized Mi-ra couldn’t hide her frustration at not discovering the cave yet.

On the second morning, she left early, leaving a note saying she would be back soon. She went to get some breakfast. She returned late with a faint smile on her face. I asked, “What is the reason for your smile?”

She replied, “Finally, I got a lead.”

“What lead?” I asked.

She said, “I asked the locals about any cave on the northeastern side of the island. Most of them didn’t have any idea. That’s why I was frustrated last night, but today a miracle happened. An old man said there was once a piece of land attached to Kubu. After an earthquake, this land with its cave went down into the sea, but every day during low tide, a pathway opens to the cave. Locals don’t like to go to that cave; they believe it’s cursed. But during low tide, anyone can go to the caves using a small boat or a kayak.”

I said, “And you want to go to that cave to fulfill Dong-hyun’s wish? This is dumb. You came to this island, that’s fine, but going to that cave is a death wish.” She smiled, and I could see the determination in her eyes.

After breakfast, she left. I remembered why I hated her so much. If she wants to do something, she will ignore everything else. She won’t care about her life if she is determined.

Before she left, she stopped for a moment and asked, “Soo-yeon, will you be cursed for your entire life for the person you love?”

The day passed by, and it was almost evening. Mi-ra hadn’t returned. I was worried this might happen—that she would do something reckless or even lose her life. I promised myself never to go with Mi-ra again. She is so reckless, which is irritating. If she needed my help, she could have asked me to go with her. Multiple thoughts ran through my mind.

What did she mean by having a cursed life? Was she planning to kill herself? That would be extreme, but for her, it’s not impossible.

But somewhere inside, I was happy. She took my love; she deserves to die. Dong-hyun and I could have had a better life if she hadn’t interfered and accepted his proposal.

I decided to stop thinking about her for the moment. If needed, tomorrow morning I would go check the caves for her dead body. I never felt this satisfaction before—my enemy would die for her own stupidity, and I would go back home victorious.

The second day ended with me celebrating her death. On the third morning, I woke up late and went outside for a view. Today would be the last day of my stay here in Bali. My return flight was at 7:30 pm; until then, I had time to explore the island one last time.

While I was exploring, I saw small boats sailing around. The faint idea of seeing Mi-ra’s dead body for the last time excited me. I asked a sailor where I could rent a small boat to explore the caves of Kubu. I couldn’t understand his language, but with his gestures, he suggested that to the east of Kubu, there was a man named Bimo who would rent me a boat to explore the caves. No one is brave enough to explore those waters.

I found Bimo and showed him a photo of Mi-ra. He nodded and said, “Yes, I took her to the cave yesterday.”

“Can you take me to the same cave?” I asked.

Bimo nodded and said, “Yes, I can. But that place is cursed. A few days ago, a man came to visit the same cave. He turned mad and died in a truck accident. And yesterday, her. She might be dead by now.”

My mind filled with happiness. That is exactly what I wanted to see. But I suppressed my feelings and said, “She is my friend, and if there is a slight chance to save her, I will do anything to save her life.”

Bimo took me to a large cave, hidden during normal tides. Only during low tide does the cave appear, revealing a small passageway. I asked Bimo to come with me, but he refused, saying he would not step foot in these lands.

I wouldn’t have gone either, but my desire to see Mi-ra dead was driving me. I stepped onto the cave floor. Bimo warned, “Low tide will stay for one hour. Complete your exploration within that time, or you’ll have to wait 12 hours for the next low tide. It’s slippery; you may fall, so watch your steps.”

The cave was high above sea level, with no chance of drowning. The entry was low, but inside, it was spacious. People might go mad from the suffocation and the long wait. I walked through the cave, seeing markings all over the walls—the same markings I had seen in Dong-hyun’s notes that Mi-ra had shown me. There were also recent number markings, possibly made by Dong-hyun himself. I walked through and reached the end of a passageway where I found a door.

The door was large enough to pass a car. It was divided into two sides. The left side was locked, but the right side was open, allowing easy entry. Before I could walk in, I saw Mi-ra sitting near a statue in the center of the room. As I was about to enter, she shouted, “The floor is slippery. Be careful; you might fall. Watch your steps.”

I was happy until now, but seeing her alive made me furious. Why do my desires never fulfill? I walked in, and there was no water or slip. The land was dry, but I did fall down. It felt different; my body was lighter, and it was easier to move around. Never mind that now, but I was furious seeing Mi-ra alive and rudely asked her, “Why are you here?”

She replied with a question, “Have you seen the cave? Have you noticed anything? Look at this statue; it’s so beautiful.”

I looked around and saw a statue designed like an angel, chained to the ground. She said, “She is Guan Yin, an angel descended to earth for humans, but humans betrayed and chained her in this cave.”

I wanted to say, “Does that matter right now?” but almost no sound came out of my mouth. Mi-ra looked at me and smiled, “Did you not notice anything?”

I was angry and shouted, “Can you stop this stupidity and just die?” What am I saying? No, I never meant to say that, but I want you to die.

Mi-ra laughed out loud and said, “This place is called the Temple of Love. You cannot hide anything here. You talk directly through your mind, not your mouth, so there is no filter.”

I shouted, “Shut up, idiot. You are the reason Dong-hyun died. You die here; that’s all I want.”

A second laugh came from behind me. What the hell is that? Why am I seeing myself standing in front of me? There were Mi-ra and Soo-yeon standing in front of me.

Mi-ra laughed and said, “Hi Soo-yeon, I am Dong-hyun.”

From behind me, my body spoke again, “Hello, it’s me, Mi-ra.”

I was confused.

Mi-ra said, “When the angel descended, she gifted lovers the ability to change bodies so they could feel each other’s pain and happiness. But last time, someone betrayed a lover. When I entered the cave, my soul left my body, and the centuries-old soul took my body and left. My soul stayed, waiting for Mi-ra. I knew she would come and bring you too for a body replacement.”

Mi-ra said, “I took her body, and she took yours.”

They both came close to each other and kissed for a very long time, then left.

After they left, I ran after them, but I couldn’t leave the room. I was locked in. The door closed automatically, and everything went dark.

I kept shouting, “Help me!”

I might stay here until the end of time.

Kim Soo-yeon’s journey ends in a twist of fate and betrayal. What will become of her trapped soul? The mysteries of the Temple of Love remain.

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