Chapter 3

Uncle…She is Following Me!

    After completing the patient examination, Doctor Aun felt free…so free that it was boring. The games on Facebook were no longer fun at this moment. Taking this opportunity to visit Golf, Doctor Aun told the nurse at the station that he would go for a walk to the ER ward. By now, his friend might be busy stitching up the wounds or performing CPR for emergency patients.

    The corridor stretched between the buildings was packed with patients until the hospital was overflown. Some were in wheelchairs. Some lay in bed, struggling to breathe. Some were limping alone with their broken legs. Even though Doctor Aun had seen these images for many years, he couldn't help but feel sorry for them. This was the reason... why he wanted to be a doctor to cure these people. It was because he believed that the absence of disease was indeed a great fortune.

    The ER ward was located at the very front of the hospital for the convenience of moving critically ill patients for treatment. The building's entrance was a cemented slope designed for the use of wheeled stretchers and wheelchairs. Sauntering into the ward, the smell of the hospital wafted to greet him as soon as he arrived. The nurse at the counter stood up and raised her hands as a wai to greet him so rapidly that he almost couldn’t greet them back in time.

    “Is Doctor Golf in?”

    "Yes...he is. He’s taking a lunch break in the doctor lounge on the second floor,” said the nurse. Before leaving in the other direction, the doctor bowed his head slightly as a thank you.

    The elevator of the ER building was located in a reasonably narrow nook. Even though Doctor Aun didn't come here often, he knew the way. The young man stopped in front of the elevator and was about to reach out to press the door open. Nevertheless, the elevator door opened on its own, with the appearance of a scary-looking old man wheeling the bed of an ill person. No...they were no longer ill. It should have been called a 'dead person' because they were covered with a white cloth from head to toe. Doctor Aun was stunned but still managed to compose himself. The young doctor smiled at the old man in front of him; however, the other party didn't smile back. He only gave Doctor Aun a meaningful look that was too difficult to comprehend.

    The old man pushed the bed of the dead out of the elevator. The creaking sound of the wheels of the bed made the doctor’s heart shudder with fear. When he saw that the bed was out of the elevator, he whisked inside and pressed on the doctor lounge floor. As the door was slowly sliding shut, it was opened again by someone's hand intervening. The doctor was startled while thinking that he really hated his jumpy self.

    The hand belonged to no one but the old man who had just been pushed out the bed of the dead a moment ago. He was standing still in front of the elevator door with bloodshot eyes staring at the doctor. The young man couldn't help but ask.

    “Do you want me to help you with anything, uncle?”

    “No, I don’t, but the woman next to you does,” he said in an icy tone. The doctor frowned and asked again.

“Woman, what’s the woman, uncle?”

“It’s the woman standing next to you now.”

    The old man's words made the doctor's heart flutter. He slowly glanced at the side but found no one, a woman? Where? He was standing alone in the elevator!

    “Uncle is joking with me, right?” Doctor Aun laughed to cover up his fear. But the other party doesn't seem to laugh with him. Those bloodshot eyes still fiercely stared at the doctor.

    “If you want to think I was joking, then by all means. But let me tell you that she exists. The woman standing next to you, she came to ask for your help. If you don't help her, she will follow you everywhere...anytime. So, if you want to know more, find me in the morgue at the back of the hospital,” said the old man, who then quietly turned around and pushed the dead patient's bed away. Doctor Aun hurriedly closed the elevator door and let out one long sigh...

    Lord...if he wasn't mishearing things, Doctor Aun heard the sound of someone sighing beside him!

    He was out of his mind!! It wasn't true... It must be an echo from the elevator.

    Although he thought like that, the feeling of warm breath on his nape wasn’t pleasant. Doctor Aun didn't even dare to look at his side. As soon as the elevator door opened, he rushed out instantly. He had never been this scared of being alone in an elevator in his life.

    After walking a little further, he found a relatively empty glass room with a long table placed close to one side of the room. Doctor Aun saw the back of Doctor Golf, who was eating lunch, opening the door and greeting him.

    "Why are you eating here alone, Doctor Golf?" The friend's greeting made Golf Doctor turn to look. His mouth was still chewing rice with basil minced pork as if he was starved for a long time.

    “It’s my first bite of food since the morning. I'm starving to death. Can't you see the ER room? It was packed. Well, those technician students quarreled with each other. They had fun fighting each other...but the suffering is on me." Doctor Golf grumbled while shoving another mouthful of rice into his mouth. Doctor Aun smiled and dragged a plastic chair to sit next to his friend.

    “Chill bro… Take it slow or you will die from pork stuck in your windpipe. I am an obstetrician and am only good at pulling the baby out of the mother's womb. I'm not good at going through the doctor's throat myself," said the young doctor jokingly.

    “I’m super hungry. So… why are you up here? Is the OB/GYN ward so chill?”

    “It's not that chill. But I’ve finished checking the patients in the morning batch. A shift doctor came in the afternoon, so I’m free. I’m about to go back and take a nap at the dormitory since I have a shift tonight until the next morning. Just talking about it gives me a headache. Your food looks so nice, let me take a bite." There was no need to wait for Doctor’s Golf reply; he grabbed a plastic spoon in his friend's hand and took a bite with an innocent face.

    “You…idiot. Go back to sleep. Your talk riled me up with the jealousy of people who can get a sleep!” Doctor Golf complained in one breath and grabbed the spoon back. Doctor Aun hurriedly chewed the rice and swallowed it down his throat. Before thinking about what he would like to ask his friend.

    “Hmm… I’ve just met an uncle, and he said something strange.”

    “How strange? Did he speak backwards or speak from the ear?"

    "Come on...I’m being serious here, Golf. The uncle said that a woman was following me out of nowhere." Right after he said the last word, a strong wind from somewhere hit the glass window, startling both of them with a loud bang.

    "He was just joking with you, Aun," said Doctor Golf and laughed. The food in his mouth became too difficult to swallow. Getting goosebumps, his eyes fluttered across the silent room.

    “I want to think so. But the uncle's eyes look serious, I don't know. Plus, the uncle told me to go see him in the morgue at the back of the hospital. Just thinking about it shakes me to the core. You know how scary the morgue at the back of the hospital is. I’m not sure I will go there even if someone pays me a thousand baht.”

    It wasn't long before he could say anything more; Doctor Aun's cell phone rang. The young man grabbed it up from his pants with no delay. Seeing that it was a number from the OB/GYN ward, he tiredly let out a long sigh.

    “The ward’s calling, isn’t it?”

    “Yeah… Maybe they’re calling for me to handle some cases.” Doctor Aun nodded before deciding to answer the call. Talking to the caller for a moment, he turned to Golf and said, “The nurse at the ward called me to do the ultrasound (1) for the patient. I will get going. Let's talk soon, Golf.” The doctor jumped out after he finished speaking.

    His friend busted out, “Wait a minute, I'm going down too.”

    "Why?... You haven't finished your food yet."

    "I'm full, let's go down together." Doctor Golf smiled wryly. He dared not say that he was scared after listening about the 'woman' who followed his friend. He didn’t know whether it was true or not...he only knew that people died in the ER ward every day. There must be some spirit wandering around. Which was not what Doctor Golf wanted to encounter much.

    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

    Racing with the announcement calling his name, the doctor walked to the OB/GYN ward at a furious pace. The young man internally scolded the nurse... He had already said that he was coming. Why did they keep announcing? Were they afraid that the patient wouldn't know that a doctor could take a break too?!

    “Extern Achira, obstetrician, please come to the ultrasound room urgently.”

    "I’m here, I’m here," said the doctor softly. Walking to the front of the ultrasound room, the nurse at the station was about to announce once again. However, she stopped the call when she saw the doctor. The nurse smiled at the young doctor as if she hadn't humiliated him a moment ago.

    “Isn’t the shift doctor here? Why did you have to call me? My shift is over."

    “I’m aware of that, Doctor Aun. But Professor Kawee is still busy with an urgent case. So, I need to call for your help with this ultrasound case. There’s a mother who met a psychic who claimed her baby is dead in her womb. So, she is anxious to know how the baby is. I have confirmed that the child's heart is still beating normally. However, she didn't believe me and pushed for an ultrasound to see her baby. So, I had to call you here, Doctor Aun. Otherwise, the ward will be damned.”

    Then the doctor jumped from the patient's screams piercing through the air. Indeed, as the nurse said...the patient was so aggressive that the ward became hectic. It seemed like he had to hurry and deal with this case.

    Doctor Aun nodded and opened the door of the ultrasound room. The pregnant woman was heatedly screaming at the nurse, who couldn't call the doctor in time. When she saw Doctor Aun, she stopped crying and spoke up breathlessly.

    “You are here… doctor, please take a look at my child. Is he still here?"

    “Please calm down, Miss. I will do the ultrasound to scan your baby. Let’s make it four-dimensional, so you can clearly see that your baby is still doing fine… Take it easy for a moment... I'm sure you'll know the results soon.” He spoke with a soft tone. The patient nodded in understanding and lay down on the bed. A young nurse opened her clothes to see her stomach as the doctor read the patient's profile.

    ...There was no abnormal symptom. The gestational age was more than 22 weeks in which the baby's organs were utterly developed.

    The young doctor sat down and turned on the ultrasound machine. Smiling sweetly at the patient, he then picked up the probe and waited. The nurse knew her duties as she took the cold gel and applied it to the patient's abdomen. Meanwhile, Doctor Aun explained.

    “It will feel a little cold, Miss. This gel will help the device see the baby more clearly. Then I will circle the probe around your belly for a while.” After speaking, Doctor Aun began the procedure. He moved the probe back and forth around the entire abdomen.

    In an instant, a three-dimensional image appeared on the computer screen. The mother's eyes widened with excitement.

    “You see, Miss… The baby is still in your belly. He’s healthy and strong. His heart is beating normally. Here, the heart is right here.” Doctor Aun pointed to the child's heart which was pounding. "He is a boy...are you happy?"

    “I'm happy.”

    Wah...wah...wah...wah

    The doctor stopped moving the probe and listened to the sound. It was like the sound of a child crying loudly from somewhere. Doctor Aun turned to ask the nurse standing beside him.

    “Nurse, did you hear that noise?”

    "What's the noise, Doctor?" she asked, furrowing her brows.

    “Sounds like… like a crying child.”

    "I didn't hear anything, Doctor," the nurse denied. Doctor Aun tried to carefully listen again and found that there was no such sound… He might actually mishear it.

    As soon as he turned to the computer screen, the figure of the unborn child suddenly turned to look at him. The bloodshot eyes lit up. His mouth opened wide, revealing the tiny, sharp teeth of a devil. Startled up, he let the probe drop onto the ground, and flipped over from the chair amid the shock of the patient and nurses.

    “What is it, doctor?”

    The doctor did not answer. He quickly got up and tried to keep his trembling lips as still as possible. Then he smiled at the patient.

    "It’s all done. I will have the nurse print a picture of the baby for you. Please excuse me.” Finishing his sentence, he flew out of the ultrasound room with a pale face and trembling limbs, causing the nurse in front of the room to look at him with a strange look.

    The young doctor's brain began to freeze, his throat dried, and he was confident that he actually saw it. It had to be connected with all the strange things that happened to him a few days ago.

    What did the baby and the woman with her early pregnancy that he saw want from him?

    “If you want to think I was joking, then by all means. But let me tell you that she exists. The woman standing next to you, she now came to ask for your help. If you don't help her, she will follow you everywhere...anytime. So, if you want to know more, find me in the morgue at the back of the hospital.”

    Suddenly, the old man's voice that he encountered at the ER ward sounded in his head. Or what the old man said was true...

    Realizing that, the young doctor immediately headed to the morgue at the back of the hospital…

    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

    After the nurse in the ultrasound room had walked out in front of the counter, another nurse, who was still puzzled by Doctor Aun's attitude, stood up and asked her friend curiously.

    “Hey, what's wrong with Doctor Aun? Why did he bolt out? His face was so pale as if it had lost all the blood.”

    "That’s right… I'm confused too. Doctor Aun was suddenly taken back as if he saw a ghost; then he escaped the ultrasound room."

    “Ghost? I got goosebumps hearing that. Professor Kawee also cried out ‘Ghost! Ghost!’ yesterday in the delivery room. Then, it’s Doctor Aun acting strangely, what happened to our ward?”

    It was a question... to which Doctor Aun was looking for an answer as well.

    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

    Even though it was only about four o'clock in the afternoon, the sky was overcast. It was probably because of the influence of the storm entering the northeastern region this morning. Doctor Aun thought positively as he tried to find a reason for every equation according to his medical field. Although he secretly thought that the ashen atmosphere and the gusting wind like this might be a bad sign conveying something to him.

    The giant tree branches in the hospital area swayed along with the wind. The sound of leaves rustling with each other made his hair stand on end. Doctor Aun walked past one building, traversing another building until he reached a small path leading the young doctor to the hospital's back, where the morgue was located!

    Even if his steps were unhurried, his heart was beating fast as if he was running a race. His breath was so loud that he felt a little annoyed at himself. The gust blew up the dust until the doctor had to use his arms to protect his face. He strolled toward a single-story building that stood alone on the edge of a high cement wall. A barbed of thorns was set up as another barrier to prevent thieves from entering the hospital at night.

    Here came Doctor Aun in front of the morgue!

    The door to the morgue was closed. On the right side of Doctor Aun was an empty white wall with a black iron letter on it saying, 'The Mortal Hall'. It was the normal words; however, it gave him an indescribable feeling of horror and fright.

    Doctor Aun took a long deep breath in an attempt to console himself. Even though he summoned all the thought that there was nothing to fear, his brain told him that there must be something terrifying in the morgue. Because there was only the dead inside!

    The doctor's hand trembled slightly while twisting the doorknob of the morgue. As the door opened, the rusted hinges scratched loudly until his blood ran cold. The smell of formalin for body preservation welcomed him as soon as he opened the door. Doctor Aun calmed himself and opened his eyes to scan the room. Nevertheless, the old man he met hours ago in the ER ward was nowhere to be found, not even his shadow.

    This was the first time Doctor Aun had entered the hospital's morgue alone…

    There was a spacious open area inside the room. The floor and walls were covered with white tiles that were now yellowish due to the passage of time. One side of the chamber was filled with refrigerated mortuary cabinets along the way. There was a human-sized basin in the center of the room for washing and dressing the corpse before the relatives took the bodies to religious ceremonies.

    It was so quiet… so quiet that Doctor Aun could unmistakably hear his breath.

    “Is anyone here?” asked the young man, even though he knew there was no one with him. Which was an utterly wrong guess...because he might encounter 'something' that existed but didn't physically appear...who knew!

    Bang... Bang... Bang!

    Suddenly, a knock rang so loud that Doctor Aun accidentally let out a cry. It roared louder and louder as if someone was trying to break all restraints that had been put on them. The doctor was trying to compose himself and looked for the source of the sound. Until he eventually realized that the sound was thundering from inside the corpse cabinet!

    Bang... Bang... Bang!

    The sound kept ringing. It was like the person inside wanted to escape from the cabinet. But how was it possible... since the only person in it could no longer breathe? And why would a breathless person wake up and smash the lid of the corpse freezer?!

    Even though he told himself that it was a fool, he got goosebumps all over his body. As he took a step back bit by bit to walk out of the morgue, he didn't even think about opening the corpse cabinet. Even though he was a doctor, it was not that he dared to challenge something that hadn't been scientifically proven or what people called a 'ghost.'

    However, he didn’t make it to the exit like he hoped as the door of the corpse cabinet suddenly opened by itself. The doctor stood dumbfounded with his stiff legs and widened eyes staring directly at the corpse freezer before him. He wished to close his eyes and thought it was just a dream...a dream in which he secretly fell asleep while on his shift. Wake up, Aun... Wake up... Wake up!

    Unfortunately, it was not a dream...it was a reality.

    The reality that Doctor Aun needed to face!

    And then the unexpected occurred...when there was suddenly a figure of someone gradually crawling out of the cabinet. It was a girl with long hair wearing a maternity dress. Her face was bloodless pale. The girl stood up and stayed still before letting out a bloodcurdling cry. Then she screamed her heart out and used both hands to tear her abdomen off. It revealed that the baby inside was squirming until the blood splashed all over the place.

    “Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh…”

    The ghost girl screamed as her unborn child burst out. The umbilical cord was still attached to the mother as the child slowly grew and crawled straight to the doctor. The young man's eyes widened with his body trembling. He tried to chant every prayer he could remember; however, he couldn't think of a single word other than 'Help'.

    All of a sudden, another door of the corpse freezer burst open. The tray in it slid out until it almost fell to the ground. There was a body lying on her back on a tray. Of course, Doctor Aun didn't want to look at it one bit. However, the pregnant ghost turned around and pulled the corpse's head to face the young doctor. She roared out blaring laughter.

    Doctor Aun stood there, eyes wide open, when he saw that person's face...

    Classical music spilled in softly...

    Doctor Aun found himself standing in the dining room of a luxurious house, a typical house of the wealthy. At the long dining table, there was a dazzling array of food. A beautiful-looking girl named 'Petch' reached out to scoop up a green chicken curry for her husband, who was sitting at the head of the table.

    “Today, I made green curry myself, only for you, Trai. Give it a try, I don't know if you will like it or not."

    “It must be delicious since it is your cooking.” A young man named 'Traithip' praised her. He swiftly scooped up green curry on his plate and widened his eyes. “It's amazing, Petch. I've never eaten green curry this delicious before.”

    “You are overcomplimenting me. I just followed the recipe.”

    “Even so, what about you, honey…? I don't see you eat anything. You’re too busy worrying about me. Let’s try this. I've tasted it before...it was nice," said the husband before reaching to give his wife's three-flavored snapper.

    “Eat up and stay healthy."

    “Got it.” She smiled, about to scoop the three-flavored fish that Traithip put onto a plate for a bite. But then the woman skewed her face while making a fussy nose. “Do you smell something foul, Trai?”

    "What's that smell, hon?" Traithip tried to sniff for the smell, his wife said. But then he shook his head in denial.

    “There’s no foul smell, Petch."

    “There really is. The smell is so stinky… stinky, oops…." Without a word, the woman abruptly shut her mouth and ran out of the dining room. The husband dropped the spoon and ran after Petch. She was throwing up at the sink. So, Traithip rushed in and patted his wife's back until she recovered. After that, he walked her back to lie down on the sofa in the living room.

    “What’s wrong, Petch?”

    "I don't know either, I felt dizzy all of a sudden."

    "Or…" The husband's eyes widened with utmost joy. “You are pregnant!”

    “I don’t think so, honey. My monthly cycle is still normal.” Petch's answer immediately made Traithip's face fall. The young man had been trying to have an heir for two years but was unsuccessful. Having a child was his highest dream… and Petch totally understood him.

    “Trai, I know how much you want to have children. I want that too. I come to think about it... since we can't have children on our own. Should we consult a doctor? In case there is another way for us.” The wife reached out and held her husband's hand, and Traithip nodded back.

    “Then tomorrow I will take you to the hospital for a checkup, Petch. I have a friend who is a doctor in the OB/GYN ward. You might know him too, Doctor Kawee. He should be able to help us, or maybe I’m the problem. I'm going for the checkup too. So, we will finally know.”

    “Okay.”

    The next morning, Traithip and Petch arrived at a hospital's obstetrics and gynecology department. Just a glance at the entrance door... Doctor Aun immediately recognized that it was the obstetrics and gynecology department of the hospital where he was practicing. The couple walked towards the counter, where a nurse sat with her head bowed. The nurse was dealing with the patient's queue with a very tired look on her face.

    "Excuse me, I'm here to see the doctor whom I called to make an appointment with," said Traithip. The young nurse looked up.

    “I see… just a moment.”

    That nurse was...Nurse Pia!

    All of a sudden, those images vanished like electricity had been turned off. It came to light again when the corpse's head lying in the freezer hung and freely swung in front of Doctor Aun.

    That corpse's head was Nurse Pia's!

    It was impossible! He had just met Nurse Pia at the ward this morning.

    The ghost holding the head of the nurse cracked up with laughter. The sound reverberated in his ears until Doctor Aun had to cover his ears with his hands. He closed his eyes and told himself that it wasn't true. He was having a nervous breakdown… or was sleepwalking.

    Doctor Aun felt a cold hand touching his shoulder for a split second with his eyes closed. The young man flinched, waking up from his reverie. Sweating until his shirt was wet, he looked around.

    “I knew you would come.” The old man's voice rang out with a laugh in his throat before pushing the bed of the dead into the morgue. Doctor Aun, who was still stunned by what he saw just a moment ago, was speechless. After a futile attempt to compose himself, he swept his gaze towards the now sealed corpse freezer. Not a single door was ajar.

    “Do you believe me now that there is a woman with you everywhere…every time, Doctor?”

    Haven’t given out an answer, he felt a warm breath on the nape of his neck...the breath that had no origin but knew it was there!

    Have you ever been alone...but felt like someone else was with you?

    That was what Doctor Aun was feeling...

    The young man rolled his eyes and whispered softly to the old man standing next to him with a low but firm voice with absolute certainty.

    “Uncle… she is really following me!”

    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

    (1) Ultrasound unit is a device that detects high-frequency sound waves that are in a range that is too high for the human ear to hear. From the past to the present, it is commonly used. Due to its high security, it can be used as often as needed. At present, the development of ultrasound machines has progressed greatly, from 2D to 3D and 4D. As the resolution is much clearer, it helps the diagnosis, such as looking at the physical characteristics of the baby's surface, cleft lip and palate, baby’s heart anatomy, and blood vessels. Together with the experience of medical professionals, the device enables doctors to early detect various abnormalities associated with fetal chromosomal abnormalities.