Kim Min-joon felt a sudden jolt of pain in his chest as he clicked on the link on his phone. He gasped and dropped his phone as he clutched his heart, feeling like it was about to explode.
He looked at Soo-jin who was staring at him with a horrified expression on her face.
"Min-joon! What's wrong? Are you okay?" she asked, panicking.
He tried to say something but no words came out of his mouth. He felt dizzy and nauseous as his vision blurred and darkened.
He heard her scream his name as he collapsed on the bench, losing consciousness.
The last thing he saw was her face - full of fear and worry - before everything went black.
***
Kim Min-joon opened his eyes slowly and groaned. He felt a throbbing headache and a soreness all over his body. He blinked several times, trying to adjust to the bright light that hurt his eyes.
He looked around and realized he was lying on a dirty mattress in a small room that smelled like garbage and urine. There were piles of junk everywhere - old clothes, broken furniture, rusty metal scraps - and rats scurrying around. The walls were stained with mold and graffiti, and the window was covered with newspaper.
He felt confused and scared. Where was he? What had happened to him? Was this some kind of nightmare?
He tried to remember what had happened before he woke up here. He recalled going out with Soo-jin for their date, having dinner at the restaurant, going to the park to watch the fireworks…and then…
He remembered receiving a strange message on his phone about some VR game called Galaxy Quest. He remembered clicking on the link without thinking much about it…and then…
He remembered feeling a sharp pain in his chest…and then…
Nothing.
He felt a cold sweat run down his forehead as he realized something terrible had happened to him. Had he died? Had he been kidnapped? Had he been transported to another world?
None of these options made any sense to him. He couldn't believe any of this was real. He felt like he was trapped in a bad dream that he couldn't wake up from.
He tried to get up from the mattress, but his legs felt weak and numb. He stumbled and fell to the floor, hitting his head on a metal pipe.
He groaned and cursed as he felt blood trickle down his forehead. He touched his wound and winced in pain.
He looked at his hand and saw something that made him gasp in shock.
His hand was not his own.
It was smaller and thinner than before. It had fewer wrinkles and scars than before. It looked younger than before.
He stared at his hand in disbelief, feeling a surge of fear and confusion.
What had happened to him? What was he?
He quickly checked his other hand and saw that it was the same. He lifted his shirt and saw that his chest and stomach were also different. He had less fat and more muscle than before. He had a smooth skin without any blemishes or tattoos.
He felt his face and felt a shock of horror.
His face was not his own.
It was younger and more handsome than before.
He screamed in terror as he realized that he had turned into someone else.
Someone else who looked like an 18-year-old boy.
A boy who was not him.
***
Kim Min-joon tried to calm himself down and think rationally. He tried to find an explanation for what had happened to him.
He remembered that he had clicked on a link about Galaxy Quest, a VR game that claimed to be the most realistic and immersive experience ever.
He wondered if this was all part of the game. Maybe he had entered Galaxy Quest without knowing it. Maybe this was his avatar in the game world. Maybe this was how he looked like in Galaxy Quest.
But if this was true, then where was his VR headset? Where was his phone? Where was his controller? How did he enter the game without any equipment?
And why did he feel pain? Why did he bleed? Why did he smell? Why did everything seem so real?
He couldn't find any answers to these questions. He couldn't find any clues or hints that this was a game. He couldn't find any way to exit or log out from this world.
He felt hopeless and desperate. He felt like he had lost everything - his identity, his life, his love.
He wanted to go back to his original world. He wanted to see Soo-jin again. He wanted to hug her and tell her how much he loved her.
But how could he do that? How could he escape from this nightmare?
***
Kim Min-joon decided to explore his surroundings and look for some clues or help. He searched through the piles of junk in the room, hoping to find something useful or valuable.
He found nothing but trash - empty cans, rotten food, torn books, broken toys - nothing that could help him understand where he was or what had happened to him.
He gave up and left the room, hoping to find someone who could help him or at least tell him where he was.
He opened the door and stepped outside. He was greeted by a loud noise and a foul smell.
He looked around and saw that he was in a slum. A dirty and crowded slum full of shabby buildings, narrow streets, and garbage dumps. A slum full of people who looked poor, sick, and miserable.
He saw people wearing ragged clothes and carrying bags or carts full of junk. He saw people begging for money or food or drugs. He saw people fighting or stealing or killing each other.
He felt scared and disgusted. He felt like he had entered hell.
He tried to avoid eye contact with anyone and walked quickly through the slum, looking for a way out. He hoped to find a more civilized area or a public transportation system that could take him somewhere else.
But he soon realized that he was lost. He had no idea where he was going or how to get there. He had no map or GPS or phone to guide him.
He felt hopeless and desperate. He felt like he had no chance of survival in this world.
Kim Min-joon walked for hours without finding any sign of hope or help. He felt hungry and thirsty and tired. He felt pain in his feet and legs from walking so much.
He decided to rest for a while in an alleyway that seemed relatively safe and quiet. He sat down on a cardboard box and leaned against a wall.
He closed his eyes and tried to relax his mind and body. He tried to forget about his situation and his problems for a moment.
But he couldn't.
He couldn't stop thinking about his original world. His original life. His original self.
He wondered what had happened to them after he clicked on that link. Did they notice that he was gone? Did they miss him? Did they worry about him?
Did Soo-jin miss him? Did she worry about him? Did she still love him?
Did she still love him even though he looked like someone else?
Did she still love him even though he might never see her again?
He felt tears welling up in his eyes as he thought about her. He felt a pang of longing
and sorrow in his heart as he remembered her.
He remembered her smile, her voice, her touch. He remembered how happy they were together. He remembered how much they loved each other.
He wished he could see her again. He wished he could tell her how much he loved her.
He wished he could kiss her again.
He opened his eyes and looked at his hand. He imagined that it was holding hers. He imagined that it was caressing her face. He imagined that it was wiping away her tears.
He felt a surge of emotion in his chest as he imagined these things. He felt a warmth and a lightness in his soul as he imagined these things.
He felt something else in his mind as he imagined these things.
He felt a vibration and a sound in his mind as he imagined these things.
He heard a voice in his mind as he imagined these things.
A voice that said:
[Welcome to Galaxy Quest.]
[You have been selected as one of the lucky participants for our beta test.]
[We apologize for any inconvenience or discomfort you may have experienced during the transfer process.]
[We hope you enjoy your stay in our game world.]
[Please follow the instructions on your system screen to begin your adventure.]
Kim Min-joon froze in shock and disbelief as he heard this voice.
He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He couldn't believe what this meant.
He had been right all along. This was all part of Galaxy Quest. This was all part of a game...