Hikikomori

As a Doctor, I encountered a case which sent a chill down my spine. Sometime ago a new family moved in my neighborhood; a couple in their sixties and their son, who was about 30 years old.

The son was a so-called "Hikikomori" ( Which means Acute social withdrawal; adolescents or adults who withdraw from social life, often seeking extreme degrees of isolation and confinement), so he was seldom seen outside his home. Naturally I couldn't ask the family directly but it was obvious that they had moved to the new place to escape from the social stigma.

Days had passed and the son went out less & less until he would not leave the house at all. He was now a "Complete Hikikomori". Every night the mother was heard SCREAMING at him in his bedroom. When I sometimes chanced to meet the mother, she greeted me with a smile but she always looked pale & haggard.

Six months had passed since I last caught a glimpse of the son when his father came to me and said,

"Dr Impo, could I ask you to visit us tomorrow?"

 I had never been involved with them personally or as a Doctor, but since we were neighbors & neighbors were supposed to help each other, I agreed to visit.
The next day when I visited them, both father & mother welcomed me at the door.

 "Please, come this way,"

The mother said as she lead the way to her son's room. When we came to the front of the room, the mother suddenly shouted,

"I'M GOING TO OPEN THE DOOR!"

As soon as she burst in she shrieked, "Why are you still sleeping? Get up!"

She tore the duvet off the bed.

I saw what was lying there and was struck dumb with disbelief. There was only one faceless, unclothed Reliquiae (corpse) lying on the bed.

 Then the father told me, "The person I want you to see is my wife, who cannot bear to ACCEPT THE REALITY."