by Jeremy Finn
After calculating the cost of traveling all the way to the southern tip of the country (just in case he would have to), he realized he was going to need a lot more money than the couple of worn bills remaining in his pocket. In fact, he did not even have enough money to get to the next big town.
After some mental deliberation, James figured this was what his instructions meant by relying on the mercy of others, and decided to look for some help. Of course, he was not ready to stoop so low as to beg on the street, but he thought he might be able to somehow ask for some part time work somewhere in exchange for a meal and a place to sleep tonight.
As he cursed himself yet again for not bringing his ATM card with him when he went to the park the other night, James walked out of the bus station and strolled down the dark street. But then again, what were the chances there would even be an ATM in a town like this? Few stores were open, even though it was still relatively early in the evening, but soon he passed a little restaurant occupying a space the size of his kitchen back in his apartment.
The restaurant was stark but clean, and had a window open to the street where the sole proprietor could sell his edible goods to persons passing by outside while simultaneously catering to those who sat at the counter inside. There was no room for tables, so all the customers sat at stools lined up in front of a counter behind which an older man hovered feverishly over spattering oil and sizzling surfaces.
When James stepped in, all four customers and the owner looked up and did a near simultaneous double take when they realized a foreigner entered their presence. This was obviously a rare occurrence, as everyone in the little shop continued to stare at him well after he took his seat and picked up a menu. The owner returned to his work when a splatter of hot oil interrupted his trance and reminded him he was neglecting his duties.
Although James could not understand a word on the menu and there were no pictures, the little room smelled delicious, though pungent, and the prices fit his meager allowance. Without any other option, he pointed to a word in the middle of the menu and motioned to the cook in a manner that related his desire to order the dish.
The cook looked surprised and said something in the native language, then returned to his work when it became obvious that James had no idea what he was saying. After several uncomfortable minutes, James decided he had been ignored and was about to leave when the cook entered the room from the back with a bowl in one hand and a muscular skinned leg in the other, which looked unsettlingly like it once belonged to a large dog. He motioned for James to choose one of them, and the decision seemed obvious as James pointed to the bowl.
While he was waiting for his mystery meal, one of the men who was sitting at the far end of the counter got up and moved to the vacant stool next to James. He said something in a language James did not recognize, though it seemed different from the local language he was used to hearing. James shook his head in a sign of ignorance and the man spoke again, this time in James’ language, though with a thick accent.
“Can you understand me?” the man tried.
“Yes!” James exclaimed. “I’m so glad you speak my language. I didn’t expect anyone here to know my language.”
“I am probably the only one,” the man said with a smile that cracked his weathered, wrinkled face. “When I was younger, I worked for a shipping company and traveled to many places. I am a natural at languages and picked up several. Sorry for mistaking your nationality, but I am not well practiced these days at detecting foreigners’ origins.”
The man looked just like all the rest of the townsfolk in the crammed restaurant and wore long, baggy pants and a long sleeved jacket made from some sort of coarse, white fabric. Like most of the other people James saw in the town thus far, his acquaintance appeared to be a farmer. Probably because of the shared language, James felt comfortable with him immediately.
Just as their discussion began, it was interrupted by a large bowl of steaming stew placed before James on the counter. It looked edible enough with long cuts of some green, leafy vegetable and pieces of meat that could easily have come from the skinned leg floating in a thin brown broth.
“I never saw a foreigner order that dish before,” the farmer said ominously, but James decided against questioning him as to the content of his stew since he did not have enough money left to buy anything else and he was famished.
“So, may I ask what brings you here?” the man questioned. “I certainly doubt you are a tourist, eh?”
James quickly debated with himself how much of the truth he should reveal to this stranger. Since he was out of money and stranded in the middle of nowhere, James decided he might as well just throw out the whole story and see what happened. The truth seemed to be in the way of the Light, and the pursuit of that, after all, was his whole reason for continuing this mad adventure.
After explaining all the major points of his story leading up to his reason for arriving in the town tonight, James cautiously watched for the farmer’s reaction. Surprisingly, he did not seem to show any signs of shock or even manifest an appearance of skepticism. Instead, he nodded thoughtfully and said something to the cook, who seemed to know the farmer as at least a routine customer.
“Well,” the farmer finally remarked, “I am not much for getting involved in the ways of the Light or Dark, especially these days with all the darkness that has been spreading through these parts. It is better to be neutral, if you ask me. Hyuk’s wife and kid, though, are pretty heavily involved in the Light. Too bad he doesn’t speak your language.”
James looked at the cook quizzically, and the man gave a quick nod before returning to his work. He found it hard to believe that this plain looking cook working in a hole-in-the-wall restaurant in this tiny town could be somehow associated with the same brotherhood he became acquainted with at Hanasan.
“Well, I better be going now,” the farmer said as he rose to pay his bill and leave.
“Wait!” James said. “I really hate to impose on you, but I’m out of money and you are the only person in this town who can communicate with me. Is there any way you could help me get a one or two day job on a farm or something so I can at least get enough money to pay for meals and a ticket to the nearest city?
The farmer sighed uncomfortably, but before he could respond, the cook looked up from his work and said something to him. After a brief conversation, the farmer turned back to James with a smile.
“You are in luck,” he said. “I guess Hyuk figured out the nature of your problems, and he told me he could use a little assistance around the restaurant for a week or so while his wife is away tending to her sick mother in a nearby town.”
“That’s great!” James exclaimed. “I’ll help with anything. Really, could you tell him I’m very thankful?”
“Oh, I’m sure he can see that,” the farmer said as he opened the little door to leave. “Take care now, and stay off the street at night.”
After the man left, James suddenly realized he lost his interpreter. He finished his soup and offered to pay the cook. Hyuk refused his money, though, and motioned for him to go to the back of the tiny room. Once he complied, Hyuk again motioned rapidly for James to do something, but this time his intent was not readily understood. After a minute or so of frustrated motioning and the repetition of a single phrase (as if that would somehow help James understand the meaning) the man sighed and went back to his stove. Before he resumed his cooking, though, he called out another set of words in a loud voice. Almost immediately, James heard a gentle reply form behind the hanging curtains separating the kitchen from a room behind the restaurant.
After a few seconds, the curtains parted and James laid eyes on the first young woman he saw in the town. She was dressed in baggy clothes and an apron stained with blood. Her hair was collected in a messy tangle behind her head and an odor that smelled strongly of garlic followed her entrance. James could not deny, though, that through all this a certain beauty shined forth. Her face was handsome, though unencumbe
red with makeup, and there was something James could not place his finger on that seemed to magnify her image. It was almost as if rays of joy and happiness were emanating from her heart and passing through her eyes and smile to those around her. She glanced quickly at James then listened intently as Hyuk spoke to her.
“You want work for father?” she said in a near unintelligible attempt at James’ language. “He say you need food and sleep place.”
“Um, yes…please.” James replied modestly. He was having some difficulty understanding the young woman, but felt gratitude toward her for providing a communication link to his new employer.
“He say jump on counter and knife vegetable,” she said seriously.
James suppressed a smile and said, “You mean jump over the counter and cut some vegetables?”
“Yes,” the girl replied with a shy smile. “My name is Sunga. I am cook’s daughter.”
“Oh,” James said with a smile followed by a moment of awkward silence as both young people from opposite ends of the world met with a loss for words.
James spent the rest of the night chopping vegetables, shelling small nuts and washing dishes, usually by Sunga’s side. Although he was still exhausted and his limbs tingled more and more the later he stayed up, when he bedded down that night in a tiny loft room above the restaurant he felt for some reason as if he never had a more enjoyable evening. Sleep came quickly and James fell asleep with a smile illuminated by the dim glow of the starlight cutting through the tiny glass window at the end of the room.
When James woke the next morning, his spirits were still high, and that did not change even after he found out he would be taking his shower in an unheated wash room with ice cold water. Hyuk was kind enough to allow him the first shower, and even greeted him with an awkward handshake and an attempted question.
“Sha-wa?” he asked enthusiastically. After several frenzied repetitions and a dramatization of scrubbing his body with soap, James finally realized he was asking if he would like to take a shower.
After his exhilarating shower, he shared a simple breakfast of steamed grain, which must have been the kind growing all around them due to its purple hue, with Hyuk and Sunga. This centerpiece of the meal was accompanied by small communal dishes of some sort of spade-shaped leaf marinated in a salty brown liquid and a pile of tiny fish covered in a thick, sweet sauce. Apparently, Hyuk’s wife left the day before to tend to her ill mother, and Sunga explained they could use his help until she returned.
After working around the restaurant all day, James remembered he should probably call his office and try to get some time off to cover his longer than expected absence. Hyuk let Sunga go with him to help, but gave instructions to return before the dinner crowd arrived. The two took off into the cool afternoon air. The sun was descending over the endless fields to the west, but it was a clear day and James could see the hazy outline of mountains far to the east. The grain harvest was in full swing, and the sound of farm machinery and working men poured over the village and echoed through its streets.
“Weather less cold than mountain here,” Sunga instructed as they strolled down the sidewalk composed of multicolored bricks that were cracked and missing in places.
“That’s good,” James replied. “I don’t have any other clothes to wear, and this jacket is barely working for me now.”
Sunga seemed to get the gist of what he said, but at the same time looked like she was making an incredible effort to understand his words. James decided he better keep his vocabulary simple and speak slowly.
The walk to the town store only took a few minutes, and James successfully reached his boss from the phone inside. His supervisor decided to allow James a week of vacation, but complained about the short notice and James’ vagueness about why he so suddenly decided to travel the country. When he hung up the phone, he turned and found Sunga with both arms behind her back, smiling broadly.
“Choose,” she ordered, and James laughed softly before pointing to her right arm. She pulled out an ice cream bar that appeared to have a chocolate center, judging by the picture on the wrapper. Her other hand held a frozen juice bar, which she began to enjoy in earnest. She led James out of the store and around the building to a covered platform overlooking the fields beyond. For the first time, James caught a view of the land south of the town and saw a small river flowing parallel to the village in the near distance. From this picturesque vantage point, the two enjoyed their ice cream and talked for some time uninterrupted except for a moment of surprise when James reached the center of his ice cream bar only to find the expected chocolate was actually some sort of candied red bean paste. Though their language was simple and both had to repeat and reword their communications several times, neither of them grew in the least bit frustrated or weary of the conversation.
The two returned to Hyuk’s establishment just as the dinner crowd of starving farmers began to arrive and their close call cost them a mild disapproving look from Sunga’s father, though James was almost sure he noticed a little smile as the man turned to tend the pots on the fire behind him.
For a week, James spent most of the day helping around the restaurant, and occupied his free time by talking with Sunga and letting her teach him the basics of the native language. He was really getting comfortable with his simple lifestyle, and the worries of his job and even his journey drifted into the back of his mind.
Late one night, though, while he was cleaning dishes in the back room, he heard the door slam against the wall as someone forcefully pushed it open. He glanced through the crack in the curtains separating him from the kitchen and the counter, and saw several farmers walk in with grim expressions. Along with them was a man who seemed out of place in the group by way of his tidier appearance and fair features. None of the men sat down, but formed a threatening arc around the counter, causing more than one customer to take his leave with haste. Hyuk frowned, and Sunga quickly glanced toward the back with a concerned look, but neither of them appeared to be surprised or frightened by the menacing group.
James was not sure what to do, but knew his presence would probably only further irritate the gang that appeared to be out looking for trouble. So, he grabbed a butcher’s knife from the sink and watched tensely from behind the cover of the curtains. If any of the men threatened either of his hosts, he would deem it necessary to reveal himself. This need never arose, though, as the well dressed man only seemed interested in arguing with Hyuk about something. Both sides spat violent remarks at each other, and Sunga pumped her fists in nervous expectation, but after the dangerous looking man finished his menacing diatribe, he merely threw a nearby bowl to the ground, and left with his group of toughs in tow.
Shortly after, Sunga came to the back room with a worried expression accompanying the perspiration on her face.
“What’s wrong?” James asked with concern. “Were they trying to get money out of your father?”
“No,” Sunga replied briefly. “We should go upstairs now.”
“What about your dad? Won’t he still need help down here? There are still a couple hours until closing time.”
“He is closing now. He will come soon. Please follow.”
With this, Sunga led James to his room in the loft, and her father followed shortly thereafter. Hyuk spoke first to his daughter, and they carried on a brief conversation before Sunga turned to James to explain the situation.
“James,” she began, “you journey for to be Servant of Light, right?
“Yes, that was my intention when I began,” James admitted, though he was unconsciously suppressing that truth over the last several days even while the pull to head southeast grew slowly in the back of his mind. He knew part of his reluctance came from the comfort of living a simple life in this small town, and even began to wonder if his closer friendship with Sunga was beginning to make him wish he could prolong his present situation rather than continuing in this journey that, until recently, had been so chaotic and life threatening.
Sunga seemed to sense his thoughts and dropped her eyes shyly as she continued, “I am also servant, I help the Light. My father not care about Light or Dark, but he care for me. Those men were dark. The leader I never see before. They looking for foreigner who came from capital city. Dark men usually don’t bother father and me, but now they threaten us.”
In an instant, James realized his snug little fantasy world had just burst, and reality rained down on him. He was not free from danger any more. Jaeil must have sent those men, and that would mean the men intended to kill him.
“Look,” James said plainly, though he felt extreme disappointment inside, “there are dark men after me for some reason. I don’t know why, exactly. I’m having a hard time figuring out who to trust since my world was turned upside down a couple weeks ago. But you and your father are the best thing that has happened to me since then and I don’t want to take a chance that you could get hurt in any way. If your father can pay me whatever he sees fit for my work over the last week, I’ll get a bus ticket and be on my way tonight.”
“No, James,” Sunga protested, “father and me already talked. You can stay here tonight. Father need to go market in early morning so you go with him. Market is in big city about three hour from here east. Please agree.”
After a moment of silence, James decided, “Ok, I’ll follow your plan. And I thank you and your father very much for all your help. Please don’t do anything that might be dangerous to either of you.”
“Good,” Sunga said with a smile. “Now go sleep and I will wake up when it is time.”
James bid his evening farewells as father and daughter left the room, and then he curled up on his floor mat to try to get some rest. Although he was tired, sleep came slowly as his mind struggled over conflicting desires and groped for understanding. Just when he seriously started to consider giving up his journey, it looked like fate was forcing him back on the road. From what Sunga said, he would be traveling to the east for quite a distance, which coincided with the southeasterly pull he felt in his head. Just what will tomorrow bring? he wondered, and fell fast asleep with that thought spinning in his head.