Hyun Joong

I crouched in the same position while waiting in complete silence for the right time to come. They were taking their own sweet time to bind up Jinx Girl, slowly puffing cigarettes and making calls. They carried her into the hut and I lose sight of them after that. I could only rely on their conversations to guess what was taking place within the four walls of the hut. The wait was more torturous than I could imagine with the mental turmoil that they could be pleasuring themselves touching her now. Once or twice, they made suggestive remarks about Jinx Girl’s y body which caused my heart to pulsate faster. How I hated myself more and more for bringing this upon her! I despairingly wanted to barge in and save her now but I rid myself of this reckless thought. I knew both of us might not survive if I made this rash move now. I would wait for the men to go off before I pounced into action to rescue Jinx Girl.

I had called the police earlier but there were no signs that aid was on the way. Blaming that had been unable to give exact indications to my location, they could have done their best to search for this remote place and had given up hope after multiple tries.

It meant that it was up to only me now to save Jinx Girl now…

For two hours, I waited patiently for the men to leave. My legs were already numb from staying in the same position and my throat was cracking, a reminder that my body was deprived of water. My body was already covered with scars made from scratching off the itch of mosquito bites. I guessed I became an easy feast for the nematocerid flies because of my stagnant composure. Even in this distressed situation, I surprised myself for being capable to think of exhorting money from Jinx Girl to pay my medical bills if I did fall ill from the bites.  

So Min had been sweet to me ever since we stepped into Shenzhen. Instead of reciprocating her kindness, I repaid her with insincerity and an ulterior motive in our friendship.  I had let my ego and selfishness fogged my mind from seeing that I had a friend in her who truly cared about me. I reprimanded myself for allowing selfishness to rule over my conscience.

I started to reproach my senseless ego as I thought about how heartless I had been. Harshly brushing the tears from staining my face, I swore that I would treasure So Min after this incident…if we got out of here ALIVE…

Finally, I heard their retreating footsteps as they made their departure. Every muscle in my body suddenly sprang to action. Relief swept over me on seeing the unlocked door. They were either very confident that the victim within was incapable of making her way to the door or that it was impossible that there would be a single soul around who would come to her rescue. Or they were just plain foolish, I mocked.

 I dashed in quickly into the hut after ensuring that the coast was clear. To my relief, So Min was still unconscious but tied to a wooden chair with nylon ropes. She looked peaceful in her slumber as though unaware of the danger that lie ahead of her. My hands worked swiftly around the knots without the aid of neither knife nor scissors. It was a time consuming task as the thugs had made sure that the rope was sufficiently taut to hold So Min captive and undoing them would prove challenging. Finally after fifteen minutes, I finally managed to work through the labyrinth of knots. So Min is finally free to go!

The next step is to revive her from her unconscious state, hopefully, so that I did not have to carry her while making our escape.

“So Min! Wake up, So Min!” I shook her shoulder and patted her cheeks gently.

No reaction.

I shook her harder till her body rocked back and forth and she nearly fell onto the dirty planks below us.

It was as though she was not letting me get off easily for bringing this upon her.

That left me with no other alternatives.

I bent down and gathered her on my back, with her hands dangling from both sides of my shoulder. After ensuring that her head was propped comfortably against the back of my head, I stood up slowly and jerked up upwards to blend the curves of her body onto my back. Thankfully, she was incredibly light as a feather. I should be able to cover a greater distance at a decent speed with her.

“Jinx Girl, get ready for freedom!” I whispered, as though she could really hear me.

Before I stepped out of the hut, I scanned the external surroundings to ensure that the two men had not returned unexpectedly. When all was safe, I crept out stealthily and a gust of salty wind welcomed us upon our exit.

Ah…The smell of freedom!

Although we were still dangerously close to peril and the wind actually stank of rotten egg, I chided myself for giving myself a pat on my back far too early. The sun was already setting at the horizon of the waterside and had a calming effect on my previous flustered state. I took in a deep breath and started running.

So Min

I felt cold...

I felt my head exploding in pain…

I felt a stinging ache on my back…

I felt like I was floating in the wind…

Yet, I could smell something so soothing to my sense

I tried to adjust to the minimal light that illuminated my vision. Rows of trees welcomed my misty vision as they brushed past my sides. I recovered some of my sense of hearing and I could only feel a soft wind caressing my cheeks and hair.

Where was I?

The pain that penetrated through my neck jolted me into consciousness. My eyes flew open on recounting the fearsome events.  My body automatically freed myself from whatever that was constricting my movements and the next thing I knew, I had fallen onto the hard ground.

“Ouch! Couldn’t you be gentler like a girl?!”

Still deluded, I could only make out that whoever who was screaming at me was a male, based on his deep voice and tall statuette. The surroundings was dark and I guessed that if I was still in the human realm, it should be night by now. My blurred vision slowly adjusted to clarity and I began to see clearly the owner of the voice.

A gush of tears streamed down my cheeks, clouding again the cleared vision that I had achieved a moment ago.

“Shh..Shh….Don’t cry…I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have raised my voice at you.” He bent over to pull me into a warm cuddle.

Overwhelmed by relief by his touch, I cried even harder. I rested my head on his shoulder and hugged him back. “Sunbae, I thought.. I..I’ve lost you..I thought I’ll never see you again.” 

“I thought so too. But I’m here now. Please don’t cry. I promised I won’t leave you.” His voice was soft and comforting as he hushed me into calmness. As his voice drifted in and out of my mind, I could feel his hands my head gently, as if reassuring a frightened child.

He held me by my shoulders and looked me in the face when my sobs had subsided. “Listen. We are not out of danger yet. The men who caught you may still be able to find us because we are still in their territory. We need to get out of this place, and I had not figured out how. I need you to be strong and stay close to me throughout.”

He stood up and extended a hand to me. “Are you able to walk properly?”

Hovering above me with the most sincere smile on his face, I found myself admiring his capability to take control of the situation. It was the first time I admitted that I felt totally different about him. No longer did he reacted like the whiny and childish Sunbae I had known, he now appeared as a confident, mature and protective man…The man who had saved me from the clutches of those bad people and looking after me when I most needed him.  The man whom I looked upon as my savior…

I nodded and clasped his hand in mine to stand up.

Our eyes met. There was an unexplainable electrifying sensation that took my breath away at that instant. My world stood still and I felt sweet music playing in my ears.  I did not comprehend what was wrong with all the circuits in my body as my heart palpitated rapidly every second when our gazes were locked.

He cleared his throat, breaking the spell we were plunged in. “Good. Now, let’s go.” He started running and he pulled me along with him, my palm still attached to his.

His long legs carried him swiftly like the winter breeze that blew across Seoul in December. The wind kissed his slightly curled blond hair as if embracing it with much affection. He had a taut expression on his well endowed face revealed a side of him that fascinated and drew my attention away from the nightmarish experience earlier.

I wondered if he had felt similar feelings that I had just now.

But what feelings were those? Was I going crazy? I was in the middle of an escape and yet I allowed wandering thoughts to enter my mind.

As we stride through the forested area, something in the wind whispered into my ear that he would change my life from this moment on.