“Remind me of your name, young man.”
“It’s Lee Ho Nam.”
“That’s right! Ho Nam. Is anybody home, Ho Nam?”
The boy shook his head and stepped to the side to show Jeong Jin Wu a padlock on the front door. Ho Nam sneezed and coughed more frequently. His cheeks were red, glowing like embers. Worried about the child’s health, Jeong Jin Wu placed his hand on Ho Nam’s forehead. It was as hot as a heated floor.
“You seem to have caught a cold, young man. Your clothes are all wet. Do you feel achy?”
Ho Nam insisted that he was not sick.
Jeong Jin Wu looked around at the neighboring houses, but it appeared that the neighbors had not yet returned from work. As Jeong Jin Wu was contemplating what to do, the young woman who had directed him to Ho Nam’s house earlier approached.
Jeong Jin Wu called out to her, “Comrade, thank goodness you’re here. Where do you live?”
“It’s a bit of a walk from here. It’s the collective unit next to the river.”
“Is the neighborhood community center far from here as well?”
“Yes, it is.”
“Comrade, do me a favor. When the boy’s parents come home, tell them that I have taken him to my apartment.”
Without letting Ho Nam hear him, Jeong Jin Wu quietly told the young woman that he was a judge from the Superior Court and gave her his address. He had originally planned to have a talk with Lee Seok Chun and the neighborhood leader, but he had to postpone that for the sake of making sure Ho Nam was looked after.
Ho Nam coughed continuously. Jeong Jin Wu took out his handkerchief and wiped the boy’s wet face and hair.
“Hey, Ho Nam. Would you like to go to my house and wait for your parents there? It’s not too far from here.”
Ho Nam considered Jeong Jin Wu a trustworthy man, so he accepted Jeong Jin Wu’s hand and left with him. Each time Ho Nam took a step, water in his boots made a squishy sound. Jeong Jin Wu removed the boy’s boots and poured the water out. Ho Nam coughed again.
“Do you want to get on my back?” asked Jeong Jin Wu.
“Sure!” Ho Nam exclaimed.
Ho Nam was fatigued from standing and waiting in the cold rain. He jumped onto Jeong Jin Wu’s back without hesitation. The dog started wagging its tail and followed them outside.
“Bear, you stay,” ordered Ho Nam. “Hey, mister, would it be all right to take Bear with us?”
“I’m sorry, but it’s not a good idea. I live on the third floor of an apartment building.”
“Bear, you stay. I’ll be back soon.”
The dog whimpered as it retired to a spot next to the door.
The journey to Jeong Jin Wu’s apartment became tolerable when the rain momentarily stopped. For a seven-year-old boy, Ho Nam was quite heavy. Jeong Jin Wu’s back was cold and wet, but it warmed up with Ho Nam on it, particularly with his high fever. At times Ho Nam slipped down Jeong Jin Wu’s back, but then Jeong Jin Wu would lift him back up. Jeong Jin Wu saw dark clouds rolling toward them. He picked up his pace to avoid the second wave of the downpour. Drops of water fell from the leaves and tree branches. Ho Nam pressed his face against Jeong Jin Wu’s back each time drops of water fell onto his neck.
“Hey, Ho Nam.”
“Huh?”
“Don’t you go to Provincial Performing Arts kindergarten?”
“Uh huh.”
“Why do you walk home by yourself?”
“Because I’m a big boy,” Ho Nam replied.
“Isn’t the kindergarten far from your house? That’s why the other kids come home with their parents, right?”
“Yes… but… I’m fine.”
It was a brusque yet forlorn answer. Jeong Jin Wu was able to infer from Ho Nam’s answer that he longed to walk home from school with either one of his parents. No, if Ho Nam had a choice, he would have liked to walk home with both of his parents.
“Hey, do you like your mother more or your father?”
Jeong Jin Wu could feel the warm, soft breath of the child brushing his ear. Ho Nam had been pressing his face against Jeong Jin Wu’s back, but then he lifted his head and quietly confessed.
“I like them both.”
It was admirable that, although Ho Nam had witnessed the hostility between his quarrelsome parents, he did not have a strong preference for either one of them.
Jeong Jin Wu lifted the child a bit higher on his back and walked faster as the rain began to fall again.
Ho Nam soon fell sound asleep on Jeong Jin Wu’s back. Jeong Jin Wu realized that the boy’s fever was getting worse as he felt his back getting hotter.
Jeong Jin Wu was certain that his wife had returned from her research trip and was waiting for him at home.
She must have prepared dinner by now—she always prepares a delicious dinner. Tonight, the boy will feast on a wonderful meal. Let me see… After dinner, we will bathe Ho Nam in hot water and place him on the heated floor. Then he will feel much better. Let me see… After that I will call Seok Chun at his factory to tell him about Ho Nam. And if Sun Hee receives the note from the young woman at the collective unit first, then she will probably be the first one to arrive.
Gratified with his plans, Jeong Jin Wu approached the front entrance to his apartment building and set down Ho Nam, who was not quite awake. He caressed the child and called out his name until he regained consciousness.
As they climbed the stairs to the third floor, Jeong Jin Wu explained his simple plan to Ho Nam. Jeong Jin Wu could hardly contain his excitement. When they got to the door, Jeong Jin Wu noticed it was locked. His heart sank. He took the key from inside his mailbox and opened the door to an empty apartment. He did not smell delicious food from the kitchen nor did he see his wife.
Plans to feed Ho Nam a hearty dinner and wash the boy with his wife’s help were fanciful thoughts that existed only in his imagination. The reality was utterly abysmal. Jeong Jin Wu found a note left by his wife.
I just received news to come back to Yeonsudeok right away. I took the late bus. They said that the weather is going to get colder tonight and there are already signs of frost. It might even snow. I’m worried about all the seedlings in the laboratory. I hope you understand. I should’ve made dinner before I left. I’m really sorry.
Fury stirred in Jeong Jin Wu’s heart. Already annoyed with being wet from the rain, he was even more infuriated by Eun Ok’s request that he understand her situation.
Why do I have to do everything around the house? Am I the housewife? he thought.
Eun Ok had been working at the agricultural laboratory for more than twenty years and was gone for more than twenty days out of a month. Jeong Jin Wu could not recall a single day when she was just a modest housewife, cooking, cleaning, and raising their son like other ordinary housewives. She was also in her fifties, and he began to wonder how much longer he would have to wait and be patient with her.
“It’s not like her research is groundbreaking. She’s just cultivating vegetables,” Jeong Jin Wu mumbled bitterly.
“Hey, mister, your mom comes home late, too?” interrupted Ho Nam, having grown bored standing next to the shoe rack.
Jeong Jin Wu forced a genial smile for the child’s sake.
“The mom of this house went on a research trip again. So, my little guest, once you’ve taken off your boots, come inside.”
Ho Nam hesitated at first but then took a few steps inside. When he saw his wet footprints on the floor, his face flushed with embarrassment. Jeong Jin Wu smiled.
“Don’t worry about it. Take off your clothes so I can give you a bath.”