Chapter 75: To Korea
Following this, students with red headbands streamed into the streets and began singing "Comrades." It felt as if there wasn't a single ant in sight on the streets. Perfect timing!
"Junhyuk, what's happening right now?"
"Hush. Let's pass through quietly. Hold my hand just in case."
Yuki tightly grasped my hand in the tense atmosphere.
After a while, we started walking, trying to keep a safe distance from the students engaged in the standoff.
Please hold on just a little longer until we disappear. Don't do anything foolish.
However, my hopes were shattered when a student in the midst of the protest threw a Molotov cocktail, and chaos erupted.
"Catch those bastards! Bring them in!"
"Wow!!"
Bam! Thud! Bang!
It felt like a scene from a movie as Yuki and I ran, with explosions and tear gas filling the air along our route.
"Junhyuk, it's so cold. My eyes and throat are burning."
"Hold on a little longer. Let's take this alley."
Finally, we gave up on the main road and entered a secluded alley. But Yuki, who had been exposed to tear gas, had tears streaming down her face.
"Are you alright?"
"Yes, but is it okay for us to enter someone's house like this?"
"It's an emergency. We'll have to apologize if we meet the owner later."
But why did this backyard seem so familiar? Yuki had no trouble finding the faucet and started washing her face. Then, the door at the top of the stairs opened, and a lady stuck her head out.
"Are you okay, students?"
Wiping the water from my face, I quickly raised my head to apologize to the lady.
"Yes? We're fine, just got caught up in the protest while passing by. Sorry for entering without permission."
But her voice sounded oddly familiar. Could it be Mrs. Nuri from back then?
The backyard felt eerily familiar. As I looked around for a moment, I realized that this was the house of my childhood friend, Nuri Kim.
We used to play in the alley when we were kids, sipping water from the faucet in the yard. Did she really find her way here?
Yuki, who was standing next to me, awkwardly apologized in broken Korean.
"I apologize."
"Oh dear, no need to apologize. You shouldn't wipe your face with your hands like that. The tap water must be very cold. Come in for a moment."
"What? May we come in?"
I had mixed feelings about whether to admit it or not. Should I say I know her, or should I pretend I don't?
With an awkward smile, I entered the house along with Yuki, and the lady's voice came from the kitchen.
"Just wait a moment. Nuri, can you fetch a towel for me?"
"Yes!"
A little boy in short pants came out as the bedroom door opened, greeting us with a polite 90-degree bow. Kim Nuri!! It's really been a long time.
"Hello. I'm Kim Nuri."
A cute kid. He was behaving just like he'd learned in kindergarten.
Holding a toy in one hand, Nuri rushed towards us, having apparently forgotten what his mother had asked him to do.
"Hello, Nuri."
"Wow, a pretty sister!!"
"Hey!! Mom asked for a towel~! You're not listening to her again?"
"Oh! That's right."
At his mother's stern tone, Nuri ran to the bathroom, clearly startled.
Seeing this, Yuki chuckled, her swollen eyes glistening. A little while later, the lady handed a warm towel to Yuki.
"Don't wipe your face. Press the towel gently on your eyes."
"Arigatou gozaimasu. You're really kind."
"Are you from Japan? And is the gentleman with you?"
"No, I'm Korean. This is my girlfriend, Yuki. Thank you so much for your help."
"Thank you."
The protagonist thanked the lady in his still developing Korean. At this, Nuri, who had been watching Yuki, said, "The pretty lady's Korean is funny! Do it again."
Nuri's mother then apologized to us, squeezing her son's head in her hand. "I'm sorry. Our child is still young."
"No, it's fine. Your child is very cute."
"Due to the tear gas, your throat might be dry. I can offer you some juice."
"No, there's no need to go to such trouble."
"If you go out now, tear gas may be thrown again. Please stay for a while."
Listening to the commotion outside, it seemed better to follow Nuri's mother's advice for the time being.
"Alright, we'll impose for a moment."
"The living room has a cold floor. Please enter the inner room over there."
Nuri's mother kindly showed us to the inner room and went to the kitchen to get some juice.
"Wow, Junhyuk, the floor is so warm."
For Japanese people, who usually heat their houses with kotatsu and a few tatami mats during winter, the ondol flooring in Korean homes feels like a whole new world. Yuki marveled at the warm floor, pressing her hand to it.
At that moment, Nuri's mother returned with a tray containing juice bottles.
And as soon as I saw the juice bottle, I was once again captured by a bittersweet memory.
"The symbol of a rich house... a Del Monte glass bottle..."
In my younger days, there was a time when we judged whether a friend's house was wealthy or not based on the presence of Del Monte glass bottles.
After finishing the juice, they were often reused as water bottles. Honestly, I remember that they were quite heavy for a child to use as a water bottle.
Sometimes, Nuri and I would collect the Del Monte bottles her mother had saved and run to the supermarket to exchange them for snacks. It was a memory that made me smile without realizing it.
"Thank you."
Nuri was tightly gripping the juice bottle that was about the size of her face with both hands and drinking it. Seeing her enjoying it, I felt that coming to Korea had been a good decision.
"Mom, can I eat Daelong Daelong too?"
Without thinking, Nuri asked, and I almost spat out the juice I was drinking.
"Del Monte orange juice, and now Daelong Daelong... what a nostalgic one-two punch."
Daelong Daelong was a fruit sherbet in the shape of a fruit container with cute leaves that could be used as a spoon on top.
Sometimes, they were so frozen that the plastic containers cracked, and they became all sticky...
"But you just had juice, and eating something cold in winter can give you a stomachache."
"But I still want to eat one. Daelong Daelong~ Daelong Daelong~"
Hey, lady, could I have some Daelong Daelong too?
"I'm really grateful, ma'am."
"You came to Korea after a long time, and it happened to be a day of protests. It must have been tough for the lady who came with you."
With a sympathetic expression, Nuri's mother looked at Yuki's complexion. I opened my wallet and took out a few bills.
"Hey, I just feel uncomfortable leaving like this. Please use this to buy Nuri some snacks or something."
"Oh, it's alright. You don't have to..."
"Proper etiquette is not to cause trouble and then leave. It's not much money, so please accept it."
After several rounds of insistence, I forcibly placed the money in the lady's hand, and then Yuki and I left in a hurry. The lady, seemingly giving up, waved her hand to bid us farewell.
"Thank you. We'll make good use of it."
We gave a respectful bow from a distance once again before continuing our steps.
"She was very kind, wasn't she? Nuri is adorable too."
"Indeed."
I wiped the dust from Yuki's eyes and smiled, extending my hand to her.
It had been a somewhat scary experience, but thanks to Nuri's mother, Yuki had calmed down a lot. She held my hand with a bright smile.
"But, Junhyuk."
"Yes?"
"What's Daelong Daelong that Nuri mentioned earlier?"
"Oh, that's the ice cream I used to love. I'll buy you one on our way back to the hotel."
"Really? I'd like to try it."
"It's my first overseas trip, and I was quite surprised."
"It's alright. Thanks to you, I met Nuri's mother, and it was a unique experience."
"Thank you for bringing me along."
"I'm the one who should thank you for bringing me here."
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