Yom Sang-seop - Three Generations

“You scared me! I could have lost my baby with such a start!”

“How far along are you? You should have told me,” he said with a grin. “Does it belong to the second child’s father?”

“No, no, it’s just an expression.”

“‘Well, that’s a relief. Shall we get together later?” he asked in a friendly tone.

“Where are you going now? Home?”

“Wherever. I’ll come see you at ten or eleven.” Byeong-hwa turned and walked away without waiting for her answer.

Watching him disappear, she wondered, What kind of work can such a hasty character do? His air of innocence, though, was lovable.

Gyeong-ae didn’t have anything special to do, but she didn’t feel like taking Byeong-hwa back to her house. Having introduced them the day before, she’d leave the matter to the two men. Though Byeong-hwa had left her for the moment, some part of him seemed to linger with her, both physically and spiritually. She’d shown him kindness for the sake of Pi-hyeok, but at the same time a corner of her heart seemed to be swept away by Byeong-hwa. She almost felt like the end of a skirt being dragged into a wheel. Although she could cut it off, she lacked the courage to do so.

When they were together, they would joke and make fun of each other. There were no romantic dreams or the exaggerated emotions a young couple normally feels, and they had not exchanged any words smacking of courtship, but there seemed to be something between them, however intangible. When they were apart, she didn’t feel anything special for him, but the moment after he left, something seemed to be missing.

What do I see in him? she wondered. Love probably sprouts, she thought, when people least expect it. True, Byeong-hwa had faithfully found out about Kim Ui-gyeong and had done so to impress Gyeong-ae or to satisfy his own curiosity. Exposing the weaknesses of the man involved with the woman one loves is somewhat vulgar and awkward, yet it is an expression of affection all the same.

I don’t have bad feelings about him, Gyeong-ae told herself, but if she really loved him, would she have coaxed him into such a dangerous scheme?

Actually, she had come to know Byeong-hwa while trying to bring him to Pi-hyeok. She tried to imagine Byeong-hwa without his work. He would be a nobody.

Now that that’s done with, what should I do about Sang-hun tonight? Gyeong-ae thought. If she burst upon Anguk-dong, it would be embarrassing because she would look like a vigilant lawful wife, trying to catch her husband cheating on her, though she might get to see Kim Ui-gyeong in the process. But there was no satisfaction in ignoring Sang-hun’s misdeed.

What should I do? She looked at her watch; it was not yet seven o’clock.

She didn’t want to go to a place where drinking men gathered, and she thought of finding someone with whom she might take a stroll or listen to the radio while drinking tea together, but no one came to mind. She felt melancholy and lonely for the first time in ages.

Her child had recovered, and by the way Byeong-hwa had been so impatient, she supposed he had gone to see Pi-hyeok, so there was no need for her to go home. She thought of going to the cinema, also for the first time in ages, and turned toward Junganggwan from Hwanggeumjeong Street, where the streetcar was.

“Hello, madam. Going to the pictures?” She recognized the man. He was a driver who worked for the car service they would call for customers at Bacchus. Gyeong-ae often would use it herself. She greeted him and entered the movie house. While watching the film, thoughts of Anguk-dong filled her head, but she wasn’t in the mood to run after Sang-hun. Perhaps she could send a rickshaw for him and wait to see whether he’d show up, but she wasn’t sure a rickshaw driver would be able to find the place even if she gave him directions. It might be a wasted effort.

Should I take a taxi and pull him out? Remembering the driver she had just seen outside, she grew fidgety. She bided her time, though, deciding it would be better to drag Sang-hun out at the height of a party.

When the clock struck nine, Gyeong-ae left the cinema and hired a car.

She got out on the avenue at the entrance to Jae-dong and entered an alley accompanied by the driver. Following Byeong-hwa’s directions, Gyeong-ae made her way carefully down the dark alley, but after a while, she became confused, for all the houses looked alike and there were no streetlights. Suddenly, a gate creaked open and whispers were heard.

Gyeong-ae motioned to the driver to stand still, as they overheard two shadowy forms.

“What should I do? What do I say to explain why I came here?” said a young woman’s voice, filled with concern.

An older woman’s soothing voice answered, “Don’t worry about it. I blocked his view with my body. And he was drunk, so he couldn’t have seen you clearly.”

“I didn’t know he went in just to relieve himself, and that’s why I told you to come out,” hissed another young voice.

“Don’t worry. Make something up, like we’ve been friends for a long time, and you just dropped by to see me,” said the older woman.

“Still, they’ll blame me for going out at night when he’s so sick.” The woman, stepping out of the gate, kept fretting.

“Even so, he won’t say anything. How can he talk? What about him, going out drinking when his father is sick! He’ll pretend nothing happened.”

“That’s true, but what a coincidence!”

“It’s because I had gone out. But go on now, before it gets too late.”

“Yes, good-bye!”

“Good-bye, ma’am.”

The voices were now loud enough to carry, and a small shadow darted out to the alley.

When their good-byes rang out, Gyeong-ae and the driver stepped aside and were partially hidden by the eaves. The woman momentarily stopped and stared at them, wondering if they might be acquaintances. She couldn’t see well in the dark, though, so she went on. A cape was draped around her, and perched firmly on her head, buried deep in a black fur collar, was a traditional cap, decorated with golden butterflies and stripes that glittered even in the darkness.

That must be the Suwon woman! Gyeong-ae laughed to herself. Sang-hun must have unexpectedly shown up while she was there. She had hidden herself and was sneaking out while he went to the outhouse, but he had seen her. Gyeong-ae clucked her tongue, thinking, What shameful behavior all around! She asked the driver to go inside and call for Jo Sang-hun. If he was told that Sang-hun was not there, she instructed him to say that someone had been sent with a car from his father’s house with an urgent message.

Gyeong-ae saw that the brand-new gate, with an overhead electric light, was now shut. The driver shook the gate and then stood quietly. Gyeong-ae hid herself in the shadows.

A murmur was heard, perhaps the buzz of an exchange with a female servant. The driver rushed over and said, “It’s all right. Looks like he’s coming out.” He started to run off, intending to wait in the car to let them have a quiet rendezvous, but Gyeong-ae told him that she’d prefer to wait out on the avenue and asked him to lead Sang-hun to the car.

Sitting in the dark car, Gyeong-ae heard Sang-hun’s angry, tipsy voice as he walked out of the alley. “Where? How can someone who’s supposed to be waiting at the gate be this far away?”

The driver shepherded him to the car.

Sang-hun rushed over and looked inside. Gyeong-ae poked her head out.

“You tricked me!” It was not clear whether he was addressing Gyeong-ae or the driver as he stood there hesitantly.