Martoons

Cast of characters

Fred

Mrs Won

*

Fred got back to Chinju late but Mrs Won was in Hot Sauce’s study with the door closed.

“Hello Fred” she said through the door but didn’t come out. That was odd since she’d always greeted him face to face before, regardless.

* How come she’s not greeting him? *

Fred’s buzz from visiting Thomas had been quickly cooling on the bus ride back, being overtaken by the sting of alienation.

He was starting to think this was normal for foreigners in Korea but even so, something had been bugging him and he wanted to get to the bottom of it – and he felt he’d waited long enough:

Now he had the right to ask Mrs Won about Mr Kim.

He knocked tersely on the door.

“Why?” Won sounded preoccupied.

Fred waited in silence. He could hear her slippers flapping toward the door and she cracked it open just enough to see him.

“I’d like to know what’s going on with Mr Kim.”

“Ah yeah.” She let him in and slipped back into Hot Sauce’s study chair. There was nowhere else to sit so Fred just stood pat.

“Don’t worry,” he said with a nervous chuckle, “I won’t stay long.”

He suddenly felt like an intruder and sought a quick distraction. “Oh, where’s the little dog?”

Won waved him off. “Ouija is staying with Hot Sauce over at Cleaning Lady’s.”

“That’s an old-fashioned, traditional neighborhood,” Fred joked. “They might eat Ouija!”

Won waved him off again and said clinically, “Koreans don’t eat that species of dog.”

Silence quickly filled the room. There was a long pause but Fred kept his composure. He was going to let the ajumma speak first, and finally she did.  

“Fred you are a good man so I will tell you what happened with my husband. It is very simple: He is in hospital from drinking too much.

“He has severe health problems caused by stress at his job. He will have to remain there under observation for several months.”

“Please respect our privacy and do not tell anyone.”

* What has been causing Mr Kim so much stress at work? *

Fred replied somberly, “Don’t worry, Mrs Won. I’ll keep everything quiet.”

And then light-heartedly, “The only person I come in contact with anyway is Cleaning Lady and … the security guard.” He chuckled.

Ajumma held her hand up and said coldly, “Cleaning Lady is very busy and will not come here any more.”

* Is there something going on between Mrs Won and Cleaning Lady as well? *

Fred was itching to know more but felt grateful Mrs Won had told him anything at all about Mr Kim. He made his way to the door and she followed him.

“How did Hot Sauce react to this news?”

Ajumma looked away coldly. “My daughter knows nothing. Maybe I will not tell her.”

Fred was stunned. Keep Hot Sauce oblivious about her father, who’d no longer be coming home at night? That’s just … bizarre.

Won sensed Fred’s doubt. “It’s not your problem and you need not worry about it. Hot Sauce will not be coming home at night either.

“As you know, she is over at Cleaning Lady’s – how you say – out of sight, out of mind?” She attempted to assuage him.

“I’ve talked it over with my family – my sister in Ulsan and other relatives. We’ve decided we’re not going to tell Hot Sauce about this. We don’t want to upset her.”

Fred stepped outside the door. “But she’s your only daughter! That’s her father. She must be told. How could you keep her in the dark?”

“This is Korean style,” Won asserted firmly. “It is for her own good. She needs peace and quiet to prepare for her exams. Oh, did you go somewhere today?”

Fred was still digesting this information and was upset about it. He didn’t know why.

It wasn’t his family and remembering Thomas’ words, “Just worry about yourself. This place comes at you from all sides.”

Still, though, it just didn’t seem right. He snapped out of his minor daze and realized Won was waiting for an answer.

“Oh, yeah, I went to Ulsan and had a great time. I visited Thomas.”

“Oh, Thomas!” Mrs Won put a clenched fist on her heart. “I miss him!”

The response seemed to be sentimental overkill. Fred bid Won goodnight and exited the room. She closed the study door behind him.

As Fred puttered into the dark of his own room it felt like entering an abyss. His last thought before fading into sleep was an odd one:

He actually looked forward to getting out of the house in the morning and going to work.

*

Tomorrow: Fred feels dejected and Miss No wants control.