Cast of characters

 

 

 

Fred

 

 

 

Miss No

 

 

 

*

 

 

 

In the ensuing days, Fred didn’t know if his mind was playing tricks on him but Mrs Won seemed suddenly and newly distant and never seemed to be around much any more.

 

 

 

 

His feelings of being a stranger in her home magnified.

 

 

In the morning she’d set the table and leave food out but would depart early, long before Fred even got up. Where?

 

 

 

He didn’t know.

 

 

 

Work? Church? Hiking?

 

 

 

The evening chats he’d had with her since the beginning abruptly ended. So did any Sunday outings.

 

 

 

Hot Sauce sometimes called home at night from Cleaning Lady’s but if Fred answered the living room wall phone, Mrs Won would dart out of the study and take it protectively.

 

 

 

 

He was appalled that Hot Sauce might still not know a single thing about the condition of her father or that he was hospitalized.

 

 

 

Fred felt something had ended. He wasn’t exactly sure what but just … something.

 

 

 

* Why has Mrs Won pulled away? *

 

 

 

Something ‘real’ to use Thomas’ words. Something he could fall back on before now seemed to vanish.

 

 

 

*

 

 

 

Early Tuesday morning right after the holiday.

 

 

 

Back to reality, Miss No sighed. She hated holidays. They were exhausting.

 

 

 

All she could think about during her countryside trip was getting back to work to relax!

 

 

 

 

Her ‘holiday’ had consisted basically of one huge dinner, which she’d been obliged to assist preparing for hours.

 

 

 

Together with all her female relatives she peeled, poured, cut, sliced, cooked, baked, cleaned –

 

 

 

 

and then had to endure the usual onslaught of male relatives all asking her when she was going to get married and pop out kids; their voices getting louder and their remarks more chauvinistic with each shot of soju poured down their respective hatches.

 

 

 

 

And at the end of it all was the traditional family trip to the local singing room for the excruciating experience of listening to Korean classic songs being butchered by those same male relatives now pissed to the gills.

 

 

 

Presently perched in her Riverside office desk before anyone had arrived, No quickly pushed those thoughts out of her mind.

 

 

 

 

She settled her butt into the big, comfy office chair.

 

 

 

“I love my job and I’m good at what I do.” She said that often to friends and acquaintances. This was her gig so now it was down to business.

 

 

 

First things first. Where did she leave off? Oh yes – the little plan to get rid of Thomas.

 

 

 

* Will she succeed? *

 

 

 

She cracked a satisfied smile thinking about the Golden God puttering through the international airport with his bags and saying bye-bye.

 

 

 

That would wake Mr Kang up to who was really the boss here.

 

 

 

The wheels of No’s mind quickly bogged down, though. Before she’d left for the countryside the scheme had seemed so simple.

 

 

 

One big green light.

 

 

 

But now for some reason she was doubtful. Was she just tired? Whatever it was, the light had turned amber.

 

 

 

It was Mr Kang, that prick. He was a different breed than Go and wouldn’t just roll over and play dead.

 

 

 

She couldn’t just play with his mind like a rice cake. It was going to take time to bring the man down and wrap her tentacles around the Ulsan cashbox.

 

 

 

Right now, all she could see in front of her eyes was a chess board in stalemate. She could feel the thoughts sapping her energy.

 

 

 

Within a split second her weekend caught up with her and she let out a huge yawn, stretching her jaw muscles to the hilt. “Ayeesh!”

 

 

 

She threw her arms up. “I can only fight so many battles at once,” she muttered.

 

 

 

 

“Mr Kang, you misogynistic macho monster – I’ll leave you and Thomas alone for now. Consider yourselves lucky.”

 

 

 

Next. Fred Pineridge.

 

 

 

* What about Fred? *

 

 

 

She was livid that he’d met with Go and gone to Jiri Mountain. Admittedly she was jealous at not being invited too!

 

 

 

She would have much rather hiked the marvellous Jiri San than what she’d ended up doing. Oh – how she hated family obligations!

 

 

 

What really riled her however, was the thought that Fred was drifting out of her control. To lose yet another waygook to Mr Kang would be an unbearable blow to her pride.

 

 

 

She had to – at all costs – keep Freddy here in Chinju. Her craving for control was gnawing at her…

 

 

 

…As was her yearning for morning coffee. Heading down to the coffee vending machine, her high heels echoed in the rotunda stairwell.

 

 

 

 

She gazed up at the long, sleek windows and uttered a slow, calm mantra: “Please give me something to keep Fred in Chinju. Please give me something…”

 

 

 

Be careful what you wish for. Turns out there would be something to keep Fred in Chinju. That certain something would unfold in about five minutes.

 

 

 

* What could it be? *

 

 

 

*

 

 

 

Tomorrow: A new rumour is making its way around the Chinju circuit.