Martoons

Today: Fred hears some news about Thomas.

Cast of characters

Fred

Mrs Won

*

“Be careful of our dog,” Mrs Won cautioned. “Excuse me,” and she bent over to scoop up the miniscule, hairy beast like a Canadian football, and quickly banished it to a bedroom.

Go called out from the other room a minute later, “Dog? Is it safe?”

“Coast is clear,” No responded with a big, toothy smile and Go cautiously reappeared in the front hallway to join them.

With the diminutive watchdog now sequestered in another room, Won returned and invited Go and No to stay for some tea.

Fred saw that the exchange seemed stiff and uncomfortable with the couple tersely declining the offer, bowing and hastily departing.

That left Fred with Mrs Won standing just back from the entranceway.

*Mr Go and Miss No’s quick exit strikes Fred as odd*

“Why didn’t they want to stay?” Fred asked.

“I think they have a bad feeling about me. I have known them for about a year. My daughter was studying at their Englishy school recently but …” She looked down.

“Then the waygook they had there departed suddenly and mysteriously so my daughter quit there.”

Thomas?

Fred’s instincts told him to play dumb.

“That foreigner was here only for one month,” the ajumma lamented. “It was too short a time. Everyone liked him.”

“We even offered him the room you will have now. Many Koreans wish to have a foreigner live in their home.”

Won seemed to slip into a daydream.

Her eyes went distant and glassy and a smug smile broke out as she waxed nostalgic.

“We were all ready for him to move in but then something happened and he disappeared.”

*Finding Thomas seems to be evolving into a quagmire for Fred*

“Mr Go wouldn’t say anything about it but after I nagged him he told me the foreigner had moved to another city.”

Fred tried to act as casual as possible. “Did Mr Go say … why? Or … where?”

Mrs Won paused then cracked a playful smile. “Are you a spy Fred?”

He got her point: He was coming across way too direct for a first meeting.

And from what he’d learned back in Edmonton at Master Lee’s office, Koreans were often very indirect.

“No, no, no! I’m sorry Mrs Won. I don’t mean to be nosy. I know, I’m new in Korea. It’s just that my friend from Canada came here to Chinju recently and I’m trying to locate him.”

“His family asked me to meet him in Korea and make sure he’s okay, that’s all. They are very worried. His name is Thomas and … ”

“Oh! Thomas is your friend?” Won suddenly sounded more hopeful.

“Actually, some ajummas including me met with Mr Go and tried to find out why he sent Thomas away. He wouldn’t say anything about it.” 

*Is the ajumma hiding something about Thomas’ whereabouts?*

She reached out and put her hand on Fred’s forearm and tapped it reassuringly. “This is your first day in Korea. We want you to have a good first impression.”

“It is very important in our country. Don’t worry about your friend Thomas right now.”

Fred was piecing together a pattern.

First his parkade call to Miss No; then Max’s distress call from Korea; today, talking to No at the roadstop vending machines; and now Mrs Won: Nobody seemed to want to reveal anything about where Thomas really was.

Sleep-deprived, Fred could feel himself becoming irritable and argumentative so he decided he’d better keep his mouth shut – until morning anyway when he could make better judgment.

*

Tomorrow: Fred gets to know Mrs Won and her daughter.