Golden Magnolia

the "great" escape

Chae Young prayed that the two men in the van with her were as harmless as they claimed.

"You got a light?" said the one behind the wheels.

"No," replied the other who was beside Chae Young, "also, can you not wait? We're almost there."

Where, why, how? She wondered. She was a little too overwhelmed to open her mouth and ask anything. Also, they had been adamant about putting a blindfold over her eyes.

The usual guard who bought in her food had not come in that day. A man who appeared much younger and noticeably attractive had come in pushing the food cart. He intentionally spilled water on her as he was serving.
"Oh I'm sorry," he had apologized insincerely as he indicated with his eyes towards the attached bathroom where there were no cameras. As she moved uncertainly towards the bathroom, everything happened so fast. He pulled the cart inside the bathroom, and opened a compartment underneath it. Bending down, he whispered loud enough for her to hear, "I'm a friend of Jung Kook. I'm getting you out of here. Please get inside quickly."

She had so many questions but her gut feeling and something about the man that told her she could trust him. Quickly, she climbed into the compartment in the trolley. She held her breath as she was wheeled out of the room and held on to the flat walls for support every time the cart maneuvered.

Finally, the compartment door opened in a parking lot. They were pulled right up beside an open van. A man from inside it extended a hand towards her. Grabbing it, she hoisted herself onto the vehicle.

The one who had wheeled her out doffed the uniform he was wearing and climbed into the driver's seat.

"Don't be scared," said the one beside her. "But we'll have to put a blindfold over your eyes. It's for your own safety."

Chae Young nodded mutely.

The man was gentle as he tied a black clothe over her eyes. She wanted to ask where they were taking her but the surreal-ness of the situation had taken away all of her words.

The two men made small talks about the weather and the President- ridiculous things to talk about in such a situation.

"We're here," finally said the man behind the wheels.

"Come," said the other beside her, gently pulling by the arm. Chae Young complied blindly.

He helped her climb off the van. She felt him standing behind him as he continued holding her by the arms. "From here onwards, you are on your own," he said. "Don't get caught. If possible, get out of this country as soon as you can. Also, don't worry about Jung Kook. He'll be fine."

"Where is he?" she asked urgently. He didn't reply. Instead, his grip on her arm was loosening and she felt him drop a bag beside her feet. She grabbed on to the arm. "Where is Jung Kook?" she pleaded.

"He'll be fine," said the man dismissively. "Don't look for him or you will both die." He released her grip from his arm and within seconds, the vehicle had pulled away.

She pulled off the blindfold. The area she was in was remote and quiet. They seemed to have dropped her off near a car dump. In the distance, she could see house roofs. Reaching down, she picked up the black bag and opened it. There was a stash of money, a bunch of paper works and a fake passport under the name Kim Jisoo, and a black wig. Perhaps they had noticed that her purple hair stood out too much, she thought with a wry smile. They really thought things through, she thought as she flipped through the documents for traveling abroad. But then, she reasoned again, they were trained to.

Jung Kook's friend, they had said. She longed desperately to see him. He'll be fine, the man had said.

Will be.

Her hand reached for the black ring on her finger and sent a telepathic message to him. Jung Kook-ah, I'm fine.

Just then, a loud metallic creak from the car dump jolted her out of her thoughts. Quickly looking around and spotting a group of trash bins by the corner, she hurried over behind. Carefully, she put on the wig on and emerged with black hair. She decided to walk to the distance where the roofs were and figure out where she was. The area was a sleepy little place with old-fashioned houses and crumbling walls that had fading murals on them. She managed to spot a clothing store nearby with some outdated dresses in the window. She thought it would be a good idea to change out of her clothes. That's what people in the movies always did. The store was run by a stout, sourly middle aged woman who didn't bother to help or even talk nicely. Changing out of the gray sweatpants and the oversized t-shirt, she bought an ankle-length dress in dusty maroon which had buttons right up to her neck. Looking at herself in the mirror, she thought to herself with amusement that the 'purple-haired whore' now seemed like a distant memory.

Exiting the clothing store, she also found a dimly-lit, crowded internet café. Offering to pay in cash and a little extra to the teenage boy behind the counter, she asked him to book her a ticket.

Lightening up a little at the mention of extra cash, the boy asked, "Where to?"

Chae Young thought for a moment and then her face brightened. "New Zealand."