How inviting that barbed-wire fence seemed! Only that small distance separated us now. Mother might be waiting for us in one of those tents with the warm glowing lights. Inchun and I looked at each other and started running toward the fence. At any moment the Russian guards might spring upon us. It was misty and wet. We soon heard the fierce barking of dogs. They must have discovered our scent. We froze and stared at each other. The dogs were getting closer and closer and the barking grew louder and fiercer. We heard the soldiers' footsteps in the distance. We heard them shouting to one another.
It wasn't worth trying to hide anymore. It was now or never. We could see the fence right in front of us. We locked our hands together and ran as fast as we could. We just ran and ran, and finally reached the barbed-wire fence. Using all my remaining strength, I pulled at the bottom of the wire. It would not budge. There was no time to think. We fell to our knees and started to dig. We only made a tiny little space. Then I tried to lift the fence as much as I could. "Go Inchun!" I urged. "Flatten yourself out like a snake and slide through, then keep running. I'll be right behind you."
Little Inchun slipped under the wire and then, instead of running as I told him, he tried to lift the wire with his little hands. I hear the dogs getting closer and I thrust my body under the wire. The barbs dug into me. My hair was caught, my clothes ripped, and I could feel the blood pooling in the cuts on my back. I kept going, and finally, I made it through. I grabbed Inchun's hand. We cried and kept running.
I did not look back to see how close the soldiers and dogs were. I was too afraid. I could only look forward.
Inchun said, panting, "Are we in the South now?"
"Yes," I said clutching his hand tighter.
"But I still hear the dogs and the soldiers," Inchun said.
"Don't worry, just run!" I squeezed his hand and pulled him forward. I had heard once that once you were in the South, the Russians and the North Koreans could not shoot you, even if you were an escapee. But still we ran. They sounded as though they were right behind us. We kept running toward the lit tents. Then I saw four people rushing out of the tents and running to us. I saw the Red Cross sign on their white hats. They were carrying stretchers and medical bags, and I finally felt that we didn't have to run anymore.
I stopped and grabbed Inchun. "We can stop now," I told him. "We're safe, we're safe." My trembling legs collapsed under me and I fell to the ground. Inchun tumbled down on top of me. Exhaustion and relief overwhelmed us. I looked at the sky, which was spinning above me. As I was lifted onto a stretcher, my eyes filled wih tears. I heard the soothing voice of an older woman saying, "These poor children-all alone- look at their feet. Hurry, let's get them inside. Hurry."
