Talk Nerdy to Me

Chapter 1: Run

Ra thought she was safe in Seoul. She thought a lot of things when she applied for the job teaching English on a whim. She thought about how anxious she was traveling to another country. How little Korean she spoke, let alone learning Hangul. How she had nothing left for her in the US, and coming to South Korea was just something she could do to pass the time.

She thought she was safe. One of the safest cities in the world.

Her foot splashed through a puddle in the downpour. Laughter rang out from behind. Hunted. She was being hunted. Her heart throbbed in her ears, drowning out the sound.

She bolted into an alley. Ran as fast as her legs could carry her. A stitch was in her side, making it hard to breathe. Down into the darkness, she fled.

A dead end.

Ra skidded to a halt, wide eyes searching for another route, another escape.

The men who hunted her laughed, their voices thrown by the walls of the buildings on either side and the rain that pounded the pavement beneath them all.

"Oh c'mon, honey," said one. He was tall, taller than any man she'd met since arriving in Seoul. His English was the southern drawl she'd thought she'd escaped coming here. "You just ran half a mile, settle down."

Ra backed away, feeling for something she could defend herself with. She knew it was pointless. She hadn't seen anything since coming down this way.

"Ah, look, she's scared half out of her mind," said the second one. He was shorter than his companion, but definitely not short. He was carrying a metal baseball bat. "C'mon, honey, we'll get you nice and dry, and then get you all wet again."

Ra panted for air. Her back hit the fence. She felt along it, trying to find something, anything - a latch, a loose board, anything at all. The two men approached her slowly, their hands raised to keep her from going around. She wasn't fast enough to dodge both of them.

Just when she thought the situation couldn't get any worse, a third man's voice came from the head of the alleyway. This one was Korean.

"Hey! Leave her alone."

"Stay out of this," said the taller of the two nearest her, in Korean. She was vaguely surprised he had bothered to learn that much of the language.

Ra eyed the shorter of her two pursuers and the bat in his hand. If she could edge around to where the taller one was, maybe she could get back to the street. She started slowly trying to swing wide, and the shorter man raised his bat menacingly.

"Don't you move, you little bitch," he hissed at her. "Yo, go take care of the punk while I get this little spoiled princess knocked out."

Ra panicked as her taller assailant walked toward the front of the alley, and the shorter approached her with the bat held high. He was going to hit her with that thing! She backed up against against the fence, shaking like a leaf. She felt a squish under her sodden sneakers, and realized with a start that there was mud underneath her.

She didn't think twice. In one smooth motion, she bent over, grabbing a fistful of the mud and flinging it at the baseball bat-wielding man's face. He cursed, wildly swinging the bat around to try and keep her from running. He was fortunately swinging at the wall instead of at her. She bolted toward the front of the alley as fast as her feet could move.

The taller of her two hunters was waiting for her. He wrapped two lanky, long, but strong arms around her arms and waist and picked her up. She twisted and turned, tugging and rolling, straightened her legs out like she'd seen toddlers do. His grip loosened and she got enough traction to kick her foot backwards. He dropped her like a hot frying pan, grabbing his knee in the darkness.