Deception

Chapter 3

I have been looking for my father. I have no idea which place in South Korea should I start looking for him. All I know is he works for the government and he promised to go back once his business in this country is done. We seldom see each other due to his work basically requires him to be always present and my mom and him were divorced for a very long time. Since he couldn't take care of me he gave up custody of my mom. Which was the main reason why I grew up in Amsterdam. He used to frequently visit me during Holidays and my birthdays until I was 10. And we never heard from him after that. My mom refused the idea of finding my biological father but I insisted that I will be able to find him. Mom has totally moved on and is happily married to my foreign step-dad. And she wanted me to believe that Dad has moved on as well and is probably busy with his new family. But that is something unacceptable for me. I am certain that Dad has a reason why he stopped seeing me. Now that I am a full grown up woman I can decide on my own. Whether my Mom agrees or not, I will find my Dad no matter what.

It has been more than a month and my search isn't fruitful. I got leads that I could find him in this abandoned hospital but I don't know what just happened there. There was a commotion and when I got there to check the location a policeman escorted me out. He said I was in the wrong place and would help me out when he is no longer busy. He hasn't kept in touch until then. But he  gave me the address where my father lives. Officer Kang Ma-Roo was kind enough to even drive me to the address. And told me he is a good friend of my dad. He said that I should stay there while waiting for my father's return. My Dad's ancenstral house is really huge and screams luxury with all those antiques being displayed everywhere. It could pass as a museum. But there's no trace of him. The house does not look abandoned or anything. Probably he has been away just recently. I wonder what his reaction would be if he finds out that I came here to look for him.

One time I went out to get something to eat but the nearest restaurant is already closed. I drove around the city until it led me to the third restaurant but the staff told me since it's already late most of the dishes are no longer available. I had no choice but to eat in a convenience store. I really enjoyed walking alone and lost track of time. It gave me enough time to appreciate the beauty of the town when it was all quiet. There were few people outside. I didn't realize it was already late. When I was about to head home I heard a woman's voice asking for help. It was coming from a dark alley. It didn't cross my mind that I could put myself in danger. I saw three guys harassing her. At first, I was stuck at where I stood and was just looking at her. I couldn't describe the feeling I had by that time. When she looked in my direction I snapped out and came back to my senses that the woman needed my help. I did my best to help her but fighting against three was really impossible. The last thing I remembered was I passed out which was so embarrassing.

I woke up being comfortable with the soft mattress. But I could still feel the pain all over my body. It was like a feeling of being worn out. I looked around and I realized I was not at home. Then I remembered the woman I was supposed to help. I jerked up and started to panic. How did I end up in such a place without any memory of leaving that dark alley?

"Finally, you are awake." I heard a woman's voice out of nowhere and a clicking sound of the door probably from the bathroom. Then she appeared in front of me wearing just a bathrobe. She looked like she just had a shower. Beads of water were visible on her face. I averted my gaze elsewhere. I didn't want her to think that I was kind of a pervert person. "Thanks for rescuing me earlier." 

Then I realized that she just thanked me when she was the one who saved me after all. My whole body is still in pain which is why I groaned when I slightly moved to at least face her. I tried to act cool in front of her. "I'm not sure if I really helped out. It seems the other way around. How did I get here?"