random short story

16 - Kim Seok Jin

Kim Seok Jin was a rich young man. He was only twenty-five, but he already owned a bus company and had a few coconut plantations. He had everything he needed and seemed to have no worries.

Then one day, while he was enjoying the food from a hawker's stall, a poor and miserable looking man, dressed in rags, came up to him and asked for food. Jin invited the beggar to join him for dinner. The beggar ate as much as he could. He was grateful to Jin. In return, he offered to read Jin's fortune for him.

The beggar did not have good news for Jin. He told Jin that his palms showed that he did not have long to live. His life would end violently. He would be knocked down by car and killed instantly sometime the following month. He begged Jin to give some money to the poor. Maybe his life would be spared. Jin laughed at the beggar's words. He did not believe in fortune tellers. He thought that probably the old man was trying to get some money out of him. Anyway, Jin gave him a few dollars and asked him to take care of himself.

Once in a while, the beggar's words came into Jin's mind and he looked worried. Most of the time, however, he went about his usual business, too busy to remember the beggar's words.

Every day, Jin had to cross a busy street to and from work. That day he was extra careful as it was the day the beggar said he would be knocked down. Jin crossed the road safe but as he was walking along by the side of the road a car came at him at full speed. The motorist seemed to have lost control of the car. Jin jumped to one side just in time. It missed him and crashed into a lamp post. Jin did not die. He escaped death.

Jin was very thankful. The next day he decided to look up the beggar and tell him the good news. Jin could not find him anywhere. Then one of his friends there told him that the poor beggar had been involved in a road accident the day before. He had died on the spot.

-END-

(A/N: I'm not sure if anyone noticed something while reading this story.)

source: ni aku jumpa kat buku zaman SRP entah siapa punya buku lah tapi yang pasti bukan mak aku punya sebab buku tu tahun 1990, sedangkan mak aku ambil SRP tahun 1983.