The World Beyond the Wall
"Hmm?"
Mom smiled and looked down at me. I covered my face with both hands and said, "I remembered."
"Yesterday?"
"Yep."
"Ahahaha!"
Mom laughed brightly and climbed down from the bed. Then she scooped me up as if I weighed nothing at all and set me back on the mattress.
Even if I'm still little, I should have some weight by now.
And yet Mom lifted me like a small dog.
Maybe because she’s been strengthening her muscles with coins?
Mom made sure I was settled safely on the bed, then lay back down and stared at me.
Huh. Why is she just looking?
"Mama?"
I tilted my head, and Mom covered her mouth, laughing.
"Mm, Gongja. Sorry."
Huh? Why are you apologizing all of a sudden?
"You get so cute when you're embarrassed."
"Mama..."
"Honestly. To see something this cute first thing in the morning. I must have saved a country in my last life."
Mom hugged me tightly, still laughing. In her warm arms, I let out a long breath.
Why is being embarrassed cute?
I honestly couldn't make sense of it. Why, exactly?
Maybe because I did something unusual with this face.
I shook my head and let the thought go.
If Mom thinks I'm cute, then I'm cute.
There was no need to think too hard about it.
"Mm, but Gongja. Are you embarrassed because you remembered what happened yesterday?"
"Yep!"
I clutched the hem of Mom's pajama top tightly.
"Was Gongja weird?"
"You were adorable."
"Mm, maybe I'm only cute because it's you, Mama?"
To other people, that dance might have looked like I was just flailing around.
"Mm. No, Gongja. The audience said you were cute too."
Ah, right.
I let out a deep sigh.
"Gongja. Everyone was having fun. Even if our little Gongja impulsively rushed out and danced along to Jung Nuri's song."
Ah, Mother.
"At first, you were a little off the beat. But then you started following it properly, didn't you?"
Mom's assessment was painfully specific.
"The interview had already cooled the mood down a little before that. It was such a relief that Gongja went out there and danced like that."
Ah, so she knew that too.
"Honestly, I was worried too. I needed to say something to loosen up the atmosphere, but nothing came to mind. But Gongja helped kill time and brightened everything up, so I was really grateful."
Hahaha.
I'm glad.
My sacrifice hadn't been in vain. It was a deeply worthwhile thing, and for some reason my eyes were growing damp.
"The one who should be embarrassed isn't Gongja."
Huh? What does that mean?
"Mom should be more embarrassed. I told you to trust me."
Ah.
I did say that.
Mom stroked my cheek and said, "You did something admirable, and still you're shy about it. Honestly, my angel. Gongja, all the people involved praised you."
Huh.
I didn't know that?
When did they praise me?
"They all said our Gongja was a little bundle of luck. You did something so good, so why are you embarrassed?"
I dropped both hands. Mom hugged me and rolled once across the big bed with me in her arms.
"My angel. I thought you were only my little bundle of luck, but now you've become the country's bundle of luck?"
Ahahaha.
No way.
It was just a coincidence.
"After that, the performance went well. That idol group got through it safely too. The flag performance in the middle was beautiful."
Mm, so there was something special about that flag performance.
They must have done some kind of performance symbolizing friendship between the two countries.
A soft hand patted my back. Lying on Mom's stomach, I asked, "Is the person who went to the hospital okay?"
"Yes. They said they had surgery."
"I'm glad."
So the international event seemed to have gone smoothly after all.
I rubbed my face against Mom's pajamas.
Right. If it went well, that's enough.
I might have built up a bit of a dark past, but I was little, so it would be fine.
"Gongja. Actually, we have to go back today."
I lifted my head. Mom brushed my bangs aside.
"But there's somewhere we need to stop first."
Wow, sightseeing?
"Mom has something I really want to show you."
I broke into a wide smile.
"When are we going?"
It's been a very long time since my last trip overseas, Mother.
"You're already eager to go?"
"Yep!"
"Wow, our Gongja's excited. Good. Wash up, eat, and let's go quickly."
Mom scooped me up and sprang out of bed. I hung on obediently like a koala.
Where are we going? To see the desert? Or a shopping mall?
Do they sell souvenirs there?
I should buy plenty and bring them back.
Who should I give them to?
I washed my face while thinking about this and that. I was a little excited.
* * *
Mom was born with a silver spoon in her mouth.
She's the heiress to Sungjin Group.
On top of that, she was also the most successful actress in our country.
Her career's amazing.
Maybe because she had strengthened her muscles with coins, her warrior image had only become more solid.
Much better than in my last life.
Every time I heard the title of one of the movies Mom was filming, I couldn't help laughing.
Chungmuro is in the age of action for a while.
And right in the middle of it all, she kept landing crucial roles like the yolk of an egg.
Mom's great at commercials too.
There were so many people looking for a strong, beautiful image. I didn't know the details, but Mom didn't limit herself to any one field.
In short, Mom has a lot of money.
Everything I ate, slept on, and wore was no ordinary thing. At first, it was hard to get used to, but honestly, not anymore.
Humans are creatures of adaptation, after all.
By now, I wasn't very surprised by price tags anymore.
But Mother, even so.
I looked quietly at the car. The vehicle that had come to take us was obviously no ordinary one.
That's bulletproof glass, isn't it?
The exterior and interior were outrageous. And I could even make out weapons that looked like guns.
This doesn't seem like a sightseeing car.
Mother, where exactly are you planning to go?
A man with a gun got out of the car that had appeared in front of us. The man, who looked every inch the soldier, shook Mom's hand and patted my head.
Mom smiled brightly and said, "Get in, Gongja."
Excuse me, Mother.
"Where are we going?"
"Mm, a good place?"
In a military vehicle? Are we going to see some Middle Eastern mafia boss or something?
"The area we're going to isn't very safe, so I borrowed something secure. It won't take long."
No, why are we going somewhere like that?
Just as I was about to protest, Mom lifted me up and said, "It's a place Gongja absolutely has to see. Actually, that's why I participated in the international event."
Oh.
Put that way, there's nothing I can do.
I climbed into the military vehicle obediently. There was another person inside the fairly large car.
Once Mom got in too, the man said, "Let's go!"
Everyone inside laughed. I let out a long breath.
Come to think of it...
It isn't easy to come here in a vehicle like this.
How did they even get this?
I looked around and took in the inside of the car. Weapons were visible here and there.
Mom said, "Gongja. Don't touch anything, okay?"
I won't touch anything.
"If you touch it, it'll hurt."
Hurt? More like very, very hurt. The things in here looked terrifying.
No, where exactly are we going, seriously?
Are you sure we're not going to shake someone down or something?
I leaned back against the seat and sighed. Maybe because it was a military vehicle, the ride was especially rough.
One of the soldiers inside said, "Careful with your head, kid."
Huh? Korean?
I tilted my head, and the soldier smiled and patted me on the head.
"I used to work in Korea a while back."
Is that so? What kind of work did you do?
Just as I was about to ask, the soldier muttered quietly, "Boss is bad."
That one sentence explained everything.
"I know you. I watched your drama."
Ah, he must have seen Inyeon. I smiled brightly and said, "Thank you!"
So there was a viewer here too.
"Your acting was good. Gongja, can you do this?"
The soldier pointed to his smartphone. I laughed and nodded.
"Thanks."
The soldier immediately leaned in beside me and raised the phone.
"One, two, three. Kimchi!"
Wow, people still say kimchi when taking pictures these days?
He must have worked in Korea a long time ago.
The soldier looked at the photo we took together and seemed overjoyed.
I'm grateful that he's happy, but...
The car hit a huge bump. I steadied my neck and looked out the window. The unfamiliar cityscape came into view.
Riding in a military vehicle through a desert city, taking photos with a fan...
Come to think of it, I had handed flowers to the royal family of this country yesterday too.
Something about the whole situation felt off.
Don't think about it.
Things like this probably happened sometimes in life, that was all.
I shook my head and looked forward again. The soldier was happily flipping through the phone screen with a delighted expression.
"Heehee. I should brag about this."
He really did seem thrilled.
I smiled brightly. Well, if the fan was happy, I was happy too.
* * *
Surprisingly, we arrived quickly. Looking around, the soldier said, "This is the destination."
I started to get out of the car. But Mom shook her head.
"Gongja, you can't get out."
Huh?
"We're here, aren't we?"
"We are."
Mom pulled me over to the window.
"Look, Gongja."
Huh.
I quietly looked outside.
White tents and barbed wire...
The car rolled forward slowly. I was starting to get a rough sense of where we were.
It looks like a refugee camp...
But right now, I was supposed to know nothing. I asked Mom, "Where is this?"
"A place where people who suddenly lost their families and homes have gathered."
Mom wrapped an arm around my shoulders and explained carefully. "These people lost their homes because of the war."
I nodded.
Beyond the barbed wire, I could hear children laughing and running around.
"At that age, they’d be older than our Gongja."
That made sense.
"There are probably several hundred children here who lost their mothers and fathers."
It was the tragedy of war. I couldn't take my eyes off the scene outside the window.
"Gongja. What we saw yesterday was glamorous, wasn't it?"
I nodded.
Everything was shining.
The theater was huge and spacious, and the hotel was luxurious.
"But if you take a short ride out, you can find places like this too. Mom wanted to show this to you."
I turned to meet Mom's eyes.
"I did think about whether you might be too young for it, though."
Wow, Mother.
But why?
Why is Mom showing me this?
Mom confessed in a low voice, "Gongja. Do you know? I've lived my whole life surrounded by pretty, good things. I was born with money."
I nodded.
"But after I became an actress, I started seeing all kinds of things. I watched a lot of documentaries too, but honestly, they never really sank in."
That was entirely possible.
It was a world on the other side of the screen.
Mom continued, "Then I went overseas for a shoot. It was in South America, and by chance I ended up seeing a favela, a slum."
I blinked.
"Gongja. Seeing that place changed my world a lot."
Mom held my shoulder.
"People living in places where they drank dirty water and couldn't even wash properly. In little shack-like houses built together in a mess. I thought I understood places like that, but I actually knew nothing at all. Not until I saw it with my own eyes."
Mom spoke calmly.
"Gongja. There’s a world like this on the other side of our walls."