The Dokkaebi Waiting for the Moon

Chapter 3

…But I’m supposed to stay away from humans.

As Eun-hwi hesitated, unable to turn away, his stomach rumbled again like thunder. It seemed his energy was low after transforming into a dokkaebi fire for the first time in a long while.

Gabi used to say that even Diamond Mountain is best viewed after a meal. Eun-hwi postponed his worries and rolled up his drooping sleeves again. He intended to fill his stomach in the wild strawberry forest.

“My strawberries!”

But the trees were empty. Just a few days ago, ripe red berries had been abundant on every branch, but how could this be?

As he stared dejectedly at the strawberry bushes with only traces of eaten berries remaining, a squirrel holding the last berry in its paws quickly climbed up a tree and escaped.

“Hey, you naughty squirrel! Stop right there! Give me back my strawberry!”

Squeak squeak!

“Give it back now!”

Squeak squeak!

Despite continued threats, the squirrel mockingly climbed to a branch too high for Eun-hwi to reach. His only food source was gone.

“Sob… My strawberries…”

If only he had come a little earlier, could he have eaten them?

The more he thought about it, the more unfair and absurd it felt, and large tears fell. Eun-hwi, looking resentfully at the branch tip where the squirrel had disappeared, forgot about the man’s presence and went deeper into the mountains to find more strawberries.

“How dare you step foot here!”

Just as he had thoroughly searched the valley and discovered a new strawberry bush, a spiritual voice resonated in his head like thunder. The half-dokkaebi jerked his head up to see the face of a human-faced bird glaring at him with contempt.

“S-sorry. I was wrong! Don’t hit me!”

Startled, he swallowed back a scream and immediately apologized.

The human-faced bird, an auspicious being connecting heaven and earth and serving the mountain god of Wolhwa Mountain, had a very violent temper when angered.

Unlike the ghosts who constantly tormented him, saying a disgusting half-human was flying around, the human-faced bird completely ignored Eun-hwi. That was until he was caught secretly stealing offerings that villagers had left at the mountain god’s shrine on a cold winter night.

Since that day, Eun-hwi, who had thoroughly fallen out of favor, was no longer allowed to enter the mountain god’s domain.

“An uninvited guest comes through the gap of disharmony and disturbs the balance of yin and yang. The mountain god’s words about you were clear indeed. Before I break the legs that defile this sacred land, get out of here immediately!”

The enraged human-faced bird spread its white wings wide. Blown away by the wind imbued with ghostly energy, Eun-hwi had no choice but to turn back, leaving behind the tempting strawberries.

“That’s too harsh… Couldn’t you let it slide just once?”

Standing at the precarious boundary, he grumbled quietly. The human-faced bird’s eyes narrowed fiercely at the muttering, but the half-dokkaebi couldn’t tear his eyes away from the red berries.

He felt incredibly sad that the time spent searching diligently, getting covered in leaves, had been in vain. He resented the mountain god who, despite being Gabi’s old friend, consistently turned a blind eye to the ghosts’ bullying.

Eun-hwi kept his gaze fixed on the strawberries as he slowly backed away. A squirrel lying on a branch, enjoying its full stomach, looked strangely at the half-dokkaebi descending the mountain backwards.

“I’m hungry…”

Perhaps because of the strawberries, he particularly craved sweet fruits like peaches and plums today. After returning home while looking back the whole way, Eun-hwi barely composed himself and opened the gate weakly.

“Why are you so late? It’s gotten dark.”

Just as he was entering the house, a deep voice rang out from inside. It was the real uninvited guest who had come looking for him earlier.

“Aaaah!”

He had naturally assumed the man had left empty-handed like the youth group leader and his gang. Extremely startled by the sight of the man sitting on the porch and waving his hand gently, Eun-hwi stumbled backward and fell on his bottom.

“…Ouch.”

A groan escaped involuntarily as his bottom hit the ground painfully. As Eun-hwi struggled to get up, groaning, the man who had been opening and closing the lid of something square with a click-click sound put it in his inner jacket pocket and approached.

“Why are you so surprised? Did you see a ghost?”

“…”

“Get up. I’ll help you.”

The man reached out his hand again like before and grabbed Eun-hwi’s wrist to pull him up. Eun-hwi’s small, thin body was lifted easily by the man’s strength.

“Why do you look like this?”

The traditional Korean clothes that had been clean until just a moment ago were now filthy as if he had been rolling around, and the sleeve ends were covered in thistle seeds.

He hadn’t noticed his clothes getting dirty while focusing solely on finding strawberries. As Eun-hwi blushed in embarrassment at his messy appearance, the man chuckled. Deep dimples formed around his smiling mouth.

“I was bored. Guarding an empty house.”

He was a man whose impression changed greatly when he smiled versus when he didn’t. Fascinated by this stark change, Eun-hwi stared blankly up at him, and the man’s long, thick-jointed hand rested on his head.

Flinch.

His shoulders automatically curled up, tense from the ghosts who were always ready to hit and beat him. As he squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the impact, an amused voice sounded from above his head.

“You’ve got leaves on you.”

He gently opened his eyes. The man removed a leaf stuck to Eun-hwi’s sideburn and brought it to his mouth, lightly blowing on it.

The small leaf fluttered down, carried by the gentle breeze. For some reason, watching it descend softly like the first snow made Eun-hwi feel as if the sea inside his chest was rippling.

“I’m not going to hit you. Don’t be scared.”

He had misunderstood without realizing it. When Eun-hwi nodded slightly instead of answering, the man smiled and patted his head.

“I don’t hit pretty kids.”

In the moonlight pouring through the clouds, the man appeared excessively relaxed, excessively gentle, and excessively plain.

So much so that Eun-hwi unknowingly wanted to grab the man’s hand and ask if he really didn’t dislike him.

However, he was an intruder, an outsider, and a human.

A cruel monster that shouldn’t be approached or given affection to.

“Ah…”

The scar on his jaw, as if clawed by a beast, jolted Eun-hwi back to his senses.

Suddenly realizing his situation where he shouldn’t be seen by humans, Eun-hwi hurriedly tried to transform into a dokkaebi fire. Just as he was gathering his scattered thoughts to cast the spell,

“Wait.”

The man grabbed his arm again.

“Don’t run away again.”

The unfamiliar sensation created by the warmth embedded in his skin.

Eun-hwi, momentarily conflicted between curiosity about the unknown world and fear, ultimately pushed him away. The hand, without much force behind it, fell away helplessly.

“…”

Why did he feel regretful now, after being the one to reject first?

Eun-hwi rubbed the arm that had been grabbed, bothered by the man’s fading body heat. A light sigh escaped amidst the awkward silence.

“I waited. To give you this.”

Gesturing as if to say there was nothing to fear, the man pulled something out of his pants pocket. It was a small object with a round bulge in the middle.

“Here, two. Can… dy?”

As Eun-hwi stumbled over reading the letters on the wrapper, the man asked,

“You don’t know what candy is?”

Though he knew simple Chinese characters and Hangul, he didn’t understand the squiggly writing used by Westerners. Eun-hwi slowly shook his head.

“It’s sata.”

“Ah… sata!”

“It’s plum-flavored candy.”

“Plum… flavor?”

“You do know what plums are, right?”

Nod nod.

Sometimes when Gabi returned from trips to the mainland, he would bring back food and fruits unavailable on the island. Plums were one of those, so Eun-hwi nodded to show he knew them well.

“Eat it.”

Having not eaten anything all day, he wanted to immediately put the candy the man offered into his mouth. His mouth watered at the memory of the tangy taste of plums.

But if he accepted the candy, wouldn’t the hide-and-seek game end?

Is it okay since the man didn’t shout “Found Kim Eun-hwi hiding in the storehouse”?

Nevertheless, he hesitated, unsure if it was alright to receive candy, the reward for hide-and-seek, from someone other than Gabi. As he fidgeted with his fingers, the man demonstrated by opening his mouth as if to say “do this.”

“Say ‘ah.’ Ah.”

“…Ah?”

When Eun-hwi unconsciously mimicked the action, the man quickly unwrapped the candy and popped the round lozenge into his mouth.

The sweet fruity taste spread throughout his mouth, melting away his hunger and emptiness. The sorrow of being chased away with strawberries right in front of him disappeared instantly. Eun-hwi rolled the large lozenge around, sucking the sweet juice.

Seeing Eun-hwi momentarily disarmed by the candy, the man said with a smiling face,

“You could get in big trouble eating things strangers give you.”

“…Eck?”

The half-dokkaebi’s eyes widened as he was diligently rolling the candy. He stuck out his tongue as if he had eaten something he shouldn’t have, and the light pink lozenge with a red streak in the middle dangled precariously on the tip of his tongue.

“I’m joking.”

“…”

“I didn’t put poison in it. Just eat it.”

…Does he usually put poison in them?

Unable to spit it out, Eun-hwi slowly closed his open mouth. Then, as if to say “good job,” the man tapped Eun-hwi’s bulging cheek and held out his palm.

“A reward.”

“A reward?”

“I gave you candy, didn’t I?”

Dokkaebi had a habit of always repaying what they received. However, since he wasn’t a full dokkaebi and couldn’t possess a dokkaebi’s magic mallet, Eun-hwi made a sad face while eating the candy.

If he couldn’t give gold and silver treasures, he should at least give a land deed, but he was frustrated not knowing what that was.

He couldn’t spit out the candy he was eating to give it back either.

As he fidgeted, unable to do either, the man stared at Eun-hwi’s head for a long time and said,

“Let me touch it. As a reward.”