Winter Swan

"…I will kill them. I will never forgive them. Never."

There wasn't a single star in the black sky. Walking slowly, Silje murmured in pain, "Do they really think I'm going to lose? He said he will test my luck? They better know that this is the biggest mistake they have ever made. I will survive tonight. I will make sure. I won't die here like this."

Silje continued to walk, but her body was very close to giving up on her.

Her body was frozen, and she hadn't been feeling much for a while now. Her feet were numb, and she had to use everything she had to make them move.

Her wrist hurt. The bleeding wouldn't stop so it continued to drip. To resist her pain and anger, Silje clenched her fists. She gritted her teeth to stop herself from moaning.

"I will kill him. I will never forgive him, that bastard!"

While bleeding and walking, Silje looked ahead the endless empty field covered in white snow.

'How did I get here? Why? I was brought here all the way from a faraway land called Korea… to this cold icy land? Why am I walking on this frozen road while bleeding?'

She swore she would never forget this. She would never let go of this pain.

She dragged her legs and continued to follow the dark road. The injuries from today may slowly disappear, but the emotional scars from today would never fade.

She was determined to search for where she belonged. It was not her current house where she was never welcome, but a place where she could feel true warmth.

She will never give up. Silje will always instinctively go towards her true home, wherever it may be: a place with a warm fire and even warmer and kinder people who cared for her.

***

"Hey! You're doing it all wrong! I told you that's not the right spot, but you keep doing it. If you want to hang the frames, then do it right. It needs to be straight. The tilted frames make this store look messy and unorganized!"

"No, they aren't! The store looks fine."

The middle-aged man sighed and replied to the tanned woman with a high-pitched voice.

"Tran, this is my store. If I can't even have control over my own place, why would I bother owning it? I am hungover from aquavit, so can't you just go easy on me today?"

"Why would you chug down such a strong drink? It's your fault. I will get you some painkillers so have a seat here. And stop putting the nails on the wall, alright?"

"Please leave me alone. My head is pounding. Blrrr! I feel like I'm gonna throw up."

Just then, the door opened and Silje walked in. Panting heavily, she walked toward the two people. Silje was used to seeing them argue.

When Tran spotted Silje, she smiled warmly.

"Wow! Silje, what are you doing here at this time of night?"

This cafeteria was half an hour away from Silje's home. She worked part-time here on weekends and some weekdays as well, but never this late. At night, the place sold alcohol and Silje, as a minor, couldn't work.

The two people looked at her in surprise.

"Silje, did something happen?"

The owner, Niels, was sitting on a chair wearily when he turned around. A tall man of over 190 centimeters, he had his hands on his temples as if he were in pain.

"I drank too much aquavit, Silje. My head is killing me, but Tran is making me fix the frames on the wall. Gosh, she is so annoying!"

"The frames aren't hung straight! Let's ask Silje. Don't you think the tilted frames on the wall look distracting to the customers? What do you think?"

"Oh… That is…"

When Silje couldn't seem to answer, which was unusual for her, Niels was confused.

"Silje, you don't look okay. If you came here because you need to use the washroom, go right ahead. Oh, I almost forgot. Last weekend, a blonde girl came in and asked for your name. Was that your friend? Oh, I can't take this anymore. I need to take some painkillers. My head is killing me."

"Goodness! I will get it for you from the kitchen. I think we have some emergency medications there."

"Oh… I don't need to use the washr…oom… I didn't come here for… washroom…"

When Silje shook her head and continue to shake with her pale face, Tran stopped suddenly. She realized something was very wrong.

"You… are you…"

Silje had her hand still in her coat pocket. When she tumbled forward, Tran raised her voice.

"You! Show me your hand now!"

When Silje looked at her with her eyes widened in fear, Tran quickly walked towards her and grabbed Silje's hand out from her pocket.

"Gyaaa!!!!"

Tran screamed when she saw Silje's bloody hand.

"But I'm fine now. Thanks to you, I am here at the hospital. I'm alright."

"Are you crazy? Have you lost your mind? You're telling me you really are going to go home now like this?"

"This isn't fine, Silje. No one would be fine if they went through what you did tonight. I think you should stay overnight at the hospital. I will explain everything to your parents."

When Silje insisted on going home, Tran and Niels, who brought her to the hospital, became angry.

"This is the kind of thing that gets on the newspapers. If your adoptive parents continue to ignore this problem, even after tonight, they will not get away with it this time! I won't let them! Don't you understand? This is clearly child abuse! This shouldn't happen!"

"No, like I just said, I'm fine. Thank you, Tran and Niels. Thanks to both of you, I got the necessary treatment. The cut is all stitched up, so I should go home now. And…"

Her face was beyond pale. Silje couldn't stop shaking, but her eyes were dead calm. Her voice was firm when she begged Niels, "Please don't speak ill of my adoptive parents. No matter what, I am thankful for them for raising me."

"…I can't believe you still feel that way."

Niels looked at Silje in frustration as he continued, "Tell me who did this to you tonight. Do you know how many stitches you got just now? And you still want to cover for those people you call your parents? If you feel that way, I guess there is nothing I can't do about it, but it is unforgivable for them to ignore your pain and suffering. They are cowards! Just what kind of people pretend nothing is happening?"

"My adoptive parents treat me kindly."

When Silje persisted in a shaky but firm voice, Niels became quiet. Tran, who was standing next to them, opened her mouth.

"We are saying this because we are worried about you, Silje. You were assaulted by your classmates, so don't you think we have the right to be concerned for your safety? You must admit that your adoptive parents' behavior so far doesn't give us confidence that they have good intentions. Even if you go home now like you wanted to, we have no idea what your adoptive parents would do, right?"

Tran spoke crudely, but Silje knew she meant well. Tran's anger came from her concern for Silje.

Silje took a deep breath. Her wrist was no longer bleeding, but it was throbbing. She felt unwell and she knew she had a fever. Most of all, she couldn't refuse Tran and Niels' kindness.

"I know what you are saying, Tran. Thank you both, guys. Then I will ask you for a favor. Please take me back to the cafeteria…"

When Tran and Niels looked confused, Silje tried her best to give them a smile and added, "I want to have hot cocoa before going back home. I think it will help me feel better."