Chapter 48
Yoo Dahee and Yang Juhee were waiting for me in front of our house. But their behavior was a bit strange.
"What are you doing?"
Yoo Dahee kneeling on the asphalt ground was quite peculiar.
What kind of eccentric behavior is this?
Dahee said,
"Cat."
"Cat?"
I lowered my head too, and indeed, I saw a black cat crouched under a car. It was a cat I often saw when walking around the neighborhood.
In our neighborhood, there was a lady who fed cats by wrapping food in plastic bags, so there were really a lot of these cats.
Those cats would tear open garbage bags and meow all night, making a real racket.
"Meow meow. Come here."
Swish swish swish-
Yoo Dahee reached out her hand towards the cat.
A high school freshman girl imitating a cat. Thinking this was something rarely seen and storing it well in my internal memory, Yang Juhee, who had looked a bit indifferent, stomped her foot.
"Waaah!"
Pitter-patter-patter-patter!
The black cat ran away at Yang Juhee's loud voice.
"Ah. It ran away..."
"Oh, shit."
It seemed Yang Juhee didn't like cats very much. I thought high school girls generally liked cute things and enjoyed taking pictures, but my knowledge seems to have been narrow.
Yang Juhee said.
"The dinner appointment is at 6. Hurry up and change your clothes. Don't dawdle."
Right. I had come home to change clothes and unpack for the 6 PM appointment. I went up to the house, changed clothes, and came out.
Then we all headed to the meeting place.
"Hey, kids! Wow!"
Sister Joo Chan-mi was a woman with her hair tied back, wearing jeans and a white shirt. She was twenty-five years old. She had graduated from university this year and was about to start a job.
Although her face was bare, she was moderately pretty and had a very friendly personality, making her the type to ignite the hearts of many church men.
She was also the noona I had a crush on for about a day.
"Oh my, you're all such babies. Look at those school uniforms."
Sister Joo Chan-mi was very impressed and delighted seeing the Yeongji High uniforms worn by Yang Juhee and Yoo Dahee. Is she reminiscing about her own high school days?
All women were originally high school girls. Sister Joo Chan-mi must have been a high school girl in the past too. It was fun to imagine what type of high school girl she might have been.
Lively... maybe a lively Jung Sojin type.
Calling her a Jung Sojin type somehow felt like an insult, but to people who don't know, Jung Sojin is an honor student and a sociable friend, so... well, anyway!
We each ordered a pasta dish. 13,000 won per plate.
I'm not sure if this is cheap or expensive, but Sister Joo Chan-mi said she's paying.
"I'm treating you all."
***
To be honest, the only pasta I've ever eaten was 3-minute spaghetti or tomato spaghetti served in school lunches. Being told to eat pasta with women in a place like this, I didn't know where to put myself.
And unlike what I thought, where each person would have their own plate, we ordered different types of pasta, placed them in the center, and shared everything!
This was a very unfamiliar way of eating for me, who had attended an all-boys middle school, and I found it quite uncomfortable to eat.
Is this how women usually eat? When guys order jajangmyeon, they each have a bowl in front of them and dig in.
Above all, I wasn't used to using a fork.
But the women skillfully ate the pasta by twirling their forks as if they had known how to do it since birth.
No, looking closely, there were some who couldn't do it either.
"...Ah, damn. This is frustrating."
Yang Juhee tried hard to twirl the pasta with her fork but failed and ate quite messily, which was similar to my level, so I felt an internal sense of camaraderie.
It seems Yang Juhee hasn't eaten pasta much either. As expected, for commoners like us, cup noodles suit us better than pasta.
On the other hand, Yoo Dahee ate very elegantly. She used the utensils so quietly you couldn't even hear a sound.
Rich kids are different, huh.
"You're Dahee, right?"
As the meal was progressing smoothly, Sister Joo Chan-mi showed interest in Yoo Dahee.
"You're really pretty. You must be popular in your class? I bet you get a lot of confessions."
"I think it's just average."
What does it mean for popularity to be average? It's an area I can't understand.
After that, there was casual chat that felt like a background check, asking things like how's studying, what are the teachers like, and so on.
The girls would occasionally burst into laughter and form a sense of camaraderie, but I felt like a lone island separated from them. This situation is really uncomfortable.
"I need to use the restroom."
I went outside, wanting to get some fresh air.
Taking advantage of the free moment, I checked my phone and saw that Jung-seok had sent messages.
「Jungle Jung-seok: What's this?」
「Jungle Jung-seok: It looks like some kind of code. Morse code?」
「Jungle Jung-seok: When translated to Korean, it says 'Be careful of the sky'.」
Be careful of the sky?
The phrase "Be careful of the sky" written on the business card of Kang Bada, my mom's old classmate.
What could it mean?
Sky.
Sky...
"Could it mean be careful of Kang Ha-neul?"
That was the best deduction I could make. I had finished my business and was about to go back in when Yang Juhee was outside.
"What? Going to smoke?"
"What are you talking about? I quit, you know? My breathing gets short when I run. We're done eating, so we decided to leave. They're probably paying inside."
Paying! More importantly, Yang Juhee quit smoking!
Not bullying friends and not smoking, what's left for the delinquent Yang Juhee? Isn't her human essence becoming too thin?
As I was thinking this, Yang Juhee looked around and said to me.
"You. Be careful of Sister Chan-mi."
"Be careful? Of what?"
"Didn't you notice? During the meal, she was only looking at you."
Boing-
It was very shocking and somehow embarrassing.
She was only looking at me. Could she like me?
It was natural to think that, but Yang Juhee's words weren't finished.
"Do you know what Sister Chan-mi's nickname is at church? Younger Man Killer."
"Younger Man Killer?"
"Yeah! All the boyfriends she's dated so far were younger, and as far as I know, she's dated more than 7 guys."
Yang Juhee spoke as if it was a very secret thing, but I wondered if this was really that special.
Isn't it normal for a 25-year-old woman to have dated 7 boyfriends?
These days, people start dating from high school, so seven boyfriends by age twenty-five is like one per year. I thought it was average.
Of course, it was a bit surprising that they were all younger, but everyone has their preferences.
"Hey. This isn't the time to be talking about that. All the guys Sister Chan-mi dated were CC! Church Couples! Now none of those guys can be contacted and they don't come to church anymore."
"Hmm..."
Dating seven church couples was a bit unusual. Usually, when couples form in church... if it goes well and leads to marriage, that's one thing, but if they break up, it's a complete hell party.
They're unlikely to break up on good terms, so both the guy and girl will fight like crazy, and people who were friendly at church will form factions or become awkward with each other because of that couple...
the end, more often than not, either the man or the woman stops coming to church.
That's why dating within the church isn't really encouraged.
To have done that seven times. And she even made all the guys cut off contact? That's impressive, I guess.
***
We arrived at Glory Church.
It's not common for churches to have services on Mondays, because church people, who are busiest on Sundays when others have their day off, usually rest on Mondays like it's their day off.
Places that have services on Mondays can generally be seen as very passionate.
When we entered the chapel, there were quite a few people, about twenty.
Everyone greeted each other with smiles and chatted.
"Oh my. Students have come?"
"Look at those uniforms."
We, in our school uniforms, stood out prominently.
Ladies and gentlemen who looked like deacons smiled with satisfaction seeing us, and finally at 7 PM, a young man who seemed to be the praise leader appeared and took the microphone.
"Then we'll start the Monday service with praise. First, let's all stand up and offer praise to the Lord with joyful hearts."
Boom boom boom-
A hymn starting with drums and other instruments.
"By the cross of Christ our Savior─"
Everyone raised their voices and sang without hesitation. Only me, Yang Juhee, and Yoo Dahee were standing blankly in this place.
In my case, it was because I was observing the surroundings, for Yang Juhee, it seemed to be due to a subtle adolescent rebelliousness(?), and for Yoo Dahee, it seemed she was uncomfortable with this atmosphere.
What came after the praise was even more awkward.
Click, click-
All the lights illuminating the chapel went out. The interior was so dark you couldn't see an inch in front of you.
In that darkness, the praise leader said,
"Now, we'll call out to the Lord three times and pray aloud."
Lord─ Lord─ Loooord─
Everyone started calling out to the Lord in loud voices and the prayer began.
"Abba, Father, today again─"
"Arurururu-garururu-"
"Forgive this sinner─!"
"Abaralalalai, escaralalalai!"
Congregational prayer.
A time when all sorts of voices intertwine and clamor together. Are there still churches these days that pray so passionately using tongues?
For me, who was a pastor's son, this was quite familiar... but it seems it wasn't for someone else.
Swish-
Someone tugged at my side in the darkness.
"...Young-won. I'm scared."
It was Yoo Dahee. Yoo Dahee, unfamiliar with church culture, seemed to hear this fanatical and blind congregational prayer as some kind of hellish wailing.
The situation of making inhuman sounds in all sorts of tongues could be unfamiliar and scary, I guess.
─These idiots are going crazy. What a show they're putting on. A show.
That's when it happened.
Amidst all the hellish wailing of congregational prayer and tongues, someone's voice was clearly heard.
And at that moment, the prayer sounds that had been raging in the chapel were cut off all at once.
The timing was so public it was chilling.
Click-
The lights in the chapel started to come on.
Suddenly, instead of the praise leader, a man with quite a large build was holding the microphone at the front of the platform.
It was Pastor Cheon Ae-su, the founding and senior pastor of this Glory Church.
"Brothers and sisters. It seems that a devil with power over the air has snuck into this place. I command in the name of the Lord. Enemy devil Satan, stand up from your seat and go outside!"
What is... what kind of situation is this? Go out where?
This situation was quite unfamiliar and strange even to me. I looked around in embarrassment, but the surroundings were very quiet.
Swish-
Pastor Cheon Ae-su came down from the platform.
"These devils hide among people. They hide among people and make people's bodies sick. Make them disobey. Make them disbelieve─ Make them sin!!!"
Wheeee-
Pastor Cheon Ae-su started whistling.
He slowly circled the chapel while whistling in a steady tone.
Wheeeeee-
It was an impressive lung capacity. How could the whistle continue without breaking? As I was thinking this, Pastor Cheon Ae-su's steps paused briefly in front of me.
Wheeeeee-
"......"
What is this about?
Just as I was getting unnecessarily tense...
"You bastard! Jesus or whatever, give me back my money. Before I burn down this whole church and kill everyone! Pastor or whatever, give me my money! My money! My moneeeey!"
Someone shouted very loudly.
When I turned my head, a scruffy man in work clothes was glaring at Pastor Cheon Ae-su with bloodshot eyes. Someone recognized the man.
"Isn't... isn't that Chanwoo's dad? Deacon Kwon's husband!"
"Oh my, it is! It is!"
The man limped towards Pastor Cheon Ae-su, seemingly having trouble with his leg. And with a mouth reeking of alcohol, he snarled like a starving mad dog.
"The insurance money I got when I became crippled! The welfare money I got when I was classified as disabled! My wife gave it all to this church! I need that money for surgery! Give me my money! Money! My money!!!"
Is this a husband coming to demand the money his wife offered to the church as a donation?
It wasn't a common occurrence... but it wasn't unheard of either. Pastors often receive death threats like this throughout their lives.
The atmosphere felt like it could explode at any moment.
I was thinking we might need to call the police when Pastor Cheon Ae-su spoke.
"This person is possessed by a devil. From now on, we will drive out the devil that has taken residence in this man. Lock all the doors and let's put up John Chapter 1 on the PPT."