The Missing Child

Yuji stared at the top of the ride as it soared up into the sky. The sound of people screaming came from nearby, then far away, then nearby again. The Drop Tower standing before her was supposed to be the scariest ride in New Seoul Park. The donut-shaped structure spiraled slowly up to the top, before dropping to the bottom in an instant. The people on the ride enjoyed the excitement, relying on nothing but a safety bar for their lives. Yuji wondered what the suspense felt like. People said the terror gave you a big thrill.

It was something Yuji wasn't able to experience for herself. Crestfallen, she hung her head. She had told everyone in her class about her big plans, never imagining that she wouldn't be able to go on the ride because she wasn't tall enough, falling short by one centimeter. Well, too bad, she thought. Yuji decided to go on another ride she had in mind and looked around for her parents.

Her parents were standing face to face under a wisteria tree far away. It seemed they were arguing again, waving their hands in the air and yelling. They didn't get on very well. They were always saying mean things to each other and quarreling and throwing stuff around over what seemed like little things to Yuji. On rare quiet days, they didn't say a word to each other.

Yuji pursed her lips. Here they were at a fun and exciting theme park, and her parents were busy fighting again. Only one person in the world could pacify this problematic couple.

"Mom! Dad! I want to go on a different ride," Yuji shouted in a cheerful voice. The couple, who had been seething with rage, finally relaxed and smiled at Yuji.

With a proud smile on her face, Yuji said, "I wonder how you guys will ever get on without me. Who's the parent here, huh?"

Yuji shook her head, imitating the way grown-ups spoke. Her mom stopped glaring at her dad and came up to her and took her hand. Yuji thrust her other hand at her dad. Sighing, her dad also took her hand.

The theme park in mid-August felt like a steamer packed with dumplings. The spacious park was crammed full of people. Beads of sweat rolled down from Yuji's round forehead. Yuji's parents were sweating as well. Both of the hands Yuji was holding were damp with sweat. It seemed her dad wanted to pull his hand away, but Yuji pretended not to notice. She didn't like the dampness either, but she was afraid that her mom and dad would scatter away and disappear the moment she let go of their hands. Yuji tightened her grip on her dad's hand. The three of them were together, her mom in one hand, her dad in the other. Yuji had a picture of the perfect family in her mind.

Yuji's gaze fell on something: Dream Teddy handing out balloons in front of the carousel in the main square of the park. Dream Teddy, along with Dream Kitty, was the mascot of New Seoul Park; Dream Teddy, the guardian of New Seoul Park and the everlasting friend of children. Yuji began to hum Teddy's theme song, which she had heard too many times on television.

Yuji liked Dream Teddy. Some kids in her class called Teddy a mutt, saying he was a mixture of several different characters from overseas, but Yuji didn't care. She felt happy when she saw Teddy's plastic eyes, sparkling so brightly that they almost made him look idiotic, and his bulging belly. Yuji felt that Teddy would nod his head eagerly at her, no matter what she said to him.

"Do you want a balloon?" her mom asked quickly. Yuji nodded in reply.

"Well, then, go and get one. Go and say, a balloon, please!" her mom said, her hand slipping out of Yuji's as if it had just been waiting for the chance.

Yuji looked at her mom. The corners of her mouth turning up in a smile, her mom gave Yuji a gentle push. Yuji's dad was fanning himself with the hand he had already pulled away. Yuji stared at her own hands, suddenly empty. She wanted to grab onto something, anything. She kept clenching and unclenching her fists, but she couldn't shake the feeling of emptiness. Finally, she went up to Dream Teddy. As she reached out a hand toward the balloons, a group of kids came out of nowhere and shoved past her.

The kids, who seemed to be on a group trip, cut in line like a swarm of bees and snatched away the balloons. When Yuji's turn came at last, there wasn't a single balloon left. Dream Teddy shrugged, waving his hands, as if to say there was nothing he could do. Yuji turned around with a prim look on her face.

She couldn't let herself get upset over something like this. Whining about not getting a balloon was a childish thing to do. Yuji was very mature for her age-a grown-up, in fact, who could calm her parents who fought like little kids. Yuji straightened her back and turned in the direction of her parents. They had seized the opportunity to get themselves into another quarrel. Music-more like noise, actually-rang throughout the park, but she could still somehow clearly hear the sound of her parents fighting.

"A theme park, in this heat-it's insane! Did we really have to come, just because she wanted to? Can't I get some rest on the weekend, at least?"

"Well, what could we do? She wanted to come. Do you ever pay any attention to what she wants?"

"It wasn't because I wanted to come," Yuji mumbled in a small voice, coming to a stop.

About a week ago, Yuji had been watching television when a commercial came on, promoting New Seoul Park's summer special late-night package. Her mom, sitting on the floor folding laundry, suddenly said to herself, "It's been ages since I've been someplace like that."

Her mom never went anywhere but work; her life seemed stifling even to Yuji. After some thought, she had asked her dad secretly when her mom wasn't home, "Have you ever been to a theme park?"

"Of course, when I was young. Good old days," her dad had replied, his eyes sparkling for a moment. Had he enjoyed it that much? So why didn't he just go again? It wasn't like theme parks had an age restriction. Yuji thought that she should help out her mom and dad. When they were both home and the television commercial came on again, she had said in a chirpy voice, "I wish I could go to a theme park. Most of the kids in my class have been to one."

That was how they'd ended up coming to New Seoul Park. She did say that she wanted to come, but not because she really wanted to; she had brought it up because she thought her parents wanted to come. She had no idea that her dad had come so grudgingly. His words hurt her feelings and annoyed her. She'd had a different picture in mind. She thought that her parents would be happier if they, like so many other families, spent time together going on childish but cute rides and eating sweets.

With her parents quarreling in front of her, Yuji turned away. She hated them for always fighting and for being oblivious to all the efforts their daughter was making. When she raised her head, she noticed a sign saying, 200 meters to the hamster wheel. The quarrel grew more and more heated. Yuji heaved a deep sigh that was too grave for a child. Then she followed the arrow to the path leading to the Hamster Wheel.

The Hamster Wheel was the second most famous ride in New Seoul Park, the first being the Drop Tower. The Hamster Wheel wasn't a scary ride in itself, but it had become famous as a "ride of terror" because of its violent spinning-as if it had a screw missing-and the rumors about accidents, groundless as they were. Getting on the wheel would be something to brag about to her classmates. Plus it didn't have a height restriction. Following the sparsely placed arrows, Yuji made her way deeper into the park.

The Hamster Wheel was in a remote corner of the park. Unlike the main square, which was packed with crowds, this part of the park was strangely empty. After walking for a good while, Yuji saw a colorful cone-shaped roof in the distance. Still no sign of people, though. Puzzled, Yuji went up to the ride.

The waiting area for the ride was locked up in chains. Above the chains hung a sign that said under repair.

"So annoying," Yuji said, as she hunkered down and leaned against the fence. Why had she come all the way here? She should have realized that there was a reason for no one being here. The thought of making her way back without getting anything out of her long walk was discouraging. But there was nothing else to be done. Yuji got back on her feet. The small backpack she was carrying felt awfully heavy. All she could do in the end, though, was shoot the innocent Hamster Wheel a fierce look before heading back toward the main square.

Sweat poured down her forehead and back. The heat was so intense that she felt like she would melt. She hadn't realized how hot this summer really was, as her school and after-school academy were always cold with air conditioning. The heat also made her quite irritable.

She hadn't been able to go on any of the rides she had looked forward to, and her parents were just busy...