1. Mongi
Minjeong and Byeokje lived near a small train station. Minjeong wrote children’s stories, and Byeokje drew pretty pictures to go with them. They had been married for seven years, but they did not have any children yet. Instead, they had five dolls. Their names were Coco, Mookie, Doozy, Snowy, and Patch.
Even after growing up, Minjeong and Byeokje had never forgotten the language of animals and plants. When the wind blew, they could understand the songs the trees were singing, and they knew what cats and dogs were saying too. To most people, every “meow” or “woof” sounded the same, but to the two of them, each one meant something different.
They also loved talking with the dolls. At first, Byeokje felt a little embarrassed that a grown man was playing with dolls, but Minjeong asked him what was so embarrassing about never losing the heart of a child.
Before long, Minjeong and Byeokje would have to leave quiet Jochiwon and move to Seoul. Minjeong had gotten a job at a publishing company there. During the day, she would edit other writers’ work, and at night, she planned to write her own children’s stories. Byeokje had not found a job yet, so he would draw illustrations for children’s books and take care of the house.
They stayed for several days at Minjeong’s younger sibling’s home in Mangwon-dong while looking for a place to live in Seoul. After walking around the neighborhood and looking at empty homes, they finally found one they liked.
It was the day they were returning to Jochiwon after signing the lease. Byeokje picked up their bags and was about to leave the room when a dirty doll crumpled in a corner whispered softly.
“Could... could I...?”
Byeokje jumped. He knew at once that the doll was talking to him. He picked up the small, dirty doll and went straight to Minjeong’s sibling.
“What’s this little guy’s name?”
“Name? He doesn’t have one.”
Minjeong cut in, surprised.
“What? You never even gave him a name? That settles it. We’re taking him with us.”
And so the small, dirty doll came home with Minjeong and Byeokje. He also got a fine new name: Mongi.
By the time they returned to Jochiwon, Minjeong and Byeokje were exhausted. Mongi, however, slept soundly inside the bag. The rattling bus and Mugunghwa train felt as soothing as hands rocking a cradle.
As soon as Mongi arrived home, he had a bath. They soaped him up and rinsed him several times with clean water, but the dirt simply would not come out. He had gone unwashed for so long that the grime had sunk in deep.
Minjeong apologized to Mongi in advance and told him he would have to go into the drum washing machine. Mongi misheard drum washing machine as dream washing machine. So he happily agreed. After all, a dream was something wonderful.
Mongi spun happily in the washing machine on the quick cycle for thirty minutes. When he came out, he was wonderfully clean, although both his eyes were spinning too. Still, he did not cry. All the old dirt had been washed off his body, and he felt wonderfully refreshed.
Minjeong and Byeokje did not have a dryer, so Mongi spent two days drying in the sun. After his nice clean bath and plenty of warm sunshine, Mongi felt as if he could fly.
“Ah! I’m happy.”
2. The Group Photo
Minjeong and Byeokje were a little worried that Mongi might feel shy in front of the doll friends he was meeting for the first time. Then Minjeong came up with a wonderful idea. They would all take a group photo together.
The doll friends brushed the dust from their bodies and changed into clean clothes. Coco wore a red vest over a checked shirt and a pair of jeans. She looked bold and confident, like a cowboy—or a cowgirl—in a Western.
Tall Mookie wore denim overalls with an enormous pocket on the chest and a baseball cap with a long brim. He was a little disappointed that the cap hid the yellow ribbons on his ears, but he refused to take off his favorite hat.
Doozy’s head was a little large for his body. His trousers had a small hole in the back so his long cat tail could fit comfortably through it. With his long whiskers and thick horn-rimmed glasses, he looked like a very intelligent cat doll.
Snowy, whose whole body was white as snow, wore a handsome bow tie. He was not very good at putting up with heat, so he wore shorts and a short-sleeved shirt.
Patch, the most dependable of the dolls, wore comfortable clothes and carried a little backpack. Inside were useful things like a pencil, a notebook, small scissors, rubber balls, a first-aid kit, a handkerchief, a wrapping cloth, a needle, and thread.
Once they were dressed, the doll friends looked over one another’s outfits.
“Mookie, you look as strong and sturdy as a mighty champion.”
At Coco’s words, Mookie blushed shyly. Snowy gave him a thumbs-up too.
“Doozy, you’re the smartest-looking cat doll in the whole world. You look like a teacher.”
Patch said.
Meanwhile, Byeokje moved the sofa to a sunny spot and got ready for the photo. Minjeong introduced Mongi to his new friends. Mongi was a little nervous, but he was excited too, and his heart thumped in his chest.
“That big bear over there is Mookie. The little bear is Snowy. The dog with the backpack is Patch. The cat with the glasses is Doozy. And the one in the red vest is Coco.”
“Hi. I’m Mongi.”
As soon as Mongi spoke, the doll friends came over.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Coco.”
After Coco greeted him, some of Mongi’s nervousness began to disappear.
“Welcome. I’m Mookie.”
Mongi was a little startled by Mookie, who was about twenty times bigger than he was.
“Mookie came here last autumn. Minjeong’s friends gave him to her as a birthday present.”
Snowy introduced him. Mookie immediately puffed up with pride.
“You probably don’t know this yet, Mongi, but I came from a department store.”
“Mookie, I told you not to say things like that. What’s so special about coming from a department store?”
Whenever Mookie mentioned his department-store origins, Coco felt hurt. Coco had been a wedding-anniversary present from Byeokje to Minjeong. She was an adorable little doll with a ribbon on her head, but she was also bold and could never keep quiet when she saw something wrong. Coco had one secret that the others did not know. There had once been a tag on her back that said MADE IN CHINA. Byeokje had removed it long ago, but for some reason Coco was still embarrassed by it. In fact, Patch and Doozy had the same kind of tags, but Coco did not know that.
“No, that’s not what I meant....”
Tiny Coco, who was only thirty centimeters tall, snapped at Mookie so sharply that tears welled up in his eyes and he could not think of anything to say. Coco pressed him again.
“Mookie, what did I tell you? I told you your body ignores the laws of perspective. Because of a fat bear like you, the rest of us don’t have enough room to relax. Do you understand? Do you?”
Mookie was an enormous bear doll, well over a meter tall. He was so huge that even when he stood far away, he looked as if he were right in front of you. Whenever Mookie talked nonsense, Coco teased him by saying he ignored the laws of perspective.
“That’s enough.”
The mild-mannered Patch stepped in.
“It isn’t Mookie’s fault that his hands are big, his feet are big, his eyes are big, his nose is big, his ears are big, and his mouth is big.”
“I like Mookie being big. I sleep really well when I lie on his belly.”
Doozy gently stroked the top of Mookie’s foot with his long tail. Mookie cheered up at once and flopped onto his back, showing his belly. Doozy and Snowy climbed up and sat on it. Mookie helped Mongi climb up too. Once Mongi was on Mookie’s belly, he felt as if he were sitting on a giant cushion. Doozy, Snowy, and Mongi bounced up and down on it. Now in a much better mood, Mookie set his friends down and apologized to Coco.
“Sorry. I won’t show off anymore.”
“All right. Then I won’t go on about perspective anymore either. Sorry.”
Patch stood with his arms folded, watching the two friends make up, while absentmindedly touching the MADE IN CHINA tag hidden under his arm. Byeokje had found Patch on the street and brought him home. When the company Byeokje had worked for shut down, someone had abandoned Patch there. Maybe that was why Patch hardly ever spoke first. Sometimes Coco would stick her hand under Patch’s arm and tickle him just to make him laugh. Patch would collapse, laughing until his belly hurt. Mookie and Doozy would beg her to do it to them too.
Doozy did not care at all about the MADE IN CHINA tag hidden under his tail. He had a much bigger problem. He thought his head was too big for his body and his eyes were too small. Doozy believed that double-eyelid surgery might make his eyes look a little bigger and prettier. When he heard they were taking a group photo today, he had been so worried that he could barely sleep all night.
“Is something bothering you?”
Coco asked gently.
“Maybe I shouldn’t be in the picture. My eyes are too small. I might ruin an important photo.”
Doozy said sadly.
Coco took his hand.
“No, Doozy. Not at all. You look best exactly as you are.”
“Really?”
The other doll friends nodded.
Doozy looked at their faces for a long moment. Then he pushed his thick horn-rimmed glasses back into place and climbed onto the sofa before anyone else.
In the warm sunlight by the window, Minjeong, Byeokje, and the doll friends sat together on the soft sofa and took their group photo. Byeokje printed it out and put it on the refrigerator door. In the picture, the doll friends were smiling brightly with Mongi in the middle. Coco sat proudly right in the center with her legs crossed. Her friends had told her several times not to cross her legs, but Coco apparently had no intention of breaking that habit yet.
3. Market Day
Minjeong and Byeokje were busy getting ready to move. Their treasured books and belongings had to reach the new house safely, and more than anything else, they could not lose any of their doll friends. Minjeong spoke to the head of the moving company.
“We’ll pack the doll friends playing over there on the sofa ourselves. They’re very precious to us, so please take special care not to lose them.”
“Of course. We’ll make sure every one of them gets there safely.”
The two of them slowly began packing. Minjeong put her favorite children’s books into sturdy boxes, and Byeokje carefully packed the things he used for drawing. After just one more night, they would leave the familiar town of Jochiwon and move to Seoul.
Minjeong and Byeokje decided to have a small party with the doll friends. It happened to be market day at Jochiwon Traditional Market, so they all went together. Brave Coco led the way. Snowy rode in Minjeong’s arms, and cheerful Mongi climbed onto Byeokje’s shoulders. Patch and Doozy followed while holding Mookie’s hands.
At a crosswalk, however, there was a commotion. A motorcycle sped across the crosswalk and even came up onto the sidewalk. People jumped out of the way in surprise. Minjeong nearly fell, but Byeokje quickly caught her hand.
“Hey!”
Byeokje shouted angrily.
Because of the motorcycle, an old man pulling a cart piled high with wastepaper had not managed to finish crossing before the light changed. Cars began honking. “Honk! Honk!” The old man looked exhausted. Mookie hurried over and pushed the cart from behind. Byeokje signaled to the cars to wait. The drivers only honked louder.
“Honk! Honk! Hooooonk!”
Mongi got angry and snapped his thumb and middle finger.
“Snap!”
Suddenly, the crosswalk became silent. The drivers looked puzzled and pressed their horns again. No sound came out into the street. Instead, inside each car, an enormous “Honk! Honk! Hooooonk!” blasted through the cabin. Startled, the drivers stopped honking. The old man made it safely across the road and thanked Mookie and the others.
“I don’t know why people get so impatient the moment they get behind a steering wheel.”
Coco grumbled.
“Let’s get to the market.”
Patch urged everyone on.
At the market, Minjeong and Byeokje bought large plastic bags for packing the dolls during the move, along with a few other things they needed. Then they went into a restaurant for lunch.
“Ah! That feels better.”
Minjeong said, stretching out her bad leg.
Four men were sitting at the next table.
“Ma’am! Four bowls of gukbap and two bottles of soju!”
A man wearing a cap called out loudly.
“Why two bottles? Just get one.”
Another man said.
“One bottle won’t even touch the sides.”
“What about driving?”
“We’ll rest a while first. I don’t get drunk from this much.”
When the gukbap and soju arrived, the men quickly emptied the bottle.
“Ma’am! More soju!”
Coco watched them until she could no longer keep quiet.
“Sir, that car outside is yours, isn’t it?” The man in the cap glared at Coco.
“Yeah. Why?”
Coco looked from the empty soju bottle on the table to the car outside.
“Then you’ll have to leave the car here.”
“Mind your own business, you little thing.”
Coco stuck out her lower lip.
The woman who owned the restaurant refused to bring them any more alcohol.
A little later, the men went outside. And then they really did open the car doors and climb in. Minjeong and Byeokje watched anxiously. Coco clenched both fists in anger. Then Mongi snapped his thumb and middle finger.
“Snap!”
The engine died. The man in the cap tried starting it again.
“Vrooom. Cough-cough.”
The car stayed where it was.
“What’s wrong with this thing?”
The men got out and began grumbling.
Mongi snapped his fingers again.
“Snap!”
This time, the air began escaping from all four tires.
“Hssssssss.”
The men stared from one tire to another, completely bewildered.
Coco looked at Mongi. Mongi whistled as if he knew nothing at all. Minjeong, Byeokje, and the doll friends headed home with much lighter steps.
4. Kidnapped
As soon as she woke up the next morning, Minjeong put each doll friend into a large plastic bag so they would not get dirty during the move. Of course, she asked their permission first.
Byeokje tied the openings of all six bags tightly with string, and Minjeong punched a few small breathing holes into them.
The wind had been strong since morning, but the move went smoothly. Furniture and boxes disappeared from the apartment one by one. At last, it was the dolls’ turn. They had never ridden on an exterior moving lift before, and their frightened faces went stiff. Minjeong and Byeokje felt sorry for them, so instead of putting them on the lift, they carried the dolls down to the first floor themselves.
“These dolls are very precious to us. Please make sure you take good care of them.”
Minjeong asked one of the movers.
“Don’t worry. You should get going to Seoul.”
Minjeong and Byeokje had to reach the new home before the moving truck, so they left the doll friends behind and headed for Jochiwon Station. The movers stopped for a short break and drank beverages behind the truck.
“How long does it take to get to Seoul? I’m going crazy in here.”
Huge Mookie grumbled from inside his plastic bag.
“About two hours if there’s no traffic. But it’s Saturday, so it might take longer.”
Doozy said.
“That long?”
Coco wriggled impatiently.
Then—
“Whoa!”
Snowy cried out.
A child on a kick scooter shot past the doll friends.
“That kid is looking at a smartphone while riding.”
Patch said worriedly.
Then came the screech of brakes. “Screeeech!”
A middle-school student on a bicycle came shooting out from behind the walkway and collided head-on with the child’s kick scooter. Both of them fell to the ground. The middle-school student got up first, brushed off his trousers, and shouted at the child, who was sitting on the ground crying.
“Hey! Watch where you’re going!”
The child said nothing and just kept crying. The middle-school student rode away irritably. Several adults on the path heard the child crying, but no one went over to help. Patch heard the thoughts of one man who was watching.
Doesn’t look badly hurt. If I get involved, it might just turn into a nuisance.
The child kept crying.
Patch could not stand it anymore. He took the small scissors from his backpack, cut open the plastic bag, and went over to the child.
“Let me see. You don’t look badly hurt. Can you stand up?”
The child wiped away his tears and nodded. Patch took his hand and helped him to his feet.
“Where do you live?”
“Building 104, three hundred....”
The child stopped in the middle of his answer. A man in a cap was running toward them from a distance. The child’s face stiffened, and he began crying again. The man immediately shouted at him.
“Stop crying right now!”
Then he noticed Patch.
“Did this thing hit you?”
The child was so startled that he stopped crying. Without even asking what had happened, the man rapped Patch on the head.
“I didn’t make him cry. He crashed into a bicycle on his kick scooter.”
Patch tried to explain, but the man ignored him and hit him on the head again.
“Mookie, do you recognize that man?”
Coco shouted from inside her plastic bag.
“He’s the man in the cap from the restaurant yesterday! The one who drank and then tried to drive!”
“This is bad. We have to save Patch.”
Doozy frantically pulled at his bag. But the man in the cap had not noticed the other doll friends. He strode away, taking the child and Patch with him.
“Sir! I have a family! You’re kidnapping me!”
“What family could an abandoned doll have? Don’t make me laugh.”
The man hit Patch on the head again. Patch tried to call to his friends for help, but no sound came out. The blow had been too hard. He lost consciousness.
“Patch!”
The doll friends struggled to tear open their plastic bags. But the bags were too tough for their soft furry hands to rip.
Mongi hurriedly snapped his fingers.
“Snap!”
Nothing happened. The man kept walking. Mongi bit his lip. Just as he feared, his power did not work on people.
“Mookie, do something! We’re going to lose Patch!”
Doozy shouted.
“Mookie, try making yourself bigger. Maybe the bag will tear if you grow.”
Snowy said.
Mookie took a deep breath. His body grew larger and larger. But the tough plastic only stretched a little. It did not tear. Then they heard one of the movers.
“Break’s over. Let’s finish loading. We need to leave soon.”
Footsteps came closer.
“We have to hide. Everyone roll toward the flower bed.”
Coco lay on her side and rolled as hard as she could. The plastic bag began rolling along the ground. Mongi, Doozy, and Snowy followed her. Mookie’s bag got caught in a rose bush.
“Ow!”
A thorn pierced the plastic and poked Mookie. Still, he did not move. Luckily, no one was left behind, and they all managed to hide in a corner of the flower bed. The movers were so busy loading the remaining boxes that they did not even notice the dolls were gone. Mookie’s plastic bag had been torn in several places by the rose thorns. He grabbed the torn part with both hands and pulled.
Riiip! At last, the bag tore open. Mookie climbed out. Coco, Mongi, Doozy, and Snowy threw themselves into the rose bushes too. The thorns hurt, but rescuing Patch mattered more.
“We’re running out of time.”
Snowy said.
“Let’s find Patch. That kid said Building 104, right?”
Doozy pointed toward Building 104.
“Right. He said three hundred something, so it must be on the third floor.”
Coco said.
Mookie jumped to his feet.
“Then let’s storm the place right now!”
“No.”
Coco stopped him.
“If we just charge in and get caught too, what then? We need a plan.”
“What kind of plan?”
Doozy asked.
Just then, the moving truck’s engine started. The doll friends all turned around. The truck slowly drove out of the apartment complex. They stood there in stunned silence, watching it disappear.
5. The Rescue Plan
Where am I?
Patch shook his head from side to side. The last thing he remembered was being hit on the head by the man in the cap and losing consciousness. He could also vaguely remember his friends struggling to escape their plastic bags.
Just you wait, you bad man.
A thin line of light came in under the door, but the room was dark and cold. Patch felt along the wall, looking for the light switch. His head still throbbed where he had been hit. Just as he finally found the switch and reached for it, the door quietly opened. It was the child who had fallen off the kick scooter. Patch was not sure whether the boy was on the man’s side, so he froze. The boy put a finger to his lips.
“Shh.”
Then he slipped quietly into the room and turned on the light.
“Thanks for comforting me earlier.”
Patch looked at the scrape on the child’s knee. Dried blood covered the wound. He took the first-aid kit from his backpack, cleaned the scrape with antiseptic, applied ointment, and put on a large bandage. The child winced at the sting but did not cry.
“Put on some more ointment tonight and use a fresh bandage. You can do that, right?”
Patch handed him the ointment and another bandage. The child nodded. After a long silence, he finally spoke.
“That man isn’t my dad.”
“The man in the cap isn’t your dad?”
“He is my dad... but I wish he wasn’t.”
Patch looked at the child for a moment.
“Where’s your mom?”
“My mom is inside my smartphone.”
Tears welled in the child’s eyes. Patch said nothing and waited.
“She left home a few months ago. Dad used to yell at her whenever he drank. Now he doesn’t even work. He just drinks all the time. And he keeps getting angry at me.”
The child lowered his head.
“He says he doesn’t like me because I look too much like Mom.”
A tear fell.
“Mom might come and get me today. That’s why I’ve been waiting for her since this morning.”
Patch took a handkerchief from his backpack and wiped the child’s tears. A little later, the child stood up.
“Soon Dad will eat ramen and drink. When he falls asleep, I’ll get you out of here.”
The child quietly opened the door and left.
Meanwhile, in front of Building 104, the doll friends sat on a bench working out a plan to rescue Patch.
“Let’s just charge in.”
Mookie was the first to speak.
“When the door opens, I’ll punch the man. While I hold him down, you go find Patch.”
“That won’t work.”
Snowy said.
“What if he sticks his hand under your arm and tickles you?”
“I can handle a little tickling.”
Mookie pounded his chest with his fist. Doozy and Mongi looked at him doubtfully. Coco climbed onto the bench and quickly stuck her hand under Mookie’s arm.
“Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha! Stop! Stop!”
Mookie laughed so hard that he could barely breathe.
“Yeah. That won’t work.”
Snowy shook his head.
“How about this?”
Doozy said.
“Mongi can snap his fingers and make the man sing and dance nonstop. While he’s doing that, we find Patch and get him out.”
“I wish I could, but I can’t make people move or stop moving.”
Mongi answered sadly.
Coco clapped her hands.
“What if Mookie disguises himself as a deliveryman?”
“A deliveryman?”
Snowy asked.
Mookie tilted his head.
“Which delivery company am I joining?”
“You’re not getting a job! You’re just dressing up like one!”
Coco said in frustration.
“You ring the bell as if you’re delivering a package. When the man opens the door, you keep him talking.”
“Talking about what?”
“You’ll have to figure that out yourself. Ask him to sign something.”
“And then?”
Doozy joined in.
“While Mookie keeps him busy, I’ll sneak inside because I’m small. Then I’ll find Patch.”
Coco said confidently.
Doozy’s expression darkened a little.
“What about pretending to be a gas inspector?”
“No. I like being a deliveryman better.”
Mookie said.
“What if the man talks through the intercom and tells you to leave the package at the door?”
At Doozy’s question, Mookie fell silent.
“You’re right.”
Coco nodded.
“A gas inspector is better. Mookie goes inside and pretends to check the gas. I’ll hide in his chest pocket, slip out, and find Patch.”
“Great!”
Mookie clapped his hands.
Mongi and Snowy nodded too.
“But what was the apartment number?”
Mongi asked.
Coco’s face froze.
“Good question....”
“Either 307 or 308.”
Snowy said.
“How do you know?”
Doozy asked.
Snowy silently pointed toward the parking lot. The car belonging to the man in the cap was parked there crookedly.
“Perfect.”
Coco clenched her fist.
“Mookie, pull your baseball cap down low. Snowy and I will hide in your chest pocket. Mongi goes in your right pocket. If we get into trouble, Mongi snaps his fingers.”
Coco happily took command of the operation.
“What about me?”
Doozy asked.
“You stay here. If our plan fails, you’ll have to come up with Plan B.”
Doozy looked a little disappointed, but he nodded bravely. The truth was, Doozy already knew why. His head was simply too big to fit into any of Mookie’s pockets.
6. A Close Call
Mookie pulled his baseball cap low over his face, took a deep breath, and pressed the bell for apartment 308. The kick scooter the child had been riding earlier was parked outside 308. There was no sound from inside. Mookie was about to press the bell again when a child’s voice came through the intercom.
“Who is it?”
Mookie made his voice as deep as he could.
“Gas inspection.”
A moment later, they heard the child call from inside.
“Dad! The gas inspector’s here!”
The door opened. While Mookie slowly took off his shoes, Coco and Snowy quickly slipped out of his chest pocket. Mongi stayed hidden in the right pocket in case something went wrong.
The living room was very messy. The man in the cap was lying on the sofa watching television.
“Excuse me.”
Mookie said and walked toward the kitchen. The man did not even look at him.
“Who does gas inspections on a Saturday? Can’t a guy get any rest?”
The television was so loud that Mookie did not hear him. While Mookie pretended to inspect the gas, Coco spotted something on the floor.
“Look.”
Coco whispered.
“It’s some of Patch’s fur.”
Snowy’s eyes widened.
“There are three rooms. Let’s skip the main bedroom and check the smaller rooms first.”
The two friends carefully opened the room nearest the front door. A child was playing a computer game inside. Coco quickly closed the door. Now they had to cross the living room to reach the small room beside the kitchen.
Just then, the man began snoring on the sofa. “Grrrrrrr-snore!”
Coco winked at Snowy. The two raised their heels and tiptoed across the living room. From the kitchen, Mookie watched them nervously. Mongi held his breath inside Mookie’s pocket.
Just as Coco put her hand on the doorknob, the door slowly opened. Snowy almost screamed. Coco quickly covered his mouth. Patch and the child with the scraped knee were standing there, holding hands.
“Shh!”
Patch whispered.
“He’s on our side.”
The child said.
“Dad drank and fell asleep. You have to get out now.”
Then Mongi burst out of Mookie’s pocket.
“Patch!”
Mongi threw his arms around him.
“There’s no time for that.”
Coco grabbed Mongi’s hand.
“Say hello later. Let’s get out of here.”
They all crept toward the front door.
Just then, the door to the room beside the entrance flew open.
“Dad! The gas was inspected the day before yesterday!”
The child playing the computer game shouted.
“What?”
The man on the sofa sprang to his feet. The doll friends froze. The man strode toward the kitchen.
“Who are you?”
Then he recognized Coco.
“Wait a minute. You’re those little pests from the gukbap restaurant!”
Mongi quickly raised his hand. The man glared at him.
“You try any more tricks with that finger and you’ll regret it!”
Mongi flinched and slowly lowered his hand. Coco stepped forward.
“Taking our friend was kidnapping.”
“Shut up! You broke into someone else’s home.”
“You took Patch first!”
“Don’t get smart with me!”
The man herded the doll friends into the small room. Mookie considered grabbing him, but then suddenly remembered his ticklish armpits. In the end, he did nothing and went into the room with the others.
The man glared at the older boy.
“You’re in on this too?”
The child lowered his head without answering.
“Go to your room!”
The man locked the door so the dolls could not get out, then went back to the sofa and started watching television again.
A little later, the doorbell rang.
“Ding-dong.”
The man ignored it.
“Ding-dong.”
It rang again.
“Who is it? Give me a break!”
He jumped up and opened the front door.
At that very moment—
“Yaaaaaah!”
Doozy, curled into a ball like a soccer ball, flew through the doorway.
“THUD!”
Doozy’s head slammed straight into the man’s stomach. The man toppled backward. Doozy kept rolling right into the living room.
“Coco! Mookie! Patch! Snowy! Mongi!”
“Over here!”
His friends shouted from the small room. The door rattled as they shook it. Doozy stopped in front of it.
“Everybody, get away from the door!”
The others scrambled backward. Doozy backed all the way down the hall. Then he ran as hard as he could.
Roll. Roll. Roll.
He curled himself into a ball again.
“BANG!”
The locked door flew open.
“Doozy!”
His friends surrounded him. The man began to get up, shaking his head. Then his eyes met Doozy’s. Doozy silently lowered his head, looking as if he might charge again at any second. The man hurried into the main bedroom and locked the door behind him.
The doll friends left the apartment. As they went down the stairs from the third floor, they heard footsteps behind them. It was the older boy—the one who had helped Patch.
“Wait!”
The boy ran after them.
His younger brother followed.
“Hyung! Take me too.”
The older boy helped his little brother put on his shoes. The two children followed the doll friends down to the first floor.
“Patch, wait. Take us with you.”
The dolls looked at one another. They could not take the children with them. But they could not simply leave them there either.
Then both children shouted at once.
“Mom!”
The dolls turned around. A woman was running toward them, out of breath. The children raced to her like lightning. Their mother dropped to her knees and wrapped both boys in her arms. Still in his mother’s arms, the older boy waved at Patch as Patch walked away. Patch waved back.
When they had gone a little farther, Mongi turned to Doozy.
“Doozy, you really are the king of headbutts.”
Doozy took his horn-rimmed glasses from his pocket, put them back on, and blushed.
“Oh, it was nothing.”
Patch spoke.
“We have to get to Seoul now. Minjeong and Byeokje must be worried sick.”
Mookie looked concerned.
“But do we have enough money for train tickets?”
Patch thought for a moment and searched his backpack.
“Ah!”
A ten-thousand-won note slipped out from between the pages of his notebook.
“Byeokje put this in here for emergencies.”
At that moment, a strong gust of wind blew.
Flutter.
The banknote slipped from Patch’s hand.
“The money!”
Mookie stretched out his huge hand. He was a moment too late. The note rose high into the air on the wind. The doll friends stamped their feet helplessly as they watched it float away.
7. The Mugunghwa Train
When Minjeong and Byeokje realized the doll friends were missing, they were shocked. The moving company offered to pay for the dolls, but Minjeong and Byeokje did not need money. They needed their friends.
Byeokje immediately called the management office at their old apartment in Jochiwon. A little later, the office called back. The plastic bags used to pack the dolls had been found scattered around the apartment complex. The strong wind that had been blowing since morning must have carried them everywhere.
“I can’t just sit here. I’m going back to Jochiwon now.”
Byeokje said.
Minjeong gathered his coat and wallet for him. She also made sure he took the group photo of the doll friends.
“Call me right away if anything happens.”
“I will.”
Byeokje hurried out.
Meanwhile, the sun was setting over Jochiwon Station. The doll friends stood dejectedly at one side of the station plaza. Mookie said nothing. Coco climbed onto his back and tickled him under the arms. Normally, Mookie would have fallen over laughing with his belly in the air. This time, all he managed was a faint smile.
“It’s not the end of the world.”
Mongi jumped to his feet.
“Let’s earn some money.”
“How?”
“We put on a show!”
Mongi ran to the middle of the plaza.
He planted one hand on the ground, sprang into the air, and did one tumble after another.
“Good idea.”
Patch took the rubber balls from his backpack.
Three balls flew into the air. Patch caught them again and again without dropping a single one. Mookie slowly got up too. There was no music, but he began moving his shoulders and dancing. Snowy danced beside him. Coco stood in front, with Mookie and Snowy as her backup dancers, and sang at the top of her voice. People began gathering one by one.
Doozy stood a little apart, watching his friends.
I don’t have anything to show off except headbutting.
Then he noticed someone in the crowd taking out a banknote. Doozy’s eyes lit up. He snatched Mookie’s baseball cap and ran in front of the audience.
“Right here!”
Before long, a fair amount of coins and bills had piled up inside the cap. After the performance, the doll friends moved to one side and counted the money.
Coco beamed.
“This is enough to buy train tickets for all six of us!”
“Really?”
Mookie’s face brightened.
The doll friends were heading toward the ticket counter when a group of students in school uniforms blocked their way.
“Hey. You. Hold it.”
The doll friends stopped.
“If you performed here, you have to pay for the spot.”
One of the boys said.
A girl with plastic hair rollers in her bangs peered into Mookie’s baseball cap.
“You made quite a bit.”
She reached into the cap.
Coco quickly snatched it away.
“We earned this to buy train tickets.”
“What?”
A large boy swung his fist at Coco.
At that instant, Mookie’s huge hand caught the incoming punch. Mookie took a deep breath. His body swelled to twice, three times, four times its usual size.
The boy’s face turned white. When Mookie took one step toward them, the students screamed and ran away. Snowy gently stroked Mookie’s leg. Mookie shrank back to his normal size.
Mongi stared in amazement.
“All our friends really do have amazing talents.”
Then he looked at Coco.
“But Coco, what special talent do you have?”
“Me?”
Coco shrugged.
“You’ve seen it plenty of times.”
“Seen what?”
“I’m very good at saying exactly what needs to be said.”
Mongi stared blankly at Coco for a second, then burst out laughing.
The others began laughing too.
Meanwhile, Byeokje was on his way to Yeongdeungpo Station so he could travel from Seoul to Jochiwon. Traffic was bad, and he grew more impatient by the minute. The doll friends bought six tickets from Jochiwon to Yeongdeungpo. When the train arrived, they boarded in pairs. Mookie sat with Coco, Mongi with Patch, and Snowy with Doozy.
The Mugunghwa train slowly began to move. Around the time they passed Pyeongtaek Station, a baby somewhere in the carriage began to cry. The baby’s mother offered a bottle and rocked the child in her arms, but the crying would not stop. Some passengers began getting irritated.
Ugh. So noisy.
I’m tired. Why does that baby keep crying?
Patch heard their thoughts, and his expression darkened.
Then someone said loudly,
“Can’t you make that baby stop crying?”
The mother’s face turned red.
Snowy quietly stood up. He walked over to the crying baby and gently took the baby’s little hand. The crying gradually grew softer. Soon the baby closed its eyes and fell asleep. The mother smiled quietly at Snowy. Snowy smiled back without making a sound so the baby would not wake. The passenger who had shouted earlier cleared his throat and looked out the window.
The train continued on. At last, Byeokje reached Yeongdeungpo Station. The sun had gone down, and the moon was rising. On the platform, Byeokje took out the photo he had taken with the doll friends.
“Please be safe.”
At that very moment, the Mugunghwa train carrying the doll friends was pulling into Yeongdeungpo Station. When the train stopped, the six friends held hands and carefully got off. The platform was crowded. They gathered in a corner and waited for the other passengers to leave.
“Where do we go now?”
Mookie asked.
Coco looked at Patch.
“The address of the new house is in the notebook, right?”
Patch looked uncomfortable.
“No.”
“What?”
“I checked on the train. The new address isn’t there. There’s no phone number either.”
All the friends sighed at once. Coco quickly raised her head.
“It’s okay. We made it to Seoul. We can call one of Byeokje’s friends in the notebook. One of them might know the new address.”
“No need.”
Mongi said.
“Why?”
Mongi quietly pointed to the platform across the tracks. Everyone turned.
Byeokje was standing there.
“Byeokje!”
The doll friends shouted and waved both hands.
At that exact moment, a large train pulled into the station. Byeokje disappeared behind it.
“No!”
Mongi snapped his fingers.
“Snap!”
Nothing happened. The enormous train kept moving. Doozy started toward the tracks, but Patch and Mongi grabbed both his arms.
“No! It’s dangerous!”
The doll friends jumped up and down, waving their arms and shouting for Byeokje. But the train blocked everything from view. A little later, it began moving away. Exhausted, the doll friends sank to the ground.
Then—
“Coco!”
The doll friends looked up.
“Mookie! Patch! Doozy! Snowy! Mongi!”
Byeokje was running toward them along the platform.
“Byeokje!”
The dolls ran too. All six threw themselves at him at once. Byeokje hugged each one tightly.
“You’re all safe.”
The doll friends could not say anything. Their eyes filled with tears. Byeokje returned home to Mangwon-dong with them. He called Minjeong first to tell her the good news. In the taxi, the doll friends played rock-paper-scissors to decide who would speak to Minjeong first. Usually they were good at letting one another go ahead. This time, nobody wanted to give in.
Every one of them wanted to hear Minjeong’s voice first.
8. One Year Later
A whole year had passed since the doll friends’ exciting adventure. Not long after moving to Mangwon-dong, Byeokje found a job at a publishing company. There, he drew beautiful pictures for other writers’ stories. Minjeong also worked at a publishing company, editing other writers’ work. The two of them hoped that someday they would make a children’s book together.
Today was the day Minjeong was coming home from the hospital. Since morning, all the doll friends had bathed until they were spotless and sat in the sunshine until every strand of fur was completely dry. They did not want the new babies to sneeze.
Not long after moving to Mangwon-dong, Minjeong had dreamed a taemong, a special dream that foretells a birth. In one hand, she held a huge sun. In the other, she held a bright moon. Ten months later, two babies were born.
Minjeong entered the house holding one baby, and Byeokje carried the other. The doll friends held their breath and stared at them.
Coco stepped forward first.
“Hi. I’m Coco.”
Mookie bent his huge body slightly.
“I’m Mookie.”
Patch, Doozy, Snowy, and Mongi introduced themselves one by one.
Smiles spread across the babies’ faces.
“They smiled at me!”
Coco said.
“No, they smiled at me.”
Mookie quickly cut in.
“It was me.”
Mongi was not about to stay quiet either.
No one could tell who the babies had actually been smiling at.
Byeokje and Mookie moved the sofa to a sunny spot. For the group photo, the doll friends changed into their finest clothes. Just for today, nobody did somersaults and nobody tickled anyone else. They did not want loose bits of fur to make the babies sneeze. Each of the doll friends had prepared a gift from the heart for the babies.
Coco gave them a brave and cheerful heart. Mookie gave them strong and healthy bodies. Patch gave them kindness and consideration. Doozy gave them the courage not to give in to injustice. Snowy gave them a gentle and peaceful heart. Mongi gave them trust and friendship.
Minjeong and Byeokje sat in the middle of the sofa holding the babies. The doll friends found their places too. Coco naturally claimed the center. Mookie was so large that he sat in the back. Doozy adjusted his horn-rimmed glasses. Patch put down his backpack. Snowy straightened his bow tie. Mongi squeezed in close to the babies.
Byeokje looked toward the camera.
“Okay, everyone. Smile.”
“Click.”
The picture was taken. Byeokje took another. And then another.
When the babies grew a little older, the day would come when they could tumble with the doll friends, tickle one another, and run all around the house. For now, everyone simply sat side by side on the sofa.
On the refrigerator door was the photo from one year earlier. It was the picture they had taken on the day Mongi first became part of the family. Beside it was the new photograph.