The Rattle Drum
It was something he had bought at the market days ago and never had a chance to bring out — too harried on the day of purchase, and no spare moment since.
A rattle drum.
Sowol held it out in front of Riri and gave the handle a gentle twist.
Tok. Tok.
At the unfamiliar sound, Riri's crying stopped mid-sob.
Danwoo, too, cut off his sniffling and lifted his head.
Tok-tok. Tok.
Every time the little drum rattled, both children's eyes chased the tip of Sowol's fingers.
"Do you like it?"
"Ah! Oo-ah!"
Beside herself with delight, Riri kicked her arms and legs and babbled away.
Watching her, Danwoo mumbled under his breath.
"A baby……."
"That's right. A baby. Want to come take a look?"
At Sowol's gentle invitation, a look of indecision crossed Danwoo's face. After a long moment of hesitation, the boy swallowed hard and began edging toward Sowol, little by little.
When Sowol moved, Danwoo flinched. Sneaking glances at Riri, creeping closer — then catching Sowol's eye and flinching again.
It was plainly obvious that the boy was wary of him. Sowol swallowed an awkward laugh.
"Well, young man. You're scared of me, but you want to see the baby, is that it?"
Instead of answering, Danwoo stretched his neck out long and peered up at Sowol. Curiosity sparkled in both his eyes.
He really did want to see Riri, apparently.
Sowol bent down to meet the boy at eye level, then adjusted his hold so that Riri could see Danwoo clearly. Danwoo's face was reflected in her pitch-black eyes.
"Now, this here is Riri."
"Riri?"
The moment Danwoo repeated the name, Riri reached out her hands toward him.
"Ah!"
"She's looking at me!"
"Yes, it seems Riri likes you, Danwoo."
At Sowol's cheerful endorsement, Danwoo's face brightened. Sowol chuckled and held the rattle drum out to him.
"Go on, give it a shake."
But barely had the boy's hand darted out when his eyes met Sowol's again — and fresh tears welled up.
"I don't eat children, young man. Take it."
Sowol extended the handle's end, and Danwoo carefully accepted the drum. He turned it this way and that in his hands, then gave it a shake, copying what Sowol had done moments before.
Tok. Tok-tok.
At the sound, Riri burst into peals of laughter.
"Riri laughed!"
Thrilled, Danwoo shook the drum even harder.
Tok-tok. Tok. Tok.
The drumming went on for a long while after that. Sowol had no choice but to spend the afternoon listening to it, unable to move an inch. It was a mercy there were no guests.
Wang Yeom returned about two hours later, both hands laden with bundles from the market.
"Aigoo, you've had a hard time watching the little one. Did Danwoo give you any trouble?"
"Trouble? He played quite nicely, actually."
As Sowol waved it off, Wang Yeom smiled and pulled a few bamboo shoots from her bundle.
"I brought some bamboo shoots. Give them a taste."
"Thank you. I'll enjoy them."
"Thank me indeed — I'm the one who should be thanking you. Danwoo! Time to go home!"
Wang Yeom held out her hand, but Danwoo didn't budge from his spot.
"Is Riri coming too?"
"Riri's home is here. Only you have to go."
The boy pressed himself up against the cradle and shook his head hard.
"Wanna stay with Riri."
"Riri? So you've finally given the baby a name?"
Wang Yeom's eyes went round as saucers as she looked at Sowol, who answered with studied casualness.
"……I did."
"Aigoo, I was wondering when you'd get around to naming the child — and you've finally done it!"
Delighted as if it were her own doing, Wang Yeom approached the cradle.
"Riri. You have a name now too. Do you like it?"
"Ah-oo!"
As if in answer, Riri babbled at just the right moment, and Wang Yeom burst out laughing.
"Haha, does she know that's her name?"
"Not a chance. I only just made it up."
"Babies learn their names quick as anything. The ri from pear tree, was it? Then it's Yeonri?"
"……"
Sowol cleared his throat for no reason and looked away.
Yeonri. It wasn't a bad name at all, actually.
Wang Yeom stroked Riri's cheek in the cradle, then held her hand out to Danwoo.
"Danwoo. Time to go home now."
"……"
"Jang Danwoo. I said let's go."
"……!"
Instead of answering, Danwoo gripped the cradle's rail with all his might. Every tendon in his tiny hands stood taut.
Wang Yeom's face darkened. Her patience was clearly running thin.
Watching the standoff nervously, Sowol hurried to smooth things over.
"Haha, Danwoo. Go home today, and come back tomorrow."
Danwoo deliberated for a moment — then shook his head hard and threw his arms around the cradle.
Wang Yeom's eyebrows shot up fiercely.
"Why, you little—"
SMACK!
"WAAAAAH!"
When Wang Yeom landed a slap on Danwoo's backside, the boy let go of the rail and burst into tears. She scooped the crying child up in one motion and gave Sowol an embarrassed smile.
"Sorry about that. He's a stubborn one."
"They all are, at that age. It's fine."
"Huwaaaah!"
Just then, wailing erupted from the cradle too. Riri had apparently been startled by the thunderous sound of Danwoo's crying.
But at that sound, Danwoo's own tears stopped short.
"……Riri cwyin'?"
His face a mess of tears and snot, the boy turned to look at the cradle.
"Hwaah! Huaaaah!"
Riri's crying showed no sign of stopping. Sniffling, Danwoo reached out his hand toward the cradle.
"*Hic*……. Riri, don't cwy……."
Wang Yeom, for her part, tucked the sniffling Danwoo under her arm at her side regardless. Sowol bit back a laugh and quickly gathered Riri into his own embrace, whereupon she fell quiet, as if she'd never been crying at all.
Wang Yeom chuckled softly.
"So Riri only wants her father, does she?"
"The moment I step out of sight, she cries the whole inn down. It's agony."
"At that age, they latch onto whoever's most familiar and never let go."
"Is that so?"
"For Riri, I suppose that's you."
While Sowol blinked, caught off guard by the words, Wang Yeom gathered Danwoo in one hand and her bulging bundle in the other.
"Anyway, I'll be off now."
"Take care on the way."
"Waaah! Wanna see Riri!"
"You little rascal. Can't you sit still? You'll get it again."
The sound of Wang Yeom laying down the law faded slowly into the distance.
Whoever's most familiar.
Sowol stared blankly after the two of them for a while before belatedly closing the door.
From then on, Danwoo came by the inn nearly every single day.
At first he stood hovering at the threshold, clutching Wang Yeom's hand, for the longest time — but from the second day onward, the moment he stepped into the inn he would dart straight to the cradle.
"Riri! I—!"
CRASH.
His foot caught on the doorsill, and Danwoo went down in a spectacular heap. Wang Yeom hurried to pick him up, but his knee had scraped the floor and blood was already spreading through his trousers.
"Are you all right? Ooh, your knee's all scraped. Baekya, go fetch the salve."
Sowol rolled up the boy's trouser leg and clicked his tongue, sending Baekya on the errand. As beads of blood trickled down below his knee and tears welled up in Danwoo's eyes —
"Hwaeeeeeh……!"
— crying erupted from the cradle first.
At once, Danwoo fought back his own tears and scrubbed at his eyes with his sleeve.
"Waaah, *hic*……. Riri, don't cwy……. I not huwt……."
Rich words from a boy with tears streaming down his face.
"Good heavens. So even little boys hate to look weak, do they?"
Wang Yeom looked down at her son, utterly speechless. Just then, Baekya returned with the salve in hand.
"Big Brother. Salve."
"You soothe Riri first. I'll dress the wound myself."
"All right."
Sowol nodded, passed the salve to Wang Yeom, and lifted Riri into his arms. Only once she was against his chest did her crying cease. He patted her back a few more times, then laid her back down in the cradle.
Only then did Danwoo sniffle and hold out his knee to his mother.
"Ummah. I got a boo-boo."
"A moment ago it was 'I'm not hurt'?"
"……"
As Danwoo stuck out his lip, Wang Yeom suppressed a laugh and dressed the wound.
"There. All better now, right?"
"Yeah."
Danwoo nodded — and no sooner was the salve applied than he planted himself in front of the cradle. But not even an hour and a half had passed before his head started drooping, nod, nod, nod.
Wang Yeom clicked her tongue and scooped up the drowsy boy onto her back.
"He ought to be home in his bed. Sorry for the racket, ahjussi."
"Not at all. Take care on the way."
Once mother and son had gone, the inn settled into quiet.
That evening, Sohye came to visit.
She opened the front door and stepped inside — and stopped dead, before she'd even managed a greeting.
Her blue-black eyes had landed on Riri, nestled in Sowol's arms. Sohye's gaze traveled back and forth between the two of them, and slowly, she pressed a hand to her forehead.
"……Big Brother. You told me you'd give her away."