Her Voice / han sanghyuk (#14)

Episode 59

Jooeun

I trembled in fear as I stood in front of the counter, my snacks in my hand and I don't have any money to pay for it and the cashier is getting more impatient by the second, I can tell that he is not happy with me not wanting to pay for it. And it is not that I don't want to pay for the snacks, I didn't bring out any money at all.

I should've made sure that I had some money in my pocket before I left the hotel, I was so confident walking out of the hotel without any money on me. It is because I was so used to having Seungmin on my side and he is always the one who takes care of my finances and I don't have to worry that I don't have money to pay for things, Seungmin is always the one who will make sure of that but the thing is that he is not next to me right now.

He is sleeping in his hotel room and I had wanted to wake him up but it is a small thing to bother him and I want him to have a good rest since we were out the entire day and he was the one who carried our stuff on his back, he didn't complain about pain but I know that it was heavy for him. I have never expected that I would be so useless without my butler by my side, I didn't realize how important Seungmin is to me until this moment.

The cashier crossed his arms at me. "Are you going to pay or not? Don't waste my time waiting for you to stare at me and not do anything at all." I could understand a bit of mandarin and I could somehow figure out what he is saying but the thing is that I am mute and he wouldn't be able to understand sign language, it is a complete disadvantage to me.

But I should still try, he could have learned it for fun. 'I am a deaf-mute and I don't have money on me, would you mind if I would take the snacks and I would pay you back later?'

"What are you doing? Flapping your arms around, do you think that I am some kind of a joke? Pay up right now or you are not leaving." He doesn't understand as I have expected, not everyone is willing to learn sign language if they don't have someone who is deaf or mute.

'Please, I beg you. I live in a hotel that is very near to here and I swear that I will come back as soon as possible to give you back the money.' He got even angrier and slammed his hand on the table which made me jump up in fright, he didn't have to do that to me at all.

"Pay up, you thief!" I whimpered in fear as he is shouting at me, I want to get out of here but he won't allow me to do that.

Someone, please help me this instant, I beg you... I prayed hard for someone to come to help me, I don't care if they actually understand me but I just want them to help me get out of this situation. As if it heard my prayers, the doors open and a guy walked into the store who is doing his usual grocery shopping and then he saw the two of us in a scuffle, he came to us this instant.

I had my eyes closed all the time but I heard his footsteps coming closer and closer and it stopped a few meters away from me. "Is anything the matter?"

"Don't worry too much about it, a girl is refusing to pay for her snacks and she is attempting to run out of my store without paying for it. Do your own thing and I will settle this on my own." The cashier said to him and he turned towards me. "I said that to stop moving your arms around, I don't know what you are trying to do!"

I am trying to communicate with you for goodness sake! I am having a hard time here and the person who is supposed to be saving me is not doing anything at all, he is doing his shopping and being such a good citizen of the country.

The cashier sighed and came out of the counter and he comes up to me, it appears that he is trying to do something to me and I am not liking it at all. He attempts to push me out of the store and I refuse to budge, but he is too strong and his strength is too overwhelming for me and I crumble down in the end, landing on the floor. "Get out of my store, don't bother me anymore!"

I looked towards the guy who is still doing his grocery shopping but he is not doing that anymore, he is walking towards the both of us and he is helping me up instead, I stood up with his help and he stands in front of me, protecting me from the cashier. "I know that you are trying to do your job but don't you think that it is a little too harsh? It is obvious that she can't hear you or can't speak at all and you are only making the situation worse by yelling at her and pushing her."

"How would I even know that? All I know is that she is a thief and she will be punished for what she is doing and I don't want to alert the police so I am just chasing her out of the store and she will never be allowed to come in here again." He tells the guy.

"She might be a foreigner as well and she probably didn't have any local currency at all, you have a business to run and it will not be good for your image if people around here know that you are discriminating against people who are hearing impaired and foreigners as well." He said to him.

"Then just do me a favour and get out of here before I get even angrier, I can't allow her to go without paying for the snacks. I am not running a charity here." He said to the guy.

"I will pay for her snacks if that is what you wanted." He took out his wallet and paid for the snacks like a gentleman, I am lucky to have met someone like him.

I got out of the store and he is there as well, I walked up to him and thanked him for what he has done for me and then I saw his face that I haven't been able to see from the start. "Han Sanghyuk..." I called his name and he looked at me, utterly shocked that I am right here in Taiwan and seeing him again outside a convenience store.