The Handmaiden - Jensoo

Part One - Chapter 1

Introduction

Standing under the relentless, pouring rain, Kim Jisoo struggled to hold up her umbrella as she juggled a screaming and kicking baby in her arms. Irritating and playful children running in the rain caused Jisoo to become an obstacle in their path as they pushed by without a second glance. Very nearly losing her balance, Jisoo muttered curses under her breath and scolded the children yet her words fell on deaf ears as they kept running and playing. The screaming baby seemingly only cried more in its thin blanket.

Hushing and soothing the infant, Jisoo turned to face three disapproving faces of her adoptive family staring at her from the porch of a wooden house, sheltered by the heavy rain. Eyes landing firstly on her mother, Boksun, a cold and strong middle-aged woman, who had her hands behind her back as she raised her eyebrows in a condescending manner. A stone-grey traditional dress robe with a pristine, white collar perfectly portrayed what kind of woman she was.

Next stood her older sister, Kutan, holding two bald infants of her own. Her mouth was twisted in jealousy, and her dark hair in braids framed her miserable face. Jisoo found that her sister's jealousy was mostly aimed towards her, an unpleasant feeling she's felt her whole life, yet she never figured out why. She dressed in similar fashion to her mother, only her dress robe was a light, sandy colour.

The final face belonged to Jisoo's older brother, Gugai. Being the eldest of the siblings, he was the quietest; he kept his head down and did his work. He, similarly to their sister, was holding another two squirming babies. Despite their wriggling, he remained strong with his muscular arms tensed tight and his jaw set, lifting his chin in that superior way. A clean-shaven face with small, tired eyes looked back at Jisoo. A flatcap sat on his dark hair, a stone-grey waistcoat over a simple white shirt to complete his typical worker's uniform that didn't actually look much different from his everyday wear.

Jisoo frowned at all them all. She knew she was receiving these belittling looks. She didn't bother speaking a word to them even as she stepped forward and handed the infant in her arms to her mother. Placing gentle kiss on each of the babies' heads, she stood in front of her mother. She reached her hand behind her hair and pulled out a hairpin in a beautiful design. The woman slid the brooch onto the side of Jisoo's thick, dark hair that was slung into a low ponytail, so that it nestled nicely. Jisoo watched as her mother softened from her rigid exterior, a sudden flash of emotion crossing her face as she unexpectedly embraced her. Jisoo felt awkward, but finally relaxed into the unfamiliar yet familiar touch of her mother's embrace. Jisoo had barely gotten used to it by the time her mother had let go. She regained her previous strong, tough persona but could see warm eyes look back at her. There was nothing like a bond between a mother and her child.

Just like the babies around them, Jisoo heard an ugly sob crack from her sister's mouth. "It should have been me!" she whined. Constant hysterical sobbing from her jealous sister. Jisoo smirked. "I should be the one going to that Jap's house!" They all knew the heiress was half Korean, but none of them bothered to correct her. Jisoo stroked her cheek to calm her down, but secretly felt victorious. Finally doing something with her life rather than stuck here with constant whining from babies - and her sister. Jisoo took a quick glance in her brother's direction to see that he had hardly any expression in his stoic face even while holding two screaming infants. Jisoo inwardly sighed, as she put her umbrella back up over her head, ready to bid her farewells. Her mother bent down to pick up her small, round bag of belongings to place on Jisoo's head as she would balance it with the umbrella.

"You'll miss the train," said Jisoo's mother in a calm, low tone above the background noise of sobbing and crying, "hurry." Jisoo was handed a large, battered, brown suitcase that weighed more than what was actually in it. Without another word, Jisoo turned swiftly and set off down the dirt road. On either side were more small wooden houses like the one she lives in. Some were two stories whilst others just had one, yet they still portrayed the same charm. Jisoo would miss it. Briskly, Jisoo trudged through the wet dirt but luckily it wouldn't ruin her shoes. The hem of her floral dress robe was damp; she could feel it against her bare calf and it felt gross. But Jisoo didn't let herself be discouraged and only let thoughts of the secluded, peaceful land in which the heiress lived cloud her mind.