Luna was seated across from Dani, watching Hesook play with a toy on the floor. Some girls who are extraordinarily pretty at fifteen or sixteen grow up to be merely normal or even unattractive women. That was not the case with Luna, whose shocking beauty as a young girl had matured into a soft, full radiance. Jade thought that she was less cruelly perfect and more alluring, with raven hair and rounded ivory cheeks like seashells. Men paid dearly for the privilege of sitting next to Luna at banquets and studying her celebrated figure up close.
When the three women and Hesook were seated at the table, Lotus finally arrived, smiling confidently and smelling of perfume. Lotus was always in demand for parties because of her splendid voice. Not only did she know the full traditional repertoire, but she also sang the jazz songs and the ballads that flowed out from the dance halls at every sundown and seeped into dark alleys by night. She always started with an upbeat, well-known love song. Then as conversation languished, candles burned low, and guests gazed into the half-empty bottles with a faraway look, she ended with a slow waltz in three-quarter time. By then, even the men who didn’t notice her at the beginning of the party would be enraptured by her voice. Many of them fought the tears in their eyes while they listened, and scrambled to offer her drinks and have her sit next to them. Jade knew how much Lotus relished this power of her voice, always warmly complimented her on her singing, and lashed out at anyone, man or woman, who criticized her friend for being homely.
*
WHEN JADE FIRST ARRIVED IN SEOUL, the city had been filled with thousands of rickshaw drivers who ran along the boulevards and narrow streets pulling well-fed and robust men in starched collars and wool suits. Now, streetcars and taxis were common, and the only customers who still faithfully hired rickshaw drivers were the courtesans. They tipped better than the wealthy gentlemen, and many refused to take taxis and streetcars out of principle.
In spring, the rickshaw drivers’ guild had started pooling money to establish a private school for their children, and the courtesans decided to help raise funds with a benefit performance. All of Seoul was expected to be there, from men of leisure to the intellectuals, artists, wealthy housewives, students, shopkeepers, and even laborers. Around seven hundred courtesans from all five guilds had volunteered to perform, and of them, both Jade and Lotus had been selected for solos.
Waiting in the wings, they hid their nervousness by peeking out at the courtesans on the brightly lit stage. The women were awash in golden light as they performed a traditional dance with fans, arranging themselves into a circle like a blooming water lily. They shimmered and waved in unison, and looking at one individually was as pointless as focusing on a single petal of a rose. Even Luna did not stand out from the rest, which was why the head of their guild had put her in this dance. She smiled, glided, and spun dutifully and joylessly, and exited the stage relieved to escape the bright lights.
When the theater fell silent, Lotus walked out to meet the blinding yellow light. A piano had been set up in the center, where her accompanist in slicked-back hair and tailed evening suit was waiting for her. She turned to the audience and began singing her signature waltz. Her voice reached all the way to the back of the theater, caressing each listener with the haunting melody; the memories of the deepest heartbreaks and losses were laid bare, both the things one had forgotten and the things one wished to forget but could not. Under the cover of the darkness and her voice, it was possible to let their tears come out. No one could fail to be mesmerized by her or fall a little in love with her. She received a standing ovation and was called back out to the stage by the applause. Once Lotus returned to the wings the second time, Jade enveloped her in a tight embrace.
“It was incredible, even for you,” Jade whispered. “No one will be able to think of anything else from tonight.”
“Well, we’ll see if they remember my song after they see you!” Lotus said, beaming nonetheless.
“I’m terrified of going after you! Good thing there’s an intermission between us.” Jade laughed nervously. She was already dressed in a black robe and a red overjacket, which was cinched below her chest with a crimson girdle before reaching all the way to the floor. A traditional black military hat, wide brimmed and decked with a red horsehair tassel, was secured above her braided chignon; this juxtaposition of a masculine ornament against her feminine face and coiffure made her look even more charming than usual. In each hand, Jade grasped a slim half sword that was about the length of her lower arm. When the intermission ended and the crowd settled beyond the curtains, Jade tucked the swords in each of her sleeves, gave a nod to her best friend, and walked out onstage.