Jew - Soon, too, the word "Mong"

Soon, the words will be spoken.

Around eight o'clock at night, the rain began to fall. I could see small drops of rain running through the window.

Somewhere in the Bay of Bengal, she might be loading baskets of fish into a sub-zero cold room, but in Mandalay, it was the end of her evening shift. When the night shift intern arrived two minutes before eight o'clock, she was still administering five doses of atropine to the unconscious patient. She smiled at her friend, relieved of the responsibility of waiting for him to come to her duty.

She went outside and took off her rubber shoes that had been disinfected and put on her high-heeled shoes. When she went down the brick steps of the “Special Security Building,” which was called “Ai, Si, Yu” for short, she arrived at the lower (new) building. She glanced with her trained eyes at the hands and feet bound with stone wheels, the legs hung with red bricks, and the legs lifted with pulleys, and then went down the brick steps outside.

Under the dim light of the hospital ward, I could see the gravel road, slick with rain. The atmosphere had cooled down a bit.

At the bend in the dark Boka Taw tree line, she felt as if someone was watching Tin Tin Zaw. It didn't make sense... But then a shadowy figure moved from the tree line, and she saw it. The hospital courtyard was bustling with people riding bicycles and walking with lunch boxes and electric kettles, so she wasn't afraid of anything. She hurried home and walked briskly through the sick ward (1), under the day-light entrance. But then she felt as if someone was following her. A shiver ran down her spine, and she turned around with a determination to face the danger.

The person she saw in the dim light of the ceiling lamp was someone she had never expected.

"Mi Zaw..."

A young man stood in front of her. He was standing so close that she could only look up to see his face smiling softly. Under his tall stature and wavy hair, there was a smile that had always comforted her.

"Look, I still remember you from earlier, you know?"

"Yes, right..."

A fresh smile spread across his lips, making his small eyes, which were slightly narrowed under his heavy eyelids, shine with incredible brilliance. He wore a checkered shirt under a faded denim jacket.

"When have you been here? You didn't call me either. Don't make any noise, you're really mean."

He didn't say anything, just put his hands in the side pockets of his jacket and smiled at her,

"It's so good, I don't know how happy I am to see you tonight."

"Why?"

"I want to go to a movie night because I don't have a partner. I'm changing cars tomorrow."

'' Her smile faded a little. She immediately regretted it. She was about to die... She should have said something more serious, why would she be happy as a moviegoer? '' A shadow flashed across his face and then disappeared immediately. It was so fast that she didn't catch the shadow of his face.

“I arrived in Mandalay at half past seven, went to your ward, and told you that you would be leaving the hospital at eight o’clock. I left my bags and belongings at my uncle’s house and just left. I was so anxious to see you that I couldn’t even take a shower. I went to Ward 3. I didn’t see you, I said you were in the intensive care unit, so I asked and came. At five minutes past eight, I saw you coming out of the ward. You will never understand how happy I was to see you. I was so happy that you came to watch a movie with me.”

There was no bitterness in his voice as he spoke, but she could see the sadness and regret in his eyes, as they had been close for years.

"No... I mean..."

"Yes, of course, what you're saying is that we're going to the movies tonight. I need a companion, so I'll be ready when I get there, okay? Come on... I'll take you."

He quickly turned around and left.

"Oh....stay still"

He stopped and turned around. Then he saw a package wrapped in flower paper in his hand.

"If I want to go to the movies, I'll have to ask permission from the landlady after explaining the reason. Besides, I haven't eaten yet, and you haven't eaten anything either, right?"

"Cold"

"Come on, I'm lucky I didn't have time to cook today, I'll have to buy food from the shop."

The slightly relaxed smile immediately turned into laughter. She knew it. It was a mocking smile.

"Do you cook your own food? You're pretty good at it now."

"Don't be afraid"

She shook her head with a shy smile. Although she was a girl, she was not as skilled a cook as he was. The two of them walked along the platform outside the hospital towards the east of the dormitory. 30th Street was bustling with bicycles and horse-drawn carriages, as usual at night.

"Wait, what's the latest time to check in to your dorm? Don't you stay up late watching a movie?"

"Okay, Aunty is nice."

He was laughing like a brother who never takes offense.

Well... he must be really tired from traveling.

I'll probably go to bed early after riding the train all day.

And he hasn't even showered yet. I'll take him to the cinema - it's not good to make him angry. ,

"Let's eat at Khaing Shwe Wa..."

“Okay, Mi Zaw Ya...I'm fine, I agree with you.”

The two of them sat down at a corner table, which was empty. She absentmindedly stared at the waves of her hair that were flowing under the bright glass lamp. Then she asked a question.

“What are you doing in Mandalay?”

He pursed his lips and smiled as he held up the packet of popcorn in his hand.

"What is that?"

"Birthday gift"

"Hmm...whose birthday is it and for whom...oh..."

Tin Tin Zaw stopped talking angrily to himself. Oh my God... Today is my birthday. If I die, what thoughts must be dominating my mind that I won't even remember my own birthday? She slapped her forehead and laughed happily. Then she looked at him in surprise.

"I didn't say I came from Yangon to give you this birthday present, did I?"

His smiling face became calm. He stared at her calmly, touching the white ribbon on the package wrapped in cream paper with his finger. He took a spoonful of soup from the bowl that was placed before him, pretending to avoid Tin Tin Zaw's eyes that were looking back at him. Then he sighed.

“Our ship arrived in Bay (Myeik) on September 15th, and since my birthday is September 20th, it’s almost here. Sometimes I feel like giving my birthday present, don’t you think, Zaw?”

Sometimes... Yes, sometimes he remembered Tin Tin Zaw's birthday. But these memories only happened when they were in the same city. It would be very difficult for him to remember her birthday when they were in different cities. Anyway, he remembered her birthday, which she had forgotten, and he felt an indescribable sense of satisfaction inside.

When the plates of rice noodles were brought, he began to eat quietly. Tin Tin Zaw became restless as he watched. What had happened to make a young man who used to laugh and talk so much calmly in two years?

"Now...just give me a quick reason why you didn't reply to the message I sent you."

He placed the hammer on the plate and glanced at her.

"You're the one who has to leave the ship twice in one month, each time taking about 10 days. And how can I reply from the water if I have to read and then leave the ship? That's not an excuse to satisfy you. I'm telling the truth."

As usual, he was quick to anger. He could see the tip of a short purple plastic bicycle in his shirt pocket. He had never been one to walk without a bicycle before.

"Can I open your birthday present in front of you?"