The fifth-grade girl examined the puddle under Kim’s chair, gawked at his soaking pants, whispered something to the other fifth-grader and began to giggle uncontrollably. Meanwhile, the commotion began to spread in widening circles like ripples on a pond as the entire class eventually looked up from homework, broke off gossiping, stopped scribbling notes to be passed at recess and focused its attention on Kim. Kim was again possessed by an urge, an instinct, to run out of the room and escape his humiliation, but whatever power had prevented him from getting up to go to the bathroom continued to hold him fast. As their giggles subsided, the fifth-grade girls retrieved a mop, bucket and some rags from the cloakroom adjacent to the classroom and, as Kim remained planted helplessly in his desk, they swabbed the puddle beneath him.

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