74
Taein hesitated before opening the car door. He thought he would handle the loan-related schedule with the man who had consulted with him. He had spoken in that way too. He didn’t remember exactly, but he had said that after a week, he would check if there were vacant spaces in buildings and contact him. Even until he left the answer that he understood and would wait for that, he hadn’t exchanged words with the man who resembled Gu Wanjae. He just thought he was only watching from the side.
It seemed he was also deployed for this kind of work.
The man who soon started the car left the briefly formed one-room village. About five old buildings. And rice fields and farms. Past this alley, there would be a few commercial buildings rusted by sea breeze, but these days those places were often blocked by iron doors too. You had to go a bit further from there to reach Dog Alley and the liquor warehouse.
“Kang Taein-ssi.”
Taein, who had been looking only at the Dog Alley entrance that was briefly visible, turned his head at the sound of his name being called stiffly.
“You’re the same age as me?”
“……”
Taein put just a little strength in his brow without it showing. Could they even be the same age? That thought was brief, as the man’s voice that echoed through the quiet car interior felt too different from Gu Wanjae after all. His skin was also more swarthy. After looking at the man’s profile for a few seconds, Taein said “Yes” and looked at the front windshield.
“I thought you were a year or two younger than me.”
His words were strangely short. Well, all the Hope Loans people looked down on him too, so it wasn’t anything special. Jang Ihwan had even cursed at him from their second meeting. That wasn’t even related to JAM, he had just cursed to scare him and raise the interest rate. Taein, who momentarily recalled such memories, just nodded his head up and down once.
“What is it. I feel strangely bad.”
The words that were suddenly heard carried an unpleasant energy.
“I look a year or two older, is that it.”
“Huh? No, that’s not it.”
That’s not why he nodded – he had just gotten lost in random thoughts and finished with a head gesture by himself. It wasn’t a good situation to add any words. They had already passed Dog Alley and the liquor warehouse, and the car’s speed was slowing down as if they would park somewhere soon. In fact, the man seemed to have forgotten what he had said, turning the steering wheel greatly while sending his eyes to the rearview mirror. He seemed to be the type to speak rather carelessly. Taein also stopped paying attention and looked around.
The first thing he saw were buildings. Although the exterior walls were clean as if newly built, the insides were empty like ghosts. The windows were black and some floors seemed to have incomplete construction here and there. He knew about this kind of area but had never actually visited before. For no reason, the atmosphere around this area and the work loan being his first time made him feel nervous. It seemed like he should listen carefully to the man’s words. Even if problems arose, there might be a way out based on the man’s words.
Taein, who had been making various assumptions by himself, tried to open the car door when he heard the engine turning off.
“Why are you getting out?”
“Huh?”
“I just stopped by here briefly for my business.”
Saying that, the man who pulled his body outside left the car door open and took something out of his pocket. Leather gloves and a phone. He threw the phone into the driver’s seat and put the leather gloves on his hands. They were large hands with thick joints. Since the man resembled Gu Wanjae so much, he kept comparing him to Gu Wanjae, and Gu Wanjae’s hands had been that big too. But they hadn’t been that rough. If there were nine similar places, each one kept being different, so he wasn’t having bigger suspicions. The man put both gloved hands on the car body and bent his upper body toward the driver’s seat.
“Don’t think about running away. Let’s wait, shall we?”
He had come all the way here on his own feet saying he wanted a loan, so where would he run to? Taein looked at the man with a stiff expression and only gave the answer “Yes.” It wasn’t even underground, and he had nothing more to say to the man who was giving off an ominous atmosphere in the middle of the street.
Taein then closed the door and only watched with his eyes as the man passed in front of the hood. His wide-strided walk was no longer visible beyond the building entrance.
He had been seeing gangsters like eating meals and watching gangsters fight.
Since the man also had his feet in the private loan business, he would be connected to gangsters.
Taein thought vaguely while still looking up at the upper part of the building.
One, two, three… As he went up floor by floor with his eyes, the tenth floor was the end. Above that was the rooftop. Taein, who only counted the floors and withdrew his gaze, leaned his body back as much as possible. From the moment he got in the car, he had been uncomfortable and awkward, never properly leaning against the leather seat. Like this, being left alone, he could lean back comfortably…
He had seen many luxury vehicles while working, but this was his first time actually riding in one. Had he ever put his hand inside because of errands? It was as soft and nice a feeling as he had usually imagined. Taein, while doing so, also sent his gaze to the glove box in front of him.
Separate from the car being good and comfortable, he was scanning every corner of the car interior with his eyes, wanting to know even a little about the man’s identity. He was even reaching his hand toward the glove box that caught his eye. Even while clenching and opening his fist, Taein finally reached his hand and pulled the glove box handle.
“Hmm.”
Looking inside while unnecessarily checking the front, nothing particularly special caught his eye. Papers stamped with Ilsim Capital watermark, a jackknife, pliers – he didn’t know why they were there, but anyway…
Taein, who was rummaging inside, picked up something hard with his hand. A card. When he took it out to look, it was a resident registration card. The name was Yoon Donghwan. He thought someone else’s ID had been put here, but it wasn’t. The face was that man’s. Taein also scanned the birthday just in case. August 28th. It was very different from Gu Wanjae, whose birthday was December 31st. Only the face was somewhat similar, with no matching aspects at all.
Taein, who had been staring at the resident registration card for a while, put it back in its original place and tried to close the glove box.
Fuck, what a shock.
The moment he raised his head, his body trembled because someone was staring at him intently.
It was the man. Seeing smoke coming from his mouth, he seemed to have been smoking a cigarette in front. Taein, who closed the glove box with minimal movement, turned his eyes elsewhere. He didn’t have a hobby of rummaging through things, but since he resembled Gu Wanjae so much, his hand had naturally gone to the glove box. Soon the man who threw away his cigarette and walked toward the driver’s side got into the car.
Taein, who unconsciously clenched his fists, pretended he hadn’t done anything and just looked ahead.
“You have bad hand habits.”
It was definitely words directed at him.
Taein looked at the man while clenching both fists.
“Ah, my throat was dry. I was looking for water…”
“If you’re hungry, you’d rummage through the trunk too.”
“No.”
“What do you mean no.”
The man looked at Taein with his arms on the steering wheel.
“The trunk. I won’t rummage through it. I’m not someone who steals things.”
“You want me to believe you?”
The man spoke sarcastically, leaving him speechless. Anyway, he had been caught rummaging through the glove box, and he was only saying with words that he didn’t steal or whatever. The man who saw Taein only moving his lips slightly raised just the corner of his mouth and turned his gaze away. He immediately started the engine and drove the car, causing Taein’s body, which had been leaning forward, to lean back slightly.
* * *
After driving for 30 minutes, the man arrived in front of a house. It looked like an ordinary family home, but whether it was a place where people who knew each other came to eat, several men were coming out of the house picking their teeth with toothpicks.
The man also seemed to have business at the house. The man who got out of the car first gestured to Taein this time. Get out. We have to go there. Since being caught rummaging through the car, he had become even more awkward with the man. Was it a building related to loans? Taein tried to act nonchalant as he got out of the car.
Taein followed behind the man who went up the narrow stairs toward the second floor of the house.
What emerged from the wide-open second floor entrance was a man with as good a build as the man.
He grabbed the man’s hands with a happy face, saying “Ah, Donghwan.”
Even though their businesses were different, they seemed to have some dealings with each other. Or he had given him a loan.
Taein, who tactfully understood the situation, took off his shoes and entered inside.
The inside was similar to an ordinary family home like it looked from outside. There was a food smell but also the characteristic smell of a house. The place the man entered was a room-type space that was largely prepared, without a separate door.
The man sat there first and spoke loudly toward Taein, who seemed hesitant.
“Let’s eat before we go? I also don’t want my trunk to be ransacked.”
What was that supposed to mean?
What trunk? Taein, who was briefly puzzled, recalled the man’s earlier remark “If you’re hungry, you’d rummage through the trunk too” and frowned. Since there had been no words after that, he thought it had been forgotten, but contrary to his build, the man seemed to be the type who kept even small things in his heart. Still, since he was in the wrong, his expression soon relaxed.
As he slowly approached and sat across from the man, he could see side dishes being brought to the table. When he unconsciously looked up at the clock, all the hands were near 1. Does it come out this quickly because it’s lunch time? He was thinking that to himself and was about to lower his eyes when they met with the man’s.
“What are you looking at?”
“I wasn’t looking.”
“You are looking.”
“……”
He had been the first to speak, causing his eyes to stop, but was that how he interpreted it? Taein, who became absurd, immediately shook his head down. It was fortunate he was wearing a hat. He thought if he didn’t cover his eyes, the man would pick another fight. It seemed like he was ignoring him as much as the Hope Loans bastards, making his insides boil a bit, but he decided to endure it once.
“There’s a person in front of you.”
At those words, Taein slightly raised his head and glanced at the man’s face.
“If you wear your hat like that, it’s a bit…”
“…My hair is all pressed down. Let’s just eat like this and go.”
“Why is it all pressed down? Don’t tell me you’re doing that because you want to look good to me.”
The speaking pattern was similar to Jang Ihwan’s. Taein thought he had gotten involved with the wrong person and that dealing with this bastard would only ruin his life more, so he quietly closed his heart by himself. He should eat and then go out and withdraw the loan or whatever. He had thought somewhat well of Ilsim Capital because of Jang Ihwan, but in the end, the things gangsters do are all the same, so the man seemed to be revealing a similar face. Soon he would spout dirty harassment like Jang Ihwan.
Taein, who had made assumptions, looked down at the table with a hardened expression.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
