06
After knocking on the door, a voice from inside told him to come in.
“Excuse me, CEO.”
Seunghyeok was taking off his coat when he recognized Junghyun and hung the coat on a hanger. Junghyun entered and was about to close the door, but remembering what happened yesterday, he left it open about half a hand’s width as he walked to where Seunghyeok was.
“I heard you ordered soup for me. Thank you.”
Seunghyeok stared at Junghyun for a moment.
“Did it taste good?”
“What? Yes. It was warm and delicious.”
“Good then.”
When Seunghyeok stretched out his arm, Junghyun reflexively flinched and pulled his body back. He immediately regretted it, but the reaction had already happened. Feeling awkward, Junghyun bit his lip once and examined Seunghyeok’s expression.
He was staring at Junghyun with his head tilted at an angle.
“Have I ever been violent towards you?”
“What? Um… y-yesterday when you hit me… except for that?”
A wrinkle formed between Seunghyeok’s smooth brows. “You call that hitting—” he began, then let out a sigh.
“Except for that, then.”
“Except for that… um… no. You… haven’t.”
“Then why are you so scared whenever you see me? When someone is afraid of you even though you’ve done nothing, it makes you want to give them a reason to be afraid, out of frustration.”
Junghyun was startled by those words. He shook his head vigorously from side to side and waved his hands.
“No, no. That’s not it. I’m not scared. I’m not.”
The wrinkle between Seunghyeok’s brows disappeared. Junghyun lowered his hands and cautiously observed his reaction.
“You… you wouldn’t, right?”
“Wouldn’t what?”
“…Give me a reason to be scared…”
“I’m joking.”
Junghyun silently stared at Seunghyeok.
It didn’t look like a joke at all, but the atmosphere didn’t allow him to point that out loud.
“Ah, I’m going for a job interview today.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. They said I could also get room and board there if it goes well, so this might be the last time we meet—ah, I mean, the debt still remains, but still, it might be the last time, so thank you for everything so far.”
“I see.”
Seunghyeok nodded briefly.
He didn’t ask any questions. Junghyun felt slightly deflated by that response and was a bit taken aback. After moving his lips a few times, he finally realized he had nothing more to say and firmly closed his mouth. As he left the CEO’s office saying he would be going now, Junghyun absently rubbed his cheek.
When it was time for his scheduled interview, Junghyun got off the bus at a stop near the establishment and turned on his phone to search for the location. Perhaps because it was getting dark, signs were lighting up one by one, beginning to shine brightly.
“King Costa, King Costa… Ah. There it is.”
Just as Junghyun, having found the place for his interview, was about to enter the building, someone called his name from behind. When he reflexively turned around, Seunghyeok was leaning out from the back seat of a car.
Encountering Seunghyeok in such an unexpected place, Junghyun blinked several times, wondering if he was seeing correctly.
“What a coincidence. We meet again like this.”
It truly was a coincidence. The place was about ten bus stops away from the office—could Seunghyeok have had some business here?
As Junghyun nodded, Seunghyeok looked around and said:
“Is this where you’re going for your interview?”
“What? Yes. It’s a place called King Costa in the basement, but, um, CEO?”
“Do you know what kind of place this is?”
“Yes. A b-bar. …Oh, but, I applied for a cleaning position because they said they were looking for a cleaner.”
Seunghyeok stared at Junghyun silently for a moment before telling him to get in the car.
Since he now had to go for his interview, Junghyun naturally declined. A car waiting behind them honked its horn loudly. The driver rolled down his window and drove past, eyeing them with an annoyed expression. The curious gazes of passersby also gathered at the sound of the horn.
“Don’t you have business to attend to? You should hurry.”
When Junghyun urged him, Seunghyeok stepped out of the car. Junghyun was so flustered by Seunghyeok’s unexpected action that he could only stare blankly, unable to respond appropriately. And then the car departed, leaving Seunghyeok behind.
“Why do you want to work here?”
Seunghyeok’s voice was just as even as it had been a moment ago. It seemed that the only one confused in this situation was probably Junghyun.
“Here? The h-hourly wage was the highest.”
“How much was the hourly wage?”
Junghyun was confused by Seunghyeok’s sudden barrage of questions, when he had seemed indifferent earlier when Junghyun mentioned going for an interview.
“They said it was more than 50,000 won per hour, and that they could pay more if I worked hard.”
“Junghyun.”
Seunghyeok called his name in a low, firm voice.
At that resonant voice, Junghyun stopped speaking.
“Do you really think there’s a place that pays over 50,000 won per hour for simple cleaning work?”
Junghyun was at a loss for words at this obvious point. Come to think of it, that was true. No matter how much there was to clean, it didn’t make sense to offer more than 50,000 won per hour with same-day payment to someone without any qualifications or certifications. Looking back, it was also strange that they asked for a photo before the interview.
It was something he could have realized with just a little thought. But due to his urgency to find a job quickly, he had rushed in without thinking things through.
“This is a host club.”
“What?”
“It’s a bar with male hosts. They’ll probably have you just clean for the first few days, then gradually have you attend to well-mannered customers for brief periods. As your resistance to selling yourself fades, you’ll eventually be drawn in completely. Are you prepared to sell your smile and body to women you’ve never met before? If that’s what you came here thinking, I won’t interfere.”
“No, no! No, I, I never thought of anything like that…!”
Heat gradually rose to his face.
In his confusion, his voice grew louder. Just then, the car Seunghyeok had arrived in stopped behind him again. Perhaps it had circled around the area. The timing was impeccable.
“Get in.”
He opened the car door and looked at Junghyun. This time, Junghyun couldn’t refuse the invitation.
The car carrying the two of them started with a heavy engine sound. The interior was extremely quiet. Just as Junghyun was about to say something:
“So, where will you stay from now on?”
Junghyun blinked in confusion at the sudden question that cut through the silence.
“Um… I need to look for a place again.”
Remembering how he had said goodbye and thanked Seunghyeok at lunch time, Junghyun rubbed his cheek in embarrassment.
“I know it would be troublesome for me to return to the office, and I’m sorry… but if you’d allow it, I’ll find something right away and leave even tonight.”
“Find what?”
“A, a job?”
Junghyun carefully answered Seunghyeok, who was asking about something obvious. After hearing Junghyun’s answer, Seunghyeok murmured softly with an expressionless face, “Ah, a job.”
“Do you have anything in mind?”
“What? Oh. There aren’t many jobs that include accommodation. I was thinking a gas station or factory production work in the provinces might be good. Given the situation, I might go down there. Ah, of course I’m not running away. If you contact me, I’ll always answer, and I’ll continue to pay off the debt bit by bit, even if it’s only a small amount.”
“A gas station or factory?”
Seunghyeok repeated what Junghyun had said, but that was all.
Junghyun had prepared himself for a couple of scathing remarks like “How much do you think you can earn with such jobs?” or “No matter how much of that pitiful small change you save, it will still be small change,” but surprisingly, Seunghyeok said nothing. Junghyun straightened his posture, relaxing his shoulders that had been tensed up.
Seunghyeok, still looking straight ahead, made a “hmm” sound and slowly closed and opened his eyelids.
“Let’s go to my house instead of the office.”
“What?”
Seunghyeok turned his gaze toward Junghyun and smirked, as if finding something amusing.
“Is it a hobby of yours to ask ‘what’ twice like that?”
“What? Ah, no. No, it’s not like that.”
Junghyun mumbled hesitantly.
“House… your house? Me?”
“If you have somewhere else to stay, you can go there.”
“Ah, no. That’s not it… Then, um, th-thank you.”
Despite Junghyun clearly stating that he had nowhere to stay, Seunghyeok deliberately phrased it that way.
As if he had said all he needed to say, Seunghyeok closed his eyes and sank deeper into his seat. Since the atmosphere didn’t invite further conversation, Junghyun bit his lip and fidgeted with his fingers.
Was it really okay to just go along with this? Earlier, he thought he had no choice but to get into the car, but thinking about it now, he probably could have stubbornly refused. Or at least, shouldn’t he have declined more firmly? Had he acted without enough caution?
While Junghyun was lost in thought, the car carrying the two of them entered a large building along the Han River.
The car stopped without the usual body sway that comes with stopping. It seemed they had reached their destination.
With his eyes still closed, Seunghyeok looked as if he were asleep. Junghyun couldn’t quickly decide whether to wake him or wait. However, Junghyun’s dilemma dissolved as Seunghyeok suddenly opened his eyes.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
