“…You’re going to exercise again after eating anyway. If you eat too much, you won’t be able to move.”
“For once, that’s a surprisingly sensible statement coming from you.”
“Next month’s credit card bill will be empty.”
“Just from this little bit?”
“It’s not an amount that can be managed on a regular employee’s salary.”
“You’re not exactly a regular employee.”
At those words, Junghyun, who was still running his fingers through his slightly damp hair, realized his mistake.
“…Come to think of it, that’s true, isn’t it?”
Now I’m the partner of the Hanju heir…
“Make me a credit card.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
Jaehyuk was firm. As if such a thing would never happen even if he died.
At his harsh attitude, Junghyun leaned forward with an indignant expression.
“We’re a married couple. Couples are one body and soul. How about giving me a card, or better yet, transferring financial authority to me?”
“Why would I trust you?”
“I’ll only sell what can be sold.”
In response to this outrageous declaration that he would now openly nibble away at his wealth, Jaehyuk clicked his tongue softly.
He knew it was a joke, but he wondered what to do with this guy.
“I’ll make you a card, but it will be a debit card. And I’m absolutely not transferring financial control to you.”
“Come on, what kind of chaebol uses a debit card?”
“Living frugally is the way to prosperity.”
“That…”
As they were talking, an employee approached carefully with a tray again and spoke.
“I’ll prepare your juice first.”
Seeing the glasses placed in front of each of them, Junghyun leaned back in his chair, picked up his juice glass and took a sip.
Then he looked out the window with a dissatisfied expression, but all he could see was the storm.
“At least the lightning has stopped.”
“They said it would clear up in the afternoon.”
“Those waves look over 10 meters high.”
As he muttered, looking at the still pouring rain and rather rough waves, Jaehyuk, finally leaning back in his chair, drank his beverage with elegant posture and replied.
“It’s dangerous, so we won’t do it today.”
Surprised by the unexpected answer, Junghyun tilted his head.
“Why? I thought you’d rush out as soon as the rain stopped.”
“It’s dangerous when we don’t know when it might rain again. Since there was lightning all night yesterday, we should wait and see today.”
“Oh, so you do have some reason?”
“More than you.”
“It’s good that at least one of us has some sense. So, after lunch, can I rest a bit?”
“No.”
“Where are you trying to go in this rain?”
“There are plenty of places.”
“Where?”
“You’ll find out when we get there.”
At that cryptic tone, Junghyun had a suspicion.
“…Don’t tell me, not there?”
“Who knows?”
That response meant it was exactly there.
This time he was genuinely fed up.
“You’re really frugal, hyung. How did you hold back your desire to play all this time?”
“Work is work. Besides, we need to have round two.”
“Round two?”
“It’s already past 11, so it’ll be a dinner bet. A full course including seafood ramen and pork belly.”
“That would be to my advantage, wouldn’t it?”
“Really, would it?”
After being defeated like that in the pool, the tone suggested. Junghyun felt irritated in that moment.
Honestly, it felt like he was being beaten by this man, but such provocation was starting to ignite his competitive spirit.
“I’ll take the dinner course, and let’s go non-stop all the way to drinks too.”
“Confident, aren’t you? Do you know what I can drink?”
As if asking if he knew what kinds of alcohol this hotel lounge had, Jaehyuk’s eyes were sparkling with excitement, and Junghyun immediately retorted.
“Because I’m going to win.”
At those words, Jaehyuk gave a strange smile.
It was a smile mixed with confidence and inscrutability.
That expression was a bit unsettling, but Junghyun was even more confident.
While height and limb length are very important in swimming, the next event would prioritize agility and strength.
And in that area, he would never lose.
So he was certain he would win.
At least until that moment.
* * *
One should never casually predict the outcome of a competition.
Never, until you actually do it.
“Damn it…”
After quickly devouring seven menu items and then eating various kinds of coffee and cake for dessert, the two headed to a climbing wall.
And there, Junghyun was wishing he could take back the words he had uttered two hours earlier.
The essence of climbing was strength and agility. And the next most important factors were arm and leg length.
They seemed similar in agility, but damn it, strength was strength.
He could never beat him in strength. Moreover, the other’s arms and legs were overwhelmingly longer.
So there was no way he could win against him.
Clearly, he had been ahead at the start, but as Junghyun looked down at him rapidly catching up in an instant, he quickly began to think when the other got close.
Today, having had a meal with him for the first time besides a simple breakfast, he realized that if the other was determined, this month’s credit card bill would be disastrous.
The old man would probably cover it if he begged sincerely, but it was still risky. He might even have to break into his savings account with the special interest rate.
With the credit card statement dancing before his eyes, Junghyun finally made up his mind.
To play dirty.
Thinking that he’d never lived cleanly anyway, so what’s a little more dirt, Junghyun decided to just fight dirty. He looked down at Jaehyuk, who was catching up at an incredible speed.
And the moment he came right beneath his feet, without hesitation, he stepped on the other’s hand. Then quickly fled upward, while the surprised Jaehyuk let go of the hold and shouted in disbelief.
“Hey, Chihuahua!”
Now he doesn’t even call him by name. Just Chihuahua.
But at this point, who cares what he’s called? Ignoring his call, Junghyun focused on the holds again and started climbing.
Climbing at a frantic speed solely to protect his bank account, but the angle was too steep.
Having chosen the most difficult course, the angle of the slanted wall was becoming closer to the ceiling as he went higher.
Reaching a section where he could no longer maintain speed, he was barely grabbing the holds and stretching his arms when suddenly Jaehyuk approached right beside him and deliberately reached out to grab the hold he was aiming for. Then he instantly climbed over it and even stepped on his foot.
“Ouch!”
“Oh, sorry, it was too far away to see.”
“Wow, what character!”
“That’s rich coming from you.”
With a sweet smile that basically told him to get lost, Jaehyuk immediately grabbed the next hold.
Unlike Junghyun, who had been struggling to reach, he easily extended his long arm and easily grabbed the hold, moving on to the next course.
While Junghyun was struggling, Jaehyuk had rapidly climbed up and was now right in front of the finish line.
With the sense that he was about to charge thousands on his card today, Junghyun had to make another decision of heart.
Money is important in life. He couldn’t break into his savings.
Having made that decision, Junghyun took a deep breath.
And in the very next moment, relying on his harness, he launched himself upward.
Right behind the other’s back.
* * *
“Today must be my unlucky day for public humiliation.”
Wearing a black hood pulled over his head so no one would recognize him, Jaehyuk was sitting in the corner of the pork belly restaurant, leaning against the wall and repeating those words like a deranged person.
Because of Junghyun, who had flown to his waist area and hung on, blocking his path, they had both fallen while kicking each other and pushing with their hands right before reaching the summit. As a result, they had been kicked out of the climbing gym.
With a one-month ban on top of that.
It was so humiliating.
Following the warning at the hotel pool he went to every vacation, now he was banned from the climbing gym.
And not just anywhere, but at a place where he’d been a regular for 10 years.
Moreover, that climbing gym was run by a close college senior. Though he had several chain locations across the country due to his climbing hobby, this particular branch was directly managed by him, who was also a surfer, so a report had probably gone straight to him.
That Cha Jaehyuk had been kicked out for fighting with his partner while climbing.
Unwillingly, he was about to become a star among his fellow alumni.
“Damn it…”
“If you had just stayed quietly at the hotel like I said, this wouldn’t have happened.”
At the sound of Junghyun, the source of all his humiliation today, saying that one shouldn’t go out on such a day, Jaehyuk could no longer hold back and burst out in anger.
“If you hadn’t picked a fight first, it would have been fine. What kind of person are you that you don’t even have sportsmanship?”
“I’m not a sportsman, so what use is sportsmanship to me?”
Saying that he wasn’t a professional but an amateur, just doing it as a hobby, so why talk about sportsmanship, Junghyun cut the pork belly with a look of disbelief.
With eyes that said that no matter how many times he saw him, he was a strange person.
“Still, when you’re doing sports…”
“Ah, it’s cooked. Please eat. Pork belly.”
As if telling him to please shut up and eat, Junghyun served the fully cooked pork belly onto his plate, and Jaehyuk finally picked up his chopsticks. Then he immediately put all five pieces of meat from the plate into his mouth at once and continued in an irritated tone.
“Add four more servings of pork ribs. And Iberico sausage too.”
“…We already have five servings of pork belly?”
When Junghyun asked if they could really order more, since they had also ordered soybean paste stew and rice, Jaehyuk sneered as if asking what kind of obvious question that was.
“You look like you could eat about four servings yourself?”
“If it’s just meat, I guess so…”
“Order it.”
As he said that, transferring hot pork belly to his plate and putting another four pieces into his mouth at once, Junghyun looked at him with disgust.
“Wow, I think it would be hard to support you financially, hyung.”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
