19
There was only one thing I could do to kill time in a space where I knew no one and had no business.
I approached the luxurious bar and called the employee. How do I order without a menu? I conveyed my meaning roughly and received a drink, then wandered around looking for an empty sofa. Only when I spotted a small sofa in a corner did I finally find a place to rest.
I took small sips of the drink. The alcohol content must be high, as it felt like my throat was burning. Not being an expert on alcohol, I couldn’t tell what kind it was, but it felt similar to drinking straight soju.
It tastes terrible. And they don’t even serve snacks. Giving alcohol without snacks in such a luxurious hotel. I ate only a little dinner because I thought they would serve something delicious.
I felt a bit sad with disappointment, but the freedom I felt away from Cha Baekju made me slightly more generous.
Speaking of which, what was Cha Baekju planning by surrendering so quickly and disappearing? Would he put on an act of being completely nice to me, or would he pour alcohol on my head to humiliate me? I had worried about such things before coming here, but everything felt bland, neither here nor there.
“Disappointing in many ways.”
“What’s so disappointing?”
Someone sat next to me and questioned my muttering. Not knowing who it was, I checked their face, but it wasn’t one of the people I had been introduced to earlier by Cha Baekju.
“Why that face?”
“Just… surprised that you suddenly spoke to me…”
It was less about being surprised and more about wondering who this guy in front of me was and if we knew each other.
Not knowing what kind of relationship he had with Cha Sukyung, how old he was, or whether I could speak informally to him, I trailed off, which made the man chuckle.
“You haven’t shown your face since you left crying last time, why did you come today?”
“I left crying last time? It was so long ago, I don’t remember.”
“Is two years ago that long? Or are you pretending not to remember because you’re embarrassed?”
“People can cry, what’s so embarrassing about that? People can cry, and people can make others cry. These things happen often in life. I really don’t remember, that’s why I’m saying I don’t. And I don’t remember you acting familiar either.”
I emptied my glass with a nonchalant expression, and the man’s eyes widened as if he had heard something unexpected.
“Why?”
“It seems like your personality has changed. And you speaking informally too.”
“People can change in two years. We’re at that age. And you spoke informally first, so what’s the problem? If the last time we met was two years ago, we probably weren’t close, so did we just agree to speak casually to each other?”
Why do people expect others to speak formally to them while they speak informally? You get what you give. It seems like this place is full of weird guys.
“Haha, you’re not wrong. You used to have such a stuffy personality, but it’s nice that you’ve changed. It feels like we can actually communicate now.”
The man put his arm around my shoulder and leaned on me. I felt the pressure of a large guy leaning on Cha Sukyung’s small body.
“Ah, yeah. You’re heavy, I’d prefer if you leaned elsewhere. And while you’re at it, tell me who you are. Right now, I feel like I’m talking to someone I don’t know.”
As I removed his arm from my shoulder and pushed him away, the man made an exaggerated show of being pushed aside and hunched his shoulders.
“Wow, Cha Sukyung. You’ve become scary. What really happened to you? Your confidence has grown too much. Where did the old Cha Sukyung go, who couldn’t even speak properly? I heard you attempted suicide. Does your personality change when you come back from the brink of death?”
“There’s no reason I shouldn’t be able to speak properly. This isn’t the first time I’ve heard that my personality changed after coming back from the dead, so it’s not that fresh. …Hey. I want to drink alone, so if you’re not going to introduce yourself, please go somewhere else. It’s fucking exhausting talking to someone I don’t know.”
My tone was relatively gentle, but the man looked somewhat shocked. Was it that shocking to ask him to go elsewhere?
There are plenty of other seats, and unlike me, you probably know other people here. There’s no reason to stick with me, a stranger, and talk.
“You really don’t know me?”
“Did you think I was joking? I don’t know you, that’s why I’m saying I don’t.”
The man let out a forced laugh, “Ha.”
“I’m Han Yongsu, from SH Computer.”
At Han Yongsu’s words, I burst out laughing. Surprised by my sudden laughter, Han Yongsu tilted his head before belatedly smiling. His face said, “That’s more like it, you did know me and were just joking, right?” I suppressed my laughter to correct his misunderstanding.
“Why are the people here so funny?”
“What?”
“Everyone introduces themselves by mentioning which company’s child they are. Are your business cards also printed with ‘So-and-so’s son, Kim Gaettong’? Don’t you all have jobs? Are you unemployed? You should introduce yourself, not your father. Are you the CEO of SH Computer?”
At my words, Han Yongsu’s face twisted horribly. He seemed to mutter small curses under his breath.
“Your new personality is a turn-off. Fuck, man. Do I look easy to you just because I tried to talk to you? I felt sorry for you trembling alone, making a scene, and leaving in tears last time, so I tried to be friendly, but fuck. You and I are on different levels, you idiot. Do you think you’re the same as the people here just because you’re in this place? Everyone knows your father got that position by carrying a child in his belly. It’s widely rumored that the Chairman of Hosan Hospital has vowed not to leave a penny of inheritance to your father or you.”
Oh ho, I’m learning new facts here. The lack of inheritance is shocking, but I decided to take comfort in the fact that I had time to divert assets beforehand.
“Are you classifying people by the inheritance they’ll receive? I didn’t know that. So are your parents giving you SH Computer? I don’t know what level you’re talking about, but I can tell that I’m different from the people here. I wondered why this atmosphere never felt familiar. It seems like it’s because everyone’s an idiot. Hey, Han Yongsu. As thanks for the good information, let me tell you something: when you introduce yourself somewhere, leave out the part about whose son you are. It makes you look pathetic. It’s like all you have is your parents.”
“This son of a bitch.”
I gave him advice with good intentions, but Han Yongsu’s face turned red and he spat out curses. I smiled brightly in his face and waved my middle finger at him.
“For someone who claims to be on a different level, your curses sound pretty similar to mine. What a dick, coming over to talk first and then picking a fight. If you have nothing to do, go drink somewhere else. Why are you making someone who was minding their own business feel like shit, you idiot?”
“You fucking bastard.”
Han Yongsu grabbed my collar and shouted. People around us turned to look and murmured, wondering what was happening.
“Being on a different level must be why your behavior is so extreme. Should I become a spectacle today? Want to have a dogfight here? You’re an Alpha, right? Have you ever been beaten by an Omega? Want to experience it today?”
It didn’t seem like a fair fight given the physical difference, but I wouldn’t just take a beating. Even if I got hit ten times, I’d hit back once, and that would be embarrassing enough for him.
When I smiled and asked “What do you want to do?”, Han Yongsu released my collar. He muttered that I was annoying, dusted off his hands, and stood up, looking down at me with a face that seemed like he might spit.
“A guy with no roots really comes and ruins the mood.”
“Ah, I don’t know who approached who with no roots, but I’d appreciate it if you’d get lost.”
As I muttered to myself as if I couldn’t hear anything, the guy looking down at me glared. They say a dog that barks loudly doesn’t bite, and he’s exactly that type. Watching him take his glass and disappear as if avoiding something dirty, I swung my crossed leg back and forth.
Thanks to Han Yongsu’s outburst, the glances directed at me became even more intense. Unlike him, not a single person approached me.
Where did that car company’s son who wanted to talk to me earlier go? As I looked around, people avoided eye contact as if they were afraid to meet my gaze.
Come on, am I going to eat them? Or do they think they’ll catch a disease if they make eye contact with me? The people here are really strange.
My opinion of Father improved slightly as I realized his prediction that this wouldn’t be a normal gathering was correct.
Perhaps due to the loud music and the alcohol I drank, my head felt slightly dizzy. My body felt limp, and I felt hot.
Maybe alcohol doesn’t agree with Cha Sukyung’s body. Like with cigarettes, maybe he’s never drunk alcohol before. I took off the suit jacket I was wearing and flapped my shirt, which was already wet with sweat.
Am I trying to catch a cold? I thought I was fine, but unlike what I thought, maybe going out after being discharged was too much for Cha Sukyung’s body. In any case, it was clear that my current physical condition wasn’t normal.
As soon as I became aware that something was wrong with my body, I felt my condition deteriorating by the minute. What’s happening? This seems a bit dangerous.
Thinking I should drink some water, I stood up from the sofa, but my vision spun. I managed to stand by supporting myself with my hand on the sofa’s backrest.
I need to go home, not get water. I’ll really collapse in an embarrassing way at this rate. They say I left crying from this gathering before, and if I collapse and get carried away this time, some really strange rumors might spread.
If rumors spread because of something I did, that’s one thing, but it would be frustrating if people said I collapsed from shock or something.
Clutching my jacket in my hand, I staggered across the hall. I didn’t have the presence of mind to look for Cha Baekju, who must be somewhere. He didn’t seem likely to help me anyway. In fact, it was more likely he would leave me to collapse and be humiliated. My trust in Cha Baekju was that low.
I hurriedly left the hall. I managed to walk to the door somehow, but the path from the door to the elevator felt like I was almost crawling.
Somehow I managed to reach the elevator. I pressed the button and waited for the elevator to arrive, but whatever the hell they were doing downstairs, the elevator number wasn’t changing.
“Fuck. This is really shitty.”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
