#101
Lee Gyo-ha was somewhat stubborn. Actually, not just somewhat, but very stubborn…
Whether it was because of his childhood where he could easily get whatever he wanted, or because the ambitious BK Group bloodline had manifested in him later in life, he wouldn’t be satisfied until he achieved anything he set his mind to.
As a result of that stubbornness, Hwi-kyung had to go through fourteen iterations, try a new job as a housekeeper, and eventually move into Gyo-ha’s studio apartment.
But marriage? That was a different matter entirely. Another forced regression might be more likely than two men getting married. South Korea hadn’t even legalized same-sex marriage yet!
From the beginning, Hwi-kyung had no intention of making such a major life decision as marriage hastily. Whether same-sex marriage was possible or not, Hwi-kyung firmly believed that marriage registration should be approached with caution.
His mother, Ji-ae, had suffered so much from making one bad marriage. Thinking about his parents who lived worse than strangers before divorcing, the very idea of becoming someone’s spouse was a huge burden for Hwi-kyung.
But unlike Hwi-kyung, who would tap a stone bridge twenty times before crossing it, Gyo-ha would stride confidently across even a shaky bridge. Hwi-kyung had a hard time calming Gyo-ha down when he suggested they go to America right away to register their marriage.
Hwi-kyung held Gyo-ha’s hand firmly, as if teaching a seven-year-old child.
“Making impulsive decisions about major life events is not a good habit.”
“But…”
“No buts. You said you were going to work at BK Entertainment. Do you think Lee Jung-hye would just sit back and watch if you suddenly went to America to marry a man?”
“That’s true.”
“Don’t propose thoughtlessly like a grown adult. Unless you settle down stably, finish graduate school, and bring an apartment in Seoul as a wedding gift…”
“If I do, will you accept?”
“I’ll think about it when the time comes.”
Hwi-kyung had come to understand Gyo-ha’s pattern somewhat. When he spoke like this, Gyo-ha would misinterpret it as “permission.” Viewed negatively, it was truly an annoying personality; viewed positively, it was an optimistic attitude that avoided taking offense.
Gyo-ha happily accepted the half-gloves, saying he would use them well, and suddenly pulled Hwi-kyung into a tight hug. He was so strong that Hwi-kyung felt like prey caught by a boa constrictor. Every point where their skin touched felt burning hot.
“Stop, ugh, hugging me like this. How would it look to others?”
“Who’s here to see us? Even Marcia left early.”
“…Are the gloves really that special to you? You asked me to buy them.”
“Yes. They’re so precious I probably won’t be able to wear them often.”
“…”
“I’d be afraid of wearing them out. It’s the first gift I’ve received from you. I should cherish it.”
Despite having so much wealth that he needn’t be attached to such gloves. Even if Hwi-kyung sold all his possessions and did short-term stock trading for a few more months, he couldn’t obtain even a quarter of Gyo-ha’s private assets. Yet Gyo-ha was genuinely happy about the half-gloves Hwi-kyung gave him.
“Just use them normally. If they wear out, I’ll buy you new ones.”
“Really?”
“I’m not so poor that I can’t afford to buy something like that.”
After carefully trying on the half-gloves, Gyo-ha seemed to be in a good mood for the rest of the time. Though he didn’t look it on the outside, he had an openly foolish quality. Hwi-kyung now found Gyo-ha’s silly expressions endearing.
If pressed, Hwi-kyung’s ideal type was someone quiet and passive. Someone who, like himself, worked silently and whose emotions weren’t clearly displayed. That kind of personality matched well with him.
However, Gyo-ha was far from quiet, and far from passive—he was excessively proactive. At work, he simply didn’t do anything, and his emotions were more clearly displayed than anyone’s. Normally, Hwi-kyung and Gyo-ha wouldn’t just be incompatible—they’d be polar opposites.
So how did they become this close? Hwi-kyung looked down at his own hand for no reason. Because of the thread he had entwined to try to remove the system window, a faint mark remained on his right hand where the thread had bound it.
Perhaps he had gone round and round through all those years just to meet him.
Just as there is no such thing as a “good place,” a “good person” might also be an illusion, but sometimes people need that illusion.
The belief that you’re helping someone, the misconception that you’re special… the hope that you can save each other. Such things maintained the stability of this precarious world.
Dying is easy, but living is difficult. To accomplish that difficult task, to survive in a world that falls short of adequate conditions, people needed other people.
Gyo-ha buried his head in the crook of Hwi-kyung’s neck. There was a distinct, tangible presence. It felt too vivid to be the pulse of someone who had died and come back to life countless times.
“You won’t die, right?”
It was a question with just a slight trace of fear remaining. I’ve granted your wish, so will you now live beside me, ordinary and boring? Will you never again hang a wire from a lampshade to hang yourself, never again beg to be killed…
Now Hwi-kyung had to pay the price for the wish. In front of a fellow human afraid of not hearing the desired answer, the human speaks.
“Let’s live together.”
Since the time when tigers quit smoking and lived peacefully with bears, wishes and vows have existed. People wished for things they couldn’t achieve, and exchanged vows to protect each other.
But not everything flowed perfectly. Entities that granted wishes never moved without a price, and proportionate tragedy followed easy achievement. People were harmed by those who broke their vows, and eventually, people stopped trusting others easily.
It’s impossible for imperfect things to create a perfect world. Everyone wants a good place and a good person. But what one desperately wishes for usually doesn’t come true. Hell is closer than heaven, and there are more villains than good people.
That’s why people always needed someone to be with them. People far from omnipotence pay the price of wishes for others and somehow fulfill wishes that even gods couldn’t grant. It was truly a strange thing.
“Let’s just live… normally, like that… for a long time.”
Hwi-kyung, who could finally die, tells Gyo-ha to live together. This was what Gyo-ha had said to Hwi-kyung. Let’s live together. Those words had come full circle back to Gyo-ha.
“I’ll continue to be by your side from now on…”
Now it was Jung Hwi-kyung’s turn to make a “vow” to Lee Gyo-ha. Over a trivial and insignificant confession, his vow staking everything was made.
The vow between the two that had continued from long ago tied a new knot without either of them knowing.
* * *
The training for new BK Entertainment employees was conducted offline on weekends. Since employees had to invest their precious weekends rather than weekdays, there were occasional grumbles among the staff, but this particular orientation was difficult to skip even for those who weren’t new employees.
This new employee orientation was a bit more special than usual. After all, the third son of the BK Group had joined as the operations team leader. Though no one said it openly, everyone was quietly concerned about this parachute appointment.
BK Entertainment employees with some years of experience had already dealt with the “Lee Sung-ha” nuclear bomb. Those who followed economic news even slightly knew that among the three siblings of the BK Group, only Lee Jung-hye was competent.
How many employees would be happy that the youngest sibling, who had supposedly fled to America early on, had finally returned to Korea and parachuted into their company? While those involved in power struggles at the top might have different feelings, regular employees weren’t exactly pleased.
“Ah, let’s hurry up the revolution. Korea is a caste system in a different sense.”
“Deputy Lee, please keep it down.”
“Honestly, Manager Kim, aren’t you a bit upset too? Just because he’s the youngest son of a chaebol family? It’s annoying.”
“But I heard he’s more decent compared to Lee Sung-ha? And he’s good-looking too.”
“Lee Sung-ha was also decent-looking. I’m sure they’re all handsome! The problem is their ugly hearts!”
People can even criticize the king behind closed doors. Deputy Lee and Manager Kim, who were moving beverage boxes in preparation for the orientation training, had been whispering about the parachute appointment for quite some time.
“But why a team leader position? Don’t they usually come in as a managing director or something?”
“That’s what I don’t understand. It seems like he wants to be involved in actual operations. Didn’t they say the youngest has no interest in management rights?”
“Yeah right, that’s just talk. If he really had no interest in management rights, he would have stayed in America. Why would he come to Korea if he had no ambition?”
“That’s true.”
“This all implies a sibling rivalry… Oh!”
“I have no ambition, but I came to Korea anyway.”
Deputy Lee, thinking Manager Kim was behind him, had been passing a beverage box while chattering, but he shut his mouth when he looked up to see Gyo-ha. Gyo-ha picked up another box with a very friendly expression.
“Is this all that needs to be moved? It looked like too many boxes for just two people, so I came to help.”
“Huh? Yes…”
“I’ll finish moving these, so why don’t you two go and rest?”
Deputy Lee and Manager Kim walked toward the accommodation, dumbfounded. Though they both appeared stunned on the outside, thunder and lightning were striking in their minds.
“Deputy Lee, what do we do? We’re in big trouble, right?”
“Don’t even mention it, Manager Kim… We’re doomed.”
They had been caught badmouthing not just any superior, but the youngest son who was said to be the chairman’s favorite, so they would surely get an earful sooner or later. It would be better to be scolded or criticized outright; just letting it slide would leave them feeling uneasy.
“…Should we resign?”
While the two employees were anxiously wondering how their company lives would be ruined, Gyo-ha was humming a tune as he moved the beverage boxes without a care in the world. With comfortable thoughts like: Ah, I need to set aside some of those ion drinks that Hwi-kyung likes…
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
