#Aftermath (2)
Despite feeling the rudeness in the sudden grip on his arm and the informal questioning, the employee averted his gaze from the arrogant and rough-looking man and meekly answered.
“…He’s gone home.”
The employee just threw that response and quickly fled, sensing a strong aura of trouble from the man.
“Fucking timing.”
Kwon Dae-woo, having come up empty-handed, kicked the cafe door as he exited. The clanging noise drew stares from people and irritated looks from employees, but Dae-woo paid no attention.
“Ah, where the fuck do I find this bastard…”
The thought of coming back tomorrow to look for Song Ha-min made him feel suffocated. He was filled with the urge to punch Ha-min’s face and stomp on him mercilessly right then and there.
Finally, with nowhere to go, Dae-woo called his old classmates. He told them he felt like shit and needed a drink, demanding they come out immediately. He had several groups he hung out with, but more than half refused, saying they were laying low because of the report. Fucking cowards. Dae-woo cursed at the scared guys and clicked his tongue in disgust.
The bustling street where the cafe was located was famous for being popular among the younger generation these days. It was in the opposite direction from Dae-woo’s family home, so he rarely came here, but since he was out, he decided to head to a famous lounge bar he had bookmarked, putting on airs about patrolling the area. He had seen it promoted several times as being run by a handsome young male owner. While he had scoffed at comments revealing the owner’s face as pathetic, he liked everything else about it. Because it looked expensive. That was the most important thing for Dae-woo. Looking expensive and classy. If you want to show off, that’s always the first condition.
He called out a few of his old classmates who would crawl out if he just bought them drinks, bypassing his closest friends. They were a group that had tried to get on his good side back in high school when he was at the top. Though he didn’t hang out with them often, considering them parasites who just mooched off him, they were easy to handle.
“I’ve been here before, it’s famous. That male owner. I heard he got famous on social media and even has fans now.”
Some of the guys who had already gathered seemed to know the place Dae-woo had called them to. Dae-woo didn’t care. Feeling like he needed a drink to calm his burning insides, he ordered the five most expensive bottles of alcohol as soon as he sat down in the seat the staff had escorted him to. The staff member narrowed their brows slightly, visibly displeased by the rude behavior, but tried not to show it. Meanwhile, the group acted as if this was normal, not paying any attention and instead getting excited about the five expensive bottles, letting out cheers of “Ooh, awesome!”
“Fans? Like teenage girl fans?”
“You know, the ones who come hoping to hook up with him.”
“Oh, come on. I know the owner’s girlfriend, and she’s fucking gorgeous. Totally out of this world.”
“Is his girlfriend famous too?”
“She’s an Instagram star. Want her ID?”
The classmates huddled together, fiddling with their phones. Dae-woo, not caring either way, just took a picture of the set-up liquor bottles. Then he immediately poured a glass and drank it, casually taking out his phone and tapping the screen. Song Ha-min’s SNS page that he had been looking at for days popped up. The follower count had already increased by over a hundred since this morning. Fuck. Dae-woo’s hand holding the glass shook violently.
“But from what I saw, that male owner seems to know Lee Tae-in too?”
“Lee Tae-in? Ah, the one doing YouTube broadcasts these days?”
“Yeah. He’s super popular, right? Because of his looks.”
“Nah, it’s not just his looks, it’s because he’s loaded.”
“Does he do haul broadcasts?”
“No, not that kind of broadcast, but everything he wears and uses is just fucking expensive. Right, Dae-woo?”
Dae-woo knew that better than anyone.
“I saw that male owner commenting on Lee Tae-in’s Instagram.”
“Wow. Seems like they all know each other.”
“The crazy thing is, that Lee Tae-in is also close with Song Ha-min.”
“Song Ha-min?”
“Yeah, that pig from our school. The one who ran the small store.”
Song Ha-min’s appearance on Lee Tae-in’s broadcast had already spread enough among them to be a topic of conversation. As well as the story of how Dae-woo’s group had taken a hit when they called him out to a gathering after seeing that.
Three or four classmates who brought up Ha-min glanced at Dae-woo, who was just downing drinks, trying to gauge his reaction.
“It’s fucking hilarious. How did Song Ha-min get to know them?”
“From what I saw on the broadcast, they said they’re best friends.”
“Wasn’t that pig a beggar?”
“I guess rich people these days play with beggars too.”
Their loud, giggling chatter drew looks from customers at other tables. Though the gazes seemed to say they were being a nuisance, the group paid no attention.
“But man, it’s crazy how much weight that pig lost, right?”
“Yeah, I was so shocked when I saw the broadcast, I probably wouldn’t have recognized him.”
“Me neither. Fuck, I thought it was someone with the same name.”
They all felt the same. Dae-woo was the only one who recognized him. And that was only possible because Dae-woo had rewatched the same video several times.
“That bastard became a dragon.”
“Well, he did look handsome. Like some kind of trainee.”
“Ah, shit, should we have treated him better?”
“Are you crazy? You still rewatch that video of him doing jumping jacks with his arms spread. Said it was fucking hilarious.”
“Oh right. Should we spread that around?”
“His fat jiggling was so funny.”
Their giggling laughter spread through the bar like a foul odor. Some customers were even leaving their seats, bothered by the group. The bartender and staff keeping watch over the bar were also glaring at them, more or less openly.
“Oh right. Hey Dae-woo, is it true that Song Ha-min was the one who reported you guys?”
One classmate who hadn’t been at the club that night stopped chattering and asked Dae-woo, who was drinking alone. As soon as he heard that, Dae-woo stopped mid-drink and cursed. Then he suddenly stood up, causing everyone in the group to look at him as if asking where he was going.
“Bathroom.”
When Dae-woo announced his business with an irritated face, the group finally waved him off, telling him to go ahead.
It had been a thoroughly unpleasant day. If Song Ha-min had been at that cafe, things might have been a bit better. If he could have seen that surprised face, or that trembling face like before… Even the chatter of his classmates was getting on his nerves. Talk of the impressive male owner, Lee Tae-in, and even Song Ha-min becoming a dragon. It was all so irritating that it felt like his insides were turning over.
“I’ll be back soon.”
The moment he entered the bathroom, a man washing his hands at the sink was on a friendly call with someone. Dae-woo hesitated as soon as he entered, seeing the man’s silhouette at the sink was tall enough to make him wonder if he was a celebrity. Even to another man, he had strikingly handsome features.
The man turned on the sink faucet and talked on the phone tucked between his shoulder and cheek. His gentle and affectionate voice echoed softly.
“It’s just a social obligation. Who knows when we’ll see each other again once I go to America. And our families know each other well.”
The man who had washed his hands neatly pulled out some paper towels and dried them thoroughly. Dae-woo, standing at the urinal, found himself unconsciously scanning the man from head to toe. He immediately recognized that the silk dress shirt the man was wearing cost tens of millions of won. And his face seemed familiar somehow. A face that would be hard to forget once seen… As Dae-woo was furrowing his brow, deep in thought…
“Ha-min, don’t go to sleep early, wait for me.”
At the two syllables of the name called in that gentle, whispering voice, Dae-woo unconsciously misdirected his stream. Ah, fuck. With it getting on his fingertips, Dae-woo clicked his tongue in annoyance. Even the name from this stranger’s mouth was Ha-min. Though it was a common name, it felt like it had been tormenting him all day today.
As Dae-woo zipped up and headed to the sink, the man who had finished his call was standing by the entrance, staring at him intently. Dae-woo’s face automatically scrunched up at the obvious gaze. Just as he was about to say “What are you looking at?”, one of his group members entered the bathroom.
“Hey Dae-woo, I heard you went looking for Song Ha-min today?”
He asked with a face full of interest, apparently having heard it from another classmate. The group member went straight to the urinal and unzipped his pants. Dae-woo turned on the sink faucet and answered casually.
“Yeah.”
“So how did it go?”
“Came up empty. They said he’d gone home.”
“Ah, that’s too bad. I thought we might hear a good story.”
“I’m going back tomorrow.”
“Wow. What are you going to do?”
At the question asking for details of his plan, Dae-woo let out a snicker.
“What else? I’m going to fuck him up.”
“Hey, we’re not high schoolers anymore. You can’t just do things like we did at school, it’ll be big trouble.”
“Bullshit. What’s he gonna do? That fucking coward who couldn’t even make a peep back then has gotten cocky just because we haven’t seen him for a few years.”
Dae-woo continued with a derisive sneer, as if it was laughable.
“I need to kill that cockiness first. Not knowing his place. The bastard who used to lick my boots.”
Dae-woo turned off the sink faucet with a sardonic smile. The water stopped with a drip. And his gaze unconsciously turned towards the entrance. The man who had been standing there watching him earlier was already gone. What was with that guy? Feeling somehow uneasy, Dae-woo pulled out some paper towels irritably.
“But from what I heard, he apparently has all the pictures of when he got beaten up back then.”
“Who cares? It’s been years. Even if he tries to sue, we’d win anyway.”
“I didn’t think he had it in him, but he seems to have a vindictive side.”
“Bullshit, vindictive my ass. He was shaking like a leaf that day too. The little pissant.”
“But I heard he knocked you out with a drink once.”
“Ah shit, which bastard is spreading that around?”
It was a shameful story for Dae-woo. Getting hit with a drink by the outcast he used to drag around like a punching bag was as humiliating as being questioned at the police station. He should have just grabbed him and half-killed him back then. Regretting it more as he thought about it, Dae-woo chewed on his lower lip. With raised eyebrows and an angry face.
His companion, having finished his business, shook his hands dry and approached the sink.
“Hey, the rumor’s all over. That you got knocked out by the outcast.”
“You fucking… Which son of a bitch is saying that?!”
Dae-woo burst out angrily, his veins popping. Seeing his sharp reaction, the other person shrank back for a moment and lowered his voice.
“Well… you know. There were quite a few people there that day…”
“Those fucking bastards running their mouths. Tell them if I hear that shit one more time, they’re dead.”
Seemingly having hit a nerve, Dae-woo cursed mercilessly. The other person quietly nodded. Knowing well that nothing good would come from provoking Dae-woo’s temper, he changed the subject on his own.
“So what are you going to do?”
“About what?”
“Song Ha-min.”
“What else? I’ll do the same thing to him this time.”
“The same?”
“Yeah.”
Dae-woo smiled meaningfully as he answered.
“If I do the same thing to him, he’ll probably off himself like last time.”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
