#54
“…It’s scratched.”
The man’s eyes narrowed as he examined the wound on Ha-min’s palm. Ha-min stared at him blankly, at a loss for words.
His elegant fingers gently stroked the wound on Ha-min’s palm.
“Does it hurt?”
He asked softly. With that single question, Ha-min’s Adam’s apple bobbed. His held breath released, and his suppressed emotions began to boil. It was something only hyung could do for him. Ha-min took a breath and calmly shook his head. Seeing his composed head shake, Tae-rim let out a deep breath. He stared at Ha-min intently for a moment before helping him up with an exaggerated “oof” sound. Then he showed his caring side by dusting off Ha-min’s dirty hands and knees.
“What’s this?”
Cha Jun-seong, who had been watching this scene, spat out with a twisted expression. Then, as he recognized Tae-rim’s face, Jun-seong’s expression gradually changed to one of surprise.
“Huh…?”
“Ha-min.”
Tae-rim cut off Jun-seong’s words as he was about to greet him, and smiled gently at Ha-min.
“Will you wait in the car?”
His voice was soft but clearly suppressed. Ha-min hesitated with an awkward expression. Jun-seong’s face crumpled in displeasure at having his greeting ignored in this subtle atmosphere.
“You must be really close to him.”
Drunk as he was, he babbled without realizing who he was talking to. As he pointed at Ha-min with a sneering tone, a dry, withered light flashed in Tae-rim’s unsmiling eyes.
“Sunbae-nim, there’s nothing good about getting involved with that bastard.”
“…”
“He’s so fucking-”
“Hey, you son of a-”
Tae-rim briefly gritted his teeth at the snickering mockery. As if finding the nonsense ridiculous and absurd, he let out an eerie chuckle he had been holding back and spat out words with a raw, fishy voice.
“You, shut your mouth.”
A vicious light that seemed to have been held back flashed in his eyes. It didn’t bode well.
**
Tae-rim unfastened the watch on his wrist.
The clear metallic sound of it coming undone rang out.
“Urgh.”
After dragging Cha Jun-seong to a deserted alley, Tae-rim took off his watch and put a cigarette in his mouth. Jun-seong, who had been suddenly grabbed by the collar and dragged here, blinked as if he still didn’t understand the situation.
Ha-min, unable to hide his bewilderment at Tae-rim’s appearance, acted like a lost child, not knowing what to do. His body, which had remained still even when hearing strange curses and abuse, trembled finely, but ironically, his eyes looked terribly composed. Although he was flustered to see Tae-rim, his calm eyes showed neither shock nor anger, just a terribly bland expression.
After reassuring the flustered Ha-min with a brief word that he would just talk for a moment and sending him to the car, Tae-rim grabbed the drunk and senseless Jun-seong and dragged him into a less visible part of the alley, throwing him down. Tae-rim lifted his head slightly to check the streetlight. He seemed to be roughly checking for CCTVs.
“What are you… This is assault, you know?!”
Jun-seong, who had been suddenly grabbed by the collar and dragged here, couldn’t hide his bewildered face as he shouted. Tae-rim, exhaling cigarette smoke, looked down at Jun-seong calmly.
“I have something I want to ask.”
Tae-rim quietly opened his mouth. Jun-seong looked up at him with a startled face at the calm voice coming from someone who had just grabbed him by the collar and dragged him here. Although he had come out with drunken bravado, he was quite intimidated by the unusually cold gaze looking down at him.
“What do you want to ask…”
“Who did you call a whore?”
He asked with a plain gaze. Jun-seong was rather taken aback by the nonchalant question.
“W-who else, that guy from earl- Ugh!!!”
As Jun-seong stammered, moving his buttocks back due to the strange pressure, a kick flew at him without hesitation. Tae-rim, who had suddenly struck Jun-seong’s abdomen, looked at him as if nothing had happened. His eyes, showing no agitation for someone who had just kicked another person, were chilling. Jun-seong clutched his stomach and coughed dryly. He trembled as if about to faint from the beating, something he had never experienced in his life.
“I asked who you called a whore.”
After exhaling another puff of cigarette smoke, he tapped Jun-seong’s face, twisted in shock, with the toe of his shoe. Jun-seong looked up with bloodshot eyes, coughing dryly from the sudden kick.
“F-fuck, what are you doing!”
“……”
“I’ll call the police! You’re dead, I’ll sue you- Urgh!!!”
Ignoring his angry words, another kick struck Jun-seong’s face. The unhesitating action was skillful and familiar. Jun-seong, whose lip had split from the precise hit to his face, clutched his face with a whimpering expression. When he looked at Lee Tae-rim with a face mixed with fear and resentment, Tae-rim’s face was expressionless to the point of being vicious. Suddenly, a smooth smile appeared on that expressionless face.
“Sue me? Sure.”
“……”
“Great. I have lots of lawyers.”
Jun-seong hesitated at the calm, even brazen response. The smiling face that seemed genuinely pleased sent chills down his spine, leaving him speechless.
“And I have a lot of money too.”
He smiled and bent his knee to match the eye level of Jun-seong, who was sprawled on the ground. The cigarette was still half left. After taking another drag, Tae-rim grabbed Jun-seong’s hair with his free hand. Yanking it back sharply, Tae-rim stared at his stupid face and threw Jun-seong’s words right back at him.
“So.”
“……”
“Making your school life difficult is nothing to me.”
Jun-seong’s face hardened even more at the chilling threat. The words he had spoken earlier came right back at him. At the same time, Tae-rim’s grip on his hair tightened. Jun-seong gritted his teeth with a “kut” sound at the intensity that felt like his scalp was being torn off. The calm eyes examined Jun-seong’s face, twisting in pain, as if appreciating it, chewing each word.
“Shall I do that for you?”
He had come thinking he might play the knight after hearing he was hurt… but he never imagined he’d end up getting beaten.
Tae-rim’s calm brow furrowed as much as it could. Ha-min’s indifferent eyes were etched in his mind.
Fuck, this is annoying. He clicked his tongue heavily and released Jun-seong’s hair as if throwing it away. With that force, Jun-seong’s head hit the filthy ground, and he looked up at Tae-rim with bloodshot eyes, panting heavily.
“W-what did I do…”
“……”
“Fuck… Even if I acted up, it was to that bastard.”
“……”
“Who are you to get involved-!!”
Feeling wronged no matter how he thought about it, Jun-seong made a last desperate attempt while trembling. Tae-rim, who had nearly finished his cigarette, smirked at the desperate outcry. Angered by the smirk, Jun-seong glared and talked back.
Ah… Tae-rim sighed at the shout and covered one ear as if it was noisy. Just as Jun-seong’s face twisted viciously, even more heated by Tae-rim’s elegant behavior.
Sizzle.
“Argh!!!!”
The red ember that had reached the filter was pressed into Jun-seong’s left cheek. The smell of burning flesh mixed with the garbage stench.
A scream of pain from being burned by the cigarette echoed through the dirty alley. As soon as the ember touched him, Jun-seong’s eyes widened and he grabbed Tae-rim’s wrist, but Tae-rim ignored him and pressed even deeper.
Soon after, when the fire on the skin went out, he calmly dropped the cigarette butt on the ground. Jun-seong’s arm fell limply, as if he had fainted from the shock he had never experienced before. Looking down at the upper body that fell to the ground lifelessly like a protein doll, Tae-rim muttered irritably.
“Why do I have to deal with things like this…”
Tae-rim stroked his mouth as if genuinely worried and kicked Jun-seong’s face, who was already unconscious. He briefly considered just pushing his face away, but changed his mind remembering that Ha-min was waiting. Although an unpleasant feeling enveloped his whole body, Tae-rim swallowed it down and started walking.
**
When Tae-rim returned to the car, Ha-min was sitting quietly with his hands clasped, head bowed. As soon as he got into the driver’s seat, Ha-min looked flustered and seemed to have many questions. Seeing his face wavering in confusion, Tae-rim smiled gently, and Ha-min’s anxiously flickering eyes gradually calmed.
Tae-rim put his watch back on, grabbed the steering wheel, and started the engine. Ha-min, stealing glances at Tae-rim’s profile, cautiously opened his mouth.
“What… did you talk about?”
It was an innocently light question, as if he really thought they had just had a casual conversation. He couldn’t meet Tae-rim’s eyes, seemingly embarrassed and ashamed of the situation.
“I reasoned with him nicely.”
Tae-rim replied calmly while driving, looking straight ahead. At his peaceful words, Ha-min let out a small sigh of relief, as if thinking that was fortunate. At that sound, Tae-rim let out a faint laugh. Ha-min’s innocence, bordering on naivety, was both cute and pitiful. Then suddenly, an unexpected sound was heard.
“I’m sorry.”
Tae-rim glanced over as if to ask what he meant, at the words uttered with Ha-min’s head deeply bowed.
“For… showing you something strange.”
“…”
“He didn’t say anything weird to you, did he…?”
“……”
“I think he had some misunderstanding… So he just…”
What misunderstanding.
What Tae-rim saw was intense inferiority and malicious violence.
He didn’t seem to feel wronged by what had happened to him, only worried about Tae-rim’s reaction. He looked concerned that Tae-rim might have been harmed. And he had been fiddling with the old watch on his left wrist since earlier.
“Is this your first time?”
Tae-rim asked a different question. It wasn’t an answer to Ha-min’s question, but a different one. Ha-min blinked as if to ask what he meant, then realized and let out a short “Ah.”
