Seung-kwon seemed to have misunderstood something seriously. Murder, perhaps, or self-harm. There was no time to figure out what thoughts had led him to such concerns.
“Am I crazy?”
Jae-young, who had maintained silence for a while, said irritably. Only then did Seung-kwon cautiously release his hand. Giving Seung-kwon a glare, Jae-young entered his room.
“…Hey.”
“Shut up. I’m busy.”
He couldn’t calm the murderous impulse rising in his heart. There was no response after that.
Without hesitation, Jae-young searched under the bed. He took out a box that had been placed under the bed and opened it. Even as he tore at his hair, he placed the silicone dildo that he had carefully stored on the floor. Jae-young took the kitchen knife and hacked away at the dildo.
“…Did you sleep with Sa Gong-hyun?”
Seung-kwon, who had been quietly observing Jae-young, spoke in a heavy voice. Jae-young, who had been continuing to hack at the dildo without responding, suddenly threw the kitchen knife.
Breathing heavily while fuming, Jae-young caught his breath. He stared blankly at the mangled dildo. He heard what sounded like footsteps approaching from behind.
“Yeah, I slept with him.”
“…”
The footsteps that had been making soft sounds stopped.
“I slept with him but didn’t even get to see the house.”
“…”
“I let that bastard fuck me until my rear hole tore, but that son of a bitch just ate and ran.”
“…”
Jae-young’s shoulders heaved intermittently as he inhaled and exhaled deeply. Jae-young slowly turned his head to look at Seung-kwon.
Jae-young’s eyes were wide open. His eyes were red, as if he had been holding back tears for who knows how long. Seung-kwon quietly gazed at Jae-young with a speechless face.
He was furious. More angry than sad. It hurt so much that it was infuriating, and he was outraged that all that effort was worth nothing more than a measly two million won to that bastard.
He hadn’t even expected to see Sa Gong-hyun’s face when he woke up and opened his eyes. But if he had at least left a business card, his anger wouldn’t have surged like this.
That’s what the money meant—this is as far as it goes. Knowing that meaning made each limping step so infuriating.
“Jae-young-ah.”
Seung-kwon, who had been moving his lips several times, insensitively brought out his voice. Strangely, after speaking about the incident out loud, his anger subsided a bit. Jae-young slowly got up.
“Just wait and see. I’ll soon make that gay bastard shed tears of blood.”
With that, he took off the miserable man’s hoodie. After heaving a deep sigh, he passed by Seung-kwon and turned on the bathroom light.
“Want me to wash you?”
“Are you crazy? Stop being annoying and just leave. I’ll shower, take a short nap, and go back. That place doesn’t even have a bathtub, and the bed is cheap and uncomfortable.”
“Lie down. I’ll draw the water for you.”
“I’m not an invalid. I can do it myself.”
Despite repeatedly chewing on his irritation, Seung-kwon still entered the bathroom. Jae-young, who had been carefully observing Seung-kwon’s actions, walked to the bed.
He pulled back the blanket and burrowed inside. He laid his body down comfortably. His heavy eyelids soon covered his pupils.
“Jae-young-ah, is your bottom okay?”
“How could it be okay? Wake me up when the water is ready. I’m sleepy.”
If he weren’t a business partner, this would be a secret he’d carry to his grave. Jae-young grumbled to himself and quickly fell asleep.
When he opened his eyes, it was after he had slept deeply until dawn. By the time he calculated how many hours he had slept, he saw Seung-kwon lying next to him with his eyes closed.
Ah, I really hate having someone next to me when I sleep. Now that his senses had returned, he added a complaint.
As he got up, Seung-kwon lifted his eyelids. Silently rising, Seung-kwon soon entered the bathroom attached to the room and checked the water temperature in the bathtub.
“It’s still hot. Take off your clothes and get in.”
It seemed like whenever the water cooled, he had emptied the bathtub and refilled it. Jae-young looked at Seung-kwon with disapproval but still took off his pants.
***
In the morning, according to the fake Do Jae-young’s setting, he wandered around the university campus.
In fact, there was no real need to go in and out, but in case someone was following him, he decided to consistently “clock in” for the time being.
Since he was a fourth-year student who needed to prepare for employment anyway, he only needed to come and go about twice a week, so this level of inconvenience was no problem.
He entered any crowded lecture hall, sat in on classes, but soon grew bored and left. After coming out, he sat on a bench inside the campus and spent the boring time. Occasionally, a sharp pain rose from his lower body, but it wasn’t enough to interfere with walking.
Jae-young blinked his eyes meaninglessly while keeping his hands in his outer coat pockets. He had no interest in watching people, but there was nothing else to do.
Everyone’s face was bright, as if they were all so excited about something. They laughed unnecessarily, ran around unnecessarily. They hung out in groups unnecessarily and chattered unnecessarily.
Ah, how annoying. Jae-young, who had roughly rolled his foot to kick the bare ground, let out a long sigh. It was an action intended to soothe his noisy insides, but in reality, it wasn’t much use.
“…So noisy.”
He revealed his complaints as he pleased. Jae-young put Bluetooth earphones in his ears and closed his eyes.
The wind tousled his stiff hair at will. The paper shopping bag containing Sa Gong-hyun’s hoodie swayed listlessly.
Around sunset, he reported to the club. Unlike before, he didn’t go inside but stationed himself near the entrance.
Since it was a place secretly managed by Sebin, he thought the news might somehow reach his ears—that some man had been hanging around outside the club for days.
Jae-young, who had been watching people’s movements while leaning against the wall, hunched down.
The sun, which had been tilted at an angle, had already gone beyond the horizon. The neon signs on storefronts began to light up one by one, and the streets were bustling with passing people.
He couldn’t tell how many days it had been already. Waiting for someone indefinitely was always frustrating. Yet Jae-young stubbornly kept his position.
It was while he was sitting aimlessly, holding a shopping bag. Suddenly, a brown loafer approached Jae-young. It was a cheap-looking shoe. Not something that would suit Sa Gong-hyun.
Despite knowing this, Jae-young hurriedly stood up as if mistaking the person for someone he was waiting for. The stranger could possibly be Sa Gong-hyun’s subordinate, so he needed to be mindful of every small action.
“Hyun-ssi…?”
He made sure not to forget showing a disappointed expression after confirming it wasn’t the person he was looking for. The man standing in front of Jae-young was, of course, an unfamiliar face.
Jae-young lowered his head with a dejected expression. As he was lowering his head, he suddenly realized something.
I’ve seen this face somewhere. It was the eye level of a steep slope he’d experienced once before. Unconsciously squinting one eye, Jae-young raised his head again.
“You remember me, right?”
His face wrinkled mercilessly.
“I’m the one who threatened to crush your dick.”
Ah, that fucking 14cm. Whether it was 14cm or 14mm, he was now disgusted by anything related to dicks. Instead of showing his annoyance, Jae-young displayed a perplexed look. If a disturbance occurred here, there would be no greater disaster.
“I think you’ve mistaken me for someone else.”
I should have kept my temper in check. A belated regret arose. Jae-young looked around and stepped aside. Although it was only 11 o’clock, it would be better to withdraw if the situation seemed to become awkward.
“Wait a moment. Who are you waiting for today too?”
“Let go.”
Just as he was trying to leave the spot discreetly, his wrist was caught. Reflexively twisting his hand free, Jae-young stepped back. The man frowned and took a step closer.
It seemed like the dispute would continue for quite a while. He needed to leave this place first, anticipating that the man might persistently hold onto him without any dignity.
Jae-young hurriedly turned his back to the man. His steps, which were about to extend without delay, were instantly bound.
It wasn’t because the man grabbed his shoulder. It was because he spotted Sa Gong-hyun not many steps away.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
