<114> Side Story. 6
Lying back in a large tube, Ja-kyung wore sunglasses and gazed up at the sky. A few clouds floated idly across the vivid blue. The midsummer heat was enough to make one dizzy, and on a day like this, spending time at the pool instead of wandering around wasn't bad at all.
Climbing out of the tube and slipping into the water, he saw Wang Lun and Wang Han approaching from afar. They were carrying a square tray loaded with large sliced watermelon, beer, and juice.
Ja-kyung propped himself on the pool's edge and climbed out. As soon as he sat down, Wang Han picked up a piece of watermelon and offered it.
"Eat. The watermelon is really sweet and ripe."
Ja-kyung shook his head in refusal. Instead, he picked up a refreshing lemonade. Wang Lun, as if showing off, took a big bite of watermelon beside him and went "Mmm" in admiration.
"Sweet as honey."
Ja-kyung frowned. Now Wang Han was making a fuss about him eating watermelon too.
"Why don't you have some? CEO Kang planted tons of them in the backyard just because you like watermelon."
Wang Lun nodded in agreement.
"Exactly. He's a romanticist."
Going on about true love, the two of them giggled and whispered. Sipping lemonade with ice, Ja-kyung blankly watched the watermelon disappear into their mouths. That watermelon was grown in Kang Il-hyun's backyard, where countless corpses were buried.
He had thought Kang Il-hyun's words about burying a lot of people were a joke, but he only realized the truth after accompanying Sangju's wife to pick watermelons and discovering a long bone. Sangju's wife claimed it was an animal bone, but judging by the length and shape, it was definitely a human shinbone.
As his expression increasingly soured, Wang Lun asked why. Ja-kyung shook his head. If you don't know, it's medicine—eat all you want.
Until recently, the three of them would gather and plan who to kill, but lately they were repeating peaceful, even boring daily routines. On top of that, since getting swept up by Wang Lun's instigation and causing an incident a month ago, they were practically under house arrest.
Kang Il-hyun said he suffered quite a loss from that incident, and warned that if they went around doing unnecessary things one more time, he'd tie all three of them up and throw them in the river.
"Boring. Is there nothing to do?"
Lying back on a sunbed, Wang Han muttered to himself. Wang Lun placed his finished watermelon rind on the tray, stood up, and stretched languidly. Then he dove into the pool. Splash—the large man fell into the pool, sending water spraying everywhere. Ja-kyung wiped the water from his face, downed the rest of his juice, and stood up.
Wang Han's gaze followed him upward.
"Where are you going?"
"To the department store."
"Department store?"
Kang Il-hyun's birthday was right around the corner, and since last week, Ja-kyung had been pondering what to give as a birthday gift. Wang Han already knew this.
"Just ask him directly. You have to give what he wants for it to be a real gift, right?"
At those words, Ja-kyung, who was wiping off moisture with a towel, shook his head. If he asked, there was no telling what absurd thing that crazy man would demand. Ja-kyung recalled his own birthday a few months ago. At the time, Kang Il-hyun gave him a painting. He had brought some foreign man to the house, and the man drew Ja-kyung's portrait. It was his first time facing his own face through a painting rather than a mirror, and while unfamiliar, it wasn't unpleasant.
That painting absurdly ended up hanging not in Ja-kyung's room but in Kang Il-hyun's bedroom. Side by side with the Lee Ja-kyung figure. Of course, since they slept together many nights, he could see the painting whenever he opened his eyes. With a portrait hanging on the wall, strangely enough, it felt like he had become something.
One day Kang Yu-jeong came to visit, and she said it was like some kind of fangirling behavior. He also learned that the painter who drew that portrait was quite famous.
"What should I buy that he'd like..."
Even after thinking carefully, he still didn't know. Giving a gift to a man who had everything was certainly no easy task.
***
"You're going to burn a hole through that photo."
Standing in front of the blackboard, Prosecutor Jang gave a faint smile at Administrative Officer Park's words and gazed at Yang Seon-woo's photo for a long time. They had confirmed that Yang Seon-woo, Kang Il-hyun's close associate, had returned from Hong Kong, but for some reason, he had been holed up at Kang Il-hyun's house for nearly a month.
"Yang Seon-woo. Doesn't he look quite familiar?"
At Administrative Officer Park's words, Prosecutor Jang shrugged. Not really.
"Prosecutor Oh stopped by and saw him, said he looks like you, Prosecutor Jang."
She laughed, and Prosecutor Jang made an incredulous expression. In what way?
"The nose and mouth. He even asked me if he was your younger brother."
"...."
Seeing Prosecutor Jang fall silent, she added, "Of course, it was probably a joke," then seemed to realize something and hurriedly apologized.
"I'm sorry. I guess I said something unnecessary."
Prosecutor Jang smiled bitterly.
"It's fine... If he were alive somewhere, he'd be about this age by now."
He looked at Yang Seon-woo's photo again intently. He couldn't tell if they looked alike, but the age was roughly similar. Prosecutor Jang was 9, and his younger brother was 3. He lost his brother at the market before he could barely speak properly.
The tragedy came without warning. It all started when he walked a little further away to soothe his crying younger brother who was throwing a tantrum at their parents' shop. His brother dropped the ball he was holding, and in the very brief moment when he let go to pick it up—
When he picked up the ball and looked up to return it, his brother had vanished completely. Though he was young, he truly understood what it meant for his vision to go white. When he ran frantically to tell his parents the truth, the image of them collapsing to the ground was still vivid to this day.
His parents, who had been running a business at the time, filed a missing person report, closed their livelihood, and combed through every corner of the country like a dragnet. One year passed, five years passed, ten years passed, and in the end, they found nothing, and their tears only accumulated.
Perhaps that was why. Both of them fell ill early and passed away. And Prosecutor Jang could never escape that guilt for his entire life. Even though his late parents never once resented the son they left behind.
His mouth went bitter for no reason as he looked away from the blackboard. Returning to his seat and flipping through documents, Administrative Officer Park's phone rang. Her gaze flew toward Prosecutor Jang. She soon finished the call, and seeing her smile, there seemed to be good news.
"Yang Seon-woo. They say he just came out of the house."
Prosecutor Jang's eyes sparkled.
"Alone?"
"Yes."
Prosecutor Jang picked up his coat and removed the ID hanging around his neck. Putting on thick horn-rimmed glasses for his disguise, he called out to Administrative Officer Park.
"How is it? Does it suit me?"
"You look like a detective."
"That's a relief."
Leaving her smiling, he hurriedly moved. Driving the car parked in the lot, he received reports on Yang Seon-woo's movement route from Administrative Officer Park. Whether by luck or not, it was a department store located not far from the prosecutor's office.
He drove quickly toward the department store, parked, and went up to the floor where Yang Seon-woo was said to be. Fortunately, someone Administrative Officer Park had planted there was waiting. He gave a discreet greeting with his eyes and entered the wristwatch shop.
Upon entering, the staff greeted him. Pretending to look at watches, he lingered around the man named Yang Seon-woo. The man was wearing a red shirt with large flowers on it and black sunglasses that hid his eyes.
Hell of a shirt taste. His appearance was even more splendid than in the photo. Perhaps thinking he was a celebrity, other people nearby kept stealing glances at him. He examined watches for a while, but seemingly finding nothing he liked, he left the shop as is.
Prosecutor Jang immediately followed him. Yang Seon-woo went down to the lower floor and browsed several other shops. Without buying anything, he went round and round, then finally picked out a music box. He took out his wallet, paid in cash, and then called someone.
Following at a leisurely pace, suddenly the man turned and came toward him. Flustered, Prosecutor Jang quickly turned his body and in a fluster grabbed a pair of sunglasses in front of him. Yang Seon-woo's voice grew closer.
"I don't know what to buy. Should have come with hyung."
Hyung? Could it be Kang Il-hyun?
"I just bought two music boxes for my room. But—"
Thud. Prosecutor Jang's body, which had been looking in the mirror, swayed. Yang Seon-woo, who was passing behind while looking into his shopping bag and doing something else, bumped hard into Prosecutor Jang. The shopping bag and cell phone fell to the ground and rolled, and the flustered Prosecutor Jang hardened his expression.
Picking up the fallen shopping bag, Yang Seon-woo lowered his sunglasses to the bridge of his nose.
"I'm sorry..."
He smiled with an awkward face and straightened up. He checked the music box in the shopping bag and gave a short sigh of relief, "Phew," glad it was intact. He apologized once more and continued his phone conversation.
I bumped into someone. It hurts. Yeah, yeah, should I buy sushi? That's fine, right?
Watching the retreating figure, Prosecutor Jang's brows drew together. What the hell. More childish than I thought. Digging deeper probably won't find anything special. Is he really Kang Il-hyun's lover? Or just a plaything? Smiling, he tried to return the sunglasses in his hand to the clerk, when—oh, damn... The sunglasses' temple was bent.
Looking at them in dismay, the clerk continued to stare with a smile still on their face. Prosecutor Jang reluctantly smiled and reached into his coat pocket to find his wallet. Huh? He rummaged through the other pocket just in case, but it was the same.
What the. Why is my wallet...
***
[Where are you, honey?]
Parked by the roadside, a call came from Kang Il-hyun. By now, this "honey" (jagi) sounding term felt like a greeting.
"I came to the department store."
[Why?]
Thinking he'd find out anyway, he confessed honestly.
"To buy someone a birthday gift."
[Me?]
"Yes. But there's nothing suitable. Is there anything you want?"
[I knew you'd ask, so I prepared something in advance. You just need to wear it.]
With an ominous feeling, he frowned and glared at the phone screen.
[It's panties that a lace artisan knitted stitch by stitch with care. They'll suit you very—]
Click. He pressed the end button without listening to the end. Forget the gift, should he stitch Kang Il-hyun's mouth shut one stitch at a time? Even as he thought that, the scary part was that his words might not be a joke. Sighing, he checked the rearview mirror. Confirming no one was tailing him, he took out the wallet tucked in his bosom.
Inside the wallet were just a card and fifty thousand won in cash. He took out the man's ID inside and checked the face. Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, Prosecutor Jang Tae-ho?
Ha, fuck. A fly got stuck to me.
He clicked his tongue and tossed the wallet onto the passenger seat. It seemed better to just go home today.