<31>
Ja-kyung, cigarette in his mouth, swallowed a curse as he looked at the error message on his laptop. The glasses had fallen into water and been damaged, making the camera unusable. The files inside were all gone too.
"And I paid a fortune for this..."
He tossed the laptop and glasses aside and stood up. Walking to the window, he looked outside. The pouring rain had quickly stopped, and the swimming pool where he'd been sitting with Kang Il-hyun just a while ago was now empty. Whether the staff had cleaned up, both the drinks and snacks had disappeared.
Finishing his cigarette, he recalled Choi Ki-tae's father's face. It matched exactly with the man in his memory. Seeing how the man had lived well all this time, it seemed that doing bad things didn't necessarily mean receiving punishment.
After a small sigh, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a crumpled business card. He'd received it from Choi Ki-tae before, and after Kang Il-hyun threw it on the ground, he'd picked it up again the next day and kept it. The card had no name, only a contact number written on it. After some deliberation, he picked up his phone and sent a message.
[Hello. This is Jang Ian. Are you busy?]
Waiting for a reply, he leaned against the windowsill and looked outside. He could see a car approaching in the distance. Who could it be at this hour? The car stopped in front of the main gate. He was curious who it was, but from his current position, it was difficult to see clearly. He decided to just go outside.
As he came down the stairs, an unfamiliar woman walked in through the entrance. She wore a neat dress with her hair pinned up, and she was quite a striking beauty. Her figure had nice curves too—if he'd seen her on the street, she was someone he would've turned around to look at.
Park Tae-su, who was in the living room, guided her inside. Stretching his neck to see, it looked like she was heading to Kang Il-hyun's room. Sang-ju's wife, who had been in the kitchen, came over and started looking too, startling him into acting casual.
"What are you looking at like that?"
"Oh... nothing. Someone I haven't seen at the house appeared..."
"She's Managing Director's teacher."
"Teacher?"
"He's been learning Spanish lately."
Ah, I see. If it was Spanish, Ja-kyung could manage somewhat. Wang Han had praised him, saying his language acquisition ability was excellent compared to others.
"The teacher is quite beautiful."
"Managing Director always likes beautiful things. Whether people or objects."
Ja-kyung smiled awkwardly. There's no one in the world who dislikes beautiful things. But Ja-kyung's beauty was connected to money. The standard changed depending on whether something made money or not. It was something people would openly mock as being shallow if they heard it, but he didn't care.
"I'll go upstairs. Rest well."
After greeting Sang-ju's wife, Ja-kyung moved to the second floor. As he climbed three or four steps, he heard laughter coming from Kang Il-hyun's room.
[I wish someone would comfort me.]
He put unnecessary force into his eyes. Halfway up the stairs, the phone in his pocket rang. Only three people knew this number so far. Kang Seok-ju, Kang Il-hyun, and Choi Ki-tae, whom he'd messaged 30 minutes ago.
Choi Ki-tae's phone number appeared as the caller. He hurriedly climbed the stairs to the second floor. Pressing the answer button, he brought it to his ear.
"This is Jang Ian."
[Wow, it was real.]
His voice was bright, unlike someone who had just held his younger brother's funeral today.
[What's going on? Contacting me like this.]
"Just... I felt like I couldn't properly say goodbye earlier."
[I didn't expect you to contact me, but it feels good. Did you perhaps want to comfort me?]
He asked with a strange nuance. Why were there so many people talking about comfort today? Ja-kyung's eyes moved around. Right now, he needed to get close to Choi Ki-tae. Entering the bedroom and closing the door, he lowered his voice.
"It's not that... is what you mentioned earlier still valid?"
[What thing?]
"About selling it cheap."
[Drugs? Or... something else?]
At the explicit question, Ja-kyung answered immediately.
"I'd like to talk about that... in person."
[Haha. You keep surprising me today.]
"But please keep it a secret from Seok-ju or anyone else. If it gets known at the house, I'll be in trouble..."
He answered that he understood. He said they'd meet soon, and ended the call without mentioning the exact place and time. Ja-kyung rubbed his cheek with a tired expression. Choi Ki-tae's voice coming through the receiver had been too favorable.
Sitting on the bed, he looked out the window. The dark clouds had cleared, and before he knew it, the moon was hanging in the middle of the window. It was a picture-like scene. He lay down to sleep, but his mind was clear and sleep wouldn't come. After tossing and turning for a while, he heard the sound of a car outside. It seemed Kang Il-hyun's Spanish teacher was leaving.
***
His eyes opened earlier than expected, even though he hadn't slept properly. Wondering what to do, Ja-kyung went out to the lawn and exercised lightly. He wanted to run outside the house, but the guard stopped him, saying it was early and he couldn't go alone. The yard was spacious enough that he felt somewhat in the mood to run.
The dog that had attacked Ja-kyung before also came out for a morning walk with the guard. He was wary in case it attacked again, but unexpectedly, the beast behaved calmly.
Coming back inside, Ja-kyung showered and chose comfortable clothes to wear. Leaving behind the damaged black glasses, he wore round silver-framed ones. The shape was much better than the black ones, and they suited Ja-kyung well. Going downstairs, he exchanged greetings with the staff he met.
After about ten days, living here had become quite familiar. Going to the dining table, bread and salad were set out. Sang-ju's wife handed him juice she'd freshly squeezed, and Kang Il-hyun approached. In front of Ja-kyung, the coffee he would drink was placed.
Unlike Ja-kyung who slept in, he woke up at dawn, exercised, and always ate Korean food. Then he'd come out for coffee when Ja-kyung got up late for his meal.
[Good morning.]
He greeted in Spanish, then pulled out a chair and sat across from Ja-kyung. Ja-kyung made eye contact and bowed his head slightly.
"Good morning."
Sang-ju's wife smiled as she brought him water.
"Yesterday's lesson must have been fun?"
"Yes, it was enjoyable. Unlike someone, he didn't ignore me."
Knowing it was about him, Ja-kyung ignored it and focused only on his meal. As he tore bread and drank the juice Sang-ju's wife had made, Kang Il-hyun chattered in Spanish.
[Ian. Today, can I spread your ass and put my dick in?]
He spat the juice he'd been holding in his mouth back into the cup. Frowning, he saw Kang Il-hyun looking at him with a beaming smile. Ja-kyung's eyes sharpened.
[If you look at me with those eyes, I think I'll die.]
When he made a stern face telling him not to, Sang-ju's wife, not knowing the meaning, laughed and joined in.
"My goodness. You've really improved a lot. What does that mean?"
"Ask Ian directly."
Ja-kyung wiped the juice from his lips with a napkin.
"I'm sorry. I don't know Spanish..."
As soon as the words ended, he rattled off a stream of words as if he'd been waiting—fuck, it was all dirty talk. If you suck my dick, I'd be really happy, I've never seen someone as beautiful as you, your ass is lovely enough to bite.
More and more force went into the hand holding the fork. I want to kill him. I really want to kill him. I earnestly want to kill him. Not knowing that his insides were boiling, Sang-ju's wife spared no praise, saying Il-hyun had talent for language since childhood.
Indeed, seeing how he could piss off Ja-kyung, who usually didn't get agitated easily, with just his tongue, it was clear he had innate talent. Eventually, he put down the fork and stood up.
"I'm full, so I'll..."
"Don't do that, sit for a while. You won't be able to see me for a few days."
At the words about not seeing him, Ja-kyung turned his head sharply.
"Where... are you going?"
"Business trip. It'll take about 4 days."
God. I don't believe, but thank you. He tried not to show it, but the color rising in his face and his cheek twitching couldn't be hidden. Kang Il-hyun's gaze gradually became like a blade.
"You're happy?"
"No..."
"You are happy."
"Absolutely... not..."
"You were happy."
"...."
He kept pressing until he heard what he wanted to hear. When Ja-kyung firmly shut his mouth, he didn't ask further. After finishing his coffee, he told Ja-kyung to come to his room. Ja-kyung hesitated. He'd found what he wanted, so there was no reason he'd want to go to his room anymore.
"I have something to give you. Come with me."
He went ahead without waiting for an answer. Reluctantly following, he went straight into the bedroom. Ja-kyung intended to wait in the living room until he came out, but he was told to come inside. The words he'd spouted in Spanish earlier floated in his head, making him anxious.
"What are you doing? Come in."
Being rushed, he entered the bedroom. Click—the moment he passed through the door, a familiar sound reached him. Ja-kyung opened his eyes wide and froze in place. A cold sensation transmitted to his temple. With a stiff face, only his eyes moved to look at Kang Il-hyun.
He was pointing the gun muzzle at himself while smiling faintly.
"What... what are you doing?"
Kang Il-hyun immediately lowered the gun and handed it to Ja-kyung.
"A gift."
Ja-kyung let out the breath he'd been holding. For a moment, he thought he'd been caught and his mind went blank.
"You said you've never shot one, right? It's not difficult. After lunch, Tae-su will teach you."
"Why give this to me..."
"Just in case, keep it with you. Don't go out alone like yesterday."
"You didn't have to give it..."
"I'm concerned. If something happens to you, I'll be in trouble."
Ja-kyung looked down at the pistol in his hand. The .22 caliber pistol was brand new with no signs of use. It had low recoil, making it easy for beginners to use. Moreover, letters were engraved on the handle. An. His eyes gazed at it quietly shaking. How should he accept this.
"Thank you..."
"If you're thankful, at least kiss me."
He looked up to meet his eyes. He thought it was a joke again, but he grabbed his arm and in an instant took the gun and threw it on the sofa. With his wrist caught, his body was pushed back and fell onto the bed.
Needless to say, their lips overlapped. Ja-kyung urgently pulled his hand free and grabbed his shoulder.
"W-wait. I didn't come in here for this..."
"I called you for this."
His eyes smiled, then he pushed up his shirt and bit his chest with his teeth. Ja-kyung, instantly victimized, gripped his shoulder tightly and pushed him away. If anything, that seemed to stimulate him more, as his breathing grew rougher. On top of that, when he bit his nipple, he almost cried out.