A large food-supply mart.
Countless people filled the store, buying the things they needed.
Wearing my school uniform, I had been loitering for quite a while in front of the butcher’s section.
A sharp gaze was fixed on me.
I knew.
He wanted to see whether I was stealing anything.
But the hand is quicker than the eye.
One from the bottom for Agwi.
One from the bottom for Madam Jeong too.
One for me.
Ah—no, not that.
Swish. Swish.
In an instant, two packs of ribeye vanished.
In the blink of an eye.
It was so fast and precise that even the man watching me didn’t notice.
He was probably wondering if anything had even happened.
Having accomplished my objective, I was about to stroll away from the butcher’s section as if nothing had happened when—
“Hey, student. Can I see you for a moment?”
The potbellied middle-aged man who had been watching me called out.
“Why?”
“Don’t you know better than I do?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“Now, now... Do I really have to say it myself?”
“Go ahead. I’m curious too.”
“Why don’t we talk somewhere quiet?”
“I don’t want to. And I have nothing to say to you, mister.”
“I’d like you to open that bag.”
“Why my bag?”
“Because I think it has our store’s products in it.”
“It doesn’t.”
“We’ll have to check whether it does or not. We can’t just take your word for it.”
“I said it doesn’t!!!”
“And I said I’m going to check!!”
The man tried to force my bag open, and I blocked him with my whole body.
“Why are you stopping me? If you didn’t steal anything, you can just show me your bag proudly. Why are you hiding it so desperately?”
“It’s my bag. Who are you to decide whether you can look inside my bag or not? This is an invasion of privacy. I’m upset, so I can’t shop here anymore. I’m leaving.”
When I tried to walk past the middle-aged man, he blocked my way and snatched my arm.
I looked back and forth between the hand gripping me and the potbellied man as I spoke.
“Let go of me. If you don’t let go, I’m reporting you.”
“Even better if you report it. Hey, Manager Kim, call 112. Tell them there’s a thief here.”
The person called Manager Kim reported it to 112.
And the potbellied man dragged me toward a corner by force.
Though I was a high school student, I had a small build, so I had no choice but to be dragged along by the potbellied man’s strength.
“You might run away, so I’ve got no choice. Manager Kim, stand behind me and make sure this bastard doesn’t get away. And for your information, I don’t do settlements. Bastards like you need to eat prison food. Rotten little punks. If you don’t have money, you should work. Instead, the first thing you learn is stealing. You fucking bastard. It’s not like I’ve only seen you once or twice. Whenever you come and go, things disappear. Once you’re caught, I’m going to pin everything you’ve stolen until now on you and throw you in jail. You damn thief.”
The potbellied man poured verbal abuse on me,
and the people who had come to shop at the mart kept glancing over, wondering what was going on.
When the customers in the mart began showing interest, the potbellied man’s expression grew a little troubled.
But he did not let go of my hand.
Looking at his face, he seemed conflicted.
He wanted to catch me, since he suspected me of being a thief, but he did not seem to want to make a big scene.
He had probably intended to quietly call me into the office, open my bag, check for stolen goods, and hold me responsible.
Especially in front of all the mart’s customers, there was nothing good about being seen suspecting someone of being a thief and pressuring them.
Even if I really had been a thief.
He must have suggested we talk quietly in the office to prevent something like this, but it had already happened.
The potbelly was rationalizing to himself that he had no choice because he had been trying to catch me while I was running away.
The police arrived.
One male officer and one female officer entered the mart.
“We came in response to a report.”
“T-this way, please.”
The potbellied man called the officers over.
“This bastard stole from our store.”
“What did he steal?”
When the officer asked, the potbellied owner hesitated with an “Uh?”
“Uh... Well, if you open that bastard’s bag, won’t you know?”
“You’re accusing him of being a thief without even knowing what he stole?”
The potbellied man was flustered by the officer’s words.
But soon he answered.
“Meat. He must have stolen beef. He was standing in front of the beef section for ages earlier.”
At the potbellied man’s words, the officer came over to me.
“I’m going to inspect your bag.”
“Show me a warrant.”
“Pardon?”
“If you want to open my bag, bring a warrant. And is it proper to tell me to open my bag before even stating your affiliation?”
The officer seemed slightly taken aback.
“Ah. I apologize. I’m Sergeant Kim Cheolmin from Songsan Police Station. May I check your bag?”
“No, you may not. I’ll be clear. I refuse to have my bag inspected.”
“If you didn’t steal anything, this would be over simply by opening your bag. Is there any need to make it so complicated?”
“I feel extremely ashamed and insulted right now. That man called me, a minor, a thief in front of all these people, cursed at me, shoved me by force, and used violence against me. I clearly said I didn’t steal anything, but not only did that man not believe me, he treated me like a thief and humiliated me in front of all these people. I don’t merely want to prove my innocence. I want to sue that man. I intend to sue him for defamation, insult, indecent assault, and child abuse.”
At my words, the potbellied man raised his voice even louder.
“There’s nothing a thief won’t say. What? Defamation? What reputation do you even have? And hurry up and open this bastard’s bag, then arrest him.”
The potbellied man spoke as if he were scolding the officer.
But Sergeant Kim Cheolmin glared at the potbellied man once.
Only then did the potbellied man shut his mouth.
I brought the bag I had been wearing on my back around to the front of my chest.
“Since you’re all so curious, I’ll open my bag.”
I opened the bag, turned it upside down, and shook it out.
Thud. Thud thud.
Rattle, rattle, rattle. Rattle, rattle, rattle.
The textbooks and study guides in my bag fell out with heavy thumps,
and pens, mechanical pencils, and highlighters rolled every which way.
And among them, one sanitary bag fell out.
The police officer checked the bag.
Inside was leftover food.
“I’m a recipient of basic livelihood assistance. So sometimes, the school nutritionist secretly packs leftover food for me. She tells me to take it home and eat it. I was embarrassed about that, so I didn’t want to open my bag... sob... And now I’m being mistaken for a thief... sob...”
Tears like chicken droppings fell from my eyes.
“What exactly did I steal? Huh? I just wanted to eat meat, so I lingered around hoping there might be samples. Is that such a huge crime?”
The officer carefully checked my bag and my body again, in case something was hidden in the bag, while the female officer organized the things that had fallen out of my bag.
But even so, nothing came out.
“No, that can’t be.”
The potbelly tried to check the bag the police had finished inspecting himself, but the officer shook his head and stopped him.
The mart customers who had been watching began looking at the potbellied man as if he were trash.
“He suspected the kid of stealing something he didn’t even steal and cornered him like that?”
“What a total piece of trash.”
“This mart is no good.”
“If I shop here, I could become a thief at any time too.”
“Fuck, am I a prospective thief now too?”
“I’m done coming to this mart too.”
“What do we do about that poor kid? He’s still crying.”
“I’d buy that kid some meat myself. Ah—can’t buy it here, can I?”
“He was just looking because he wanted to eat meat, and they called him a thief for that? So in this place, you become a thief just by looking at things.”
“I guess we’ll have to walk around here with our eyes closed.”
I could hear all the people watching whispering.
Flustered, the potbelly spoke loudly as if protesting.
“No, that bastard stole it. I saw him steal.”
“Pardon? I stole something? Then where is the thing I stole? What did I steal? I’d really like to know what item you claim I stole.”
“No, I’m the one being wronged here.”
“The one who’s truly being wronged is me. I absolutely won’t let this slide. I’m going to sue that man. Officer. I formally request the footage recorded by that CCTV as evidence.”
I pointed at the CCTV hanging from the ceiling as I spoke.
Sergeant Kim Cheolmin checked the CCTV and then said,
“Officer Lee. Secure the CCTV footage. Whether it’s theft or assault, we’re going to need that CCTV, so ask for their cooperation and bring it.”
“Yes, understood.”
The female officer moved to secure the CCTV footage, but the numerous people still watching continued to stare at us.
“And the two of you shouldn’t keep doing this here. Let’s go somewhere and talk. Everyone here is watching... Is there somewhere quiet?”
“Ahem... This way, please.”
The place the potbelly took us to was an office.
There was a small conference table in the middle, and along the wall, cabinets, documents, and all kinds of supplies were placed haphazardly.
It seemed to be a place where employees worked and sometimes drank coffee.
“Please sit.”
The potbelly pulled out a chair for Sergeant Kim Cheolmin and told him to sit, then sat down beside him as well.
He said nothing to me, standing beside them.
So I simply stood there.
“Student, you sit too.”
“Yes.”
It was not the potbelly but Sergeant Kim Cheolmin who invited me to sit, and at his words, I too sat in an empty chair.
Once everyone had taken a seat, Sergeant Kim Cheolmin began speaking.
“First, to summarize the situation: you reported him because you thought this student stole something, correct?”
“That’s right.”
“And in the process, you used violence against this student.”
“Violence? I simply thought he had stolen something and put it in his bag, so I asked to check the bag.”
“You know that’s illegal, right?”
“I absolutely did not force him. I only asked. But then he tried to run away, so I held him to stop him from leaving. That’s all. Truly.”
“Is that true?”
“No. It’s all lies. He tried to force my bag open, dragged me away by force, and used violence in the process. Look at this. My wrist is still red.”
Because the potbellied man had gripped me so hard, the marks of his fingers still remained clearly on my wrist.
“Ahem. That was a mistake. Since you suddenly tried to run away, I had no choice but to grab you... that sort of thing.”
“That’s enough. I don’t want to talk to you anymore. You said you were Sergeant Kim Cheolmin from Songsan Police Station, right? I would like to file an official complaint. What should I do?”
I looked at Sergeant Kim Cheolmin as I spoke.
I was going to sue, so tell me the procedure.
“Sergeant. I brought the CCTV footage.”
At that moment, the female officer who had gone to get the CCTV footage returned.
“Can we check it here?”
“Yes. I brought it on my phone as well. Please look here.”
In the footage the female officer brought, I appeared very clearly.
I did loiter around the butcher’s section and repeatedly picked up and put down the meat a few times, but there was no scene of me putting meat anywhere or hiding it.
That was clearly shown on the CCTV.
A little later, the potbellied man appeared, spoke to me, tried to take my bag by force, and when that failed, dragged me away by force; all of it was clearly recorded.
Once Sergeant Kim Cheolmin checked the CCTV, there was nothing more to confirm.
The owner had said this student stole something, but that was nothing more than suspicion; there was no stolen item, and no such act could be seen.
And even if I had stolen something, he should not have acted like that.
On the contrary, it was an undeniable fact that the owner had dragged this student away by force and called him a thief in front of many people.
That was why this student had said he would sue.
Sergeant Kim Cheolmin stood up, took out his handcuffs, and cuffed the wrist of the potbellied mart owner sitting beside him.
“You are under arrest as a current offender for assault, insult, defamation, and other related violations of the law. You have the right to remain silent, and anything you say may be used against you in court later. You also have the right to appoint an attorney...”
The potbellied man was startled when handcuffs were placed around his wrists and began making excuses.
“No, that’s not right. Why are you handcuffing me? That bastard stole the goods. Whenever that bastard loiters around over there and leaves, several packs of beef go missing.”
“Then where is the beef this student stole?”
“What? That’s... He might have had an accomplice somewhere who already took it away.”
“Haa. If you secure evidence later, file a complaint then. For now, you’ll both have to come with us for assault.”
“Officer. You left out child abuse from what you mentioned earlier.”
“What? You little bastard.”
When I added another charge for the officer, the potbellied man shouted even louder.
“If you keep this up, obstruction of official duty will be added too. For now, let’s go. You come along too, student. You’ll have to be questioned as well.”
“Yes.”
.
.
.
The potbellied man came out after being questioned.
Min Baeho, the owner of the food ingredients mart, felt wronged. Deeply wronged.
It was definitely that bastard.
Whenever that bastard loitered around the mart and left, things disappeared.
Wondering if he had miscounted the inventory, he checked again and again, but it was clear they had been stolen.
So whenever that student came in, he watched him even more closely.
He stopped working and followed that student around.
Even so, he never saw the student stealing anything.
He hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, but he wondered if the CCTV had caught it, so he replayed the footage over and over, yet there was no sign of theft on the CCTV either.
Was the thief not that bastard? The thought occurred to him, but every circumstance pointed to that bastard.
There was no one else but him.
He had even considered closing his eyes and pretending not to know.
A few bags of snacks, a few packets of ramen—he could let that slide.
But he couldn’t do that with beef that cost tens of thousands of won per pack.
That expensive beef kept disappearing, several packs a day.
It had definitely started happening after that bastard began hanging around in front of the butcher section every day.
That bastard was the culprit. One hundred percent.
But there was no evidence.
No matter how much he thought about it, it seemed like the bastard had made some kind of device, but he couldn’t figure it out.
He needed to search that bag.
So today, he had asked very politely.
He said he needed to take a look inside the bag. But then the bastard tried to run, so he grabbed him.
Instead, Min Baeho ended up getting charged with violence, defamation, and child abuse.
“If you can’t reach a settlement, you might even end up serving actual prison time. At the very least, you’ll probably be fined. The other party said he felt fear and humiliation, and since you called him a thief in a place with lots of people, an insult charge could be added too. It was all caught on CCTV, so the evidence is clear. On top of that, the decisive point is that the other party is a minor. Assault against a minor is serious. Right now that student is in an uproar, saying he’s hired a lawyer and will charge you with everything he can. You’ll have to settle somehow if you want to avoid prison time.”
He remembered what the officer had said while writing up his statement at the police station.
Haa....
Letting out a deep sigh, he dialed the student’s number.
“It’s me. The food ingredients mart.”
“What is it?”
“Well... I think we need to reach a settlement.”
“I believe I told you there would be no settlement. I guess you didn’t hear me.”
“Come on, let’s settle this. It’s not like either of us did anything right. Let’s just think of it as stepping in shit and move on.”
“What kind of dogshit are you talking about? Who was it that threw shit at someone minding his own business? And now you want me to think of it as stepping in shit and move on?”
“I’ll give you a coupon worth one hundred thousand won that you can use at our mart. Isn’t that enough?”
“Haa~ I seriously can’t believe this. I’m hanging up.”
Click.
The student simply hung up the phone.
Then he placed beef on a well-heated pan and began to grill it.