By Zephyria The handsome male customer’s Black tea drink ended up in Ryu Jeong’s refrigerator at home. There was a small refrigerator for part-timers in the convenience store warehouse, but Ryu Jeong knew that if he put it in there, Noh Hee-cheol would definitely drink it. So, instead of keeping it in the convenience store refrigerator, Ryu Jeong carefully hid it in his vest pocket and took it home for overnight storage.
If Noh Hee-cheol, instead of him, had been the part-timer who found it, he would have gladly drunk it. If it had been the Shop Owner, he might have happily put it back on display. Of course, he could have drunk it himself, but he didn’t bother. The customer might come back and ask for it, and more than anything, that Black tea drink wasn’t Ryu Jeong’s taste enough to enjoy. Although he liked sweet things, he was naturally sensitive to smells, so he didn’t like the unique scent of Black tea drink.
Anyway, Ryu Jeong made sure to take the drink with him every time he went to work at the convenience store. But the customer never showed his face.
“Ah, right. Ryu Jeong Hyung.”
He had just changed out of his work clothes after finishing his shift. His legs ached because he hadn’t been able to sit down once while working, from the chicken ribs restaurant to the cafe. Su-bin, the closing shift part-timer who was counting cash at the register, stopped Ryu Jeong. It was a single-character name, but it didn’t feel awkward to call her with her surname, so some kids occasionally called her like Su-bin did.
Su-bin looked at Ryu Jeong while continuing to count the cash, as if she wasn’t confused at all. Then, she drooped the ends of her eyebrows as if she was sorry.
“Are you busy this weekend?”
Ryu Jeong could roughly guess what would come at the end of the question. It was university final exam season, and Su-bin had asked Ryu Jeong the same question during the last midterm exams. She also asked if he could cover her closing shift on Sunday because she had an important major exam on Monday.
As expected, Su-bin made the same request as before. Ryu Jeong nodded immediately without much hesitation. He used to work at the logistics center on weekends when he didn’t work the convenience store night shift, but unlike other places, they always closed the recruitment on a first-come, first-served basis, so there was no guarantee that he could work this weekend. The cafe job was less physically demanding and he was familiar with it, so it was the perfect part-time job for Ryu Jeong.
Ryu Jeong nodded again to Su-bin, who asked, “Really?” to confirm.
“You said it’s a subject with a high exam weighting.”
Ryu Jeong, who had only seen universities while passing by, didn’t really know what that meant. But he remembered the complaints Su-bin had burst out with last time, crying.
“Thank you, Hyung. Pick a drink. I’ll buy it for you.”
Su-bin, whose expression finally brightened, closed the cash register and took out a card from her apron pocket.
Honestly, he didn’t feel comfortable getting anything from her because he hadn’t accepted her request purely out of goodwill. He shook his head, saying it was okay, but Su-bin was adamant. Since it was all good, Ryu Jeong chose a sweet hot chocolate after some thought. Su-bin handed Ryu Jeong a hot chocolate with plenty of whipped cream, along with a sandwich that was on display.
He was able to solve a meal that wasn’t planned. Moreover, what Su-bin gave him wasn’t just a regular sandwich, but a ham and cheese sandwich with the most ham.
“Thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”
“No, Hyung. I’m the one who’s grateful. Really, really thank you so much. People are said to follow their names, so I guess that’s why you have so much Jeong.”
It was something he had heard a few times in his life. It’s not that Jeong, but a different Hanja. But he didn’t think it was necessary to correct her. Ryu Jeong cut off the conversation, saying he would be going, and left the cafe.
It was only for one day, but thanks to her, he would have at least a few tens of thousands of won to spare next month. He had to hold on a little longer until then, and then buy some rice with that money.
Why are there only two exams per semester? I wish they had one every month. Ryu Jeong ran, smiling brightly, while thinking about the thoughts that Su-bin and other university students would be horrified to hear.
Working part-time, you could meet all kinds of human beings. There were always difficult customers no matter which store you went to, but if you had to pick the most troublesome place, it would definitely be a convenience store.
“Um, we don’t do credit here…”
In fact, there were relatively few difficult customers during Ryu Jeong’s working hours. There were hardly any customers coming in to buy things in the first place, so it was almost non-existent. But just because there were few didn’t mean you could rest assured. Instead of being few in number, they were so powerful that it was like several difficult customers were rushing in at once.
“No, I’m not saying I won’t pay. I’ll pay when I get my allowance, okay?”
It had been quiet for the past few days, but as soon as he thought that, the store became noisy. The source of the noise was one of the high school students who came almost every day. Judging by the way his friends treated him, he was the errand boy of the group, and the guy who had been paying in cash every time suddenly asked for credit.
Ryu Jeong glanced out the glass door. The guys sitting at the outdoor table were also glancing over here and snickering. It seemed like they had told the guy in front to ask for credit.
He felt sorry for the guy who had been told to come, but he wasn’t in a position to sympathize with anyone right now. If he granted the guy’s request here, he would lose his head. In this absurd situation, he wanted to scold him for making a reasonable request, but then the ones outside might be the ones to cut off his head.
“But we can’t do that…”
“Ah, you’re really inflexible. Hyung, I come here almost every day. You know I’m a regular, don’t you trust me?”
I don’t trust you. He wanted to show the guy a mirror. To check if he had a trustworthy face. Ryu Jeong decided to take a strong stance because it seemed like they would just keep arguing about the same thing endlessly.
“Then I’ll call the CEO. I’m just a part-timer, so I can’t do whatever I want…”
“What time is it now, why are you calling the CEO? He’s probably sleeping.”
The guy urgently grabbed Ryu Jeong, who was trying to go into the warehouse. Ryu Jeong looked down at the hand holding his convenience store vest with a troubled expression. He was holding on tight, not letting go, as if he was worried that he might actually call. He said he would pay when he got his allowance, but he never intended to from the beginning.
The Shop Owner, who would look at the CCTV and make calls whenever he was bored, must be sleeping today, because the phone didn’t ring. It wasn’t often that he needed the Shop Owner’s help, but he was never there when he needed him. Should he call the police? He glanced down at the emergency button attached under the register. But he doubted it would work properly.
“Haa, Hyungnim. You must be tired too, let’s just do this nicely, okay?”
“I told you, I’m just a part-timer…”
He was about to hit him. It would be better to just get hit and send him away. It was when he was moving to remove the hand holding his vest. Clang. The bell rang.
“…”
“…”
Ryu Jeong, who had turned around without thinking, froze with a troubled expression. It was that customer.
The man, wearing the same black suit as the first time he saw him, glanced at Ryu Jeong and the male student who were facing off at the counter, and then casually walked past the aisles as if it wasn’t his business. The student, who had turned around with him at the sound, seemed a little surprised at first, but then frowned menacingly when he realized that the man wasn’t paying any attention to him.
“…It’s not even expensive, it’s just a little over ten thousand won, why are you being so stingy? You were fine when I was buying alcohol and cigarettes. Oh, you know we’re underage, right, Hyung?”
The guy urged Ryu Jeong, almost threateningly, as if he was conscious of the group waiting outside. He was only lowering his voice a little, as if he was aware of the man.
The business owner was the one who would be punished for selling alcohol and cigarettes to minors. Whether he paid a fine or had his business suspended, he wouldn’t be able to avoid legal sanctions if they held a grudge and reported him. Then the Shop Owner would blame it all on him and try to shift the blame. He might ask him to pay back the fine he paid, or he might get fired in the worst case. Finding a night part-time job close to home was like picking a star from the sky. He had to defuse the situation somehow.
“That’s…”
“Don’t say you didn’t know. That bastard over there is even wearing a school uniform, are you going to pretend you don’t know after seeing everything?”
Is it too much to ask for help? Ryu Jeong desperately looked at the back of the man, who wasn’t even looking this way as he was choosing a drink. That man’s words would be more effective on them than his. But it was ambiguous to ask him unless he stepped in himself. He didn’t know him and he was a customer.
Ryu Jeong couldn’t say anything even though he clearly saw the man approaching the counter, having finished choosing his items. He was going to leave without looking back after he finished paying.
“Um, then I’ll help the other customer with their payment first…”
“Hey.”
Ryu Jeong opened his mouth in a flustered tone towards the student, clenching and unclenching his hands, which had become sweaty. But the man suddenly cut him off. Ryu Jeong looked at him with wide eyes in surprise. He wondered if he was going to call him, but the man was staring at the back of the male student’s head, not him. The student turned around a beat late, as if he hadn’t imagined that he would call him.
“…Me?”
Instead of answering yes, the man tilted his head. His cold gaze lightly swept over the male student’s face and the green bottle of alcohol placed on the counter.
“Aren’t you going to buy it?”
“I am going to buy it?”
“If you’re going to buy it, hurry up and pay.”
Ryu Jeong secretly lowered his gaze to check the items in his hand. It was another Black tea drink. This time he was holding two. He had only looked for a brief moment, but the man stared at Ryu Jeong as if telling him to hurry up and pay. He wanted to do that more than anything. As he picked up the scanner, not knowing what to do, the student made a fuss and stepped aside.
The student, with a face full of anger, tapped his leg while standing with his legs apart. He looked displeased with the man who had suddenly intervened. But he couldn’t do the same thing he had done to Ryu Jeong. Then he turned around and went to the group sitting at the outdoor table and said something. Ryu Jeong swallowed hard. He thought he would come back in after the man left.
“Aren’t you going to pay?”
“Ah, I’m, I’m sorry.”
His mind was out of it, so he didn’t even see the card the man was handing him. As he continued to process the payment, he saw the high school students getting up. The boys were raising their fists and threatening the guy who had gone out a little while ago, and the girls were pouting and glaring. But it seemed like they were going to leave. Ryu Jeong let out a sigh of relief and bowed his head as he handed the card back to the man after completing the payment.
“Thank you.”
At those words, the man looked down at Ryu Jeong’s round crown.