By Zephyria “W-What, are you leaving already?”
“Yes. Ah, while you’re here, why don’t you stay the night? It’s a waste of money otherwise. If you’re bored, call some friends, have some drinks.”
He was supposed to be a politician famous for his integrity, but Assemblyman Kim avoided his gaze again, probably knowing that ‘friends’ didn’t mean friends in the conventional sense. He called me dirty, but he’s not in any position to talk. Do Hwon chuckled and looked at Assemblyman Kim as if he had just remembered something. What a waste.
“But isn’t there some law about this? The Improper Solicitation and Graft Act? Am I right, Chief Yoon?”
“Yes, you are.”
“Oh dear. These rooms are very expensive, Assemblyman. I deliberately booked the best room so that a great man like you, who works for the country, could relax, but I guess that won’t do. I can’t let someone who has important work to do get arrested.”
“What? No, no, wait a minute.”
Click. At the silent gesture of a bent finger, the burly men filling the hotel room moved in unison. They each grabbed one of Assemblyman Kim’s scrawny arms and dragged him out, practically lifting his struggling body. A terrified Assemblyman Kim kept looking back and calling out pitifully, “President Lee!”
“Why are you doing this all of a sudden! Let’s talk a little more!”
“I’m sorry, Assemblyman. But I’ll make sure you get the apples, so please leave for today.”
Do Hwon, still sounding insincere, tapped his wristwatch.
“I’d like to spend more time with you, but this gangster bastard, contrary to appearances, has a lot to do.”
“No, that…!”
“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear what you said to me.”
“Then. Please go in carefully.”As he saw Do Hwon off, mimicking the tone of gangsters as Assemblyman Kim had said, Assemblyman Kim screamed, probably imagining something.” Of course, that was only for a moment. As soon as the door closed, a silence fell as if no commotion had ever occurred.
“President.”
Chief Yoon, who had been standing like a folding screen the whole time, called Lee Do-hyeon in a low voice. Do Hwon sighed heavily, looking tired, and rubbed his face roughly before turning around silently.
For some reason, he seemed to be in a bad mood today. Of course, he was a man who rarely had good days, but he had never changed his attitude depending on his mood. But today, Lee Do-hyeon was making it obvious that he was in a bad mood, playing with the old man as if he were venting his anger. Assemblyman Kim had said something he shouldn’t have in the middle, but that remark didn’t seem to have a significant impact on Lee Do-hyeon’s mood. He had been releasing sharp pheromone in front of a Beta who couldn’t feel anything even before that.
“Why did you call me if you have nothing to say? Didn’t you call me because you had something to say?”
As he hesitated, Do Hwon, as if his patience had reached its limit, urged him on abruptly. Dong-hyeon wondered if he should ask if something had happened, but soon gave up and shook his head.
“It’s nothing.”
“How boring.”
Do Hwon clicked his tongue and started to leave, saying he was going. Even though he was only using the suite, which was equipped with a conference room of a decent size, for intimidation, Lee Do-hyeon didn’t look regretful at all. He said it was a waste, but it would only be a small amount of money. Or maybe he had been planning to waste money from the start. Like a form of venting.
As expected, Lee Do-hyeon, who had boarded the elevator with glass on all sides, suddenly muttered something brutal.
“I want to push them all away.”
He knew what he meant. Dong-hyeon glanced through the glass and naturally turned his back to take his position, as if to shield Lee Do-hyeon. There was one person behind the pillar and another behind the railing on the lower floor, holding cameras the size of human heads and pointing them this way. This time, he felt sincerity, so he looked at Lee Do-hyeon out of concern.
“President.”
“I know. I’m just saying I’m thinking about it.”
I know that much too. His handsome profile was distorted as if he knew too well. Those damn bugs. If we leave them alone, they’ll come into the bathroom too. If it weren’t for the law, I would have pushed them away without hesitation. There was a hint of regret in his muttering voice.
“Hey, Chief Yoon. Have you ever seen a house that uses briquettes for heating?”
Then, as if something suddenly came to mind, Lee Do-hyeon changed the subject. Dong-hyeon looked puzzled at the sudden and unexpected question. Even so, he diligently searched his memory.
“I’ve never seen one in person.”
“Right? Me neither? The only time I’ve ever seen briquettes is at that meat restaurant we used to go to when we were in college. What was the name of that place?”
“General’s Residence.”
“Right, there. That’s the only time I’ve ever seen them, when we were grilling meat there. But there are houses that use them for heating. I thought those houses had disappeared a long time ago.”
Dong-hyeon rolled his eyes and looked at Lee Do-hyeon’s profile. There was only one place he could have seen such a place.
“Did you see it in Wolhyeon-dong?”
“Yeah.”
“It’s a neighborhood that hasn’t been redeveloped, so if there haven’t been any private renovations, there are probably still houses that use briquette heating.”
“When was Wolhyeon-dong created?”
At that question, Dong-hyeon took out his tablet. He opened the data he had saved while searching for a suitable location and pushed up his glasses, which had slipped down.
“It was created from the late 1950s to the 1960s.”
“…It doesn’t look that old.”
“Pardon?”
“It’s nothing.”
Dong-hyeon, who couldn’t hear him properly because he was muttering quietly, raised his head, and Do Hwon shook his head, saying it was nothing.
“Is there anything else you’re curious about?”
“That’s all. …No. Chief Yoon. Can you find out something like that?”
“What are you referring to…?”
“Who lives where. How many spoons are in that house… something like that?”
“If you give me the address, I’ll find out by the end of the day.”
“Later.”
Before he knew it, the elevator they were in had reached the lobby floor. A cheerful mechanical sound rang out to announce their arrival, but Lee Do-hyeon had no intention of getting off, his feet firmly planted on the floor. It was quite common for him to change his mind every other day.
“Where shall I take you?”
“Where are we going? Now that we’re here, let’s eat. Talking about General’s Residence makes me hungry.”
When he indirectly asked if he wasn’t getting off, Lee Do-hyeon clicked his tongue. After coming all the way down to the lobby, he complained that he was hungry and pressed the button for the floor right above the suite he had been in a moment ago. As if he was thinking of messing with those who were diligently following him down, Lee Do-hyeon had a sly smile on his face.
Ryu Jeong, who had left the cafe after Su-bin took over, hurried home. Today was such a busy day that he didn’t even have time to take a sip of water. Thanks to Su-bin, who came 5 minutes earlier than usual, he was able to quench his thirst, but that was secondary to the fact that he had been starving all day, and his stomach was starting to hurt.
It wasn’t just overeating that caused problems. Starving too much also caused stomachaches. At times like this, you shouldn’t rush to stuff food in. The trick was to put in small amounts of food that weren’t too stimulating, so that the stomach wouldn’t be surprised, which he had learned from experience.
Fortunately, there was a little rice left at home. He had been trying to save it little by little until payday, but today he was going to make white porridge with that rice. He had just received a call from the community center that they were distributing rice as a donation. I’ll have to pick it up tomorrow morning. They say there’s always a way out, even when the sky is falling, and it was true. Ryu Jeong smiled slightly, applying the proverb he knew to his situation.
He was going to go to the side dish store with the money he had set aside to buy rice. If he bought a few dried side dishes, he wouldn’t have to eat ramen for about a week. Above all, he could bring something out when a guest came on Saturday. Should I buy something like snacks? I don’t know what he likes besides black tea drink. Since that’s all I know, should I buy a few cans of black tea drink or something…? Now that he was buying something he never thought he would buy with his own money, Ryu Jeong smiled happily. It was a relief, since he had been feeling guilty for not even being able to offer a glass of water.
“Jeong-ssi.”
Ryu Jeong, who was entering the neighborhood with a bright face and a quick but cheerful pace, stopped short at the unexpected call. In this neighborhood, no, even if it wasn’t just this neighborhood, there was only one person who called him by that title. There’s no way that person would be here right now…….
“Jeong-ssi?”
As he stood still, unable to even turn around, he heard the voice again. There was no way he could have misheard it twice. Ryu Jeong slowly turned his head in the direction of the voice.
“……”
The alley was already dark, and the various scattered junk was eye-catching, but Ryu Jeong immediately found Lee Do-hyeon. He had just gotten out of the car parked under the broken street lamp, and Lee Do-hyeon was standing there holding the door on the driver’s side, which was wide open, looking at him.
“…President?”
His voice cracked pathetically at the end from being so surprised. But there was no time to feel embarrassed. The person he had been imagining in his head a moment ago was standing right in front of him, so it was understandable. Am I seeing things because I’m tired? Ryu Jeong looked Lee Do-hyeon up and down repeatedly, as if he couldn’t believe it.
Do Hwon chuckled at the reaction as if he were seeing a ghost. Seeing the clear curve of his lips, Ryu Jeong finally released the tension that had been building up and took a step. As he approached Do Hwon, Do Hwon closed the open door and walked towards Ryu Jeong.
“You seem very happy to see me.”
He had been frozen like a statue just a moment ago, but seeing him running towards him, his tone naturally softened. Lee Do-hyeon, who had always been shooting at people with a sharp tone, was surprised that he could speak like this. But his surprise was only temporary. Seeing Ryu Jeong, who was facing him up close, sparkling his eyes again and looking at him, all unnecessary thoughts disappeared.
“Ah, well, I was just thinking about you, President……”
Ryu Jeong, realizing that Lee Do-hyeon’s gaze was moving from his eyes to his cheeks, touched his cheeks with an awkward gesture. The temperature difference between morning and evening is so great these days that his cheeks and the tip of his nose are getting cold every time he goes to and from work, but his cheeks, which touched his fingertips, were warm, even hot.
“…You were thinking about me?”