By Zephyria 
“What brings you here without any notice?”
“I thought about it, and I figured there was no place better than here for a secret meeting.”
Im Gyeong, appearing in a red suit, wore sunglasses as he scanned the office. Among prosecutors who wore achromatic suits, his attire was undoubtedly conspicuous. Hee-shin wanted to grab him by the collar and ask if he really intended for this to be a secret meeting.
However, since he was Yoon Se-na’s half-brother, Hee-shin felt he should maintain a certain level of courtesy.
Of course, he didn’t intend to hold back if the other man provoked him first.
“Sit down.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, Im Gyeong sat on the leather sofa. When he took off his sunglasses, his face was fully revealed. His features were so striking that they made his clothes seem plain by comparison. He had slightly curling hair—whether natural or permed, Hee-shin didn’t know—but it suited his face perfectly, making him look like a boy when he smiled.
“A guest is here; bring some tea.”
Hee-shin was appalled by the way he acted as if he were ordering a subordinate, but his only thought was to hear what he had to say and send him away as quickly as possible. A staff member came out from the inner office with two vitamin drinks and placed them carelessly on the desk. Im Gyeong didn’t think about drinking them; instead, he stared intently at the ingredients listed on the label.
“No coffee?”
“Only instant mix.”
“Great. I was just craving something sweet.”
Just eat what you’re given. Sighing, Hee-shin went back and made coffee in a paper cup. He considered spitting in it, as he’d seen on TV, but decided against it and stirred it roughly with the coffee packet before placing it in front of Im Gyeong. Perhaps fueled by emotion, the cup landed with a thud, causing the coffee to slosh violently.
Some of it spilled down the side of the cup, but Hee-shin pretended not to notice and returned to his spot.
After taking a sip, Im Gyeong smiled with satisfaction.
“It tastes better because a prosecutor made it for me. You’re good at making coffee. I heard there are separate jobs for making coffee in Korea. If you quit being a prosecutor, you could do that.”
“Stop talking nonsense and tell me why you came here.”
“No need to be so guarded. You still don’t know why I’m here, do you?”
To tell him not to be guarded after bringing up Kim Jun-gu’s name himself. However, Hee-shin couldn’t tell how much Im Gyeong actually knew. In the worst-case scenario, he speculated that Im Gyeong might have hired the kidnappers. But no matter how much he thought about it, there was no reason for Im Gyeong to do such a thing.
Im Gyeong sipped his coffee in silence. He stuck out his tongue and grimaced, complaining that it was hot. There wasn’t a shred of gravity in any of his actions. It had been the same the first day they met at the host bar. His behavior and manner of speaking seemed infinitely light. He was smiling, yet his eyes were strangely rebellious. And yet, there was an underlying sense of intimidation.
“I’m sorry about the other day at the family home. I went too far, didn’t I?”
The unexpected apology softened Hee-shin’s anger slightly.
“Did you ask to meet just to apologize?”
“Among other things. I have something to give you.”
“Something to give me?”
Im Gyeong reached into his coat. As he rummaged through the inner pocket, something came out. It was clearly a set of photos inside a palm-sized plastic sleeve. He tossed the sleeve onto the desk. Open it. As Hee-shin stared at it, Im Gyeong urged him with his eyes to look.
Left with no choice, he took out the photos. His fingertips twitched. The background of the photos was a car, and his girlfriend, Yoon Se-na, was hugging another man. As he flipped through them, the level of explicitness became more blatant, but Hee-shin remained unfazed.
Im Gyeong, sitting with his legs crossed, watched him with interest.
“What is the reason for coming to see me after even fabricating photos?”
“I have to hand it to you; you’re a master of playing innocent. You don’t look the part, but you’re certainly brazen.”
“Or… are you saying this is all real?”
“And if it is?”
Hee-shin gave no answer, and Im Gyeong drained the very last drop of coffee before staring intently into the empty cup. He looked disappointed that there wasn’t any more.
“Want more coffee?”
Seeing Hee-shin ask so composedly, the corners of Im Gyeong’s mouth curled up.
“Next time. Today, I just came to test the waters.”
Hee-shin’s mood soured at the blatant admission that he had come to test him. Im Gyeong stood up, and Hee-shin followed to see him out. Driven by the desire for him to get lost as quickly as possible, his feet naturally led him toward the entrance.
“Ah, I almost forgot this.”
Im Gyeong suddenly turned around at the door, nearly colliding with him. A scent of skin musk wafted over. As Hee-shin hurriedly stepped back, Im Gyeong pulled another photo from his pocket.
“What is it this time?”
The irritation on Hee-shin’s face froze. His own image was captured in the photo. He was looking down at a bleeding Kim Jun-gu. He tried to act nonchalant, but it wasn’t as easy as he hoped.
“I guess this one is interesting?”
With an expression as if he found it cute, Im Gyeong lightly tapped Hee-shin’s cheek. When Hee-shin glared at him fiercely, Im Gyeong chuckled, put on his sunglasses right in front of his face, and beamed. Don’t avoid my calls. Otherwise, you’ll see this photo on the news first.
After threatening him so casually, he opened the door and disappeared. Watching the door close completely, Hee-shin let out a breath he had been holding. After checking the photo again, his face contorted. Suddenly, the strength left his legs. He barely managed to sit in his chair and crumpled the photo in his hand.
How… how did that bastard get this…?
Did he follow me? To find my weakness? Why? Is this revenge for what happened that day? Wasn’t he said to be excessively indifferent to family matters? Why me? Why does Im Gyeong have this?
His thoughts spiraled, but he couldn’t reach a clear conclusion on any of them. As he returned to his desk, the door opened a moment later, and Chief Oh and staff member Baek Young-mi entered.
“President, who was that just now? Wow, he’s terrifyingly handsome.”
“Is he a celebrity?”
“Nah, probably not a celebrity. I know almost every celebrity out there. There’s no way I wouldn’t have known a face like that.”
Staff member Baek Young-mi, a known celebrity fangirl, asserted confidently. Yet, she added a note of doubt, saying he looked familiar, as if she had seen him somewhere. Then, as she sat down, Baek suddenly clapped her hands loudly. A moment later, she shouted that she had found something after searching for it.
Chief Oh took the phone and brought it over to show Hee-shin.
“Prosecutor, isn’t it this person?”
“…….”
“It is, right? It’s exactly him.”
Hee-shin kept his mouth shut and glared at the screen. The man on the screen, shirtless and smiling while staring straight ahead, was definitely Im Gyeong. Scrolling down, a description of the photo appeared. A muse for a certain luxury brand, Kamiya Ren?
While he stared at it, Baek Young-mi added more explanation.
“He was a hot model ten years ago. He shot to fame with a single photo taken at a festival, and after his debut, luxury brands were fighting over him. But then, he vanished without a trace after just one year.”
“Retirement?”
“Some say he retired, others say he got on the wrong side of the Japanese Yakuza and disappeared quietly. But to see him here? Wow—his real-life visuals are insane, seriously.”
“How do you know all that, Darling?”
“I used to be into models, too.”
Chief Oh, who had been talking with Baek Young-mi, tilted her head.
“Why would someone like that be seeing the Prosecutor…?”
Instead of answering, Hee-shin returned the phone and brushed it off as nothing. Very few people knew that he was Yoon Se-na’s half-brother. Even Hee-shin had only heard about it and was seeing him in person for the first time. He had thought the man lived his life hiding his existence, but apparently, that wasn’t the case.
Kang Hee-shin immediately searched for Kamiya Ren on social media. Despite the passage of time, quite a few videos appeared. In a video of him giving an interview in English, he looked much younger than he did now. If it was ten years ago, he would have been around twenty. In the meantime, his frame had become more masculine and the lines of his face had sharpened.
—Ten years from now? I’ll probably be in a fiery romance. I don’t know who the partner is, but I want to tell them to run away.
Watching Im Gyeong smile mischievously during the interview made Hee-shin feel nauseous.
He closed the video immediately and began his work.
Ramen bubbled, and the spicy scent stimulated his sense of smell. Hee-shin turned off the heat and roughly cleared the cluttered dining table. Just then, a message arrived from Yoon Se-na.
—Oppa, what are you doing?
Hee-shin set the ramen down and replied. Eating.
—I think I’ll be home late today because of Min-jung’s birthday party. I might even sleep at the hotel with the girls.
A cute heart flew back immediately. As he stared at the message, the photos he had seen during the day flashed through his mind. Pretending everything was fine, he sent a reply telling her to have fun and then flipped his phone over. He then picked up some noodles with his chopsticks and blew on them. Just as he was about to take a bite, another message arrived. He assumed it was Sena again.
Upon seeing the message, his expression contorted beyond measure.
—What are you doing tomorrow?
Damn it, it was Im Gyeong.