“I’m sorry I’m late, hyung.”
The cold air from outside clung to Joo Tae-hyun as he apologized once more, bowing his head slightly.
“The traffic was terrible right in front.”
“It’s okay. I just got here a little while ago myself.”
Seo Baek-han leisurely scanned Joo Tae-hyun, who strode confidently toward the table. He’d occasionally seen him in news photos, so he knew the kid had grown up a lot, but seeing him in person was still a fresh surprise.
When he was younger, Joo Tae-hyun had a more cute and pretty feel to him. His frame was so slender that he was the only one whose 〈Haechi〉 uniform was way too big, if he remembered correctly. But now, instead of those words, adjectives like handsome and dashing suited him much better.
“By the way, you’ve really grown. How tall are you?”
“Hmm. One eighty… I think it was a little under that.”
Joo Tae-hyun hastily unwound his muffler and took off his coat, his long fingers bright red with cold, and strangely, that made him look very young. No, he was turning twenty this year, so he might be tall, but he was still young.
Sure enough, the snowflakes sprinkled like sugar on Joo Tae-hyun’s hair had already melted away without a trace. Judging by his high body temperature, he was still a kid after all.
“Is it still snowing a lot outside?”
“Yes.”
Seo Baek-han gestured for him to sit with a light nod, and Joo Tae-hyun promptly took the seat in front of him. He was so obedient, like a well-trained house pet. A purebred dog with glossy fur and no tangles, or something like that.
“I already ordered you something to drink, is that okay?”
“Ah, yes. Thank you.”
Joo Tae-hyun answered readily, but didn’t reach for his glass. He’d ordered a standard iced Americano, but it seemed it wasn’t the kid’s taste.
But what could he do? He hadn’t met Joo Tae-hyun to chat and eat delicious things with him.
“How have you been?”
Seo Baek-han pretended not to notice Joo Tae-hyun’s hands, which kept picking up and putting down his coffee cup, and chose a safe greeting.
In truth, Seo Baek-han preferred people who clearly expressed their opinions. He absolutely hated it when the people he kept by his side, whether friends or lovers, acted wishy-washy. If they weren’t capable of that, they had to be talented enough to deceive others completely.
But Joo Tae-hyun wasn’t someone who would ever set foot in his territory anyway. It would be ridiculous to critique the immature behavior of a kid who was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and raised on only the finest things.
“Well… I’m always the same. How about you, hyung?”
“I finished my thesis roughly, so I’m finally starting to feel alive again. I heard you got early admission too?”
“Yes.”
“Washington is a bit unexpected. Are you interested in politics, maybe?”
“Not really.”
Formal questions continued to be exchanged, and Joo Tae-hyun stuck to monosyllabic answers. He was acting so lukewarm, it was hard to believe he was the one who had asked to meet first because he needed help. Well, Seo Baek-han hadn’t planned to spend a lot of time on this meeting anyway, so he didn’t really care.
“But, Tae-hyun-ah.”
“Yes?”
“Shouldn’t you be a little more welcoming than this?”
“…Yes?”
Regardless, he didn’t want to put up with a green kid acting like he had nothing to lose and being arrogant.
“You know I have to split my time into minutes when I’m in Korea, hyung.”
Belatedly, ripples stirred in Joo Tae-hyun’s calm eyes. He hadn’t seemed to expect Seo Baek-han to come out so prickly.
“I had to do some serious schedule juggling to meet you today.”
“Ah… Th-that’s right, I know. Um, so, thank you for making time for me, hyung.”
Watching Joo Tae-hyun’s Adam’s apple bob up and down as he swallowed hard, Seo Baek-han finally smiled briefly, as if satisfied.
“I came because I was curious too, so you don’t have to thank me, but just be a little more happy to see your hyung.”
“Yes, I will. …Sorry.”
Seo Baek-han brought the coffee cup to his lips and maintained his direct gaze, using that as his reply.
Fortunately, Joo Tae-hyun seemed to have immediately understood what Seo Baek-han wanted to say. “As you know, hyung, I’m a little shy…” he added hesitantly.
He couldn’t stand having someone above him in the pecking order to begin with, but he didn’t usually act prickly towards kids. What could be more embarrassing than that?
But that was only when Joo Tae-hyun was truly an ordinary twenty-year-old college student.
‘Are you free that day?’
─ Yes.
‘Are you sure you know who you’re contacting?’
─ Yes, Seo Baek-han hyung. I contacted hyung.
‘Hmm. What’s this about?’
─ …I don’t think this is something I can talk about over the phone.
The precious youngest son of the DH Group had requested a meeting with the eldest son of Special Assemblyman Seo Hong-gyu, asking for advice on a family matter. From that moment on, every conversation between Seo Baek-han and Joo Tae-hyun, even a single sigh, was bound to be a strategic performance.
“Ah. I’ll say this in advance, but if you’re trying to ask me for help with something like a tax audit—”
“It’s not that!”
Seo Baek-han deliberately spoke playfully to ease the frozen atmosphere, and Joo Tae-hyun’s eyes widened in surprise. The way he even opened his mouth slightly and waved his hands was not much different from when he was a kid whose crown barely reached his waist.
“Absolutely, absolutely not. It’s just that, you’re the only person I can ask.”
“A family matter that you can only confide in me. The scale is getting bigger and bigger, huh?”
Seo Baek-han chuckled and loosely crossed his arms.
“Alright. As long as it’s not illegal. What is it?”
As if he hadn’t been raising his voice in surprise just a moment ago, Joo Tae-hyun returned to his indifferent and sullen expression. If it weren’t for the way he was slowly rubbing the skin under his fingernails with his thumb and forefinger, an outsider wouldn’t have noticed that Joo Tae-hyun was somewhat nervous.
“So, um…”
Seo Baek-han fixed his gaze on Joo Tae-hyun as he chose his words and slowly sipped his coffee.
‘Wouldn’t it be difficult to say in person what you can’t say over the phone?’
─ It’s, um, about my family…
‘A family matter? Are you saying you want to tell me about something inside the DH Group?’
─ …Yes. You’re the only person I can consult about this.
Seo Baek-han had initially responded lukewarmly, but when he heard it was a family matter, he quickly became curious. A kid he hadn’t met separately in recent years had a matter within the DH Group that he wanted to discuss with an outsider like him? Considering the last conversation he had with Joo Tae-hyun, it was even more puzzling that he had contacted him.
‘I, um, I liked you, hyung.’
That was because, three years ago, at the 〈Haechi〉 year-end party, a gathering of descendants of independence activists, Joo Tae-hyun had nonchalantly thrown away his feelings.
‘It’s just… that’s how it was.’
In the past tense, too.