No matter how much Ire walked, he couldn’t tell where was where. He didn’t know he was this bad with directions. No, this city was just too complicated.
It was still cold day and night, so his body trembled. He was going to cover himself with any stray plastic he could find, but the streets were so clean that it was hard to find even a scrap of paper. In District B, trash was everywhere.
When you think about it, District A was so clean because it dumped its trash in other districts. In District B alone, the waste from this place was piled up like mountains. So, Ire thought the people of District A should at least have a sense of gratitude, if not guilt.
As he entered a crowded area, people’s attention turned to him. He was covered in dirty water and smelled awful, so it was understandable.
Tired and exhausted from walking, Ire eventually squatted in front of a building. He leaned against the wall and closed his eyes, when he heard footsteps and a giggle. He opened his eyes and saw a child who made eye contact with him before running away. At that moment, Ire noticed a bill in front of him.
Did the child drop it?
“Excuse me,” Ire called out to the child’s parents, but they waved their hands and left. Ire realized that they hadn’t dropped the money, but had deliberately left it there. What was this? Why did they give him money? As he pondered, two women passing by approached him.
“Is this some kind of performance art?”
What was performance art? Ire kept his mouth shut, and they rummaged through their bags. They asked if they could take a picture, and when he shook his head, they begged him to let them take just one. He reluctantly agreed, and they took a picture, thanked him, and left.
As time passed, people occasionally gave him money. “There are beggars here too. How is the government managing this?” “Don’t do that. There must be a reason.” “Still, he’s really handsome. Should we give him some money?”
Ire looked down at his appearance. He smelled, was shabby, and he understood why people mistook him for a beggar. Gangsan said that the people of District A were all cold and only cared about themselves, but maybe that wasn’t true. They were so full of generosity.
Ire counted the money that people had given him. He didn’t know where he was, but with this money, he might be able to go straight to the hospital. He was wondering who to ask when he suddenly felt a surge of hunger.
He looked around and saw a store. He opened the door, and as expected, the owner frowned and stared at him. Ire quickly bought bread and water and came out. As soon as he left the store, the owner opened the door and ventilated the place. He didn’t do it on purpose, but Ire felt sorry.
He ate the bread, thinking he would spend the night here and find a hospital in the morning. Then he thought about the people he had met in the sewer. Why did they come there? What was their purpose? Could they have come from another district?
His thoughts didn’t last long. Fatigue washed over him, and his eyelids grew heavy.
He squatted down, buried his face between his knees, and dozed off when someone nudged his toe. He wondered if it was a hallucination, but then it happened again. Ire slowly opened his eyes and looked up. A man with a coat draped over his shoulders was looking down at him with a crooked gaze.
“Are you a stray mutt or something? Why are you always doing this on the street?”
Kim Ha-yoon looked genuinely curious, then frowned.
“Wait, is that smell coming from you? Did you roll around in a sewer or something?”
As he spoke, he seemed to realize something. Ire subtly avoided his gaze. He didn’t want to admit that he had run away, so he remained silent, but Kim Ha-yoon draped his coat over Ire’s shoulders.
“Let’s go home.”
As Ire stood up, his legs were numb from squatting. He limped, and Kim Ha-yoon willingly supported him. The kind gesture brought a sudden wave of emotion. Everyone else said he smelled and avoided him, but Kim Ha-yoon didn’t. Ire didn’t want to think badly of the man who gave him his coat, supported him, and even offered him a place to stay.
“How did you know…? I was here.”
“It would be a lie if I said I just happened to pass by. It’s this.”
Kim Ha-yoon held up a palm-sized device and showed him the screen.
The screen showed a picture of Ire’s miserable appearance, and comments were constantly being posted below.
-Found a handsome beggar! I want to wash him and take him home (heart)
-Is he mixed race? His eyes are so pretty
-Is he really a beggar? His T-shirt is OOO
-Yeah. How can a beggar be wearing an expensive T-shirt?
-Should we go see him? Where is this?
-The end is near. When did District A become like this?
Amidst the speculative comments, Ire stared at his own image in amazement. He had taken a group photo at the church when he was a child, but this was the first time he had looked at his face in detail since becoming an adult.
He brought his face closer to the screen, but Kim Ha-yoon turned it off.
“How is it? How does it feel to be a celebrity?”
“…”
“Should I say you’re a famous beggar?”
There was laughter in his voice. Ire felt nothing but sorry until he got in the car and arrived home. He felt like he was dirtying the expensive car. As soon as they arrived, while Kim Ha-yoon was filling the bathtub with water, Ire took off all his dirty clothes and started showering.
Then he belatedly realized that there was blood on his clothes and quickly came out. He was looking for a place to hide the clothes he had taken off when Kim Ha-yoon was one step ahead of him. He was holding the clothes and staring at them.
“Give me the clothes. I need to get something out of them.”
Kim Ha-yoon’s gaze was now on Ire’s naked body, specifically on the area around his groin.
“Hey, did you not have hair there originally?”
Right now, hair was the least of his problems. He hurriedly grabbed a towel that was nearby, covered himself, and reached out his hand. “Give me the clothes. I’ll throw them away.” But Kim Ha-yoon didn’t seem willing to hand them over, and held the clothes up high.
“I said give them to me.”
As their bodies came into close contact, Ire’s face got closer to Kim Ha-yoon’s.
“Give them to me!”
Kim Ha-yoon gave him the clothes, and Ire took them.
“Whose blood is it? It doesn’t seem like it’s yours.”
Damn it, he saw it.
“I was hungry, so I caught a rat in the sewer and ate it…”
“That’s a lie.”
“…”
“The rat must have been pretty big. About this big?”
Kim Ha-yoon stretched out his arms as wide as he could. The things he had seen in the sewer earlier were exactly that size. He spoke as if he knew about their existence.
“I’m glad you’re alive. I would have been very upset if you had died. Kim Do-cheol was quite fond of those guys.”
Ah…! Kim Do-cheol was the man who had given him the key. As the fragmented puzzle pieces came together, Ire couldn’t help but frown. Could that man have deliberately thrown him in as bait?
“I’m glad you’re alive. I would have been very upset if you had died.”
Kim Ha-yoon reached out to touch Ire’s cheek, but Ire leaned back and forced a smile.
“Why do you keep those things in the sewer?”
“Why else? To catch rats.”
As Kim Ha-yoon said, the sewer was swarming with rats. He was releasing those terrifying things just to catch rats? It was a method that Ire couldn’t understand at all.
“The water’s ready. Go in and warm up.”
Kim Ha-yoon smiled and left, and Ire was about to throw the dirty shirt in the trash when he changed his mind. If he washed it and sold it in District B, he could get a good price… There were people there who were crazy about things from District A.
First, he grabbed the clothes and went into the bathroom, where he soaked in the tub.
The pleasant scent relaxed him and made him feel drowsy.
“Living the high life…”
His tense muscles relaxed, and he suddenly felt sleepy. After a while, he came out and changed into the new clothes that Kim Ha-yoon had prepared. They seemed a little big, both the T-shirt and the pants, as if they were Kim Ha-yoon’s.
He rolled up the sleeves of the shirt and went out to the living room. Kim Ha-yoon was on the balcony, talking to someone on the phone. When their eyes met, he hung up and came inside.
“Did you wash up?”
“Yes…”
“We’re going to watch a movie. Come here.”
Ire was about to refuse and go to sleep, but Kim Ha-yoon grabbed his arm. “Don’t do that, let’s watch it together. It’s too good of a movie to watch alone.” He was dragged to the sofa, and as soon as he sat down, Kim Ha-yoon poured him some juice. There was a plate of nicely sliced fruit in front of him. All the peels had been removed, for some reason.
A moment later, the entire wall turned into a large screen. Kim Ha-yoon crossed his arms and rested his head on Ire’s shoulder. Ire tried to pull away because he was uncomfortable, but Kim Ha-yoon held him and rubbed against him even more. The hair on the back of his neck tickled.
“I’m uncomfortable.”
“Yeah. I’m super comfortable.”
“…”
That meant shut up and stay still. Ire had committed a sin today, so he had no choice but to keep looking straight ahead. Contrary to Kim Ha-yoon’s explanation that it would be fun, the movie was boring as hell. But the reason he couldn’t fall asleep was probably because Kim Ha-yoon, who was leaning on him, had fallen asleep first.
When he turned his head, he saw Kim Ha-yoon’s eyelashes first. Below them were his high nose and smooth lips. He stared at them and suddenly felt thirsty, so he gulped down the juice in front of him.