Chapter 29

The long monsoon season had brought one dreary day after another.

The gloomy sky hanging over the weekend afternoon gave off an ominous air. It was the perfect weather to stay home and rest. In other words, the kind of day that made people reluctant to go outside.

903, 904, 905……

A man cast a long shadow beneath the hallway lights as he casually scanned the identical doors lined up across from one another. The twenty-four-roll pack of toilet paper dangling from his hand swayed lightly.

“Found it.”

A faint smile spread across his face as he stopped walking.

Ding-dong. He pressed the doorbell and waited a moment before the door cracked open.

“What do you want?”

The homeowner, dressed comfortably, looked displeased to see the uninvited guest. He made no attempt to hide it; the irritation was plain in both his expression and his tone.

“Wow. That hurts.”

Leaning against the doorframe, the man swept his hair back as though he were annoyed. Kim Ju-shin glanced obliquely at Ha Yun-sang and expressed his hurt in a completely unenthusiastic voice.

“I didn’t want to come all the way to your place, either.”

But Assistant Manager Ha kept ignoring all my messages. There was no other choice. Ju-shin shrugged as if to say he couldn’t help it, then pushed the pack of toilet paper he’d brought into Yun-sang’s arms.

Yun-sang accepted it out of reflex and let out a startled breath.

“What is this supposed to be?”

“A housewarming gift.”

“……”

“I heard it dissolves easily in water.”

Looking at Ju-shin’s bright smile, Yun-sang sighed irritably and reluctantly stepped aside to let him in. He’d considered sending the guy back because what kind of person showed up uninvited like this? But he was curious about why Ju-shin had come all the way to his home. He had a pretty good idea, too.

After taking off his sneakers and placing them neatly by the door, Ju-shin slowly looked around the apartment. It was fairly spacious for someone living alone. Meanwhile, PR Officer Jung, who worked like a dog, lived in a place that looked like a beggar’s shack. How could someone who wasn’t even human be allowed to live somewhere like this?

“What do you want?”

“What are you, a parrot? Do you have to keep repeating yourself?”

Ju-shin sat down on the sofa as if he owned the place and asked his glaring host without a trace of malice, “You’re not even going to offer me a glass of water?”

“Haah.” Yun-sang put a hand on his hip and sighed, looking utterly dumbfounded by Ju-shin’s shamelessness.

“Kim Ju-shin. Do you have any idea what you’re—”

“Jung Woojung mustn’t find out that you’re that piece of shit.”

Cutting him off, Ju-shin leaned back against the sofa cushion and delivered the words indifferently.

Woojung had said she admired Yun-sang because there was so much she could learn from him. Even setting her feelings for him aside, she’d looked up to him as a mentor. If she found out that someone she’d respected had done something like this, she would be the one to fall apart. She’d be left covered in wounds, unable even to get angry, just suffering in silence. So she would never find out.

Yun-sang’s eyes narrowed as he deliberately furrowed his brow.

He’d suspected Ju-shin had come to confront him about the incident on the company forum. What he wanted to know wasn’t so much how Ju-shin had figured out that he’d been responsible, but why the kid was going out of his way to get involved. He’d even claimed that Jung Woojung was his reason for joining the company, and he’d been lurking around her in that suspicious, underhanded way while pretending otherwise.

The atmosphere between them had been strange for a while, but they didn’t seem particularly close. They went around stuck together like a pair and were constantly misunderstood, yet nothing ever progressed. Most likely, the oblivious Jung Woojung simply hadn’t realized her own feelings.

And that was exactly how Yun-sang had intended it.

If one hardship followed another, Woojung would turn to him, her mentor, more often. He planned to comfort her and offer solutions, knowing how vulnerable she was to kindness, without giving her a chance to recognize her feelings for anyone else. I’m the one you like and admire. So keep your eyes on me. He would subtly plant that belief in her mind.

“I’ll give you two options.”

Kim Ju-shin broke through his thoughts, speaking with polite courtesy.

“Option one: stay at the company and get torn to shreds. Option two: at least save what’s left of your image and resign.”

He personally recommended the first option, but if Yun-sang chose either one, Ju-shin would provide the detailed instructions separately. He acted as though he were being remarkably generous.

A sinister smile crept across Yun-sang’s lips.

“You have proof?”

“Wow.”

“I can just say my account was hacked. Who do you think the company will believe? Me? Or you?”

Was it because he was young? He was so foolish and reckless. It took power to deliver justice, after all. What could an intern who’d only been there for a month possibly do?

“Oh. You’re a real villain.” Kim Ju-shin offered the compliment without a hint of alarm, then rested his clasped hands on his crossed leg. “But, Assistant Manager Ha…”

“Sexually harassing a female employee and leaking confidential information. Oh, and falsifying financial records, too. What are we going to do about all that?”

Yun-sang laughed in disbelief at the nonsense Ju-shin rattled off as though it were a genuine concern.

“What would the PR Team even have to falsify financial records for?”

He sneered as he lectured Ju-shin not to make accusations without knowing what he was talking about. This wasn’t the Jaeyang Food PR Team office, after all.

A hint of laughter crept into Ju-shin’s voice as he addressed him with exaggerated politeness.

“Assistant Manager Ha, if I say you did it, then you did it.”

“What?”

“We’re short on time. Let’s wrap this up before someone even scarier shows up. You’re going to leave the company, right?”

“You really are out of your mind.”

There was no other way to describe him than crazy. From showing up out of nowhere to spouting nonsense with a perfectly calm expression.

“I told you, Assistant Manager Ha and I just can’t communicate.”

Ju-shin checked his wristwatch, gently rubbed the tip of his chin, and muttered with a sigh.

Good grief. If they couldn’t see eye to eye, what else could he do? He lowered his head with a heavy sigh, and the corner of his mouth lifted ever so slightly. When he looked up again, a chilly glint shone in his eyes.

“I’m giving you a chance, so why the hell can’t you just take it instead of stubbornly digging your heels in?”

What a fucking pain in the ass.

“You little—”

“Assistant Manager Ha, when you touch something precious to me…”

His voice dropped to a low register, all traces of laughter gone. Even the simple act of standing up somehow felt threatening, and Yun-sang swallowed nervously before he could stop himself.

With his back turned, Ju-shin crossed the living room and reached for the side table beside the TV. He turned around with something in his hand, his eyes curving into a wide smile.

“I start wanting to do the same to you.”

“You little bastard.”

What Ju-shin held was a framed family photograph of Yun-sang.

Yun-sang’s eyes blazed with fury. His face twisted into a vicious scowl as he strode forward and grabbed Ju-shin roughly by the collar. Blood showed through the scratches left by his fingernails.

“Scary, isn’t it?”

“Get the hell out. Now.”

“Wow, you still haven’t found the will to talk things out?”

Is he stupid? The thought had barely crossed his mind when—

Wham!

A dull impact rang out, and Ju-shin’s head snapped to the side. Yun-sang punched him again, and only after Ju-shin failed to make even a sound did he finally release his collar. He shook out his aching wrist.

Ju-shin slowly ran his tongue along the inside of his mouth. When he tasted the metallic tang of blood, he broke into a grin. He couldn’t help laughing at the thought of Jung Woojung worrying about him if he ended up with a bruise.

Ha Yun-sang stared at him as though he were a lunatic. Ju-shin kept grinning stupidly, not even bothering to wipe the blood gathering at the corner of his mouth. That was when Yun-sang opened his mouth to speak.

Ding-dong!

The doorbell cut through the silence. Both men turned toward the entrance, their gazes naturally shifting to the intercom screen. Ju-shin checked the display and clicked his tongue quietly.

“Tsk. I told you we should’ve wrapped this up sooner.”

Unlike Ju-shin, who complained as casually as ever, Yun-sang looked as though he’d seen a ghost.

……What? Why is he here? Am I seeing things?

Still wondering if his eyes were deceiving him, Yun-sang opened the door. A man in a perfectly tailored suit greeted him with a brief nod.

There was no mistaking him.

Kwon Seon-o, Chief Secretary to the Chairman and one of the real powers behind Jaeyang Group.

The man’s gaze swept over Yun-sang’s face, slid all the way down to his feet, then slowly traveled back up. His eyes clung to Yun-sang with blatant scrutiny, as though checking him for any signs of injury or danger. Only after confirming that nothing was amiss did he finally look away.

What on earth was going on? Too stunned to process the situation, Yun-sang reacted sluggishly.

“How did you—”

“Excuse me for a moment.”

As though he’d already taken control of the situation, as though the homeowner had no say in the matter, Kwon Seon-o stepped over the threshold before Yun-sang could even grant permission.

“Oh, you’re here?”

Ju-shin greeted him with the same clear-eyed expression as always, opening his eyes a little wider at the sight of Seon-o in his usual suit.

“Empty-handed?”

That wouldn’t do. His voice was rather firm as he chided Seon-o for his poor housewarming etiquette.

Seon-o walked straight toward him, a fine crease forming between his brows.

The scratches gouged into Ju-shin’s neck and the reddish mark on his left cheek. Seon-o pressed a hand to his temple and let out a low sigh.

He’d suspected this was where Kim Ju-shin had gone after disappearing without a word. He’d come over in a state of anxious dread, wondering whether the young master had already caused a scene. At least Ju-shin hadn’t hit anyone and had merely let himself get hit. Should Seon-o be proud of him for actually listening for once?

That was probably the right way to look at it. Still, he couldn’t help feeling his anger boil over before reason had a chance to intervene. By any measure, the crazy young master was obviously the one at fault, and yet……

Seon-o tilted his head slightly, suppressing a sigh. His jaw tightened, and the muscles along it bulged. Ju-shin watched him closely, then rubbed the back of his hand across his lips, wiping away his smile. He lowered his long, narrow eyes into a pitiful expression.

“I got hit.”