The Unbelievers Chapter 135

“Shit, I hate it. I don’t know who it is, but don’t like them. You said you’d move out and live with me once we go to college. Did you forget what you promised?”

“Promise? Who promised? You’re the only one blabbering about it. Talk some sense.”

“I’m damn well not giving up.”

“Just wait and see how much time passes. You probably won’t even call me. Are you going to be the one ignoring my calls later?”

Eunseong, who had been rebuking Choi Jungeon for still talking nonsense, faltered. Yoo Siun had said something similar to him. He had said that once Eunseong entered college, saw pretty friends, and got used to a new life, the act of liking him—the act of mistaking the desire to lean on someone for love—would not happen, that it would naturally disappear. That he wouldn’t even remember when he had harbored such feelings.

“I said no, that won’t happen! I only have you! We’re a married couple!”

“You crazy bastard. Why are you projecting your dream delusions onto me.”

“I’m telling you, it’s not a delusion. Dreams come true!”

“Shut up already. Everyone’s going to hear.”

“I don’t want to!”

Having met Choi Jungeon for the first time in months like that, Eunseong spent a pleasant time and said goodbye to him. Choi Jungeon looked back and forth between the black sedan parked on the roadside and Manager Nam, who stood waiting for Eunseong.

“Ah, it’s that person, right?”

“Huh?”

“The old fogy you mentioned. You said there was a mister who looks like an old fogy. An old fogy mister who says old fogy things extremely politely. That’s him, right?”

“Are you talking about me right now?”

Manager Nam looked down unpleasantly at Choi Jungeon, who was blabbering right next to him, and wrinkled one eyebrow.

“Wow, shit. The NPC is talking.”

Choi Jungeon made a huge fuss with a gesture of genuine surprise and hid behind Eunseong’s back.

The Executioner, who had stepped out of the driver’s seat to open the car door for Eunseong, chuckled seeing Manager Nam grimacing.

The Executioner politely opened the rear car door and gestured for Eunseong to get in. Eunseong looked at him uncomfortably. A few days ago, he had seen him reverently place his hand over his collar. He looked like someone praying while touching a holy relic of Jesus, and when he mentioned it to Yoo Siun, he only gave a contextless response to be kind to the people working there.

“I’m going now. I wanted to see you home and then go, but they say I can’t.”

“Who, the old fogy mister?”

“…”

At Choi Jungeon’s question, Eunseong turned his gaze toward Manager Nam. Manager Nam shook his head.

“You cannot. It is already quite late.”

“It’s fine. I can just take the bus. I wouldn’t ride that anyway because it’s filthy.”

Choi Jungeon waved his hand, telling Eunseong to go on.

“Call me. Oh, and I put something in your bag earlier, so check it.”

“What is it? When did you put it in?”

“I put it in when we were eating earlier.”

“What, is it a gift?”

“Yeah, something I shook you down for in the past. I’m returning it now.”

“…”

While Eunseong didn’t have anything he would covet, Choi Jungeon had only shaken him down with words; he had never actually taken anything away. Eunseong tried to recall if such a thing had happened but couldn’t think of anything and looked at Choi Jungeon with wonder.

“You like hot fried chicken, don’t you.”

“What? What’s with this sudden random talk. Hot fried chicken?”

“Yeah, hot fried chicken. Tell me later if you want to eat hot fried chicken. Anyway, bye. Call me! Don’t ignore it.”

“Got it. You’re the one who shouldn’t ignore me. I’m going. Get home safe.”

“Yeah, yeah, go on.”

After exchanging a noisy greeting of parting that was such a scene, Eunseong got into the car. The Executioner closed the car door for him. He got into the driver’s seat, and Manager Nam climbed in next to him. Eunseong rolled down the window and waved until the very last moment when Choi Jungeon’s figure disappeared from sight, and Choi Jungeon also stood on the roadside, waving continuously.

“How have you lived all this time feeling so stifled.”

“Being kept from going out wasn’t that stifling, but to be honest, not being able to curse in front of the mister was a bit stifling.”

Manager Nam, who had watched their farewell through the side mirror, made a comment. Only then did Eunseong pull his head and hand back inside the window and answered as he sat straight in his seat.

Manager Nam thought, Was that so? as he retraced Eunseong’s usual speech habits. Come to think of it, earlier when he was with his friend, all sorts of vulgar curses and slang had been pouring out of their mouths, which had made him frown. He had no memory of ever hearing Eunseong use such low-class words.

“If it was stifling, why didn’t you just do it. Why didn’t you?”

“Because I thought the mister would think I’m uneducated. The mister doesn’t curse, you see.”

“The CEO… I see. I haven’t heard the CEO curse either.”

I’ve seen him kill people plenty of times, though.

Before, he stuck a lit cigarette into a policeman’s mouth and scorched him.

He even made a huge fuss saying he’d shoot someone to death.

So many incidents where it would have been better if that refined ruffian had just cursed came to mind all at once that Manager Nam shook his head back and forth.

“Oh, that’s right. The stuff he shook me down for.”

Eunseong recalled Choi Jungeon’s words and rummaged through his bag. Something was indeed inside the front pocket of the bag, though he didn’t know when it had been put there. When he opened the zipper to check, a cell phone came out. It was something he had never had taken from him, and it wasn’t even his own property. A note was attached to the phone.

[You must not let anyone find this. Hide the phone and throw the note away immediately.]

Looking down at the phone and the note, Eunseong reflexively glanced at Manager Nam sitting in the front seat. He had no interest in the back. Eunseong stealthily slipped the phone back into the front pocket of the bag, hid the note in his fist after crumpling it, and then opened the window to secretly throw it away.

“Hot fried chicken…”

[Is the situation such that you can’t speak properly because someone is next to you? If that’s the case, say you want to eat chicken. Say you want to eat hot fried. That’s our secret code from now on. Hot fried. If you say hot fried, I’ll ask the older brothers I know like last time and have them kill everyone for you.]

“…Is that what he was talking about?”

Eunseong tilted his head, unable to understand Choi Jungeon’s random behavior.

“I ate tteokbokki with Jungeon, and we even made fried rice. I also bragged that I’m going to America soon.”

“What else did you talk about.”

“Um…, also, the mushrooms the mister sent to Jungeon’s house before. We talked about how they were extremely delicious. He said his dad and mom really enjoyed eating them.”

“I’ll have to send them some more.”

“They said those were very expensive, is that true?”

“Well, I’m not really sure. The staff sent them. I just remember telling them to send something good.”

After eating dinner with Yoo Siun, Eunseong had come into his library and sat on the blanket where the telescope was located, prattling on about what happened today. He, who had been busy with work lately, was still rummaging through documents but was sincerely responding to Eunseong’s stories.

“Ah, and I also talked about greeting the family elders, and about my dad passing away.”

“You did?”

His eyes, which had been lowered toward the desk, turned toward Eunseong. It was a worried gaze, wondering if he was handling the great emotion of loss well. It was a past event, and the corresponding expenditure of emotion had ended, but he was worried that delivering the death notice to someone close might have stimulated Eunseong’s sadness anew.

Yoo Siun set aside all his work, stood up, and approached Eunseong. Eunseong turned his head toward him with a pensive expression.

“Did you talk about it well? You didn’t cry while talking, did you?”

“Pardon? It’s not like I’m a child… I just spoke calmly. Jungeon got angry when I said I was very sad. Jungeon knows about my dad hitting me, too. Well, it was something the whole neighborhood knew, anyway…”

“He’s a good friend. I get angry too, even hearing about it now.”

Yoo Siun’s hand brushed back Eunseong’s hair. Eunseong’s cautious eyes looked up at him. He hadn’t kept anything from him until now, but somehow he couldn’t talk about the phone that was in his bag or the note telling him not to let anyone find it. It was because even when he first came here, Manager Nam had taken Eunseong’s phone while replacing it with a new one and had never returned it.

“And I also said this.”

“What kind of thing?”

“About how the mister is so good to me… how you’re really, really, really good to me, as if you’d give me everything, as if you’d do everything for me.”

“You said such a thing?”

“But… I couldn’t bring myself to say that I like the mister.”

“…”

“Because I thought you’d find it strange. Since the mister and I are… relatives. It’s strange to others if a first cousin once removed likes his first-cousin-once-removed mister. But, that’s not a crime, is it?”

Eunseong’s hand aimlessly toyed with the hem of his shirt as he asked worriedly.

“A crime, it’s nothing like that.”

“…It’s not a crime, but I don’t think it’s an honorable thing either.”