Winter Season Chapter 31

Standing crookedly, he scanned Yihyeon up and down with his eyes. Because he had just stood up from a crouching position, the hem of his pants was pulled up and his jacket was crumpled.

Yihyeon had nothing to say in response to the blunt criticism. As he crouched back down to ignore him and organize the papers, his arm was grabbed again and his body was forced upright.

“What are you just watching for? Why aren’t you picking them up?”

At a single word from Seunghyeok, the sturdy men who had been standing stiffly bent their bodies in an instant. Watching them stoop their large frames to tidy the things scattered on the floor felt both strange and overwhelming. However, Seunghyeok looked down at them with an indifferent expression before opening his mouth toward Yihyeon.

“Where is this supposed to be taken?”

“…To the support team.”

“Taeshik, you heard him. Clean up here, take the kids to get some dinner, and come back. I need to step out for a bit.”

“Yes, hyung-nim.”

“You and you, follow me.”

The situation was quickly resolved after he finished gesturing with his chin toward two organization members standing in the corner. Just as Yihyeon’s lips parted, wondering if he should say thank you, Seunghyeok jerked his chin at Yihyeon.

“Kwon Yihyeon, you follow me too.”

He wondered what it was this time, but he was in no position to talk back to Seunghyeok. Swallowing a rising sigh, he obediently followed behind him.

The place they arrived at was an underground parking lot. The organization members approached a black sedan, opened the back door, and waited for the two of them. When Yihyeon hesitated, Seunghyeok spoke with a bored expression.

“Get in.”

“Where are we going?”

“You’ll know when we get there.”

The car stopped in front of a department store. The lights decorating the trees and buildings everywhere gave off a heavy year-end atmosphere. Without sparing a single glance at such things, Yihyeon followed Seunghyeok, who was walking ahead at a fast pace, and spoke.

“Why did we come here?”

When Yihyeon asked, Seunghyeok crookedly arched an eyebrow. Then, scanning Yihyeon from head to toe, he replied as if it were a chore.

“Just stick close and follow me.”

Yihyeon frowned at the cold tone, but he wasn’t in a position to say anything. He followed Seunghyeok in silence.

Seunghyeok led the way wearing a flashy loan shark shirt, followed by two bulky men. Their menacing faces and pitch-black clothing shouted “I’m a gangster” to anyone who saw them, and Yihyeon could feel people’s gazes sticking to them.

As if such stares were nothing, Seunghyeok entered a men’s clothing store with a composed face.

While Seunghyeok casually checked the hangers along the walls, Yihyeon stood awkwardly at the store entrance with the men Seunghyeok had brought along. He couldn’t understand the reason for dragging him here. Fine. Since it’s turned out like this, I might as well look at some clothes for myself. Yihyeon swallowed a sigh and looked around.

In the meantime, Seunghyeok, who had completed a lap around the store, tilted his head toward Yihyeon as he walked back toward the entrance, apparently having found nothing he liked.

“A bastard planted by Gu Jinhyeok is tailing us in that corner over there.”

“What?”

“I told you, if you’re by my side, they’ll be the first to take an interest.”

As Yihyeon hurriedly turned his head in the direction Seunghyeok gestured, he saw someone quickly turn a corner. Seunghyeok looked at Yihyeon, whose eyes were wide open, and cracked his neck.

“So at least pretend to cooperate.”

Yihyeon bit his lip hard and followed Seunghyeok into the next store. It was a place where mannequins dressed in three-piece classic suits were standing here and there. As Seunghyeok and Yihyeon entered, a young, naive-looking male clerk approached and offered a greeting.

Hearing that Gu Jinhyeok’s pawn was following them, Yihyeon couldn’t just stand around blankly like before. He flipped through the hangers, pretending to browse clothes while following Seunghyeok, but the jackets all looked more or less the same.

Fiddling with the hem of a garment, Yihyeon suddenly picked up the price tag tucked inside. One, two, three, four zeros…. His eyes went wide at an amount that was enough to make him gasp.

“Gu Jinhyeok doesn’t like that kind of style. Go in and come out wearing this.”

It was then that Seunghyeok’s voice was heard. With his hands thrust crookedly into his pockets, he was gesturing with his chin toward a mannequin. After looking back and forth between the gray checkered three-piece suit and Seunghyeok, Yihyeon finally spoke.

“Who, me?”

“Who else is here besides you?”

Only then did Yihyeon realize that the reason Seunghyeok came here was because of him. His brow narrowed at the belated realization. It was true he needed a suit to wear at the company, but he had no intention of buying one at a place like this.

“Let’s go somewhere else. There are plenty of good clothes at places like outlets.”

“Bring this in a size that fits him. Oh, and that one too.”

Without even pretending to listen to Yihyeon’s words, Seunghyeok pointed to the mannequin next to it. The clerk, who had hesitantly brought the clothes, glanced back and forth between Yihyeon and Seunghyeok.

“Why would I wear that? I don’t have that kind of money.”

“I’m not asking you to pay.”

“Why are you buying this for me? I don’t want it.”

If only he would just obediently do as told, things would be easy. Seunghyeok furrowed his brow in irritation.

“Yihyeon. Do you think I brought you here to leisurely play at shopping?”

“…”

“If I tell you to wear it, just wear it quietly.”

Seeing Seunghyeok’s momentum, which had suddenly turned fierce, the clerk put on a tense face. Yihyeon let out a sigh at the sight of the clerk caught between them, scanning their expressions. He was an opponent you couldn’t reason with.

“…Please show me to the fitting room.”

It seemed the clerk had not been working for very long. Every change in emotion was visible on his face. He, who had looked frightened by Seunghyeok’s intensity, immediately brightened at Yihyeon’s answer and moved toward the fitting room.

“I think the shirt size will fit… the vest might be a bit large, uh…. Oh, right. If you stay here and put these on first, I’ll find the right size and bring it over. Just a moment.”

Watching the flustered clerk, Yihyeon nodded. He considered telling him it was fine and to take his time, but he remained silent as it seemed it would be useless.

A moment later, when he went to the fitting room the employee had shown him and changed into the shirt, the sensation of it against his skin was excessively soft.

Sure enough, the price tag had a shocking number written on it. There was no reason to receive such clothes from Gu Seunghyeok, nor did he want to.

Yihyeon quickly took off the clothes and changed back into what he had been wearing. If a single shirt cost this much, there was no need to even try on the rest.

Opening the fitting room door carefully, Yihyeon stepped out and locked eyes with Seunghyeok, who was standing to one side looking at him with a crooked expression. Just as he was about to say it was too expensive, the clerk, who had gathered an armload of suit jackets, shoes, and belts from the side, quickly approached.

“Customer, I have shoes and other things that I think will suit you…”

“Uh, oh…!”

The problem occurred when the approaching clerk struck a mannequin standing to the side hard with his elbow. It happened while he was trying to avoid the clothes hanging thick on the rack. Two mannequins as tall as an adult male seemed to slowly tilt before collapsing on top of the clerk with a loud noise.

Crash!

Even the gazes of people passing by focused here, but the clerk, who seemed to be hurt, was clutching his hand and groaning. A startled Yihyeon quickly approached him.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m, I’m sorry, customer. I haven’t been working long… I’m sorry.”

“Let me see your hand first.”

When he took the clerk’s hand to examine it, there was a long scratch-like wound as if he had been grazed by something. Seeing beads of blood forming, Yihyeon knit his brows slightly.

“Isn’t there a first-aid kit in the store?”

“There’s one over by the counter…”

“Wait here.”

Yihyeon found the box containing medicine and bandages at the place the clerk pointed out and brought it over. He applied disinfectant over the wound and quickly spread some ointment.

“Oh my goodness, oh dear, oh my, what on earth happened!”

While he was kneeling and treating the clerk’s hand, a woman’s startled voice was heard from behind. Turning his head, a woman wearing a manager’s name tag on her chest was bowing her head repeatedly.

“Customer, are you alright? I am so sorry. It seems an employee still in training made a mistake. I am sorry.”

In front of the woman stood Gu Seunghyeok with his hands in his pockets, standing with his weight on one leg. He didn’t spare a single glance at the manager in front of him and was only looking this way.