Winter Season Chapter 42

The person Seunghyeok was looking for was sitting in the middle of the sofa, huddled up next to President Yoon. President Yoon’s arm, draped around his shoulders, was touching Yihyeon’s ear; one of Yihyeon’s cheeks was swollen red and the corner of his mouth was torn, as if he had been hit by someone.

In that moment, Yihyeon’s eyes lifted, and they widened as he discovered Seunghyeok. Seunghyeok quickly scanned Yihyeon’s clothing, which showed no signs of disarray, and swept the inside of his cheek with his tongue.

“Oh my, look who it is. Isn’t this Section Chief Gu?”

“Hello, President Yoon. It has been a long time.”

President Yoon’s eyes widened in surprise upon seeing Seunghyeok. However, she soon raised an eyebrow at his stance, as he simply stood there without a warm greeting or any hint of playfulness.

“I told them not to let anyone in. What is going on?”

“It seems there was a mistake by the manager while bringing in the boys. I will settle this and send in some premium-class ones for you.”

President Yoon, who dressed flamboyantly for her age, was an even more difficult person to deal with because she had a long-standing friendship with Chairman Gu. If handled incorrectly, it could lead to tiring consequences. Seunghyeok responded as politely as possible, but President Yoon looked at him and laughed as if it were amusing.

“Hey, he’s talking about you right now, isn’t he?”

The woman leaned toward Yihyeon and giggled, but Yihyeon’s face remained frozen stiff. She made a face as if Yihyeon’s appearance was quite funny, then took several checks and a business card from her wallet and tucked them between Yihyeon’s clothes.

“It was fun watching you act so stiff. What a shame.”

“…”

“Contact me if you ever end up doing this kind of work.”

This kind of work for a gay bastard, fuck. Seunghyeok’s face hardened fiercely as he watched Yihyeon staring blankly at the checks tucked into his chest.

“I will pick out some boys and send them in. Please enjoy yourselves.”

Seunghyeok strode toward Yihyeon, who was sitting still in his seat, grabbed his arm, and pulled him up roughly. He reflexively frowned because the body being pulled along was excessively light. Gripping the thin forearm, he exited the room and walked down the hallway with long, fast strides.

“Section Chief, how did it go…?”

The manager, who spotted Seunghyeok coming toward the entrance, tried to say something but shut his mouth. Seunghyeok looked down at Yihyeon, who was biting his lips so hard they had turned pale, then grabbed the checks and business card tucked into his chest and threw them into a trash can. Ignoring the club staff who were watching them with worried eyes, he dragged Yihyeon to the car.

When he opened the passenger door and roughly pushed Yihyeon’s arm inside, Yihyeon sat down obediently. Seunghyeok’s steps were fast as he circled the car toward the driver’s seat. Instead of starting the engine after getting in, Seunghyeok swept his hair back with one hand.

In the seat next to him, Yihyeon was looking down, just breathing quietly. Seeing him look somehow docile, Seunghyeok felt his temper rise the more he thought about it; Yihyeon usually talked back to him so well, so why did he let himself be dragged all the way here today?

“If it wasn’t right, you should have said so. Why did you let yourself be dragged there to do that?”

Because of his frustration, his words didn’t come out kindly. When Seunghyeok spat out the words sharply, Yihyeon clenched his teeth and bit down hard, his chin dimpling as if he were feeling wronged.

“I clearly told them. I said they had the wrong person. But they just started raising their hands at me, saying lies won’t work… what more was I supposed to say to that?”

The end of his sentence trembled as if it were dampened with moisture. Strictly speaking, it was their manager who had made a mistake, so Yihyeon was not at fault, but seeing him stuck next to President Yoon with a torn lip made Seunghyeok’s insides boil momentarily. Seunghyeok spoke while suppressing his surging anger.

“Why were you out in the office anyway?”

“…”

Yihyeon kept his mouth shut as if he didn’t want to answer and turned his gaze out the window. The fists resting on his knees were clenched so tightly they were white. Realizing from that posture that Yihyeon would not open his mouth, Seunghyeok suppressed his urge to press him further and turned the steering wheel roughly.

Even though Yihyeon hadn’t given an address, the car sped along a familiar road. There was no conversation even as they drove up an alleyway barely wide enough for two cars to pass at an angle.

Seunghyeok was someone who didn’t like noise, but he couldn’t help but be bothered by the heavy silence. He occasionally glanced at Yihyeon, but Yihyeon didn’t move, keeping his head turned and his eyes fixed outside the window.

Seunghyeok, who had been increasing his speed as they neared the destination, suddenly spotted a crowd gathered ahead and stepped on the brake with a frown.

Black smoke was rising from one of several similar-looking red multi-family houses. The narrow alley was filled with people who had come out to watch, as if there were a fire.

Just as he was about to reverse while frowning at a fire truck blocking the other side of the road, he noticed Yihyeon holding the door handle with a pale face.

“Uh, uh…”

His widened eyes were directed toward an old villa where a fire truck had extended its long ladder and was spraying water. He thought it was very strange that Yihyeon couldn’t take his eyes off it, and then Yihyeon flung the door open while the car was still moving.

“What are you—”

The moment Seunghyeok slammed on the brakes in surprise, Yihyeon unfastened his seatbelt and stepped out of the car. He then ran toward the fire truck like someone possessed.

“Hey, Kwon Yihyeon!”

Seunghyeok grimaced when Yihyeon didn’t look back even when called. He had no choice but to park haphazardly in someone else’s driveway and hurriedly follow after him.

“Oh my, aren’t you the young man from room 201? Some gas exploded on the first floor just now, and it was such a mess…! Fortunately, they say it didn’t spread to the upper floors, but goodness, what a thing to happen.”

“Gas? Did it explode suddenly?”

“You know, those LPG gas cylinders parked in front. They say one exploded, and according to Yeong-min’s mother, it seemed like some strange men were loitering around too… I don’t know. The police have to come and investigate for the details.”

Seunghyeok’s gaze landed on Yihyeon, who was holding onto a neighborhood resident with a ghastly pale face. With a dazed look, Yihyeon stared at a spot on the second floor and then stumbled toward a firefighter standing at the blocked entrance.

“Excuse me, if the fire is all out, can I go inside? I’m a resident on the second floor here, and I need to check if things are okay…”

“You cannot go in yet due to the risk of embers. It looks like it will take quite a while, so you should find another place to stay for today.”

Just as the firefighter said, a “No Entry” sign was placed at the entrance of the villa. The entrance of the old red-brick villa was charred black to the point where it was difficult to approach. Yihyeon, who was looking up with a worried gaze, bit his lip and wiped his face with one hand.

“…I really have no luck at all.”

The face revealed behind his palm was stained with fatigue and a sense of futility. Seunghyeok, having grasped the situation, ran a hand through his hair and approached Yihyeon. Yihyeon remained with his head bowed and fists clenched, even though he sensed someone’s presence.

Among the busily moving people, Yihyeon’s frame looked exceptionally small, catching Seunghyeok’s eye. Seunghyeok reflexively reached out toward the body that staggered after someone bumped into him.

“There’s nothing you can do right now anyway.”

“…”

“It’s distracting, so just get in the car for now.”

The smell of burning vibrated everywhere. Seunghyeok’s brow furrowed automatically at the noisy crowd and the acrid air, and he dragged Yihyeon back to the car. He expected resistance, but Yihyeon was so out of it that he let himself be dragged along obediently.

Seunghyeok sat Yihyeon in the passenger seat and tapped the steering wheel with his fingers. Sitting in the next seat, Yihyeon leaned his head against the window and covered his eyes with one hand. Seunghyeok, stealing a glance at him, swallowed a sigh and put the car in reverse.

After driving at a high speed, they arrived at the officetel building where Seunghyeok lived. He dragged Yihyeon, who was still just fiddling with his fingernails, and pressed the elevator button.

Beep-beep-beep-beep.

After entering a simple four-digit password and opening the door, a dreary interior decorated in gray tones was revealed. Yihyeon was acting compliant as if he were completely exhausted, yet he was still scanning the surroundings with wary eyes.

“Wash up for now.”