Winter Season Chapter 6

Seeing them run away at full tilt, it seemed they had managed to pick up some survival instincts while scraping by under Chairman Gu. If they had shown even a moment of hesitation or wavering, the place where they laid their bodies today would likely have been the dirt floor of some remote mountain rather than the beds in their own homes.

Seunghyeok cracked his neck with a series of sharp pops and called for Taeshik, who was standing behind him.

“Taeshik, give me some of what we’ve got spread downstairs, if there’s any extra.”

Seunghyeok was not one to enjoy getting high on drugs, but a day like today was an exception. However, at Seunghyeok’s words, Taeshik scratched near his eyebrow with a troubled expression.

“You didn’t mention it specifically, so I laid it out as clearance stock for the customers… I’ll have the boys bring some of the clean stuff quickly.”

Seunghyeok frowned despite himself and bit the inside of his cheek hard, swallowing the irritation that flared up instantaneously. Then, he closed his eyes and let out a short sigh.

“Forget it.”

“Yes, sir…”

Lest any stray sparks fly his way, Taeshik quickly took a step back. He pressed the button for the private elevator leading to the third basement floor and stole a glance at Seunghyeok’s expression. Seunghyeok, who was rolling his tongue against the inside of his cheek, slowly opened his eyes.

His gaze was blood-chilling. Taeshik felt that if anyone were to accidentally cross him now, they might end up calling the disposal crew out since early morning. It had been a long time since he had seen Seunghyeok this on edge, and Taeshik’s mouth went bone-dry.

Taeshik quickly scanned the list of people in the basement in his head. Hopefully, there aren’t any stupid bastards who can’t read the room… Contrary to his complicated inner thoughts, an exceptionally clear mechanical chime, ding, echoed through the air.

“Hyung-nim, please go down first. I’ll check the list of attendees and follow you.”

The elevator doors opened, revealing a matte black metal interior, but Seunghyeok did not move. He simply stood still, turning his face toward the area below the stage.

Perhaps they hadn’t received word of the situation from President Kim yet, as the staff members were whispering among themselves and glancing this way. Seunghyeok’s cold gaze passed over the curious faces and came to a stop at a corner next to a pillar.

One man with wavy hair was smirking while fiddling with someone else’s earlobe as if kneading clay, and another man was staring down at the floor with an expressionless face.

At the sight of the two men still standing so close together, a sneer—one of contempt bordering on disgust—burst from his lips.

I guess the one next to him is a gay bastard too.

“…Hyung-nim?”

Seunghyeok gestured with his chin toward the direction he was looking and spoke.

“Send that one down with us.”

“Who do you mean… Oh, the girl with her hair in a single ponytail? Standing by the speaker?”

“Behind her.”

After a brief pause, a fiercely sunken voice followed.

“The pale bastard who looks like a doll.”

Click.

Seunghyeok clicked his tongue loosely and boarded the elevator. The metal doors closed quickly, and the illuminated white number changed.

Left alone at the top of the stairs, Taeshik’s head slowly turned toward the floor below. At the end of his gaze was the man he had encountered earlier in front of the lobby.

The first thing that caught his eye were lips that held a reddish hue, as vivid as the women’s beside him. Whether he had applied something or if it was just the lighting settling on his already white skin, those firmly closed, plump lips particularly drew the eye.

He looked like he was in his early twenties at most.

While the expressionless face and the attitude of quietly listening to the conversation with downcast eyes gave off an aura that suggested he wasn’t entirely immature, he was still only twenty-two or twenty-three at most. He didn’t look any older than that.

Surely he isn’t a minor.

Even while committing all sorts of illegal acts, Seunghyeok maintained a firm stance when it came to matters involving minors. If Seunghyeok knew that man wasn’t an adult, his earlier attitude was somewhat understandable.

Taeshik suddenly felt uneasy and bit his lower lip firmly. If President Kim had even a shred of common sense, there was no way a minor would be here, but looking at the staff members who still stood with dazed faces, he couldn’t bring himself to trust it.

He looked down once more at Yihyeon, who was standing in the same doll-like posture, praying that he wouldn’t have to go to a remote mountain to dig a hole this morning.

It was likely just a groundless worry that the white face, which seemed to hold a hint of moisture, reminded him of the runaway teenagers a middle manager had once forced into prostitution behind the organization’s back years ago.

Feeling like he might remember which hand that manager had lost a finger from, Taeshik quickly shook his head from side to side and moved his steps toward the lower floor.

༘⋆🤍˚ .❄️₊˚ෆ

After summoning all the staff, the most President Kim managed to say was a measly, “Since the new owner has arrived, let’s all work harder and do well.”

Because of those useless, nutritional-less words, the end of the shift was delayed by thirty minutes. If he left now, he would be forced to squeeze onto a bus filled with commuters.

…How long would it take if I took a taxi? The commute will probably be pretty congested.

Yihyeon let out a small, seeping sigh, checked his wristwatch, and turned around. If he hurried just a bit, he thought he might be able to avoid the absolute peak of the rush hour. As he was walking while massaging his aching eyes after closing his locker door, someone blocked his path.

The black shoes that entered his vision were sparkling excessively as if they had just been polished. They wouldn’t belong to Subin, who had been dragged away by the hall staff to go have some liquor soup and a shot of soju before going home.

“… .”

When he slowly lifted his head, an unexpected face appeared. It was the man who had been sticking to Gu Seunghyeok like a shadow.

He hadn’t realized it when the two were standing together, but seeing him alone, the man’s physique was quite large and felt threatening. Even at a glance, the aura he gave off was different from that of ordinary people.

“You have some time, right?”

“… .”

“The Section Chief wants to see you.”

It was a matter-of-fact tone that did not assume a refusal. A gaze that felt like persistent observation lingered on his face for an exceptionally long time.

One might expect a hint of being intimidated or wary to show on his face in response to such an unfriendly look, but what appeared on Yihyeon’s white face was a composed, expressionless mask. Yihyeon, staring blankly up at the man, slowly opened his lips.

“What is this about.”

Suddenly, the eyes of Seunghyeok, who had been staring straight at him with an ice-cold expression, came to mind. Yihyeon wanted to pass off the sudden reunion earlier as one of those unpleasant coincidences one occasionally encounters in life, but it seemed the other party did not feel the same.

“You’ll have to hear that directly when you get there.”

Seeing the strangely coercive tone and the way he stood guarding the front as if to block any escape, it seemed saying no would be useless. In fact, he might have to be grateful that the man was letting him walk there on his own feet rather than dragging him. A laugh mixed with a sigh escaped his lips.

Taeshik, who watched Yihyeon’s faint sneer with disapproval, took the first step. The curious gazes of other passing staff members clung to him, but Yihyeon ignored them and followed behind Taeshik.

Rather than curiosity about why Gu Seunghyeok was looking for him, the thought that his immediate sleeping time had been reduced came first. It seemed he would have to catch some sleep at a nearby motel and go straight to his part-time job. If he hung his clothes in the bathroom, the smell of cigarettes would mostly fade. Yihyeon rubbed his eyes with his hand, as they were stinging from being tormented by acrid smoke all night.

As they turned the corner, a closed door appeared at the end of the hallway. It was an area he had never visited before, as access for general staff was prohibited beyond that point. The guards who had been blocking the front of the door with their hands behind their backs spotted Taeshik and quickly bowed their heads.

Beyond the metal door, which opened more easily than ever, he saw stairs leading down.

At that moment, Taeshik, who was about to take a step toward the lower floor, suddenly stopped and turned his head. He tilted his head askew and scanned Yihyeon from head to toe with suspicious eyes.

“Twenty-two?”

“… .”

“No? Younger than that?”

His speech had suddenly become informal. The white fingers that were pressing against his aching eyes came to a dead stop. Seeing as the things he said upon their first meeting were quite similar, he did indeed seem to be Gu Seunghyeok’s man. Yihyeon lowered his hand and slowly raised his eyes.

“…Do I have to tell you that?”