VDN Ch 41
by STAR“Seven hundred?”
“Yes.”
Nam-woon looked at the broken flower pot with an awkward smile.
“Ah…I’m sorry for breaking the flowerpot. But… is it seven hundred? Haha, hey, don’t joke around.”
Nam-woon laughed, but Hae-geon did not.
“Why would I joke about something like this?”
He said, his eyes wide as he gripped his phone tightly.
“Do you want me to show you the price?”
Hae-geon searched something on his phone and then handed it to Nam-woon. Crazy. Nam-woon swallowed a curse in his heart as he looked at the screen. It really was seven hundred million won. Actually, the exact amount was slightly over seven hundred million won. He messed up. Nam-woon held Hae-geon’s phone with both hands in despair. He quickly thought about the remaining money in his account.
Even the money he had gotten from a phone scammer, combined with what he had earned so far, did not add up to seven hundred. Just the living expenses alone were draining his money like a leak. Moreover, although Chairman Seok had said he would extend the deadline for tribute, Nam-woon didn’t know when he would demand the money.
Hae-geon quietly watched Nam-woon’s expressions change moment by moment. Nam-woon, unable to meet Hae-geon’s eyes, struggled to speak.
“Hey, I’m really… sorry.”
“……”
“Hey, but you know. Right now, I… I don’t think I can pay it all back right away.
Nam-woon bit his lower lip. Hae-geon’s steady gaze followed.
“At least three hundred…”
As Nam-woon muttered to himself with a troubled expression, he pressed the bank app on his phone, and Hae-geon spoke.
“Nam-woon-ah, are you out of money?”
Startled by the direct question, Nam-woon nodded his head. The man who had always been confident seemed to have lost his confidence in an instant. To someone, he might look pitiable, but Hae-geon felt a strange sense of pleasure.
“Good.”
Nam-woon lifted his head at those words and looked at Hae-geon. He was smiling as if he were pleased.
***
“Clean it up.”
After giving a brief order to the server at the door, Hae-geon put his hands in his pockets and left the room. The server, with a bewildered expression, looked down at the tragically broken flower pot and then headed towards the cleaning tools. As he took out a dustpan from the cabinet, another employee asked,
“Cleaning? At this time?”
The woman looked at her wristwatch and said,
“Oh, the boss broke the flowerpot.”
“What? How did that happen?”
The server, who had let the words slip without thinking, was startled by the woman’s reaction and quickly corrected himself.
“No, it wasn’t the boss, it was the boss’s guest.”
“Really? But well, if it’s the boss’s guest, they must have a lot of money anyway.”
The woman, with an indifferent expression, adjusted her uniform while looking in the mirror and then went outside. The server sighed. He recalled the scene he had witnessed earlier. It was true that the flower had caught on the hem of the shirt of the man who came as the boss’s guest. However, the man quickly removed his shirt, and everything had been fine up to that point…
Until the boss kicked the flowerpot with his foot.
The server, recalling the boss’s nonchalant expression as he told the man it was seven hundred, rubbed his arms with goosebumps. In times like these, it was hard to find a place that paid so well. Just pretend not to know. It’s not my business anyway. Even after paying off the loan this month, his living expenses were tight.
***
Nam-woon climbed the uphill road with a distraught expression.
“Come out whenever I call you.”
“I don’t have anyone else to run errands for me.”
“That seems like a fair deal for someone who broke a flowerpot worth seven hundred million won.”
He was uncertain. It sounded like a good deal just from listening, but he didn’t know what kind of work that crazy person would assign him. There was no such thing as a free lunch in the world. He asked what the errands were, but the man didn’t give a clear answer, saying it wasn’t a big deal. Anyway, since he didn’t have seven hundred million won at hand, he had no choice. Nam-woon used the transfer feature of the messaging app to send him fifty million won as a down payment and quickly left the store, heading to Kwon Seo-oh’s house.
He was really angry.
Nam-woon stood in front of the green gate and hesitated for a moment. He was told to come in early, but he thought that people might understand if he was a little late because of work. But why did he ask him to come in early?
Nam-woon carefully pushed open the door. Fortunately, it was not locked. However, it was dark all around, and the surroundings were silent. The house seemed quiet as if everyone were asleep. Nam-woon carefully stepped on the dirt yard, not to wake Seo-oh and Se-han. Step by step, he quietly crossed the yard, but an object placed right in the middle of the yard caught Nam-woon’s eye.
That’s my pillow.
On the round stool used for sitting while doing yard work or farming, Nam-woon’s pink floral-patterned pillow was lying there. Approaching it, Nam-woon picked up the pillow. Who put it here? He dusted off the pillow and carefully hugged it to his chest, then went to the front of the house and gently turned the doorknob.
Rattle.
“Huh?”
Rattle, rattle. The door was locked. Nam-woon turned his head to look at the farming stool and then looked down at his pillow.
“……”
Even though the days were warm, the temperature had dropped slightly in recent years, and it was chilly at night. Moreover, there were many insects and mosquitoes because of the mountain behind the house. Nam-woon tried turning the doorknob a couple more times before giving up and shuffling toward the window.
Clang!
As he moved his foot, he hit a small jar below. He might break a jar if he is not careful. Nam-woon moved even more carefully and reached out to the window.
Clunk, clunk.
The window wouldn’t open either. Nam-woon, who had been gently shaking the window, put his mouth to the tightly closed window frame and whispered.
“Se-han.”
Se-han likes the cool spot next to the window when he sleeps.
“Se-han. Your Hyung is here.”
“……”
There was no response. Worried that raising his voice might wake Seo-oh, Nam-woon couldn’t call out loudly and once again put his lips to the gap in the window.
“Kwon Se-han, please open the door for Hyung.”
That’s when it happened.
Click.
The door opened!
Kwon Se-han, nice. Nam-woon, forgetting the situation, grinned and hurried to the door. But as soon as he saw the figure standing tall by the door, the smile on his lips froze. He said,
“Are you laughing?”
Kwon Seo-oh stood guarding the door. Suddenly, Nam-woon’s mouth went dry, and he could only hold the pillow and stare at the ground. Maybe it was because it was dark around him, but Seo-oh really looked like a grim reaper.
buzzing, buzzing Amidst the sound of insects, the first to speak between the two men confronting each other at the door was Nam-woon.
“I’m sorry for being late.”
“……”
“It’s because of work.”
“Who were you with?”
Nam-woon expected to be asked what happened, but Seo-oh asked something else first. How should he explain who the person was? As Nam-woon remained silent, Seo-oh asked again.
“Who was it earlier?”
“Just someone I know.”
At that, Seo-oh turned his head and let out a hollow laugh, then looked straight at Nam-woon.
“Just someone you know talks to you like that?”
“What do you mean by that?”
What kind of store is it? Is it that bastard’s store?”
“I’m not sure.”
Nam-woon answered Seo-oh’s questions one by one, but somehow Seo-oh’s expression seemed to get worse with each answer.
“Do you really know the person?”
“……”
He didn’t know. The man was just someone who had swindled Nam-woon out of money and ran off. Now the situation was the other way around.
Seo-oh put on slippers and came down to the yard. Up close, it was apparent that he was barely holding back his anger.
“How many people do you know like that?”
“Not many… Why are you so angry? I said I was sorry for being late.”
Kwon Seo-oh exhaled a sigh and swept back his hair. His fine hair flowed over his forehead.
“Be honest. If I hadn’t called, you wouldn’t have come home, right?”
“What are you talking about? No. You told me to come home early.”
“You didn’t reply.”
“I didn’t need to do that.”
I thought I would be going straight home anyway. But at Nam-woon’s words, Seo-oh’s face hardened. After a moment of silence, Seo-oh spoke again.
“Why aren’t you answering my calls?”
“……”
“No contact either. Were you planning to sleep at that person’s house?”
“What? Why would I go to his house?”
Nam-woon shook his head, but Seo-oh seemed not to believe him. Frustrated, Nam-woon frowned and said,
“If it was such an urgent matter, you should have called in advance to tell me what it was. Or at least leave a message explaining why. That would have been enough.”
“……”
Kwon Seo-oh kept his mouth shut tight. Nam-woon, suppressing his desire to just go inside, asked quietly,
“What’s the matter?”
“… It wasn’t a big deal.”
It wasn’t a big deal and yet you’re so angry? I couldn’t understand. Nam-woon said as he passed by Seo-oh,
“Move aside, let me wash up first.”
Suddenly, Seo-oh grabbed Nam-woon’s wrist as he tried to enter the room.
“Hyung, have you been drinking?”
He furrowed his brow as he continued,
“You said it was because of work. Is drinking part of your job?”
“I didn’t drink.”
Nam-woon was sure that the host had served non-alcoholic drinks, but considering he felt slightly tipsy, there must have been some alcohol mixed in. However, admitting to drinking seemed like it would escalate the argument, so he glossed over it. Kwon Seo-oh cursed.
“Shit, you did drink.”
“What, damn it?”
“Lies only work once or twice.”
“When have I ever lied!”
“If you had passed out drunk, you would have slept at that person’s house!”
“Why would I sleep at his house! I’m telling you I won’t!”
Nam-woon shouted, jerking his hand away. Seo-oh, with a chill in his eyes, spoke in a low voice.
“That person told you to come to the store, aren’t you going there again anyway?”
I’m not going, Nam-woon added belatedly, but the brief silence was as good as saying he would go to the store again. After all, he had caused an accident, so he had to go if called.
“Are you a dog? You go when you’re called?”
“What kind of way is that to talk?”
“Am I wrong?”
“So, are you right?”
Nam-woon also tilted his head defiantly and glared at Kwon Seo-oh.
“Aren’t you usually late getting home? Don’t you usually drink? Why are you making a fuss at me for doing the same things you do?”
Such a hypocrite. At Nam-woon’s words, Seo-oh bit his lip and then looked down, saying nothing for a while. After a moment, he quietly opened his mouth.
“I thought you were coming home early today… I ordered chicken and kept waiting for you.”