PEN Vol 1 Ch. 18

“Since my phone number is in the call history, save it.”

At Cheon Sejoo’s words, Sejin glanced at him warily before pressing the keypad. Watching him silently, Cheon Sejoo waited until Sejin finished saving the number, then took out his phone and called Sejin’s prepaid phone, snatching it away once it started ringing.

“Give it back!”

Startled, Sejin jumped up and reached out his hands. However, Cheon Sejoo simply pushed him back by the forehead, preventing him from getting any closer. Ignoring Sejin’s grumbling about whether he’d lost his mind, Cheon Sejoo checked the saved contact on Sejin’s prepaid phone.

‘Old Man, Loan Shark, Gangster, Scammer.’

Cheon Sejoo had expected something like this, given how overly cautious he was when he had saved his number earlier. He let out a dry laugh as he saw the name Sejin had saved for him displayed on the screen.

“How rude.”

Sejin looked visibly flustered, clearly not expecting to be caught so quickly. He bit his lip slightly, as if anticipating that Cheon Sejoo might get angry, and carefully watched his reaction. However, since it wasn’t an entirely inaccurate description, Cheon Sejoo simply tossed the prepaid phone back onto Sejin’s lap and spoke.

“You know my name. Save it under that.”

“…How would I know your name?”

Now that the tension had eased with Sejoo’s calm tone, Sejin muttered in complaint as he opened the contacts list. He pressed the edit button, seemingly ready to change the contact name, and then looked at Sejoo expectantly as if asking for his name. It was Cheon Sejoo himself who was left dumbfounded by that gaze.

“Didn’t I leave my ID with you?”

He definitely remembered handing his resident registration card to Kwon Sejin the first time he brought him to the house. He had completely forgotten about it until he brought Sejin back again, and the thought suddenly resurfaced….

At his question, Sejin furrowed his brows in thought, then searched the pocket of his school uniform pants. Sejin found Cheon Sejoo’s resident registration card and showed a slightly awkward expression.

“I thought it was fake since you didn’t take it back.”

“It’s real. Now hand it over.”

Cheon Sejoo watched as Sejin checked his name on the resident registration card before handing it back. He then observed him as he changed the name on the phone. With that done, Cheon Sejoo sprawled out on the sofa and picked up the remote control next to him.

With a bored expression, he pressed the buttons, looking for something to watch, but then noticed that Sejin hadn’t left his side. Waiting for Sejin to speak first, Cheon Sejoo eventually settled on a cartoon channel. He listened to a bear in underpants singing a song, and after what felt like a long time, Sejin finally spoke up.

“Hey…”

“What?”

“Are you, by any chance, the boss there?”

Cheon Sejoo turned his gaze toward Sejin, hugging a cushion as he responded to the unusually cautious question.

“Where is ‘there’?”

“Are you the boss of Shinsa Capital?”

On paper, the official owner of Shinsa Capital was someone even Cheon Sejoo didn’t know. He was only going in and out of the place at the request of Shin Gyoyeon to resolve some chaos, and even that was something he planned to stop soon. In reality, Cheon Sejoo had no real connection to Shinsa Capital at all.

“No.”

When Cheon Sejoo shook his head firmly, Sejin asked another question.

“Then are you the gang leader?”

“……”

At the strange title, Cheon Sejoo frowned and reached out his hand. He felt around under the sofa, pulling out a cigarette and lighter. Still in the same position, lying down, he lit the cigarette and responded with it hanging from one side of his lips.

“If I were the gang leader, would that make you feel like respecting me?”

“No. It’s not that….”

Sejin answered immediately, as if it wasn’t even worth considering, and then, uncharacteristically, he hesitated and mumbled. Just from his behavior, Cheon Sejoo could easily guess what he was about to say. There was only one topic that Kwon Sejin ever brought up without his usual prickliness.

“Can you… let me see my mom again?”

At the expected question, Cheon Sejoo slowly took a drag from his cigarette before sitting up. He sat down with his legs crossed, and the smooth silk robe slipped off, revealing his long, lean legs. His smooth, hairless thighs were slender yet toned, presenting a sight that anyone would find appealing.

Cheon Sejoo’s long fingers brushed back his slightly damp hair. He looked at Sejin with the cigarette still in his mouth.

Meeting his seemingly indifferent, cold gaze, Sejin clamped his mouth shut and didn’t say anything more. He simply lowered his eyes slowly, adopting a pitiful demeanor as if silently pleading for one more favor.

“You can make it happen… can’t you?”

His weak voice echoed through the living room.

Only at times like this did he act pitiful.

Cheon Sejoo, once again recognizing Sejin’s cunning nature, finally responded.

“If you attend school properly, I’ll make it happen.”

Cheon Sejoo hadn’t brought Kwon Sejin into his home just because he felt sorry for him. Like Hye-in, Sejin was a child who had been left unprotected by his parents and guardians, abandoned by the world. Sejoo took him in with the intention of taking responsibility for him until he became an adult.

Responsibility. Yes, that was it. If he hadn’t had that sense of responsibility, he wouldn’t have even looked back at him in the first place.

For this reason, he couldn’t just sit by and watch as Sejin neglected school. The opportunities for education were limited. This was a crucial time in Sejin’s life, a period that would determine his future. The results of one’s efforts would directly impact their life, and this was the only time when that was truly the case. This was especially true for someone like Sejin, who had nothing to fall back on.

Cheon Sejoo couldn’t bear to see Kwon Sejin waste that opportunity, this time, right in front of him. Even though Sejin would surely think of him as a hypocrite, Cheon Sejoo was determined to send him to school. He didn’t want to let Sejin miss out on the opportunities before him.

As expected, Sejin frowned at his words. His expression seemed to ask, ‘Why do you care about something like that?’  In response, Cheon Sejoo made a threat that was more of a warning than a real threat.

“If you don’t go to school, I’ll tell your mom everything. I’ll let her know that you’ve given up on life and that you treat school like a cafeteria.”

It was a bit underhanded and petty but there was no other choice since he wouldn’t listen to kind words. At Cheon Sejoo’s words, Sejin stretched his lips into a grimace, clearly annoyed, then sighed and lowered his head.

After hesitating for a moment, fidgeting with his hands on his lap, he finally confessed the real reason he hadn’t been going to school.

“…I don’t have money for the bus fare.”

“……”

He had assumed Sejin wasn’t attending school because he had no interest in learning, but it seemed that wasn’t the only reason. Cheon Sejoo narrowed his eyes at the unexpected revelation and stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray. Now that he thought about it, the distance from here to East Seoul Boys High School was quite far. It was over 10 kilometers by car, so walking wasn’t an option.

Not having considered that the issue might be bus fare, Cheon Sejoo nodded and stood up. Telling Sejin to wait, he went into his room and rummaged through his wallet. He soon found a credit card with a built-in transportation card feature. Returning to the living room, he handed it to Sejin.

“Use this while you’re staying here. Buy whatever you need, and use it for your transportation card.”

And predictably, Kwon Sejin got angry at those words.

“…Why would I use your card? Who do you think I am, some kind of beggar?”

It was good that Sejin hadn’t given up his pride to the point of accepting charity, but in this situation, it was also a bit of a hassle for him that Kwon Sejin chose this moment to be prideful. However, he had now fully grasped how to handle Sejin. Looking at this troublesome freeloader, Cheon Sejoo matched Sejin’s anger with his own.

“Who said you could use it for free? Don’t you have any shame?”

“What?”

At his words, Sejin’s face twisted in confusion as he raised his head. Meeting his gaze, Cheon Sejoo said something he didn’t truly mean.

“Why would I give a rude brat like you a card for free? Every cent you spend is going to be charged to your mom. Everything—from what you eat to the bus rides, even down to the last ten-won coin. So, use it sparingly.”

Sejin’s face flushed with embarrassment. For a moment, he seemed ashamed of having misunderstood Cheon Sejoo’s intentions. His cheeks reddened, and he closed his mouth shut.

Feeling embarrassed, huh?

Sejoo thought, chuckling inwardly as he watched him. Then, he continued to scold him in a calm tone.

“Don’t just eat at school. Study when you have time.”

“……”

“I’m telling you to start thinking about your future and act accordingly.”

As Sejin accepted the card, he paused at the nagging. His sharp eyes immediately turned toward Cheon Sejoo. Ever since the day they first met, Sejin had always used those pretty eyes to glare at others, and now, with a sneer, he asked sarcastically.

“You dragged me here, in your house against my will, and now you’re going to force me to study too? What’s next? If I don’t study, are you going to tattle to my mom about that too?”

“How did you know? You’re more perceptive than I thought, aren’t you?”

When Cheon Sejoo confirmed it with a teasing smile, Sejin bit his lip and grumbled in frustration. He really hated how this man, who had taken him in his house out of a moment of sympathy, was now trying to interfere with his life so deeply.

It wasn’t even an interest that would last more than a few weeks, maybe not even a few days. In the end, he would kick him out before he even became an adult, so what was he trying to get involved in?

He doesn’t even understand my own situation, so what gives him the right to tell me to study or not…

Sejin fumed and then glared at Cheon Sejoo, snapping back at him.

“Shouldn’t you be the one studying? Your future looks a lot bleaker than mine. Do you even know what they teach in high school?”

At this, Cheon Sejoo pointed to himself with his fingertips.

Me?

 When Sejin nodded in response to his question, Sejoo let out a dry, dumbfounded laugh.

While he couldn’t deny the part about his future being uncertain, the suggestion that he needed to study was far from applicable. Cheon Sejoo had been the only student to achieve a perfect score on the college entrance exam the year he took it. Thanks to that, he was able to enter Korea University’s medical school on a full scholarship and even received temporary sponsorship from several companies.

He had entered school as the top student and graduated as the top student, never losing his position at the top of his department during his six years attending there. Although naturally intelligent, Cheon Sejoo had never slacked off in his efforts.

Sejin’s sarcastic remark didn’t bother him, in fact, it was nothing more than a refreshing joke. Cheon Sejoo looked at Sejin with a sense of fondness, finding him cute for making such comments without knowing anything.

Kwon Sejin, on the other hand, stared at Cheon Sejoo with a smug expression, as if challenging him to prove him wrong. Seeing that cocky look on Sejin’s pretty face left Sejoo feeling deflated, so he simply laughed and stood up.

“Anyway, do as I say. Unless you want to see your mom crying and struggling.”

Even as he left, he couldn’t resist adding a spiteful remark. Ignoring the angry glare Sejin shot at him, Sejoo headed toward his room. Despite his rebellious attitude, Kwon Sejin would eventually go to school. He was simpler than he seemed, which Sejoo found endearing. Thinking of Sejin’s sulky face on his way to school, Sejoo couldn’t help but smile to himself.

Even so, he didn’t forget to leave behind a spiteful remark. Leaving behind Sejin, who was glaring at him angrily, Cheon Sejoo headed to his room. Even though he showed such rebelliousness, in the end, Kwon Sejin would go to school. He was simpler than expected, which made him endearingly cute. Thinking about Sejin’s sulky face as he would go to school, Cheon Sejoo couldn’t help but smile to himself.