ACJY C32

With mint candies from the restaurant in their mouths, the two men stepped out onto the street instead of the parking lot. They were going shopping. The man led Taeheun past small shops and into the market.

“Where are we going? I don’t wear anything but name brands.”

“Why are you worried about name brands for work clothes?”

“It’s not cool.”

He grumbled, but he was smiling.

Seeing the man’s brisk pace, it seemed he had a regular clothing store he frequented.

The small market had narrow paths. It was impossible for two large men to walk side by side, so they walked one behind the other. The man stopped in front of a shoe store displaying boots similar to the ones he wore.

‘Throw away your sneakers.’

That was the first thing he had heard in the greenhouse. Throw away his sneakers. The women, Mr. Jang the greenhouse owner, and the man had all expressed regret over Taeheun’s white Nike sneakers.

The shoe store owner quickly came out and asked for his size.

“285. I also wear 290.”

“Oh my, your feet are really big. But anything over 280 has to be specially ordered.”

“What about sneakers?”

“Those too. Size 280, I might sell one or two pairs a year. What are you going to do? If you’re going to buy them, I’ll order them for you.”

Taeheun looked back at the man, who nodded.

“Since we’re ordering, please order sneakers too.”

Taeheun added.

“What kind would you like?”

“They’re for working in the fields, so anything comfortable is fine.”

“Something non-slip.”

The man, who had been standing a step back, added.

“Let’s see, boots come in 10mm increments, so 290, and sneakers 285?”

At the owner’s question, he looked at the man.

“290 for those too, please. It’s more comfortable with thick socks.”

The man advised.

“Did you hear that? Order both in 290.”

The owner went inside the store, brought out an old notebook, and handed it over.

“Write your contact information here. I’ll call you as soon as they arrive.”

Taeheun switched places with the man and asked him to write it down for him. The man took the pen and wrote down his name and phone number.

“How much is it?”

The man asked.

“28,000 won.”

“Give me a 5,000 won discount.”

The man said it casually, even though he looked like he wouldn’t haggle to save his life.

“Oh, I can’t make any profit if I discount that much. 28,000 won.”

“23,000 won.”

“Oh, come on, I can’t. 27,000 won.”

“24,000 won.”

“Sigh, alright, then give me 25,000 won. I’m really not making any profit.”

The owner took the 30,000 won from Taeheun’s hand with a deep sigh. Giving him 5,000 won in change, he said, “I’m really giving you a good deal.”

“Thank you. Good business to you, sir.”

The man gave an energetic greeting.

“Sir, you’re really generous. Please call me as soon as the items arrive.”

Even though it was only 3,000 won, Taeheun was also excited and gave the shoe store owner a thumbs-up.

“Mr. Gibeom, I see you in a new light, you even know how to haggle.”

At Taeheun’s words, the man brushed his nape. His face was red again.

“What’s your shoe size, Mr. Gibeom?”

“75.”

The man replied, looking down at his feet.

“Perfect. I wish I had Mr. Gibeom’s shoe size. You know, Korea is a difficult country to live in for people with big feet like me. I always have to order shoes I can just wear. I have to go to Nike or Adidas to even see if they have my size. For dress shoes, well, I always have to get them custom-made at a specialty store.”

Taeheun chattered on to the back of the man’s head.

Even though he could have turned around, the man didn’t look back once on the way to the clothing store. Then he strode into a sock store. Without asking Taeheun, he picked up bundles of white and black socks that reached about mid-calf. Twenty pairs for 10,000 won, and the man paid.

Then, without hesitation, he turned again. The man stopped at a place that was hard to tell whether it was a clothing store or a bedding store, after navigating through narrow alleys. It was a place where clothes were piled up and sold, like a street vendor in Namdaemun.

“Do we really have to buy from a place like this?”

“I’ll pick them out for you.”

Ignoring Taeheun’s complaint, the man skillfully rummaged through the piles of clothes and picked out two cotton T-shirts, one black and one white, a plaid long-sleeved shirt, and two pairs of dark cargo pants.

“See if the waist fits.”

“What the heck, why are there so many pockets on these pants?”

It was a style Taeheun really hated.

“Give me jeans like the ones Mr. Gibeom wears.”

“Jeans are hot.”

“Then why do you wear them, Mr. Gibeom?”

“Because of rashes. I sometimes get rashes if I wear thin pants.”

The man replied in a dejected voice.

“Give me the pants.”

Taeheun reluctantly took the cargo pants and held them against his waist. They fit perfectly. Thinking the man had a good eye, he pointed at the pile of clothes.

“Pick some for yourself, Mr. Gibeom. I’ll buy you a set.”

At Taeheun’s suggestion, the man picked up a black T-shirt without hesitation.

“Pick out some pants too.”

“It’s okay.”

“Pick them out when I offer to buy them for you. Don’t regret it later. Let’s see, these are nice.”

He picked out a pair of dark jeans from the pile of clothes. He checked the size by flipping the waistband and handed them to the man. He chose the same size he wore.

“Do they fit?”

“Yes.”

“I knew it.”

Taeheun took the T-shirt and jeans from the man’s hand and held them out together. The shop owner folded the clothes neatly, put them in a large plastic bag, and took the money. There was a lot of change.

“I gave you a discount because you young men are handsome.”

“Thank you.”

The man bowed happily. Suddenly, a playful thought struck Taeheun.

“Sir, which one of us is more handsome? I keep thinking it’s me, but this friend insists he’s more handsome.”

At Taeheun’s silly question, the owner laughed brightly and said, “You’re both handsome in different ways,” and began to evaluate their looks.

“The pale one is pretty, like a gisaeng’s lover, and the tanned one is clearly the strong, silent type, like Dolshoe.”

“Dolshoe? Hahaha. Mr. Gibeom, Mr. Gibeom, they said you’re like Dolshoe, what do you think?”

He burst out laughing and slapped the man’s arm. The man’s face turned red, and he mumbled something before walking away quickly in the direction they had come from.

“Wait up! Why are you going alone?”

Taeheun grinned and quickly followed the man.

“Dolshoe, huh? Keke. Have you ever been called that before?”

He asked, speaking to the back of the man’s head.

The man’s neck flushed red.

“I’ve been called a gisaeng’s lover so many times, I don’t care anymore, but Dolshoe is a bit much, right? But it’s not necessarily a bad thing. It has a steadfast feel, and you seem like you’d be good in bed. Oh, who was it? That’s right, Byeon Gangsoe. Isn’t he the epitome of the Dolshoe type? But that doesn’t really fit your image, Mr. Gibeom. You’re too handsome to be Byeon Gangsoe.”

Taeheun, chattering excitedly, stopped the man at the entrance of the market.

“Mr. Gibeom! Shall we buy some tteokbokki to go? I think Jihye would like it.”

At the mention of his child, the man stopped.

“Let’s get some fried food and fish cakes too.”

The man, whose complexion had returned to normal, looked back.

Taeheun picked up a freshly fried shrimp and offered it to the man, then picked up another for himself and popped it in his mouth.

“Three servings of tteokbokki, and two servings of sundae, mixed liver and lung, please. And one serving of fish cakes. For the fried food… What kind of fried food do you like, Mr. Gibeom?”

The man, chewing on the shrimp, swallowed everything in his mouth and replied.

“Squid and shrimp.”

“I like vegetable fritters. Don’t you eat them?”

“Not really.”

The man’s expression as he said “not really” seemed sullen. He appeared to be holding a grudge about being teased earlier.

“Sir, four pieces each of squid and shrimp, and two vegetable fritters, please. And give us plenty of broth with the fish cakes.”

Undeterred, Taeheun ordered in a bright voice, then scooped some fish cake broth into a paper cup and handed it to the man. The man quietly accepted it and slurped it down. It seemed like the man was also suffering from a hangover.

“The broth is delicious. Sir, one more serving of fish cakes, please.”

After placing the additional order, the two stood side by side and drank another cup of broth each. A moment later, they received two black plastic bags. The man took the shopping bag containing clothes from Taeheun’s hand.

It was a hot day, and both the man and Taeheun were sweaty from shopping in the crowded market.

“Do you only drink instant coffee?”

Taeheun asked, pointing to a coffee shop near the naengmyeon restaurant.

“I drank a lot earlier.”

“Then Mr. Gibeom can have iced tea or a parfait or something. I need a cool Americano.”

“Aren’t you full?”

“There’s a separate stomach for coffee. Let’s go.”

The man reluctantly followed him to the coffee shop.

While it was called a coffee shop, it seemed to have been a dabang in the past, as the chairs and interior were similar to a traditional Korean tea house. Aside from the atmosphere, he really liked the strong air conditioning.

It was right after lunchtime, so there were hardly any customers. A few regulars were chatting and laughing with the proprietress.

Taeheun took a seat, and the man sat across from him.

“You’ve already spent more than a day’s wage.”

The man said worriedly.

“It’s okay. It always costs a lot to start anything, right? And seeing Mr. Gibeom’s daily wage, I figure I can earn that much if I work a bit.”

“You’re going to keep working?”

He asked with a puzzled look.

“Yes. I find it rewarding and enjoyable.”

“Um, by any chance… is the upstairs repair not finished yet? Brother Daeho said he was going to work there.”

His tone was very cautious.

“Oh, the repairs are done, and I worked there yesterday. But there isn’t work every day.”

He seemed unconvinced.

“Really. Even though I may seem like a fool, I’m amazing when I work. Yesterday, I worked for seven hours straight without even going to the bathroom.”

“Then you should rest when there’s no work. Don’t follow me around and get hurt. It’ll only interfere with your important work.”

The man hit a nerve.

“Now that I hear it, that’s true.”

It would only hurt him if he ended up getting sick doing something he wasn’t used to. He knew that, but even so, he enjoyed coming to work with the man. It had only been half a day, but life felt fun. He wasn’t just enduring each day, barely surviving, but genuinely enjoying himself, to the point where he felt time was precious. If he had been alone, he would have been listlessly staring into space.

“I’m not that important. Detective Oh exaggerated. He’s kind of a liar, you know.”

He made an excuse jokingly because the man looked too serious.

Suddenly, the man’s face turned red. Not from embarrassment, but from anger. He stood up abruptly, and the proprietress, who had belatedly brought the menu, flinched and backed away at his forcefulness.

“I’ll be outside.”

“Mr. Gibeom, Mr. Gibeom!”

The man walked out of the shop.

“One iced Americano and one iced tea, please. To go.”

Taeheun quickly placed his order and picked up the shopping bag and the bag of food from the sofa. Watching the man’s receding figure, he laughed in disbelief. He was baffled. What was wrong this time? Shit. He cursed under his breath.