NFS 1.18

Strangely, Joo Seung-ha didn’t respond with his usual confrontational attitude. Seo Ahn-jae’s intense stare seemed more like desire than aggression, making it difficult to meet his eyes. Above all, he was hungry. Joo Seung-ha chose to ignore him and turned to his food as the server brought it out.

While Joo Seung-ha mixed rice into his hot beef bone soup and slowly ate several spoonfuls, he could still feel Seo Ahn-jae’s gaze on him. Only when Joo Seung-ha was halfway through his meal did Seo Ahn-jae resume eating. It seemed like he had wanted to match Joo Seung-ha’s pace, but Joo Seung-ha dismissed this feeling as some sort of misunderstanding. At this point, receiving consideration from Seo Ahn-jae wouldn’t bring him any joy.

He hadn’t planned to answer calls while driving but needed to check messages immediately because of Cookie’s situation. Furthermore, Seo Ahn-jae, who seemed strangely cheerful, brazenly got into Joo Seung-ha’s car claiming he hadn’t brought his own. Joo Seung-ha habitually placed his smartphone on the mount while driving, and when a late call came in, he glanced consciously at Seo Ahn-jae.

“Just answer it.”

Seo Ahn-jae, checking documents on his tablet in the passenger seat, said curtly.

“I was going to.”

As Joo Seung-ha replied while touching the call button, he noticed SeoAhn-jae’s lips curling up. Why does he look so pleased when I’m being cold? As Joo Seung-ha was feeling disgruntled, an unfamiliar voice came through the speaker.

[Ah, I’m calling about the flyer for the missing dog. You’re still looking, right?]

“Yes, that’s right. Have you seen Cookie?”

[Yes. I saw a stray dog near where I work part-time a few days ago that looked similar to the dog in the flyer. The one with lots of spots on its face.]

“Exactly when was this? Where do you work?”

The informant mumbled about three days ago, then hesitated before asking:

[But you’re really giving the reward?]

“Yes. If you can tell us the exact location and time, we’ll verify if it’s Cookie through CCTV, and if it matches, you’ll receive it right away.”

[Ah, CCTV…]

The call abruptly ended with that mumble. It looked like it was just someone trying to get the reward. JooSeung-ha internally cursed “shit” while gripping the steering wheel tighter. Then Seo Ahn-jae, still looking at his tablet, casually said, “Increase the reward.”

Though Joo Seung-ha hadn’t explained the situation to him, Seo Ahn-jae spoke as if he knew what exactly what was going on.

“You know about Cookie?”

“Your shelter keeps posting about it on social media.”

Well, it was important. But Joo Seung-ha hadn’t known Seo Ahn-jae was checking the shelter’s social media. Perhaps noticing Joo Seung-ha’s questioning expression, Seo Ahn-jae explained matter-of-factly, “I said I’d help, didn’t I? I need to understand exactly how I can help.”

Well, he was always thorough about his work. While Joo Seung-ha acknowledged this, he shook his head about the reward.

“Increasing the reward would be difficult. Even one million won is a lot for us.”

“Still, increase it. We need to find them quickly.”

While he did want to find Cookie quickly, unlike Seo Ahn-jae who had money to spare, the shelter’s budget was always tight. As Joo Seung-ha was about to object, Seo Ahn-jae looked at him as if he didn’t understand.

“Haven’t you checked the calendar?”

Calendar, why…? Joo Seung-ha finally realized the days toward summer and cursed internally. Ah, fuck, the dog meat days(boknal). First, boknal was approaching soon. Though they say fewer people eat dog meat these days, it was still the most dangerous time for street dogs. His flesh suddenly shuddered. We really need to find them quickly. After driving silently for a while at a loss for words, Joo Seung-ha finally spoke.

“Thank you.”

He could feel the gaze on his profile for a long time, but Joo Seung-ha kept his eyes on the road. After a moment, Seo Ahn-jae’s response came.

“Whatever.”

Silence returned to the car, but Joo Seung-ha felt that this silence had a strange awkwardness he hadn’t experienced before. His thanks had been awkward, and so was Seo Ahn-jae’s reply. It sounded unusually shy for Seo Ahn-jae. But that made no sense. Seo Ahn-jae being shy? I must be getting heat stroke already.

Joo Seung-ha, irritated with himself, was thinking about how much to increase the reward when a message notification dinged. Joo Seung-ha couldn’t check it while driving, but he saw Seo Ahn-jae’s hand touch the screen to prevent it from dimming. Why is he looking at my message? At a red light, he could see the sender and part of the message on the smartphone screen:

―President Kang from xx Boutique: I did as you said, Seung-ha-ssi. Ate well and took my dog for a good walk…

It was a message he could naturally ignore since he had no relationship with President Kang. Especially since Seo Ahn-jae wouldn’t know this message was from the man he’d beaten up in front of the bar. Yet Joo Seung-ha strangely felt a chill on his nape. When he glanced up, he understood why. Seo Ahn-jae was glaring intensely at the smartphone.

“Interesting.”

A voice mixed with laughter muttered. Joo Seung-ha tried to hide his tension as he blurted out,”What is?”

He lifted his eyes straight ahead but held his breath when he met Seo Ahn-jae’s gaze. Seo Ahn-jae slowly curved his lips.

“Seung-ha.”

If Seo Ahn-jae had cursed as usual or rudely demanded to know who it was like he did when they were at the bar, he wouldn’t have been this tense. But that deep voice saying his name strangely felt like greater pressure, constricting Joo Seung-ha’s breathing. So he couldn’t stop Seo Ahn-jae’s hand as it reached out to cup his face.

The large hand covered half his face, thumb gently stroking the soft skin. Though it was a gentle touch without any force, Joo Seung-ha felt like he was bound in chains. Just like back then when he was completely in his grasp in the bed.

“Go. The light changed.”

With those cold words, Seo Ahn-jae’s hand fell away. Joo Seung-ha resumed driving but could no longer think about Cookie. He just focused his full attention on driving, staring straight ahead. So he didn’t notice that Seo Ahn-jae hadn’t turned a single page on his tablet until he got out of the car.

Back home, Joo Seung-ha knew exactly what was bothering him. A non-angry Seo Ahn-jae was uncomfortable. When he got out of the car, he had said goodbye as usual.

‘Go.’

But he’d said it shortly as if speaking an important word while making eye contact. Joo Seung-ha would have found it easier if he still treated him as less than a discarded cigarette butt on the street. If he wanted to sleep with a cigarette butt, he could be dismissed as an incomprehensible madman.

But the bits of kindness he kept showing were irritating. If he simply wanted to sleep with Joo Seung-ha, he wouldn’t go to such unnecessary trouble. To Joo Seung-ha, he was like embers completely extinguished with water seven years ago, never to burn again. However, it felt like belatedly discovering previously unknown black ash stains left behind from a passion he thought was already extinguished.

How annoying. Joo Seung-ha thought absently as he pulled his shirt over his head to change. Suddenly, the shelter’s smell he hadn’t noticed hit his nose. Come to think of it, I must have smelled. Seo Ahn-jae, who hadn’t minded the smell at all, came to mind, but he quickly erased him from his thoughts. Let’s wash up. Both this smell and Seo Ahn-jae’s black ash.

On Monday at work, the first person to ask about Cookie was the president who owned two rescue dogs. She was truly angry and ranted throughout the meeting about humans who abandon family like vermin. Only after Joo Seung-ha said “Please don’t discuss unnecessary things during meetings” did she finally stop. Still, at the end of the meeting, she urged all employees,’Everyone post Cookie’s missing flyer on your personal social media. Emphasize that they were abandoned by their owner.’

Perhaps because the president was so passionate, everyone except one person showed concern for Cookie. And that one person, who wouldn’t even make eye contact all morning, called Joo Seung-ha behind the company building at lunch. Joo Seung-ha had planned to be nicer to Manager Park as he’d told the president. Getting scolded by someone younger must have hurt his pride. But Manager Park faced him and asked incredulously, “I hear you met with President Kang separately?”

His eyes were full of indignation, as if saying ‘You made such a fuss with me but ended up meeting him anyway?’ Joo Seung-ha suppressed his emotions due to his resolution to be nice, but his voice came out ice-cold, “Yes, I went to the store again, but he still hasn’t ordered even one bag of pet food.”

Manager Park hesitated and frowned.

“Well, they don’t have to order from us…But did you go because of orders? President Kang seemed interested in Team Leader Joo?”

Joo Seung-ha looked at him directly.

“Do you think you’re the only one interested in me?”

Manager Park’s eyes flickered in confusion.

“Well, that…”

He opened his mouth reflexively and added with a mumble, “Must be nice being so popular.”

Joo Seung-ha let out an incredulous laugh. When Manager Park turned away like a sulking child, Joo Seung-ha made an effort to speak gently.

“I don’t know what you heard or how, but tell whoever told you clearly: I’m not interested in anything except business talk, and I don’t like people making connections without permission. I’d appreciate it if Manager Park could clearly convey this to President Kang.”

“Ah, yes,” Manager Park muttered while turning away and quickly left for the office. Left alone, Joo Seung-ha smirked again, finding the situation absolutely ridiculous, and then stopped walking. He smelled cigarette smoke somewhere. He could hear soft voices from the people smoking in the outdoor smoking area.

Though the scent was faint and quickly disappeared, it reminded Joo Seung-ha of someone’s cigarette smoke dispersing in the darkness with a “hoo.” As meetings with Seo Ahn-jae increased, he kept intruding into Joo Seung-ha’s daily life unexpectedly. All Joo Seung-ha could do was continue not acknowledging it.

On his way back to the office, memories of him were easily forgotten, but another sudden reality attacked him soon after. With a short buzz, a message appeared on his phone screen. Joo Seung-ha stopped walking and couldn’t move easily. The sender was his only family.

―You bastard, you think I can’t find you? Send money to this account quickly. If you don’t send this money, you’re killing me. I’m going to die because of you!

Just as a stranger’s cigarette smoke had reminded him of Seo Ahn-jae, his mother’s hysterical voice vividly rang in his ears from just the wording of the text. Joo Seung-ha looked at the message for a moment, then pressed delete.

Monday involved mostly catching up on paperwork with a few client visits. Like most businesses entering their slow season in summer, Joo Seung-ha’s sales team saw decreased revenue. Perhaps because of this, work was finished quickly within a couple hours after lunch. Joo Seung-ha checked inventory with approaching expiration dates to estimate quantities for the summer sale.

These dog biscuits won’t sell without a big discount. Should I call suppliers in advance? Joo Seung-ha pulled up the client list on screen, wondering how to maximize sales. As he was filtering for businesses that had previously bought dog biscuits, he received a call. He glanced down before answering and paused.

‘President Kang xx Boutique’

After seeing the name on the screen, Joo Seung-ha’s eyes automatically went to Manager Park’s desk. But the person who could share his irritation wasn’t there. After staring at the empty seat for a moment, unable to let the phone keep ringing, he answered.

“Yes, this is Team Leader Joo Seung-ha.”

[It’s me. I heard you said not to contact you unless I’m buying pet food?]

Joo Seung-ha looked at Manager Park’s empty seat again. What exactly did he tell him?

[Fine, I’ll buy pet food. If it doesn’t sell, Antoine can eat it all.]

“…”

[Would about 100 bags be enough?]

“Is Antoine a dinosaur?”

Silence fell. Just when he thought the call might have dropped, he heard a mutter.

[Wow, that was funny.]

The voice had no trace of humor so Joo Seung-ha thought he was being mocked, but he swallowed his sarcasm at what followed.

[Strange. Nothing I’ve seen or heard has been funny for a month.]

“After a month, it’s about time you laughed.”

When Joo Seung-ha responded casually, another brief silence followed.

[Mr. Joo Seung-ha has a talent for speaking coldly while embedding warmth in his words every once in a while.]

It was a funny statement that wasn’t actually funny. Joo Seung-ha responded with even more distance attached to his words.

“There’s a B2B site where company clients can order pet food. You can register and order what you need.”

[You’re saying you won’t come?]

“Yes.”

A calm voice came through the receiver. It somehow sounded amused.

[Makes me want to make you come more.]

“President Kang, if you don’t have any business, I’m hanging up.”

[I have lots of business. Still no news about Cookie?]

Joo Seung-ha looked back at Manager Park’s empty seat again. Not just Manager Park, but it looked like the Heukseok-dong president had quite a loose tongue too.

[I saw it on social media.]

Ah. As Joo Seung-ha was briefly regretting cursing Manager Park, President Kang’s slow question came out.

[Aren’t you curious whose social media it was?]

“No.”

Hoping to end the call quickly, Joo Seung-ha answered halfheartedly while moving his mouse around. Though his eyes were fixed on the client list on the monitor, his hand stopped at the response.

[Million’s. It was posted on all their accounts.]

“…”

[Did you not know?]

“No. But it’s not strange. They’re a company that agreed to cooperate with the shelter.”

[Is that all?]

“That’s all. If you’re done, I’m hanging up.”

[Mr. Joo Seung-ha.]

He held Joo Seung-ha back again. And before Joo Seung-ha could say anything, he brought up his final business.

[I’ve found an opportunity to deliver the lawsuit papers in person.]

Though his words didn’t specify to whom or what kind of lawsuit, it was immediately clear. 

Joo Seung-ha answered briefly while still facing the monitor.

“Yes, do that.”

As he hung up, he heard a low laugh through the receiver. 

“What’s this? You said nothing was funny but you’re laughing just fine.” 

Joo Seung-ha muttered to himself while looking at the client list he needed to focus on, then shortly after searched Million’s social media.

The post about finding Cookie was really there. Compared to the shelter’s meager follower count, an enormous number of followers had seen the post, liked it, and shared it. Joo Seung-ha closed the window soon after, but his eyes now looked at the Excel file of client lists with a frown.

***

Secretary Choi honestly didn’t like this situation. While everyone said it was no big deal to post about finding a dog on the company’s social media, Secretary Choi felt differently. The problem was that Seo Ahn-jae had ordered this, and it was unprecedented.

Furthermore, he might have used the company’s public social media for personal reasons. To others, it might seem like nothing. While the social media manager could post external content at their discretion if it helped promote the company, this post about finding a lost dog was clearly unrelated to the overall company business.

Of course, while they were discussing collaboration with the shelter, it hadn’t been officially announced yet, so those unaware would find it random. Even company people who knew the situation wouldn’t think Seo Ahn-jae had personal motives in this matter.