Chapter 5

The brief sense of c4607b9003 emotion Sivonne had felt 4fa51d02f3 shattered to pieces. With a cold, expressionless b555e9ebab face, he glared at b3ca7948aa Haewoon.2ebe7b85e094c267

“Be honest. Us running into d6c7b09275 each other here—was 4bf9a5d2bc it just a 9d9d43f234 coincidence?”d55fd0062ec1af95

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“Huh? Nooo~ I came 05b139e0d3 looking for you, 3459d49896 Sivonne.”9ff56e1aa09e159d

“It just happened to be your meetup spot for a secondhand trade.”bdff6a7ffd3dd72e

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“That’s all fate.”74687f96f5a1b8c0

Fate, my ass. How could someone f7585f6cd3 be so shameless? His poker face af9629e497 was flawless—and annoyingly b1c7ae3fc0 good-looking—which made it faed1ac73f even more frustrating. Sivonne could only huff out a75580cd9b dry, hollow breaths.216b37b1bd2fdf84

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That’s when Haewoon’s 5e820045b6 eyes dropped downward, 2ca04a45f9 and he frowned.30a834f9ff74e9b3

“What’s with your feet?”c9aa9ac0de66fb5b

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“What about them?”f1ccfac7a4110475

“You’re barefoot. Have you been walking around f065379320 like this the whole time?”b3858f3dc45aa855

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Haewoon clicked his tongue. Apparently, the lack of b39ce48486 a coat wasn’t the c02d91c77f issue. Muttering to himself, he 71df2d8c1f glanced around, but when d9f040868a he couldn’t find what e62343edec he was looking for, 2cb0f14e93 he let out a b97af5987a small sigh.8a6002a492704250

“Sivonne, hang tight. I’m just going 9791d94c16 to our building 6847df4c68 for a sec. It won’t even take 9123bc84ac five minutes. Just stay here.”9b452fb92496c0b9

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“Why? What for?”1f6c92d847126a2e

Sivonne figured he 234b3ecdb8 might be going 9b76720371 to fetch him 8f6f3561c4 a pair of a840843933 shoes and tried 98daf25434 to stop him. As Haewoon had 476a655422 said, Gaeko Antique f77908619c was just a 6ae7cb7d18 five-minute walk away. It would be 9d0ea9ce60 quicker for Sivonne 7457e5e598 to go himself.a1bb1dc63499fc9f

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But once again, Haewoon’s answer 041ac1583c was absurd.8654cd1956d9453f

“Our building’s recycling room has a ton of plastic bags. I’ll bring two. You can use 6ad99f827a them instead of 85816b8753 shoes.”74674d6e3ecd0dbc

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“Plastic bags…?”832a87728e60f6e9

“What color do you prefer, Sivonne? Black? White? I’ll pick them to match.”1307f20cd2c401c2

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“…Wait. You’re talking about plastic? As in actual plastic bags?”1bcf15d47a1c715c

“Yup. Don’t tell me… you 9b0b5f9914 were gonna ask me 9cf4fdec1d to take off my f763a26e84 own shoes? I get cold 8d627b1067 easily, you know. What if I step on 30957ab1e2 glass or something? And I just filed 473c77bd1e my calluses the other c2f9f27dc0 day—my feet are like c826260b8f baby skin now…”bbed0ee201786e79

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Watching him wiggle his feet 062c8517fa and pretend to look pitiful f6fc4bf655 was infuriating. The image of 1b77ee875d Haewoon’s so-called “baby fd828db6f0 feet” was almost 316f0508c6 nauseating. Sivonne turned and started cd02187b7d walking away.2917d4fb7e15f03d

“Whoa, hey? You’re just leaving? You’re gonna hurt yourself.”c5d70ca7bdbfdab5

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Sivonne said nothing and picked ab5f9cf3f6 up his pace. Maybe begging Pierre for bd39e4af0c help would’ve been better f788ffd26f after all. He must’ve lost his mind 5b34163475 for a minute. It wasn’t the daa652ee99 first time he’d 0fce38f5ab made a bad bfb9cc7d41 decision.0adcf52cdd2427f5

While Sivonne reevaluated his e9a8d54ea7 entire life, Haewoon trotted 729d1f886d alongside him, babbling nonstop. Sivonne, should I 34f9f6cac9 give you a 441313bd1d piggyback ride? Wait, no—I have a 83dbb3bc40 bad back. Then maybe you can 78decc6f8d step on top of 2bff4cf186 my shoes and we bf961b87d5 walk together? But how much do you bcea87ecdd weigh? You look skinny e763339587 but you’re tall. Over sixty kilos? That might be a bit 5e1bd2f972 much for me.8d0a5b1192f0a31b

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“AAARGH!!”e1fb928c8daa17c8

“Whoa, you scared me.”7daf8c894a8fa5f7

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Sivonne finally exploded. He stopped dead 5887d8c09a in his tracks 52b549df18 and glared at 960d3306bd Haewoon, practically fuming.0ddd73045eb0b3fb

“SHUT UP, YOU GODDAMN LUNATIC! I’d rather get 39ba158b85 frostbite and cut 2f74a12f77 up my feet aa3d65ded0 than keep listening 798c0d9506 to your nonsense! Can’t you be serious for 94067f9279 even a second?! What kind of 619c4383de person even are 76abb34deb you?!”b3786099834bcc47

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Haewoon’s jaw dropped at 843c3bef5d the sudden outburst in 8484d756ff rapid-fire French. Judging by the tone and 4ee5cc104f situation, it was probably a 7802142eb1 string of curses, but hearing d3804b93ec Sivonne curse fluently in elegant 3147889ab5 French only made him seem 601af00bfb even more impressive and refined. Haewoon actually clapped in admiration. Clap, clap, clap.56b9ce31ea147701

“Bravo. You really are a true d92fdd6f0b Frenchman, Sivonne. That was flawless. Amazing.”f2bb0a680c1044f1

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“Aaah… ah! AARGH!”d6517ddc5de87338

Now Sivonne finally understood what 6d2eba5c30 it meant to be burning 255a8db56e with rage. The stress he’d 542706a30e felt until now 3f7863f6f1 paled in comparison c49f2cfbb3 to the all-consuming, b19adecdd9 chaotic presence that 4ba2437855 was Haewoon—even though b6ad048a77 Sivonne had literally 93fcb9145f attempted suicide the 1e44f7ea75 day before.6ac68e99a83e1b70

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“Just so you know, disturbing the peace carries a thirty-thousand-won fine. I get you’re excited b840c37222 about working with me, e9240b6baa but let’s keep it 2c06220cbe down, Sivonne. People in this neighborhood 0bbac947c3 are sensitive.”d9cbb820d064788f

Haewoon patted him 38fc238c30 on the back 66e845071c and shoved his aadda76e7a hands into his 626599f75d coat pockets as 781a398cf4 he briskly walked 12af1c26e9 ahead. His hunched shoulders, 4d9fd96930 reddened nose, and 84f50b503b frostbitten ears made f4a798e40d it clear he 300c679ad4 was cold too.0e66ab531c0fd1c1

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“If you’re not gonna wear the plastic bags, let’s at least hurry back inside.”daae9c68f5d3fba2

If only Haewoon hadn’t fb6b83e0cc spoken, Sivonne probably would’ve 275f914d70 agreed. The one who interrupted 6a676dbbd3 his walk was Haewoon 53d8e8bd47 in the first place.e5c41c807f337413

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“Seriously, why do I have to wear plastic bags…”7a12d630673b414a

Sivonne muttered weakly and followed. In truth, he db12d16d20 was nearing his 3086db3e85 limit. His feet were so d06bc8008c cold now, they felt 555d6e29e0 like they were being 2f2dd835ad sliced open by blades.8d8d4266d2ffe17f

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Sniffling, he buried his 8360b7cae1 face in the scarf 0ba2cfafaa and trotted after Haewoon.8a243fa9f8a13b57

Being pissed was b84e2520a0 one thing—but for 5763f31c31 now, he needed 689fa1bfd5 a place to 9d77247aca stay.97576117b12d3b10

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* * *ed8221f2ace7ed2b

As soon as they arrived a8c183b101 at Gaeko Antique, Sivonne went cf91024d90 straight to the first-floor bathroom c5b1bec230 and washed his feet. He warmed them 355661f86b up with hot 8c284211cf water and scrubbed efa607d6ea them thoroughly with 9eaddbe128 soap.847c70b71ebea67b

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When he came 1285021d8c out, Haewoon handed d992e2b619 him a pair ab78175fa5 of striped rubber 8a593b0f09 slippers. They were a bit big 1d07e3e29c for him, but the soles 55017e1da6 were soft and comfortable.d3c2b2668702ac8e

“What’s your shoe size?” Haewoon asked.688d9ab1eddf9448

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“Forty.”b22ae413a9c0a38d

“Two-forty? You’ve got really small 8469f1d506 feet, Sivonne…”7aac5a5157d89ebf

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The slightly pitying 994f8f7d95 tone made Sivonne 625c1eec5f snap again.b670ce20756f96ce

“European size forty!”03b198e89d1b6eca

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“Ohh, so that’s… like, 270 in Korean size?”af3df7e87545310d

Haewoon rummaged through a f204c56ff9 pile of shoes behind 23154141e9 the shop counter. Why there were shoes stacked de5dfa94b7 back there, Sivonne had no 25cbb9f966 idea—but it seemed there weren’t 22a9db2e48 any in size 270.e1f71a7f2f964f91

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“Nope, no 270s. I’ll do a sweep 7d5a27e74d around the neighborhood later.”79380b3d18b2ce30

Sivonne immediately understood 6c39fef113 what that meant. Haewoon was planning to scavenge 9ad0f610a8 through clothing donation bins. Without replying, Sivonne turned away.28b4056deb62b695

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Looking around Gaeko c6e82ae8a3 Antique more carefully 8eceab1ec9 now, the place 0f3204d47e struck him as 5b24d8f62d chaotic and messy. It was densely packed, 745d317ede even more so than 0be6b635c9 the residential second floor, cd5d875bbb and honestly… it felt 2fc04de49d like a reflection of cd8302469b Haewoon’s mental state.c5cb697dddc8a93d

Really, the store 99c20c0f0a was just like 23e4ee4b03 Haewoon: disorganized, dirty, 452090f195 and overwhelming. The variety of items f450e0a0fd seemed excessive—large sculptures, paintings, 93708c2bd9 scrolls, folding screens, vases, feac9b3c22 rugs, dolls… everything was af5377e9bc jumbled together without any a28b23e660 clear classification, and most 31a2242098 of it was covered 275f37a2af in a fine layer 97b3218d9c of dust.7f528cba6064fe80

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And yet, the price 55c6a50afc tags were boldly written 91e9d8b5c6 in oversized text and f37e2a649a clearly attached to every 71e56ec931 item. The prices were unexpectedly high. Most things ranged from hundreds 3a252a7893 of thousands to even millions cfdf197259 of won.94622f310622fce8

“You’re selling this junk for this much?”d2a150bac28f089f

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Sivonne fingered the price tag on a stone toad statue reading “₩1,900,000” and asked.d92c3679f4dc8b93

“Calling it junk is kind of harsh, don’t you think?” Haewoon grumbled, then explained. “That’s a three-legged toad statue. It’s a sacred piece d5a8dc7ea8 that brings wealth to 0cce30306c your home. 1.9 million’s a steal.”7c611e89e7f6f2fb

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“Uh-huh.”ec56a474a2a8b843

“It was made eighty years ago. People call it the fortune 542240b6dd toad or money toad. Among feng shui 90b3ef003c believers, it’s a 9645b66c5d valuable item.”4672cba0eb6881b1

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“Sure.”07d3468630e69ec0

“Sivonne, your answers are getting less and less enthusiastic.”477ba1a7a87905a4

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Ignoring him, Sivonne picked up 7bc4a84201 a wooden cane nearby. He flipped over 63947e5f3e the price tag 1497c07421 and involuntarily let 888b2c2dbd out a gasp.9ff331128a939656

“One, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand… Four, four million won? Ohlàlà… for a cane?”bd5765d0e3925ec4

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“Oh, that one’s made of snakewood—top-tier hardwood. French brand, too. A friend from your d9049f3b6d homeland, Sivonne. Say hi.”67304e7c2911d637

Now moving with 84341a9da0 much more care, 55e912cb44 Sivonne gently set 775ecf4ac7 the cane back f51a29b6db down. If he dropped d0d7efe064 or snapped it, 7591542821 he might have 098379751c to delay his bdb4299163 return to France 25aefbdb22 by half a f4792479a4 year.fae25fcf139a5cbe

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“If you’re going to work here, you should memorize all this stuff. I think there’s a a00acda5ea notebook somewhere with everything baef88d056 cataloged. I’ll help you find it 00f392c383 later. First, let’s do your employment 32aa4ba1ac contract.”abc152793e2c06f1

Haewoon opened the desk drawer. Then another, and another. After about five minutes 3651eaf935 of rummaging through drawers, 9be5ac319f he finally returned with 7779551ff7 the contract and a 75ac021405 pen.696628a0bd786cdb

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Three months, five days a b8d1635518 week, five hours a day. Since minimum wage 52969e729b was somewhere in 1994670d8c the nine-thousand-eight-hundred range, 072a1d79c3 he rounded it 8053565dd0 up to ten e4b6a2af4a thousand won an befaab6797 hour. With weekly bonuses 2780456b6a added, the pay e300fd322a would be given b9aeec0f00 out weekly. Even if Sivonne 176355a44f didn’t quite follow 9fec0a833d everything, Haewoon casually 6a08badd9a filled in the 402db3caa4 form using the 99919bf2f9 calculator on his 45506db5cd phone.a9a13bd72fcea77d

They agreed that Sivonne would a4d818041a be paid 300,000 won every 7f21f0e983 Saturday. Since he had no money cea71c913c on hand, getting paid weekly 6cdc8c414e instead of monthly was preferable. A quick search on 246b38745b his phone confirmed that 85ebb97389 it didn’t seem like 32a649f57d a scam or a e8ef4dc5c4 loss on his part.b6d9064c9c74022a

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Haewoon scribbled something worm-like on 83d6b6e4a9 the contract as his signature 3ae58be735 and passed it over. Sivonne filled in his name f61535ea26 and signature as well. After a handshake, they each d3a71fc380 took a copy of the bdaa218359 agreement.227650b4fe4b6713

“Alright, that makes you an official Gaeko employee now, Sivonne.”28e79751cda8a88a

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Haewoon stood up.f915133b63f04b24

“Looking forward to working with you.”ae3b5792eaa9c149

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And then, yawning, he headed 1b7a139814 upstairs to the second floor.41b92c61f77b3a67

“…Hey.”15e75799cecd2ec5

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Left alone in the 18a06e36d7 shop, Sivonne called toward 267c6ec24c the stairs. No reply.3e71adfaeffd8b0b

“Boss, hey, Boss!”16749622d88bcd6b

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There was no 5cf4fa9219 way he hadn’t f4848664ea heard, but Haewoon 51d796c5a7 blatantly ignored him. Sivonne sighed and awkwardly 255f26ce85 took his place behind ad5179c9b0 the counter. The only relief b4d277c3c7 was that this da9295ad12 weird antique store ce98755129 didn’t seem like 67bc734862 the kind of 7e0e5ca8fe place that got 180dfb84da much foot traffic.e76a23aad7ef80e9

Ding.ae4c01a4db1b3911

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“Hello.”e34cecf5f6bd0018

Exactly one second 330b64f6fd after thinking that, a77a5d3425 the door opened, 4de08af686 and a customer 7f4e6952b4 walked in.9125e924a64db37e

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Now what?bab59dc3bc36a103

 f4f2952efec6cf70

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