TE Ch 24

“…..”

Should he run now? Of course, there was nowhere to run, and he’d be caught immediately. He had run away dozens of times in the past 15 years and never succeeded. Hongju, gripping the door handle, slowly loosened his hand. It might be better to feign obedience and find another way. At least Mookyeong could be reasoned with if he acted submissively.

“Where are we going?”

“Would you know if I told you?”

They seemed to have had this conversation before. Hongju couldn’t let his guard down for even a second. He looked out the pitch-black window, trying to gauge their destination.

“I have to work tomorrow.”

“So?”

Perhaps he was wrong about being able to reason with him. Mookyeong was being uncooperative. Hongju had no choice but to glance at the quickly passing road signs. This wasn’t the way to the dorm. And Mookyeong wouldn’t even know about the existence of the dorm where the gambling house workers lived. So where were they going?

“Well…”

“Don’t you have any other questions besides the destination, Koo Hongju-ssi?”

His low voice was mixed with the sound of him tapping the steering wheel. Hongju habitually pressed his bruised cheek, suppressing the stinging pain.

The car stopped at a red light. Perhaps because there were no other cars on the road, the atmosphere felt chilly, like being stranded on a deserted island. The heavy silence felt oppressive, so Hongju turned his head towards him and opened his mouth.

“How did you get that hand earlier?”

Such a trivial question after all that agonizing. Mookyeong scoffed.

“I played as you taught me.”

Despite the simple answer, Hongju couldn’t shake off his suspicion. It was a game deliberately set up by gamblers. There’s no way a 1-3 gwang pair would just appear like that.

“Maybe your wish of ‘Please don’t let my financial backer go broke’ came true.”

“…..”

At the playful remark, Hongju glanced away, touching his lips. It wasn’t a prayer, but he did hope Mookyeong wouldn’t lose money.

The sound of the accelerator was loud on the quiet street. The force pressed Hongju back against the seat.

“If it were me, I would have asked something else.”

“Something else?”

“What you’re going to do with the collateral. Why you suddenly decided to take my virginity. Why you were touching my leg. Things like that.”

Despite his neat appearance, his driving was reckless. Even the way he turned the steering wheel wasn’t smooth. The car sped up, pressing Hongju’s body to the right.

“Or whether you could pay off my debt with the money you won. Things like that.”

He kept his eyes fixed forward. Hongju touched the hole in the front of his padding. All the examples he had given were things he couldn’t bring himself to ask.

“…..”

“Well, that’s why you’ve been a sucker for 15 years, I guess.”

It was a sharp taunt. The sarcastic remark was followed by silence once again. Hongju’s nerves were on edge. He couldn’t comfortably lean back against the seat, not even for a moment. He reacted to every little sound coming from the driver’s seat, even the small movements Mookyeong made or the sound of him wetting his lips. Despite it being winter, he was breaking out in a cold sweat.

“Get out.”

After driving for some time, they arrived at a hotel. Although he had been in the area a few times for debt collection, it was his first time inside the hotel, so he was nervous. Mookyeong’s intentions in bringing him here were becoming increasingly clear.

“…..”

Should he run? Hongju looked around, but Mookyeong was faster, grabbing him by the nape and pulling him along.

“Want to lose an eye like Manager Yang? Stop looking around and get in.”

“I was just… looking.”

Woong. Inside the elevator, there was only the faint hum of the motor and no other sound. He might have explained something, but Mookyeong just stared straight ahead with his mouth shut.

When they arrived on the 25th floor, Mookyeong once again grabbed Hongju by his padding and pulled him. It felt like he had been collared. Mookyeong, holding onto him, entered room 2506 without hesitation. Hongju bit his lip and was dragged along.

“If you’re doing this because of what Koo Bbing said…”

“What about it?”

Mookyeong, taking off his coat over his shoulder, turned around.

“About you being good at sucking dick? Or being a virgin?”

“Either one. I’ll do a better job at what you asked me to do. This… I’ve never done this before…”

He chuckled, his thick chest heaving. He took off his vest and tie, which he had bothered to wear to the gambling den, and tossed them aside. Thump, thump. Clothes began to pile up on the armrest of the sofa.

“I was wondering why you were so stiff. It’s because you were expecting something like that.”

Mookyeong, pausing in the middle of unbuttoning his shirt, took a step towards Hongju.

“I wasn’t expecting it.”

His words were cut short. Every time Mookyeong closed the distance, Hongju stepped back. One step at a time. Hongju’s retreat continued until his back hit the door.

“Take it off.”

His large hand pulled down the zipper of Hongju’s padding in one swift motion. The deflating padding rustled as it was taken off. When he unbuttoned a shirt button, Hongju grabbed his wrist urgently. Then he looked up at Mookyeong with wide, swollen eyes.

“What are you going to do?”

Mookyeong, holding the shirt button, grabbed his shirt collar as he had before and dragged him along. He was dragged to the bathroom in a clumsy manner. The bathroom was as big as the single room he lived in, and Hongju was busy looking around, rolling his eyes.

“Take it off, quickly.”

“…..”

Hongju clutched the front of his shirt and hunched his shoulders. His bones protruded over his pale hands. Mookyeong stared at the frightened Hongju with an exasperated look and ruffled his hair.

“Take it off and wash up. That disgusting smell from the gambling house is annoying.”

He must have meant the smell of cigarettes and alcohol, and the peculiar musty odor of the dilapidated building. Mookyeong was a very fastidious person. It made sense that he threw off his clothes as soon as he arrived and pushed him into the bathroom for cleanliness.

But it was uncomfortable to undress in front of him. Especially in front of someone who kept saying those strange things to him. When Hongju hesitated, Mookyeong bent down to his eye level and tilted his head.

“YOu never do what you’re told the first time. Do I have to hit you for you to listen?”

Hongju quickly shook his head and threw off his shirt. He stood there with his arms crossed at the bathroom entrance until Hongju took off his underwear, his gaze sharply observing his naked body. Hongju lowered his gaze. After thoroughly examining his lean body, Mookyeong stared at Hongju’s groin for a moment. Then, a bewildered laugh burst out.

“This is ridiculous.”

Hongju slightly turned, his back facing him. Though he hadn’t seen many other people’s bodies, the thugs and Choi Gun, who he lived with, were hairy from their lower abdomen down. He knew that he was different from other men, which is why he reacted that way instinctively. Then Mookyeong chuckled and pushed his thin back.

“You’re not a kid; you can wash yourself, can’t you?”

At the sound of the bathroom door closing, Hongju awkwardly turned around. Mookyeong hadn’t left; he was leaning against the closed door.

“…..”

Was he not planning on leaving? When their eyes met, Mookyeong gestured with his chin again. He sometimes showered with the thugs or Choi Gun when he overslept, but the atmosphere was entirely different. They had no interest in his body, but Mookyeong was different.

Thinking it would be better to just wash up quickly and leave, Hongju turned the lever. The water poured down. The hot water that took forever to come out in his basement room gushed out here.

Hongju showered under his persistent gaze. While wiping the soap from his body, he kept glancing towards where Mookyeong stood. The steam made it difficult to feel the intensity of his gaze.

“I don’t have… anything to wear.”

“Why bother covering up? Your body’s better looking than your face.”

Mookyeong chuckled and took a step. Hongju froze, clutching the lever. He reached for something above the sink and placed it on Hongju’s head. When he fumbled with it, he realized it wasn’t a towel, but a bathrobe.

While Hongju roughly dried himself and put on the robe, Mookyeong took off the shirt he had completely unbuttoned. Seeing him undo his belt, Hongju quickly ran out of the bathroom, his feet still wet.

“Haha.”

Luckily, there was no hand grabbing him, but the sound coming from behind was clear as if Mookyeong was laughing right next to his ear. Hongju covered his right ear and ran into the living room as if he were escaping. Soon, the bathroom door closed, leaving him alone in the empty space.

“Huu.”

Hongju pressed his damp palm against his right ear. Thump, thump. Thump, thump. Even though Mookyeong wasn’t in his sight, his heart was pounding.

Should he run away while he had the chance? Looking around, Hongju realized his clothes were still in the bathroom. He couldn’t just wander around outside in a bathrobe now that the sun was about to rise.

He went to the farthest corner of the living room and stood by the glass door that separated the balcony from inside. He could see the deep blue sky beyond the window. Dawn was already breaking. From this high up, the dawn sky looked quite pretty, he thought childishly.

“Living the good life, huh? Enjoying the view.”

At the sudden voice, Hongju stiffened and turned quickly. He looked at Mookyeong cautiously and clutched his bathrobe tightly.

Mookyeong had loosely wrapped a towel around his lower body. His exposed upper arms were well-muscled, and a large scar ran across his side. It was a little over a handspan long and seemed quite old, judging by the faded scar tissue.

Buzz. Mookyeong’s phone vibrated on the table. He picked it up with his large hand and checked the screen.

“Yeah. How is it?”

With the phone tucked between his shoulder and his ear, he took a bottle of water from the minibar. He twisted the cap off and offered it to Hongju, who was standing at a distance. He suddenly felt the dryness in his throat. But Hongju just shook his head slightly. Mookyeong narrowed his eyes and gave him a strange look.