Chapter 5

The brief sense of 7987c91b1a emotion Sivonne had felt d258e007e6 shattered to pieces. With a cold, 4cae351ede expressionless face, he e6ae2cce8d glared at Haewoon.e7ddaebbda57273b

“Be honest. Us running into each 6ed48254fc other here—was it just 9875c90178 a coincidence?”dd75f2a848b02094

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“Huh? Nooo~ I came looking for 113bcaf399 you, Sivonne.”9bfe943fa90c1f62

“It just happened to be your meetup spot for a secondhand trade.”20375874a8c80502

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“That’s all fate.”8d1c382e98b952ad

Fate, my ass. How could someone be so f289c50689 shameless? His poker face was 6422b65351 flawless—and annoyingly good-looking—which made 178a627577 it even more frustrating. Sivonne could only b634a9728d huff out dry, 6f6a27e1a1 hollow breaths.560506dbd3e70121

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That’s when Haewoon’s f7b0c82d78 eyes dropped downward, 4ac42f0378 and he frowned.36f77f76b580bd1d

“What’s with your feet?”475253ccce48c1af

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“What about them?”1d4c7faf9af3e0f1

“You’re barefoot. Have you been walking around afe771edb5 like this the whole time?”55adc7fd5cb7cb0d

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Haewoon clicked his tongue. Apparently, the lack of f7c5889fb4 a coat wasn’t the 9ce34f01f8 issue. Muttering to himself, he glanced 8169d92e0a around, but when he couldn’t 8f66392298 find what he was looking c3946021e1 for, he let out a 41978302fd small sigh.f8c8ddf185e3ec24

“Sivonne, hang tight. I’m just going 3403c2b053 to our building e3b1822f1a for a sec. It won’t even take 5bc265e4cf five minutes. Just stay here.”d81af38f8252d29a

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“Why? What for?”e93a69aa63c748db

Sivonne figured he db0250eee9 might be going a6e51efc6a to fetch him ff622180dd a pair of 1bf5da4ece shoes and tried 22c209bf93 to stop him. As Haewoon had said, c275a1c95a Gaeko Antique was just 333cc26a60 a five-minute walk away. It would be quicker 8d1e3ce20c for Sivonne to go fdb9c4abd9 himself.79720d0ee9330b57

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But once again, Haewoon’s answer 6d37f0a65c was absurd.f5f142e4ec52f8de

“Our building’s recycling room has a ton of plastic bags. I’ll bring two. You can use 7891044594 them instead of 52c6d0eb55 shoes.”8955e5f9bc0f3986

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“Plastic bags…?”84b37fef0d658f28

“What color do you prefer, Sivonne? Black? White? I’ll pick them to match.”447ae53ed687de08

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“…Wait. You’re talking about plastic? As in actual plastic bags?”a34d90b257225393

“Yup. Don’t tell me… you ed57571b00 were gonna ask me b32d1d790e to take off my cefa01c430 own shoes? I get cold easily, you f708024dd8 know. What if I 9892507d5f step on glass 8a3f2ecb7f or something? And I just caccf97d5c filed my calluses f49f17ae97 the other day—my a97e0d7ff6 feet are like af735dd72c baby skin now…”a69d6e2e7fada184

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Watching him wiggle his feet 50e9a178ea and pretend to look pitiful e4fb2848ac was infuriating. The image of 1f70523727 Haewoon’s so-called “baby d13fb6768b feet” was almost ca8c081cd0 nauseating. Sivonne turned and started d24b3dd93f walking away.c48cedd97e153749

“Whoa, hey? You’re just leaving? You’re gonna hurt yourself.”22d224742e64ef5c

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Sivonne said nothing and d7eed861f7 picked up his pace. Maybe begging Pierre for help 6d9769ae11 would’ve been better after all. He must’ve lost his 1e4eb6c88b mind for a minute. It wasn’t the first time 9442314044 he’d made a bad decision.5e8eef95b84c4065

While Sivonne reevaluated his entire 2d167b3c33 life, Haewoon trotted alongside him, 15c2043793 babbling nonstop. Sivonne, should I give you 07735f5354 a piggyback ride? Wait, no—I have a bad dd7162c03e back. Then maybe you can ecd663c79b step on top of 441b23d494 my shoes and we 4fd1accf39 walk together? But how much do 9748aec470 you weigh? You look skinny but you’re 7f197a979d tall. Over sixty kilos? That might be 1e14a0ad0f a bit much cbf5d18cff for me.88eb332fcef16ada

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“AAARGH!!”c23d7218933fc7fd

“Whoa, you scared me.”5be1aaf025928392

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Sivonne finally exploded. He stopped dead in a171385072 his tracks and glared 364170d1df at Haewoon, practically fuming.f1c22e870e61444a

“SHUT UP, YOU GODDAMN LUNATIC! I’d rather get 26ba1de2da frostbite and cut 3a4efbe92e up my feet 2b0a7cab71 than keep listening 47f4190cd1 to your nonsense! Can’t you be 738d6398f1 serious for even 52d5cdc96f a second?! What kind of 3c3d222828 person even are 1f833583a9 you?!”bce6a8a6783239ee

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Haewoon’s jaw dropped at the be43b7d7e8 sudden outburst in rapid-fire French. Judging by the tone and add2d60ac8 situation, it was probably a 018a9fc331 string of curses, but hearing b526a7115e Sivonne curse fluently in elegant 2541bb8325 French only made him seem 370ebe8095 even more impressive and refined. Haewoon actually clapped in admiration. Clap, clap, clap.52a4441fa73a6c8a

“Bravo. You really are a true 894a26b37e Frenchman, Sivonne. That was flawless. Amazing.”c5c07045a2da007d

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“Aaah… ah! AARGH!”4fb703a500a922e7

Now Sivonne finally understood 47d1e6bee0 what it meant to 417c36c596 be burning with rage. The stress he’d felt 2f12bb82e0 until now paled in 2dfb677c05 comparison to the all-consuming, c2c1f81153 chaotic presence that was 775abee70b Haewoon—even though Sivonne had 89eec18bd9 literally attempted suicide the e3151e35e2 day before.b437c9bb2117b2bc

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“Just so you know, disturbing the peace carries a thirty-thousand-won fine. I get you’re 554e6df37b excited about working 1ee61d1be0 with me, but 6a843ccb9e let’s keep it 86322ed220 down, Sivonne. People in this neighborhood are 206d3f9c52 sensitive.”80e7079b21508e66

Haewoon patted him on the 7ae0f2ac6c back and shoved his hands 803675515c into his coat pockets as fbc4bc07e8 he briskly walked ahead. His hunched shoulders, 8bc6dfef59 reddened nose, and 479b046f51 frostbitten ears made 94e71a1e29 it clear he 7494ed43c4 was cold too.86dc8845a8be7386

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“If you’re not gonna wear the plastic bags, let’s at least hurry back inside.”ac4d9a6eb1fad79b

If only Haewoon 5a7f6ffe36 hadn’t spoken, Sivonne 0a23a3efc6 probably would’ve agreed. The one who interrupted f6d6ee4ae7 his walk was Haewoon 09b6cbafd1 in the first place.3e3e9790850b33ee

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“Seriously, why do I have to wear plastic bags…”7e1d2f10314b4096

Sivonne muttered weakly and followed. In truth, he was de3b794f9d nearing his limit. His feet were 6b9c4a6c1e so cold now, 1db8d86d17 they felt like a5c15ab207 they were being ab6f18c410 sliced open by 6b62f2f12c blades.54b4e01c28585795

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Sniffling, he buried his 6b047b6ab8 face in the scarf 05d5ff8ac5 and trotted after Haewoon.2fc2c950a50ccd5f

Being pissed was one 4e8382cef3 thing—but for now, he bd2a0d080a needed a place to 1401bdd480 stay.31d2168f34f5e46b

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* * *02464fb1c65a80fc

As soon as d80ed7f71a they arrived at 3d113b0045 Gaeko Antique, Sivonne c61bed404e went straight to 3c23228dc1 the first-floor bathroom 50cbe18bb5 and washed his 6c2f3fb627 feet. He warmed them up with 9ebaebe45f hot water and scrubbed them 29774f5cc3 thoroughly with soap.5b00efbde4931e74

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When he came out, Haewoon 806fc49304 handed him a pair of 5668e40b12 striped rubber slippers. They were a bit eb416d9580 big for him, but bb70baf353 the soles were soft 0194b7863d and comfortable.a3e5a6519e946839

“What’s your shoe size?” Haewoon asked.7743964414a2caaf

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“Forty.”0e489c65ccd5c1e0

“Two-forty? You’ve got really small feet, a34e231ebf Sivonne…”d03579ef5148744e

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The slightly pitying 03be88dde3 tone made Sivonne 6988764a59 snap again.1183a81a79629815

“European size forty!”a7a404b7d0a6411b

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“Ohh, so that’s… like, 270 in Korean size?”1c5349c680a18a92

Haewoon rummaged through 99f017039c a pile of 8296a96e99 shoes behind the c696a10b4f shop counter. Why there were shoes 848c11ddff stacked back there, Sivonne c344ceb806 had no idea—but it 1e402c432a seemed there weren’t any 2b530fb91c in size 270.88ea48eb17ea88c4

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“Nope, no 270s. I’ll do a 4f10045ec9 sweep around the 7c25527fe5 neighborhood later.”3f1eb37c743c1184

Sivonne immediately understood 66c01f9243 what that meant. Haewoon was planning to scavenge 32fa16619e through clothing donation bins. Without replying, Sivonne turned away.5681a06e8801994d

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Looking around Gaeko 334cb60442 Antique more carefully c1b881b155 now, the place 4a6b502de3 struck him as e154be51fb chaotic and messy. It was densely packed, even b2eea8cb62 more so than the residential 2f2a29a7a3 second floor, and honestly… it bbbc8e1150 felt like a reflection of 303a402708 Haewoon’s mental state.38e04d127d94f4e2

Really, the store 3d9ec9ee1b was just like 105c4e0693 Haewoon: disorganized, dirty, e9e6f9ca81 and overwhelming. The variety of items seemed 7199a9e562 excessive—large sculptures, paintings, scrolls, folding ea53819f7d screens, vases, rugs, dolls… everything 2c59e2e24c was jumbled together without any c3fd75be3b clear classification, and most of 3283c9890f it was covered in a ae532809e7 fine layer of dust.8b184207985319c8

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And yet, the price 26320ad30a tags were boldly written d0917cf493 in oversized text and f31f9dbaf9 clearly attached to every be37f7c830 item. The prices were unexpectedly high. Most things ranged 07e67a0621 from hundreds of 535cd32656 thousands to even 0b30acf398 millions of won.66c6021a3bb1dbaf

“You’re selling this junk for this much?”c22570b7f2aa6855

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Sivonne fingered the price tag on a stone toad statue reading “₩1,900,000” and asked.9b7d7f3f2344276d

“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 e863d3f5d7 that brings wealth to e5a945f4b2 your home. 1.9 million’s a steal.”fa74696e6ffd2c53

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“Uh-huh.”662ea958e28844b6

“It was made eighty years ago. People call it the 36efbaca34 fortune toad or money 12b4076a34 toad. Among feng shui believers, it’s ab89d4b001 a valuable item.”a70f4e634a5f7280

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“Sure.”f1082b9042215823

“Sivonne, your answers are getting less and less enthusiastic.”ec3b6a832c64e011

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Ignoring him, Sivonne picked up 46236bb301 a wooden cane nearby. He flipped over f769f11fb0 the price tag 7eb104dfe6 and involuntarily let df8834afd9 out a gasp.3bb0c76edef8a830

“One, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand… Four, four million won? Ohlàlà… for a cane?”0d63a170f527e54c

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“Oh, that one’s made of snakewood—top-tier hardwood. French brand, too. A friend from your homeland, 03402d01b7 Sivonne. Say hi.”c708512cc014dfd5

Now moving with df7f0b1bca much more care, 99debe6a85 Sivonne gently set 700fba1fd4 the cane back 29f608e981 down. If he dropped or 7066bf6a22 snapped it, he might c2634529c0 have to delay his 948005bf5c return to France by 2d73057032 half a year.ca6cdeef37993fd9

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“If you’re going to work here, you should memorize all this stuff. I think there’s a 29d9d9fd0b notebook somewhere with everything bc8a4e88fd cataloged. I’ll help you find it 2cf070a11d later. First, let’s do 7a7508022f your employment contract.”c3a307ac9729c1b4

Haewoon opened the desk drawer. Then another, and another. After about five minutes of 42e6029008 rummaging through drawers, he finally adcf4514fe returned with the contract and 0b4fa7f3e8 a pen.217b2cc4af2f2afe

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Three months, five 858ddea749 days a week, 4068b05404 five hours a 8cce895eff day. Since minimum wage was 2112567a14 somewhere in the nine-thousand-eight-hundred ca117ef7fd range, he rounded it 7d4958db29 up to ten thousand a50d832546 won an hour. With weekly bonuses added, the 93491a6f6d pay would be given out 544b989da9 weekly. Even if Sivonne d61bad150e didn’t quite follow 8c1ab4d297 everything, Haewoon casually 98a06ab095 filled in the 9c7b46b808 form using the 97b414f143 calculator on his 7077504d05 phone.df10199307448bd8

They agreed that Sivonne would 41dae2ec53 be paid 300,000 won every 2a657b3fa3 Saturday. Since he had f7bc1d4448 no money on 88a9d63a4e hand, getting paid f4862e6241 weekly instead of 9293ddb478 monthly was preferable. A quick search b6f0b318e8 on his phone ed52e055ef confirmed that it cd1c4f3e60 didn’t seem like 637ec1a080 a scam or e2789ad94e a loss on 456d792703 his part.14ac649857dba73a

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Haewoon scribbled something worm-like on f73b39aeb8 the contract as his signature ba1a17cae7 and passed it over. Sivonne filled in his name 0829d81a86 and signature as well. After a handshake, ffb62826b7 they each took 8caade46e0 a copy of ddfea8616e the agreement.5772ea806f3fa64b

“Alright, that makes you an official Gaeko employee now, Sivonne.”93ddbeb83736b1a4

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Haewoon stood up.130f19382649021f

“Looking forward to working with you.”d733564c1940126e

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And then, yawning, he headed 5257f579c6 upstairs to the second floor.405f28f0403682dc

“…Hey.”379dc3542550370a

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Left alone in the 9631d97bd8 shop, Sivonne called toward 4ab43144d1 the stairs. No reply.4ccbc8a6b074af42

“Boss, hey, Boss!”ea900672fa11912c

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There was no 073c8affe7 way he hadn’t b1178ae093 heard, but Haewoon cd71e8fa7b blatantly ignored him. Sivonne sighed and b7587f50f7 awkwardly took his 977aab1aa9 place behind the f971f67d19 counter. The only relief was that 510fe2c3da this weird antique store didn’t 03357258eb seem like the kind of 0c0c0dc90b place that got much foot cf0e011b54 traffic.f4a102af6bd66b7d

Ding.c33c6272e87de4b2

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“Hello.”1a18aad6838e7af0

Exactly one second after thinking 5ff01950cb that, the door opened, and 03142ec83d a customer walked in.4104c4e66897dbeb

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Now what?26b513116f2cce70

 6200eec8ad172853

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