SU | Chapter 3.1

Yoo Han had been puzzled by Director Ji Youngwon’s mysterious absence over the past few days. Just back from Gangwon Province, he feared the lines he’d practiced countless times would be useless. Today, he again practiced his awkward flirting lines out loud.

“Director, could you give me your number?”

Was that too forward?

“Do you perhaps have a number?”

Well, obviously he would have one.

“Your number, please.”

…Would that work?

“Um, I might need the Director’s number when I make a request.”

Yeah, that sounded better.

Sitting on the sofa, Yoo Han ran through the simulations and suddenly glanced at a bag in the corner. It still contained homemade cookies he’d received from a client. He had kept them, thinking they would share them when the Director returned, so he hadn’t touched the snacks yet.

However, for some reason, Ji Youngwon had not shown up for five days. Tomorrow was the weekend, and with the regular meeting scheduled for Monday, Yoo Han hoped he might see Ji Youngwon then. But as he silently counted the days, Yoo Han became suddenly uneasy. He couldn’t understand his own state of waiting, nor did he want to admit it easily. He knew all too well that the Director’s number and the client’s snacks were just excuses.

Moreover, every night, memories of his body pressed against Ji Youngwon haunted him, compelling him to pull at his hair in frustration. The moment he found out that Kim Minjae, with whom he had been in a relationship, was mocking him with unreasonable demands, their bodies overlapping with nowhere to retreat.

“Take off your pants and crawl over here.”

Initially, just recalling that voice flushed his neck with shame, but now it brought a different kind of embarrassment.

…Does the Director even like men?

Ji Youngwon, who supposedly had no interest in men, might actually find his body appealing—this thought excited Yoo Han even more. He couldn’t believe he was lusting after the Director. No, it wasn’t that he couldn’t believe it; he just didn’t want to admit it. Out of all people, why did it have to be such a scoundrel?

“You can leave, but leave your clothes.”

“What?”

“No, it’s not my fault. This is all because of the unexpectedly kind Director.”

Yoo Han spent another day gazing at the unopened office door, lying on the hard sofa. As the days grew colder, he found himself thinking more and more about the Director.

***

By Monday, Ji Youngwon had still not appeared. Yoo Han half-listened to the meeting led by Gu Kangsan while continually picturing Ji Youngwon, his phone number, and the cookies he had carefully preserved. Though there was no urgency, Yoo Han felt as though all these thoughts were pressing issues that needed immediate resolution.

He knew he could simply ask Gu Kangsan for the Director’s number, but Yoo Han didn’t take that approach. Eventually, unable to hold back, he asked Gu Kangsan a question.

“Um… isn’t the Director participating today?”

Gu Kangsan yawned widely and ran his tongue over his gold tooth.

“He’s busy with the fourth floor stuff. It’ll be hard to see him for a while.”

At his words, Yoo Han’s face clouded with disappointment. At that moment, the dragon and tiger on the sofa started fidgeting noisily.

“Is he busy with something with President Sung?”

Yoo Han looked at them with a puzzled expression. As the dragon made stabbing motions in the air with his index finger, the tiger formed a circle with his thumb and forefinger. They laughed while miming sexual acts.

“These perverted bastards.”

Although annoyed, the monkey laughed toothily. The snake sitting quietly looked puzzled.

“President Sung? That’s hardly the Director’s type.”

“What does style have to do with it? He’s got a killer body.”

“That’s decent enough, isn’t it?”

“Regardless, I’d pass even if it were free.”

The monkey suddenly stood up and vigorously kneaded his own buttocks. Whistles and jeers filled the office, and Yoo Han’s face flushed with confusion. It felt like sewer water was filling his ears as the low-level mockery continued. From the looks of it, the Director and President Sung seemed to be involved in that way.

Gu Kangsan slammed the documents he was holding onto the table.

“Enough with the nonsense, you bastards. Just finish up last week’s expenses and bring them here.”

“Yes.”

“Yes!”

As the meeting ended, Yoo Han immediately walked over to a plant. The newly acquired money plant had just sprouted a small new stem, which brought a pleased smile to Yoo Han’s face. But within seconds, the corners of his mouth drooped.

‘Why do I feel like this?’

His face inexplicably hardened and remained so all day long.

***

Around that time, Ji Youngwon was deeply engrossed in his work at Seongsim Planning, busy breaking into a brokerage route to replace President Baek.

Executive Director Gu, after returning from Gangwon Province, looked curiously at Ji Youngwon, who seemed to be in low spirits.

“Director, is something bothering you?”

“Why do you ask?”

While flipping through his dense scheduler, Ji Youngwon lifted his head.

“You’ve looked upset these past few days.”

“When have I ever looked happy?”

Ji Youngwon smirked dismissively and waved his hand as if it was nothing to worry about. He fiddled with a pen on his desk, spinning it between his fingers.

Despite his dismissive words, Ji Youngwon seemed preoccupied, prompting Executive Director Gu to tilt his head again. The business wasn’t doing poorly—money was being collected diligently, and the recent performance of both detective agencies wasn’t bad. So, what could be irritating him…

“Is it because of President Sung?”

Executive Director Gu ventured a guess.

“Why bring him up all of a sudden?”

“If President Sung is still bothering you, I could meet with him and try to smooth things over.”

“I’ll handle it myself soon, so don’t worry.”

While Executive Director Gu was making incorrect assumptions, Ji Youngwon’s thoughts had drifted to the previous night’s CCTV footage of Yoo Han touching the leaves of a plant. The back of Yoo Han’s small, rounded body as he bent over the plant flickered before his eyes.

Lately, Ji Youngwon found himself unintentionally monitoring Yoo Han through the CCTV. He checked whether Yoo Han was wastefully using office supplies or unnecessarily wasting water while showering. What started as surveillance had now become more of a habit. After a shower and opening a can of beer, he would automatically watch Yoo Han on the screen as a sort of side dish.

He watched Yoo Han from unseen corners, yet Ji Youngwon had yet to find a justification for his actions.

“It seems we could wrap up today’s schedule here.”

Executive Director Gu cautiously hinted to the pensive Ji Youngwon, who paid him no mind and casually touched a file on his desk.

“I noticed some cameras were missing when I checked the inventory ledger earlier. How did this happen? The equipment isn’t cheap, and the records are a mess.”

“I’ll issue another notice. It seems items are often passed directly without going through the warehouse when requests overlap.”

Tsk. Ji Youngwon clicked his tongue shortly and pulled out a cigarette pack. Executive Director Gu offered him a lighter. With a furrowed brow, Ji Youngwon took a leisurely drag and then stood up.

“I’ll stop by the warehouse before heading home, so you wrap up and go too.”

“I’ll check the warehouse again myself.”

“That’s fine.”

With a cynical reply, Ji Youngwon flicked his cigarette into the ashtray. The employees of Seongsim Planning, watching the Director’s mood, gradually started heading out for the day.

Ji Youngwon walked down the stairs, making a solid sound with each step. He stopped by the forensic team on the third floor to check if everything was alright, then headed straight to the adjacent warehouse.

As he reached out to unlock the door, a faint humming noise from inside the warehouse made him pause.

Hmm, hmm, hmm~! Turu, tu…

The unidentified humming became clearer. Ji Youngwon pressed the button swiftly, and the loud beeps of the six-digit code were followed by the door opening.

Startled, Yoo Han, who was tidying up the warehouse with a mop, quickly lifted his head.

“Uh…”

A smile spread across Yoo Han’s face, a mix of surprise and joy.

“Director!”

Yoo Han called out to him happily, surprised by the unexpected encounter. The Director had shown up in the small, three-square-meter warehouse. Yoo Han quickly got to his feet, his face flushing with excitement.

Ji Youngwon entered the dusty warehouse.

“What are you doing here?”

He pushed Yoo Han’s forehead as he approached like a wagging puppy. Beads of sweat were visible on Yoo Han’s forehead, indicating he had been cleaning diligently.

“Ah, I came to look for the glasses camera and the pen recorder but had some extra time, so I was cleaning!”

“Just do what you’re told. Don’t waste your energy on unnecessary things.”

Ji Youngwon then looked away briefly towards the smoothly running ventilation fan before turning back to Yoo Han. His eyes gleamed, perhaps hoping for some praise for his good work. It was an expression that made one want to tease him.

“Move.”

Ever since Yoo Han appeared, Ji Youngwon had been strangely suffering from insomnia. It was one of the reasons his nerves were on edge these days. He pushed aside the source of his irritation and reached for the inventory ledger hanging on the wall. The black file hung limply from a protruding nail.

As Ji Youngwon flipped through the pages, his expression was not pleased. The records were as messy as the reports he’d received from the office. One thing was different, though; in the remarks column, the whereabouts of the items were noted in tiny handwriting.

“I came here looking for the glasses camera and pen recorder. But I couldn’t find the pen recorder, so I contacted the last person who took it. Ah, of course, Director Kangsan contacted him for me.”

While Yoo Han was babbling in front of him, Ji Youngwon didn’t offer any substantial response. Yoo Han’s voice gradually quieted under the weight of Ji Youngwon’s intense gaze.

“Is this not it…?”

Realizing too late that he was being watched by the Director, Yoo Han clenched his mouth shut, fidgeting with the mop in his hand.

“Well done.”

Unexpected praise came. Wondering if he had heard wrong, Yoo Han quickly lifted his head. Ji Youngwon was hanging the ledger back on the wall.

“…Pardon?”

Yoo Han asked dumbly. Leaving a surprised Yoo Han behind, Ji Youngwon slowly walked around the warehouse. Except for the very top shelf, which Yoo Han couldn’t reach, the pantry shelves that should have been covered in dust were clean. The scattered items had also been sorted by type.

Ji Youngwon’s lips curved up slightly. He couldn’t help but feel proud of Yoo Han, who worked diligently as if everything was his own task. Although Yoo Han had a tendency to act on his own, he seemed to be performing his role as a bell runner better than expected. Indeed, he was a useful guy in many ways.

“I didn’t hear you earlier, Director. Could you say it again?”

Hearing the praise, Yoo Han’s spirits lifted, and he eagerly followed Ji Youngwon, asking again. Ji Youngwon, while arranging a row of wristwatches with small cameras, clicked his tongue shortly.

“Quiet.”

“You said ‘well done,’ right? Yes?”

A naive smile followed. Yoo Han’s reaction looked almost like a six-year-old who had successfully completed his first errand, delighted by just three syllables of praise. Ji Youngwon, unable to hide his relaxing facial expression, playfully pulled Yoo Han’s ear. Ouch! Even in pain, Yoo Han couldn’t stop his giggling.

“Ah, but Director, do you perhaps have the pen recorder separately? It’s almost time for the errand, but Mr. Myeongcheol has it, and I don’t think I can get it in time.”

Ji Youngwon, feeling confined, took off the suit jacket he was wearing. Yoo Han watched every small action of Ji Youngwon, who emanated an adult’s aura, with sparkling eyes.

“What’s the errand about?”

Ji Youngwon asked indifferently. It seemed to be a sudden addition since Director Kangsan hadn’t reported it to him.

“There’s someone being stalked. They said hiring security would be too expensive, so they requested to rent some items to gather evidence themselves.”

“Are those items the glasses camera and the pen recorder?”

“Yes. The victim is a college student and said they couldn’t afford much, so they only asked for those two.”