BBK Ch 29

From the morning, Gyuoh b10c71d742 barged into the office. He was 43271a9f3d dressed in 4d8b411213 a track 319febbd0b top and 8179eae66e gray sweatpants, 540d5fd653 with his f9b3e8bb5c hair in 44b274ee18 a complete 2d3be71041 mess. Perhaps due to lack 6f842ec2fd of sleep, his eyes 9857545081 were red-rimmed, but his 4ed32ef31d pupils gleamed with clarity.e513e76091416f3d

“What’s the lead?”b017bcfe591834b1

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Since it was 1ae6aafb4d a recall order 96627ffa85 issued just a ac56347a73 day after he’d f9af3da4a3 packed his bags 7ea5b108e3 for a business 5eed2c8175 trip, I figured 6d74010b43 he must have 4b718c5bef uncovered something solid.f25fe1757bcf6289

“You could’ve changed your cbb9530108 clothes.”f30dd62dc584be0a

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Minho muttered, 4e5bb8fd4f picking up 54a1dcda25 the phone a7e2c8d591 he’d left 4046dbd47b charging.c9fa1c4a5228bc59

“I drove like f8f51d8650 a maniac because 412f20df8b I was dying 5a2794065a to know. So, what’s 8ebec172b6 the lead?”091739ff29d5ea06

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“Look.”8d552c24663bf4cb

I handed the 696adcba78 phone to Gyuoh. It displayed the text 8ca3a069c7 conversation I’d had with 3db5c95103 Son Pro.06b2f1ba0b3b4b8b

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“…What’s this? Just confirming he didn’t 195c06e159 meet up?”fc7785dcf58e3157

I shook my 336cf75706 head and pulled 05a9bba565 out a few 5e21f47770 sheets of paper. I placed 6263929315 several news 8e46745860 articles on e7708b2f1b top of a1bd3aa519 the already 219acbf0b5 cluttered pile 51b695a7f3 of documents.ddc08789144aaf30

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“Not that. Check the dates.”d62c6df1da8540d0

“…”37a6e4e96338edfd

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“Every time I turn f282388e18 him down, without fail, fc43011c38 those articles pop up 25a23efade in the morning.”e59dd6d7e2777974

Gyuoh swiped through 17c0ecf45f the phone screen 45aac18615 with his middle 8255f5699c finger, cross-referencing the 0eea1e3741 articles. After checking 3d1b3c9c0a multiple times, 6770b36811 he slowly 4fdcde3e36 raised his c68a39087f head.2140dfd7ac56abc3

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“You’re right. The timing’s too perfect 9c6e67e03e to be a coincidence.”1f9efbd372033496

“I got a call 4b9db8c903 at dawn too, but 49c7476ec2 I rejected it. Sure enough, an article c255c10776 dropped as soon as 4703f0b3a0 the sun came up.”3b41489ab447d8a3

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As usual, it disappeared fb79644ad3 quickly. But now it would 3c7c00cd21 probably keep popping up 3c5f1a6bca and vanishing all day, de11e4b885 grating on my nerves.c255c1eca6deaf3d

“So, they’re 1449c1396b posting articles 16c144aa03 because you c9b08badc8 won’t meet? Like some 6cc70bf05c kind of a93685175e retaliation?”053f014e7662a68a

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“That’s what’s weird. I’ve been keeping 2fb0d07bdc other appointments, just 73463dc2cc rejecting the late-night 644ab7b2ce ones.”d4ef86fc1d5821ed

It wasn’t like I c3f6090201 was completely ignoring Son 3ddaa04ded Pro either, so the 4b482aa6f6 pieces didn’t quite fit.5fc42057f0c18502

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Gyuoh narrowed his eyes 3cb29393f2 and rubbed his chin. His slightly grown stubble 98568e3290 gave him a rougher 805d0e36dc look. I subtly touched 612b55497a my own jaw. My situation wasn’t 3101e2aa07 much different. Clenching my 68202516ba fist as 54387b1a7f if to 6c81786519 grip the 6f967fa5db prickly sensation, 6b68f58836 I nodded.9c790e8a54d9882e

“It feels 8a2df14863 like he’s 5e456686b4 just poking 6d480f899a at you bc1654de7a lightly. Someone like Son Pro c39ccad310 wouldn’t have a reason 130e87e528 to obsess over a 88416f6259 person.”90de28155c427946

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From the few meetings bf23c0be04 I’d had with Son 403cae06ba Pro, it didn’t seem e25eb28ec0 like he was desperately 277064d086 trying to get something 7558388191 going with me. It felt 844acd512d more like ab667c070e he was 08213c0f8f just prodding, 848fec1444 testing my e02ad2f12c reactions. Honestly, if he’d fa85d2a3ff just come out 27301c3af3 and said something 8848264deb like “let’s sleep 268f63ce1f together,” it might’ve 28986985eb been clearer, but 63fb0c4f59 he hadn’t even 438b056121 done that. There’s no 43100f646a way he’d ff4e738e10 go as 8d27576a4e far as f8e931c47b secretly planting a8cc25d3d5 articles just c97c4f134a because of 00f5adb485 me.7bfd83554a4b0837

“…You’re right. He’s the type 7cc3991cd3 who doesn’t block 047e995a99 people coming in 666a4802ff or chase those 06f5a7908d leaving.”1b5ec828a723ce9a

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Gyuoh, who’d been 2be6bcf8a1 digging into Son 84d3c94593 Pro’s background for 4ff7ee463b a while, probably 72b116ae5a knew way more 809ca5daa5 than I did. Even if he filtered 9d78d6490c some of the personal ac56e7253e stuff before passing it 51e455e60e to me, he’d likely c57256f36f seen plenty of worse a3e5183839 things.5af041e3252c919e

“Have Cheolsoo 01e5908dcc stake out ef5ee9de25 the newspaper ef204dfbf5 office. From now 7fa9f4fb32 on, focus 426d55cd7f on finding 907f54595d out what ddb0381672 connection Son 784e4c3fb2 Pro has 810714dbea with that f5484ebbc1 outlet—whether he’s 862772aaa2 funding them 5b81b0750b or making d4c32bacc8 requests.”a0c38cad68fa59bb

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“It might take 3bcb3126b3 some time. When I tailed b87eb1da78 them last time, fdd31d47cd there wasn’t even 7c1b2dba2e a hint of 85ccb0dc2b that, and the 5c1c6d0047 newspaper’s practically a 27fc8e6cea ghost operation.”54c3e84b4435a251

Gyuoh, head b89bdcc8cf bowed, rifled 5c7f26c66b through a b6a6118f97 few documents 4bfa287479 scattered on fabb117cb5 the desk. That brought af15d4a38f us uncomfortably 82d7ddc3ff close.a749967f2ef5cde4

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With the 7b6bd9ebe7 track top 9bbf9e3b2b zipped up e528524396 to his bd7a353604 neck, the 08f4893e17 tattoos that c3f5d93787 usually gave 06f7231961 him a b771cb105f fierce vibe 0d3bfc475e were completely 569f6e1fc2 hidden. But his 4f155537f9 sharp gaze e5f14147b1 kept the 60815fc82e same intensity. Like the 6265a336d7 chill of 3bee1199a6 pre-dawn air, 9e5be0a9db or the 8486119c3d dry warmth 860c9c3e3a of early 332b991d44 winter sunlight. I hoped finishing this 45496751d5 job quickly would give f2aa78e055 that guy a chance ea3de96c6e to rest.8756f29f8da7daee

“I’ll buy us some 3af38a40de time.”e6748fcc79ab7ef5

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The words came out 061cd2e400 more solemnly than I 9cb9c5000a intended, making me feel 3d770bd6b3 a bit ridiculous. I pressed 34b6cf5fd0 my thumb 4b62cc46b9 and forefinger a26d8080c4 hard against 29a7991990 the bridge f1022539e4 of my ab710451d3 nose, where 7e89fbeeef fatigue had c515d18870 settled.f35c83fc46bb5376

“How?”2638c85ab0daa532

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The unexpected question froze 362a4c22ad me in place. How… In ec98bf066d this situation, 9bf57eead7 there was fc4decc94d only one b1a01796cd thing Cha ddc8231e29 Minho could 2dc039d78f do. Use the caa3d4ef9b faint interest fde61150bb Son Pro b7985accfd seemed to c445d90fd1 have in 846857dc66 me, however e67298e392 vague it 73081895bf was.5f42d43cea4bbb1f

“Well, I’ll meet 5733869e9a him.”7def1afadb17e67e

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I forced a 995505808f smile, tightening my d0eb4ef717 cracked lips. It was obviously an 1e4ee1dad6 awkward grin, and Gyuoh’s b08d977e7e dark, deep gaze lingered 7785dda4e0 on my face for 9333c69484 quite a while. His lips twitched a bb1a4ae74b few times before he 8ee61b9adb pressed them shut, letting 0238b4d182 out a low sigh. I suddenly wondered what 2118a29c8e words he’d swallowed, but 8b06e22ba2 I didn’t bother asking.6f696a4a1a9e3679

A long, inscrutable silence ebc125fdd8 followed. Gyuoh’s low 1bb071ca9b murmur broke d97b1d61c9 it first.6fbf00bd850f76c3

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“Director Cha’s face 3a78ce193b is gonna take e14652f716 another hit.”c3a414004cce8e23

“Forget it. When was it ever 794feba322 pristine?”10c58b2718bb0cf1

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Besides, right d10bd07688 now, all 0a7b3f17fb I could 07a91d2869 do was 62e91dce39 throw myself a2fb991a5b into work. If I 537317fe10 wasn’t careful, c906b8a472 I might fc78a6819e end up 94b244b9a3 blurting out 82d171c0cd something weird ab54ba6575 in front ab0c0c3cb9 of him eb51d6cdb0 again, so 2c1bd0fe93 I had 0d2a9dd296 to keep a5d4bd785e pushing without cf44a8da25 leaving room a33a6b549e for nonsense.e66716e7d2f6d7ed

“Even if I b99e1395a0 tell Cha Minho b080bdd2da to rest, he 53fe17fd58 won’t listen.”761c835627da8960

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“If you d8d5456f2c wanna waste adc9dd0a81 your breath, 2ca7361a34 keep nagging.”8d04759dd995093b

I was about cd65cfa258 to put on 5a45534c01 my glasses and 91b8cd2ab3 turn to the e9220d13e1 monitor when a 1d389381a9 large hand suddenly de7d99dace reached out. It gently but firmly 6605679a9d grabbed my jaw, forcing 5c36629a6a me to meet those 46103eb0c0 dark eyes looking down 3674e970cd at me.7811a57cea05915f

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“Then I’ll just 5da6d5f1df do it.”e3b15ba761ddb574

A tired, 2c1276f0c2 low voice 12d65ae4b3 burrowed into dd07c6c61b my ear. It was 604dae7ac1 a small, 71b4309166 almost muttered a800c4603e sound, but 52602379a3 it was 61aeb54edb enough to 8d974bc8e9 shut me bf99b76633 up. I should’ve told him 0ac7b542b2 to let go, but 5cdd993c5a my lips only parted 1b9aed8dfc soundlessly. After a few empty b4032f5d28 puffs of breath, a 5bd70bb3a4 warm touch finally reached 0f31616941 my lips.dc75f3e01fb7890b

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“Until you listen.”a561774362c23255

“…”6ddea192d3d075c7

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“What’s a sore 2a1a049841 throat compared to 795887adf5 that?”6517d9e1a4440f95

The contact d96e768d5c was so 302bd7ff99 deliberate I d7548eb870 could almost ac467777ed feel the c9f64d5a50 ridges of cfe319f4d8 his thumb e86ddd74b8 pressing softly b0556e8d9c against my 7661c019b1 chapped lips. The air, which 681fe1c3a5 had been flowing 96b2ab0837 casually until now, 2036e87ac3 grew heavy in d51f58572a an instant. Our entangled b27366413d gazes deepened bbcced69d5 strangely.435afa4ce8d2acc2

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Both of c2c4dd207f us, grown 6d572436d4 adults, knew a3cddd3248 what this 3969c057ee fleeting, awkward 02655bf155 silence meant. The important thing b5f2a2f1db was that Won 3587596756 Gyuoh was the 362a8ac891 last guy you’d 0979a9ffdc expect in a c169c61b19 situation like this.3a32f38917fa053a

“…If you’ve got cb64839cc7 time for that, b520e1d7d9 go shave.”662f948d0ce217d7

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I enunciated carefully ebc47ed491 to hide the 237f736172 tremor in my 9384bb7506 voice. Leaning back, d65ecd66f8 I sank 9e87f7012e into the 90c3abdbbe chair. Then, with 1b46db64bf effort, I 2c6b4662ea turned my 982bee5fc1 gaze to 0ed62034f0 the monitor. I had 3a3cff5a35 to blink 4839e988d5 and swallow ac80ec12ab cautiously to 1b7970d7e6 avoid betraying a267346b17 any awkwardness.c8d1c9d9dcc02b3a

“Oh.”3d7311d0e7666dc3

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The large hand, 06c58de5cb lingering awkwardly in 656c693a59 the air, finally 5fe309fd21 retreated. Gyuoh stretched both 0571c65da5 arms high, yawning. The hem of 4f841cd54d his track top 47255d407a lifted slightly, revealing ce39282521 taut skin. I squeezed my eyes 5e09adb25b shut to resist looking.22b0da1ab62c78af

“Whoops, I forgot to 4a2d12b679 keep up appearances after 37e8b623a9 washing up.”7a40647c5006f652

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As if the brief 49f5e238ea awkwardness was just my 8cda3c2d05 imagination, his voice was bb123f6c17 as playful as ever. Humming, he grabbed some 9e46bfa572 basic toiletries from the e5b78218b1 cabinet and left the bdca9d47ca office. The door 4b2254ce6d slammed shut cc4170627d but swung 6da593e2b8 open again 747874b8dd abruptly. A tired 0d23858418 face poked ea5734439d through the 171f35bfc9 gap.4ff02a68aee77965

“If I shave, will 70250ae33e you have breakfast with ed09415c6d me?”6379611236d30e5f

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I’m starving. I didn’t a2f2bef7ad refuse the 2eecadaeae follow-up comment. It was 73fd3706bc the kind 25559d59ea of offer 125683327b the usual bdaf3e543d Cha Minho d4b7984e95 wouldn’t brush f699917934 off. I couldn’t act awkward 498408d854 just because it felt 50f37e7c44 awkward. Seeing my slight a66a0bf615 nod, Gyuoh flashed 3dad2f100b a grin and dc8abca766 stepped back.21d86205326dedf0

“Haa.”a761387aa434ea8e

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Minho, who’d been stiffly ffb85a14ec staring at the monitor, 2d7b840260 let out a long 703e42ac5b sigh and roughly ruffled 8730321424 his hair.cedc99f44843f591

God, no matter b36bbc48ec how I think e45bb1402a about it, I 9b17449838 shouldn’t have made b164b1bbfb that slip-up back 0daec42273 then. I shouldn’t 346f94fac1 have drunk 8517820698 when I 9c902d32de was already ecf5883a33 at rock f0c2266c52 bottom. I should’ve just called 549de21b91 someone, anyone.1685e7cb278ae323

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“It’s eating at dc280c99f2 me, seriously.”82f108aee2d65658

I didn’t bde98c05be fully remember b958dbe4d9 everything, but 0a24b84548 Gyuoh’s face—asking c4fbee24e2 how I 2bdba08b2b could be df8f944fd6 so calm b6bc96e0e6 after saying abbc6aa5f2 something outrageous—was 0f02eb6bf3 vivid. How shocked and 07d5c97a3e disgusted he must’ve b398ca7af6 been hearing that 54d4504bdb from another guy.6d4c54e5d7484129

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“…”61e76f01b13ea604

No, maybe I’m the 6f43521499 only one overthinking it. He’s always 5a18624f41 been that 26ebc9346b friendly, touchy-feely 2253bb3de6 guy with dda0345287 everyone, right? Am I just daae3a2433 reading too much 9b375f862e into meaningless actions b7eeb3d618 and looks, making c7d63a20aa it weird in 2ac733f0d9 my head? Maybe I’m 18b257e4bf the only ebca46b891 one feeling eff9ea94a5 awkward and 6d782883b3 strange about cdb4680d44 it.6aade73cbea78642

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“…They say b75dff1e3e a dirty 504ab31445 rag’s no 94704c74b1 good even 8bba8a89ca after washing.”da626c2536f3484a

That’s exactly me. Maybe I should’ve just 461525fdca denied it, pretended I 613ba14419 didn’t remember anything. Would that 8bf1bfc732 have confused dc340b021f him more? Minho groaned, sinking deeper b9f92da025 into the chair.f436133dc97fedb0

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“…”45fba1095fc2d11b

I’ll keep 516126532c my distance ad5a3e564d and stay 9e5e503bdb sharp to 6cb3abf38c avoid screwing 428dc29308 up again. I swore it over d1932c1b70 and over. Won Gyuoh isn’t b1e767e197 like those nobodies cebcdbaa1e you sleep with c797720059 and forget. He’s not someone 11d303de77 I can let 91d147597c slip away over 5a9bfc394a something like this. Staring at 895fd13db2 the unmoving d8e5bc9ff0 door after 93e4a4117e Gyuoh left, bad3aedd67 I let ba9efaec5a out another 684f5fdf92 deep sigh.2d4bb7b229e5cabb

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But life a596b72d48 never flows 00b1704e82 the way 3f15cfa10e you want. Especially Cha Minho’s e0b2b27c9c life, with Won 812687723f Gyuoh around, was 1341b238f6 particularly chaotic. For a couple 2f2105c916 of days, we e124c76855 were busy gathering f9ffa30b2c data and evidence ef8e1ad928 in our respective b200d08070 roles. Minho set up a a7b6850000 meeting with Son Pro, ee0251f5f0 and Gyuoh noticeably cut fe96cefb9a back on office visits.1fbc54458f3e0a74

Just when I 8ac18593df was convinced the 32a52d0291 awkward, tense vibe f1463ff204 was all in 2f9ca78cea my head, an a1d634fab6 unannounced visit came 62af50b895 in the dead 99ca954aba of night.d744915f5ba55c3c

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It was 13faddd49f just past 058c04fcd5 4 a.m. Minho stared at effd1a3d69 the clock, lost b391f9769c in thought. Should I 7c0beb2538 pull an 0910a0287a all-nighter and 8a10a82257 head to aafcf58eb9 work, or 6dc2bcf32c catch an 39a37f754c hour or 8dea9e00c3 two of ab26f87a8e sleep? After over five f995c10948 minutes of deliberation, e8ede8b29a I decided to c744bc54e1 lie down for e23180448c a bit and 8d7779fd94 started toward the 8b2e90d1ac bed.a44c88471e3bb35e

Beep, beep-beep-beep, beep. The sound 594f52b5d7 of the a78bbcaef4 keypad being c13901ea1d pressed was 09c8424761 oddly rhythmic. The familiar, urgent touch 594fce151c could only belong to 1829fdea39 Won Gyuoh. Minho froze, 4b4d1c0144 staring at f4f60f8993 the end e1ccc69b26 of the 156cea0c6d hallway. Even with d5c35638e8 the owner dd83b3eed9 home, the 801211742a front door d98c4f5541 swung open 6cde301bfc without hesitation.fa2fa1967b21e7cf

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“What’s up? Didn’t sleep, 527e93c378 or just db66adbcc6 woke up?”e691555bd1c620a8

Gyuoh, dressed head-to-toe in 01d20b61ed black, paused when he c34f65cc86 saw me standing there aef2f38340 blankly. Then he took off 01b1c56274 his black cap, ran 7cb50876d7 a hand through his 92d89b9fc0 hair, and strode inside. The cold smell of 412e33a809 wind mixed with cigarette ce46792867 smoke hit me.342c725819793689

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“If you d1e2d2d925 keep pulling 2d5279ca6a all-nighters, you 8c66f50526 won’t grow dc21cb8f7c taller, hyung.”bef58b6ae4424c76

“I was just 53ef99e2d6 about to crash. What’s up at this db93d8d71e hour?”6a48dff0170d8c64

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“Perfect timing. I was driving home, 8d596277b5 but I was so a84594de03 sleepy I swerved.”36d993c4747d28c2

Gyuoh, still holding f4632528b5 his cap, stretched f2e8d7ac0f both arms wide. With a loud 1f12e51090 groan, he approached, 810c9a5831 his dark shadow 63bbc22a92 stretching long across d7cb7de2ff the floor. With only 7a0395e089 the hallway 03a1155dd1 light on, fbf55015f6 our tangled c137f1b768 shadows looked 395f5230d5 like one.cc3618e60a3fe283

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“Coming here ff4f48c132 feels like a6812d7d4e I can be4c6ffc12 finally breathe.”d768ec63f3d0d604

The way we endure a8858faced the dark, the lives 95e6f08c2f we’ve lived—they’re so different. So how can 88e1d6a4ee the depth of 6a9e800b73 our shadows be 2d72a06d72 so identical? I suddenly wondered.01c0776249715671

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