Diamond Dust - 8

As I got into the taxi home and closed the door, reality seemed to rush in as if it were a signal. The song playing on the radio, the driver humming along to it, and the scenery outside the window all demanded energy to be accepted as reality.

If I turned the taxi around and went back, it seemed like something like ‘Gallery Phantom’ would have disappeared.

■ ■ ■

The VIP opening began at 3 p.m.

Yuni explained the late opening time with:

“Our gallery’s main clients are mostly big names in fashion or entertainment. If we open in the morning, no one will come. Most people’s day starts around noon.”

It was a convincing explanation. Even though I didn’t know who the most popular entertainer was right now and had never flipped through a fashion magazine, I had enough common sense to guess about the irregular lifestyles of those in those fields.

However, I was a bit surprised that the gallery’s main clients were from the fashion or entertainment industries.

While fashion and entertainment are closely related fields, the connection between a gallery dealing with fine art and those two fields didn’t seem very deep. Perhaps, while I had been living in seclusion in a fishing village, the art consumer base had diversified to the extent that a gallery’s main clients could be people from fashion and entertainment.

From a traditional perspective, Yuni and Juhan also seemed more convincing as models or designers than as gallery staff guiding viewers about the power and elasticity of lines or the imagination granted by empty space in Eastern art.

Since it was a day to cater to VIP clients, I had expected that they might dress more formally like other curators, but that wasn’t the case at all.

With more piercings, accessories, and makeup that matched the look, they were actually dressed up even more than yesterday.

After moving all the pamphlets freshly arrived from the printer to the office, separating those for the main exhibition and those to be distributed today, I asked a question I had been a bit curious about since yesterday.

“It seems Phantom has a free dress code.”

As Juhan returned from placing the stack of pamphlets for the main exhibition on the windowsill, he smiled as if he had expected such a question.

“Our gallery?”

When I nodded, he continued with the explanation.

“Our gallery has a somewhat unique business policy. Since our main clients are people from the fashion and entertainment industries, the boss’s policy is that employees should also have a certain level of style. Unique outfits are actually welcomed.”

“If it weren’t for that, Kwon Juhan might have been rejected during the interview.”

Yuni, who had just returned from checking on the catering company’s progress, passed by our table and said this.

“Who was the one who dragged someone unwilling to the interview?”

Juhan turned around with an indignant look, but didn’t get any reaction from Yuni. Yuni’s phone, which had been ringing almost non-stop since I arrived that morning, started ringing again.

Juhan quickly turned back to continue putting pamphlets into the plastic bags. He gave up easily.

“We’re in a great position. We don’t have to separate work outfits from casual ones, and even the cost of clothing is fully covered.”

While I understood that there were no restrictions on clothing because our main clients were from the fashion and entertainment industries, I still wondered how the gallery’s clientele ended up being filled with people from those fields.

However, my curiosity about how the gallery’s clients became predominantly fashion and entertainment figures was not so intense that it would keep me up at night, so I just nodded quietly.

“Do you know? The entertainment industry has many alphas and omegas. You’ll probably get a good eye candy show today.”

These days, the only celebrities whose names and faces I could match were just one or two. But if I remembered their names and told Mo Sand and Hyung about them, they could be good conversation starters during our beer time.

Juhan mentioned that we should look forward to seeing celebrities and alphas and omegas at the party, but I wondered if there could be anyone as ‘alpha’ or ‘alpha-like’ as that man, the Phantom’s representative, whom we saw yesterday.

Even if he wasn’t an alpha, or even if he were a beta, he was the very embodiment of a golden alpha to an ordinary person like me.

It wasn’t just because of his exotic features with a slight Asian touch (he had a much stronger Western influence among mixed-race people. I wasn’t sure if he was mixed-race, but it was biologically impossible for his features and eyes to be purely Asian).

The unique and distinctive aura he emitted was more about sensation than logic. While it might be something you could capture in a painting, it was difficult to describe with words.

It was more impressive. More grand. — It was different from those concepts. It didn’t feel like a different race. Even if I saw an unrealistically beautiful foreigner in front of me, it would just be a feeling of ‘oh, they are so different.’

What was this in front of me? — The kind of light shock he brought was of that nature.

Without his slightly curled upper lip, he seemed like he would speak in a beautiful, unfamiliar alien language that sounded like music.

Though he didn’t seem to have a particularly amicable personality, I couldn’t deny the natural curiosity about a new presence and the unavoidable glance that was drawn to him.

Whether he was truly a ‘more’ special golden alpha or if such presence was common among alphas, I would get some clarity after seeing various alphas at the party, as Juhan said.

After moving the pamphlets into the temporary desk on the second-floor exhibition space and returning to the office, I saw that the teacher had arrived and was talking with Yuni. I smiled happily as I approached, and the teacher also smiled back, lightly patting my bangs.

“Where is the representative?”

The teacher asked Yuni.

“He’s having lunch with Teacher Inwoo and will come here directly after.”

“Then it seems everything is more or less ready. Ha… I was wondering if this deathly schedule was really possible, but it actually worked out. Even more relaxed than usual! Adding one more person makes a big difference, doesn’t it?”

The teacher placed his arm around my shoulder and sought agreement from Yuni and Juhan that I had been helpful for the schedule. Both of them expressed a strong need for additional help at the gallery as if they had been waiting for that question.

With only the catering setup on the upper floor remaining, there was no issue for the 3 o’clock opening. We gathered around the table with a cup of coffee each, brought by the teacher, for a final leisurely moment before the opening.

“Yuni and Juhan will take turns attending to the customers. If customers have questions about the artwork, there might be times when neither the representative nor I can handle it. During busy times, both Yuni and Juhan might need to leave the desk. Ihyun, you just need to distribute the pamphlets well at the desk.”

I wasn’t particularly skilled but not shy either, so I thought I could manage that much.

“Is it okay if I’m not very friendly and smiling?”

“It’s okay. Ihyun’s expressionless face is charming, so customers will like it more. Don’t worry about that…”

The teacher’s encouragement, stating that my expressionless face was charming, was hard to agree with, and his words faded away, eventually stopping completely. His face slowly lost its smile and ended up with a completely sour expression as if he had drunk a bitter beverage.

“I must be crazy… As expected, things are going smoothly this time.”

The three of us fixed our eyes on the teacher, who was muttering to himself while rubbing his face with both hands.

“The editor of <Moussua> left the book at the bathroom! I had been holding onto it until morning because I had to look like I read it. Why am I like this?”

As soon as the teacher finished scolding himself, Yuni stood up from her seat.

“I’ll go down and buy it. It takes about 30 minutes round trip.”

“We can’t go without the book, Yuni. Even if you say you’ve read it, it’s no good without the actual book… People like that will drag it out for months at least.”

As the teacher spoke with a panicked expression, almost shouting, Yuni was already grabbing her wallet from her desk inside the office.

After a brief moment of hesitation, I stood up and lightly grabbed Yuni’s arm.

“I’ll go.”

After a moment’s hesitation, I looked at the wall clock hanging by the window and saw that it was almost 3 o’clock.

“If Yuni isn’t here, the work will be paralyzed, but it’s not like the world will end if I’m away. I’ll go.”

“…Then, please.”

It was different from when she had immediately given me work instructions without any formalities when I arrived at the gallery yesterday. Yuni looked somewhat apologetic, not eager to ask me, who was just temporarily helping out, for an unexpected task. I managed a smile as much as I could for her. I could somewhat understand Juhan’s description of us as shy people.

We agreed to get the book information by phone, and I quickly left the office, hearing Yuni’s light scolding and the teacher’s apologetic, almost weeping voice behind me.

According to Yuni, there was a large bookstore 10 minutes away by taxi. It was a bookstore I had visited a few times with friends back in middle school under the pretext of buying reference books. Although the interior had changed considerably since then due to major remodeling, there was no time to admire the dramatic transformation.

I found and bought the book without much difficulty, but it took a while to catch a taxi in the busy city center on a holiday afternoon. After receiving a message from Yuni that there was still plenty of time for the author to arrive, I was able to relax and lean back in my seat.

The drive back to the gallery was more congested than the trip down. With trendy cafes and restaurants clustered nearby, the narrow roads and alleys were crowded with people out for a holiday outing.

While quickly checking the book and glancing out the window to see where we were, I couldn’t help but feel a bit anxious.

As we were about 10 meters away from the destination, I noticed a large, solid silhouette of a car entering the parking lot in front of Phantom. It was an unusually large car that was not commonly seen. Despite its overwhelming size and somewhat authoritative, angular design, it looked graceful. Even without knowing much about cars, anyone could tell it was a high-end vehicle.

While imported sedans were common on the road, this car was strikingly different due to its massive build, making it stand out even among SUVs. It had a presence that was reminiscent of an official vehicle.