Double Junk - 66

“Myungjin!”

Seokju quickly ran towards Myungjin. Just when there were barely five steps left, a small figure emerged from the room as if thrown.

It was a woman with long, slender hair. What caught the eye first was her hands, stretching longer than her face. The nails were blunt, but her fingers were as sturdy as tree branches.

She let out an eerie scream as she pounced on Myungjin. Then, she forcefully pressed down on the knife embedded in his chest. She seemed to care little about the surroundings or the situation, focusing solely on sacrificing herself to kill Myungjin.

“Ugh…”

Myungjin groaned heavily. As his mouth opened, bl00d gushed out from his wide-open wound. The woman chuckled, her dry hand flexing with visible tendons. It seemed like she intended to push the knife even deeper.

At that moment,

Bang!

A thunderous gunshot shook the tiled house.

“Ugh…”

The woman, accompanied by Myungjin’s moans, staggered backward. Her neatly arranged dress fluttered like a butterfly.

Seokju’s shot hit between the woman’s shoulder and chest. Despite the immense pain, she swayed from side to side, chuckling, without screaming or crying. Bl00d silently spread over the long strands of her hair scattered on the floor.

Seokju slid down in front of Myungjin, placing him gently on his own legs. He caressed Myungjin’s cheek.

“Myungjin. Myungjin.”

“Ugh… Hyung, hyung-nim…”

“What happened? Why is this happening? Why?”

“That, that druggie suddenly attacked, cough…”

Myungjin coughed before finishing his sentence. Like a small grenade exploding, bl00d splattered over Seokju’s face. Seokju’s pupils convulsed roughly. He pressed down on Myungjin’s pierced chest firmly.

“Enough. Don’t talk. Let’s go to the hospital. To the hospital…”

Seokju, holding Myungjin, glanced around anxiously. Except for the distant and withdrawn Ajin, the house was silent. It felt like there was no one around. Angry veins popped up on Seokju’s forehead.

“Is nobody here? What’s everyone doing!”

With Seokju’s angry shout, the house finally started to get noisy. However, even that seemed strange and eerie. The organization members, coming out of their rooms, were in various conditions. Some had injuries, others had slept with a prostitute clinging to them, and a few had faces so swollen they looked like they just woke up. Sophi had rushed out, revealing her underpants.

Seokju, and even Ajin, looked displeased. The members of the Taehoe faction, who always maintained a neat appearance, seemed out of character. They mumbled incomprehensible words as they wandered around.

“Hyung-nim! Hyung-nim! We heard gunshots -nim! Who’s practicing shooting at this late hour! I’ll kill them!”

“The hell is this? What time is it now? What day is it?”

“Ah, my head feels like it’s going to split.”

“Who, who called me! Are you a ghost?”

“Shut up, you bastard!”

While they argue amongst themselves, the organization members stumbled and fell, collided with each other, and even rolled over to the central courtyard.

Seokju let out a bitter laugh at the scene. Even Ajin had a puzzled expression. These Taehoe faction members, who always maintained a disciplined appearance, looked nothing like themselves. It was as if they had all taken some kind of drug. But a drug?

At that moment, Seokju’s expression changed. Myungjin lightly tapped Seokju’s forearm with an unrelenting touch. Seokju quickly looked down. Myungjin was smiling through bloodstained lips.

“But, Hyung-nim… Even though I was stabbed, it doesn’t hurt that much. Seems like I’m made of steel…”

Seokju silently looked down at Myungjin. He wanted to respond, but something hot inside prevented him from opening his mouth. He feared that if he spoke too hastily, a feeble plea might slip out – something like “don’t die” or “don’t leave me alone.”

At that moment, a black cloak descended over Myungjin’s body. Seokju’s white and small hand holding the cloak struck down forcefully. It was a reflexive action. Only then did he belatedly confirm the person who brought the cloak.

It was Ajin. As if to assure Seokju that she was fine, Ajin brushed off Seokju’s arm. Then, she began to carefully wrap Myungjin’s chest with the cloak. Without pulling out the knife, she circled around, hesitating to touch the area.

“Hemostasis. We need to stop the bleeding, sir.”

“…What?”

“And let’s go to the hospital. Right now.”

“Ah, right… Right, we should go to the hospital.”

Seokju helped Ajin wrap the cloak around. Every time Myungjin moved, bl00d oozed through his lips. There was no doubt that there was a serious problem with his lungs. Seokju closed his eyes with a heavy heart, then opened them again.

Ajin used a handkerchief to gently wipe Myungjin’s fingers that were rolling around aimlessly. Despite feeling the urge to vomit irregularly, there was no time to vomit here.

Ajin collected two fingers, and while searching for the remaining one, he discovered it near the fallen woman’s knees.

With caution, Ajin approached the finger lying on the ground. He bent down, reached his hand out, and picked it up.

“Ajin?”

Although he sighed, a gentle voice called Ajin. He quickly turned her head. A woman with disheveled hair was staring at Ajin. Ajin blinked rapidly; the face seen through the long, seaweed-like hair seemed somehow familiar.

“Doeun… Nuna?”

As if seeing a ghost, Ajin muttered absentmindedly.

It was Doeun. Doeun, who used to work at the gambling den. Doeun, who was always affectionate and kind. Doeun, who had hidden and taken care of Ajin, an ugly man. Smart and quick-witted Doeun.

How could she be here, why here, and how did she end up here…

“Ajin!”

Doeun stood up suddenly, shouting Ajin’s name.

“Why is Nuna… here…”

You said she got married. You said she married a handsome and wealthy dye factory owner… Ajin, who was in chaos, looked at the hand Myungjin held. Doeun suddenly grabbed Ajin’s ankle. Due to the twisted knee, the grip was unusually strong on the thin ankle.

Ajin shivered with a start. Doeun’s hand felt as cold as if it belonged to a corpse. The chill climbed up through the ankle to the hair.

“Ajin, today.”

Doeun spoke, her bloodshot eyes glaring.

“…What?”

“Today! I can kill everyone if it’s today!”

“What, what are you saying?”

Ajin stuttered. She felt Seokju’s gaze on the back of her head. Belatedly, she heard the murmurs of some organization members regaining their senses.

At that moment, Doeun began to scream, shaking her head and skinny body violently.

“You bastard! You said today! Hey, you bastard! You said today!”

Ajin gasped in fear.

“Sister. Why are you like this? What are you talking about, that’s…”

Doeun seemed strange. She didn’t seem like Doeun. Her once plump cheeks were now sunken, and despite wearing makeup, dark circles were visible under her eyes. Beyond the smeared lipstick marks, her lips seemed to have been violently beaten.

“You bastard! You said today! I can kill everyone if it’s today! You said we could kill everyone!”

Ajin’s breath hitched.

“Sister. Sister, why are you like this? What are you talking about, that’s…”

Doeun, who was once soft-spoken, was now acting out of character. The once-smooth cheeks were now hollowed, and even with makeup, dark circles were visible. Beyond the smeared lipstick marks, her lips seemed to have been violently beaten.

“You bastard! You said today! I can kill everyone if it’s today! You said we could kill everyone!”

Doeun seethed with rage. It seemed odd to repeat the same words, but her overall demeanor was so unhinged that it didn’t feel peculiar.

Terrified, Ajin tried to pull his foot away. However, Doeun’s grip only tightened. Even Ajin’s pale foot, already white, seemed to turn paler. It felt like the ankle was on the verge of snapping.

Finally, Ajin slumped to the floor, carefully cradling the fingers of the hand he managed to salvage from the mess. Doeun, asserting her dominance, pulled Ajin toward her. Amidst this, Ajin still managed to pick up the fallen fingers and wrapped them tightly in a handkerchief.

Ajin, helpless against Doeun’s stubborn strength, was dragged closer to her. Doeun brought Ajin’s face up to hers. Her black hair scratched Ajin’s cheek like thorns. Her icy breath froze his eyelids, and despite the overpowering scent of her perfume, an indescribable nauseating smell lingered.

“You… Ajin, you…”

Doeun muttered through her trembling lips as she pulled Ajin even closer. Suddenly, she recoiled, falling to the side. Her thin body convulsed abruptly. Bones twisted, pupils rolled behind the eyelids, and then repeated the unsettling cycle.

Like a fish floundering on the shore, Doeun abruptly twisted and collapsed. Her small head hit the floor with a thud.

Ajin, breathing heavily, looked at Doeun. Slowly, very slowly, he turned his head.

“Oh…”

Seokju, holding MyungJin in his arms, was watching him. The gaze was unexpectedly dry and cold. Even when they first met at the gambling den, Seokju seemed indifferent, but it wasn’t as chilly. Anger flickered in his black pupils.

Ajin stared back, trying to decipher whether that anger was directed at him or at Doeun.

But he couldn’t tell. The employees, who belatedly regained their senses, rushed to Seokju and MyungJin. A black shadow overlapped Seokju’s face as the members bustled around him.

They hoisted MyungJin, still covered in bl00d, and hastily left the house. One of them approached Ajin, swiftly grabbed the fingers in his hand, and hurriedly followed the others.

Seokju, the last one remaining, stood up. After glancing at his bl00d-stained hands for a moment, he looked at Ajin again.

His returned gaze was colder than before. Instinctively, Ajin sensed that something was wrong, distorted.

This isn’t right. This can’t be. This shouldn’t happen.

“Si… Sir.”

Ajin called out to Seokju like muttering to himself.

“…”

However, Seokju didn’t respond. Clenching the fist smeared with bl00d, he quickly walked away, disappearing down the corridor.

“Sir…”

Ajin called him again. But his voice didn’t come out. Seokju’s name, silently uttered, dispersed into the chilly air.

Alone, Ajin stared blankly at the corridor where Seokju had vanished.

The bl00d-smeared corridor creaked, tilting unnaturally.