My Bloody Valentine - 15

After satisfying his desires and relieving the tension he had accumulated, Taeshin should have felt better. However, with a troubled expression, he continued to glare at Han for a while before leaving.

As soon as he left, Han walked over with trembling legs and locked his door. Then, he carelessly threw off his clothes and returned to the bathroom.

Unable to wait for the water to warm up, he stood directly under the showerhead. Ice-cold water poured over his body.

The sticky substances that had dripped from his thighs to his feet mixed with the water and drained away.

Han squeezed a generous amount of shower gel into his cupped hand, creating a lather, and scrubbed his entire body, wiping away all traces of the man. He scrubbed especially hard between his thighs, where the man’s semen had been, and on his chest, which had been groped by the man’s large, hot hands, until his skin felt raw.

The contact of water and foam made his perineum, scrotum, and thighs sting and ache. Considering that the skin of the genitals is more delicate, he wondered why he was the one in pain and not that man.

The man, on the other hand, seemed perfectly fine. Even after ejaculating, his erection remained unchanged, and Han had been terrified that the man might pounce on him again.

After washing his hair, Han came out and cleaned off the traces of semen on the wall and picked up the scattered clothes. That’s when he found the two million won checks that the man had left behind.

Anger surged within him towards the man who had humiliated him like this, a rage he dared not show in front of him.

For a moment, Han clenched the checks in his hands in fury. Soon after, he placed the crumpled checks on the floor and smoothed them out with the edge of his hand.

Two million won for borrowing his body for a while… In just a few days, he had earned more than three million won. He could now pay off not only a month’s interest but also a small portion of the principal.

Suddenly, as he looked at himself smoothing out the crumpled checks, a wave of self-loathing washed over him. But there was nothing he could do about it. Thinking that he couldn’t afford to lose them, he took out his wallet from his eco-bag to store the checks temporarily.

Inside, he saw the yellow letter paper, and a sudden shock hit him like a blow to the back of the head.

Ah, what would that kid say if he found out? If he learned that I had earned money by being used as someone else’s sexual tool…

But Han already knew that “if” was one of the most powerless words.

Han staggered to the bed and lay down. He closed his eyes, hoping that he wouldn’t dream of the wolf that devoured his body tonight.

Maybe because of the cold shower, he felt a slight fever as he slowly drifted into sleep.

Knock, knock.

The sound of someone knocking on the door woke him. He opened the door with a half-asleep face, and Jung entered the room with a cheerful smile as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“Why did you lock the door?”

Han rarely locked his door, even when he lived in a semi-basement one-room. There wasn’t much to steal anyway, and he thought that Haejun might come back while he was away.

Not locking the door had become a habit for him. It was the same here, until last night.

Climbing onto the bed as if it were his own, Jung said, “Hurry up and wash up. Let’s go eat. If we miss the time, we won’t be able to work because we’ll be hungry.”

“Okay.”

Han dragged his sluggish body to the bathroom with difficulty. As he waited for Han to get ready, Jung, lying on the bed, turned on the TV.

“Wow… Shin Soyoung hasn’t aged at all.”

Han’s gaze followed the TV screen as he emerged from the bathroom. The drama, which currently had the highest ratings, was on air.

Actress Shin Soyoung, playing the role of a lawyer, was staring intently at some documents with a serious expression. Despite being in her mid-40s, she still looked like she was in her early 30s.

Drying his hair with a blow dryer while sitting on the floor, Han smiled weakly and said, “Isn’t she too old to be called ‘that girl’?”

“Hey, old? Look at that face. Not a single wrinkle… Which clinic does she go to?”

“I think you’re much prettier, Jung.”

As if finding Han’s words ridiculous, Jung picked up a nearby pillow and threw it at him.

“Han, I thought you didn’t know how to sweet-talk… You might actually be a pro at it.”

“I’m serious, though…”

Jung didn’t seem displeased by Han’s words. With a somewhat wistful expression, he said, “Yeah, I might be prettier, but Shin Soyoung married a chaebol, didn’t she? If I were as pretty as her, I would have married a chaebol long ago, paid off my debts, and escaped from here.”

“…”

Seeing Jung looking so dejected despite being in the same situation as himself, Han felt pity.

Han recalled everything he knew about Shin Soyoung, from her days as a child actress to her current status as a top star. There were countless rumors about her as well.

“You’re prettier. You only did your eyes and nose, right? They say Shin Soyoung spends billions on cosmetic surgery every year.”

“Really? What could she have done to spend that much?”

“I don’t know. They say she even had surgeries on her knees and armpits. And after marrying a chaebol, she continues to work in dramas, supposedly to seduce young male actors.”

“No way!”

“She also has a sponsor in China, apparently.”

“Wow.”

Han talked about rumors that only appeared on third-rate YouTubers’ channels, filled with sensational content to attract views. He felt pathetic, but at least Jung seemed to find some amusement and comfort in it.

“Han, do you want to eat out instead of at the usual place? My treat.”

“Is that okay?”

“Yeah, it’s fine. The first floor is all run by Director Jang anyway.”

On the first floor of the business hotel, there was a convenience store, a casual Japanese restaurant, and a Korean restaurant that mainly served soy sauce-marinated crab and cockle bibimbap. After a brief deliberation, the two decided to go to the Japanese restaurant.

It’s a place that sells fusion Japanese cuisine as well as traditional Japanese home-style dishes. The restaurant, decorated with hinoki wood, boasted a cozy atmosphere with a warm scent of wood.

“Hana, do you want to order a couple set and share? It comes with 12 pieces of sushi, udon, and rice with fish roe.”

“Sure.”

“Next time, should we try this? Sukiyaki.”

“Is it like a stew? I’ve never tried it before… It looks delicious.”

Jung used to come here alone to eat whenever she got tired of the food prepared by the kitchen lady. The menu she chose was usually the same, like tonkatsu or udon. But coming with Han allowed her to try dishes that required at least two people to order, something she couldn’t do alone.

It had been quite a while since she had a meal with someone she didn’t have to pretend with, someone who didn’t pay her for her company.

Watching Han kindly take chopsticks out of the drawer in the table and place them in front of her, Jung rested her chin on her hands with a dreamy expression.

“I feel really sorry to say this… but Han, I’m glad you came.”

Jung, who had been sold when she was 23, had no friends. This place was no different from a jungle, and the people who gathered here, drawn by the scent of money, didn’t come to make friends. To stand out and be chosen, you had to always be on guard about what you wore and how you presented yourself.

But Han was from a different realm, someone she didn’t need to compete with or be wary of. Even if they had been in a situation where they had to compete, she believed they would have become friends.

After a brief silence, Han, seemingly curious, asked the reason.

“Why?”

“Because you’re different. Unlike those who try to take advantage of me.”

“….”

“Sorry. Was that an insulting thing to say?”

Han weakly shook his head with a faint smile. Knowing that someone found joy in his presence was a small comfort to him.

“Your food is here.”

Just then, the food was placed on the table. Jung pulled the steaming black clay pot containing her rice with fish roe closer to herself, while Han did the same with his udon.

“Jung, can I have a bite of that?”

“Of course! Take two bites, even three.”

Food shared together was delicious. After finishing their meal, the two went to a convenience store and each picked out an ice cream for dessert.

The sky was high, and the weather was cool. Not wanting to go inside just yet, they sat under a parasol in front of the convenience store.

There was a sign in front of the store listing the names of all the businesses in the building. Looking at the name “Tasenda” occupying the B1 and B2 floors, Han asked,

“Tasenda is owned by that person, Jang Taeshin, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

Jung answered with a large bite of her green tea-flavored ice cream coated with chocolate, speaking with a slightly awkward pronunciation.

“But why do people call him Director Jang instead of President Jang or Representative Jang?”

“Oh, Director Jang’s main job is as a director at Cheongsong Construction.”

“Cheongsong Construction?”

“You know, that company that’s practically a gangster operation. They act like they’re not, but drawing lines on a pumpkin doesn’t make it a watermelon, right? They build apartments and do redevelopment, but the company’s root is in the Cheongsongpa gang. Director Jang is probably an executive director there.”

“Oh…”

“Director Jang is involved in all the rough stuff, the dirty work that gets blood on your hands, anything that makes money. He’s crazy about money.”

As they talked, something suddenly seemed to cross Jung’s mind. She chewed on the wooden stick of her finished ice cream and stared into space for a moment.

“But I don’t know what’s going to happen from now on.”

“Why?”

“I overheard something while I was cleaning a table yesterday. It seems the chairman collapsed. So now there’s infighting, splitting into factions of the executive director and managing director. They said there’s going to be an emergency board meeting on Monday night after this weekend.”

“Oh, really?”

“Thanks to that, Monday should be pretty easy. When Director Jang is out, all the thugs who follow him clear out too.”

“Thugs? You mean the guys who keep watch?”

“Yeah. Not all of them, but it does feel a bit like you can finally breathe. Those guys, it’s annoying how they stare with their dirty eyes every day.”

“….”

Jung didn’t fully hear Han’s last words as she was lost in her thoughts.

A spark of something flashed in Han’s eyes.