Chapter 600 – Part 2 13. Reunion (6)
Part 2 13. Reunion (6)
“Friend…?”
“… Yes.”
Finally, Kiyoung opened her mouth. However, it was Chae-kyung, not Ga-hye, who answered. In fact, for Ga-hye, it was a great consideration for her to wait without leaving, so Ki-young should be grateful even if she doesn’t open her mouth. However, Chae-kyung, who did not know the relationship between the two, was worried why her friend was so angry.
“Um… Gahye…?”
“…”
“That’s… Chae-kyung.”
“Yes?”
If she nitpicks, she finds out that she is a sex offender. Ki-young noticed that Ga-hye was noticing her and that she had to fix this situation somehow. He closed his eyes tightly and swallowed, hoping that Ga-hye would like the lies he was going to tell from now on.
“Yes, a long time ago, I was with this… Person? “I met him at the swimming pool once…”
“Ah, really…?”
There’s no way I could live like this with just that much work. Kiyoung explains everything to Chae-kyung, who waits quietly.
“At that time… I’ll be honest… I was Gahye…? Well, anyway, I stole this person’s stuff…”
“Yes!?”
“…”
For Kiyoung, this was the best. If she pretends that she is completely innocent, she won’t be able to explain why Ga-hye is so angry, and she will also be furious at the lie. But she can’t say, ‘I drugged her with sleeping pills and raped her.’ She must come up with an excuse saying that she has sinned but how she can make up for it. So what came to mind was theft.
“Towels, watches and a few other things… I was laid off from my job at the time and was going through a very difficult time. So I touched something without realizing it, and then I got caught.”
“How… No, in the women’s locker room!?”
“Uh? Ah! Uh, yeah. Uh… Well, that was… I was crazy. So, I was just saying… Anyway, I was really wrong, and how could Gahye get away with it without reporting it at that time… Right, right?”
“…”
Gahye just looks at him without answering. Who knows what that silence means? Kiyoung begins to portray himself as miserable and ugly as possible.
“I was an asshole… I was out of my mind, really. “But if Ga-hye didn’t feel sorry for me and let me live, I would have already been rotting in a cell.”
“…”
Even Chae-kyung looks at him with disdain. No. It’s good to avoid the situation, but if Chae-kyung quits work, this business has no chance.
“Well, so! So I changed my mind and worked hard! And in order to do business properly and become an upright person, I took over a PC room! Gahye saved someone’s life. She saved someone’s life. “Thank you, Gahye!”
Bow your head and do not lift it. When the owner of the PC room, who is much older than them, bows his head and begs, Ga-hye and Chae-kyung become uncomfortable. It was clearly someone else’s fault, but emotionally it felt like it was my fault. Chae-kyung thought that she could not blame the person Ga-hye had forgiven for his crime, and she felt that it was not her place to say anything since Ga-hye had already enjoyed it to the point of being an accomplice in the latter half of the episode. 〉
“Woman, you said you wanted to work here, right? How about paying the same hourly wage as Chaekyung? She would know if she lived here. It’s difficult to get this much attention in this neighborhood. I’ll give it to you straight away without being pushed around. Huh?”
“Uhm…”
Ga-hye didn’t want to work with Ki-young, but she needed money to raise a dog. And in this town, where it is fortunate to meet the minimum wage, work earning 15,000 won per hour is not common. She’s good without Ki-young, without Ki-young…
“It’s a bit uncomfortable to work with them.”
“Go, Gahye…”
Gahye throws it out bluntly. It is clear that Ki-young is a sinner, but she intended this expression to be a bit rude. If the other person gets angry here, she can never see his face again, and if he comes back with a bow, she can just extort money from him.
“Uh, uh! Of course! Then… Ga-hye, I won’t come out during her working hours. I just need to learn from Chae-kyung. There’s nothing great about this place anyway. Right, Chae-kyung?”
“Yes… Yes, well… But…”
The boss prays that he will not come out during his part-time work hours. Isn’t this good enough? Ga-hye suddenly thought that there was no reason for Ki-young to catch her like this.
“I’m even more suspicious because the boss appears in such a low tone.”
“Ayu, I’m sorry for what I did to Ga-hye back then… Well, um… If it’s okay, you can eat whatever you want, like the corrosion here during working hours. Chae-kyung too.”
“Yes? No. I…”
Chae-kyung was not the type of person who particularly enjoyed instant foods like cup ramen. Because she doesn’t understand why she eats convenience store gimbap. Ga-hye found Ki-young’s attitude even more suspicious, but she didn’t want to interrogate him right now when Chae-kyung was there. There’s no way she would want to find out that the person she was talking about at first glance was Kiyoung.
“… I’ll think about it some more.”
However, accepting her offer in return for her money and ramen is not what she wants. Gahye got up from her chair and left her PC room without saying a word. Just slow down so that Chaekyung can catch up with her.
“Go, Gahye.”
“Chaekyung.”
“Huh?”
“… That human, be careful. You’re fucking sneaky bastard. Don’t eat anything that bastard gives you. “You have to be careful because there might be a hidden camera or something like that.”
Chae-kyung’s face turns white as her friend’s words remind her of her sexual crimes.
“Hey… Should I quit my job too?”
“… It won’t be that much. Just be careful, just in case. “If you have to, let’s work the same hours as me.”
“Yes.”
“…”
Ga-hye, who had run out of the store as if she was going back at any moment, stands still and does not move. At the entrance to the store, Kiyoung is secretly peeking through the door.
“Hey.”
“Huh?”
Ga-hye approaches him, opens the door, and drags Ki-young out. She made her threat in a low voice so that her guests could not hear.
“Don’t come to the store even when Chae-kyung is around. Please know that if you do something tampering, I will report it right away. “I will work at the same time as Chae-kyung.”
“Ah… Well, that’s a bit difficult…”
“What!? Why! What are you going to do to Chaekyung…!”
“No, that’s not it! The reason why we use pretty part-time workers like Chae-kyung and Ga-hye is to attract more customers, but if two people show up at the same time, there will be no sales when they are not working. Then I can’t even pay part-time wages to the two of them.”
“…”
She thought that she might be trying to make money, but Ga-hye was taken aback when she got a surprisingly economical, normal answer from a PC room owner.
“I’m serious about this business. I have to either hold out here until I get old, or get the right money and hand it over. Since I won’t be able to show up when the two of you are working, can’t we just have different days of the week? Huh?”
“Ugh…”
Kiyoung has definitely changed. This person of hers was not the man who was blackmailing her and committing public indecency with her. Just a self-employed person, an ordinary citizen. I didn’t like the idea of throwing myself out here and pretending to be a normal human being, but I couldn’t show that.
“… I’ll think about it, so you should go back today too.”
“Uh? Uh. I was planning on just going for the interview anyway. Chae-kyung, please let me go!”
“Oh, yes!”
Chae-kyung says hello and returns to the PC room. Ga-hye and Ki-young leave the building together.
“…”
“Oh, please review it positively.”
“Be quiet.”
Ga-hye walked away, leaving Ki-young still watching her. You need money to bring a new ‘partner’ into your home. And it would be difficult to make enough money quickly without this place. But Kiyoung is too shy to get close to him. Moreover, since Chae-kyung is also involved, it might be better for him to get out of this quickly.
But when I think about money, my heart wavers. Adopting a wild dog has now become an irrevocable decision. You can’t enjoy it outdoors every night, or in a park restroom where you might be seen. After a few repetitions, practical concerns began to outweigh the excitement of outdoor animal play, and she wanted to join the dog and her family as soon as possible. She wants to vaccinate, give him a clean bath, and raise him to be a proud male dog like the robin she loved.
In Kiyoung’s case, it might be better to be in a position to monitor him. The fact that he is in her neighborhood and everyday life is a matter worth being wary of. If it weren’t for the coincidence that happened with Chae-kyung, she might not have known that Ki-young existed near her for the rest of her life. The other person seemed to have no intention of continuing ‘that kind of relationship’ any longer, but I couldn’t believe it. It might be better to work at his place of business, so I can see with my own eyes what he is doing.
She continued to walk while thinking. Before she knew it, she had so many thoughts going through her head that she didn’t even notice that school was getting closer. The days she enjoyed with Kiyoung. Isn’t the reason she is trying to adopt her dog now because he gave her that ‘taste’? It may be a nonsensical expression, but Kiyoung can be said to be her teacher. She taught me knowledge I wish I had never known, and she allowed me to experience things I wish I had never experienced in my life. What kind of butterfly has Gahye, whom he has personally woven and locked in a chrysalis, turned into a fable? With that thought in mind, Gahye continued walking. She couldn’t figure out what to do right.
