Jiwon followed him into the studio covered in red silk. As they approached the studio, all the lights that had been off turned on. It was so bright he could barely open his eyes.
“Take off your clothes in the changing room and come out.”
The horn-rimmed glasses said.
With his eyes barely open, Jiwon looked around for the changing room.
“Over there.”
The horn-rimmed glasses pointed to a spot on the wall in a somewhat annoyed voice. There was a white door on the white wall.
You could at least mark it or something. Would you be able to find it yourself?
Grumbling internally, he hurried to the changing room to escape the blindingly bright lights.
The changing room had full-length mirrors on all four walls. On the upper left side of the mirror, there were hangers for jackets and shirts and a pants hanger prepared. And also a fancy party mask.
The mask was designed to cover the eyes and nose. It wasn’t crude—it was a fairly well-made product.
Jiwon fiddled with the mask, then thinking this wasn’t the time to waste time looking at such things, quickly stripped off his clothes. He hung the jacket and shirt neatly on the hanger, and folded the pants, underwear, and socks in a corner of the changing room.
Before leaving the changing room, he put on the mask and looked at his naked body reflected in the full-length mirror. Apart from the surgical scars running from his right elbow through to below his wrist bone and down to his pinky finger, his skin was overall pale and clean. Though somewhat thin, he had functional muscle, so he didn’t look too shabby.
But his cock were the biggest problem. Instead of his once-perfect cock that used to be called substantial if not huge, a hideous lump of flesh was attached. It could get erect and ejaculate, but it was a shape and size that wouldn’t excite anyone.
Even when he averted his gaze, with mirrors on all sides, there was no way to avoid seeing the monstrosity.
Jiwon squeezed his eyes shut. After taking a deep breath, he opened the changing room door.
Staff had already gathered in the studio. There were only three including the horn-rimmed glasses. Excluding the horn-rimmed glasses, one held a camera and the other was fiddling with a measuring tape. Both wore black masks and black latex gloves.
The horn-rimmed glasses was looking down at a large monitor with an apple logo engraved on it.
Perhaps because both sides were wearing masks, standing naked in front of strange men didn’t feel so burdensome.
Jiwon went and stood where the cameraman directed.
“Interviewee, please stand in the center.”
The cameraman shouted in a husky voice.
Jiwon moved to the center, mindful of his dangling parts.
As soon as he stood at attention, the flash went off.
“Please turn around.”
At the cameraman’s request, Jiwon turned around.
Then again, pop, the flash went off.
“Good. Back to your original position.”
When he stood facing forward at those words, the assistant approached with the measuring tape.
“I’ll measure your cock length.”
The assistant said this and brought the tape measure up. The cameraman approached and photographed the cock.
While the flash went off three times in succession, the assistant skillfully held the measuring tape in place.
“Oh my, looks like you had a major accident.”
The cameraman expressed sympathy.
“Can I see the testicles?”
At the cameraman’s words, the assistant lifted the cock with his gloved hand.
“Let’s see, the balls are intact. Pretty-looking too, nice size to hold and roll around in your hand.”
In the studio that was quiet enough to be called deathly silent, the cameraman made joke-like remarks to himself without any tension. Judging by his speech, he seemed to be at least in his fifties.
The assistant brought the measuring tape to the testicles again, and the cameraman pressed the shutter.
“Could you spread your legs for a moment? The perineum isn’t easy to photograph. Shine some light.”
Jiwon spread his legs, embarrassed.
Then the assistant approached with a small light and lifted his balls.
“I’ll squat for a moment.”
Saying this, the cameraman knelt in front of Jiwon, and the assistant naturally shone the light toward the perineal area.
This moment—with someone, strange men he’d never seen before, photographing his cock, testicles, and even perineum—was so surreal that he felt nothing at all.
“Done. Now, this time we’ll photograph your buttocks. Please turn around.”
Following the kind cameraman’s instructions, Jiwon turned around.
“Wow, your butt is nicely shaped, looks like you’ve been working out.”
The cameraman praised him.
“Small but firm, very firm.”
It was probably meant as a compliment, but the embarrassment was Jiwon’s to bear. Heat rose throughout his body for no reason.
The camera didn’t just photograph his buttocks. They even spread his buttocks to photograph the cleft and anus.
“Now, I’m going to examine your body. We’re just looking for scars, so don’t be nervous.”
The cameraman stepped back.
The short assistant brought a small stool to stand on and a portable light.
“I’ll check starting from the crown of your head.”
Saying this, the assistant climbed onto the stool and checked Jiwon’s crown.
He moved the hair around with his fingers, observing inside. He didn’t forget to lift the bangs covering the forehead to check the hairline. Then he ran over the nape of the neck, shoulders, from the scapula to the waist along the spine.
When he reached the right arm, he called the cameraman, stretched out the measuring tape along the length of the scar, and had him take a photo. In that manner, everything was captured on camera—from the leg Jiwon had injured in a traffic accident in his third year of middle school to the small scar that had almost completely faded. Beyond that, the assistant meticulously examined and had photographed even old scars that were hard to notice without close inspection.
The very last were his feet.
“Please sit on the chair.”
At the assistant’s request, Jiwon sat on the chair. A towel had already been laid on the chair.
Their consideration and kindness felt awkward, not matching the current situation.
After seating Jiwon, the assistant examined both feet. He checked from the knees through the calves to the ankles and ankle bones, then examined the heels, soles, and finally the toes. Especially when the latex gloves touched his toes, Jiwon flinched repeatedly.
It happened to be an erogenous zone. Even in this situation, his body’s instinctive reaction embarrassed him.
This is why they call all men beasts.
He clicked his tongue internally.
Sweat flowed from his naked body, heated by the lights and shame.
Fortunately, the cameraman didn’t need to step in.
The photography session that lasted nearly thirty minutes ended.
When the assistant stood up, the cameraman threw Jiwon a large towel. Jiwon pretended to wipe off sweat while covering his private parts first. The cameraman’s gaze touched his cock very briefly before disappearing.
“Good work. Nice body.”
The cameraman gave Jiwon a thumbs up.
The eyes visible through the mask were smiling.
Jiwon bowed his head slightly and walked to the changing room. Even though they’d only taken photos, his legs were trembling. Not only his whole body but also his masked face was drenched in sweat. He tore off the mask and thoroughly wiped his sweat-soaked face, armpits, groin, and other areas with the towel. Then he put on his underwear and socks.
When he came back out fully dressed in his suit, the studio was empty. All the lights were off and the cameraman and assistant had disappeared. Only the horn-rimmed glasses waited for Jiwon.
The horn-rimmed glasses placed an envelope on the desk.
“This is the promised interview fee of three million won.”
Jiwon approached the desk and picked up the envelope. It contained sixty 50,000 won bills.
He let out an empty laugh. Thanks to the mask, his face hadn’t been sold, and they’d merely photographed his body. And yet they’d given him a huge sum of three million won.
An opportunity.
Barely controlling his cheekbones that threatened to rise, he bowed to the horn-rimmed glasses. He carefully put the money envelope in his jacket’s inner pocket.
Just as he was about to turn around and leave,
“We’ll let you know the results soon.”
The horn-rimmed glasses said.
“Of course, only for those who pass, but I was wondering if you’d be interested in a second interview.”
“A second interview?”
He tried to stay as calm as possible, but his questioning voice cracked.
“Yes. The second interview fee is five million won.”
The horn-rimmed glasses stated the amount first. He was treating him like someone crazy for money.
“Excuse me?”
He was genuinely surprised, but he pretended to be even more shocked.
“Of course, it will be more explicit than today’s.”
When saying the word “explicit,” the horn-rimmed glasses didn’t flinch even an eyebrow.
Are they going to make me masturbate or something?
Barely holding back from asking this, he carefully asked back, “What do you mean by explicit?”
“It’s not masturbation or sex, if that’s what you want to ask.”
The horn-rimmed glasses answered decisively.
More explicit than today but not masturbation or sex.
Are they bringing a woman this time? No, if we’re being specific about gender, it would be a man, not a woman.
Within Jiwon’s common sense, he couldn’t think of anything else.
His expectations slightly subsided.
“Like today, you’ll wear a mask and there will be no exposure at all.”
The horn-rimmed glasses only spoke more enigmatic words.
So the second interview is more explicit than today but not masturbation or sex, and no exposure?
You have to say something believable for me to believe it.
“Are you interested in the second interview?”
The horn-rimmed glasses asked again. Though his voice was dry, his attitude suggested that if he refused here, everything would be over.
“…Yes. I’ll do it.”
He answered that he would for now.
The horn-rimmed glasses said, “Understood,” and then,
“From the moment you leave this office, you must keep silent about today’s interview.”
Power entered his voice for the first time.
“Whether it’s family, lovers, or friends, you must not tell anyone. Everyone signs and then forgets about it.”
The horn-rimmed glasses smiled faintly, but his eyes were sharp. Through his expression, Jiwon learned that not only himself but several people had been interviewed, and he could also tell that someone among them had leaked the secret.
He wondered how many more people, including Han who had an interview scheduled for 3:30, would undergo such interviews.
As soon as he left the large conference room, he looked around in all directions. Since he was already here, he wanted to grasp the office layout and also get a good look at the faces of the gangster lackey and monkey that he hadn’t been able to examine closely earlier due to the confusion. But there was no one. Just as the cameraman and assistant had disappeared, they too had vanished without a trace. He felt like he’d been possessed by ghosts.
Jiwon left the empty office and pressed the elevator down button. As if waiting, the elevator doors opened. No one got on the elevator during the ride down to the first floor. He went to the first-floor reception desk, returned his access card, and got back his ID. The desk staff held out a coupon along with his ID.
“This is a coupon you can use at that café over there. There’s no price limit for beverages, so you can order whatever drink you want.”
The desk staff kindly added.
Jiwon, who was very thirsty, went to the café and immediately used the coupon. Since the only drink that came to mind was an iced Americano, he ordered that.
He didn’t know how long it had been since he’d had proper coffee. The coffee’s aroma and taste were excellent, so he walked to the bus stop while marveling throughout.
Even at lunchtime, Yongnam-si didn’t have many people. Though buildings were everywhere, somehow there were only a handful of office workers coming out for lunch.
Ghost town. He understood why Yongnam-si had earned such a nickname. But like any new city, this city too would soon be packed with people.
The sun was hot. Jiwon took off his jacket and boarded the bus in his shirt. Sitting in the sparse bus with air conditioning, he headed back to Gangnam.
[Don’t get your hopes up]
After sending the text, he began to doze off.
