Chapter 11
Hyungoh sat blankly on the swing chair in front of the garden. The sight of decaying, withered flowers made his mood sink even lower.
“You’re up early.”
Hunter, who’d discarded his usual loose clothing for a neat suit, approached Hyungoh. It wasn’t even a school day—it was a holiday. Hunter smiled at Hyungoh’s gaze sweeping over his suit.
“I have some business to attend to.”
“What kind of business?”
“The kind I don’t want to do.”
But something I have to do, even if I’m forced to. Hunter added. Hyungoh just let Hunter’s somewhat cryptic words go in one ear and out the other. Such things weren’t important to him right now.
“Uncle.”
“What?”
“…”
Hyungoh closed his mouth. Tens of thousands of questions rose to his throat only to get stuck. What were you going to say? Are you hoping to get answers from your uncle?
On what grounds?
“Have a good day.”
Hyungoh said with a smile. His head was already spinning with complications, and with Hunter joining in, his mind went blank.
“You look like you have a lot on your mind.”
Hunter slipped over to sit beside Hyungoh. A rich fragrance of cologne wafted subtly from his suit. Hyungoh stiffened as Hunter’s hand stroked his head. He never imagined Hunter would approach him so warmly and stroke his head like this.
“Something’s happened.”
“…”
“Hmm, shall I guess?”
Hyungoh met Hunter’s eyes. Somehow, he felt Hunter’s smile was like mockery directed at him. He began to feel uneasy at Hunter’s knowing gaze, which seemed to say he saw through everything.
“It’s not easy. Having to adapt to an unfamiliar land.”
“…”
“It’s been almost a month, but you’re surrounded by mountains of unknowns, and you don’t know what to do.”
Am I right? Hunter asked.
“…Do you know, Uncle?”
How I should handle this situation right now. His legal guardian, his maternal uncle, was a beast worse than an animal, using the neighbor boy Michael like a sex toy. Poor Michael, with whatever trauma he carried, had broken down in tears at just a few words from Hyungoh. And there was an object—presumed to be a human hand—buried in the flower bed in Michael’s backyard. No, perhaps an entire person was buried there.
So, why?
“Of course I know.”
Hunter said.
“You’ll know soon too. So there’s no need to rush.”
“But…”
“Ah, sorry, but it’s time for me to go now.”
My boss is quite fierce, you know. My life might be in danger if I’m late. Hunter got up and adjusted his clothes.
“By the way, there’s one thing I’d like you to know.”
“…What is it?”
“This place we’re living in is quite a dangerous city. The moment you step out of this relatively peaceful neighborhood, gang members are always lurking around.”
To them, a small-built Asian man would look like nothing more than a perfect toy to play with. At Hunter’s additional words, Hyungoh closed his mouth. He didn’t need to think deeply to understand why Hunter was telling him such threatening facts.
Don’t think about running away.
Hunter got into his car, waved to Hyungoh, and left the garage. Watching the car disappear, Hyungoh exhaled a heavy sigh.
There had never been a day when the chirping of sparrows felt as unpleasant as today. The sound of leaves colliding as they blew in the wind, the sensation of butterflies brushing past between his legs, the subtle, elegant scent of water-soaked flowers. These trivial things he’d never paid much attention to before were suddenly tormenting him.
There must be a way.
Hyungoh thought calmly. I’ve overcome challenges well so far. Even if the current situation is so serious I feel a threat to my survival… I need to think positively. There’s always at least one escape route for any situation.
He comforted himself over and over. However, the anxiety that had seeped into one corner of his heart wouldn’t easily subside.
This is a problem on a different level from before. I could die.
It’s a crime scene. It was clearly a crime scene. A person buried in the backyard. There’s no way they weren’t dead. Wait, can I even be sure my memory is reliable? What if I saw it wrong? What if it was just a flower with an unusually thick root?
No. Remember clearly. It was a human hand. Hyungoh rubbed his face vigorously as if washing it. Denying reality won’t change anything. The familiar smell of blood, the unsettled air, yes—Marsha’s attitude was suspicious too. She seemed to know I’d discovered that hand.
But why did she just let me go? Burying someone in the ground is an action taken to conceal the fact you killed them. And I caught her doing it. I could report it to the police, so why did Marsha just tell me to go back?
No, even before that—why did they bury a person?
“Hey, Hyungoh!”
Theo, who appeared in a bright red sports car beyond the fence, shouted cheerfully. His friends, who’d turned up the music loud in the car and were happily keeping the rhythm, turned their heads following Theo.
“What’s up!”
“Hey, wanna hang out?”
A man with multiple piercings on his lips greeted loudly. Then Theo’s friends started talking to Hyungoh one by one. The quiet neighborhood quickly became noisy because of them.
“Why that face again?”
Theo, who’d easily jumped over the car door, approached with his hands in his pockets, swaggering. Still not over it? Theo scratched his chin.
Hyungoh pressed his throbbing forehead firmly. The distracting heavy metal music was scattering all the thoughts he’d been worrying about in every direction.
“I have a headache, Theo.”
“What?”
“I said, that damn music is giving me a headache.”
Hyungoh answered in a voice filled with suppressed emotion. Ah. Theo said shortly. Why is this guy irritated every time we meet? Clicking his tongue, Theo whistled and waved toward his friends who were making a ruckus.
“Go ahead and get things ready, you idiots.”
“If you don’t come soon, we’ll drink it all!”
“Hahaha!”
They couldn’t contain their excitement, as if they’d all had something good happen. As the car started with a loud roar, the noisy sounds gradually subsided.
“So, what’s the problem this time?”
Why are you so irritable again? As Theo plopped down next to Hyungoh, the chair wobbled precariously.
“Did you fight with Hunter?”
“No.”
“Then what is it?”
“…”
“What is it, I’m asking?”
Hyungoh turned his head sharply to face Theo. Startled by Hyungoh’s haggard face, Theo frowned. Damn, what the hell. You scared me.
“Hey, Theo.”
“What?”
“If you witnessed a murder scene, what would you do?”
“Murder?”
Hyungoh swallowed dryly. At Hyungoh’s somewhat abrupt question, Theo raised his eyebrows.
“What? Did you see something by any chance?”
“N-no.”
“What’s with the ‘N-no’? You’re obviously showing that you saw something.”
“I’m telling you, I didn’t!”
“I’m tewwing you, I diidn’t!”
Theo mimicked Hyungoh’s speech playfully and chuckled. I’m not in the mood for jokes. Hyungoh glared at Theo.
“So, where did you see it?”
“I keep telling you I didn’t… but Theo, why are you so calm about this?”
“Should I fall over in shock?”
“That would be the normal reaction in this situation.”
You’re acting like you’re listening to love advice. Hyungoh was puzzled. It’s a murder case. ‘Murder’ we’re talking about. Theo chuckled at Hyungoh’s face, which looked at him with complete disbelief.
“What? Did you come here without knowing where this place is? Hunter is so careless.”
“What do you mean?”
“Look, the place you’re living in right now is Caysenderson City. It’s a region with a notorious reputation—no less than Detroit or Harlem in New York.”
Theo continued, making a gun-shooting gesture with his hand.
“Haven’t you heard the gangs playing with guns every night? Well, this neighborhood is relatively safe.”
“…Guns?”
“Yeah. So what I’m saying is, seeing someone killed here is more common than seeing ants crawling around.”
Hyungoh closed his mouth. The story Hunter had told him earlier resonated more deeply. It wasn’t just empty talk to scare him. Hyungoh leaned back in his chair as if about to collapse. His whole body went limp. Haha, what the hell. In this environment, even if I report it to the police, nothing will be resolved.
“I shouldn’t have come…”
“What are you saying?”
The jealous checks from relatives would’ve been better. At least I wouldn’t have felt a threat to my life. Even if I suffered harm from them, losing my inheritance would’ve been the worst of it.
But this isn’t right. Hyungoh closed his eyes tightly. I shouldn’t have trusted an uncle whose face I’d never seen before. Why did I make such a hasty judgment?
“Haah, life…”
“Hey, don’t be so depressed. It’s quite a nice place here too.”
“Where exactly?”
“Umm… The fact that the police are friendly?”
“I’m already desperate enough, so please stop.”
Above all, the police shouldn’t be friendly, right? Especially in this area where gangs are said to be rampant.
It was a series of despairs. What should I do now? There’s no one I can trust. Theo lightly touched the shoulder of Hyungoh, who was looking up at the sky with deranged eyes, and casually said:
“If you’re feeling that bad, want to go somewhere to change your mood?”
“No.”
“Ouch. At least hear what it is before you refuse.”
“What is it?”
“There’s a party at my house. Didn’t Hunter tell you?”
I’m sure he didn’t. I can’t trust that damn old man. Hyungoh turned his head as if uninterested.
“Hey. Just forget about it. Nothing will go wrong as long as you keep your mouth shut.”
“Are you telling me to ignore it? When someone has died?”
“Everyone lives like that, you idiot.”
Theo, who was tapping the chair’s backrest with his fist as if frustrated, continued.
“Listen carefully. Do you know why people like you have a short lifespan? You refuse to accept the fact that even basic ethics and morals don’t apply here. You mess around with unnecessary sense of justice and eventually get shot and die.”
“…That’s not wrong though.”
“No, it is wrong. At least here it’s wrong. Shall I put it another way? Simply put, you’re a stupid kid. Do you expect guys who’ve grown up watching their neighbors die in various ways from birth to realize human dignity and the value of life?”
“That’s not what I’m saying right now.”
“Yes, yes, so just forget it all. I’m telling you, I’ll personally help you adapt to this place. Or, do you want to continue denying reality and die?”
Theo stood up and extended his hand to Hyungoh. Just sitting here for a hundred days won’t solve the problem. At Theo’s additional words, Hyungoh frowned. He didn’t want to admit it, but it was true. No solution came despite continuous thinking. There was no way one would come so easily.
But it’s not like following Theo will solve the problem either. Hyungoh, stubbornly staying in his chair, muttered.
“Ah, really.”
Theo scratched his head vigorously. The cross tattoo clearly drawn on his forearm briefly revealed itself through his short sleeves.
“Hey, then let’s do this.”
“Do what?”
“I’ll help you. Whether you want to play hero or whatever.”
Hyungoh, who’d been wearing a stern expression, looked up at Theo with sparkling eyes at the offer of help. Theo, arms crossed, immediately grinned.
“In return, you’ll have to help me too.”
