“It’s not particularly serious.”
“Then?”
“There’s something I stopped doing because I didn’t want to do it, and I was thinking whether I should do it again or not.”
Rashanin spoke in a light tone. I remembered Elisabeth’s words that he’d come to Korea after abandoning work he should have been doing.
“Is it important work?”
“It is important.”
“Then you should do it.”
“Telling me to do it when you don’t even know what it is.”
“You said it’s important work. No matter how much you don’t want to do it, playing around here like this doesn’t suit you.”
After saying that, I thought “oops,” feeling like I’d interfered presumptuously. But far from being offended, Rashanin laughed.
“You don’t know what you just said.”
“Did I… say something wrong?”
“No, you’re completely right. It’s undeniable that I’m not doing important work and playing around here.”
My head felt complicated with this vague talk of doing or not doing something when I didn’t even know what it was. But Rashanin seemed to have made a decision. I cautiously spoke.
“Will you return to Russia?”
“Why are you so anxious to send me back?”
“If you’re going to work, shouldn’t you return to Russia?”
“That’s right.”
“If you’re going to leave, please tell me quickly. It’s better to know in advance.”
“How utterly cold. Aren’t you sorry to see me go?”
Rashanin grumbled, which wasn’t like him. But his smiling face made it seem like a joke. After getting confirmation from the Department Head that I’d be withdrawn, when I thought about Rashanin leaving, my heart skipped a beat with an inexplicable relief and regret. But I ignored it and responded indifferently.
“I think I’ll miss the hotel service. Oh, and the hazard pay too.”
“You get hazard pay?”
“Quite a lot.”
“Huh?”
Thanks to Rashanin and Elisabeth, I’d been going back and forth between yellow alert and red alert. The man was a high-risk individual. Rashanin let out a hollow laugh, perhaps thinking it was a joke. Right on time, a waitress approached to take our order. Though I’d had coffee a little while ago, since there was nothing else I wanted to drink, I ordered weak coffee. Rashanin ordered tea.
“You only drink coffee.”
I was clicking my tongue watching the beautiful waitress blush as she confirmed the order when Rashanin made a comment.
“Black tea isn’t to my taste. Should I say it tastes like grass?”
“Grass?”
“Yes. I tried even the ones people say are good, but they weren’t great. At least the ones with milk added are passable, but not enough to make a point of drinking them. Now that I think about it, I’ve never seen you drink coffee. Do you dislike it?”
I asked casually if he disliked coffee, and Rashanin chuckled.
“Rashanin-ssi?”
“I don’t dislike it.”
“Then?”
“It’s probably just habit.”
An old habit, or not seeking novelty. If he had fallen into ennui, it would make sense.
“Then how about trying something new this time?”
“……?”
“These days there are so many varieties of coffee. The taste differs depending on the coffee-producing region, and there are unique ones with various things added. Shall I recommend one?”
There was something called a soy milk strawberry cream frappuccino. I’d fallen for Seong-jin’s trick and taken a sip, experiencing a whole new world. It was sold at a specific coffee shop so it wouldn’t be here, but I wanted to make Rashanin try it.
It would be interesting to see him frown and grumble that it tasted bad.
“Can you guarantee the taste?”
“You might experience a whole new world.”
“A new world. Sounds like you’re up to something?”
“You’re seeing things.”
When Rashanin said he sensed ulterior motives, I calmly lied that he was mistaken. Rashanin laughed, and I ended up laughing along. Conversations with Rashanin were fundamentally pleasant. While eating or drinking tea, exchanging jokes and talking, I’d find myself smiling before I knew it.
“Pleasant and fun.”
“……?”
I was startled when Rashanin said exactly what I’d been thinking.
“Don’t you agree?”
“Yes. It’s fun.”
“How about admitting you’ll be sorry when I return to Moscow?”
Really persistent. To go from talking about coffee to making me admit regret. I honestly nodded. I was so sorry it felt strange.
“Then will you come to Moscow with me?”
I thought I’d misheard. My eyes widened involuntarily. Come together?
“What do you mean……?”
“I want to keep seeing you. The work I’ve been putting off would go well if you were with me, so I’d like you to come.”
“I refuse.”
I rejected him outright without even thinking about what it meant to keep seeing each other. Then Rashanin frowned slightly.
“You refuse immediately without even pretending to consider it.”
“It’s obvious.”
I almost demanded to know what made me trust him enough to follow him to Russia, but held back.
“You like me.”
I really wondered if this vampire had the ability to look into people’s minds. Though my heart felt like it dropped to the floor at his confident words that I liked him, I pretended not to know.
“Apparently not enough to go to Russia with you.”
Even though I’d acknowledged I’d fallen for him, it wasn’t enough to go to Russia looking only at him. This much was just right. Only up to the hot, precarious playing with fire while waiting for the day we’d part. As I thought so coldly, Rashanin gazed at me quietly.
“Difficult.”
“……?”
“Still, it’s not like there’s no way.”
“Rashanin-ssi?”
I called out cautiously to the man talking to himself. Worry came first about what methods this man who was good at coercion even if he didn’t use force would use.
“Don’t frown. I won’t kidnap you.”
Following the sudden proposal with a near-threatening announcement, my head hurt and I was frowning when Rashanin lightly tugged my hair and let go. This was his habit of showing affection.
Even as he said he wouldn’t kidnap me, I ended up thinking his smile full of goodwill and small gestures were ticklish, and smiled inwardly. My heart pounded, fluttered, and felt wistful. It seemed I’d really fallen for him properly.
“That’s a crime.”
“I know. I won’t do anything you dislike. So look forward to it.”
“Do as you please.”
I spoke challengingly, suppressing my complicated feelings. I’d come this far. If I became blind falling for him, I might go to Russia without thinking about anything. But I wasn’t there yet. So I decided to enjoy this moment.
* * *
Though it was called a dog collar because it rang regardless of time and place, the cell phone was definitely one of humanity’s greatest inventions.
From my stepmother’s nagging about why I wasn’t coming up to Seoul, to the department head’s text that there was still no news of Count Schliepen’s entry, to the vampire in my charge who contacted my personal cell phone. All of this was possible regardless of time and place, all thanks to the cell phone.
―Ah, sorry for contacting your cell phone. Are you busy right now?
“It’s fine. Is it urgent?”
Usually I contacted vampires in my charge through the office phone, but calls like this on cell phones in the evening or on weekends weren’t rare. Besides, Park Seon-hee-ssi originally preferred cell phones over office phones. Receiving her call at 8 PM wasn’t surprising either.
―No, it’s not urgent, but I keep saying I’ll ask and then immediately forget. You know how forgetful I’ve been lately.
“I know. That’s why you’ve thrown out entire delivery boxes five times.”
―Ack. Don’t touch painful wounds.
“Take notes. Notes. You know there’s a memo function on your phone.”
―That doesn’t work out.
Park Seon-hee-ssi was quite forgetful. She’d forgotten delivery boxes containing blood at room temperature five times. Even though I’d advised her to develop the habit of taking notes every time for over two years since becoming her handler, she hadn’t changed. It couldn’t be helped since she forgot even the fact that she needed to take notes.
“Then tell me the reason for your call quickly before you forget.”
―Oh, right. I almost forgot that. Um, I renew at the end of this year, right?
“Yes. That’s my understanding.”
