* * *
They arrived at the prosecutor’s office with about 30 minutes to spare. Through the glass window, Hajin could see reporters gathered in front of the main entrance.
“What good are they hoping to see…”
Hyunwoo clicked his tongue in contempt. Hajin smiled and responded.
“It’s good for us.”
“Are you crazy?”
“I told you. Prosecutor Lee Woohyun wants to become a star, so we need to create events like this for him to take the bait.”
“You really…”
Hyunwoo trailed off, shaking his head. Though Hajin claimed this was all to crush Secretary Kim completely, Hyunwoo wondered if they really needed to go this far.
Thinking how fortunate it was to have Hajin as a friend rather than an enemy, Hyunwoo got out of the driver’s seat and opened the back door. When the team of lawyers, who had spotted the car late, approached, a reporter who noticed them shouted loudly.
“It’s Director Seo Hajin!”
Hajin smirked at being addressed according to his demoted position from CEO to director. After one person shouted, everyone else rushed over with their cameras.
As soon as Hajin took a step, the barrage of questions began.
“How do you feel about responding to the prosecutor’s summons?”
Hajin stopped walking. The reporters surrounded him. While creating a big issue was important, it was equally important not to appear like a criminal for the time after the allegations were revealed.
“Is it true that you embezzled large sums of money even before becoming CEO?”
“What do you think about the rumor that you created a scandal with actress Jeon Hyesu to gain the former chairman’s support?”
“Have you still not heard anything about model Yoon Juwon?”
Along with the criminal allegations, questions about the scandal with Jeon Hyesu and doubts about Chairman Seo’s death all poured out.
Hajin waited for the reporters’ questions to stop with a relaxed expression. After a moment, when the surroundings quieted down, Hajin looked around briefly and opened his mouth.
“I understand that you have a lot of interest in me and Fashion Group H. But to prevent unnecessary worry, I will do my best to cooperate with the investigation. In the meantime, please give a lot of support to CEO Seo Hahyun, who has taken on the difficult job in place of his incompetent older brother.”
Despite having many more questions, the reporters were busy capturing Hajin’s image with their cameras.
Hajin even showed the leisure to turn his body when a reporter asked him to face a different direction. His demeanor was as confident as an Olympic medalist.
When he felt it was sufficient, he checked his wristwatch and said:
“It’s almost time for my appearance, so I should go now. Reporters, please be careful not to push each other as you leave.”
The reporters made way, and as Hajin began walking, they competitively moved to capture his back view for one last shot.
Hajin entered the prosecutor’s office with his back straight.
* * *
Everything just felt tedious. I couldn’t get any food down, not knowing how Hajin was doing.
“Even if you’re worried, you should still eat.”
Hahyun followed me around holding a bowl of food.
“Aren’t you busy?”
“I was busy until yesterday, but now that hyung has gone for questioning, Secretary Kim’s guard seems to have relaxed. If he continues being so careless, he’ll suffer… I wonder if he’s in cahoots with the prosecutor.”
Hahyun didn’t seem worried at all, but I felt suffocated just hearing the word “investigation.”
“Are you thinking about whether I’m busy right now? You’ve hardly eaten anything since yesterday except a bit of fruit… Please try to eat more. If you don’t like the ribs, shall I make something else?”
“No, I just don’t have an appetite. I’ll just have a glass of milk.”
“…You don’t like what I prepared. Then I’ll make various things that you like.”
Hahyun went back into the kitchen. It was obvious I wouldn’t be able to eat even if he cooked something else… But I didn’t have the energy to stop him, so I lay down on the sofa. I turned on the TV, wondering if there might be any news. While flipping through channels, I stopped at a news channel. There was Hajin, being interviewed in front of the prosecutor’s office. Although I had seen this several times throughout the afternoon, it made me angry every time.
“Burning people with worry while maintaining such a relaxed expression…”
They said Hajin arrived at the prosecutor’s office around 3 PM. Now it was just past 8 o’clock, so it seemed unlikely he would come out today.
– Former CEO of H and current Director Seo Hajin has appeared at the prosecutor’s office.
– As the investigation progresses, witnesses are expected to be summoned one after another.
The content delivered by the anchor was nothing new, as I had heard it several times already. Thinking there might be new information on another channel, I switched.
– Director Seo Hajin is reported to undergo intense questioning until late. The prosecution has stated that they will summon Kim Cheolwoo, the former chief of staff and current director, as a witness based on Seo Hajin’s testimony. As the fact-finding process has not yet been completed, it seems difficult to determine the merits of the allegations at this point.
I felt fatigue at the news that despite the long hours of investigation, even the basic facts had not been properly established. If someone just watching the news felt this way, how much worse must it be for the person being directly questioned? The situation didn’t seem like it would be resolved easily.
“Hyung, do you believe that? I’m telling you it’s all lies.”
Hahyun had appeared at some point, carrying an entire pot full of tteokbokki, which he placed on the table.
“The one who colluded with the prosecutor is Hajin hyung, not Secretary Kim.”
I raised my half-slumped body.
“Really? Did Hajin-ssi say something?”
“Not exactly, but it’s obvious, isn’t it? The prosecutor isn’t a fool—would they have you coming and going without verifying the facts? The prosecutor and Hajin hyung must have already set everything up and are now calling Secretary Kim. Otherwise, why would they summon a witness when they haven’t even established the facts? It doesn’t make sense.”
Listening to Hahyun, it did seem plausible. There could only be two reasons for calling Secretary Kim, who was at odds with Hajin: either Secretary Kim was the mastermind behind everything, or he was a witness to prove Hajin’s crimes. But since they said they hadn’t determined the facts yet, Hahyun’s claim that the prosecutor and Hajin were working together gained weight. But what if the prosecutor had set a trap with Secretary Kim to prove Hajin’s crimes?
Nothing could be confirmed yet.
As I stared blankly at the screen like someone who had lost their mind, Hahyun put a fork in my hand and said:
“Oh my, look at that. Does that expression look like someone being dragged away for wrongdoing? Anyone watching would think he’s on a runway.”
“Hajin-ssi has always been good at hiding his feelings.”
“Fine. I won’t tell you not to worry about Hajin hyung, so please eat some tteokbokki. If you keep this up, I might have to force-feed you.”
When I kept staring at the news, barely listening to Hahyun, he snatched the remote from me and turned off the TV.
“Eat quickly!”
“Alright, why are you getting angry?”
I forcibly picked up a rice cake and put it in my mouth. It tasted good, but my mouth felt dry, and I couldn’t swallow it at all.
“You’ve chewed enough, so swallow it. Ah, seriously, this is driving me crazy. Just wait until Seo Hajin comes back. I won’t let him off easy.”
It was fascinating how firmly Hahyun believed in his own thoughts. Was it because his trust in Hajin was even greater than mine?
“Hahyun, don’t you ever think your judgment could be wrong?”
“No, never. Because in just one thing, Hajin hyung and I are surprisingly similar.”
“What’s that one thing?”
“Our anger towards Chairman Seo and our affection for Juwon hyung.”
“…He said it wasn’t affection? That he’s never said he loves me.”
Suddenly, Hahyun started laughing like a madman.
“You believe that? I might not believe anything else, but I believe that Seo Hajin loves you. Do you think such madness is possible without love?”
“…Well. He said so himself.”
“I told you, didn’t I? That Seo Hajin is even crazier than me, so you should be careful. I’ve been thinking about it. If I were Hajin hyung, what would I do? Would I solve this easily, or make it difficult?”
Somehow, I found myself listening to Hahyun’s abnormal delusions. It was as if I were being brainwashed—the more I listened to him, the more enthralled I became.
“So? What conclusion did you come to?”
“I don’t think even I would solve it easily. I know that the more he struggles, the more attention Juwon hyung will give him. But I can’t be like Seo Hajin.”
“What does that mean? You said you two were the same, then that you weren’t…”
Hahyun, who had been sitting across from me, suddenly stood up and came to my side. After staring at me for a while, he pressed his forehead against my chest and started rubbing it.
“I’m not tough enough, so I can’t distance myself from you while pretending to be pitiful like Seo Hajin. If I played hard to get, I’d end up being more desperate.”
I patted Hahyun’s back and said, “That’s more like it…” He still hadn’t escaped the delusion that Hajin was deliberately pretending to be pitiful to win my heart… I was the fool for listening to Hahyun’s words out of desperation, like clutching at straws.
“Yes, I’m relieved that Hahyun doesn’t do that. If you did too, I probably would have wasted away.”
At least that was sincere. Despite my burning worry about Hajin, it was Hahyun’s presence beside me that made it bearable.
