His face was colored with self-loathing. As if unable to face me, he buried his forehead in both hands and kept muttering apologies.
It’s all my fault. Because of me. He was suffering more than I was. I unconsciously reached out to Jung Hyun-wook then withdrew my hand.
“Jung Hyun-wook… I’m sorry.”
He jerked his head up. He seemed surprised that my voice, which had been like a scream last night, now uttered a proper sentence. It was the first time since Jong-hwa. Speaking in front of someone.
Everything I’d been holding back passed like a revolving lantern.
The urgent noise of the emergency room. The wound where my arm had been stitched. Jung Hyun-wook’s jumper still stained with my blood. The insulting words of the man who harassed me.
And Jung Hyun-wook shouting asking what was okay…
I slowly closed my eyes. Darkness came beneath my eyelids. I was alone. And lonely. I had a premonition that Jung Hyun-wook would be looking at me.
I lifted my closed eyelids and drove away the darkness. Jung Hyun-wook’s straight gaze that met mine entered like a blade splitting my throat and cut the shackles that had been strangling me. I felt liberated. It was finally the moment of escaping from the monster that had been devouring my voice.
When the doctor’s prescription came down saying I could go home after receiving all the IV, Jung Hyun-wook handed me my glasses. When did he take care of that? Fortunately, the glasses were fine without a broken corner.
“Can you get up?”
His hand entered below my waist and raised my upper body. He was treating me like a patient.
“Alone… I can do it alone.”
Only then did his hand withdraw. I put on my jumper and put on my shoes. Sitting on the edge of the bed, I felt my face that had poured out nosebleed. It was clean without any dried blood crusts. It seemed Jung Hyun-wook had wiped it with a wet towel while I was receiving the IV. Jung Hyun-wook asked:
“Do you not need to contact home? In case they worry. I was so out of it I couldn’t bring your bag.”
Jung Hyun-wook held out his phone. I hesitated for a moment then received Jung Hyun-wook’s phone and pressed a number. There was only one place to contact. A ringtone flowed for a while. He didn’t answer. He was probably ignoring it because it was an unknown number. Just then, a voice rang out. A cold and hard tone like a lump of metal.
— Hello.
“Jong-hwa-ya.”
— Fuck…
Jong-hwa, who spat out a curse like an exclamation, gasped for harsh breaths. He couldn’t continue speaking for a while.
— Fuck! Where are you! The time for you to come home passed but the kid didn’t come. I call and you don’t answer. The bastard who finally answered said you smashed up the convenience store and disappeared. You really want to see me die?!
I lowered the phone volume. But the sound from the receiver had already been fully heard.
“Something came up. I’ll explain everything when I get there. I’m okay now.”
— Where are you? I’ll go right now, so tell me.
If Jong-hwa came here now, things would become troublesome. He was someone who made even small things big.
“I’ll come. Really. Nothing much happened. I have to stop by the convenience store too. You have to go to work now, don’t you? Hm?”
I know Jong-hwa’s stubbornness well. He won’t listen unless I plead this much. True to his temperament, he’d definitely cancel today’s delivery work and come running.
I pleaded almost beseechingly. Jung Hyun-wook’s brow, who’d been staring with an expressionless face, furrowed. After looking at me for a while, he held out his hand as if asking for the phone. It meant he would explain.
“Give it here.”
I covered the receiver with my hand and shook my head. I held it tightly with both hands in case he tried to take the phone.
— What? What sound? Who is it?
“A friend. So you don’t have to worry. I’m not alone. Got it? I’m hanging up now, okay? See you at home!”
I quickly pressed the end button. Fortunately, Jung Hyun-wook’s expression as he received the phone back was neither questioning nor suspicious.
“You don’t need to go to the convenience store. I took care of everything.”
I looked up at him while sitting on the edge of the bed.
“How?”
One of the convenience store display shelves was smashed. I didn’t know for sure, but the owner probably almost fainted. The thought of repaying that damage already felt daunting.
“When I was about to take you to the hospital, the next shift part-timer came, so I left my name and phone number. Do you know Park Jun-il? He called saying he’s the owner’s son, so I talked to him. You go home and rest. I’ll get your bag and bring it to you.”
When I looked at him with confused eyes, he gently brushed my forehead where the heat hadn’t subsided yet. His large hand touched and passed over my face as if checking various spots.
“Jung Hyun-wook-ssi? This is from Manpo Police Station.”
The hand that had been touching my face fell away at the voice of the man who appeared pulling back the partition. The male police officer who identified his affiliation lightly saluted.
“A complaint has been filed regarding the assault that occurred at dawn today. Please come to the police station with us.”
***
So the police station isn’t unfamiliar to me. When I was very young, my father would always be passed out at the police box after drinking, so I thought it was some kind of neighborhood rest area. When I went holding my mother’s hand, the police officers would give me candy or snacks. I would beg my mother to take me to the police box whenever I had the chance.
When I got a bit older, I frequented the police station to bail out my father who had been arrested for gambling and fraud. Although it was money my mother earned from selling her body, I would hand over the settlement money but never bow my head. Ridiculously, that was my last shred of pride.
The inside of the police station was chaotic. A group of police officers rushed out on an emergency call. The remaining officers were glued to their monitors, the sound of typing loud as they wrote up reports. No one paid any attention to our arrival.
Shoulders bumped in the midst of the chaos. Jung Hyun-wook pulled me inward, wrapping his arm around me protectively. He kept his head held high with a calm expression the entire time. I had no idea what he was thinking.
As we went deeper inside, I could see people locked behind bars. If I could keep Jung Hyun-wook from being confined there, I felt like I would do anything.
The man who introduced himself as the legal representative of the victim, Lee Sang-hyun, handed out business cards to the police officers. He was the lawyer for the man who had been beaten up by Jung Hyun-wook last night.
“Our client is currently hospitalized with injuries requiring 12 weeks of treatment. We express deep concern regarding this indiscriminate assault that occurred at the convenience store. We trust that our police force, who work day and night for the safety of the citizens, will thoroughly investigate this assault case.”
After spouting his lecture, the man lifted his expensive-looking suit to check his watch. A silent gesture that he was busy.
“Is this Mr. Jung Hyun-wook?”
Jung Hyun-wook looked down at the man with a delinquent face, his gaze slanted. I answered politely instead.
“Yes.”
“Then you must be Mr. Mo Hyo-kyung? The convenience store part-timer?”
I nodded.
“First of all, our client wishes to receive a sincere apology before any settlement. Since Mr. Mo Hyo-kyung was the catalyst for the incident, coming to the hospital in person to apologize would be the first step toward resolving this matter.”
Jung Hyun-wook snorted. He was about to retort sharply when he glanced around and shut his mouth. His jaw muscles clenched hard. Instead, he brought his lips close to the man’s ear and spoke low. His voice was ice-cold.
“I don’t know how much you make representing a perverted client like this, but go tell him this. Don’t pull any tricks. Because your client is the one who’s going to end up eating prison food.”
“Mr. Jung Hyun-wook.”
The attitude of the man who had been speaking at length like someone who loved to brag suddenly changed.
“Do you have evidence?”
The man also whispered quietly.
“Seeing as you’re not making a fuss, it seems you’re also reluctant to have this known to people. Well, it’s bad enough when a woman gets involved in something like this, but a man would be even more troublesome. The only evidence you have is the convenience store CCTV, and we’ve already confirmed that the footage alone proves nothing. Unfortunately, the audio isn’t captured in the video. Without audio, it’s just a simple incident between a drunk customer and an employee. And Mr. Jung Hyun-wook responded with considerable excessive force.”
Having finished speaking, the man stepped away from Jung Hyun-wook. Jung Hyun-wook’s expression was unreadable. The man composed his cold face and smiled artificially again as he handed Jung Hyun-wook his business card.
“You seem to still be a student, so I’ll need to contact your parents. If you have no intention of apologizing properly, the settlement money will be quite substantial.”
I quickly read the business card in Jung Hyun-wook’s hand. Attorney Lee Hak-joo, Songrim Law Firm. Jung Hyun-wook crumpled the business card.
“I don’t have any parents to contact. Do as you please.”
“Well, then you’ll have to pay with your body.”
