Winter Season - Chapter 14

The sneer that had lifted Seung-hyuk’s lip in a completely dismissive manner slowly fell, and his mouth settled into a flat line. After exhaling a long stream of smoke he’d held in his mouth, he lazily closed his eyes and brushed his palm over his mouth.
“Hey, where do you think you’re going?”

Yihyeon’s lips were dry from the voice that was chillingly subdued, but he didn’t stop walking. Before he knew it, he was standing in front of the bulky figures blocking the door.

“Please let me through.”

They were looking over Yihyeon’s shoulder, standing there with their hands behind their backs as if they were guards in an old medieval hallway, standing firm in their place.

“Let me through—”

“Kwon Yihyeon. Do you think I called you here just to bring that one with you?”

At that moment, with a thud, something struck Yihyeon’s calf and fell. The sound of footsteps from behind seemed to fade, followed by the creaking noise of an old metal chair. Yihyeon slowly lowered his head toward his feet. A familiar wallet was lying on the ground.

“They say a little rat had the nerve to mess around in the boss’s office. This wallet came from there?”

“……”

“But it’s strange. When I set the trap, the one that got caught was him.”

Yihyeon swallowed and slowly turned his head. The words Seung-hyuk was saying didn’t seem like a joke anymore.

“One of them is real, and the other is a decoy. Which one do you think is real?”

“……”

“No, which one do you think I’ll make the real one?”

Yihyeon couldn’t understand why the lost wallet was found in the boss’s office, but now wasn’t the time to think about that. It seemed like, rather than worrying about whether Jinseok was okay, he should hope he didn’t end up like him.

Seung-hyuk, watching Yihyeon stare at the wallet, crookedly lifted the corner of his mouth.

“Now, are you ready to talk?”

When Yihyeon bit his lip and couldn’t say anything, the large figures behind him grabbed Jinseok’s body and dragged him away. Unlike Yihyeon, who was struggling and groaning with the effort, their movements were light. This time, Yihyeon released his grip without resistance. The wrist he had been holding slackened and dropped, and Yihyeon clenched his teeth.

“We’ll take our time finding out what happened to him…”

Seung-hyuk slowly crossed his legs and continued speaking.
“What will you do?”

“……”

“I’m a bit tired of using my fists. Maybe I should just…?”
His casual gesture of fiddling with his wrist deepened Yihyeon’s wariness. The eyes of the others in the room now felt like a threat.

Seung-hyuk, watching Yihyeon, spoke in a nonchalant tone.

“Want to grab the hem of my pants and shed some tears? Who knows? Maybe I’ll pretend I didn’t see it and let you go out of pity.”

The mocking tone was unmistakable. When Yihyeon bit his lip and lowered his gaze without saying a word, Seung-hyuk continued in a childishly taunting voice.

“If you don’t want that, maybe you should show my guys a good time.”

“……”

“You like that kind of thing, don’t you?”

Yihyeon swallowed at the cryptic words. Seung-hyuk let out a sneer at the trembling eyelids of Yihyeon, leaning his body back.

“Hey, guys. Have you ever seen two gay guys actually do it?”

The words were thrown out carelessly, and Yihyeon’s eyes shot upward. Seung-hyuk was leaning his head against the chair, kicking his feet lightly. The members of the organization were surprised that Seung-hyuk, who usually disliked any talk about homosexuality, was the one to say something like that.

As they exchanged glances, unsure of how to respond, someone quickly spoke up in a playful tone.

“Ugh, hyung. Just thinking about it makes me wanna throw up. What are you even talking about, haha.”

As one person broke the ice, the other members of the group followed along, laughing awkwardly as they tried to lighten the mood. Seung-hyuk watched them for a moment before adding,
“They say humans and animals have sex to, you know, pass on their genes or whatever. I might not have a high school diploma, but I know at least that much, right?”

“…”

“But it’s kind of strange, isn’t it, guys rubbing up against each other and making out, when it’s got nothing to do with reproduction. Isn’t that right?”

Seung-hyuk’s unpredictable words made the gang members exchange uncomfortable glances. Sensing this, Seung-hyuk let out a sarcastic laugh and put a cigarette in his mouth.

“Ah. I guess you guys didn’t know. He’s gay.”

At the spot Seung-hyuk gestured to with his chin, Yihyeon stood with a hardened expression. At Seung-hyuk’s sudden words, the group members fell silent, glancing at each other anxiously. The air in the warehouse became still.

“…”

Even in the face of a direct outing, Yihyeon didn’t react. He only bit his lower lip tightly, glaring at Seung-hyuk. Seung-hyuk stared back at Yihyeon, his dark eyes unwavering. They locked gazes, glaring at each other, until Seung-hyuk finally looked away and beckoned to someone with a flick of his finger.

“Hey, come over here.”

“M-me…?”

A young man who had been tense in the corner looked around and pointed to his own chest with his finger. Clearly nervous at being suddenly called, he hesitantly walked forward.

His eyes were sharply slanted, but his face still had a youthful look. His messy hair was a faded yellow, frayed at the ends. The man had a lean but well-toned build; though he had a bit of a reputation as a fighter outside, standing in front of Seung-hyuk, he looked more like a high school thug facing an adult. Unconsciously, he lowered his head slightly. Seung-hyuk spoke to him.

“What’s your name?”

“Y-yes, hyung. I’m Jang Yoonsu!”

“Alright, Yoonsu. Why don’t you go ahead and kiss him in front of everyone?”

“…What?”

At the unexpected command, Yoonsu lifted his head with a bewildered expression.

At Seung-hyuk’s unexpected words, the man lifted his head with a dumbfounded expression. Normally, if someone gave him a clueless look like that, Seung-hyuk would’ve immediately handed them over to Taesik, telling him to teach them properly. But this time, he chuckled and kindly repeated himself.

“I said, go kiss him. Let’s give the others a little show, something interesting to watch. I mean, I can’t do it, can I?”

At the blatant insult, Yihyeon clenched his fists tightly, glaring at Seung-hyuk with an intense, sharpened gaze, though he couldn’t bring himself to take a step forward. Realizing Seung-hyuk wasn’t joking, Yoonsu’s eyes darted nervously around, fearful that doing the wrong thing might get him in trouble too. He glanced toward Taesik, silently pleading for help, but Taesik simply frowned and motioned for him to hurry up and do as he was told. With no other choice, Yoonsu hesitated, then reluctantly walked toward Yihyeon.

In Yihyeon’s line of sight, the shoulder of an unfamiliar man appeared. The man’s rough, warm hand grabbed at Yihyeon’s chin and cheek, but Yihyeon smacked his hand away with the back of his own. A sharp slap rang out, followed by an awkward silence. Yoonsu’s face turned red as he glanced nervously toward Seung-hyuk.

“Uh… ugh.”

In the heavy silence, the only sound was Jinseok’s labored breathing, still echoing as he clung to consciousness. Seung-hyuk sighed and stood up from his seat.

“Ah… Yihyeon, you’ve let everyone down now.”

“…”

“Alright, alright. Was it because I didn’t offer anything in return?”

Muttering
“Alright, alright,” like he was dealing with a disobedient child, Seung-hyuk frowned as he rummaged through his wallet. He then extended his hand toward someone in the back.

“Hey, all I have are checks. Do you have fifty thousand won?”

“Yes, hyung.”

“Hand it over. He’s picky, you see—give him too much, and he might not take it.”

With a chuckle, Seung-hyuk accepted the yellow-tinted bill that landed in his hand. He walked over to Yihyeon and tucked the folded bill into Yihyeon’s shirt pocket. As he closed the distance, the sharp smell of cigarette smoke filled the air, but Yihyeon kept his gaze fixed directly on Seung-hyuk.

“You should have told me if the amount was too much. How was I supposed to know?”

Yihyeon kept his mouth shut, looking at Seung-hyuk, who gave a reassuring pat on Yihyeon’s shoulder. Despite the intense gaze fixed on him, a mocking smile played across Seung-hyuk’s handsome face. Yihyeon clenched his teeth and brushed off Seung-hyuk’s hand, muttering,

“…I don’t do things like that for money.”

“Then do it without taking any money.”

“……”

“Do I look like I’m making a suggestion?”
Seung-hyuk’s expression darkened, his eyes narrowing into a menacing glare as he growled in a low tone. The sudden tension in the air made even the nearby gang members, who had been standing idly, tense up.

“Oh. Or is it because you don’t like him?”

“……”

“Seems like you’ve got preferences, even though you’re getting aroused by someone with the same damn parts.”