Bye-Bye

Won-jo [Today soju call?]

[No, no. I have an appointment.]

Won-jo [You’re pretending to be busy.]

[It’s Friday night. How about tomorrow?]

Won-jo  [Okay, tomorrow at 9 o’clock]

[All right, I’ll go to your house]

Won-jo  [sure]

After making an appointment with Won-jo, I adjusted my clothes again.

Last night I got a call from the high school kid’s older brother. It was a short and bleak message saying that we will see each other again tomorrow to talk about his little brother. I’ve set the time and location without assuming you have an appointment. I sent a reply full of smiles saying [Yes~^See you tomorrow^].

The place we met today was a hotel restaurant in Nonhyeon-dong.

That’s right.

It is a hotel lounge restaurant.

After receiving an anti-coughing injection, I changed into my most expensive suit. I wore a light purple shirt with no tie and only one button undone at the top. On top of that, I was attempting to dress in a black-timbered wine jacket and a woolen coat, but it was so cold that I had to resort to a black cashmere long coat and a muffler.

Of course, the most important thing to me is my underwear. Because it is a meeting between Alpha and Omega at the hotel restaurant, many possibilities exist.

They don’t know I’m an Omega, so I don’t expect too much.

In the taxi, I slap my cheek lightly enough that the driver isn’t surprised. This means to get a hold of myself.

The high school kid’s older brother called me when the taxi came to a stop near the hotel.

-Where are you?

He has the best voice ever.

“We’re close. We’re almost there. How about you?“

– What is the car number?

*It’s a taxi.

I recited the taxi number. I overheard the man repeating the number to someone.

– When you arrive, my secretary will guide you.

“Yes.”

You have a secretary? Isn’t he a real gangster?

After hanging up the phone with the man,  I sprayed perfume while I was thinking about it. It’s a precious perfume that my ex-lover gave me as a present. It’s a flimsy attempt to hide my scent because my unusual pheromones might come out in a solo encounter with Alpha.

When I got out of the taxi in front of the hotel, an adult with a profound impression approached me.

“Are you Mr. Seo-yu?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Director Choi is waiting for you. This way.” 

The secretary was older than I thought. He is tall, has an expressionless face, and speaks few words, just like his boss.

The restaurant was of the room variety, with gangster-looking brothers standing as a guard on all sides of the entrance. I felt a sense of separation. This isn’t a hotel, rather it’s a classy restaurant. “I’ve brought him here,” the secretary said after knocking twice on the closed door. He backed away when he heard a low response asking me to come in as if telling me to go in by myself.

I was a little nervous and opened the door with a pretty smile.

“You’re early.” 

The man who arrived ahead of me greeted me while his face was hidden behind a tablet PC. He really didn’t match his outer appearance. It looks like he should be wiping the blood off his pedestal, but the high school kid was sitting sullenly next to the man. His bloodless face and trembling legs gave him the appearance of a death row inmate about to be executed. Did something happen?

I was worried, but disappointment came first. I doubt we’ll ever go up to the hotel, given that he brought his younger brother.

I shouldn’t have been wearing this underwear. It’s uncomfortable.

“Haha, I was going to come first this time, but you came very early.”

“Please sit down, let’s eat first.”

I hid my disappointment and greeted him brightly. Unlike the last time, I guess today’s meal comes first. I’m going to have another stomachache.

I tried to keep my cough as quiet as possible while removing my coat and muffler, but it came out a few times. 

The man raised his hair today without leaving a single strand behind. His wide forehead and manly eyebrows drew my attention. There was also a scar across the cheek. Wearing the best suit and keeping his back straight makes him look extremely sexy.

I spoke several times during the course meal to lighten the mood.

“It was very cold today, wasn’t it? Now that winter has begun, I’m afraid it is just the beginning.”

“The first snow fell about a month ago. I haven’t seen any snow yet, so I’m hoping it will fall soon.”

“Wow, this is delicious. I should have treated this meal to my lifesaver, but I am the one being treated. Haha.”

There were times when the man replied, “I see” or “Is that so?” but there were also times when he simply nodded his head or frowned his brow. I naturally closed my mouth because I didn’t want to talk to someone who wouldn’t talk.

The dessert was a coffee with a strong aroma and an octopus salad that wasn’t my taste.

I was awkwardly sipping coffee when the man put down his cup of coffee and said, “You tried to commit suicide that day.”

“What? Ah, yes, that day, I attempted suicide.”

“But he stopped you.”

“Yes…” 

It was a repeat of the same story.

“You still don’t believe me? Trust your little brother. If Sang-hyun didn’t stop me-.”

“Sung-hyun”

“If Sung-hyun didn’t stop me, I wouldn’t be here now. I was probably floating on the river’s edge as a drowned person.“

“You’re really bad at memorizing names. Do you know my name?”

“…Sung… Hyung?”

I thought it was a Sung, so I hesitated after saying ‘Sung’. The man was speechless, so he just stared at me.

I’m sure there was an H in his name.

“Sung-hwan?”

“No.”

“Sung-han? Sung-hee?”

“…”

“Sung-ho, Sung-hae, Sung-hyuk? Sung-heon? Sung-hun… Sung-hun?”

“…”

Damn, honestly, how am I supposed to memorize a name I’ve only heard once?

I looked at the man, embarrassed. The man lowered his head and lifted the corner of his right lip, then picked up a cup of coffee and took a sip.

You’re drinking coffee right now?

I looked at Sung-hyun and he was trembling as if he was holding back his laughter.

“Are you doing this on purpose?”

“What?”

“How do you say everything but that? What is Sung-hun?”

Instead of giving his name with a good sense, this bastard made a joke. God, just let him laugh and get beaten by his older brother.

“It’s Choi Sung-hoon.”

I quickly turned my head. The man’s low voice tickled my ears. With a still expressionless face, he drew a business card case.

< S&S Managing Director Choi Sung-hoon >

S&S…?

It was such a large corporation that I suspected him of lying. It must be the same name, but with a different abbreviation S.

“Wow, you are a Director. Three names, I will remember you until the day I die.”

I accepted it with a smile and handed him my business card.

<Sojin Logistics Support Team Seo-yu.>

Maybe Choi Sung-hoon doesn’t know this company. It’s a really small company with only 10 people including the president.

Choi Sung-hoon took a look at my business card and quickly placed it in the case. I’m not sure if that man will ever take out my business card again.

“Seo-yu ssi.“

“… Yes. “

It was so thrilling to hear my name being called by the man’s voice.

“Don’t lie anymore about the accident that day.”

“No, it’s real. I really tried to commit suicide. Why don’t you believe it?” 

Aside from his sexiness, Choi Sung-hoon looked frustrated before picking up the tablet PC on the table and turning it on.

“…?”

I tilted my head because I couldn’t figure out why he was suddenly doing that. When I looked at Choi Sung-hyun, he seemed to be on the verge of crying.

What? What is it?

I asked silently with my lips, but Choi Sung-hyun replied gloomily “My brother’s got the CCTV of that day.“

“…”

CCTV?

As far as I know, CCTV footage can only be viewed by police. Since the car was a very expensive new car and the insurance company needed it… The police would have had no choice but to allow the investigation to proceed. It is a precious car that there are only a few in our country.

But, how can he have it on his tablet? 

Is it possible for an individual to own the CCTV footage?

An office worker who is neither a police officer nor a civil servant.

He skillfully used the tablet, giving the impression that it would only be used to smack someone on the head, and then he held it out to me.

The video on the screen was played. 

A car slipped in the rain and crashed into a guard rail on the sidewalk on a rainy night. After that, I, who was standing 100 meters away and looking down at the Han River, approached him.

It was not convincing to claim that he attempted to stop someone from committing suicide when the driver’s window was not even lowered. No matter where I looked, the accident that hit the railing came first, and I was on my way to check the accident.

“Because there is no sound, we can’t tell if my little brother shouted that you shouldn’t die.”

I’m glad there’s no sound.

“Choi Sung-hyun is angry at you right now.“

Choi Sung-hyun, who come out from the smashed car, was so angry that he looked about to grab my collar.

“He is mad at me for trying to commit suicide. Don’t you see it?”

“From the video, it does seem that he was surprised to find someone standing alone on a rainy night and caused an accident.”

He is an older brother who understands the situation very well.

Perhaps because I was embarrassed or the cold medicine didn’t work, I start coughing. I looked at Choi Sung-hyun while coughing.

He looked like he already gave up.

But I can’t give up.

I can’t let go of 3 million won so easily!

I haven’t confessed yet, so I’ll use my last resort.

“I wasn’t going to show you this.”

I took out my cell phone.

Choi Sung-hoon didn’t even flinch his eyelids when I told him this.

I opened the notepad app and handed it to him.

“Because I didn’t have a phone that day, I couldn’t call 911 if there was an accident. I forgot about it at home. This is why I left it.”

The reason I left it is simple.

It can’t break due to the water, and I can’t afford to lose it.

Shouldn’t I make it obvious that I wrote it to show you?

On the notepad I showed him, this is what it says:

[I think I’ll be fine if I don’t live any longer. I’m sick of it all. I don’t want to live anymore.]

“This is… “

Choi Sung-hoon’s emotionless face showed signs of unexpectedness. A twitching scar and a raised brow. It wasn’t particularly frightening, but it was unexpected.

I didn’t understand why he was surprised.

What kind of lunatic would stand alone at Mapo Bridge in the rainy dead of winter without an umbrella?

Unless there is a particular purpose.

Choi Sung-hoon will have no choice but to believe it. He has to believe it.

Because I went to die that day.

“What is it?”

Choi Sung-hyun poked his head in, intrigued by his brother’s surprise.

“Huh… Is this a will? Are you really going to die?”

Ugh, stupid kid. You shouldn’t be surprised.

“You didn’t write it on your way here, did you?“

You have to believe it.

“Look at the writing time. 11:30 p.m. before the accident. I’m really there to die.”

“…I see.”

Choi Sung-hoon answered with a cold voice. His gaze was as bloody as if he was going to hit the phone against the wall at any moment.

“Wow, it was real…”

Choi Sung-hyun kept hitting the candle next to him, but Choi Sung-hoon didn’t care. He handed me the cell phone.

“It’s a suicide note…” He murmured coldly. I put my cell phone back in my pocket. After coughing a few times, Choi Sung-hoon asked, “Have you taken the medicine?”

“I did. Thanks to Sung-hyun, I feel like I want to live, so I’m taking medicines with the thought of living a healthy life.”

“Choi Sung-hyun did a wonderful thing.”

He praised his younger brother with an apathetic tone that sounds like he was not proud at all. 

Even after overcoming the crisis when everything was revealed, Choi Sung-hyun avoided his gaze with a complicated face.

I’ve even revealed the truth I’ve been hiding, so please give me my money.

“I’m sorry for doubting you.”

“No, it’s okay.”

“Did you have any reason to die?”

“Well, this and that… don’t you also have moments when you want to die?”

There was not a single feeling of regret in Choi Sung-hoon’s voice, and there was no sign of genuine curiosity. So I passed on the question that was posed to me indifferently.

“I don’t know.”

Choi Sung-hoon answered briefly. Like he doesn’t even know what dying means.

But I don’t believe there isn’t any. A man can die if he hits his little toe on the threshold.

That’s how today’s meeting ended. “See you next time,” Choi Sung-hoon said as he stood up first. Choi Sung-hyun hurriedly followed his older brother, saying, “If my brother believes it, I will give hyung money.” (The title Sung-hyun use for Seo-yu has already changed from ‘Hey’ to ‘Hyung’.)

There was a time when I was also sticking to my older brother.

After finishing the coffee that had been brought out for dessert and thought about my brother for a moment, I went home.