Chapter 3: What should be done

“Yes, I’ll look around a bit more and decide. Yes. Thank you.”

It was the fourth day of looking for a new place to live. After finishing a call with the real estate agent, a tapping sound reached my ears as I lay sprawled on the bed. Someone was knocking on the door.

“Yes, I’m coming.”

Standing at the door was Han Yeoreum, the girl I’d gotten a room for out of pity a few days ago. Her face, after four days, still looked haggard.

“What is it?”

I’d given her a debit card with money on it, so she shouldn’t have any inconveniences.

“What do you do?”

Han Yeoreum asked abruptly, a prickly expression on her face.

“My job? I don’t have one. I’m unemployed.”
“No, that’s not what I asked…”

At my answer, Han Yeoreum blinked her eyes like a dazed fish before speaking.

“Is this some kind of documentary shoot? Exposing the reality of runaway teens and reforming them, or something like that?”
“What?”
“It’s strange. What kind of unemployed person gets a room for a runaway teen they just met, and even gives them a debit card? I’ve met a lot of people while running away, but I’ve never met anyone like you.”
“Really? Sorry for making you uncomfortable.”
“No, that’s not it! What do you really want from me? If you’re not from a broadcasting station, are you some kind of undercover cop? Or else—”

Han Yeoreum grabbed my wrist as I tried to close the door.

“I told you. I did it because I didn’t want to have bad dreams.”
“When do you think that will get better?”
“I don’t know.”

Even now, when I think about what happened that night at the sauna, a corner of my heart sinks with a chilling feeling.

“Huh, then can I stay here forever?”
“If you want.”
“No, you have to say things that make sense. Where does the money come from?”
“Yeah, I hit the jackpot with Bitcoin. So you don’t have to worry.”

With that, I closed the door again.

“W-Wait!”

Han Yeoreum desperately shoved her hand through the gap in the door and shouted.

“I’ll ask just one more thing and then I’ll leave you alone. What do you do during the day? You seem to go out every morning.”

I debated whether to tell her or not, but since she seemed likely to keep bothering me, I decided to be honest.

“I’m looking at houses. Because I’m moving.”

Han Yeoreum’s gaze snapped up. She gulped, seeming hesitant, but continued, looking directly into my eyes.

“I’ll help you with that. It’ll be better to look with two people than alone.”
“You? Why suddenly?”

Han Yeoreum fell silent.

“I’m fine, so just do whatever you’re doing. I’ll keep treating you like you don’t exist, like I have been.”
“…If I could do that, would I be here right now?”

Han Yeoreum muttered softly, her head down. She fiddled with her sleeve with her pale fingers for a moment, then spoke as if spitting out the words.

“My dreams are bad too. And if I stay like this, they’ll probably get worse.”

****

After breakfast, we were looking around the houses the realtor had recommended, one by one.

“The interior seems nice, but…”

Han Yeoreum sniffed around the house and then opened the window wide.

“I wondered what that smell was, there’s a barbecue restaurant right below. No wonder it was so cheap.”
“Oh, dear.”

Han Yeoreum inspected the properties thoroughly, almost excessively, not missing a single minor flaw. Thanks to her, my job was much easier.

“What?”

Han Yeoreum, noticing my gaze, wrinkled her nose.

“I was just thinking you’re thorough.”
“Am I being helpful?”
“Surprisingly so.”

As we left the barbecue-smelling house and headed to another, I decided to ask Han Yeoreum something that had been on my mind.

“…Are you sure it’s okay for you to be doing this? What if you get caught on CCTV?”
“If they were that kind of people, would I be here right now? And before you say anything to me, think about what you’re doing.”

The phrase “that kind of people” that occasionally comes out of her mouth bothers me. Is she talking about her parents?
However, I decided not to ask any further.

“Ah, yes. Yes. I’ll take that house. Yes. I’ve already talked to the landlord, and I’ll visit tomorrow.”

After the call with the realtor, I raised my head and carefully examined the house I would soon be living in.

It was a studio apartment. However, a glass partition in the corner divided the space into three areas: living room, kitchen, and bedroom.
The white walls with faint stains and the ivory wood floor below were simple but comfortable, and I liked the quiet alley visible through the window.

The only downside was that it was slightly outside the city center, but I was satisfied. I probably wouldn’t find a better place even if I kept looking, so I might as well sign the contract.

…Though I was planning to spend a few weeks looking at properties. Thanks to this kid who was fiercely determined to find a place, my plans were disrupted.

Moving day was two days later. Since I wasn’t planning on bringing any furniture or clothes from my previous apartment, it was practically moving in empty-handed.

“Why were you dragging things out when you could finish it so quickly?”
“You’re right.”

“Hey.”
“Yeah.”
“What are you going to do from tomorrow?”
“Lie down, I guess. Thanks to someone, I have nothing to do.”

Han Yeoreum blinked at my answer, dumbfounded, then adjusted her posture and spoke cautiously.

“A-Aren’t you going to unpack or anything—”
“You know,”

I cut Han Yeoreum off. I didn’t want to say anything unpleasant, but I needed to make this clear.

“I don’t want to help you. I have neither the ability nor the will to do so.”

Han Yeoreum stopped walking.

“Have you ever thrown a sausage to a stray cat? It’s similar to that. I’m acting kind to make myself feel better, even though I’m not going to take responsibility.”
“…Why are you saying that out of the blue?”
“I don’t want you to have any strange misconceptions about repaying favors or anything.”
“Hey.”

This time, Han Yeoreum’s voice interrupted me.

“I already knew that. Like I said before, I don’t think you’re a good person. I’m actually suspicious and think you’re weird.”

Her sharp voice gave me a sense of satisfaction.

“But I don’t have any money to leave. I’d have to sleep in park restrooms and starve or eat at free meal centers, feeling self-conscious. It’s been a long time since I’ve slept and eaten this well.”
“Then just—”
“But that doesn’t mean I want to take this for granted!”

Her rusty, cracked voice scattered into the air. Han Yeoreum herself seemed surprised that such a sound had come from her throat.

“I know, it’s ridiculous for me to say such things in this state.”

Han Yeoreum mumbled quietly with her head down. There seemed to be a slight, but definite, resentment in her voice.

“…But if there’s something coming in, there has to be something going out. That’s how it should be. I, at least I, don’t want to become like them.”

What a preposterous argument. It’s so messed up that I don’t even know where to begin.
However, I’m not qualified to criticize her. I picked her up with equally illogical reasoning.

“Do as you please. It’s a waste of breath to say anything more since you won’t listen anyway.”
“Then—”
“But even so, there’s nothing you can help me with. I’ve already thrown away all my belongings.”

****

My head hurts.
It hurts, it hurts. How did this happen?

“Garyeon, have you heard from him?”
“No. I’ve been sending messages non-stop since yesterday without sleeping, but the ‘read’ notification won’t disappear. And the calls…”

Yu Garyeon, holding her smartphone, trembled as she answered Chae Seolha’s question.

“Minseo, what about you?”
“Hmm… I keep calling, but there’s nothing to report…”

At those words, Lee Dasom burst into tears. Her chewed-up fingernails fueled the anxiety of those watching.

“Where is Dojin, is he shivering somewhere? Even if it’s summer, it’s not right for him to not come home for two days, is it? Did Dojin eat? Did he bathe? Did he sleep? He can’t do anything on his own. Sob, Dojin… Dojin…”

Chae Seolha clutched her head as pain surged through her.

That jerk, Yu Dojin, why did he suddenly quit the company? The business is on track, so we’re not short on money like before, and we even reduced his workload for him.
We didn’t expect much from you in the first place. We just told you to stay put at the company. Was that such a difficult request?

“Um, about Dojin… Do you think he blocked our numbers?”
“What? Garyeon, don’t be ridiculous.”

Chae Seolha waved her hand dismissively in response to Yu Garyeon’s anxious question.

Blocked? Him? That’s absurd.

There must be a reason. Maybe he’s sulking over something trivial, or maybe he’s gotten caught up in some strange incident. Well, nothing would surprise me at this point.
Like before, once some time passes and he cools down, he’ll come back. That idiot has nowhere else to go anyway.

…But how long do we have to wait this time?

Chae Seolha ran her hand through her hair. Again and again.

Since he hasn’t come home, that jerk must be sleeping in a motel or a sauna. But what if the person at the front desk is a woman? What if she uses the master key to enter Dojin’s room and secretly seduces him? Rapes him? Or what if…

What if he assaults other women?

The thought calmed Chae Seolha down.

“If he blocked us, we’ll just get new numbers.”
“What?”

To Yu Garyeon, who asked back with a bewildered look, Chae Seolha continued calmly.

“We can just make new numbers. We can even buy a bunch of new phones if we need to. We’ll go to the store as soon as it opens tomorrow morning.”
“Ah, that’s a good idea…”

Oh Minseo, hearing Chae Seolha’s words, grinned and twisted her mouth.

“Okay, that sounds like a good plan, Seolha. Dojin is so obsessed with Bitcoin or whatever these days that he has to look at his phone, even if he doesn’t want to… So, let’s stop talking and go out to look for Dojin like yesterday. Let’s also report it to the police. What if other women do something bad to our Dojin?”
“Y-Yes. Let’s just go.”

The four women stood up and once again set out into the night streets.

Yu Dojin, where are you?
If you’re being seduced by some strange woman, snap out of it. It’s a trap.

You know it too, don’t you? That there’s nowhere else that would accept someone like you besides us. Everything I do is for you.
I’ll never accept your resignation.
You’re coming back here to work. Like you always do… happily.
So…

Just wait a little longer.
We’ll find you.