The Unbelievers

Chapter 72

The car driving through the city center took an outer road. It was clear they weren’t heading downtown.

“Is it far from here?”

“We’re almost there.”

“But, Detective, it wasn’t me. Really.”

“…”

“It really wasn’t. I don’t even know who this Lee Doyoon is. It’s the first time I’ve heard that name.”

“I know.”

“…What?”

“I said I know.”

The detective responded plainly, seemingly annoyed by Eunseong’s constant denials about not being Lee Doyoon.

“If it’s not me, why… why do I have to be taken? Can’t you just let me go?”

“Here? In the middle of this road?”

The detective looked around. Their car was speeding forward, keeping pace with the other fast-moving vehicles.

“But how did you know my name?”

“…”

“You called me Seo Eunseong earlier.”

“…Oh, the officer mentioned that.”

“Officer Park didn’t mention my name. Anyway, Seo Eunseong is a fake name to him.”

“…”

The silence stretched. Eunseong unbuckled his seatbelt. He grabbed the front seat headrest with both hands, trying to detach it roughly. After struggling to find the button, he finally separated it and pointed the sharp support at the detective. The detective glanced back with a bewildered look before turning his gaze forward again.

“What are you doing?”

“Who are you, Detective?”

“Hah.”

“I said, who are you! Are you really a detective? Are you really the police?! Give me your phone! Hand over your phone!”

The detective sighed tiredly and tossed his phone to the back. Extremely tense, Eunseong picked up the phone with trembling hands while threatening the detective with the headrest support.

“Ah, what’s the password? What’s the PIN?”

“Try and guess. I’m an extremely simple person.”

“I said, what’s the password!”

“I told you to guess.”

The detective didn’t care about Eunseong’s shouting. He seemed to be mocking him, showing no signs of panic. Eunseong frantically tried combinations. 0000, 1234, 7777, 1010 – after trying several simple combinations, the phone locked. A message appeared saying to try again in 1 minute.

“Ah, you couldn’t guess it.”

The detective sighed as if disappointed. Eunseong pointed the sharp support at him, deliberately jabbing his neck.

“What’s the password? Stop joking around.”

“If I were you, I wouldn’t do that. We’re currently driving at 120 kilometers per hour.”

“You… you know I’m the Seongha heir, right?”

“…”

Finally, the detective’s eyes turned serious as he glanced at Eunseong. He wasn’t surprised at all and didn’t look at him as if he’d said something out of the blue. It meant he knew.

“Where are you taking me?”

Eunseong jabbed the detective’s neck with the metal. He pressed hard enough to hurt. The detective frowned. He twisted his upper body, waving his hand as if shooing away a mosquito.

“I just need to make the delivery. Let’s go quietly.”

“I’ll really stab you, Detective.”

“Surely not… but, absurdly… do you even have periods and such?”

“…What?”

Thinking he had misheard, Eunseong tilted his head and looked at the detective as if to ask what nonsense he was talking about.

“I asked if you have periods and such. I don’t believe in that stuff.”

“What kind of crazy talk is this?”

“You don’t, right? How could that be possible? Ah, really. This is why pseudo-religions are scary.”

The detective clicked his tongue in genuine disgust. He looked at Eunseong with a subtly disgusted gaze, his eyes filled with all sorts of negative emotions that were hard to describe.

Fundamental disgust, doubt, distrust, but that wasn’t all. Mixed in were reverence, awe, and curiosity that could never coexist with those other feelings. The detective kept staring blatantly at Eunseong’s face and body through the rearview mirror. It felt like a dirty gaze, almost as if he was committing sexual harassment.

“We’re almost there. Sit up straight.”

“You think I can’t kill you? I’m at rock bottom in my life right now. I’m being exploited by the guy who stole my money and can’t even ask for it back, I can’t quit my job because I don’t have a penny to my name, and the only kindness in my life is the fried egg the restaurant auntie next door gives me. Do you know I’m only alive right now because of that fried egg?”

Angry at them for underestimating him, Eunseong warned with a voice full of rage that he wouldn’t just sit back and take this. The detective, who had been quietly listening to Eunseong’s outburst, finally made an expression as if he’d realized something.

“Ah, you don’t know.”

“…What don’t I know?”

“You have no idea who you are.”

The detective, who had stopped at a red light, turned around and stared intently at Eunseong’s face. He snickered, mocking Eunseong.

“Who am I then?”

“It might be better if you don’t know.”

“Who am I?”

“Ugh, if I were you, I think I’d kill myself.”

He shuddered, casually saying the horrible thing that if he were Eunseong, he would have committed suicide.

“…Who am I.”

Strength filled Eunseong’s hands. The detective’s face, which had been flippant all along, hardened. The sharp end of the metal dug deeply into his neck. He frowned at the sudden pain.

“Don’t ask me… ask the people of your family.”

…Family?

As Eunseong was mulling over the detective’s words, he was startled by the detective’s painful groan and moved back. Blood was trickling down the detective’s neck. The detective quickly grabbed a tissue and pressed it against his neck. Eunseong’s hands trembled at what he had done.

The detective continued driving, passing through a dark factory district. Eunseong gripped the headrest tightly.

It was the first time he had actually injured someone. He had only meant to threaten, but he had stabbed him. His hands holding the headrest were shaking violently, but he didn’t put it down.

“Damn, what a temper.”

The detective removed the tissue he had been pressing against his neck, assessing the amount of bleeding. It seemed the wound wasn’t too deep. He looked at Eunseong, who was pale and trembling, with a gaze that was both disgusted and pitying, then drove into some desolate place.

Finally, the detective stopped the car and got out first. Eunseong, not waiting for the door to open, raised the headrest to break the car window but staggered as the door opened with a click.

The detective who opened the door stepped back a few steps. Eunseong got out of the car, holding the headrest threateningly. As he looked around, he dropped the weapon he had been holding onto the ground.

It was Yoo Siwoon’s sedan. And Yoo Siwoon was standing next to it.

“…Ahjussi.”

Eunseong’s knees, which had been tense all along, buckled, and he felt a slight dizziness from the overwhelming relief.

Yoo Siwoon was standing there. Eunseong approached him with staggering steps. Siwoon also walked towards Eunseong with an expression of finally letting go of his worries.

Eunseong wanted to rush into his arms, but he hesitated, stopping a few steps away. He shouldn’t like him, that’s why he had run away. He had fled, vowing never to see him again, never to meet him again.

During that short period outside of Siwoon’s protection, Eunseong had to endure all sorts of hardships. As he looked at Siwoon, he realized how difficult it had been to bear it all, how he had wanted to give up and collapse at any opportunity.

It was Siwoon who first embraced Eunseong, who was standing there in a daze. The scent of his skin, his body heat, the weight of the body he had always wanted to embrace like this – all these things made Eunseong’s heart swell.

Eunseong also wrapped his arms around Siwoon’s waist.

“Ahjussi, ahjussi, ahjussi… hic.”

Eunseong burst into tears like a child. Siwoon hugged Eunseong tightly with both arms, his body trembling with remorse. The overwhelming feeling of finally, at last, getting hold of what he had been desperately and anxiously searching for made him shake.

“…Got you.”

Siwoon murmured quietly as he held Eunseong to his chest.

∞ ∞ ∞

It had only been about a month, but it felt like a year, no, more than two years had passed. Eunseong looked curiously at the security staff who raised the barrier after checking the passengers through the car window.

As Eunseong looked around the familiar road leading to Siwoon’s residence, his gaze turned to Siwoon’s hand covering his own. Siwoon’s hand, which was casually looking forward, was covering and holding Eunseong’s hand. Eunseong couldn’t even see his own hand hidden under Siwoon’s large one.

“…Ahjussi, your mysophobia. Is it cured?”

“Yeah.”

“Are you okay now?”

“I’m okay now.”

Though it was a casual response without even looking at him, there was a kind warmth in it that touched Eunseong’s eyes.

“That detective from earlier…”

“Let’s talk when we get inside.”

“…”

They had to drive up a bit more even after passing the barrier.

Finally, the car stopped at the entrance of the mansion. Director Nam was standing outside. Director Nam let out a relieved sigh as he saw Eunseong getting out of the car.

“Eunseong, really… I understand, but if you do this again, next time, really, you’ll be in big trouble.”

“…I’m sorry.”

“I’m really scary when I get angry. I’ve never been scary to you before.”

He tried to give a stern and fierce warning that if Eunseong pulled something like this again, he wouldn’t let it slide, but Eunseong didn’t seem to hear.

“…I missed you, Director. Really. I missed you the most.”