The Unbelievers

Chapter 55

Recalling Eunseong, who had turned pale and could barely speak from shock, Director Nam got out of the elevator and headed to the parking lot. In the car returning to the company, he called Yoo Siwoon.

“CEO, it’s me.”

―Did you drop him off safely? How was the exam?

Though he had said what could be done about it, he seemed quietly worried. Siwoon abruptly asked about Eunseong’s exam.

“The exam seems to have gone reasonably well. I’m on my way out after dropping him off at home. I brought up the topic of studying abroad as you said.”

After a moment of silence, he asked if Eunseong had accepted it easily. Director Nam let out a frustrated sigh.

“He said he understood, but… he seemed shocked. It looked like he was still concerned about you, CEO.”

―Did he feel hurt?

“It would be fortunate if he just felt hurt. To my eyes, it looked like he felt almost betrayed. If you had told him directly, he probably wouldn’t have been this shocked. What I say and what you say are different, after all.”

―Will he be alright alone?

Siwoon asked worriedly, despite saying he would never see Eunseong again and that they shouldn’t meet.

“He said a friend was coming over. I was thinking of staying with him, but since his friend is coming, I’m leaving now.”

―I see. Thank you for your hard work.

Ending the call with Siwoon telling him to go in now, Director Nam increased the speed of his car.

Siwoon was still hesitating in front of the penthouse door where Eunseong lived, holding a box containing a cake. He had promised Eunseong’s father that he would take responsibility and brought him here, but now he had left the boy alone at a crucial turning point. At a time when an adult’s help was absolutely necessary, Siwoon had neglected Eunseong. He had made Eunseong resonate with him and then left him to deal with all the emotional aftermath alone. It was a cowardly act.

Regret belatedly washed over him, thinking he should have at least made a phone call the morning before the college entrance exam. Unable to go in, he lingered in front with just a cake, making flimsy excuses, feeling shabby.

“…What am I doing? Haa.”

A frustrated sigh escaped involuntarily.

Seeing each other would only make things harder for both of them. While he was an adult, Eunseong was still at an age where he was inexperienced in handling emotions, and Siwoon had already rejected Eunseong.

He had scolded Eunseong for being confused, saying it was a wrong emotion, that he was misunderstanding something, and separated him from himself. They had to be that way. It was a relationship that absolutely shouldn’t become something, and shouldn’t try to become something.

As he hesitated and was about to turn back after just leaving the cake at the door, the elevator door opened. There were no other units on that floor except for Siwoon’s penthouse.

Two police officers got out of the elevator. They flinched when they saw Siwoon standing in front of the door, immediately becoming alert. Siwoon, facing them, also tensed up. He mentally traced the location of the weapon he kept hidden in his clothes. He had a dagger at his waist, and the police had tasers.

Siwoon asked the police:

“What’s the matter?”

“We received a report about a suspicious person in front of a house. Are you a resident here?”

“Pardon?”

“We received a report. It said there was a suspicious person in front of the house.”

The police pointed at the door, saying the owner of the house where Siwoon was standing had reported. One of the officers was closely observing the tattoo starting from the back of Siwoon’s hand. Siwoon’s eyes turned to the camera mounted at the entrance. He let out a disbelieving sigh.

“I am the owner of this house.”

“If you’re the owner, why are you lingering out here instead of going in?”

It seemed Eunseong had reported him to the police. Realizing this, Siwoon gave an incredulous smile.

“I was just about to go in.”

“Then please open the door and go in.”

The police, still suspicious, looked at Siwoon as if telling him to enter the keypad number and go in if he was really the owner.

Siwoon turned around, activated the keypad, and entered the number. A warning sound indicated the number was incorrect. He furrowed one eyebrow. He entered the number he knew again. Once more, a warning sound indicated it was incorrect. It was clearly the wrong number.

Belatedly realizing that Eunseong had changed the door lock number, he turned towards the police. The two officers were extremely tense, as if ready to arrest him immediately.

“My nephew lives here, and it seems he’s changed the number.”

“You’ll have to come to the station with us. We know this building has strict security, so how did you get in here?”

They became more suspicious with each explanation Siwoon gave.

“You can check with the security staff. The employees know who I am.”

“We can’t help it since a report was filed. Please come with us.”

As Siwoon was awkwardly confronting the police, the front door opened. Eunseong peeked his head out through the slightly opened door.

The police turned to Eunseong, who had just appeared, and asked:

“Are you the one who reported?”

“Yes, I made the report.”

“Do you know this person? He says he’s the owner here, is that correct?”

At the police’s question, Eunseong, with only his face showing through the door, stared blankly at Siwoon as if looking at a complete stranger. There was a smile on his face that seemed to find the whole situation absurd. Siwoon stared intently at Eunseong and asked:

“Are we pretending not to know each other now?”

“…”

Seeing the poignant smile that tugged at one’s heartstrings, Eunseong felt a surge of emotion. This was the man who had been ignoring all his calls and messages, treating him like he didn’t exist. He was also the one now trying to send him away, telling him to go study abroad in a completely different country.

“Is he really your relative?” the police asked again. Eunseong barely managed to nod.

“If you know him, why did you report him?”

“Director Nam said ahjussi had gone on a business trip, but I saw someone who looked like ahjussi on the CCTV. And when someone’s dressed all in black like that, you can’t tell on the screen if it’s a gangster or what. It just looks like some dark thing is there.”

“…”

Siwoon turned to the police officers with an exhausted expression, explaining the situation. His attire did look threatening like a dark shadow. His black jacket and black turtleneck pulled up to just below his chin, along with his watch, pants, and shoes, were all black.

The responding officers exchanged disapproving glances. They asked Eunseong one last time to confirm:

“He says he’s the owner here, is that correct? Does he really live here?”

“He doesn’t live here, but this is our uncle’s apartment.”

“So he is your relative, correct?”

Eunseong answered yes to the police’s question.

“Then there’s no problem? Can we leave now?”

The police, still not fully convinced and wary of Siwoon, only left in the elevator after a few more confirmations.

The entrance quickly became quiet.

Even though the sensor light went off, it didn’t suddenly become pitch dark because Eunseong had left the door half-open. Eunseong stood holding the door and asked:

“…Is your business trip over?”

It seemed Director Nam had lied to defend him, though Siwoon hadn’t told him to do so. Siwoon didn’t answer and just looked at Eunseong.

It had been over three months since he left Siwoon’s house, and it was the first time facing him again since that day, so nearly three months had passed.

Another moment of silence passed helplessly. Eunseong’s expression kept subtly changing due to his complex feelings of disliking, liking, hating, and being glad to see Siwoon.

Looking down at Eunseong, who was awkwardly standing and staring at his feet, Siwoon spoke first:

“The exam…”

“What about the exam?”

“Did it go well?”

“That’s not why you came, is it?”

“That is why I came.”

“You came to tell me to go abroad, didn’t you? Am I wrong?”

Eunseong asked accusingly, feeling upset. He was already hostile towards Siwoon because of the study abroad talk. Though he was glad to see him, he couldn’t readily show it and was trying to lock the door to his heart that had been rejected multiple times.

Siwoon felt a tightness in his chest, even though he had caused this situation. He knew better than anyone that Eunseong’s heart had no choice but to become sharper and more defensive, hurt beyond mere disappointment, and although this was the direction he had intended, his chest felt constricted. In fact, the one in more pain was not Eunseong, but himself.

“That was meant for you to consider… it’s not something to decide right away.”

“…”

“Since you’re studying anyway, it would be good to broaden your horizons. It’s right to learn at least one or two languages as a basic.”

“…”

“Were you hurt by that?”

Eunseong’s body had somehow almost come out of the door, fidgeting. He was holding onto the doorknob with his arm stretched out to keep the door from closing.

“No, I wasn’t hurt. I wanted to learn English too.”

His pouting lips said. It wasn’t just empty words. Unlike his father who sat helplessly doing nothing, Eunseong had many things he wanted to do. He had many dreams. It was true that he wanted to do this and that, go to this country and that country. However, that was for the distant future, not for right now.