Swallow Hunting - Chapter 34.1
Hae-jun placed his index finger next to his temple and spun it in a circle. Yohan chuckled, treating it like a light joke.
“What kind of crazy guy is he?”
“He bangs on the door and hits the wall every day saying it’s noisy. I intentionally turn off the TV and listen to music only through earphones. The other day, he threw a fit saying he couldn’t sleep because of the sound of water just because I took a shower once. The one who actually can’t sleep is me!”
“He’s a total lunatic. Have you tried talking to the landlord?”
Hae-jun shook his head side to side.
It was not easy to open up to Lee Kang-ju. While light, everyday conversations without any issues were always possible, heavy stories or problems happening to him seemed to get stuck in his throat and rarely came out of his mouth. He hated the idea of appearing like an immature brat who couldn’t even handle a single thing like that on his own.
“And did you try talking to him?”
“I did. But it doesn’t work.”
It wasn’t as if Hae-jun hadn’t tried. Through this incident, Hae-jun realized properly that a crazy person is called a crazy person because normal conversation is impossible with them.
He tried writing letters, tried talking to him, and even got angry, stating he hadn’t made any noise. However, the madman was a formidable opponent. When the man pulled out a kitchen knife with his eyes glowing blue, Hae-jun quickly fled back into his house, terrified that he might actually get stabbed.
“I thought it would eventually stop, but…”
It looked like it would be a long term battle. He knew the answer was moving out, but he didn’t want to leave this great house. To stand and fight meant facing a genuine maniac who would swing a knife if things didn’t go his way, while Hae-jun was just a normal person with common sense. He was significantly lacking in combat power.
Hae-jun stared intently at Yohan. If Yohan were with him, he might be able to make up for those deficiencies. Yohan’s history as a “mad dog” was quite impressive too.
The short, happy imagination stopped there. If those two met, at the very least a knife fight would occur, and yellow police lines might end up being put up. He couldn’t put Yohan in a jail cell just to save himself.
“Can I just close my eyes at your place for a bit?”
Returning to reality, he made the request to Yohan. Perhaps feeling sorry for his sunken eyes, Yohan readily accepted. Hae-jun drained the energy drink he bought earlier down to the very last drop and started his bike.
***
Lee Kang-ju arrived earlier than usual. Surprisingly, there was no sex. Since he was tired and extremely worried about the neighbor, it was a relief that they didn’t go all the way, but at the same time, he was somewhat worried that Lee Kang-ju might have lost interest in him.
Hae-jun didn’t let it show. He thought it was enough just to have dinner together and sit on the sofa. His financial situation was also fine. It was thanks to the tips he received every time he slept with the man and the money he earned from delivery work being quite decent.
However, being at home made his anxiety start to flare up, as he didn’t know when the neighbor would hit the wall and cause a scene again. Lee Kang-ju, who usually stayed only for a short time, was staying quite long today, as if there had been some change in his mood.
He couldn’t exactly push the man out the door, and in truth, Hae-jun didn’t dislike this time either, so he wiggled his toes and racked his brain for a way to stay with Lee Kang-ju just a little bit longer.
That was when the blankets caught his eye. A brilliant idea occurred to him. Hae-jun tentatively checked Lee Kang-ju’s reaction and spoke up during a commercial break on the TV.
“If it’s alright, could I go do some laundry for the blankets? I’ll be back in just a moment.”
He pointed his thumb toward the neatly folded blankets. Perhaps because it was such a random suggestion, Lee Kang-ju stared at Hae-jun before turning his head to look at the washing machine. There was a small washing machine under the induction stove.
“Well, it’s more convenient to use a laundromat if I want to use a dryer. Would you like to go together? There’s a 24 hour coin laundry nearby. There won’t be anyone there at this hour.”
“Shall we, then?”
Contrary to his worry that the man might refuse, Lee Kang-ju agreed. Hae-jun cheered inwardly and gathered the blankets. When he held the bulky load in his hands, Lee Kang-ju smoothly snatched it away.
“I’ll carry it.”
“It’s fine.”
The refusal was sharp as always. Hae-jun awkwardly withdrew his reaching hand and followed Lee Kang-ju. On the way out, he glanced at the neighbor’s place, but there was only more junk out than yesterday, and not even the sound of an ant crawling could be heard.
The laundromat was a block away from the house. There was no one inside the brightly lit shop. Hae-jun picked one of the empty washing machines and put the blankets in.
Even though the man could have refused and told him to go alone, he was grateful to Lee Kang-ju for carrying the blankets all the way here. Hae-jun got a drink from the vending machine and set it down in front of Lee Kang-ju.
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