Swallow Hunting - Chapter 45.2
“Your face looks very familiar. …I remember now. It’s that boy from back then.”
She spoke to Hae-jun, but her eyes continuously scanned Lee Kang-ju. He didn’t know whether to be glad about this or to think he was screwed.
“Is he a friend? Or an older brother?”
“No. He’s not a friend…”
Hae-jun hesitated, unable to reveal that the man was his current client. He had to soothe the women and block their interest in Lee Kang-ju to send them away. He stepped in front of the women, wearing the bright smile that used to earn him constant compliments of being “cute” from his guests.
“We’re a bit busy right now. Ladies, I’ll give you a call next time.”
“I wasn’t asking you.”
“Hey now, don’t be like that. This gentleman does other work. He’s a very upright person.”
“Even better.”
She did not back down an inch. Not only that, she gestured with her chin, commanding Hae-jun to move aside. His body, accustomed to following the orders of others, flinched, and he almost stepped away. He kept his wits about him and held his ground firmly.
“I’m telling you, please don’t…”
Hae-jun lowered his head and toyed with the bridge of his nose. His head throbbed as he tried to figure out how to make the women go away.
“What is your number?”
Ignoring his efforts, the woman looked at Lee Kang-ju and asked boldly. Hae-jun couldn’t stop her any further and stepped back, hesitating.
Come to think of it, it was almost funny that he was so restless. He hoped Lee Kang-ju wouldn’t contact them, but even if he did, there was nothing Hae-jun could do. It was entirely up to Lee Kang-ju.
Hae-jun pouted and hung his head low. At that moment, an unfamiliar weight settled on his shoulder. Lee Kang-ju pulled Hae-jun close and gave a thin smile.
“You’re not really my type.”
Suddenly rejected, the woman gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. She looked at Hae-jun, who was pressed against Lee Kang-ju’s side, then at Lee Kang-ju, and seemed to realize something as she lowered the hand holding her phone.
“This is why handsome things are…”
She sighed, muttering that he was like a pie in the sky, and stepped away with her friend. Once the women vanished from sight, Hae-jun, whose cheeks were pressed into a goldfish shape, squirmed and looked up. The grip on his shoulder was so strong that his flesh was indented, and it felt like it might never return to its original state.
“Um, CEO. This, please.”
Lee Kang-ju generously let go of his shoulder. Hae-jun rubbed the tingling area. It was a mixture of pain and heat. It wasn’t a sensation that would fade easily.
“You get hit on everywhere. Earlier, too… Hup.”
He didn’t know why his mouth moved of its own accord to put its owner in a bind. Even though he had been caught, he had been watching secretly, so Hae-jun punished himself by slapping his own lips with his palm.
“Why did you act like you didn’t see?”
“I thought I might be in the way.”
“In what way.”
“In case you liked her, you might have wanted to exchange contact information.”
“Aha.”
Just as it had been a moment ago, Hae-jun had no right to interfere. But recalling that fact left a bitter taste in his mouth, as if he had rubbed his tongue with soot. It wasn’t that he liked Lee Kang-ju, and he wouldn’t even dream of becoming something deeper, but his heart felt like it was sinking to the bottom of the ocean with a heavy rock attached to it.
Feeling dejected, Hae-jun walked with his eyes cast down. He almost bumped into a passerby, but Lee Kang-ju grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him back, narrowly avoiding a collision.
“I have no intention of meeting anyone other than Cha Hae-jun for the time being.”
In the noisy ticket booth area, Lee Kang-ju’s voice sounded exceptionally clear. Held in that uncomfortable position by the scruff of his neck, Hae-jun’s eyes went wide as he looked up at Lee Kang-ju.
“You keep saying things that could be misunderstood.”
“Me?”
“Yes. You, CEO.”
Since Lee Kang-ju pointed at himself with his index finger, Hae-jun also raised a finger to point at him. For a gentleman who said he doesn’t watch romance movies, he sure knew how to make a person’s heart tickle with the things he threw out so casually.
If he did it without knowing, it was a natural talent. Or perhaps Hae-jun was just a blind fish swimming into a discarded fishing net on his own.
“I hate bothersome things, so just take it for what it is.”
While Hae-jun hesitated, Lee Kang-ju walked a step ahead. Hae-jun reflexively looked down at the floor. A thick straight line was drawn between him and Lee Kang-ju. It was a clear, vivid yellow line dividing the sections.
“…”
He knew he shouldn’t cross it.
It was simply a guide line drawn on the floor. Hae-jun didn’t think too deeply. Chasing after Lee Kang-ju, who turned back to see why he wasn’t coming, he hopped right over that line.
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