ITDW 4

I went to the second floor of a commercial building near the school and looked out the window at the school field. Seeing Driver Yoon realize I was gone and panic, flustered, Jaeri couldn’t hold back his laughter for a while. It wasn’t out of malice. It was just that this kind of irregular situation itself was fun. It looked like he was contacting hyung. Then he started running off somewhere vaguely. He’s coming this way. I watched that with some anxiety, but when Driver Yoon finally started running in another direction, I was relieved.

I opened the card wallet in my pocket. A credit card, one 50,000 won bill, and two 10,000 won bills. What should I do? Where should I go? Can I get to Busan with 70,000 won?

For some reason, my action-taking ability stat soared. First, I went into an alley with no CCTV, caught a taxi after a long wait, and went to Seoul Station. I paid the 6,700 won taxi fare. I made it safely to Seoul Station. I thought I might get caught on the way if my trail was picked up. But I could get caught right here at Seoul Station. My heart was pounding.

I went to the station and checked the KTX fare, and thankfully, it was an amount I could cover. Plus, one was departing soon. Once I get to Busan, even if I use my credit card, I’ll be able to buy some time before getting caught. Jaeri could use a high-limit credit card, but he couldn’t manage his own savings account, and likewise, he only carried around enough cash for emergencies. The reason was simple.

‘Cannot be controlled.’

Jungyoon received an urgent call from Driver Yoon. Pfft, a laugh escaped. He was in the middle of work, so he quickly erased the expression. He leisurely tore up the proposal he was reviewing, one page at a time. For a while, only the sound of paper tearing was heard in the silent vice president’s office. Department Head Choi, who was reporting to him, was so surprised he couldn’t say a word, and then he spoke.

“I like things that are certain. Bring me a proposal that is concrete enough that I can judge it to be feasible with just support.”

“I apologize, Vice President. I will correct it. However, a new business venture inevitably has a wide range of judgment. Please take that into consideration.”

The elderly middle manager subtly pushed back. It had only been four months since Jungyoon was promoted to Vice President. This was the first time Department Head Choi’s department had conducted a project and reported directly to Jungyoon. Department Head Choi momentarily judged that it was better to be seen as a man of conviction than an incompetent one by the young heir apparent to the group.

Jungyoon rummaged through the torn pieces scattered on his desk and picked up one with a table filled with figures. He looked at it again and said.

“Are my words difficult? Even if you have to leave it to luck. Before that, at least calculate the probability of being lucky properly. Where exactly is the source of these figures? How was the sample extracted and what is the confidence level? Answer me.”

“…”

“And then, if you just plaster it with flowery language and optimistic outlooks, I’ll be having some very pretty dreams.”

He dropped the torn piece he was holding. The piece fluttered and settled on the desk.

“Department Head Choi. I don’t mind having a lot of material to review. Of course, if I’m made to spend my time, it should be beneficial.”

“Yes, Vice President.”

“My decision rests on these few pieces of paper that you people provide me. I’m saying, don’t underestimate the impact that one person, Department Head Choi, can have on our company.”

Department Head Choi had no choice but to bow his head. His last words were subtle. The nuance sounded like a reprimand, but it also sounded like he was giving him a chance and would look forward to his future performance.

Word among the executives was that the newly appointed vice president from the owner’s family had a rather magnanimous personality, was decisive in his decision-making, and worked with a natural business sense. However, having experienced him firsthand, Department Head Choi found that wasn’t entirely the case. His personality was anything but careless. In any case, if he were to worry about things like sample extraction methods and confidence levels in the proposal, there would be a lot of data to delete. He might have to change the research institute that was commissioned for the research, or re-commission the same research project, resulting in duplicate expenditures on top of what was already spent. That was grounds for a written apology.

Jungyoon dismissed the troubled-looking Department Head Choi, then called in the head of the first security team who was waiting outside and received the initial response report.

“We’ve secured and are analyzing the surrounding CCTV footage, and there are no new approved credit card transactions yet.”

“Alright. If you find a trace, report it to me even if I’m in a meeting.”

Jungyoon said briefly. His mind was still complicated from what he had found out yesterday. For now, there was one thing Jungyoon was curious about in today’s incident. Was it a picnic, or was he running away? There was an expected answer, but it was still too early to be sure.

“Understood, Vice President.”

The head of the first security team bowed and retreated.

He had apparently left his phone in the car. Jaeri usually carried around 100,000 won in cash, so if things went as expected, he would use his credit card soon. He hoped so. For Jaeri’s own safety.

He touched his throbbing temples for a moment, then called Jaeri’s primary physician.

— Hello.

“…You seem to be free.”

— Ah, Vice President. How have you been? It’s not my place to say this to you, Vice President, but our clinic is also busy in its own way…

At the rambling words, he cut him off with a voice that sounded like he was lightly clenching his teeth.

“Why is the treatment dragging on like this?”

— …Is Jaeri not doing well?

“A hypomanic episode has appeared, and he’s run away.”

— Ah… the, the dosage of the antidepressant you gave him yesterday was…

Jaeri’s hypomanic episode had appeared just a couple of months ago. Usually, Jaeri’s bipolar disorder had a cycle, with a short hypomanic episode appearing once a year and depression for the rest of the period, but this switch to hypomania was too fast. A rapid cycle in bipolar disorder means the illness is worsening.

The primary physician doesn’t even ask if Jaeri’s whereabouts have been identified. The sound of files being flipped through hastily was heard over the phone. That means he doesn’t even know the type and dosage of the medication he usually takes without looking at the records. I don’t think it was like this at first. Feeling his nerves stand on end, he closed his eyes and answered as if reciting.

“5mg for the morning dose, 7.5mg for the evening dose.”

— …He usually takes 5mg, but you increased it a little yesterday.

“So what. It’s within the prescribed dosage range.”

— No, I wasn’t trying to make excuses. I’m confirming. If 7.5 is too much for Jaeri, we might have to change the medication.

This was clearly bullshit. The antidepressant Jaeri was taking was one that did not induce hypomania, and he was also taking a mood stabilizer. The primary physician didn’t know that Jungyoon, at least when it came to bipolar disorder, had as much extensive knowledge as a decent psychiatrist.

“Professor, were you seeing my younger brother as a lab rat?”

— That, there is no perfect medicine without side effects yet, and depending on the patient, they can react sensitively to the medicine, so we have to adjust…

He wasn’t free enough to listen to all the obvious things he was muttering.

“I’m going to dispatch the accounting team, so go ahead and powder up the amount we’ve supported in the name of research funds to make sure it all adds up.”

— …What? Vice President,

“Let’s see your makeup skills, I’m not expecting much.”

Jungyoon scribbled something and gave it to the secretary he had summoned with the buzzer.

— You’ve been sponsoring our research for a long time, why so suddenly… Vice President, we…

“Because I can’t trust a primary physician who only talks about medicine without even considering that the patient had a stressful event. What day was yesterday?”

Of course, it was the day of the CSAT, a stressful event for all high school seniors.

The head of the first security team, who had been reporting the situation piecemeal via text messages, finally showed his face at two in the afternoon. In just a few hours, his eyes were bloodshot and his lips were parched, looking haggard. The man, who was presiding over a meeting, paused the meeting for a moment and listened to the report.

“As expected, it’s Busan. A transaction just came through from Jaeri-gun using his card at a department store in Busan. A local contractor is tailing him now.”

Jungyoon’s stiff expression relaxed slightly, and a cool smile formed on his lips. He replied in a voice that even felt cheerful.

“It’s a picnic after all, so follow him without him knowing. Oh, and this is obvious, but let’s just confirm.”

“Yes, Vice President.”

“Did you dispatch our people? What makes you trust the local contractor?”

“Of course. The first and second security teams will arrive in 20 minutes. As soon as they arrive, the local contractor will withdraw.”

“Alright. Film what he’s doing every hour and report it. There’s no need for face-to-face reports.”

“Understood, Vice President.”

If he wants to play, I should let him play. As long as it’s within my sight, it doesn’t matter.

Something was strange. He had used his credit card for the first time around two o’clock, but considering the time it took to get from Seoul to Busan, it didn’t make sense that he was still roaming around Busan even though it was almost eight o’clock. Even though he had been purposely buying small things along his route to make it easier to track him. He hadn’t gone to places where it would be difficult to find him because there were too many people, either.

A wave of anxiety washed over him that maybe his hyung wasn’t looking for him. What if he thought he had gotten rid of a troublesome burden because he had just disappeared? No, that’s a ridiculous assumption.

But isn’t it too strange? The sea breeze felt particularly desolate.

This wasn’t what he had wanted. The boy went to a convenience store and bought cigarettes. After buying a full suit from a brand his hyung sometimes wears at the department store and changing into it right away, he had thrown away his school uniform. Although his face was boyish, his attire was mature, so the store clerk sold him the cigarettes without suspicion. It was an imitation of his hyung’s attire, but he thought he looked quite cool himself.

Leaning against a wall and smoking, he coughed, a dry little cough. The first cigarette wasn’t as hard as he had thought. It was just okay, but he didn’t feel like having another one, so he stubbed out the one he was smoking against the wall and put the pack in his inner pocket.

As he walked, he saw a shabby raw fish restaurant and just went in. ‘Yeongseon’s Raw Fish House.’ They say places like this are hidden gems that only locals know, but it could just be a hidden house.

“Auntie, a small platter of flounder and a bottle of soju, please.”

He felt a little proud of himself for ordering so naturally, just like he’d seen in the dramas. This was the first time he’d come to a place like this alone, but he must not have looked like it at all, and he must have seemed like someone who had drunk a lot of soju.

He had been to a shabby raw fish restaurant like this with his hyung before. When they lived in Chuncheon, they had gone about twice to eat trout sashimi, which was famous in Gangwon Province. Back then, his hyung had a lot of time, so he taught him how to ride a bike, how to make a 3-point shot in basketball, and took him to many good restaurants.

But today, he was sitting in a raw fish restaurant similar to those days, but his hyung wasn’t next to him, he didn’t seem to be looking for him, nothing particularly fun had happened, and the weather was humid and cold. In the dramas, when they felt upset like this, they always drank soju. He wanted to try imitating it at least once. Maybe it was because it was the acting of handsome and beautiful actors, but the sight of someone drinking soju and getting tipsy because they were emotional seemed somehow romantic.

Come to think of it, he realized he had spent a lot of money on things he normally wouldn’t have been able to today. Clothing, a KTX ticket, cigarettes, alcohol. He had bought four types of unpermitted items. He thought that this much was already excessive for a deviation. He decided to call his hyung after dinner.

Soon, the food was served. He didn’t like the way the table was set with a plastic sheet over it. A plastic sheet that seemed to be in consideration of food waste and spills. He had only seen this kind of table setting at funerals, so he thought the hospitality towards the customer was too neglectful. Moreover, a fishy smell was rising from the table, and he couldn’t for the life of him figure out why they couldn’t get rid of the fishy smell even with the plastic sheet. Could they be recycling this cheap plastic? No, maybe it wasn’t because it was cheap, but because it was a hassle to change the plastic. How can you run a restaurant if you’re lazy? Then, he saw that a small platter of flounder was 12,000 won and a bottle of soju was 3,000 won, and he accepted that kind of treatment.

He ate some apple and potato salad with mayonnaise dressing, and some buttered corn. The buttered corn was delicious. He slightly upgraded his assessment of the food quality of this place. It was so delicious that he ordered another serving of buttered corn. The second time he ate it, it was a bit greasy, so he was pouring soju like a pro when a large hand came down on top of his thin one.

“The picnic ends here.”

“…Hyung!”

Jaeri couldn’t hide the smile that was peeking out. Hyung had come all the way to Busan. A handsome man with fine features that were unforgettable once seen, wearing a suit that fit his tall, solid body perfectly, with the scent of perfume mixed with the sea breeze on his collar, had come to Yeongseon’s Raw Fish House in some alley in Busan to find his youngest brother.

“You’re smiling?”

“…It’s just, a smile came out. Because I’m happy to see you.”

“You’re going to get a big scolding when we get back to Seoul, you’re too carefree.”

The hand that had been lightly tapping his cheek as if to tell him to come to his senses fell away, and he walked out of the raw fish restaurant. His attendants followed behind him. Jaeri was still a little dazed and his eyes were glazed over from the sudden appearance of the hyung he had only imagined, when the head of the first security team wrapped an arm around Jaeri as if to protect him and led him out.