Chapter 11
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Do-geon leaned his head back against the headrest and stared out the car window at the overcast sky. His coworker's voice came through the car speakers.
[Dude, just come back to the States, that's what old people do. They get sick then they get better. I'm not waiting.]
"I haven't seen my grandfather in two years, and I’m not coming back, I'd be disrespecting him if I said I'd just go."
[He doesn't care about that].
"Anyway, I need you to hold the burn for a while. I'm not in a hurry, and I need to do some research while I'm here."
[What's there to do?]
"Just chores."
[Ugh, a month at most].
"Enough."
After a few more words, Do-geon hung up, saying he was driving.
The light turned green. He gently pressed the accelerator. Arid landscapes passed by outside the car window.
He'd taken care of all the urgent business before he left the States, but his coworker was worried. He considered taking a vacation, but that would have been a real bummer.
'I still have to go back. As soon as I can..................'
He was able to stay in Korea and meet the people he needed to meet. But the discomfort and impatience of being in the wrong place didn't go away.
The car climbed a gentle hill. As he approached the high walls surrounding Taehwajae, he squinted up the hill to see what lay ahead.
It was a long way off, but Do-geon caught a glimpse of familiarity. A woman was hailing a taxi on the road. The cab door slammed shut just as a pair of white sneakers disappeared.
It was Jeong Jae-yeon.
Without a moment's thought, Do-geon unconsciously stepped on the accelerator and drove past the entrance to Taehwajae.
'You must have a car, but.................. where are you going in a cab?’
Chairman Han had given Jae-yeon all sorts of gifts, including an office apartment. Among them was an expensive foreign car.
It was strange that she would take a taxi to go somewhere in a car that wasn't her own and didn't have a driver.
Of course, it wasn't 'strange' in the old-fashioned sense. He himself often took cabs, but that reasonable understanding didn't matter now.
Do-geon was going to dig into her.
He was the kind of man who was naturally inclined to see things through to the end, and his inclinations usually stemmed from a probabilistic conviction that he wasn't wrong.
Do-geon’s black sedan followed the cab, and for a moment he wondered if it was a futile endeavor, but he didn't feel inclined to turn back.
He and Jae-yeon hadn't spoken since the pond incident. He'd bumped into her whenever he went to visit his grandfather, but that was it.
She was the same as always. She'd greet him with a small smile, her face like a porcelain doll.
It was annoying as hell.
The taxi in front of him swerved through the crosswalk. Then, just as Do-geon was about to turn the wheel, the walk signal changed and people crossed the street. He stopped and tapped his index finger on the steering wheel, a little impatiently.
He glared at the tail of the taxi as it drove away, and when the light changed, he stepped on the gas again and sped off.
The car crossed the Seongsu Bridge and entered the city highway. After more than an hour of driving, he arrived in Namyangju, Gyeonggi-do.
The taxi pulled into the outskirts of the city and stopped in front of a warehouse. The neighborhood was deserted. Do-geon pulled over to the side of the road a short distance away and scanned the front.
‘A factory.’
The taxi pulled up to a container building that looked like it was used to store materials. He'd never seen anything like it in his life.
Jae-yeon got out of the cab. She pulled out a key, unlocked the warehouse door as if it were familiar, and disappeared inside.
Do-geon shifted into gear and turned on the map application. He checked the location on the map, but there was no business name listed.
He waited in the car for quite some time, but Jeong Jae-yeon didn't come out to see what she was doing inside.
There was no one coming or going, and no unusual noises. After a long period of patience, he finally turned off the car and got out.
After taking a quick look around, he approached the building, but the windows were all blinded, so he couldn't see inside.
He circled the building, but didn't see anything special. He turned to the entrance and without hesitation knocked on the iron gate.
Bang, bang, bang!!!
It was eerily quiet inside. Taking a step back, Do-geon removed his leather gloves and stuffed them into his coat pocket, waiting for the woman to come out. It took a few moments before he heard a clang from inside. A snap. Then the door swung open. A questioning voice came through the crack.
"------who------?"
The woman squinted against the sunlight. A shadow fell across her face as Do-geon stepped forward, his back to the sun. Jae-yeon's eyes widened as she recognized the visitor. Their gazes tangled in the air. Her eyes blinked rapidly.
"Mr. Han Do-geon…?"
Jae-yeon muttered his name in confusion. She had no idea why he was here. Do-geon raised one eyebrow.
He'd prepared an excuse, but for some reason, seeing her surprised face made his jaw drop. It was a ridiculous thought, but he'd never thought she was capable of that look...that 'human' look.
"This is......... What are you doing here? How can I help you?"
Jae-yeon asked, and Do-geon let out a belated ahhh. He didn’t spin it, choosing to be straightforward.
"I followed you."
"You mean you followed me.................?"
"Yes."
"Me?"
"Yes."
Do-geon stared at Jae-yeon's face, bewildered, and then extended his hand. Jae-yeon backed away, stunned.
He pushed open the iron gate she'd been holding and stepped in effortlessly. As soon as he stepped through, he closed the door behind his back.
"Let me see."
He could feel the woman's incredulous gaze following him. Do-geon shrugged it off and walked on. Thud, thud, thud. The sound of heavy footsteps echoed through the high-rise room.
The container building, which looked like a disused warehouse, was actually a sizable workshop. Do-geon suddenly remembered the report that Jae-yeon had set up her own workshop.
He hadn't forgotten. It was just that he couldn't match her workshop to this building, which looked so authentic. At most, she would have gotten a small storefront and set up shop here.
'More than that, ............. I didn't think she’d still be doing it.'
Apparently, she hadn't organized everything before coming to Taehwajae. Do-geon looked around the room in disbelief.
There were about a half-dozen workbenches, various tools on the walls, and boards cut into different sizes and shapes. It was the scene of a professional woodworking shop.
After a quick walk around the room, he was almost back to square one. Jae-yeon was still standing in the doorway, nailed to it, watching his every move.
Standing some distance away from her, Do-geon glanced behind him and asked.
"What's that?"
"..................Where?"
"There's a sign that says 'Unauthorized personnel only'."
"It's just a warehouse."
"Just a warehouse?"
"Yeah, it's got some dangerous stuff in it, and I used to teach classes there, so people would come in and out of the workshop."
"I'd like to see it."
Jae-yeon looked up at him wordlessly. Her face was blank again. There was a tense silence for a while.
Then she let out a short sigh, walked past him to the front of the warehouse, pulled a key from her apron pocket, and unlocked the door.
Jae-yeon smiled and looked back at Do-geon.
"Look."
Do-geon walked back toward her, deliberately slowing his pace. Their gazes crossed subtly as he passed her.
The door creaked on its rusty hinges as he opened it. Do-geon stepped into the small, unlit room. A long shadow fell in front of the door.
He reached to close the storeroom door out of habit, but pulled his hand back when he realized Jae-yeon was standing in the doorway. He turned his head back inside.
She was right, it was an ordinary warehouse. Various materials, machines of unknown purpose, and other things lay cluttered around.
After looking around the unremarkable warehouse, Do-geon returned. Jae-yeon stood silently in the doorway, her hands in her apron pockets.
"A warehouse," Do-geon said casually.
"I told you so."
The words sounded like a slap in the face, but there was no hint of it in her gentle tone or the gentle smile on her face.
Jae-yeon closed the storage door and locked it with the key. She looked back at him as she slipped the key back into her pocket.
"Now, do you mind if I explain?"
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