3. The Price of a Life
3. The Price of a Life
Could it be that what she injured that day wasn't her stomach, but her head?
'There weren't any wounds on her head, though?'
Maybe it wasn't an external injury, but an internal one. Who knows if she hit a wall or a streetlight?
I found this situation so difficult to understand that I was starting to have such suspicions.
I stared intently at the woman in front of me—that is, Park Ayoung-ssi.
"Are your injuries okay now?"
For now, I was concerned about her wounds. I had done my best to nurse her, but the injury had been serious enough that she could have died.
She was the one who had stubbornly insisted on never going to a hospital. Even the moment she left, leaving behind only a single Post-it note, I didn't think she would have gone to a hospital.
Of course, seeing her alive and well before my eyes now made it seem like she was fine, but I still wanted to ask her directly.
"Why? Are you worried about me?"
But what do you know, she shot back with another strange question.
"Of course I'm worried."
I was worried, alright. Who in the world wouldn't be worried in a situation like that?
"I've been thinking about it ever since you left my house. Whether you were okay, whether you survived well."
Because of that, I couldn't focus on my classes and even got scolded by a professor once.
Since she couldn't possibly know my circumstances, I felt a bit annoyed, but seeing her recovered state made my heart soften.
'By the way, seeing her again like this, she really is beautiful.'
Should I say she has an air of nobility?
She had an appearance that exuded an unapproachable charisma. Just quietly locking eyes with her made me feel slightly nervous.
My throat was parched, so I took a sip of the chamomile tea sitting in front of me while I waited for her to respond.
"....I wanted to stay a bit longer too, but I had some urgent matters to take care of."
"In that physical condition?"
No matter how you look at it, does it make sense to go to work so soon after being injured?
"You treated me."
"How is just disinfecting and applying bandages considered treatment?"
"It's fine. Wounds like that heal quickly."
Was that the kind of wound that heals quickly? While thinking she was a truly strange woman, I prepared to stand up.
"I'd like to talk a bit more, but would it be alright if I left now?"
"Why?"
Ayoung-ssi's expression, which had been showing a calm smile until just now, stiffened in an instant.
In the suddenly cold atmosphere, Ayoung-ssi tightly grabbed my hand as I tried to stand.
Like someone trying to stop me from escaping.
"Uh, I have to go to my part-time job soon. If I stay like this, I'll really be late...."
"Part-time job? You work a part-time job too?"
"Yes. After all, the cost of living in Seoul is expensive."
If you try to buy a single meal outside, it easily exceeds ten thousand won. In some places, you might even blow twenty thousand won.
Honestly, the fact that a single piece of bread costs several thousand won was something I couldn't understand in my world.
And the people who pay money to eat that, too. Lee Hayoon says it's because I have a cheap palate and that delicious things are worth that much, but still.
Even this chamomile tea in front of me was the same. I felt like this place was particularly expensive, but for a single tea to cost over ten thousand won...
'It's a waste of money. If I saved that little bit, I could buy several days' worth of ingredients at the mart.'
Anyway, a poor college student has to earn money.
Especially a college student who is desperate for a scholarship.
"And here I thought you were going to that woman again....."
I felt the atmosphere suddenly melt sareureu. I couldn't see it with my eyes, but should I say Ayoung-ssi's expression had brightened?
She let out a sigh and muttered something small. It didn't quite reach my ears, though.
"Here."
"Uh, wait a second. What are you doing right now?"
Absurd situations always tend to arrive suddenly.
Like a professor suddenly announcing a group project without any warning, or like the first time I met Park Ayoung-ssi.
She suddenly pulled a wallet from her pocket and thrust a bundle of cash toward me.
"Take it."
Even at a glance, it looked like several million won. I figured that much would be equivalent to several months' worth of my part-time job wages.
But I shook my head.
"Why are you suddenly giving me this much money?"
Ayoung-ssi frowned as if she couldn't understand, but for me, it was difficult to accept it so readily.
Who knows what kind of trouble I'd get into if I just took it? More than anything, the fact that she was carrying around bundles of cash like this was somehow suspicious.
Above all, I couldn't accept this much money for no reason.
"You saved my life."
That was true. It was true that I tried to save someone who was about to die, but what I did was nothing more than basic first aid.
"I don't know if what I did is worth this much."
It's a bit burdensome. So I tried not to take it, but Ayoung-ssi wouldn't let go of my hand.
"I can't live with a debt."
Ayoung-ssi kept looking into my eyes. Desperately, as if she would never be able to meet me again the moment she let go of this hand.
"Then what do you think is a fair value?"
Value. Hearing those words, I turned my gaze toward the stack of money. After calculating the cost of medicine, treatment, and the minimum hourly wage, the conclusion I reached was...
"I'll just take 50,000 won."
"Only 50,000 won?"
"Let's consider this tea as something you bought, Ayoung-ssi. It includes the tea price and transportation costs too."
With those words, I felt the strength in her hand relax.
I briefly contemplated whether I should take the opportunity to back away right then, but I turned my gaze back to Ayoung-ssi.
I thought about the scene she caused at the main gate today.
It seemed like quite a few people from my department saw us, and while my head was starting to ache, I pulled a Post-it from my bag.
"Here is my number. Please contact me later if anything happens."
For some reason, even though I felt like I shouldn't get involved with this person, I ended up leaving my number.
It's a really strange feeling. I've never even tried to get a girl's number in my life.
Even so, I felt like I shouldn't just leave.
'Yikes, I'm late. I have to go quickly! But where on earth is this place?'
While I was forced to catch a taxi to get to my part-time job, a thought suddenly occurred to me.
I don't recall ever telling her my name, so how on earth does she know it?
Left alone in the cafe, Ayoung was dumbfounded.
Had there ever been anyone who refused the money she thrust at them until now?
In the political world, among the chaebols, the media, and even among her fellow gangsters, everyone had greedily accepted it without exception.
Even if she didn't give it, they would grow greedy, constantly watching for an opportunity to snatch away the funds Ayoung had built up.
Because of that, to Ayoung, everyone looked like slaves to money.
'Ten million won.'
The bundle of cash she had just offered to Kim San was ten million won. In fact, if it was the price of her life, it was actually a cheap price.
If he had asked for more, Ayoung was prepared to give him even a hundred million won. Yet, Kim San had only taken a single fifty-thousand-won bill from the ten million won in his hand.
"Just what kind of man are you?"
A type she had never seen before in her life.
Is that why? It was a fresh shock. However, the fact that Kim San was trying to leave remained unchanged.
Ayoung wanted to hold onto that man. The man who had stayed by her side until the end without betrayal.
'Even my parents tried to sell me off.'
The tip of her tongue felt very bitter, as if she had put a piece of bitter dark chocolate in her mouth. Most people, including her parents, had betrayed her.
Even the boss she had pledged loyalty to.
Ayoung wanted to possess that man. But what do you know? He left his own trace behind on his own.
"Ha. Seriously. This is interesting."
A vibration rang from her phone. Ayoung pulled it from her pocket to check who it was.
It was her right-hand man, Choi Juhan, who faithfully stayed by her side, unlike the left-hand man who had betrayed her.
"What is it?"
-Noonim, regarding the Hyung-su you mentioned. I've gathered all the information.-
She had given orders to dig up information before she went to meet Kim San.
His birthplace, academic records, personality, current residence, age, parents, and so on—everything without exception.
Since she was someone who had zero interest in others outside of work, Choi Juhan had been slightly flustered, but being terrifyingly loyal, he acted without a word of complaint.
"You were fast."
-You know as well as I do that digging up personal information in South Korea is a breeze.-
Leaving behind a cynical pishik of a laugh, Ayoung looked at the coffee in front of her and the chamomile tea on the opposite side.
Naturally, it would be right to drink the coffee she ordered. To begin with, things like chamomile weren't her taste.
"The scent is quite nice."
-Noonim?-
However, her reaching hand went toward the chamomile tea that Kim San had just gulped down.
Exactly to the spot where Kim San had drunk from. After taking a sip, she put the cup down with a pleasant smile.
"Send it to my phone. All of it."
-Yes, I understand.-
"Oh, and also, it seems like there's a fly hanging around. Look into that as well."
A fly. Kim San hadn't answered, but it didn't matter. She could just find out for herself.
Ayoung gave the command and immediately hung up.
She knew that even without a painful explanation, Choi Juhan would do his job well.
As soon as the call ended, Kim San's personal information was being transmitted to Ayoung's phone.
While she was passing the time leisurely, reading through that information with an amused expression, someone approached her side.
"Excuse me, if it's alright, could I get your number?"
It was a man who had been persistently staring at Ayoung ever since she walked in with Kim San.
As if he had been waiting for Kim San to leave, he immediately approached Ayoung and held out his phone.
Looking at him with contempt, Ayoung stood up from her seat. Then, she leaned into the man's ear and whispered.
"Piss off if you don't want to fucking die."