Starting Over
"I don't think that way, and as for bringing up money right now, just look at this place."
"Are you insulting my home?"
"That's not it. Isn't the space too cramped? I mean, President Joo Sang-won says he pays an annual salary of 70 to 100 million won, so where on earth are you spending all that money?"
Min Suyeon, who had stiffened at those words, soon let out a bitter laugh and replied.
"...I spend it on alcohol."
"I thought you didn't drink."
"Can't you just let it slide and pretend it's like that?"
"No. Is this really the time for jokes?"
Haa— sighing deeply, Min Suyeon said.
"It's a bottomless pit. No matter how much you pour into it, it's not a problem that can be solved."
"I happen to have quite a bit of money."
"...Then why on earth are you trying to give all that money to me?"
"Ha, I keep saying it, but it's out of expectation for your research achievements and capabilities..."
"Bullshit."
Damn it, please, seriously!
But just then, knock-knock—
"Looks like someone's here."
"...Damn it..."
"What is it? Is someone supposed to be coming?"
"You, just stay put."
"No, stay... stay? Stay put?"
For now, he sat obediently near the bed as the woman told him to, but he couldn't just sit still for long.
"...Since I'm giving it to you,"
"How many times is this?"
"..."
".....right?"
"Shut up,"
"..."
"...Don't!"
The faint voices of a man and a woman could be heard. They sounded like lovers. If you opened the front door and walked straight in, the kitchen and refrigerator were on the left. On the right was a sliding door separating the rooms. He had been sitting blankly next to those double doors, so he couldn't hear the exact conversation, but soon the voices grew heated.
"Get lost, no, I said get lost, seriously...!"
"Hey, I told you to just pay me back with your body, didn't I? Look at how much you've piled up, every time I come you just bullshit about paying me later,"
"D...don't come in. Get out. Don't come here!"
"If you give it up once, that's 1 million won, I was being generous, wasn't I? Aren't you a slut?"
"Damn it, what slut, hey, won't you... get lost? If you keep pushing me, I'm calling the police..."
It didn't seem like a good situation. Hmm. It was very bad. Yeah. It was very bad. And besides, she was the one advertising herself as a slut earlier...
Eventually, he couldn't just stay still.
"What's going on?"
"...You, get inside, damn it, why are you coming out..."
"What is this, is this your dildo?"
...?
"No, damn it, get lost, what's your name, you... ha, I told you to go inside. Why do you keep..."
"Wow... did you come out because you're his fuck-toy? Who are you?"
He would use polite language with the woman, but the man...
"What do you mean 'who', you son of a bitch, I asked who you were and you're making dildo noises..."
"....?"
"Don't you know who I am? Search it up quickly, yeah, on that phone."
"Are you a psychopath, keep playing word games—"
"...Hey, get up."
"Yes."
"Why are you using polite language? I told you to keep using casual speech."
"No. I'm sorry."
"No, I told you to do it, so why aren't you now? Are you a contrarian?"
"I'm sorry, no, sorry..."
"You really do it when I tell you to, haha."
He had taken the chair from Min Suyeon. Thanks to that, Min Suyeon was sitting on the bed, and after he sat in the chair, he asked a few questions to the man who was kneeling with his hands up, trembling.
"Hey, this 30 million won... is this principal and interest repayment, or a lump sum at maturity?"
"Lu, lump... what is that?"
Ugh!
"I'm sorry... please, please don't hit me..."
"I didn't hit you. Ms. Min Suyeon, did I hit this person?"
The woman's eyes lost focus. Well... that was understandable. I didn't look like someone who was good at fighting...
"No, logically speaking, friend,"
"Yes? Ah, yes..."
"You borrowed 30 million won from me. But how does the interest become 20 million won in one year?"
"No, that is... our representative..."
"Am I stronger, or is the representative stronger?"
"Hyung, you... you are stronger..."
Then, saying "You'll lower the interest, right?" he tore the contract to shreds.
"Why are you trembling? I told you Hyung would take responsibility for everything. You're young, is that how you talk to your older brother and sister?"
"I'm sorry."
"How much do you get paid for this job?"
"I... I get 500,000 won per case..."
"Wow..."
All he had done was notice the porcelain bowl nearby and smash it into the head of the swaggering man. Still, he felt he hadn't controlled his strength well. Powder was falling from the man's left ear as if the blood flowing from it had dried and crusted over.
"Does it hurt?"
"...No."
"Right, you hurt less than that woman. No, don't they teach you about the legal maximum interest rate? It's 20% now... so 6 million..."
"...Are, are you saying you'll report it to the court? Hyung-nim, I..."
"No, that's not it,"
Why is he so ignorant... Still, he hadn't passed out immediately after being hit. Since he was struggling, he really, truly, without a lie, only used his hands. Why had his stamina increased so much? ...It was embarrassing, but during his married life, Jia liked men with lots of muscle. So, firmly believing that doing so would make '3-sex-a-day' possible, he remembered going to the gym or focusing on home training after dropping Seo Jia off at home after work. Was that all?
"Did you... exercise?"
"Yes, Seonmudo."
"Ah..."
"But I didn't use it. I can't go to the police station. Now, hurry up and apologize to your sister with your hands up."
"...Execute..."
"Yeah. Good boy."
He was very well-educated. Then, along with telling the man that if he received money according to the contract, he would chase him to the end,
"Now, Hyung will give you money. Take this and go."
"..."
"If they ask why you only got this much, here's a phone number, Hyung gave you this, right? Hey, this is a really damn expensive number, this is really..."
"Thank you..."
"Yeah. Go give this number to your representative and tell him to call."
Then, he wrote 36,000,000 on a check again, endorsed it, and put it inside the suit jacket of this skinny tattooed man. After patting him a few times,
"Visiting other people's houses is not allowed. This is related to debt collection... it's a violation of such-and-such law."
"..Ah... I'm sorry."
"Yeah. You might not have known. It really exists. Oh, and..."
He took out another 1 million won cashier's check from his wallet and gave it to him,
"This is for the hospital bills. Go get cleaned up and go to a sauna."
"Thank you..."
"And quit this job, don't do things like this. You understand?"
"...Yes..."
He sent the skinny tattooed man away. Now, there was work to be done.
"Ms. Min Suyeon, you're very expensive, 41 million won... that's half a year's salary for you."
"..."
Look at her not even saying a word. Even though he paid off her debt.
"No, why do you use loan sharks?"
"..."
"If you're short on money, you can check with a bank, or at the very least, there's cash advance services. Our company also has employee loan products..."
"None of it works... They wouldn't lend to me..."
Hmm.
"Why?"
"...Because my credit score is bad from using loan sharks."
"Of course. No, did you use loan sharks from the beginning?"
"..."
Like that, Min Suyeon started telling her story again. He listened quietly,
"...Mom is very sick."
"Mom is sick... her asthma is severe. It's not getting treated... her bronchitis is getting worse too..."
"..."
"Dad works as a part-time lecturer, money is 2 million won a month... even that, if there are no lectures, he doesn't get paid... and he can't earn during vacation..."
Sigh. A bleak life.
"We don't have a house, I used it for Mom's medical bills... Dad also got a lab and washes and sleeps there... My younger brother sleeps in the company dormitory..."
"You seem to have a younger brother."
"A younger brother... he should be dating and stuff, but he has no money..."
This woman suddenly cries. She looked like she wouldn't cry, but I saw signs of it earlier. He pulls out a tissue from the side and hands it to her. Min Suyeon, who would normally say "Get lost with your sympathy!", takes it and wipes her tears, perhaps because of what happened just a moment ago. And...
"...Why are you being so nosy, who are you... You're going to have to go to the police station now."
"Will I?"
"...? Ah.. ha, that's true..."
"It's not 'that's true', no, really... no, why did you borrow the money?"
"...I have asthma too, so I was trying to go to the hospital..."
"What about insurance?"
As if there would be any. She was dirt poor. Min Suyeon held back those words, thinking that if she showed him the life insurance she had taken out, he would know she was scheduled to die soon. It didn't seem like there was any need to say it.
"...There's no such thing."
"I see."
Nothing to say. In this situation.
"Ms. Min Suyeon. Are you going to keep living like this... really, keep living like this?"
He had brought it up as a starting point to change her, but there was no way it would work on Min Suyeon. Asking a woman scheduled to die in 9 days, 7 hours, and 25 minutes if she was going to keep living like this. It was meaningless.
"...Nothing changes."
"Even so, if you do something with me..."
"I don't even have a house. I have no money, no hope. It's the end, my life is..."
"Doesn't the company keep paying your salary? Performance bonuses every year too..."
"I told you, medical bills alone are 3 million won... I also pay for my family's living expenses... what changes? Even if I struggle here, nothing changes."
"..."
That's true. Then...
"So, work with me."
"..."
"41 million won. Let's call it a down payment. I'll deduct the 10% down payment from the 410 million and give you the rest right now."
Again, thoughts of sponsorship contracts, sexual assault offenders, etc., were floating in Min Suyeon's head, but she stopped talking, remembering the back of him smashing a head with a porcelain bowl without a moment's hesitation. She thought that if he had intended to do something coercively, he was a person who would have already done it, and... she was also a little bit scared. So—
"...What are the conditions?"
She took the bait. ...She even used polite language, for the first time!