When Whales Fight, the Shrimp Gets Crushed (1)
“Hey!!!”
Sihyun heard Yuri’s booming shout from behind him, but he didn’t look back. He just kept sprinting at full speed.
The thought that he looked exactly like a criminal fleeing the scene after beating several people up did flicker through his mind for a moment.
Getting any more tangled up in this won’t do me any good!
He didn’t slow down even a fraction. And though the image of Jinwoo grinding his teeth as he ran away at the end still nagged at him a little, one look had been enough. The guy was clearly the type who only ran his mouth because of his family background—someone with nothing of his own to show for it. A complete idiot. The more prideful a bastard like that was, the less likely he was to do something as mundane as calling the cops.
Though he’ll probably pull some even crazier stunt instead…
But that didn’t matter. He had never had any reason to come to this neighborhood in the first place. Today he’d only shown up for that god-awful part-time job. As long as he never set foot near here again, it should be fine.
Besides, he seemed way more obsessed with that crazy bitch than with a nobody like me.
This whole mess had started because of her in the first place. After watching him take down the guys attacking him in legitimate self-defense—
“That was incredible!”
Incredible, my ass…
The way her eyes had sparkled, like she’d just discovered an interesting new toy, made Sihyun bolt on pure instinct without a second’s hesitation.
Rich girls all think the same way.
Truthfully, with a face as pretty as his, there were far easier ways to make money than jobs like this. Host bars and other entertainment venues, for example. A little flirting with rich older women in places like that, and he could rake in cash that would make this look like pocket change.
But—
I don’t want to do that kind of thing with women who are my mom’s age or older.
Whenever he pictured his mother still waiting up for him even after he told her to go to sleep first because he’d be home late, he knew he could never do work that was basically selling himself. That was exactly why he’d quit the high-paying club job after a single day.
I should’ve just refused from the start…
A regular customer at the café where he worked had been so persistent about introducing him to “something good” that he’d been half-forced into trying it once. He’d wanted to ignore her and turn it down out of pure annoyance, but she must have been someone important—because the manager standing right there had silently pressured him with a look that said he had no choice but to accept. Refusing hadn’t even been an option.
She won’t throw a fit just because I quit after one day… right?
With that worry lingering, Sihyun hurried his steps toward home, where his mother would be waiting.
Meanwhile, left behind at the scene, Yuri let out a hollow laugh.
“Ha…!”
She stood there with a blank, dumbfounded look on her face.
“That little shit is insanely fast.”
She briefly considered chasing after him, but even she had to admit that catching up to that ridiculous speed was impossible. That didn’t mean she was giving up on Sihyun, though. Far from it.
This is fun!
Sihyun’s hope of never getting involved with her again was looking less and less likely to come true.
Shall I start by finding out his name… and work my way from there?
Yuri’s eyes already gleamed like a predator locking onto prey, and her mind was completely filled with curiosity and obsession over Sihyun.
The next day.
“Haa…”
Sihyun let out a long sigh as he started his shift at the café.
Still, it is a bit of a shame.
Working from evening until dawn paid over two hundred thousand won a night—serious money for a part-time job. No one could stay completely detached when that kind of cash was on the table, and Sihyun was no exception.
But—
Oh, right. I didn’t even get my tips because of that crazy bitch…
Just thinking about Yuri made him certain he’d done the right thing by quitting. It wasn’t only her, either. A place where psychos like Jinwoo could show up and drag him into more trouble at any moment was pure danger.
I should look for some other night work.
Honestly, what he really wanted was to land a proper company job right away instead of bouncing between part-time gigs. But almost nowhere would hire a guy who hadn’t even finished high school. And even if somewhere did, it wouldn’t be a legitimate company, so part-time work was still the better option.
Especially since I never know what might happen with Mom, or when I might have to quit on short notice.
That was why Sihyun juggled multiple jobs. Newspaper delivery in the early morning. The café during the day like now. He used to work evenings and nights at a convenience store, but—
“Um… could I get your number?”
It wasn’t just the women who hit on him every chance they got.
“You’re a guy? Yeah, I know. That’s why I’m asking.”
All sorts of lunatics kept latching onto him, so he’d eventually quit. The low hourly wage hadn’t left him with any regrets either. That was why he’d decided night work unloading delivery trucks was better—grueling as it was, at least he didn’t have to deal with people. But everyone knew how back-breaking that job was, and Sihyun was only human. He’d wanted something a little easier, which was exactly why he’d accepted that high-paying, god-awful gig the day before.
Come to think of it, that noona should be showing up soon…
Right then—
Ding-a-ling~
The café door’s little bell chimed.
Speak of the devil.
“Hi~ Sihyun!”
A woman with luminous blonde hair cascading in bouncy waves walked into the café. Her eyes held a faint reddish tint, and her face was so captivating that once you saw it, you couldn’t easily forget it.
“How was the job this noona set you up with yesterday?”
She waved at Sihyun the moment she stepped inside, approaching with a bright smile. Because it was winter she wore a long coat over a sweater, so there was no actual skin showing—yet her figure was still absurdly voluptuous. Her upper body, in particular, traced lush, heavy curves that swayed with every step.
“Whoa…”
“Wow…”
“Hey, eyes over here, you idiot!”
“Aaaah! Sorry, babe!”
Naturally, every male gaze in the café snapped straight to her. She paid those stares no attention whatsoever. The only thing that mattered to her was—
Hmm~ Looks like it didn’t go well?
—the slightly dejected expression on Sihyun’s face as he looked at her. Unlike every other guy, he hadn’t so much as glanced at her chest. She walked right up to him, deliberately leaning farther forward so her upper body pressed against the counter, and spoke with a playful, sultry smile.
“Was it that bad? The pay was great, and the environment wasn’t terrible either~”
“Yes, Seonye-noona. I’m sorry, but I quit that job right away.”
Sihyun answered in a flat voice. Seonye had half-expected that from his personality, but she still put on an exaggerated reaction.
“Whaaat—?! Do you have any idea how hard I worked to handpick that job for you?!”
“Haa… I’m sorry.”
Watching Sihyun answer with a genuinely apologetic look, Seonye smirked inwardly.
Yeah, there’s no way a proud kid like you would last in a place full of empty-headed rich brats.
Honestly, she wouldn’t have minded if he’d kept the job. Her real goal had always been to make him feel at least a little indebted to her.
“Mmm~ This is awkward. Can’t you think about this noona’s position just a tiny bit, Sihyun? I feel like I should get something out of this…”
“…”
Ah, crap!
Seeing Sihyun avoid her eyes without answering, Seonye suddenly realized she’d gone too far. That cute face of his always made her want to tease him, and she’d pushed harder than she meant to without thinking. She knew his circumstances—his family situation, the reasons he never got a proper day of rest and worked multiple jobs just to scrape by—and now she was panicking. Because when this kid heard “I should get something”…
“Um… how should I compensate you? My paycheck is still a while off.”
…he always took it as money and reacted dead seriously.
“No, no, no~! You think this noona would try to shake you down for cash?”
Seonye waved her hands frantically, trying to soothe him with a flustered face.
“But you clearly said you should get something…”
Sihyun’s suspicious look made Seonye give an awkward little laugh.
“Well, that part’s true. But not money—something else!”
“If it’s not money… then what?”
Sihyun narrowed his eyes and studied her sharply. Seonye flashed a sly smile and leaned even closer, deliberately emphasizing her chest.
“…?”
But Sihyun showed zero interest in any of that and simply waited for her answer.
Ugh, I wish the kid had at least a little bit of a dirty mind…
A faint pang of disappointment flickered through her at his completely indifferent reaction, but she quickly gave up and got to the point.
“After your shift ends, free up your evening for me tonight. You quit that other job, so you haven’t lined up anything for today yet, right?”
“Uh… I could find something right away if I wanted to.”
“That unloading work again? I introduced you to the other job because I felt sorry watching you do that! Come on, think of it as paying me back and hang out with me just this once, okay?”
“Mmm…”
“I also want to hear why you quit~ That way I can introduce you to a really good job this time!”
Under Seonye’s smooth coaxing, Sihyun hesitated for a moment, then—
“Haa…”
—finally sighed and nodded.
“…Fine.”
“Great!”
Once she had his agreement, Seonye ordered a coffee with a satisfied smile. A little later, when Sihyun handed her the cup, she finally eased her body off the counter where she’d been leaning.
“I’ll come pick you up around closing time, so just wait for me~”
“Yes…”
Seonye didn’t mind Sihyun’s slightly half-hearted reply. She was already humming a light little tune as she headed for the exit.
But right then—
Ding-a-ling~
The café door’s cheerful little bell rang again, and another woman walked in.
Han Yuri? What’s she doing here? Don’t tell me…!
Seonye’s face hardened the instant she saw her. And from behind—
“Ah!”
—came Sihyun’s startled voice.
Yuri glanced around the café for a second, then—
“Ah. Found you.”
—spotted Sihyun at the counter and murmured under her breath. She started walking straight toward him, but the moment she did—
“Hm?”
—Seonye stepped right into her path. Only then did Yuri notice Seonye was there, and her expression twisted.
“Min Seonye. What are you doing here?”
Yuri glared at her with cold eyes full of killing intent. Seonye wasn’t about to back down.
“I should be asking you that. What brings you all the way out here?”
She glared right back with equally vicious eyes. Watching the two women face off, Sihyun thought to himself—
Ah… maybe I should quit the café job too.
—and the idea of looking for yet another new job rose up all on its own.