Taeseok's Fate (3)
A few days later, eleven days had passed. Jaehyuk stepped off the bus with Taeseok and Dahyun.
“Isn’t it a hassle to only use public transportation? That’s why I offered to bring my car.”
“It’s fine. Saves on your gas money too, right?”
“How much could that possibly…?”
“So where should we go first?”
At Jaehyuk’s question, Dahyun answered with bright, bubbly energy. “Let’s go to karaoke!! Karaoke!! And then play some pool!!”
“Dahyun wants to sing, huh?”
“It’s been a while. I feel like belting my heart out.”
The three of them spent a joyful time at the karaoke room, each taking turns singing. Jaehyuk watched Dahyun pour her soul into every song while Taeseok cheered her on with passionate praise. A quiet smile formed on Jaehyuk’s lips. It was as if he was savoring every bit of this happiness.
After that, they played several rounds of pool together. A few hours later, the trio emerged onto the street and strolled slowly through the bustling, crowded downtown area. Taeseok turned to Jaehyuk.
“So, what do you want to do for dinner?”
“Dinner? Hmm…”
Then Dahyun grinned and suggested, “How about beef?”
Taeseok smiled softly at her. “Sounds good. Let’s go eat some beef.”
“Yes!! Taeseok oppa is the best!!”
As she spoke, Dahyun casually slipped her arm through Taeseok’s. Jaehyuk watched the two of them with a warm, contented expression.
To Jaehyuk and Dahyun, Taeseok felt less like a neighbor or older brother and more like real family. The way he looked after Dahyun especially gave off the vibe of a protective eldest brother watching over his youngest sister.
The three arrived at the barbecue restaurant and took their seats. When the meat came out, Jaehyuk picked up the tongs and told Taeseok, “I’ll handle the grilling.”
“Great. Thanks, I appreciate it.”
Jaehyuk grilled the meat and gave a particularly large piece to Dahyun. Seeing this, Taeseok grinned at Jaehyuk. “Oh? Saving the big piece for your little sister? What about me?”
“Yours is this one.”
What Jaehyuk handed Taeseok was noticeably smaller than Dahyun’s portion. Taeseok tilted his head with an intrigued look. “Oho… Jaehyuk, what’s gotten into you?”
“Yeah, what’s up with that? Giving me the big piece??”
Dahyun stared at Jaehyuk with wide eyes. Jaehyuk found it too awkward to voice the thought in his heart, so he kept it to himself.
You need to eat a lot and stay healthy. Don’t get sick.
What he said out loud was, “Eat up and get nice and chubby so the boys stay away. I’m saving some poor guy’s life here.”
Taeseok burst into loud laughter. Dahyun, clearly deflated, pouted. “Puhahaha!! Dahyun, are you turning into a permanent solo because Jaehyuk keeps feeding you like this??”
“Tsk. I wondered what was up with you.”
Even so, Dahyun didn’t seem to mind Jaehyuk’s kindness; she happily ate the meat. Taeseok turned to Jaehyuk again.
“Jaehyuk. But isn’t Dahyun pretty? How can you keep teasing such a beautiful little sister? I don’t get it.”
At Taeseok’s praise, Dahyun looked rather pleased with herself. Jaehyuk stared at him with a dumbfounded expression. “……How’s your eyesight, hyung?”
“Mine? Both eyes are 2.0.”
At that moment, Dahyun dropped a bombshell while bragging about herself. “That’s just how you see it. Unlike you two eternal singles, I actually have a boyfriend, you know?”
Both Taeseok and Jaehyuk widened their eyes at her. Taeseok asked, “You have… a boyfriend???”
“Huh? Oh, yeah. We’ve been dating for just under fifty days now.”
Jaehyuk followed up, “It’s already been fifty days?”
“Yeah. At this rate, we might even make it to a hundred days.”
“Wow… That’s nice, Dahyun. You get to date and everything.”
Jaehyuk took a sip of water while watching her, then asked, “What kind of guy is he?”
“Why? Worried?”
“Not about you. About him.”
“Ugh… His name is Choi Jinseok. He’s in the class next to mine. He showed interest first, confessed, and we started dating.”
Taeseok responded, “Oh… So you got asked out first? As expected of our Dahyun. Total queen bee!!”
“Aish… Stop hyping me up so much. You’re making me dizzy.”
On the other hand, Jaehyuk’s reaction was rather lukewarm. “Hmm… I see.”
He kept sipping his water.
Choi Jinseok, huh… I should look into what kind of guy he is.
After finishing their meal at the barbecue place, the three were about to board a bus. From a distance, a man watched them and sent a message on his phone.
Kim Gyeonggeun, upon receiving the message, frowned deeply in displeasure and replied.
The reply came quickly.
Gyeonggeun muttered curses under his breath. “Fuck… Why the hell are they using public transport today… That bastard usually drives his own car everywhere…”
He sent another reply.
After sending the message, the man who had been watching Taeseok slipped into the shadows of an alley the moment Taeseok, Jaehyuk, and Dahyun boarded the bus.
A few minutes later, Jaehyuk, Taeseok, and Dahyun arrived at the bus stop near their apartment complex. Taeseok walked with them to see them home. When they reached the entrance of Jaehyuk’s apartment building, Taeseok said to Dahyun, “Let’s meet up again when you have time.”
“Okay. But… what about you, oppa…?”
“I’m going to grab a drink with Taeseok hyung nearby before heading back.”
“Got it. Don’t drink too much.”
Dahyun went inside first. Taeseok turned to Jaehyuk. “Shall we go drink?”
“Yeah.”
The two arrived at a nearby pub and ordered beer and chicken. The female server asked them, “Um… May I see your IDs…?”
Taeseok grinned and handed over his ID. “Ah, I’m twenty-eight this year.”
Jaehyuk showed his ID and said flatly, “I just started university this year.”
The server smiled at both of them. “Thank you.”
Once she left, Taeseok kept grinning at Jaehyuk. “Guess I still look young. Do I really look that young?”
“Hmm… Well. You look exactly your age.”
A short while later, the beer and chicken arrived. Jaehyuk and Taeseok filled their glasses and clinked them together.
“Congratulations on becoming an adult, kiddo.”
“It’s been eight months since I became an adult. No need to make a big deal out of it…”
“Still, this is the first time we’re drinking together, isn’t it?”
“It is the first time. Though I did drink with some seniors after starting university.”
As they drank, Jaehyuk suddenly asked, “Hyung. Haven’t there been any big cases lately?”
“Cases??”
Taeseok recalled the photos and videos on the USB he had secured a few days ago, but answered casually. Maybe he didn’t want Jaehyuk to worry.
“No. Nothing.”
“Really?”
“Of course. No major incidents.”
Jaehyuk took another sip of beer, then spoke as if giving advice. “Hyung. I know work and duty are important, but more than anything, I hope you put your own life first and take care of yourself.”
Taeseok’s expression hardened slightly. He fell silent for a moment as if deep in thought, then said, “……Jaehyuk. I know you’re worried about me, but if even I don’t do this, who will? Honestly, the police these days are a complete mess. They take bribes, bury investigations… It’s no wonder citizens lump us all together and call us ‘watchdogs.’”
He downed the rest of his beer in one go and continued.
“But I… I want to show people that even among all these rotten cops, there are still real police officers. That way, citizens might hold onto a little bit of hope and trust us. And we have to protect and safeguard the safety of those who believe in us. That’s what the people’s baton is supposed to do.”
Jaehyuk filled Taeseok’s empty glass. Taeseok sighed and asked, “Jaehyuk.”
“Yeah?”
“You… You won’t become like those guys… right…? You won’t turn into a corrupt police executive… right…?”
At Taeseok’s worried question, Jaehyuk answered with firm confidence. “Of course not. Whose little brother do you think I am?”
“Good. That’s how it should be.”
They clinked glasses again. Taeseok then asked, “By the way, when are you going to the military?”
Suddenly, Jaehyuk felt a chill run down his spine and froze. Having regressed to his third year of high school, he now faced the reality that, as an adult, he would have to enlist again.
Ah… Fuck…???
“Oh, now that I think about it, I heard police academy students didn’t have to do regular military service…”
“It wasn’t completely exempt. Everyone still had to go through four weeks of basic training at the training center. Then they received eight weeks of education at the police training institute, and they could commute during that period.”
“That sounds like a sweet deal. It’s not like that anymore, is it?”
“……No. Now it’s the same as everyone else.”
Jaehyuk gulped down his beer with a complicated expression.
Fuck… Enlisting twice… Enlisting in the military twice…
A few days later, at the Crown Hotel.
A white man with black hair, wearing a black short-sleeved shirt, black jeans, and black combat boots—Denis—stood in front of room 908. He slowly knocked on the door and spoke in Russian.
“Come in.”
Denis entered the room. Inside, three men were seated in chairs, engaged in conversation. The men were Ivan Belov, a high-ranking executive of the Komarov Bratva, Im Kanghun, the manager of the Crown Hotel, and Kim Gyeonggeun, a high-ranking officer from the National Police Agency.
Ivan introduced him in Russian. Kanghun translated for Gyeonggeun.
“This is my brother-in-law. He’s well-known within the organization for his exceptional skill in handling tasks. He speaks Korean fluently, so feel free to speak comfortably.”
Gyeonggeun smiled after hearing the translation and asked Denis in Korean, “Can you stage someone’s death as an accident?”
Denis replied in fluent Korean, “First, give me information on the target.”
Gyeonggeun handed over documents containing information on Taeseok. Denis scanned through them and asked, “I only need to handle this one police officer?”
“Yes. And he might have copies of the materials we want, so if you go to Min Taeseok’s house, please check every electronic device inside thoroughly.”
Denis remained expressionless for a moment before asking Ivan in Russian, “What’s the pay? Did they offer extra?”
“Ten million rubles.”
Ten million rubles was roughly one hundred and forty million won. Denis then asked Gyeonggeun in Korean, “By when do you need it done?”
“The sooner the better.”
“Then I’ll begin the operation tomorrow.”
At Denis’s words, Gyeonggeun showed a satisfied smile.