Chapter 51
"Phew, Jincheol. Park Jincheol."
"Ugh……."
"I'd really appreciate it if you stopped pissing me off. Yeah?"
Park Jincheol clutched his stomach, coughing repeatedly as he rolled on the ground. In the deserted alley, several students snickered at the sight of him. A few filmed his agonized writhing on video, while others spat phlegm near him and mocked him.
"Heard you were a big shot at your old school. But you're just dogshit, huh?"
Thud! A kick slammed down onto Park Jincheol as he gasped for breath, arms wrapped around his gut.
"Argh!"
His body jerked once, and the cluster of boys burst into laughter, finding it hilarious.
"Let's keep getting along from now on. Show up on time when I call, and quit making lame excuses."
The ringleader who'd beaten him thoroughly squatted down in front of him. He straightened the boy's disheveled uniform a bit and patted his cheek.
"Say something."
"Huff, huff, o-okay……."
Park Jincheol nodded with effort, and the boy grinned in satisfaction before standing up.
"Let's go."
"Hey, this kid's got a ton of cash in his wallet. Let's borrow some from our rich boy Jincheol and grab something to eat."
The group rifling through his wallet nearby chimed in. But the leader shook his head.
"What, you think we're delinquents? Why pull that crap? I'll cover it. Come on."
"Hell yeah, Hyeokmin's the man!"
"Hyeokmin! Hyeokmin!"
Cheering his name playfully, the pack of students filed out of the alley. Left alone, Park Jincheol uncurled his huddled body and sprawled out flat on the ground.
"Fuck……."
His battered body throbbed everywhere. After catching his breath lying there, he finally pushed himself up using the wall. He gathered his bag from a distance and the wallet they'd tossed aside, stuffing it inside. He straightened his uniform as best he could and gazed up at the sky.
"Ah, what the hell am I gonna tell Mom and Dad……."
His lip was already split, and his face scraped raw from hitting the asphalt. Even if he washed up and tidied himself before going home, his parents would notice for sure.
"Fuck……. Hic."
Tears he'd held back finally spilled out. The alley was empty, so no one would see him crying here. Jincheol leaned against the wall and sobbed for a long time. He had school tomorrow, and he'd have to face those guys again…… He just didn't have the courage.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
"Ah, even after signing that MOU, I had to throw a fit just to get you guys to come visit. This is too much."
Taesik beamed as he set down aloe juice in front of us. Instead of replying, I scanned the office.
They'd bragged about a remodel, but it was nothing like I'd imagined. I'd expected something sleek and modern, but it was just fresh yellowed wallpaper and a new sofa replacing the peeling leather one.
"Come on, sir, we all know you've been slacking since the Na Eun-seong case. Why act all high and mighty?"
"Boss, don't poke at sore spots……."
Kang Minjae set down his juice with a gloomy look.
After the Na Eun-seong case, we'd actually had some downtime. We'd taken on two pro bono cases from human rights groups, but they weren't major, so they didn't eat up much time like before. I felt fulfilled, but Minjae—the ultimate attention whore—wasn't satisfied. Whether it was the lack of pay or no media spotlight, he was always thirsty for the next big thing.
I'd told him to knock it off, but he'd just nod and then hunt for cases with fire in his eyes. Calling contacts to check if other firms had turned down anything too hot, or if prosecutors had loose ends. So to give him a breather, I'd finally caved to Taesik's nagging invites.
"Boss, got any cases we could take? Our lawyer here's loaded from before and just does pro bono now, no new hunts."
"Probo-what? What's that?"
"Nah, Bonobono's the cartoon character. Pro bono. You know, free legal work for social good."
"Whoa, lawyer sir's doing good deeds. Bonobono."
"Pro bono."
Kang Minjae seemed wary of Taesik at first, but after hugging it out recently, they were chummy now. Business ties meant frequent faces and good relations, which was fine…….
"Lawyer sir's sneakily annoying, right?"
"Ah, you feel it too, Lawyer Kang? He's the king of obnoxious. Total prick. Acts like hot shit all alone."
"Right? But the most annoying part is he's actually that good, so you can't even argue…… Haha, ha."
I turned from surveying the office to look at them, and Kang Minjae laughed awkwardly. Taesik too.
Front-talking right to my face. Proof they'd gotten comfy around me. I let it slide.
"They listening on the illegal stuff I told you to wrap up?"
Taesik nodded proudly at my question.
"We're going legit these days. Nothing big. Just helping a few wives gather evidence on cheating husbands, that's it…… Ah."
Counting on his fingers, he suddenly lit up.
"Oh, got one recent case……."
Bang!
A sudden boom hit at the worst timing. All eyes turned there—the office entrance.
Taesik shot up reflexively. I sighed. He'd sworn off illegal gigs, but this screamed that world.
"Ah, isn't that Jincheol's mom and dad? What brings you all the way here……."
Taesik's voice, braced for screams, came out surprisingly polite. Beyond the flung-open door stood a middle-aged couple in suits.
He rushed over, bowing deeply in panic. But they crossed their arms, faces full of displeasure.
"What the hell happened? Jincheol came home beaten yesterday!"
"Jincheol? No, he hasn't shown up outside the school gate after classes—we called, and he said he went home early. We thought……."
"Shouldn't you report that to us?"
"Ah, you didn't get the message? Must've slipped a staffer's mind. Truly sorry."
Taesik bowed again, and his crew bowed in unison, shouting.
"We're truly sorry!"
"……We trusted you wouldn't let shit like this happen, that's why we hired you. We'll find another outfit. Service sucks!"
Reading the room, Taesik had taken a protection gig for this 'Jincheol' kid. It'd failed, so the parents were pissed.
They looked well-off at a glance—wife with a luxury bag, husband sporting a designer watch.
"Ma'am, please calm down and have a seat first."
"Sit? You think I'm in the mood to chat with you crooks? Look what they did to our Jincheol—uniform torn, lip busted…… We paid top dollar to avoid this!"
"Ma'am…… We're truly sorry. We'll talk to staff, make sure it never happens again…… Ah!"
Mid-apology, Taesik's eyes widened. He pointed at me and Kang Minjae watching from the sofa.
"These two are lawyers partnered with our office. We were just about to discuss Jincheol. Perfect timing—let's talk together."
He turned to us, hands clasped in silent begging. We had partnered with his agency, but we'd just come to check the remodel.
"Right, ma'am. We were starting on Jincheol's case. Please sit. Our lawyer here's top-notch, civil and criminal. Know the Kim Cheol-hwan and Yeo Hee-sook murder? Heartless killer case?"
Sensing opportunity, Kang jumped up beside Taesik, pitching hard.
"……Yeah. So?"
"We handled that. Our lawyer exposed the real perp. And this too—the plagiarism in drama The Distance Between You and Me."
The couple softened a bit. She stared me down, cleared her throat, and sat on the sofa. Husband followed beside her.
"Let's hear your plan. Go on."
Taesik sat by me, nudging my side. Urging me to speak. Consultation was fair game with our tie-up, so I faced them.
"We just arrived, so we don't know the details yet. We're going to hear the situation first, then plan. Didn't expect you—mind explaining?"
She sighed long, emotions cooling.
"……Fine."
She paused, thinking, then spoke slowly.
"A few months ago, we transferred him to a good school district for better study vibes. That's when it started."