The 1st Shop Of Coffee Prince (translated) Part II

*
*Chapter Twelve* Rebel With a Cause Part I



< Part 1 >


En Chan was in the men's room with her ears perked. If someone walked in, she would stand in front of the urinal with her legs apart and flush it. She'd smile brightly and wave her hand in greeting.


“Hi!”


“What is that? Waving your hand like a girl.”


Psh. En Chan washed her hands and hurried out of the bathroom. She'd begun this ridiculous show a few days ago when Ha Rim had said jokingly,


“You know, I've never seen you change your clothes. Hey Sun Ki hyung, have you ever seen En Chan hyung change his clothes? Nak Kyun, you've never seen it before either, right? Where do you hide when you change? Do you have a tattoo or something? Or a huge scar?”


So she began to put on this show once a day to wave away any suspicion. She had to be especially careful of Ha Rim, who kept yapping about her being sexy or whatnot and making her stomach go cold. She'd never paid so much attention do anything she'd done before. The weather getting nicer and nicer worried her as well. What was she going to do during summer, the season of skin exposure? Damn, my head hurts just thinking about it.


Nak Kyun hadn't come to work, and couldn't be reached at all today. En Chan, who'd finished the morning chores, was sitting down to a cup of morning coffee. There was no sign of customers today, either. The only action they'd seen was a few women who'd dropped by last night. How was he planning to raise sales 300% like this?


En Chan sighed and sat down at the computer. She'd remembered that Seung Kyung had said she'd sent her an e-mail during their farewell party.



Hello~ Master (- -) (_ _) (^ ^) It's Seung Kyung. “^▼^”
Thank you so much for teaching me until now. Thanks
to Master, Seung Kyung's body is much more healthy
now. ^m^ It's so sad that I can't see Master every day
anymore. o(T^T)o Mom enrolled me in a dojo down by
the intersection. (ㅠ.ㅠ) It'd be so nice if Master came to
that dojo! (^----------^) Even if the dojo's been closed
down, Seung Kyung will drop by to see you. Eat well and
always be happy! >>-------►♥ Seung Kyung really likes
Master. (♥ ♥) Seung Kyung will become a good person
just like master. Aja! o(-”-)o Good bye.
Have a good day. (*^-^) I'll e-mail you again. (~.^)

Sincerely,

Your Pretty Seung Kyung



En Chan was reading the e-mail, her nose tingling, when a shadow fell over the monitor.


“What are these, letters or pictures?”


“It's all heart. (sniff)”


“You crying?”


“Well, it's very touching.”


Getting up from the chair, En Chan sniffled as she escaped to the counter. Her heart hurt at the thought that she'd let go of Tae Kwon Do, something she'd done almost every day since elementary school. She didn't when she'd be able to teach the children again, if she taught them at all....


“Nak Kyun hasn't come in yet. He's not picking up his phone, either,” said Mr. Hong as he handed Han Kyul a cup of coffee. “He got a phone call yesterday just before closing time. He ran out with his face looking like rotten tofu. I think he's got trouble at home or something.”


“I'll try calling him again.”


En Chan picked up her phone when Han Kyul said,


“Leave him. He already called me.”


“He called you? What'd he say?”


“He quit.”


Everyone stared at Han Kyul, surprised. Even Sun Ki and Ha Rim, who came out from cleaning the bathroom, crowded around him.


“Why? What happened?”


“He said something came up so he quit. I told him to go ahead.”


“What? You just told him to go ahead? You didn't ask what was wrong?”


“If he wanted to tell me, he would've told me.”


“How could you not even ask him?”


“I don't need quitters.”


“Still....”


“All right, gather around. I have something to say.”


Han Kyul began to talk about something, but En Chan's head was busy thinking about Nak Kyun. She regretted that she hadn't gotten to know Nak Kyun. Even though they were coworkers, she didn't know much about Ha Rim or Sun Ki. A sense of responsibility that had been carved into her as the eldest daughter made her anxious to contact Nak Kyun.


“Ko En Chan, are you even listening?”


“Y-yes?”


En Chan made a sheepish face at the gazes on her face and asked blandly,


“What are we talking about?”


“He's asking about our impressions of the first few days. Why do you think we're not getting any business?”


“I-I wonder....”


“It's not that our coffee tastes bad, and the atmosphere is perfect.”


“We've even got a dashing owner and good looking employees, right?”


Ha Rim and Mr. Hong drummed to the same beat.


“What about you, Sun Ki?”


“I really don't know.” At his serious answer, the mood plunged back down.


“If only people actually walked by this place...” mumbled En Chan to herself before looking at Mr. Hong and saying, “You said so yourself before, didn't you? The people in this neighborhood are all working people, so no one has the time to sit down for a leisurely cup of coffee.”


“That's true. Most people here are young business workers. When work ends, they go downtown; they don't stick around here in the outskirts.”


“In the afternoons, there's practically no one. Other than in the morning when people go to work, lunch time and quitting time, it's hard to see anyone. It's like a ghost town,” said En Chan spookily. The room went silent. Then suddenly Han Kyul straightened his back and said,


“We've got to change strategies. Let's switch to take-out.”


“What? Star already does that. There's no distinction.”


“We just have to open earlier than Star does. I'll get the disposable cups and things ready, so let's begin as soon as we can.”


“Then what time are we supposed to come to work, exactly?” Ha Rim asked in a complaining tone. What could he possibly complain about? He's the one that slept in the store. All he had to do was open his eyes. If anyone should be complaining it should be Sun Ki who lived— wait a minute, where did Sun Ki live? En Chan stared at Sun Ki, full of curiosity.


“We're going to open at 7, so you'll have to come in at least half an hour before.”


“Whaat?”


Everyone made a face as if to say they were dead, but no one said it aloud. This was because they knew just how bad a situation the store was in.


En Chan followed a suddenly very busy Han Kyul around asking,


“Show me Nak Kyun's resume.”


“Why?”


“Aren't you even curious, sajangnim? The kid just suddenly up and quits, and you're not even worried?”


“There you go sticking your nose in other peoples' business again. He's an adult. If he's got a problem, he'll handle it. Even if it's difficult, it's his own business, and even if he needs help, it's his own responsibility to ask for it. How do you even have time to worry about other people? You can't even take care of yourself.”


Grrr! If only he wasn't the sajang!


“But still, he's a coworker, like a family member. How can you be so uncaring? He's only just twenty-one, what can he know? Were you a full adult by the time you were twenty-one? Do people draw a line at age twenty and say, you're a kid before you hit this line and then an adult after you pass it? People develop gradually. What kind of sajang are you? You have zero affection toward your employees. How can I work under such a cold sajang?”


“Then you quit too.”


En Chan hissed.


“You put those lips right back in.”


“Just give me his address.”


“Shut up. Go feed the fish.”


A pouting En Chan clenched her fists and went to feed the fish. On her way toward the tank, her gaze went to the glass vases. A very good idea came into her mind. She smiled mischievously and snickered to herself.





*
*Chapter Twelve* Rebel With a Cause Part II





< Part 2 >


That afternoon.


“Gather 'round!”


Tsk tsk. How far apart could we be scattered in this snot-sized coffee shop to have to 'gather 'round'?


En Chan swallowed her laughter and walked toward Han Kyul with a blank look on her face. The two female customers sitting by the window turned around and watched them as if wondering what was going to happen.


“Who did this?”


“Did what? Did something happen?” En Chan asked innocently. Even when a fierce look flew to her face, En Chan stubbornly stared it down with a guile-less expression.


“You did it, didn't you?”


“Did what? I've got to know if I'm going to answer.”


“Oh! That....” Just then Sun Ki pointed to the glass vases. The eight vases lay in a neat row full of blooming pink petunias.


“What about it?”


Ha Rim took in a sharp breath. He wanted to burst out laughing, but the sajang was still sharpening his knives of suspicion. Even if she received suspicion, she wasn't about to fess up to it, so she feigned ignorance.


“What? I don't see anything strange.”


“The rocks in the vases. The white stones are mixed with the black ones.”


Everyone knew that it was En Chan's handiwork, but no one showed it on the outside. Only Han Kyul glared coldly down at En Chan like a prince of ice.


“Fix it.”


“Me?” She pretended to flinch under the unrelenting glare, but she didn't give up. “I think it looks quite nice that way. White stones and black stones mixed together like that, it seems friendly somehow. Don't you think so, Ha Rim?”


“I-I don't know.”


“I'm going to go finish my coffee book now.”


Everyone hurried away from the line of fire until only En Chan and Han Kyul were left in front of the mini garden.


“What do you care so much for? It's not like you care one bit about your own employees.”


“Ko En Chan, come here!”


“I have to wipe down the tables outside. The kids who came by left crumbs.”


En Chan picked up the dishrag and came outside. When En Chan went back inside, Han Kyul had taken all the stones out of the vases and was re-segregating them. That there is a disease in itself. The vase always had to be in the same place, the row could never be even the slightest bit crooked, the tables and chairs had to be exactly 12 cm apart from each other. To this, Ha Rim and En Chan have only one thing to say:


How so very HanKyulistic.


Around dinnertime, Han Kyul called En Chan over and said,


“You still hang out with those kinds of kids?”


She'd thought he was going to scold her for the stone-mixing incident, but his words were unexpected.


“You still making trouble with that mugger boy? Is your situation really that bad?”


“What are you saying? Are you asking me if I do night-work or scam people with that punk?”


“Yea.”


“Ha. Thanks for being so clear.”


En Chan was so incredulous she asked in an attacking voice,


“And what if I was? What are you going to do about it?”


Han Kyul simply stared at her. En Chan felt her cheeks growing hot so she gave a cough. She scratched her face and laughed awkwardly.


“Kidding, kidding. That kid... he's just someone I happen to know.”


Even En Chan had to admit that there was a suspicious nuance to her situation. But that was the truth. To be honest, she'd only heard his name once from En Se, so she didn't even remember his name too well. En Se usually called him 'that idiot punk' or 'the engineering high school moron'.


“Why are you asking anyway? You're not worried that I'd still be hanging out with him, are you? There's no way our sajangnim could be worried about me, right? His heart is ice, pure ice. Even if one of his employees just up and quits he doesn't even ask the reason.....”


“Go and change your clothes.”


“Huh? It's not closing time yet.”


“You asked for his resume, didn't you?”


En Chan's eyes grew as wide as bells, and so did the eyes of all the other employees who had been listening in on their conversation. They looked at each other as if to say, what's come over that guy?


“Y-you're coming, too?” stammered En Chan.


“Y-Y-yes, I am,” mocked Han Kyul as he threw his jacket on. “It looks like you're going to be bugging me about it for a considerable length of time, so it's probably better that I be bugged once by going with you.”


“It's something you should do anyway, so don't be so patronizing.”


“Oh, you don't want to go?”


“N-no, no! Just wait right here. I'll be right back in ten seconds.”


En Chan took her clothes out of the cabinet and automatically ran towards the bathroom, not even noticing that Han Kyul was watching her do so.


After hurriedly changing her clothes, she waved to the employees and flew into Han Kyul's car. She called Nak Kyun throughout the entire ride, but he didn't pick up.


“Sajangnim, give me your phone for a minute. I think he's not picking up because he's avoiding my number.”


“He doesn't pick up my calls either.”


“When did you try calling him?”


“When I was picking the stones apart, all right?”


En Chan burst out laughing. The hilarious image of Han Kyul squatting on the floor picking the stones apart came back to her.


“You'll rip your mouth, laughing like that.”


En Chan was laughing hysterically, tears streaming down her face, even. She found herself slapping Han Kyul's shoulder.


“Is that really that funny?”


“I-It's not that....” she managed to say between pants. “B-before, my dad.... we were living in an apartment back then. He was wrestling with me in the living room when we knocked over a basket of peas that was on the veranda.” En Chan could breathe regularly now, but her voice was still full of excitement. The basket of peas well into the garden so we got scolded like crazy by my mom, and my dad and I ended up having to pick up peas all afternoon. I was just reminded of that.”


En Chan began to feel strange, so she shut her mouth. When En Chan quieted down, Han Kyul turned the music on. Songs without lyrics always made En Chan sleepy. She leaned her head against the window, watching the lights go by, and very soon, had fallen asleep.




*
*Chapter Twelve* Rebel With a Cause Part III



< Part 3 >


A few days later.


Dong Yi Pharmaceuticals had purchased a large volume of shares of the Dong Yi group's core project, Dong Yi Foods. Because of this incident, the mood in his house was that of a night before the storm. The fight for the management rights of the company had truly begun. Han Kyul was afraid to go back to that landmine field called home. Not to mention, he had his own problems.


To be honest, he had worried, initially, what he would do if Coffee Prince turned out to be too big of a success. If it was a big enough success to grant him freedom from the company, he would have to do something fantastic to show everyone that his freedom was justified. To tell the truth, though, he didn't know what he would do, and there wasn't anything he really wanted to do. Maybe it was because of this arrogance, but sales were truly horrific.


And there was another, bigger problem. Ko En Chan. He was confused about how to deal with this kid. Every so often, the kid would look.... well..... goddamn it, he would look pretty to him! It was the kid's fault for being such an overly pretty boy. Han Kyul felt like he was really going to lose it.


“Choi Han Kyul, are you even listening to me?”


“Huh? Oh, yea, yea, I'm listening,” answered Han Kyul carelessly. When he saw that Yu Ju was scowling at him, he apologized. “Sorry. Something's kind of bugging me.”


“Then let's hear it. It doesn't look like you're willing to come to the gallery extension party anyway.”


“Oh, when is that again?”


“The day after tomorrow.”


“I'll go. You came to my opening, didn't you?”


“Oh, my, how gracious of you. Now, why don't you go ahead and tell me what's been bugging Choi Han Kyul these days?”


“Nah. It's nothing. Tell me about you. Have you talked to Han Sung hyung recently?”


“That really is nothing. Let's just drink.”


The two of them buried what they wanted to talk about in their hearts and drank their beers. Soon, they looked at each other and smiled at the same time. Han Kyul opened his hand and said,


“Ladies first.”


“It really is nothing... Obba still thinks I'm terrible, and even though I've only now begun to regret what I've done, I'm still saddened by the fact that he thinks I'm terrible. It's like that right now. There's no progress at all.”


“Hyung's a perfectionist, you know that. There's no aftereffect, but that's just how cold-hearted he is.”


“I know. That's why I'm just taking it. It was his birthday a few days ago.”


“It was?”


“I went to the company with a gift.”


“Woah, Han Yu Ju, pulling all the stops, ey?”


“I ran right into your grandmother.”


“Man, nobody can escape that old fishing needle.”


“I'm just glad I didn't run into his mother.”


“You've got to understand Aunt's feelings. What kind of mother would say 'thanks for stopping by' to the woman who dumped her son?”


“I know that too. Even if obba takes me back, his mother won't allow it. But life is full of 'if's', so I've got to have hope.”


“You've grown, Han Yu Ju. I think it's a good thing for you to have gone abroad to study. Before, I used to think you seemed like some kind of puppet, letting hyung toss you around like that.”


“You sure say some nice things. Sometimes when I look at you, you're so similar to obba. Your words are always so cold, and you look down on other people.”


“And yet I'm still so very attractive?”


“Psh.”


“Tell me about meeting Grandma.”


“She asked me to join her for lunch so the three of us, Grandmother, obba, and I, ate lunch together. Obba stayed mum the entire time and did nothing but eat. Grandmother and I ended up conversing only with each other.”


“I can imagine.”


At the time when Han Yu Ju broke off her engagement to Han Sung, her father was a senator. When he realized that the house he was marrying his daughter into was rife with slush fund and bribe scandals, he'd ruthlessly commanded Yu Ju to cut off all connections to them in order to prove their own innocence. Yu Ju was essentially forced into America, and Han Sung had had to deal with a broken engagement on top of his father's death. Because of this incident, even the love that the two had shared had grown cold. The way Han Kyul saw it, the bridge that connected their two hearts hadn't been broken. It was simply frozen over, and the river beneath it was no longer flowing....


“Let's stop talking about such dull things and listen to your story.”


“It's not important or anything,” Han Kyul began. He moistened his throat with beer. “There's a kid who works in the store, and his family's in a tight spot. He quit a few days back so I went to see him, and it turns out his father runs a roadside snack cart.”


“You actually went to his house yourself?”


“Yea, it just happened that way. There's another kid that drives me crazy all the time. Well, I went because that kid kept bugging me to go, but the important thing is that the other kid's father had injured his hips a few days ago, so he'd come out to work in his father's stead. He'd go out to buy ingredients and cook and everything, all by himself.”


“No mother?”


“Yea. He's got a little sister though. 10th grade.”


“That's too bad.”


“He usually looks so well-balanced, I couldn't have even imagined he was in such a bad situation.”


“There are lots of kids like that who have to stand in the front lines in their parents' place.”



To tell the truth, the that wasn't what was really bugging him. Apparently, ever since that day, En Chan had started helping out at the snack cart late at night. That morning, Han Kyul had caught him dozing off and was about to scold him when Mr. Hong let him know. En Chan had said that he knew that Nak Kyun's father's injury wasn't something that would heal quickly, but that he wanted to help out until he recovered at least somewhat.


“Why don't you just help them out financially?”


“He went crazy when I suggested it, saying I should never do that.”


“Went crazy? Who did?”


“Ko En Chan. According to him, apparently it's one of the worst ways to hurt a guy's pride.”


“Do you really think so?”


“He said he knew because it'd happened to him before. He's saying no matter what, he'd protect his family himself. According to him, having pity money thrown at you in by some spoiled brat is the most infuriating experiences ever. What kind of stubbornness is that, don't you think? I mean, what kind of pride is that? Real pride is knowing when to receive other peoples' help, and to pay back what you've been given. But this kid calls that the male's instinct to protect its own territory, or something. That kid... he forces absurd terms on every situation.”


Han Kyul, who had emptied his bottle, felt that Yu Ju was gazing at him.


“What?”


“So you decided not to give them the money?”


“Yea.”


“Because of what this En Chan person said?”


“You don't know because you haven't had endure him.”


“Do you know something? You just said 'according to him' twice. Like you're quoting Confucious or something. I've never heard you reiterate anything anyone's said before like that. It's rather fascinating. I kind of want to meet this person.”


“That kid's probably at the snack cart right now. He sticks his in nose into everybody's business.”


Han Kyul recalled the un-erasable memory of the time he'd kissed En Chan. The image of the boy's face dripping with water after the basketball game floated up as well. The sensation on his hand when he'd unconsciously stretched out to touch his chin.... How could this kid be so soft? There was definitely something strange about the way he changes alone in the restroom. He'd felt it in the hotel as well, but En Chan was overly feminine. He was fragrant, and soft, and warm...


“Hey, Yu Ju, I'm sorry, I've got to go somewhere.”


“Huh? Where?”


“Sorry. I'll see you later—I mean, I'll see you at the gallery extension party. Take care.”


Han Kyul picked up his jacket and left the cafe. He then got into a cab and headed toward Nak Kyun's roadside snack cart.



*
*Chapter Thirteen* I'm happy to be a woman Part I



< Part 1 >


It had become part of En Se's daily routine to stop by the store. Insisting that she was dropping by on her way to cram school, she made her way to the store everyday to get a free cup of coffee. She didn't talk much as she drank, or do much, but she came to drink coffee without fail. She really was a useless little sister.


Mr. Hong and Sun Ki had already left, and En Chan was preparing to leave. She was planning to go to the snack cart. Nak Kyun's father, who felt uncomfortable leaving the cart alone with Nak Kyun, always came out to watch. That was why she felt strangely guilty if she came late and Nak Kyun was getting ready by himself.


En Chan, who had been hurriedly changing out of her clothes, got her hair stuck in her shirt buttons.


“Ow!”


She was straining to untangled her hair from the buttons when the door was flung open.


“Who is it?!”


En Chan froze. In her rush, she'd forgotten to lock the door.


“Oh, it's you.”


Once he entered the room, Ha Rim's gaze landed squarely on En Chan's undershirt. The bandage was wound around her under the shirt, but the protruding curves hadn't been completely suppressed.


“Hy-hyung....”


Not only that, but there was something inexplicably strange about the collarbone area or the curves leading down from the neck to the shoulders.


“He-help me with this....”


En Chan held her head, hair still entangled in the shirt buttons, out toward him. Waddling forward uncertainly, Ha Rim hesitated, as if unsure of where to put his hands, before managing to grasp her hair. The inside of his mind was completely white, and he didn't know what to say. When at last he backed away holding the shirt in his hand, En Chan quickly put her own clothes on.


“Wh-what do you think you're doing, barging into the bathroom without even knocking?”


“H-hyung.... are you......”


“If you tell anyone, I'll kill you.”


En Chan came out of the bathroom pulling on her jumper. Her heart raced insanely, but she tried hard to seem calm.


“H-hyung... so you're really......”


Why, oh why, did it have to be Ha Rim?! Of all the people she could've been found out by, why did it have to be the guy with the biggest mouth?!


“a-aa-aaaAAAAAAACCCCKKKK!!!” shouted Ha Rim from behind. En Chan turned around and glared at him as he jumped around in a frenzy. “No way! No freakin way! It's not true!! AACK!”


“Ya.”


“Ko En Chan a girl? Ko En Chan? A g-girl? A girl? AACK!”


Ha Rim was making a spectacle of himself, kicking chairs and hitting his head against the walls.


“YA!”


Unable to stand by and watch anymore, En Chan ran to Ha Rim and held him down. Ha Rim ran away from her in terror.


“D-don't touch me. Don't lay a hand on my body.”


“Why, you little....”


En Chan, who'd been about to get angry, decided against it and began to plead.


“Ha Rim, I'm begging you. You can't ever, ever tell anyone. Ok? Got that?”


“Wh-why did you lie? So you could work here?”


“I didn't start out meaning to lie, but somehow somethings just happened and here we are.”


“Then what was the whole standing-while-you-pee thing about?”


Ha Rim's eyes swept up and down, scrutinizing En Chan's body. When his gaze remained an especially long time on her chest, En Chan lost her patience and smacked up upside the head. Ha Rim staggered, but still kept his eyes on En Chan's body.


“I knew it. I thought it was strange. That's why you wear your uniform a size larger than normal, right? Hip hop fashion my ass. Tsk tsk. Now it makes sense. I just figured, since you were so small, your 'thing' was probably the size of a peanut, too. It never showed through your pants.”


Grrr, stay calm, stay calm. If you want to keep this big mouth sealed, you have to stay calm. How nice it would've been if it had been Sun Ki.


“Oh my God, I really can't deal with this. I need a Tylenol.” She was watching Ha Rim move toward the kitchen when she noticed that the clock read 11 PM.


“You really can't tell anyone, all right? If you tell anyone, I'm going to tell everybody that you're sleeping here. Got it?”


“But hyung, I mean, nuna, why does your sister call you oppa? Did you guys plan that too?”


“No, she's just like that.”


“Well, I'll admit, it's hella confusing. Your chest is nearly..... maybe you're just sexless?”


“Fine. Make fun of me all you want. I gotta go.”


“Wh-where are you going! If you leave me here like this I might die from the shock. My heart is already beating funny. I feel like I'm going to go insane from the confusion my emotions have been thrown into.”


“Then just go insane.”


“I'm not ready to accept it yet, so just give me a minute here. No, how can anyone be ready for something like this? Who could've imagined? Who else knows, other than me? Nobody?”


“Mr. Hong. Seriously, if you tell anyone, especially the sajang, I'm really going to kill you.”


“My heart doesn't feel like my heart right now. Oh, I'm dizzy.”


Watching Ha Rim playfully fall onto his mattress, En Chan had to force herself to keep her anger in check. Ha Rim had already made his way out of his shock and was making a mischievous face. It seemed the thoughtless kid found this situation pretty amusing.


En Chan shook off Ha Rim, who insisted she had to stay with him until he'd calmed down, and left the store.


“Crazy bastard. (sigh) Bravo, my life. How I ended up getting caught by that guy, I'll never know...”


She was leaving the store, muttering to herself, when some car pulled up in front of the entrance. It looked like it was trying to park itself in front of the store. She was heading toward it to let the owner know that the spot had to be vacated by the morning when the driver got out of the car.


“Hey!”


“Is the store closed already?”


“H-hello, how are you?”


It was bubble wrap man. It seemed she was having a bad-luck day. She kept running into men who knew her true identity.


“Sajangnim has already left.”


He'd gone out after having received some woman's phone call. For some reason, her intuition told her that it was the woman who'd come to the opening, the one who'd almost had her purse mugged. Judging by the fact that her intuition was still alive and kicking, she was, without a doubt, still a woman. The sajang had shot out of the store, his expression and feet light. Seeing that hadn't made her feel good. It was probably because she disapproved of a sajang who kept running off to fool around.


“I didn't come here to meet Han Kyul. I came here to meet you.”


“To meet me?”


“Get in. It looks like you're off for the night; I'll give you a ride home.”


“No, tha—” En Chan, who had been about to refuse, decided to take him up on his offer since she was late and so that she wouldn't have to pay for transportation. “In that case, can you take me to where I need to go?”


“Sounds good. Get in.”


Looks like I'm getting to ride in luxury cars pretty often these days. En Chan exclaimed over the wide interior and then snuck a glance at Han Sung. The car slid through the streets without a sound. They say you can tell a lot about a person by the way they drive. This man drove deftly while steering the car calmly and accurately at the same time. His neat suit became him very well. Gold cuff links and a tie-pin, there wasn't a single flaw in his appearance.


En Chan asked, feeling a bit humbled,


“What was it you wanted to talk to me about?”


“Last time, you asked me not to get you in trouble, right?”


Ack! So this cheapskate was about demand something from her. Man, and here I was thinking he looked like a good person. It seems he's rich, too. Skin a flea for its hide, why don't you.


“Do me one favor.”


“What is it?” asked En Chan crossly, not bothering to mask the annoyance in her voice.


“Spend a day, no, an afternoon and evening with me.”


“Huh? To do what? Nothing like household chores or anything, right? I can't do anything.” En Chan furiously shook her head as she explained. “I might be a girl by name, but I can't do anything that other girls can do. I can't cook, can't wash dishes, can't do the laundry. If I try cleaning, I end up breaking everything instead. You saw it, didn't you? I got cut from Da Soop after just two days. There was a reason why.”


“It's nothing like that, so don't worry. Just think of it as a date with me.”


“A d-date?” En Chan jumped in her seat in surprise, and the man looked at her and, of all things, laughed delightedly. The car arrived at the street where the snack cart was.


“Judging from your reaction, you've never been on a date, have you?”


“I-it's not that, it's just... y-you've got strange tastes, haven't you? Stop right here, please.”


The man snickered again and then said as he parked the car,


“I'll come by to pick you up the day after tomorrow at three.”


“N-no! Don't come to pick me up. If sajangnim sees me, I'll be in big trouble.”


“Then I'll need your phone number.”


The man held out his cell phone.


“Do you really have to do this?” En Chan said, looking at Han Sung suspiciously.


The sajang had called him hyung, right? His car was nice, his style was good, and it didn't seem like he was a bad person; but then bad people didn't go around wearing labels that said what they were.


“And with this, you'll never mention anything ever again, right?”


En Chan felt trapped, but she had no choice but to punch her number into his cell phone. She didn't think that the man was interested in her or that he was attracted to her. His expression said as much. He looked dry, as one speaks to another about matters of business.


“Is this a real date?”


“Is there such a thing as a fake one?” The man nodded and saved the number in his cell phone.









En Chan, who'd gotten out of the car, walked toward Nak Kyun's snack cart full of mixed feelings and confused thoughts. At the same time, she heard a rough voice.


“Hey, mister, who said you could start doing business here again?!”


Han Sung, who had been about to drive away, stopped and looked at the gangsters. En Chan, surprised, dashed over. It was the bastards who'd injured Nak Kyun's father's hip.


“Yo! Go away! Go stuff your face somewhere else! Shit! Hey, assholes, I told you to buzz off!”


“Fuckin' a, you'd better do as we say!”


The gangsters were driving customers away with curses.


“I thought we told you to either pay the street tax, or get the hell out of our turf, old man!”


There were four in the pack. They began to break the cart apart.


“Who the hell do you guys think you are, you assholes!” shouted Nak Kyun. Watching Nak Kyun's furious eyes as he ran into the gangster, En Chan thought to herself, Even if I can't be a Tae Kwon Do master anymore, I've got no choice.


“Hey, mister! Grab your son!”


En Chan flew into the air and executed a brilliant double jump side kick. Jump lightly and then a turning wheel kick.


“Eyaht!”


It may be that she had learned Tae Kwon Do for this kind of day. To protect the weak and the innocent people of the world. But this was still violence in the face of violence, so En Chan tried to finish the fight quickly by targeting vital spots.


“What is going on here?!”


Han Sung came running. Seeing Han Sung arrive next to her, En Chan shouted,


“Don't get closer! You'll get hurt!”


“Even so, I'm still a man. You stand back.”


Han Sung suddenly got in front of En Chan. En Chan started in surprise at the man's back which had suddenly appeared in front of her. Han Sung took off his jacket and tossed it at En Chan.


“Women should just hold onto things like that.”


En Chan received the jacket, completely dumbfounded. She had no idea how to react because she'd never been treated like this before. When was the last time, if at all, someone had done something for her?


Seeing Han Sung's fist carry its own, En Chan thought to herself, oho, pretty good. But she soon saw that Nak Kyun was in trouble, so she ran over to help him.


“Nak Kyun! Get out of the way!”


Right then, she heard a familiar voice shouting from somewhere.


“What the fuck!!”


Huh? WHAT?! That man was....


“You fuckers, what the fuck!”


En Chan did a double take when she saw Han Kyul, who'd suddenly jumped into the fray. She saw him take a punch to the face and fall down. Wh-what the hell was with this ahjussi?!


“Sajangnim!”





*
*Chapter Thirteen* I'm happy to be a woman Part II



< Part 2 >


Nak Kyun ran over to Han Kyul and helped him up. Even more outraged, Han Kyul thrust Nak Kyul away and ran in violently again.


“You assholes are all dead!”


Why the hell are you here, goddamn it!


En Chan wanted to finish things up quickly. Right then, a siren sounded from a distance. Apparently, a customer had called the cops. The gangsters ran away, leaving En Chan standing stupefied, in the middle of the chaotic mess. Han Kyul ran after the gangsters, chasing them until god-knows-where.


“Mister, are you alright?”


Han Sung dealt with the police when they arrived. En Chan watched him deal with the police in a calm and collected manner. For some reason, whe felt reassured.


“Nak Kyun, take your father and go home. I'll clean up here.”


Nak Kyun looked like he wasn't thinking anything. He was looking at the scene of pandemonium with a dumb expression on his face. Then he said in a hollow voice,


“I guess I can go back to the construction site now... It's probably for the best....”


So Nak Kyun hadn't much approved of working at the snack cart. After Nak Kyun had led his father home, Han Kyul limped into view. She didn't know how far he'd chased them, but he was sweating up a storm.


En Chan, who'd been clearing away the dishes and the broken chairs and tables, stopped what she was doing and looked at Han Kyul. There was blood on the side of his mouth. En Chan picked up a roll of tissues that was lying on the ground and went toward him.


“Why'd you come here anywa—”


The moment she tried to wipe the blood away, Han Kyul collapsed to the ground. His legs had given away. En Chan squatted on the floor and took Han Kyul's chin, lifting it up.


“Phew, you smell like alcohol. Did you drink before coming here? That's why all your punches hit nothing but air.”


He slapped her hand away irritatedly.


“Water.”


Then he wiped the blood away with the back of his hand. Ooh, Mr. Tough Guy, huh? En Chan sighed and stood up. She poured some water into a cup she picked up off of the ground. Normally, he wouldn't have even touched it on accounts of germs or something, but he snapped it out of her hand and gulped it down. Must've been real thirsty, huh?


“Are you ok?”


“Who the hell were those bastards?”


“Gangsters. This is their turf, I think.”


“What the hell were they bitching about?”


“Street taxes.”


“Bastards.... I'll fix them up.”


After having sent the police away, Han Sung came to them. En Chan found the jacket she'd put away somewhere and brought it to him.


“Are you all right?”


“I guess lifting barbells has its uses.”


“Oh, you've been scratched here. We should probably disinfect that,” said En Chan gently, feeling grateful. She dipped some tissues into water and wiped off the back of Han Sung's hand.


“Hyung, what are you doing here?” blurted Han Kyul angrily. Looking extremely put off, he snatched away En Chan's arm that was holding Han Sung's hand.


“Ow!” En Chan yelled unconsciously. Han Kyul, who'd been glaring at Han Sung, turned his gaze to En Chan. Seeing that she was in pain, he immediately rolled up her sleeve. On her arm was a dark bruise that filling up with blood. She'd gotten it when some bastard had struck down on her with a wooden stick. Han Sung came toward her and said worriedly,


“Are you ok? That bruise looks bad...”


“I'm ok.” Just when Han Sung was about to lay his hand on her injury, Han Kyul jerked her toward him by her shoulder.


“Let's go to the hospital.”


“What? The hospital just because of this little thing.... Muscle relaxant strips will work fine.”


En Chan tried to escape from Han Kyul's arm, which was pulling her toward him. It was because the position, which almost looked like he was embracing her, made her feel strange. She could smell the scent of his body and feel his rough breathing. But he was holding onto her so tightly she couldn't get away.


“Let's take my car. I'll drive you there.”


“No, it's fine. We'll take a cab.”


Han Kyul turned his back on Han Sung and pulled En Chan toward him. Behind him, Han Sung was looking at Han Kyul as if he couldn't believe what was happening, but Han Kyul didn't pay him any heed. En Chan managed to turn around and say,


“Thank you. Hey, how 'bout letting go now?”


“Just keep walking, you idiot.”


“Why are you getting mad at me?”


“Why is that hyung here, huh? Is he taking over even the snack cart? Is even that hyung infatuated with you? This flirt of a boy's got ninety nine tails.”


“I have no idea what you're talking about. Are you saying that stuff about me right now?”


“I don't know, you dumbass!”


“Damn, why are you screaming at—. Man, you've got a weird temper. You're a real question mark, sajangnim.”


“Yea, even I don't know myself. Goddamn it.”


In the end, Han Kyul succeeded in dragging En Chan to the hospital. A hospital in the area would have been fine, but Han Kyul took her all the way to the Dong Yi Oriental Medicine Center. Despite the fact that it was a relatively shallow wound, En Chan was taken care of very thoroughly. A muscle relaxant strip would have done the trip, but she had to endure some kind of electric radiation treatment and foul-smelling ointment. But it turned out that that was nothing.


She'd noticed he was limping, but she couldn't know that his legs could have been that swollen. He'd been by her side the entire time her bruised arm was being treated, so she really had had no idea how bad of a condition he was in. He'd shown the doctor, not his split lips, but a severely swollen ankle, which a unconcerned look on his face. He received acupuncture and even drew blood. En Chan stayed by him the entire time as well, watching. For some reason, her father came to mind. Her father, who'd run to the hospital, oblivious to his own broken arm....





*
*Chapter Thirteen* I'm happy to be a woman Part III



< Part 3 >


“Hey, hyung! Leave it. I'll do it.”


En Chan had been about to put down the Benjamin vase when Ha Rim came and stopped her.


“Leave the men's restroom cleaning to me. I do it better.”


Ha Rim again. Mr. Hong looked at him as if wondering, what the heck? She felt so nervous she was going to go crazy.


“Uh uh, I'll do the hammering.” Then he whispered in her ear, “these kinds of things should be done by men.”


She couldn't decide whether she could say this made her life easier. The catch phrase of some commercial popped up in her head.


'I'm happy to be a woman.'



“Hey, isn't that Nak Kyun?”


Nak Kyun was coming in through the entrance. She looked at him in surprise as he bowed his head in greeting and smiled sheepishly.


“I'm here.”


“What's the deal? You coming back to work?”


“Yes.”


“Really?”


En Chan tried to follow Nak Kyun into the dressing room, but was stopped at the door by Ha Rim.


“Stop right there. No more.”


“Ya.”


En Chan flashed her eyes and tried to push Ha Rim away.


“Look here, nuna. Isn't it enough that you've looked to your heart's content until now?”


“Hey, who said I—“ En Chan blushed to her very ears. To be honest, she hadn't not seen the boys change. But that was because she had to blend in with them to convince them that she was a guy. She hadn't meant to be a peeping tom.


“There was nothing to see anyway. Especially you, Jin Ha Rim. You're the most—“ En Chan made a derisive face and shook her head. Ha Rim then shouted with resentment in his eyes,


“What?! Damn, I'm going to tell everyone about you!”


“Ya!”


En Chan was trying to put her hand over Ha Rim's mouth when Nak Kyun came out. She gave him a weak smile.


“What are you guys doing, standing here?”


“I-I was just trying to talk to you...”


En Chan grabbed Nak Kyun and took him outside.


“What happened? Didn't you say you were going back to the construction site?”


“Sajangnim fixed our snack cart for us.”


“Really? What's with Mr. Cranky all of a sudden? So you're going to take the snack cart back up again? What about those bastards?”


“They're all at the police station.”


Nak Kyun snickered at En Chan's eyes, which had grown round with surprise.


“Hyung, do you know that you look just like a girl when you make that face?”


“Wh-what?” En Chan, even more alarmed, didn't know what to do. “D-didn't you see me fighting that night? I was a hundred times better at it than our sajang.”


“Yea, that's true. Man, hyung, you really flew.”


She hadn't seen Nak Kyun talk with such a bright face for such a long time that she had trouble adjusting to it.


“There's nothing a little backup support can't do in this world. I don't know the details, but those bastards suddenly turned themselves in.”


“They went to the police on their own two feet?”


“Yea. I didn't believe it at first either, but they really did. In return for not pressing charges, they're going to help out with my father's snack cart for a while.”


“Woah!”


“I decided to come back to work here. I'm going to save up my tuition and go back to school starting next semester.”


“That's a really good idea. But did the sajang say you—“


“What are you boys doing standing around and goofing off when you should be working?”


Like the devil himself, Han Kyul appeared. He hadn't come to the store yesterday, saying he was busy with something. She'd thought that he couldn't come to the store because the swelling in his ankles worsened, but now it looked like he really had been busy. Busy making the gangsters turn themselves in....


“Good morning.” Nak Kyun stood up to greet Han Kyul, who simply nodded his head before going inside. Oho, so Nak Kyun coming back to work has already been settled, huh? After firing him so heartlessly....


En Chan, who'd followed Han Kyul inside, hastened to prepare coffee. She took the coffee to the seat that Han Kyul had basically reserved as his own.


“How are your ankles?”


“They're fine.”


“Aren't you going to ask me about my arm?”


“.....”


En Chan lifted her sleeves up and showed him the bruise, which had turned yellowish.


“It's almost gone. That radiation thing must've had some effect. It felt all nice and warm, too.”


Han Kyul, even while pretending not to care, stole a glimpse at the bruise. En Chan smiled at this. En Chan, standing beside him holding the tray, gave him a friendly smile and said,


“Sajangnim.”


“What?”


“I wanted to talk to you about leaving a bit early today.”


Han Kyul, who had been carrying the cup of coffee to his mouth as he read the paper, looked up at En Chan.


“At three... no, two-thirty.”


“What is this, high school? What do you mean, leave early?”


En Chan simply remained standing with a long face. He asked,


“Are you sick?”


“No. Oh, I mean.. yes.”


“Where?”


“I mean, not me, my mother. She has the flu, and she's feeling pretty terrible. Her bones ache and sh-she feels like throwing up and... En Se has to go to cram school....”


“You have to be at work by six-thirty tomorrow. If you're late by even just one minute, you're dead.”


“What? Oh, yes! Of course!”


En Chan smiled widely and then stooped down to say into Han Kyul's ear,


“Sajangnim, thank you very muchos gracias.”


She gave a scowling Han Kyul another smile.




*
*Chapter Thirteen* I'm happy to be a woman Part IV



< Part 4 >


When Han Sung arrived, the little miss in the baggy jeans and grey jumper was on the phone. When he stopped the car, she waved her hand and climbed into the passenger's seat laughing.


“Hello, how are you?” Then she said into the phone, “Oh, just an ahjumma I know. I said it's ok. What's going on with you? It's not like you to worry about me, much less my mother. Sajangnim, haven't you heard people say if you show signs of belated maturity, it's because it's about time to die?”


Then a man's voice could be heard from the phone.


[If you keep talking like that, I'm going to cut you.]


“Cut me? Cut what? My hair?”


The man's voice sounded like Choi Han Kyul. The woman snickered in reply to something he'd said. Surprisingly, Han Kyul's laughter could be heard as well. Han Sung was nonplussed. He'd never before heard Han Kyul talk to someone on the phone this comfortably.


“Ah, I'm sorry.”


Han Sung quietly started the car. She finished her call. Then, even though he hadn't asked, she told him,


“It's our sajangnim. I lied and said my mother was sick, and then he said that I should take her to the hospital. He even said he'd call ahead and make reservations. Don't you think that's overdoing it? What, are all the doctors in stand-by mode for whenever he calls? Psh. It's probably because he's ticked off that I took off early today. He said that my mom had to get better so I wouldn't give him excuses to leave early. Seriously, that guy can be such a jerk—”


She then changed the topic quickly, as if worried she'd gone too far.


“I didn't get to thank you properly last time. Thank you so much once again. How's your hand?”


“Han Kyul looked really angry. Were you all right, miss?”


“You know him. That's just how he is, he goes back and forth between emotions.”


“Does he, now...”


“Hey, where are we going?”


“You'll see.”


En Chan peered at Han Sung through narrowed eyes.


“What?”


“You're not going to ask me to pretend to be your lover or anything, right?”


Han Sung was caught off guard, but he didn't let it show. He answered,


“Not a lover, per se. You just have to be next to me.”


Suddenly, En Chan began to smack her head against the car window. Han Sung was so surprised that he almost let go of the steering wheel. It was an act that threw even Han Sung, who usually never so much as blinked at anything, in for a shock.


“Arrgh! Arrgh! I knew it. I knew it! You can't fool me. How is it that everyone.... Why don't I just open up a substitute girl/boyfriend service center, huh? How 'bout that?”


“Who else...” Han Sung caught on quickly. About two months ago, he'd heard an outrageous rumor that Han Kyul was taking around a pretty boy wherever he went. Now that he thought about it, it might not have been just a groundless rumor. Especially when you considered Han Kyul's expression and actions that night back at the snack cart. Had Han Kyul maybe already figured out that she was a girl, and was pretending not to know?


“Since you have experience, you'll do a good job. You and Han Kyul have gotten pretty close, haven't you?”


“Close nothing. We always fight and scream at each other. Man, things are real sticky between the two of us these days. We're just not meant to get along or something. Oh, well, not like fortune-telling or anything. Just the energy between two people, you know? I don't think we match. How do you guys know each other anyway? You guys aren't brothers, right?”


“Cousins.”


“Oh, I see. Well, in that case... The lady from before...”


When Han Sung didn't answer, En Chan answered herself.


“A f-friend, huh? Right? It's not like a love triangle, right?” En Chan laughed loudly by herself. She soon grew sheepish and shut her mouth.


When En Chan had grown quiet, Han Sung found that he felt rather empty. After meeting her at Da Soop, he'd think of her every once in a while. It was probably because of the bright and pleasant energy around her. After meeting Yu Ju that night, he'd felt trapped and frustrated. And then he'd spoken to this woman for a short while, and found that he was feeling much better, that, strangely, his mind had grown calmer. He'd been fascinated by his own actions, laughing as he popped bubble wrap...


“Is the business pretty good?”


“No. We're actually doing pretty badly, so we're all pretty worried. Our sajang invested a lot into this.”


Han Sung had heard about the deal between Han Kyul and his grandmother. That situation had actually put him in a rather tight spot. One part of him wanted Han Kyul to do well and to live go on doing whatever he wanted, and another part of him worried that Han Kyul might, following his grandmother's intention, realize his management potential and begin to like working, which would complicate things.


“We decided to switch to take out tomorrow, so it'll get better. If nothing else, sajangnim has some good sense inside that head of his. I don't think we're going to fail.”


“Han Kyul still doesn't know?”


“Huh? Oh... yea.”


“Are you sure?”


“Of course. If he knew, you think he'd let me be? He would've already fired me.”


“You won't be able to hide it forever.”


“(sigh) I don't know either. Sometimes I want to just go ahead and blurt it out, but every time I get that feeling, I end up arguing with him. Sometimes I just want him to figure it out on his own, and other times I feel nervous that I'll get found out. My emotions go back and forth.”


“It's rather strange. He's not a dense guy.”


“Most people don't notice either anyway. If you hadn't met me at Da Soop, you probably wouldn't have known either, ahjussi. Hey, is it ok if I call you ahjussi? If I have to be your girlfriend, do I have to call you by your name or call you obba? Or honey? Yecch! That gives me the creeps.”


Han Sung cracked a smile. It was amusing to watch En Chan talk to herself, counting things off on her fingers and then shivering all on her own. She really did seem like a troublemaker boy. He could understand how Han Kyul could be confused.


“When do we eat?”


“Are you hungry?”


“N-not really.. just... yes.”


“We don't have time....”


When Han Sung looked at his watch, En Chan hurriedly reassured him that it was all right. Han Sung took her word for granted and parked his car in the beauty shop parking lot. Once inside the shop, he set his briefcase on a desk arranged in the shop. The designer who he'd already contacted was waiting to take En Chan away. Before she disappeared, En Chan made a face like a puppy being chased away and said,


“You can't leave without me, ok?”


Han Sung spread out his work and tried for a while to concentrate on it, but he kept getting distracted. Being cold and apathetic toward other peoples' business was the trademark of this bloodline. So it was surprising that Han Kyul would care about even the health of an employee's mother. Not only that, but even when En Chan spoke freely to Han Kyul in such a impertinent manner, Han Kyul was still keeping her company. This was nothing short of a world-shaking event. What was it that she had said to him? Signs of belated maturity mean it's about time you die? This, from an employee, to her boss. And the boss was enduring it? Not just any boss—the almighty Choi Han Kyul was enduring it? How amusing.


And even more amusing events were sure to be waiting at the party.


Han Sung picked his files back up, but he couldn't concentrate. This time, he was distracted by his curiosity about Ko En Chan, who'd been dragged away to the dress room after her hair and make up were done. Eventually, Han Sung put his work away and went to help En Chan pick out her dress.




*
*Chapter Fourteen* Soft and Warm like a Cafe Latte Part I



< Part 1 >


There were quite a few people gathered in the room with the paintings. Each person, wearing his or her own unique formal wear, walked around with a glass in one hand and talked to each other or looked at the paintings. En Chan pulled along her chocolate colored dress that laid one shoulder bare and followed after Han Sung. The bottom half of the dress wound around her legs. The feeling was cool and smooth, like the sensation of ocean waves. She'd never worn anything that was so thin and soft and form-fitting before. She walked carefully on account of wearing high and narrow heeled shoes. So it was true that clothes dictated the movements of your body. She truly felt as if she'd become a graceful and sexy woman.


En Chan had put on a wig and false eyelashes. She couldn't believe her own reflection. The surprise of the people around her couldn't compare to the shock she herself was feeling. The transformation could very nearly compare to the prince and the pauper. She was, by essence, the soot-ridden Cinderella arriving at the palace. But true to her habit, En Chan couldn't control herself in front of food. When she saw the food arranged by the wall on one side of the hall, she lost her head. She abandoned Han Sung and proceeded to stuff her face.


“Here you are.”


En Chan was in no position to reply. Not only was her mouth full of food, she was also holding bread pieces covered with canapes and anchovies in either hand. Han Sung looked at her squirming lips and knit his eyebrows. En Chan smiled sheepishly before holding one of the bread pieces out to him.


“No, thanks.”


Han Sung shook his head and then brought her a glass of water. Right then, he caught sight of a man and a woman walking in through the entrance.


“Eat later.”


He snatched up En Chan's wrist, which had been stretching toward the food. She glared at Han Sung.


“Don't say anything. Your voice might give everything away. Now, smile.”


En Chan licked her fingers as she was being dragged away.


“Good evening, senator.”


“Oh, so it's you. Long time no see.”


Han Sung thought to himself that he might regret it later. But he wanted to, just once, show the senator that he hadn't lost his dignity. He didn't care if that was useless obstinancy or foolish pride. This needed to be done so he could get closure.


“So you're in charge of pharmaceuticals? I hear you're doing very well with it. Everyone's saying that young men's passion is a thing to be feared and shivering in their pants.”


“It's only just the beginning. I hope I can count on you for guidance.”


“What could I possibly guide you on? I should be the one asking for guidance.”


The dignified senator showed no sign of being flustered as he laughed heartily. Yu Ju's mother, who stood next to him, was simply standing there, rigid. Han Sung had politely bowed his head to her in greeting, and still she hadn't said a single word.


“Darling, there's Yu Ju...”


“Oh, right. Let's have a drink next time, shall we?”


“Of course, senator.”


Han Sung bowed and purposefully did not turn around. He felt Yu Ju's gaze on his back as he escorted En Chan toward the entrance. Right then, En Chan discovered Han Kyul, who was just coming in through the entrance.


“Shit!”


This time, En Chan, who had whipped her body around, found her eyes meeting Yu Ju's. Han Sung put a hand on her bared shoulder.


“Stay still.” He then whispered in her ear, “I'll take care of it.”


En Chan felt Han Sung's touch on her back and glanced at him. For some reason, she had a feeling that this man was enjoying this situation, while she felt the blood dry up in her veins.


“I didn't know you would be coming here, hyung.”


“It's a company affair. Of course I have to be here.”


En Chan stood still, torn between anxiety and anticipation, fear and thrill. On on hand, she was sure he wouldn't recognize her, and on the other, she kind of hoped he would. As if her tremor had been transmitted, the hand on her back moved lightly.


“And this is...”


En Chan lowered her gaze when she realized Han Kyul was looking at her. If she looked him in the eye, she felt like she was going to unconsciously begin signaling, 'it's me!' to him.


“A friend.”


Han Kyul crinkled his nose at Han Sung's concise answer.


“What kind of an answer is that? Is this a girlfriend you've tucked away somewhere?”


“Watch your words.”


“Oh, excuse me. You must understand. I'm just that kind of a bastard. My name is Choi Han Kyul.”

Han Kyul held his hand out. En Chan debated whether she should hold out her big, rough, unwomanly hands or not. Fortunately, a woman appeared just then. En Chan's heart began to beat faster. Not even during competitions had she been so nervous.


“You're here? Oh, you're here too, obba?”


“Wow, you look absolutely stunning, Han Yu Ju. I feel like whisking you away from here.”


As soon as she heard what Han Kyul had said, En Chan felt anger rising up from inside of her. Suddenly, she was angrier than she could express in words. She quickly swept her eyes up and down the woman. She was wearing a black dress cut deeply in the front, and truly did look elegant. A long string of pearls hung from her neck and her hair was swept up high. Her body, which had only seemed tall and thin when En Chan had seen her before, seemed voluminous in the dress. Even En Chan felt that she was so beautiful that she wanted to run away. She suddenly became very depressed.


“The party's a success. Congratulations, Han Yu Ju.”


“Thanks.” Yu Ju smiled shyly in response to Han Kyul's words. The image of that smile stabbed En Chan's heart. She vowed to practice that smile as soon as she returned home.


“I thought your style was limited to a girlish look like Degas, but modern Chilean art? It's surprising,” said Han Kyul, looking at the paintings.


“It's because I visited the Santiago art gallery the last time I went touring. That trip really helped me.”


“See? I told you. I've said this a couple times, but going abroad really was the best thing you could have done. Hey, isn't there any dancing at this party? I want to dance the blues with you.”


Han Kyul pulled the woman to him by her waist.


“What are you doing? Stop it.”


The woman tried to push him away, but it didn't seem like she minded overly much. As En Chan watched the two of them look at each other and chatter, a fire began to roar inside of her. So unconsciously, she blew the hair out of her eyes. Right then, her eyes met Han Kyul's. At the same time her eyes grew wide, Han Kyul's eyes filled with suspicion. His sharp look seemed to reach inside of her mind. Even thinking that she should run away, En Chan was frozen stiff and couldn't move a finger. Han Sung, who'd caught on immediately said,


“Well, then, we're off....”


“Wait.”


Han Kyul approached them. En Chan began to unconsciously back away when her feet, unfamiliar to heels, gave way.


“Oh!”


She stretched out her arm as she stumbled. Both men grabbed on either side grabbed an arm. En Chan looked at Han Kyul with a rigid face. Han Sung, who was holding the other hand asked,


“Are you ok?”


En Chan nodded her head and shook off both arms. She whipped around and limped away. Suddenly, she felt her body being lifted into the air. Han Sung had come and picked her up. Finding herself abruptly in a man's arm, En Chan was so surprised she didn't know what to do. She then saw, over Han Sung's shoulder, Yu Ju's expression. Her face read shock.


“Wh-what are you doing?”


“Stay still.”


“People are staring.”


“Shh.”


The vein in Han Sung's temple rose from the strain of her weight. En Chan, embarrassed and angry, growled into Han Sung's ear,


“Put me down.”


“We're almost there.”


En Chan glanced back at Han Kyul and Yu Ju, who were watching them. Both expressions looked grim. She got scared that Han Kyul might follow them.


Han Sung put En Chan down onto a bench in the backyard. His forehead was sweating because En Chan, for a girl, had been pretty heavy.


“Why in the world did you do that? My legs were fine!”


En Chan shouted angrily. The anxiety and tension she'd held inside exploded and she couldn't see anything else. The image of Han Kyul with the woman was embedded in her head, refusing to disappear. The more she thought about it, the hotter the fire inside of her grew.


“I see now why you brought me here. You wanted to show me to that woman, right?! Am I right?!”


Seeing the man take out a cigarette and put it in his mouth, En Chan stood up abruptly. Her heels slipped again in the travel and she tottered.


“Shit!”


En Chan took her heels off and held them in either hand, and walked away with her legs spread out as usual. Then she turned around and said, still heated,


“These shoes and this dress.”


She snatched off the voluminous wig on her head.


“And this wig, I'm going to return it to the store tomorrow, so do whatever you want with them!”


“Look here.”


The man came toward her and grabbed her arm. En Chan roughly shoved him off and seethed,


“You piece of garbage.”


The man's expression contorted and his face grew frightening.


“What?”


“I said, you piece of garbage! How could you treat someone like this! Who do you think you are!”


“You're being rather careless with your words..”


“So what if I am? It's a hundred times better than being careless in the way you treat people.”


The two of them breathed hard as they glared at each other. En Chan didn't try to hide the disgust and disapproval she felt as she shot,


“What the hell is this? What did you want to show them by doing this? You don't think this is being stupid? Do you know how hard it was to keep my mouth shut when all I wanted to do was blurt out the truth? If only our sajang wasn't there.... Grrrr! Ko En Chan's really learning how to keep her temper.”


En Chan blew out with her mouth again to calm herself and then continued.


“Even if being in love means being stupid, you shouldn't do something like this. Do you think it's all right for you to use somebody and hurt them? What does that make me? When I asked you not to get me in trouble, it was because I was desperate. And you use me like this? Man, the more I think about it, the more angry I get! Damn!”


She was turning around to leave when the man grabbed her again.


“Wait. I'll drive you home.”


“Forget it! This is the end, right? We're done!”


“Where do you think you're going, looking like that!” shouted the man. He probably wasn't feeling too good about himself either. Judging by the look on that woman's face, there's definitely something there. Is it really a love triangle, then? It looked like the sajang liked her too...


“Damn, how the hell should I know? It's got nothing to do with me!”


“Stop right there, Ko En Chan!”


En Chan, who'd turned around at Han Sung's shout, felt another gaze and lifted her head. What she saw surprised her so much that she nearly fell backwards. The woman was standing there. How long has she been there?!


“Shit!”


En Chan breathed in sharply. Yu Ju's surprised expression was focused on En Chan's hair. Her face said, I can't believe this. I know who you are. Only then did En Chan remember that she'd taken her wig off. Without a second thought, En Chan began to run like a maniac. She harshly thrust away Han Sung's hand and ran through the garden barefoot.


Fuck! How long had she been there? How much had she heard? Shit! More and more people were finding out. Goddamn it! This is getting out of hand!





*
*Chapter Fourteen* Soft and Warm like a Cafe Latte Part II




< Part 2 >


En Chan, who always came to work having eaten breakfast after delivering milk, looked down at Ha Rim, who was still asleep. On one side of the store was a broken orchid vase. Maybe he had gone to the bathroom late at night; one side of the vase was broken. En Chan was in a bad mood after having tossed and turned for the majority of the night. She was about to shake Ha Rim awake to give him a good scolding when she happened to look at the entrance. The red wreath hanging on the front glass door. En Chan put the wreath away along with the broken vace. She quietly woke Ha Rim up and proceeded to clean silently.


At exactly six-thirty, Han Kyul arrived. En Chan hid in the kitchen, pretending to be busy. Han Kyul hung up a sign by the entrance stating that take-out was now possible, and was sitting drinking coffee at a table outside. En Chan peeked out at him from time to time. Every time she did, the image of him with the woman looped around in her head and irritated her. That he might have recognized her yesterday at the art gallery didn't make her feel anxious so much as even more irritated. Her temper rose at how casually he acted. And she felt disappointment. Her appearance, which even she had thought was quite attractive, had already disappeared from his mind. If he had so much as asked a suspicion-riddled question, she might have immediately blurted out the truth....


The weather grew warmer and warmer with the advent of April. Han Kyul, who had been drinking coffee while reading his paper, called to Mr. Hong. He wanted to talk about the menu.


“How can we go around each and every time.....”


“We need a personalized service feature. Some people will want to enjoy their coffee properly with sugar, and some people who are in a hurry will want fast-melting syrup. Whipped cream or steamed milk, cinnamon powder or cocoa powder? If we give them these choice, they'll feel like they're being served coffee made specially for them, don't you think?”


“If we want to do all that, it'll take an enormous amount of time. Also, when we take their order, it'll be easy to get confused. If we mess up because we're so busy, it'll slow us down twice as much.”


“That's why I'm thinking about an order form. Since you're in charge of the kitchen, I'm sure you can make a more precise order form than I can, Mr. Hong.”


“I mean, that would be nice... but you'd have to put aside more money for ingredients.... We came out with a huge loss last month, too...”


“Don't worry about me.”


Even though he was speaking to Mr. Hong, Han Kyul was conscious of En Chan, who was sweeping the front of the store. “Energetic” wouldn't do the energy the kid put into his sweeping justice—it looked like he was trying to dig into the ground.


“Hey, Superior Physical Strength boy.”


En Chan jumped at his sudden calling. She looked at him guiltily and Han Kyul motioned for her to come over. She approached him with an expression of dissatisfaction and crossness. He frowned when he saw her expression. It looked like he was about to scold her for something. En Chan clenched both fists, stood rigidly, and looked at him stiffly.


“How's your mother doing?”


“Fine.”


En Chan answered shortly with no expression.


“Did you lie to me so you could skip work?”


“What am I, a kid? Skipping work... I graduated high school a long time ago.”


At En Chan's brusque words, Han Kyul knit his eyebrows.


“So you did go to school, huh?”


“Why are you picking a fight again? What did I ever do to you that you'd have to pick on me so early in the morn—”


Shoot! Her temper couldn't endure more than three seconds before it showed itself. En Chan bit down on her tongue.


Let's not do this, let's not do this. This man is he sajang, and I'm an employee. That's it. Don't think about anything else. Don't think about that woman, don't think about their relationship, it's got nothing to do with me.


“If you've finished speaking, sajangnim, may I please excuse myself from your presence?”


“What the hell is wrong with you today? Did you not get breakfast for something?”


“I ate breakfast.”


“Did you not have enough of it?”


“No, I did.”


“Did you deliver coffee to the market vendors?”


“No. I had to come here, how could I? How many of me do you think there are?”


“Well, you're such a monster of a kid that I thought maybe you'd finished it all before coming here. What about your milk delivery?”


“Did it.”


En Chan maintained her belligerent attitude while answering his questions curtly. When Han Kyul stopped talking and simply looked at her, she looked down at him and said,


“If you've finished speaking, may I excuse—“


“The fish vendor—how many packets of cream?”


“Excuse me?”


At the sudden question attack, En Chan found herself holding up two fingers.


“T-two. And two cubes of sugar.”


“The side dish store?”


“The ahjumma there likes it black.”


“The vegetable store?”


“One packet of cream, two cubes of sugar. The ahjussi takes only two sugar cubes. Why?”


“All right. Go to work.”


Han Kyul then turned to Mr. Hong. Mr. Hong looked at her with such a helpless look on his face that she mouthed, 'what's wrong' to him. But the two of them wordlessly stood up and left.


“What the heck? Ignoring people, huh? Psh.”


She was sulking as she swept when she finally realized something. She'd failed. She couldn't just think of him as her sajang. She couldn't just think of him as another person either. My God, what's happened to me?!




*
*Chapter Fourteen* Soft and Warm like a Cafe Latte Part III



< Part 3 >



The moment she lost herself in her self-torture, people began to stampede into the streets. They were white-collar men and women who'd just come from the train station. En Chan immediately changed her expression and stood straight up shouting,


“Coffee Prince Cafe now offers takeout! Come and get it!”


Two females who'd turned to look smiled at her and came into the store. En Chan greeted them and led them inside. That was the beginning. They came one by one, and in thirty minutes, the store was chock full of customers. They were all waiting for coffee. Mr. Hong became so busy that even Han Kyul was recruited into the kitchen, and En Chan and Sun Ki, who had no talent with their hands, were relegated to order-taking and the register. Nak Kyun and Ha Rim ushered the customers and provided water and simple conversation. Ha Rim joked around with the customers and Nak Kyun treated them with courtesy and kindness. The customers laughed and enjoyed themselves. Customers who were waiting read the papers and books that had been prepared and even sat in front of the computer that had been set up.


She'd worked two hours straight without sitting once, but En Chan didn't feel the passing of time or the pain in her legs. It had been a while since she'd been this busy and lively. Everyone worked well together and dealt with the customers with no problem. When the customers flooded out again like the waves on the beach, the crew was silent in the post-frenzy atmosphere. Just then, Ha Rim jumped up and down shouting,


“Yeehaw!”


Only then did it really hit them. Everyone ran around hugging each other and jumping up and down. It being their first time, there had been a few mistakes here and there, but everyone complimented each other on doing a good job.


“Man, the smell of makeup on those women! I went all dizzy back there.”


“It wasn't that bad. You and your exaggerations.”


“By the way, sajangnim, did you see the curly-haired woman sitting here in the middle table?”


“Four lattes to go?”


“Yea. She asked how old you were.”


En Chan glared sharply at Ha Rim and Han Kyul. Oblivious, Ha Rim kept sniggering as he continued,


“It looks like you're the most popular out of all of us. It's probably because all the women around here are kind of old, huh? Anyway, you must be feeling pretty good, huh?”


“If she got some lipo done around her waist and transplanted some hair onto her forehead, she would've been all right.”


“What? Wow, you're real sharp! You saw all of that from there? Man, players really are something different.”


“If she comes around asking my age again, that's what you tell her.”


“You planning to ruin us all or what?” said En Chan, even though for some reason, she'd felt better after hearing Han Kyul's answer. Sometimes, it pays to be impertinent.


“But the table in front of the mini garden was a total nightmare, don't you agree?”


Ha Rim looked at Nak Kyun and Nak Kyun replied, smiling,


“I wanted to call the EOD.”


“The what? Call the what?” asked En Chan. Han Kyul answered from the kitchen,


“Explosives Ordinance Disposal.”


“Explosives.... Ya, Kwon Nak Kyun, you're pretty picky too, aren'tcha? I never knew.”


“If I'm not picky now, when else could I be? There's a saying in India, 'A beautiful woman belongs to the world, and an ugly woman belongs only to you.' You've got to share when you can.”


Men. Tsk tsk.


“Ah, I'm hungry,” yawned En Chan, before jumping up suddenly. “Hey everyone, in honor of our first take-out day success, I'll take care of lunch.”


“Really?”


“Did the sun rise from the west today?”


“I'll make you all sandwiches. Hey kids, wait just a little bit, and this hyung will make you the Ko En Chan special sandwiches.”


“Ya, you're going to make it yourself?”


“Is it even edible?”


“You're probably better off just buying kimbab from the convenience store.”


En Chan, disregarding everyone's protests, eventually succeeded in buying all the ingredients she needed to make sandwiches and spread it all out in the kitchen. I suddenly have the loving urge to make something you can all eat with my own hands; what can I do? The instincts of a woman can't be helped once set in motion.


She was busy making the tuna sandwich when the phone rang. En Chan unconsciously stretched out her hand to pick the phone up.


“Hello, this is Coffee Prince, home of delicious coffee.”


Suddenly, everyone, who'd been scattered in different places doing different tasks, stood up in unison. They all stared at En Chan as if they were looking at a ghost. What the hell is up with everyone? Oblivious, En Chan looked at Ha Rim and repeated,


“Hello?”


Strangely, the phone continued to ring, but nobody thought of answering it.


“Why aren't you picking up the phone?”


“Ch-chan-ah....”


She tried to turn around to look at Mr. Hong when suddenly Han Kyul shouted,


“Don't move!”


She had no idea what the hell was going on. En Chan impatiently opened her mouth to ask what was going on.


“Don't make a sound and don't move!” shouted Han Kyul, not even allowing her to ask a question. Just what in the world was going on?


The way everyone was looking at her and the tense atmosphere made her heart begin to beat faster. Everyone else seemed to feel the same, standing stock still, tensed up. Their strange reactions made her feel uncomfortable and anxious. She wanted to shout back at Han Kyul, but he wouldn't let her, so it made her feel even more scared and worried.


“Don't turn your head....”


The sajang crept slowly toward her and suddenly snatched away the phone she was holding in her hand.


Immediately, everyone breathed out in unison.


“Whew....”


“Ya... Ko En Chan, you.....”


“God, hyung, I can't believe you! You're going to drive me insane!”


Mr. Hong collapsed into a chair, Ha Rim began yelling at her, and Nak Kyun began to tear at his hair saying he was going to go insane. Seeing that even the usually reactionless Sun Ki was shaking his head from side to side made En Chan believe that something pretty big had just happened. Something that had something to do with her. Just what exactly was this something?!


“You idiot!”


Whack!


“Ow!!” shouted En Chan indignantly as Han Kyul smacked her upside the head. “What're you hitting me for?!”


“You, come out from there. Now.”


“Yea. Ko En Chan, you're hereby banished from the kitchen area. All you do is break cups and you're no help anyway, so don't even come near the kitchen again.”


“Why? What hap—“


Right then, Han Kyul shoved a huge gleaming cleaver in front of her face.


“Does this look like a phone to you, you idiot?! You know what, don't even pick up the phone either. All right?!”


There were beads of sweat on Han Kyul's nose. En Chan finally realized that she had picked up the cleaver from the cutting board and brought it to her ear, and had said 'hello' into it.


“Oh! I-I didn't know...”


“What are you, an imbecile?!”


“Oh man, why did I do that? You guys all got scared because of me, huh? Sorry, sorry....”


“Grrr! If only I could just....”


“You want to be the next van Gogh or something?”


Once Ha Rim began to tease her, the atmosphere became a bit lighter. Mr. Hong didn't fail to notice how Han Kyul had been overly alarmed and gone pale. He didn't fail to notice how En Chan clowned around the sajang, smiling and laughing, trying to cheer him up, either.


“Sajangnim, were you so scared that your lifespan was shortened? What are you going to do? You're already pretty old, so I guess you're going to be forty now, huh?”


The irritation from this morning had vanished. She wasn't one to be angry for long anyway, but it was the sajang's alarmed expression, looking more scared than anybody else, that had melted her.


“Buzz off.”


“How can I buzz off? What am I, a bee?”


“You little—”


Right then, the glass doors opened and a middle-aged woman came into the store.


“Welcome to Coffee Prince,” said Sun Ki, who had been the first to see her come in. Everyone stood up from their seats when Ha Rim, who'd just turned around, shouted,


“M-mom!”


Surprised, everyone bowed awkwardly and backed away. Mother and son sat down at a table in the corner of the store. En Chan served them warm and soft cafe latte. She wanted them to be able to melt their differences, if any, warmly and softly, like the cafe latte.


“How did you know I was here?”


“I heard from Gwang Il.”


“Man, I told that guy not to say anything...”


“Do you get enough to eat? Where do you sleep?”


“Just here and there...”


“You don't have any money... have you been sleeping outside like a homeless person?”


“N-no. I slept here. At the store...”


Suddenly, everyone, who'd been eavesdropping, opened their eyes widely. Han Kyul, who'd been sitting in front of the computer, looked around at En Chan. When their eyes met, En Chan replied to his fierce stare with an awkward smile. Strangely, the sajang was really good at figuring things out without being told.


Fascinating. Did I make a guilty face or something?


“You'll ruin your health that way. Just look at your face. Oh, I'm so upset....”


“I eat well and I sleep well. Don't worry about me.”


“My one and only son leaves the house, and I'm not supposed to worry? Ha Rim, please, stop this and let's go home with Mommy, hmm? Father worries about you a lot.”


“No.”


“Ha Rim.”


“Even if I went in now, it'll just be the same thing. You know as well as I do, Mom. Dad will just yell at me to get out.”


“So you're not going to come home?”


Seeing Ha Rim look so serious and depressed for the first time made En Chan feel bad. The other employees who hadn't known Ha Rim had left home glared at En Chan, looking as if they'd been betrayed. Nak Kyun asked in a low voice,


“Why'd he leave home?”


“College issues.”


“Ah.”


Ha Rim's mother pleaded with him, crying. Ha Rim tried to comfort her, but it didn't look like he was about to bend his own will. Right then, Han Kyul stood up from the computer. He strode over to the table. The employees who had been watching breathlessly opened their eyes widely in surprise. En Chan bounced her butt in the air as she looked at Han Kyul's back.


What is that man going to say?


“Jin Ha Rim.”


Ha Rim slowly got up and hung his head.


“Pack your things and get out.”


“Huh?”


Alarmed, En Chan dashed over and tried to dissuade Han Kyul.


“Sajangnim, wait just a moment here.”


But Han Kyul pushed her away with a firm and serious expression. And then he spoke to Ha Rim again in a dispassionate voice,


“Go and compromise with your father. Until you do, don't you lay a foot in my store.”



*
*Chapter Fifteen* Marine Boy Part I




< Part 1 >


The coffee house picked up momentum as more and more customers filled up the store. As if avenging itself against the lack of activity in the past, business attacked the store guerrilla-style with customers flooding in and flooding out. Eventually, they had to install a second kitchen by tearing through the glass door on the left. There, Mr. Hong and relatively quick-handed Nak Kyun took over, while the inner kitchen was passed onto Han Kyul himself. Outside, they increased the number of tables for take-out customers, and they fixed up the landscaping and the facilities. Newspapers, magazines, and books were set up, the mailbox greeted customers, and outside speakers were installed to keep waiting customers from getting bored. Next week, they would try out the order form.


“En Chan obba, I'm here.”


“Oh, hey, how are ya? Cappuccino, right?”


“Uh huh. I want obba to make it for me.”


There are a lot of female customers who come looking for En Chan. Especially this one, a helper at a nearby karaoke place, who comes to seduce En Chan everyday at around four PM.


Han Kyul couldn't concentrate on his conversation with Mr. Hong. It was because of the girl who, without fail, showed up today as well, wearing a low cut shirt and a mini skirt, smiling at En Chan. He found himself checking to see if En Chan was looking at her chest. He hated himself for doing so, so much that he felt like he was going insane, but he couldn't help it. His eyes moved there on their own.


“Obba, come visit our place. I'll give you a lot of specials. No, in fact, I'll treat you.”


“Ok. When I have time...”


“Gosh, when's that going to be?”


She looked older than Ko En Chan, and still she was calling him obba; it was incredible. Mr. Hong noticed that Han Kyul was glaring at the woman for some time now. The conversation had come to a stop and even though Mr. Hong was looking at Han Kyul, he didn't seem to notice.


“I get off work early tonight. Do you want to go watch a late-night movie with me? There's a good one that I wanted to see.”


“Man, it's been a while since I've seen a movie. I like action movies. Is it an action movie?”


“Oh, what was the title again...”


“Ya, Ko En Chan!” Han Kyul called sharply, having seen that En Chan had finished making the cappuccino.


“Yes?” Hearing Han Kyul call him, En Chan hurriedly handed the cappuccino over to the woman. “Hey, I gotta go. Rain check on the movie.”


Han Kyul said looking at En Chan, who'd run over,


“Don't flirt with the customers.”


“Huh? When did I—“


“Being friendly and flirting are two different things. Right now, you were flirting, all right?”


“N-no way!”


“It's always the one who can't work properly that creates all the problems. So you have to be especially careful.”


“When did I ever create problems?”


“Shuttup, kid.”


En Chan threw a fit saying Han Kyul was being unfair, but Han Kyul didn't even seem to be listening. Watching En Chan call over the other employees to ask if he was flirting or not made him want to self-destruct.


Have you gone mad, Choi Han Kyul? What the hell are you doing? Why are you paying so much attention to that kid? Man, I'm going nuts! Seriously! I hate everyone who gets close to him, regardless of sex or age. I don't want him to be nice to anybody else. But that kid's nice to everyone and anyone. What a loose kid. What a pushover!


After sending Ha Rim home, he hadn't employed anyone else. Han Kyul was planning to wait a week. If Ha Rim didn't contact him until then, he would have to use someone else. Since the weather started changing for the better, they were becoming more and more busy.


The final number for the second month's sales wasn't bad at all. Compared to what he'd estimated in the beginning, it was a pathetically small number, but the first month's losses had been enormous, so he had to be thankful that the second month had even put them into the black.


Han Kyul said as the last customer left the store,


“How 'bout a company dinner tonight?”


“Really?”


“Wow! It's been a while, hasn't it? Let's eat pork boned rib!”


“Yea? I was going to suggest sirloin....”


“Sirloin!! I call!”


Han Kyul watched En Chan brighten up immediately, all feelings of victimization gone, and clenched his teeth. It was to stop himself from laughing.


Coffee Prince had become a morning-based cafe. They opened their doors at dawn and closed their doors at nine at night. Sometimes when there were customers who came to drink coffee after dinner, they left it open until ten, but when that happened, Mr. Hong or Han Kyul were the only ones to remain behind while everyone else was free to take off. This was because Han Kyul felt bad that they'd worked two months straight without letting a single day off. Han Kyul didn't know that he would feel such apologetic feelings toward his employees. Thankful and apologetic emotions mixed together and made him more affectionate toward them. It was the first time he'd ever felt this strange feeling, but it didn't feel bad.


He'd put his apron away and was preparing to close up when he heard laughing from somewhere. En Chan and Sun Ki had put their heads together and were whispering something. The only person that Sun Ki, who never wasted words, ever talked to was En Chan. It was a mystery why, but Ko En Chan possessed the strange ability to pull words out from anyone.


Even when Han Kyul had come out from washing his hands, En Chan and Sun Ki were stuck together. Watching them as they whispered, holding something up, made him feel strange inside. An unnameable emotion began to unfold and bloom inside of him. This feeling, this feeling that rose up every day when he looked at Ko En Chan, confused him. So much so that he'd even called Pak Do Hun's elder brother, someone he didn't know very well, on the telephone.


That conversation had proceeded thusly.


[How unexpected. A call from you? What's the matter?]


“I'm sorry, hyung, I meant to go visit you, but I've been so busy that I've only just had the chance to call you. You see, I'm kind of busy doing something these days.”


[Oh, I think I heard from Do Hun. A coffee shop, right?]


“Yes. It started out as just a way to kill time, but it takes up more time than I thought.”


[I see. And you're having fun?]


“Well, I'm not doing it to have fun, but it's not boring. The reason I'm calling is because I have something to ask you. A friend of mine is stuck in a dilemma, and I thought maybe a pyschologist could help.”


[What are the symptoms?]


“Well.. you see....... There's this guy that my friend has met recently, and this guy is real pretty, just like a girl. The way he talks or acts says that he's a male, but this twenty-four year-old guy is a total pretty boy. But whenever my friend so much as looks at this guy, his heart starts pounding and the guy starts to look pretty, and he starts w-wanting to t-touch him.... Anyway, that's what he says. Unbelievable, huh? It's not like he's gay or anything.”


[If he's your friend, he's probably around your age, yes?]


“The same age, actually.”


[Perhaps this is a case of belated self-discovery.]


“Excuse me? Are you saying he's gay? Even though this has never happened before?”


[Well, we can't jump to conclusions. It could be a temporary case, so if the symptoms worsen, send him to our hospital. But hey, how pretty is this guy that this would happen? If your friend's the same age as you are, why don't you tell him to just try going for it? He has experience with women, I presume?]


“Of course.”


[In that case, tell him to try light physical contact. This will clear everything up. Even though he thinks he wants to touch him, once he embraces or even kisses the other guy, he might realize he's actually averse to it. He might even be lost in his own fantasy. Or it might be just curiosity about pretty boys....]


Han Kyul was chewing over the contents of the conversation in his head when his cell phone rang. It was Yu Ju. By her breathing, it sounded like she was walking somewhere while on the phone.


[You're still at your coffee shop, right? I'm on my way there right now.]


“Why?”


[A reporter who came to cover the art gallery asked me to introduce him to a good coffee shop, so I recommended Coffee Prince.]


“You shouldn't have.”


[Why? Doesn't your store need help? I was just trying to—]


“No, no, thanks. So he's coming here right now?”


[No. I'm giving you a few more props. Last time, I noticed that the left wall was a bit barren. The reporter's going to take pictures to put in the magazine, so the store should look nice. I wanted to come earlier, but the meetings only just ended. Ah, I'm hungry. Feed me.]


As soon as he heard her say this, En Chan came into view close up. He suddenly remembered the woman he met a few days ago at the party who'd come with Han Sung. The moment she'd blown the hair out of her eyes, he'd thought of Ko En Chan. Hey, that's Ko En Chan's habit, he'd thought. For a moment, the woman's face and En Chan's face had lined up, but Han Sung had carried her away, so the image had broken. He'd become angry at Yu Ju's crumbled expression, so he'd forgotten about it. But now that he saw En Chan, that woman came to mind again. To think that that glamorous woman was Ko En Chan was, he had to admit, pretty absurd. That woman had had long hair with big eyes and sensuous lips and plump breasts with long legs and a tight body, smelling of perfume... a far cry from Ko En Chan. Now you're imagining all sorts of things, Choi Han Kyul. Have you finally gone insane? Are you "lost in your own fantasy"? Goddamn it.


“All right.”


He hung up and put the cell phone in his pocket when En Chan swaggered over to him.


“Sajangnim, aren't you coming?”


“You guys are going to have to have the company dinner without me tonight.”


“Aw man! Why?” said En Chan with an annoyed look on his face. Han Kyul wanted to tear his own hair out. Just why did he think this guy was insanely cute?!


“You don't need me, you just need my credit card.” Han Kyul took his gold credit card from his wallet and held it out to En Chan. “Here, take it. Don't overdo it.”


“Hey, what makes you think you can trust me with this card?”


En Chan immediately changed his tune and snatched the card away. For having worried at all about this parasite, Han Kyul had only one thing to say to himself:


Crazy bastard.


“We're going to go to three different places tonight!”


Han Kyul smacked En Chan, who was whistling as he went out the door, upside the head as he said,


“You trying to make everyone be late to work tomorrow? You better not come in late tomorrow. I'll fire all of you.”


“Psh. I knew it from the moment you handed over your credit card without a fuss.”


“I give you my card and you're still complaining?”


“How could I, sajangnim? I'll be sure to eat well without complaining. But where are you going? A date?”


“Yea. What are you going to do about it?”


Suddenly, En Chan's face crinkled like a silver pot. He then whipped around and went outside. Han Kyul, who'd been waiting for En Chan's retort, looked after him, feeling rather empty.


“What the heck? What's with the sudden long face? Is he hungry or something?”


After the employees had gone, Han Kyul was left alone in the store. When they were leaving, En Chan hadn't said a single word or even so much as looked at him. Han Kyul had had to restrain himself from calling him over to ask what the matter was. He didn't want the other employees to think anything strange.









The worse you feel, the more you eat. In this, Ko En Chan's stomach was of a superior kind.


Stuffed with meat, En Chan stood up when the restaurant employee began taking the plates away and said,


“I have to go to the bathroom.”


“Oh, let me go with you.”


“Excuse me?”


En Chan looked at Mr. Hong, shocked, when he followed her out. Under the influence of alcohol, she'd momentarily forgotten that they were supposed to be the same sex.


“Oh, right. Right. L-let's go.”


Fortunately, the bathroom in the restaurant was co-ed.


“Ya,” said Mr. Hong as he urinated outside the stall. “Why don't you just come clean?”


“Come clean about what?”


“About sitting down to pee.”


Horrified, En Chan hurriedly pulled her pants up. She flushed the toilet and came outside, but Mr. Hong was nowhere to be seen. When she came outside, she saw Mr. Hong smoking a cigarette and glared as she approached him.


“What if someone had heard that? I've been nervous enough as it is since Ha Rim.”


“The sajang... are you sure he doesn't know yet?”


“Of course. If he knew, do you think that old cheapskate would let me be?”


En Chan hung her head. She was worried enough as it is. She'd wondered if the woman from the art gallery had figured anything out, so she'd called the bubble wrap man, and sure enough, he said that the woman had found out. He said not to worry because he'd take care of it, but to En Chan, it seemed like it was only a matter of time before word reached the sajang's ears. Maybe it was a better idea to tell him herself before then. These men's clothes now felt confining. She wanted to get out of this act and return to the way she was before. Recently, she'd been feeling time and time again that she'd like for him to look at her for who she really was.


“What can he do about it now? You're a part of the team. Do you really think he'd kick you out?”


“Even if he does, there's nothing to be done about it. I'm considering telling him sometime soon. It's weird. Male, female, I didn't really think about it until now... When I was younger, it was kind of amusing to see the other kids' reactions. After Dad died, I was too busy to care.”


“But you care these days, don't you?”


“It's not so much that I care as much as it is that I don't like fooling someone. But why are you suddenly saying I should come clean? Do you think maybe the sajang has already figured it out?”


“No, nothing like that... just... it just seems like there's something between the two of you.”


“Huh? What do you mean 'something'?”


“Nothing. Let's go inside.”


En Chan tilted her head from side to side as she followed Mr. Hong inside.




*
*Chapter Fifteen* Marine Boy Part II




< Part 2 >


Han Kyul took Yu Ju to a Japanese restaurant nearby. It seemed that something had happened between her and Han Sung during the art gallery party, but Yu Ju said nothing. In her words, she was just tired, but her face was drawn and she looked impatient, as if being chased by something. It was probably because of Han Sung. Even if it wasn't for Yu Ju, Han Kyul found himself disliking Han Sung more and more these days.


“Your cafe closes early, doesn't it? I wanted to see your employees, too.”


“Why? You interested in one of them? If you are, let me know. I'll stick him with you.”


“What are you saying? Interested.... It's just... That person, Ko En Chan....”


Han Kyul unconsciously gave Yu Ju a sharp look.


“He's the one who got me my purse back, right? I didn't get to properly thank him. I didn't realize it at the time because it was dark, but he's really pretty, huh? For a guy....”


“If you're worried about thanking him, I've thanked him enough for the both of us, so don't worry about it.”


“Maybe Han Sung obba likes that type.”


“Huh?”


“I-I mean, if that person was a woman. He's pretty, just like a girl. He's bright and honest and open and strong.”


“Just when did you get to know that kid this well?”


Han Kyul realized that he was being edgy and clenched his eyes shut. Wake up, Choi Han Kyul! This is Yu Ju, Han Yu Ju. She's got nothing to do with Ko En Chan.


Han Kyul took in a deep breath and put the edge out of his voice as he said,


“If Han Sung hyung went for that type, do you think he would've dated Han Yu Ju for three years? What's wrong with you all of a sudden? You've been strange ever since that party at the art gallery. Did something happen?”


“No. I'm just wondering if he's sick of me. Until now, I've thought that it was just because he was angry that I broke off the engagement on my own, but now I'm starting to think that maybe that's not it. It might be that he's totally uninterested in me, or that he's drawn to other types of women. Don't men want to try dating different types of women?”


“That's most guys. Choi Han Sung is a special breed.”


“What about you?”


“Me? I'm a man amongst men, so I put value on variety.” Han Kyul paused for effect before snickering as he said, “I don't even discriminate among sexes.”


Just when Yu Ju looked at him through wide eyes, his phone rang. It was his older brother. Han Kyul, whose face had immediately hardened, picked up the phone call and heard the news that his father had collapsed.


[Come to the hospital. Now.]


He then heard for the first time that his father was in danger of a blocked artery in his heart. He'd known that his father suffered from hypertension and so he had to undergo chemical treatments and watch what he ate, and that's all he knew. He didn't know that while he was studying abroad, his father had collapsed twice from excessive stress and drinking.


When Han Kyul arrived at the hospital with Yu Ju, he was stopped at the entrance of the hospital room.


“Wait. He says he needs to talk to Han Sung.”


“Han Sung hyung's inside there? How is he here before I am?!”


“Be quiet.”


Han Kyul, who'd thrust his older brother aside, stopped at his grandmother's call.


“Han Kyul, come here.”


He hung his head and walked over to the sofa where his mother and grandmother were sitting. When his grandmother took his hand and pulled him closer, he collapsed onto his knee.


“He collapsed during a meeting. That's why Han Sung brought him here.”


At his mother's words, Han Kyul raised his head.


“A meeting? Until this hour?”


“It looks like Han Sung's going to take over Foods.”


“So he collapsed from the shock of that? Is that what this is?”


His grandmother gave a long sigh and said,


“The Choi family wants a new president, is what this is.”


This had happened before. When his uncle had undergone police investigation, the Choi family had coldly asked for Han Kyul's father's rise to the presidency. This time, it looked like the successor was going to be the son of the eldest son, Choi Han Sung. Han Kyul didn't care who was in charge of the company. But he didn't want what happened to his uncle to happen to his father. He wouldn't allow it.


The door opened and Han Sung appeared. Everyone stood up and looked at him.


“He says he wants to rest. He says there are nurses around, so it's all right for everyone to go back.”


Han Sung blocked Han Kyul, who was trying to go inside the room.


“Move.”


“He said not to let anyone in. He's going to sleep.”


“I said MOVE!”


“Han Kyul.” Despite his mother's appeal, he pushed Han Sung aside. Just then the nurse came out from the room and repeated that he'd just fallen asleep, so it was probably better to come the next day.


“Grandmother, go and take some rest. Uncle's going to be better soon.”


“Han Sung, see me for a minute.”


“Why don't I see you at the company tomorrow, hyung? (translator's note: here, he's speaking to Han Kyul's older brother, who would be his older cousin.) I have something to say to you in private as well. For tonight, take Grandmother home.”


In the midst of the extreme tension, Grandmother stood up. Han Kyul's mother and sister-in-law held her arms and she walked out quietly. His older brother left as well, and all who remained were Han Sung, Yu Ju and Han Kyul.


“What the hell do you think you're doing?!” roared Han Kyul at Han Sung, gritting his teeth. “ 'You made my father die, let me give you a taste of what I've got,' is that it?!”


“Choi Han Kyul!” Yu Ju stood between them and tried to stop Han Kyul. Both Han Kyul, clenching both fists, and Han Sung, standing calmly, glared at each other.


“Or is this because of Han Yu Ju? You think if you become the president of the company, Senator Han's going to offer his daughter up to you? You can't ask for her because of your dignified pride, so you're trying to get him to offer her—“


Yu Ju's hand slashed across Han Kyul's cheek. Han Kyul stood there with his head to one side, and Yu Ju ran out, tears in her eyes.


“Take good care of Uncle. Don't do anything to stress him.”


Han Sung left and Han Kyul kicked at the sofa, letting out his anger.


“You fool! You goddamn fool! Goddamn it!”


His anger rose up and drove him crazy. He felt like he was going to explode from the despair and self-hatred he felt.




*
*Chapter Fifteen* Marine Boy Part III




< Part 3 >


En Chan's group went to a karaoke bar after dinner. But even when she sang fun songs, En Chan didn't feel up to it. She kept thinking about the sajang. She was so curious what he was up to at the moment that she couldn't focus on the song. That date or whatever was probably with that woman, Han Yu ju. Maybe the two of them were at a fantastic restaurant eating dinner and drinking wine. Imagining the two of them together made her feel ill-tempered. She vowed to stop thinking about it and sang her throat out while jumping around. En Chan was the only was dancing like an idiot. Nak Kyun was completely tone-deaf and Mr. Hong only sang Kim Gwang Suk songs.


“Man, this is boring. I wish Ha Rim was here. If he was here, he'd play along...” grumbled En Chan as she returned to the sofa. The song Mr. Hong had reserved began to play.


“Looks like you're in a bad mood tonight,” said Sun Ki, who was sitting next to her. En Chan, who'd been watching the screen, turned her head that was resting on her hand to look at Sun Ki.


“Yea?”


“Are you tired?”


“No.”


En Chan drank her soda while listening to Mr. Hong sing. She swayed from side to side, singing along, and then stopped and turned to Sun Ki and said,


“You know the quail feather grandpa? He came today too, at 9:30 am sharp. And I failed again. Why is that old man's tastes so picky?”


By 'quail feather grandpa,' En Chan meant the elderly gentleman who came to Coffee Prince every morning at 9:30 sharp, wearing a checkered suit and a homburg hat with a quail feather stuck in it.


“I just don't know what he wants. I made it exactly the way he told me to, and he still said it wasn't right, that there was too much cinnamon in it today. Whew. I've never met such a picky grandpa in my life.”


“But that grandpa only ever orders from you, hyung. He doesn't even look at the rest of us.”


“That's what makes me even madder. How did he know that I'm the worst out of all of us and order from me? It's like he's saying, 'haha, let me mess around with you now.' Psh. We'll see about that. We'll see who wins, him or me.”


When Mr. Hong's song ended, Sun Ki took the microphone. En Chan looked in surprise at Sun Ki, who was heading to the stage. The intro began to play. The song on the screen was Buzz's “Coward.”


“Hey, look at him, his pose looks good, huh?”


Just as Mr. Hong said, Sun Ki stood like a real singer and began to sing skillfully. The voice he rarely let anyone hear was so sweet and smooth....


“Wow!”


En Chan, who'd picked up a peanut, stopped in mid-action. Completely dazzled, she looked at Sun Ki. Short of drooling, En Chan looked like a complete idiot. And there goes the drool. Nak Kyun and Mr. Hong both watched Sun Ki and exclaimed to each in turn. His high notes were perfect and heart-wrenching. When the song ended, the three people who'd listened as if possessed stood up in unison and gave him a standing ovation.


“Ya, No Sun Ki, how could you? How could you fool us like that?”


“You could totally be a singer! I'm seriously really jealous.”


“You bastard, you actually play around a lot, don't you? You secretly go around club-hopping at night, don't you?”


“Hey, sing another one.”


“Yea, this time, sing a faster one. This bastard probably dances really well too.”


Sun Ki, after declining to dance several times, began to sweep the stage like a b-boy. His long arms and legs went whirling, and everyone's eyes went spinning. His body was so flexible that it reminded En Chan of a salmon strongly making its way upstream.


“No Sun Ki! No Sun Ki!”


The group went wild with cheering. Eventually, everyone grew excited and stood up to shake their bodies. Nak Kyun, shaking a tambourine, looked like a cheerleader. En Chan thrust away Mr. Hong as he tried to spin her and danced by herself.


When Mr. Hong, who'd become rather excited, began to sing Kim Gwang Suk's “The Place The Wind Blows To,” En Chan quietly left the group and headed toward the bathroom. Apprently, she'd eaten too much sirloin. Unconsciously, she ended up in the women's bathroom. She was about to go back out when she laughed at her own identity confusion, and went back in. She was sitting on the toilet when she smelled cigarettes.


“You know the room next to ours? I was walking by and I heard a familiar voice so I peeked in.”


“Someone you know?”


“Marine Boy.”


The cigarette smoke plumed over the stall door. En Chan scowled and waved her hand around to dispel the smoke.


“What? What's that bastard doing here? Did he quit the other place? Is he working here now?”


“Hey, do they use men here? I think I did hear something about madam looking for a few...”


“Aw shit! Another run in my stocking!”


“Just take it off. Hey, judging by the looks of those old geezers, they're not going to tip much, so let's cut them off early and go hang out at a bar somewhere.”


“I'm broke, you bitch.”


En Chan, who'd come out of the bathroom, felt like throwing up from the smell of cigarette smoke and perfume. She was holding her breath as she washed her hands when her cell phone rang.


“Hello, this is Coffee Prince, home of deli— Oops!”


It'd become habit to say this line, even when she was picking up her own cell phone. En Chan hurriedly said,


“Hello?”


[Tae Kwon V.]


The pronunciation of the words was slurred, so it was hard to make out what was being said.


“Who is this?”


[Me? Hmm... I wonder who I am?]


This was a familiar way of speaking. Oh! And here I am, wondering who it is.


“Mr. Cranky Sajang, what's the matter? Is your date no fun?”


[Date? Ok, let's go on a date.]


What the hell is he saying?


“Sajangnim, are you drunk?”


[No. I'm drinking. Ya, Ko En Chan!]


“Damn, you're going to make me deaf. Why, sajangnim!”


[You, come here.]


“Huh? Right now?”


[Yea. Come here.]


“We're having fun right now, why are you trying to make me leave? I don't want to. If you have something to say to me, tell me tomorrow. Or you should come here, sajangnim. Did you know that Sun Ki sings really—“


[Sun Ki? Oh, No Sun Ki. You're with that guy right now?]


“Of course. It's our first company dinner in a long time. Do you think I'd let anyone get away?”


[Don't hang around that guy! I don't need him. Shake him off and you come here.]


“Are you at your hotel right now?”


[Yea. Our hotel.]


“Do you know what time it is right now? If I go all the way there, when, exactly am I supposed to go to sleep? Aren't you overworking your employee too much? I have to deliver milk tomorrow, too. It's not like I'm your secretary or anything....”


[Hey kid! Can't you just come when I ask you to?]


“Goddamn it....”


[I need you right now.]


Surprise took En Chan's breath away.


[I need you....]



*
*Chapter Sixteen* Love is a Secret You Can't Hide Part I



< Part 1 >


Having arrived at the door of room S11, En Chan took in a deep breath before ringing the bell. Her heart was still pounding from what he'd said on the phone. She told herself that he probably hadn't meant it, that it was a slip of the tongue or joke or a thoughtless remark. But it wasn't working very well.


She heard pounding feet and the door opened, but there was nobody there, just the smell of alcohol. En Chan, who'd come inside, looked at mess that started from the door on and was surprised. The farther she went into the room, the worse the mess became. Clothes were crumpled and rolled up on the floor, chairs were knocked over, wet towels and tissues boxes, books, DVDs were all scattered about.


“Woah!”


Hearing a squishing sound from underneath, En Chan looked down. An enormous vase had been knocked over, and the carpet was thoroughly soaked.


“What the hell is all this?” En Chan struggled to set the vase up straight. “Why's it so messy in here?”


“Just step around it and come inside,” came the answer from inside. He'd either drunken too much, was still drinking, or had spilled his drinks, because the room absolutely reeked of alcohol.


“You're usually such a neat freak, why'd you make this mess? It's very un-Han-Kyulistic.”


“What are you yapping about? It's not like you're going to clean it for me.”


He was right. En Chan stepped around the clothes lying on the floor and moved to the living room by stepping only in empty spaces.


He was on sitting on the floor in the living room, between the sofa and the coffee table. His shirt was flung open and his hair was rumpled as if someone had begun to wash it and then quit. In one hand he hand a green liquor bottle and was watching the television.


“Ya, come here. This is really funny,” he said, watching the screen and waving her over. En Chan scowled and tiptoed toward him. She pushed aside his jacket on the sofa and sat down.


“Come sit here. I don't like having people stare at the back of my head.” En Chan glared at the back of his head.


“Now.”


There was nothing else she could do but slide down and sit on the floor.


“Come over, go away, come here, sit down, what am I, a dog?”


“A dog?” he snickered. Without taking his eyes off the television, he held out his palm. “Shake.”


En Chan smacked his hand down hard, and he whined, saying it hurt. And then suddenly he put his arm around her shoulder. En Chan looked at him in surprise. He was still watching the game show on the television. He lifted the bottle.


“Do you want a sip?”


“No, thanks.”


“Hey, don't be shy. Here. Drink.”


He forced the bottle to her mouth.


“Mmrph!”


She couldn't get away because he was holding tightly onto her head. Eventually, En Chan opened her mouth and then immediately winced at the strong smell.


“Keck!”


The alcohol wasn't just strong, it was overpowering. It felt like her throat was shriveling into itself. She was coughing and gasping for air when he stretched out his hand to wipe off the liquor that was flowing down her chin, as if to a child. He then took the bottle to his mouth like nothing had happened.


It was rather worrisome the way he was gulping it down. En Chan watched him drink, even wetting his neck, and asked,


“You get dumped?”


“Pfff!!!” Alcohol sprayed from his mouth. He coughed the liquid from his windpipe and said, “Wh-what did you say?”


Just then, she saw the stream of liquid on his chin. Without thinking, En Chan stretched out her hand and wiped it off, just like he had. His eyes grew wide with surprise. En Chan pretended not to notice as she clucked her tongue.


“You got dumped by that lady, right? It was one-sided, right? I knew it. Date, my butt. I can tell just by looking that you liked her all by yourself and then got kicked in the behind. Even I have to say that you and that lady don't look good together. That lady looks better with that pop wrap ahjussi. Well, the pop wrap ahjussi might be kind of a jerk, but he's a good-mannered jerk, dependable, too.”


“What's all this pop-popping about? Stop pop popping.” (translator's note: in Korean, bubble wrap is pronounced “bbok bbok”, a word that require a significant pout of the mouth to say. The point of this dialogue is that this pout diverts Han Kyul's attention to En Chan's lips, so I had to change “bubble wrap” to “pop wrap” since the word “pop” requires more pouting than “bubble.”)


“Why? Pop wrap is the best! Haven't you ever tried refrigerator poppers? It's the best of all pop wraps.”


En Chan raised a thumb and continued to explain.


“You know, before, when my family bought a new refrigerator—do you know how big refrigerator poppers are?—my dad and I spread it out on the floor and popped all of them. Do you know how we did it? We rolled around. We pressed down with our backs and it popped, like this, pop pop, and in our ears we could hear pop pop, pop pop.....”








En Chan stopped when she felt that the mood had suddenly turned strange. He began to come closer, looking at her as if to bore a hole in her face. She began to be pushed back as he came closer, and her head began to fall backwards.


“Wh-what are you doing?”


His eyes were gathered on her lips. Her heart felt like it was about to burst from his sudden proximity.


“You're funny.”


En Chan tried to make a joke to get away.


“I-I'm not funny, I-I can't even tell a joke.”


“No, you're funny.”


It didn't work. He was still looking at her intensely and he'd gotten so close she could feel his breath on her.


“Your hair is funny....” He fingered a few strands of it and rubbed it as if to test it. Then his hand strayed down to her face and rested on her cheek. Her heart strained to burst out of her chest.


“Your skin is funny....”


Her pulse was going crazy. En Chan swallowed hard and looked at his eyes, which were unblinking. She felt like she was going to melt into the fragrance that emanated from his body.


“Your lips are funny....”


What was funny was En Chan's heart. Her mind was a complete blank. It might have been that he'd figured out that she was a girl, and this might be him trying to tell her that, but her mind was a complete blank. All she could do was tremble with the anticipation and excitement that his fingers would soon touch her lips.


Finally his thumb reached her lips. He gazed at them intensely as he touched, and her lips parted on their own. He lifted to his eyes to capture her own. En Chan looked at him, shaking with excitement and anxiety.


Just then, he said,


“Are you a..... gay?”


Suddenly, everything lurched to a stop. Anticipation and excitement vanished into air. En Chan felt irritated at her strange sense of disappointment.


“You might not have known it yourself until now, but—“


En Chan shoved him away by his chest. She stood up abruptly as he flailed backwards. Her heart was still pounding quickly. She felt embarrassed that she'd expected anything and her reddening face felt like it was on fire.


“Wh-what the hell are you talking about!”


“Ah... ow.. my back.....”


He squirmed on the floor.


“If you've gotten drunk, you should just pass out like a decent person! Why'd you have to call me out and say ridiculous things? Really! You're completely no help! Stop whining and go to bed!”


Right then, he pulled the bottle out from under his back. En Chan looked at him in surprise. Groaning, he sat up and winced as he rubbed his lower back.


“Man... that sure as hell woke me up. Fuu....”


“A-are you all right?”


En Chan sat back down and helped massage the injured area.


“Serves you right for saying such nonsense... Are you all right?”


“Man, you may be peanut-sized but you're hella strong. How much meat did you eat today?”


En Chan answered as she massaged,


“Not much. About 18 servings?”


“All by yourself?”


“No, all together. I only ate six servings by myself.”


“Six servings? You ate six servings all by yourself? Isn't that past the lethal dosage for a human?”


“Lethal dose? Nah. A sumo wrestler could probably finish sixteen servings all by himself.”


“What a very EnChanlistic statement.”


“You feeling better now?”


He stood up and rotated his torso before saying,


“Now that I'm wide awake, I've got to drink some more. For the almighty Ko En Chan, who finishes six servings of meat like it was nothing, this kind-hearted sajangnim will open up a bottle of excellent wine.”


“It's late. I have to go home.”


“You can't go home today. Stay the night.”


“I can't. I have to deliver milk in the morning....”


“Hey, scrap that, all right? Starting today, I mean, tomorrow, don't do anything. Just stay by my side. All right, Mr. Ko En Chan?”


Wide awake my ass. He's still talking nonsense.


En Chan flopped onto the sofa, dumbfounded. To be honest, she didn't want to leave either. With a word, he could control her emotions, making her happy and then disappointed, back and forth. Her body would heat up and then cool down with a single look from him. Ahhh I give up. I don't know what's happening to me. I must've caught cold or something.




*
*Chapter Sixteen* Love is a Secret You Can't Hide Part II




< Part 2 >


Han Kyul sat on the left end of the sofa, En Chan on the right. They looked at each other as they drank. In the middle of the sofa were their legs, entangled together.


“What size shoes do you wear?” asked Han Kyul, giving En Chan's foot a light kick with his own foot. En Chan sipped the wine before answering,


“Size 8 ½.”


“Ya.”


“7 ½.”


“I wear 9 ½ size shoes.”


“No, really, I either wear size 8 ½ or 7 ½.”


“Your foot looks like a size 6.”


“Big shoes are in fashion these days.”


“What are you, a kid? Still following fashion trends?”


“Don't you buy new ties when the tie trend changes?”


“That's not the same thing.”


“Psh.”


The two of them continued drinking for a while, kicking each other's feet. En Chan had already begun to melt from the wine, and Han Kyul had become quite mellow as well.


“What are you going to do about Ha Rim?”


“I'm not going to do anything.”


“I don't know what happened, but he won't pick up his phone. Why is it that if someone leaves Coffee Prince, they stop picking up their calls? What if it's not that he's not picking up the phone, and it's that he can't pick it up... What if something bad happened?”


“What do I look like, a guidance counselor for runaway teens?”


“Ha Rim's not a runaway teen. He's an adult, and he has a very clear goal.”


“If you have a goal, you should expect obstacles.”


“I heard that his father's extremely strict. His son left home for two months, and he didn't even go looking for him. There's no doubt that his father's completely old-fashioned and stubborn as hell. Ha Rim probably took after his mother.”


Seeing that he'd finished his glass, en Chan stood up. She felt a little dizzy, but the buzz felt nice. She lifted the bottle and precariously poured the wine in. Red droplets splashed onto his hand. En Chan wiped it off with her fingers and leaned back into the sofa.


Han Kyul drank again. After draining half the cup in one draught, he said, looking at En Chan,


“What kind of a man was your father?”


“My dad? He was a really good person. My grandmother used to say that other than athlete's foot, there was nothing at all to find fault with in him.”


Han Kyul then suddenly looked at En Chan's feet and began to retract his own feet slowly. En Chan snickered and playfully tickled the bottoms of his feet with her toes.


“Hey, hey, athlete's foot is genetic, you know.”


“If you say so, sajangnim.”


His foot that had been running away from her tickling stretched out suddenly and placed itself on top of En Chan's foot.


“Hey, who do you think you are?”


En Chan whipped her foot out and lifted it onto the top of his foot. For a while, all four legs struggled to win the top. The game of strength, in which the spirit of competition roared like fire in the two competitors, concluded in a draw. Both lost one leg and won one leg.


“What about you, sajangnim? What kind of a person is your father? You know, now that I mention it, you never talk about yourself. How many siblings do you have? Don't you have a house other than this hotel? You don't live with your family?”


“I'm an orphan.”


“Ah.” En Chan, who'd carelessly nodded her head, looked at him, completely taken aback. “Wh-what did you just say?”


“You gonna be cruel and make me say it again?”


“Oh! S-sorry.”


“If you're sorry, keep your mouth closed on this. You're the one who made those words come out of my mouth.”


En Chan closed her lips tightly and shook her head.


“When I was ten, I accidentally overheard my parents talking. I found out later that I'd been sent to an orphanage as soon as I was born. Not long after that, I was adopted to this family. I have an older brother and an older sister. My grandmother, my father, my mother, my elder brother and his wife all live in the same house, and I have a room there, too. My elder sister's married with a kid. Satisfied now?”


“Y-you must've been surprised, huh? Being so young...”


En Chan was surprised as well. She saw him in a new light. She'd thought that he wouldn't have any worries or scars since he was a rich kid from a rich family. She thought that he lived however he wanted because he grew up not lacking in anything. But the more she got to know him, but more surprised she became. She thought he only cared about superficial things, but he ran the cafe diligently, and always used polite speech to Mr. Hong, and the most surprising thing was Nak Kyun's incident. That was when she changed her opinion of him. He'd gone from being a vain, cold-hearted libertine to being a cold but genuine person who could hold his head up proudly, and who could, at times, possess the warmth of heart to help others.


The fact that this kind of man was an orphan made her heart ache deeply. It's not that there weren't more unfortunate people in this world, or that her situation was better than his, but for some reason, her heart throbbed at the thought that he was an orphan. Not just anybody, but he was....


En Chan was gazing at him steadily when Han Kyul said,


“I hated the world. Everyone seemed like a liar. They would smile on the outside and on the inside, they'd curse me, saying I was a fatherless bastard. If I hadn't been adopted, I probably would've been despised by everyone. That's why I don't trust them. The bitches who say they like me. It's obvious what they like about it. They don't know anything about who I really am, and all they like to see is what's on the outside. If I took off my shell, they'd probably set sail and run away.”


“If they really liked you, they wouldn't run away.”


“I don't believe you.”


“Did someone run away?”


“No.”


“See?”


“I don't show anyone who I really am.”


“Does that mean you've never been in a deep relationship with a woman before?”


“Pretty smart there, aren't you?”


“What about that lady, Han Yu Ju? She doesn't know either?”


“I told you, you're the only one.”


A shy smile floated up on En Chan's face. She could blame the redness on the alcohol, but what could she blame her sudden happiness on?


“But why don't you go home....?”


“I don't want to live the way my father tells me to. If I live at home, I have to live my life the way he tells me to.”


“He wouldn't tell you to live a bad life, though.”


“It's childishness. I want to plan my own life, but he's already planned it, so I get angry. As you've probably noticed, I have to have things go my own way to be happy.”


“I-it's suddenly become confession time, huh? Can I tell you something about myself?”


En Chan swallowed drily. She thought that this was her chance. Her insides told her to tell him right now. They shouted, you can't lie when he's being honest. He's drunk now, so he might take it better. He might even forgive you. But. Then.


“What could you possibly have to confess? You're nothing but honesty, kid. Too honest, actually. That's why I like you, though.”


Said he.


“I-I lied about Ha Rim sleeping at the store...”


“He probably asked you to keep it a secret. If you'd gone and ratted him out, you'd have probably been left out from the group. The only way a group can work together is if they trust each other.”


So what? So she did the right thing? She wanted to shout, 'What exactly is your definition of being honest?! I'm human too! I lie too! I'm actually telling an unbelievable lie right now!!”


“Ko En Chan.”


“What?”


“Do you want to become blood brothers?”


“Isn't that something that comes out in the Three Kingdoms?”


“Are you saying that having even read the Three Kingdoms?”


“I've read the first few pages.”


“Anyway, let's do it. You don't have an older brother, I don't have a younger brother. It might kind of be my loss and it might be a little annoying for me to have to clean up after you, but I'll take it. Instead, you have to listen to whatever hyung says. Ok?”


“Psh. There you go again, doing whatever you want. Who says it's ok? I don't need a hyu—“


Suddenly he set his glass down and came closer. En Chan, afraid of what he'd do this time, folded her legs and stood up. Her head spun.


“Ugh... Your face looks like there's four of them, sajangnim.”


“Your face looks like Princess Fiona.”


He took the small hoop earring from his own ear and then scowled as he looked at En Chan's ear.


“Your ears aren't pierced?”


“Why would I pierce my ear? It'd be painful, right?”


“Well, no can do. Come here. I'll pierce it for you.”


“Whaaat?”


En Chan felt danger and raised her body. She was so dizzy that her she teetered from side to side.


“Hey, hey, come here already. We need some kind of mark that we've become blood brothers.”


“No! I don't want it!”


“If you let me pierce it, I'll buy you a Monk's Jump Over the Wall.”


“I don't need no monk or no wall!”


“You idiot, Monk's Jump Over the Wall. You don't know it?”


“I don't care if it's a monk or a punk jumping over the wall, I don't want to!”


“It's a Chinese dish.”


En Chan, who'd been running away from Han Kyul, stopped and looked around.


“It's something to eat?”


“Yea, stupid. It's good for you. You like stuff like that right? It's ear shell with pine mushrooms, sea cucumbers, carp bladder, deer tendons, and.. what else was there... anyway, it's a soup that has ten different ingredients in it. I'll buy it for you.”


“D-deer tendons? I don't eat stuff like that. Damn it, I don't want to!”


“You're quite the scaredy cat for a boy..... Wait a minute, needle. I need to find a needle. Where's the needle again? Where's my phone? My phone....”


“What do you need your phone for?”


“Stupid. I have to call the manager and ask him to send over a needle.”


“No!!! I won't pierce my ear! Never!”


En Chan jumped somewhere and pulled the blanket over herself. She could hear the sajang on the phone in the living room. He was really asking the manager to bring over a needle. It was incredible. What was more incredible, however, was that no matter how hard her heart was beating, she couldn't keep her eyes open. Sleep rushed to her like waves....




*
*Chapter Sixteen* Love is a Secret You Can't Hide Part III



< Part 3 >


Han Kyul wriggled at the sound of the alarm. He stretched out his arm and groped around to turn the alarm off and tried to go back to sleep mode. He felt something soft and warm, so he pulled it toward himself. The thing he was holding moved and came into his bosom. The thing that had come into his bosom was cushiony and tender, and it made him feel good. He held onto it tightly and puckered out his lips. He drew it up to his mouth and smacked kisses on it repeatedly. He then moaned satisfactorily and went back to dream land............ huh?


Han Kyul wasn't the only one who opened his eyes as wide as they would go in surprise. The moment their eyes met each other, they both sprung up.


“Aacck!!” screamed En Chan. She had no idea how they could both be sleeping in the same bed, not to mention holding each other!


“What are you screaming about...” Han Kyul muttered in a flustered voice as he got out of bed. He was wearing nothing but boxers. Alarmed, En Chan hurriedly looked down at her own self. Thankfully, she was still wearing her clothes.


“Oh! Milk! Shit! I'm dead!”


“Hey, hey, I told you to scrap that. The kid never listens.”


Forget milk, she was going to be late in getting to work on time. En Chan was hurriedly getting out of bed when she stopped because of a strange ache somewhere. Figuring it was a hangover, she ran to the bathroom. She was rushing to wash her face when something was strange. It was then that she noticed something sparkling on her right ear.


“Ah.. aaaarrrrgggggh!!!!!!” she shouted as she jumped out from the bathroom. She yelled at Han Kyul, who was reading the paper, still dressed only in his boxers, “What are you, a freakin' psycho?! How could you pierce someone's ear like this?! You're crazy!!!”


“Goddamn it, kid, don't scream. You're making my head ring.”


En Chan went back to the living room mirror and looked at the piercing again before letting out another shout.


“How can you tell me not to scream right now! Were you insane?! Ow, it's hurts.”


Everytime she yelled, her right ear shook and ached even more.


“What the hell are you yelling about?”


En Chan felt like she was going to burst from the frustration.


“My ear!! My ear! You pervert cabbage slug! I said I didn't want to! I said I didn't want to, so why'd you go and pierce it you jackass!”


“You little punk!” He came toward her with a scowl. Han Kyul finally discovered when he looked at En Chan in the mirror that the earring that had hung on his ear was now hanging on the end of En Chan's ear.


“Ya, what's that doing on your ear?”


“Arrgh! Arrgh!!”


En Chan was punching at her own chest when suddenly a fear came rushing up to her. What if the piercing went wrong and began to swell up? Then she'd have to pull a van Gogh and..... AAAAARGGGGGH!!!!!! A cry of terror rang in her chest. En Chan whipped around and grabbed Han Kyul's arm as she asked,


“Wh-what did you pierce it with? A needle? Where's the needle? Did you disinfect it? Argh, you crazy man! If there are any side effects, I won't stand for it!”


“You're saying I did this piercing?”


“Grrr!!”


“I don't remember that.... Well, for having done it while drunk, it's done pretty nicely. Oh, scab.”


He suddenly touched the end of her ear with his hand. The next moment, En Chan screamed at the pain and kicked him in his shin.


“Ugh!”


Watching him jump around the living room with his hands wrapped around his leg made her feel a bit better.


“You little! Who the hell do you think you're kicking?!”


“I didn't even kick you that hard, don't whine. Compared to what you did to my ear, that's nothing. I'll pay you back for this someday, so just you wait.”


“Ya! Pay me back with cash. I pierced your ear for you and even gave you my earring. That's 24k gold, kid.”


“Hurry up and wash. We're late.”


Han Kyul, who walked into the bathroom muttering, took a leisurely shower. En Chan was throwing a fuss in the living room, but he took his time. No matter how late he was going to be, he had to take a shower. To think that she'd be able to avoid scolding because she'd come in with the sajang was an error. After starting take-out, the morning time was incredibly busy. If things kept on this way, she'd end up being sorry to the other employees. Eventually, En Chan left without waiting for Han Kyul.






“Ya, Ko En Chan! What happened to you yesterday? You left without a word. Your mother called looking for you.”


Oh shoot! I forgot to call home.


“S-something came up...”


“Get a new cell phone. I couldn't get through again.”


“Sometimes the reception's really good. Last time, I even got bars in the underground parking lot. Pretty amazing, huh?”


“You're supposed to get reception even in the underground parking lot.”


En Chan, who'd just barely made it on time, moved quickly. Ten minutes later, Han Kyul entered the store like a runway model.


“Good morning!”


With that, he went straight to the kitchen to pour coffee. Just then, Nak Kyun started the drip machine. Han Kyul moaned at the whirring sound and grumbled,


“Can't you do that later?”


“Excuse me?”


Nak Kyun stared at him as if to say, what kind of ghost-shelling-peanuts nonsense is that? The sajang sighed and waved his hand.


“Never mind.”


Judging by the way he was pressing down on his temples, he was suffering from a hangover. En Chan was suffering not so much from a hangover than from hunger. Usually, she'd have had breakfast thirty minutes ago.


The two suffering gazes met in midair. En Chan, suddenly sheepish, looked away, but he kept looking after her. Finally, En Chan threw him a questioning gaze. He then spun around toward her and said quickly in a low voice,


“I brought you vegetable porridge, parasite boy. There's antibiotics, too, so take it. Otherwise, it'll infect.”


Boy, this guy really gives you the illness and then feeds you the medicine. Psh.



*
*Chapter Seventeen* A Woman I Don't Know Part I




< Part 1 >



“Raindrops keep falling on my head, and just like....”


Han Kyul found himself singing to himself in his car on the way to work. The streets were full of pink azaleas and red roses moistened by the spring rain. Raindrops clearer than crystal were sliding down his windshield and cheerful music flowed inside the car. Han Kyul discovered that he was tapping his steering wheel and was in quite a good mood.


It was true that now that the cafe was becoming busier, he was beginning to like it more. Well, to be totally honest, it wasn't just because of the work. He'd begun to like something else. Ko En Chan. It was delightful to see the kid. Even when their opinions clashed, their arguments were fun. Quarreling with each other and playing on each other's words was the best at getting rid of ennui. It was also intensely amusing to watch the kid, who always flared up at the slightest provocation, get angry. When they were together, he never got bored, and sometimes, he even found himself thinking that he was happy. Just look at how he'd simply quivered with rage just because he'd pierced his ear. Even after arguments, he was always so easily pacified. What a simple kid. Han Kyul couldn't help but laugh.


Han Kyul unconsciously burst out laughing and in turn became rather sheepish. A few drops of rain came through the slightly open window. He leaned an arm against the rain-smeared window and suddenly began thinking. What is this? What is this feeling? I even told him about my being an orphan. For some reason, Han Kyul had wanted to tell him. Maybe it was because he was feeling frustrated, but the fact that it had to be this kid made him wonder. Why did it have to be him?


Han Kyul breathed out a sigh and said,


“Que sera sera.”


Was he gay? Well, if he was, so what? So what if he was gay? What did it matter if he liked him? Wasn't it better than having an affair or prostitution? He'd no intention of following along with other peoples' principles anyway. He didn't even consider the notion that he had to care about what other people thought about him. What was wrong with liking a guy? It's not like he was saying he was going to do anything about it just now, just that his mind was leaning that way....


“It might not even be that. It might be just attraction between one person and another person. It's not unacceptable for two friends to embrace each other. It might just be feelings of friendship..... He's pretty cute anyway....... Maybe it gets a little beyond that and I'm attracted to him....... shit. Goddamn it!”


Yea. It was untrue to say that he wasn't worried at all. He'd received an orthodox education and his ethics grades had been pretty high. As long as his eyes and ears remained open, it was inevitable that he'd be trained to follow the principles of this society. But if I like him, and he likes me, what was the big deal? This body will live the way this body wants to. Yea. Let's just let it flow the way it wants to. If I start to think about it, it'll only give me a headache.




It seemed the employees had also begun to like the store more these days. Recently, they'd begun to lay out their suggestions during meetings. Of those many good suggestions, he decided to try two of them. The first was to give every 100th customer a small cactus plant present, and the second was to give out an apple a customer every morning. The latter was a suggestion from Nak Kyun, and the former was, without question, En Chan's suggestion. Cacti were good for blocking electromagnetic waves and apples in the morning was good for the health, so it was worth trying out in the sense of customer service.


When he was almost to the cafe, a call came from his grandmother.


“Did you sleep well, Grandma?”


[I don't like begging for attention. Come home and say good morning to me properly.]


“There are some things I have to take care of today, so I don't think I'll be coming home tonight. I'll present you with the reasons for not sleeping at home in a report.”


[Bring your account book and buy me a meal. I want to eat potato noodles.]


“It hasn't been three months yet. Has there been a change in our contract?”


[I'll know how you'll do if I see your progress in the past two months. Have your car ready in front of the company building by five PM today.]


“Yes, ma'am.”


He didn't know exactly what his grandmother wanted to talk to him about, but he was sure it had to do with the company. His older brother Han Kyu had told him as much when their father came home from the hospital last night.


“Start as a proxy director and gradually master management. Only then can Father retire in peace. Right now, even though he wants to rest, he can't because he's anxious. In the end, it just means that you're the one making him continue to work. He's not being absurd. I know. Even though he doesn't say as much, the reason why he's more strict with you is because he trusts your abilities more. Do you know something? Our personalities have switched since we were children. I was the troublemaker and you were the good one. Whatever Mother had you do, you did it without complaining and without a single mistake. You always made your bed perfectly and your desktop was always clean. Father even entrusted you to organize his library. You even created a catalogue. Not a millimeter of error, the entire bookshelf looked like a flat wall, the books were so carefully placed. Whenever guests came over, Mother would take them to show it off. A ten year-old who was like a little librarian. But somewhere along the way, you changed. You did whatever they told you not to do, and you rebelled against Mother and Father. We all thought it was just puberty but..... you can't expect us to believe that that's still going on. Are you still stuck in puberty?”



After hearing his brother speak, his head felt tangled. The three months his grandmother had given him were coming to a close, but he didn't know how he would settle the contest. If he only counted sales, 300% was a possibility, but if they were talking profit, there was no contest. If he wanted to reimburse his grandmother's loan, business would have to continue in this same manner for at least a year. Would his grandmother count this loan or no, and would he accept it if she did would decide the results. Since she'd said sales, he could, technically, argue that he couldn't add investment capital into the calculation. If he did, though, his grandmother would probably be disappointed. I've given you three months to think, and you're still coming up with ways to run away? she'd probably say. He knew his grandmother's true intention.



Han Kyul shut his car door when the shop's glass doors opened and En Chan ran out. In his hand was a large trashbag.


“Sajangnim, take this.”


Han Kyul, who'd unconsciously begun to smile in joy of seeing the kid again, felt incredulous. En Chan had handed the trash bag over to him and had run back into the store.


“Ya!”


But it was no use to yell after him.


Han Kyul grumbled to himself as he put the trash bag in its designated spot and went into the store. He was coming out from washing his hands when En Chan brought him coffee.


“Looks like we're not going to get too many take-out customers this morning, huh? They're probably not going to want to wait in line in this rain. Maybe we should've set up canopies outside. Hey, maybe we should do that when it rains. I'm busy, so hurry up and drink this and help me. I have to wash the apples.”


This kid was just impossible to hate.


Han Kyul rolled up his sleeves and washed apples together with En Chan and put them into baskets. The drizzling spring rain somehow felt artistic. He suddenly felt sentimental. He wanted to sit with En Chan by the window drinking coffee and listening to music. Peacefully......


After the morning business men and women swept past, the store was quiet.


“ 'The coffee tastes great. The best I've ever had. I'll be expecting more of the same from now on.' “


“ 'Friendly.' ”


“That's it? That's all they wrote?”


“It's the biggest compliment.”


En Chan and Nak Kyul were reading the customer comment cards.


“ 'Totally dazzled. I was about to pass by because I was busy, but I was lured by the fragrance of coffee, so I ended up standing in line. There were five people in front of me, but they disappeared in a second. En Chan obba, you really are best. How can you memorize everyone's tastes? You must be really smart, too. Ho ho ho.' “


“What's the ho ho ho about?”


“It's written here, just like that. Look.”


They held up the card as they analyzed its contents and laughed in delight.


“This person wrote a suggestion that we should sell sandwiches or cakes that go well with coffee to serve as breakfast.”


“If we have to make those as well, what time, exactly, do we have to come to work?”


“We can just order from somewhere else. We can't make all of that.”


“My Mom makes the best sandwiches.”


“Oh really? Try asking her if she'll do it.”


“No. My Mom takes forever to make it anything. Now, this, and this, and this—“


En Chan pushed aside dozens of cards to one side.


“What is this?”


“Fan letters. Hey, No Sun Ki, take 'em.”


Sun Ki came and looked at the cards before saying,


“Aren't we going to hang up a banner or anything?”


En Chan and Nak Kyun stared at Sun Ki together.


“The magazine reporter came to cover this place yesterday, right? The restaurant across the street hung up a banner saying they were on television.”


Sun Ki then disappeared with an embarrassed look on his face. There was an awkward silence.


“What planet did he come from?”


At En Chan's words, Nak Kyun snickered. Just then, Mr. Hong called En Chan's name. She turned around and saw that the quail-feather grandpa was standing by the entrace.


“Oh, hello, grandpa, how are you?”


En Chan greeted him and prepared to take his order. The elderly gentleman, holding up a great big black umbrella twitched his mustache as if displeased and said,


“Today's recommendation is conpana? How am I supposed to know what it is if all there is is writing? You should have a picture up or something.”


“Oh, that's a good idea, a picture.”


En Chan quickly smiled and agreed with him before cautiously asking,


“What would you like to have today? Just coffee...”


“Can't you just tell what I want to drink?”


No, how could I? I'm not telepathic or anything. But En Chan retained her smile and said,


“Oh, then let me guess. Hmm.... How about a cafe latte?”


“Too watery.”


“What about a neat and clean-tasting Americano?”


“Don't feel like it. You don't know anything. Give me a cup of Blue Mountain.”


“Blue Mountain it is, sir.”


En Chan hurriedly relayed the order to Mr. Hong and went back to the gentleman. The senior never drank inside. He'd order the coffee and then sit outside at a table and wait. But today, the chairs were wet from the rain. Seeing the gentleman standing outside the store made En Chan restless. Finally, she tucked a towel inside her apron and ran outside.


En Chan pulled a chair inside the narrow eaves of the building and wiped it down with the towel. All the employees watched from inside, and the grandfather was watching from underneath the umbrella.


“Grandpa, please, sit here.”


En Chan stood waiting for the grandfather to come. He stood there a while, watching her, then he began to walk over. Seeing the grandfather sit, En Chan smiled in relief.


“When the coffee's ready, I'll bring it out to you,” she said, and was about to go back into the store when the gentleman suddenly said,


“My grandchildren never speak to me.”


“Excuse me?”


“Do I look that frightening?”


“N-no, of course not,” answered En Chan, firmly shaking her head. “You're quite dashing, Grandpa. That hat, especially, is killer.”


“Hrm hrm.”


“Oh, well, by killer I meant.. um... it's the bomb... I mean... no... uh...”


“It's 'totally happening'?”


“Oh, yes! Yes! Totally happening. That.”


“Tsk tsk. Such a lack of intelligence in such a young man. I speak the most when I come here. There's no point in talking to the old farts down at the senior citizen center. You have to talk to young people and see how the world is turning.... Aren't you going to give me my coffee?”


“I'll be right back with it.”


En Chan dashed back into the store and quickly brought the coffee out to the grandfather. He first took in its smell and then began to speak about Jamaica and Blue Mountain coffee. As she stood there listening to him speak, En Chan realized something; he hadn't really disliked the coffee she'd served until now.


The grandfather didn't forget to reprimand her for the lack of density in the coffee. Even after he'd left, En Chan felt something surging in her chest. It was a happy and proud feeling. She felt that her work hadn't been fruitless, and vowed to live an even better life.


“Hyung, what are you thinking about?” asked Nak Kyun, watching a deeply pensive En Chan.


“I think I've found my calling in life.”


“Calling in life? So you're not going to be a Tae Kwon Do master anymore?”


“I like martial arts, but I think this has more meaning. When customers look satisfied as they drink the coffee we make, I feel really good. Especially on Monday mornings, when people who were tired stand in line and greet each other, smiling; it makes me feel like I've done something good and gives me pride. Don't you feel like that?”


“I do, too.”


“If someone looks down or depressed, it makes me want to liven them up and help them out, right?”


Seeing Sun Ki nod his head made En Chan smile widely. Sun Ki's face had grown brighter since they'd first met, and he was talking more as well. En Chan felt that Coffee Prince was becoming a place that gave smiles to people. She said,


“You know that quail feather grandpa? He's really knowledgeable about coffee. He knows way more than I do. But you know what? I think he likes me.”


“You only just figured that out? That old man only likes you, hyung.”


“I'm going to be even nicer to him.”


“Don't be nicer. He'll start comparing us to you.”


“Where's that coffee book that Mr. Hong was reading before? If I want to have a good conversation with that grandpa, I've got to do some studying. Wow, Ko En Chan's actually studying for once, huh?”


Just then, someone pushed open the glass door and came in. Han Kyul, who'd been watching the person from the other side of the glass, furrowed his eyebrows and glanced at him sharply. En Chan shouted,


“Jin Ha Rim!”


Ha Rim, who'd jumped into the store, collapsed onto a chair.


“M-my God!”


Ha Rim was barefoot and limping, and on his face were countless bruises.





*
*Chapter Seventeen* A Woman I Don't Know Part II




< Part 2 >


Han Kyul took Ha Rim out somewhere. He made Ha Rim put on a pair of sneakers Mr. Hong kept around as a spare and put him in his car and rode off. En Chan worried about the grave look on Han Kyul's face. Ha Rim had said, crying, was that he'd argued with his father for several days on end about school, and his father had finally exploded. He'd beat Ha Rim up and locked him in his room. That was two days ago, and he said he hadn't had a single cup of water to drink since then because his father had nailed his door shut. This was when En Chan blew up. How could anyone starve his own child?! Eating was a matter of survival. It was the same as telling his son to die.


“Just what in the world did you say to him?!” asked En Chan in a rage. Ha Rim answered through a fat lip,


“I admit I was wrong. I was so frustrated and angry... I said I'd rather be an orphan....”


“What? How could you say that to your own father?”


At Nak Kyun's words, Ha Rim sharply shot out,


“You don't know what you're talking about, so shut up1”


“You bastard. You don't even know how luck you are....”


“What did you say?!”


“Hey, stop it.” En Chan stopped the two who were glaring at each other. In Nak Kyun's perspective, Ha Rim's anger probably didn't seem more than a child's petulance. She wondered what it would've been like if the two had been switched at birth. Then Nak Kyun would've been able to study what he wanted and Ha Rim wouldn't have to go to medical school...


Han Kyul, who'd until then had listened wordlessly, said,


“If you don't go to medical school, what is he planning to do to you?”


“He's going to kick me out of the house and remove my name from the family register. He gave me until tonight to think about it and that's why I ran away,” said Ha Rim in a weak voice.


“So did you think about it?” asked En Chan.


“It's not that I don't want to go to medical school; it's that I want to go to art school. I studied to go to medical school until junior year. Art was just something I started as a hobby, but now I like it, so what can I do? I want to study painting and cinema. I want to become something different. It's not that I can't understand my father. If I don't take over the hospital that my grandfather built, he'll have to close it down. I understand that he feels disappointed and I feel apologetic toward my grandfather, too. But I don't want to give up what I want to do just because of that. I, my dream is....”


“Ya, what are you crying for? Be a man...” comforted En Chan. Ha Rim grabbed onto her. En Chan stood awkwardly, patting Ha Rim on the back.


“Stand up,” said Han Kyul. “Get him a pair of shoes. Put them on and follow me.”


Just like that, they'd left, and there had been no word from either of them for the past several hours.


“Man, I'm about to die from worrying about what's going on. I should've gone with them.”


“You're that worried about him?”


“It's just that the sajang's got himself a nasty temper.”


“It's not like he's going to beat Ha Rim up again, and it's not like he's going to go beat up his father.”


“I'm just worried that he's going throw a fit and get himself hurt.” Seeing that Mr. Hong was gazing steadily at her quiet mumblings made her blush.


“Hey, when'd you pierce your ear? Didn't you say that you'd never do something as savage as paying money for pain?”


“I-it just turned out that way.”


En Chan went to the glass doors to avoid Mr. Hong and stood watching the streets. It looked like the rain was going to continue all day. The person she was worried about wasn't coming either....



Around dinnertime, Ha Rim came in with band-aids plastered on his face. Maybe it was because he'd been treated, but his expression was a lot brighter. En Chan went to him and immediately asked,


“Why are you alone? Where's the sajang?”


“He said he had a dinner appointment. He said he'd be back before closing time.”


“So what happened?” she asked Ha Rim, but suddenly customers began to flood in one after the other. These days, word-of-mouth had spread and there were so many customers that it had become difficult to even close at 10 PM. It was good for the store, but it made life difficult for the employees, who had to come in early in the morning. Maybe it was a good idea to separate the employees into morning shifts and afternoon shifts.


They didn't get to hear Ha Rim's story until it was close to closing time. The bright expression that had been on his face had calmed down a little. It looked as if his mind was heavy after thinking some more.


“We went to the hospital first. They treated me and hooked me up to an IV drip and got a medical diagnosis.”


“Medical diagnosis? What for?”


“To report my father to the police.”


“What?!”


“Ya, you crazy jackass—“


“That's what the sajang said he'd do, even though I'd be the one reporting him.”


“Goddamn it, I knew I should've gone along. I knew something like this would happen. What are we going to do about this idiot sajang?”


“I had a bowl of porridge and then we went to my father's hospital.”


“Your father was probably terribly angry.”


“He turned the entire hospital upside down. He screamed at us to get out. That's when the sajang put the medical diagnosis down on the desk and said he'd report him.”


“Man, he must've flipped.”


“No, actually, he kind of froze and couldn't say anything. That's when it started to get really scary. Father began to ask the sajang who the hell he thought he was to come between a father and his son and to fuck off.”


“And the sajang?”


“He said things like, don't treat your son like an object, don't think he's an idiot who's going to change his mind just because he took a few hits. He's a person and an adult who can report you. Look at him person to person, man to man. The best thing a son could do for his parents is to live a good and happy life. But parents sometimes fall into the delusion that if their children live as they tell them to, they will be happy. Even if Ha Rim regrets it later, that's his cross to bear, and his own life. Jin Ha Rim is already an adult, and he has the right and obligation to decide his own life.”


“The idiot sajang said all that? Seems like he was unexpectedly calm.”


“His face was scary as hell though. I haven't seen such a scary expression in my life.”


“So what happened then?”


“He told my father about me sleeping on the floor of the store. He said that the fact that I did that, not for one or two days but for nearly a month meant that I had the will power to do what I want. He said he'd given him two days to think. If he had any intention of sitting down to talk quietly with his son, to give him a call. He handed over a business card and we came out.”


“And your father didn't do anything? He was probably furious....”


“He roared bloody murder. He said he'd never see me again.”


“What the? Isn't that back to square one?”


“I don't think so. His reaction was scary enough, but I think he's thinking about the problem sincerely for the first time, and for me, too......”


“What?”


“When we went to the hospital, there were tons of patients waiting in line. They said he was seeing patients without even having eaten lunch.”


Ha Rim hung his head. En Chan felt depressed as well. She sighed deeply and patted Ha Rim on his shoulders. What exactly was the relationship between parents and their children? They loved each other and yet they hurt each other, they yelled and screamed at each other and yet they ached inside.... I don't know either. It's a complicated relationship for sure.



*
*Chapter Seventeen* A Woman I Don't Know Part III




< Part 3 >



Han Kyul ate dinner with his grandmother at her favorite potato noodle restaurant and followed her to her favorite traditional tea house to drink persimmon leaf tea. His grandmother, who'd sipped her tea quietly while listening to traditional instrumental music, suddenly opened her small handbag. From there, she pulled out an old, worn picture.


Han Kyul looked at the woman who smiled at him and then looked back at his grandmother.


“Why are you doing this? This is different from the contract agreement.”


“I'm not telling you to go on an arranged date. I don't know how to begin.”


After pausing for a moment, she continued in a low, calm voice,


“This is your mother who gave birth to you.”


“What?”


Han Kyul furrowed his eyebrows and looked at the picture. His eyes gradually widened and he felt his heart drop. All the blood in his veins seemed to grow cold.


“It wasn't long after your father entered Dong Yi Construction. There was an accident at the Ma San Construction site. He was there for a month to take care of the situation, and apparently that's where he met her. They say she was a singer at a nightclub. About two months after he returned, he suddenly began drinking a lot and he wouldn't smile. He even made mistakes at work, so I investigated the matter, and it turns out that the girl was pregnant with you.”


Han Kyul grew rigid with shock.


“G-grandma...”


“You're probably pretty shocked. But I couldn't think of any other way. I'm sorry, Han Kyul. Your mother didn't give birth to you. But you know how good she was and is to you, right? You can't feel lonely or sad, hmm?”


“G-grandma... then... I.... I'm.... Th-then I'm my father's son?”


“Of course. Do you think your father didn't make sure you were before he brought you? You're most definitely part of our bloodline.”


A cold sweat broke out in his back. His head started to spin. His blood, that had been frozen, began to jump in his veins, heating his body. It felt like it was going to start spurting out of the back of his head. It wasn't because he was happy or glad. It was because he felt anger and regret at himself, who'd never even bothered to find out the whole truth, and who'd lost himself in his own conclusions.


“Han Kyul....”


“W-where is this woman...”


“I sent her to America. I prepared a position for her in a place where there were a lot of Korean people. But not even a month before she arrived, we heard that she died in an accident while touring a mountain.”


“S-she left her son here... without a word....”


“You, whose hot temper resemble your father's the most, should know better than anyone. It seems he told her that he'd give her enough money to spend in a lifetime so she'd take you with her. I stopped him in this. You're part of our bloodline, how could we leave you with a woman who used to be a nightclub singer.... I didn't want to leave you with your birth mother. It was my greed. So I convinced him to let you stay with us. She was twenty-four at the time.”


“Then what's the orphanage about? Wasn't I brought home from the orphanage?”


“You....”


“I found out about that by coincidence.”


“I didn't even know..... I should've told you earlier....” his grandmother let out a long sigh. He offered her water, and drained a cup clean himself.


“When did you find out? You must've thought a lot of things.”


“.....”


“We couldn't just bring you home because of your mother.”


“So you brought me through the guise of adoption?”


“It was the only way. But it was no use anyway. Your mother's quick on the uptake and she figured it out soon enough. Not six months had gone by when I had to tell her everything. It seems she'd been prepared for it, because she didn't seem too surprised. It was hard on her for a month or two. And then she changed her mind. Even if I thanked her a hundred, no, a thousand times, it wouldn't be enough.”


“What about Father?”


“He was outraged, but what could he do? He was the sinner. He had no choice in the matter.”


Han Kyul stared at the picture again. Now that he looked at it, it did look like a promotional picture that a nightclub would use. She wore thick makeup and had wavy hair. His mother now was a magnificent, fun and cool person. That fact that she'd taken a son her husband had borne out of wedlock as her own showed this more than sufficiently. But this woman... he didn't know.


“Do you want to see her? She's your blood, after all...”


“No. I don't feel anything. I don't want to see her or anything. She's a woman I don't know anyway.”


“Do you resent me? For taking you away from your birth mother....”


Han Kyul lifted his head and looked at his grandmother. Remorse filled her benevolent face. His heart ached at her reddened eyes. Tears came to Han Kyul's eyes. He shook his head and said in a choked voice,


“N-no....... no, Grandma.”


“Do you, do you see why I had to tell you this?”


Han Kyul quickly wiped his eyes and looked at her.


“Because of the company?”


“I know that you have talent and ambition in management. Whether you come into the company or not is your decision. I would just like for you to get along better with your father. I know that the way your father was strict with you was different from the way he treated Han Kyu or Han Hui. He didn't forgive the smallest mistake from you. Han Kyu would pretend to be sick to skip cram school, and he wouldn't care, but you, you would be scolded to an inch of your life. I know, I know.”


Han Kyul fell into reverie and said,


“He'd leave Han Hui nuna alone even if she fell asleep during piano practice time. He whipped my calves for reading a science book during piano time.”


His grandmother gave a deep sigh and looked at Han Kyul with a compassionate gaze.


“It's his own guilty conscience. Your mother was so good to you and him, so he felt even more sorry and guilty. He was trying to make up for his own sins.... Han Kyul.”


“Yes, Grandma.”


“It seems there are no father-son relationships that are easy in this world.”


Tears ran down Han Kyul's cheeks.


“Your father and your late grandfather were the same. Your grandfather often said that you would accomplish anything you set your mind to. He never treated his son with half as much affection as he did you. Didn't your father have a hard time because he never received attention from his own father?”


“Yes.....”


“It seems there are such things between fathers and sons. From some moment, they began to understand each other and they got along. They would go golfing together and hiking together. Later on, they grew comfortable with each other and got along like friends. Why don't you do the same? Understand your father and....”


Han Kyul sobbed silently. He hid his tears with his hands and said to himself,


What are you feeling so lonely for, you idiot? You idiot....








After leaving his grandmother, Han Kyul drove around for a while. After about two hours, he found himself sitting by the river, watching the riverwater flow past him. A face rose up in his hollow mind and he took out his cell phone.


[Hello! This is Coffee Prince!]


As long as he wasn't hungry, his voice was always full of energy. Han Kyul smiled softly and said in a purposefully stiff voice,


“Hey you, what happened to the “home of delicious coffee” part?”


[You told me to get rid of it because it was tacky. Man, you really do whatever you want, huh?]


“That's because I'm the owner, kid. How was business?”


[Oh, so you do care. We were hella busy. As expected, with the ice man gone, customers just flooded in.]


“You letting your tongue flap because we're on the phone?”


[Aren't you coming in? Ha Rim is waiting for you.]


Oh, that's right. He'd totally forgotten about Ha Rim's problem.


[Hey, how can you get the kid to completely leave the house? You should've gotten them to solve the problem peacefully somehow. What's this about reporting him to the police? Tsk tsk.]


“You're one to talk. Why'd you let the kid sleep at the store? Instead of sending him home, you let him sleep on the store floor? You need a good scolding.”


[I g-guess that was wrong of me.]


En Chan immediately admitted his mistake, his voice dejected. Han Kyul became dejected along with him. He needed En Chan to talk back to him belligerently so that he could feel better. He'd called En Chan so that he could become energized. It was better than being comforted.


[I didn't think ahead. What are we doing to do about Ha Rim?]


“Tell him to come to the Dong Yi Hotel. I'm going there myself.”


[Oh, you're going to let him sleep there? Lucky bastard. He gets to sleep in a luxury hotel, eh? Hey, by the way, what's wrong with your voice?]


“Now you're picking a fight about my voice?”


[No, it's just that it sounds different than usual....]


Pretty sharp for a little boy.


“I might be coming down with something.”


[That's because you keep wandering around at night. Tsk tsk. Stop going to all those useless nightclubs and go home and eat some soup. You really want to go club-hopping at that age?]


“Hey punk, how dare you say 'wandering around' to your own sajang?! You starting to think you can step all over me, huh?”


[I don't know what you call it, but I call leaving the store behind to play around 'wandering around.' You didn't get that? Oh, closing time. I'm hanging up now.]


“Hey! You punk, hey!”


Han Kyul shouted into the phone. When he saw that the call had ended, he smiled. He wanted to hear more of the kid's voice. But Han Kyul felt much better now. For some reason, he always felt a strange kind of peace when he spoke to him. He was able to show himself openly and honestly. So he felt better.


“Cute bastard.”






*
*Chapter Eighteen* Blinding Memories Are Making My Heart Ache Part I





< Part 1 >




The building owner had told them to move out. The building was too old and worn out, so he was going to demolish it and rebuild it. He said he had no intention of building them an attic room, so he was telling them to get out. This is what her mother, eyes swollen, told her when she'd come home from work the night before. And there was a bigger shock awaiting her. He'd asked her mother, who was in despair from the building owner's announement, to move in with him. That he had spare rooms, and to consider it free room and board. “He” was Mr. Ku, the butcher. He'd probably been waiting to say it for a long time so he'd blurted it out just like that. This was from En Se. “Waiting to say it for a long time?” she'd asked. In reply, her sister had called her dense.


“So you're saying ahjussi like Mom? Even though he's six years younger than she is?” she'd asked, incredulous, and En Se had said,


“God, you're so tacky. What does age have to do with anything? And you call yourself a person of the 21st century? Anyway, in my view, this offer is nothing short of a marriage proposal. I guess he felt it was kind of strange to ask her to marry him, so for now he's just asking her to move in with him. Ahjussi's parents passed away and he's living by himself, right? I heard the supermarket lady say that he lives in a two-story western style house, and it's pretty nice. We can't dream of paying rent in a place like that, so it's for the best, I suppose. It doesn't seem like Mom's totally against the idea, either.”


“Not totally against the idea?”


“Can't you tell by the way she accepted the scarf? No matter how much Mom likes brand name stuff, she's got enough self-respect not to accept gifts from a man she doesn't like at all.”


En Chan was dumbstruck. Even after looking at her mother and peeping at Mr. Ku, she couldn't see anything different. They were the people she thought she knew. When had they begun to have feelings for each other?





“Ouch! Hot!” En Chan drew her hand back and jumped. She'd been distracted, and finally, she had caused an accident.


“What happened? Did you burn yourself? You should've been more careful.”


She'd poured the coffee not into cup but onto her hand. The back of her hand swelled and turned red in an instant.


“Shouldn't you go to a hospital?”


“Hey, don't just stand there. Come here.”


Having caused this accident on such a busy morning inconvenienced everyone. En Chan ran to receive the ice pack that Mr. Hong was holding out.


“I'll take care of it.”


She took the ice pack and ran to the bathroom. She turned the sink faucet on and immersed her hand into the water. The back of her hand stung. En Chan took a deep breath and looked in the mirror.


“Let's wake up, Ko En Chan.”


There were a few reasons why she wasn't herself these days. The sajang acting like a depressed person the past few days was one of them. No matter how many times she asked him, he wouldn't say anything, so she was about to go crazy from worrying about it. But the biggest reason why she'd caused this kind of accident this morning was, no question, her family situtation. To be honest, they had no other choice. If they didn't move in with Mr. Ku, she'd have to receive the baton from Ha Rim and sleep on the floor of the store.


When her burned hand began to lose feeling, Han Kyul appeared in the mirror.


“Give me your hand.”


He was standing there in a black shirt and black pants with a black apron around him, holding a white medicine box in his hands.


“Leave it there. It's busy outside.”


Han Kyul wordlessly turned En Chan around. Her hand was still red, but the swelling had gone down some. He looked at it and then wiped off the water and opened the box. He didn't say a single word. En Chan blew out her bangs and said,


“Man, this is so awkward that I can't stand it. Can't you tell me what's go—“


“Stand it.”


En Chan shut her mouth.


“Damn...”


Han Kyul didn't even look at her while he took out the gauze. He cut a piece about the size of the back of her hand and carefully taped it on. En Chan, who'd been steadily gazing at him, noticed that the corners of his lips were slightly turned up.


“Why are you smiling?”


“......”


“I saw it. You just smiled.”


“All right, all done. It's not too bad, so you'll probably only have to keep this on for today. Or you can watch its progress and go to the hospital in the afternoon.”


En Chan looked at the cleanly wrapped hand and nodded her head.


“Mmm. Wrapped very HanKyulistically.”


“So I guess now my name also correlates to thankfulness, huh?”


“Oh, thank you. Hey, do you have liability insurance? I'm thinking about suing you for about $100,000.”


“Don't talk nonsense and go sweep the front of the store. Don't go around serving people with that hand.”


With that, the sajang left. Something was definitely there, but it seemed he didn't want to talk about it. But to think this would go on for several days....


“As if he's the only one. I don't feel like telling you anything today, either.”


It was the tragedy of an employee that she had to continue smiling, even when her family was on the brink of becoming homeless.





The magazines were delivered in the afternoon.


“Wow, this is cool! Sajangnim, come look at this. These photos are awesome.”


“Why is the group picture so small? You can't even see our faces.”


“Hey, these pictures make our shop look pretty good, huh?”


“Yea, right? Especially the picture of the entrance here, it looks really pretty.”


“Oh, it's even a two-page spread. Sajangnim, when did they take so many pictures? Let's take a look at it.”


Everyone crowded around the magazine. En Chan was refilling the cups of the customers sitting by the window.


“Will you be needing anything else?”


“No, thank you.”


En Chan smiled and was backing away when she suddenly looked outside the window. Two big men were loitering around the store.


“What are flunkies doing around here in broad daylight?” she mumbled. The phone rang.


“Hello, this is Coffee Prince, home of delicious coffee.”


[Is the sajangnim there? This is the National Economy newspaper calling.]


“Oh, yes, please hold.”


She'd turned the phone over to Han Kyul when Ha Rim called her over with his eyes.


“What?”


“Did you know about this?”


In a low voice, Ha Rim read a section of the article in the magazine.


“Coffee Prince's owner, Choi Han Kyul, is twenty-nine—twenty-nine? They made him a year older here. Look here. Grandson of Dong Yi Group's president Kuk Ji Hwa, youngest son of Dong Yi Construction's president Choi Myung Ro, graduated from Washington University with a major in management. In a word, a handsome and sophisticated third-generation plutocrat with a sharp intellect to boot. Dong Yi Group president's grandson? My God, my heart's pounding. I can't read anymore, my heart's going to give out.”


“What the hell are you talking about? Give it here.”


En Chan couldn't understand what was going on so she took the magazine and read it herself. No matter how many times she read it, it said the same thing. Dong Yi Group.... third-generation plutocrat.... Reading it repeatedly, she felt like a gong had fallen on her head. Her head rang.


“I thought he looked too rich. I said so, didn't I? From the top of his head to the tip of his toes, all covered in brand names. I told you that I'm sleeping at the Dong Yi Hotel villa these days, right? I felt bad because I thought he was spending a lot of money on me, but according to this, that place is basically home to him, right? Man, we should probably stay on sajangnim's good side, huh? So we can get the scraps that fall from that table.”


“For a punk who's been run out of his home, you're pretty energetic, aren't you? I really can't understand you,” criticized Nak Kyun.



Ha Rim's father hadn't contacted him in the end. He could say he walked out on his own two feet, but it was the same as being kicked out. So Ha Rim had been coming to work from the sajang's S11 hotel room ever since a few days ago. He said he was planning to get an underground single room somewhere.


“Wow... I can't believe I've met a plutocrat.”


“We worried that he might have some debts from investing too much in the store... but I guess we didn't have to, huh?”


Even Sun Ki made a incredulous face.


“Yea... Guess so.”


En Chan remained in shock until Han Kyul's voice made her raise her head and turn around. Han Kyul was on the phone, his face full of displeasure.


“Listen here. I said I don't want to. I don't need to explain to you why I don't want to. I just don't. I'm hanging up now.”


Han Kyul been polite enough in his reckoning. He roughly smashed the receiver down and then came to snatch the magazine from En Chan's hands. He whipped his gaze around at everyone and made a scary expression.


“These freakin' idiots!” he said angrily before throwing the magazine into the trashcan. His eyes met En Chan, who'd been watching him. En Chan was still in a state of shock. She was looking at Han Kyul as if he was a stranger. Han Kyul seemed as if he was about to say something when the phone rang again. Han Kyul gruffly picked up the receiver.


“Hello, this is Coffee Prince.”


[Hello, could I speak to Choi Han Kyul, please?]


“May I ask who this is?”


[Oh, hello, this is the Economics Weekly magazine.]


“He's not here.”


With that, he hung up the phone. All the employees stood around awkwardly, watching him. They crowded around each other and watched him as if he was a wild animal on display. Han Kyul scowled and let out a deep sigh.


“What're you all staring at? Go back to work.”


After that, the phone didn't stop ringing. Eventually, Han Kyul ripped the cord out from the wall. This time, everyone's cell phones began to ring. Everyone and their relatives began to call them like mad. After suppressing his anger, Han Kyul finally exploded.


“Goddamn magazine fuckers! How could they fucking do this?!”


While Han Kyul phoned the magazine people and laid it out on them, En Chan sat dumbly in the employee room. Han Kyul was screaming so loudly that all the customers were beginning to be frightened.


“This is different from what you asked at the interview! You interviewed me as the owner of Coffee Prince, who said you could talk about my private life in here? What did you say? Are you fucking insane? How am I a public figure? You better recall every issue when I tell you to. If I see even one copy, I'm going to sue you! And what? Twenty-nine? I'm going to sue you for defamatory statements!”


Twenty-eight, twenty-nine, what was the difference..... she was thinking dumbly when Mr. Hong came in.


“What are you doing here?”


En Chan simply sat there expressionless like a statue. He came to her side.


“What's wrong? Shock too big for you?”


“Is he really a plutocrat?”





*
*Chapter Eighteen* Blinding Memories Are Making My Heart Ache Part II




< Part 2 >



“Is he really a plutocrat?” asked En Chan despondently.


“Looks that way. I knew he was rich, but I didn't know he was that rich. I should've known when a young man poured all that money into the store. His watch too, like Ha Rim said, not to mention it didn't look like he did anything before this store. Where would a guy like that get so much money? I thought, he's probably from a pretty rich household. Still... Dong Yi Group....” said Mr. Hong, letting out a sigh.


“Man made money, not the other way around. Even so, the man's got a bit of a wicked streak, hasn't he? It's like I'm seeing him in a new light. Some people don't have the money to run even this one store, and some people own several huge companies. When I look at him, I think I understand what people mean when they say that money earns money. When that guy first talked about 300% and whatnot, I secretly laughed at him. All right, go ahead, go ahead and make a fool out of yourself. Looks like you still don't know how bitter the world is. And look, he goes and does it. Damn, money really makes a moron out of a person, doesn't it?”


En Chan agreed with him. She'd believed him to be the youngest son of some rich family, but there was a huge difference between that and being a plutocrat who was a part of the enormous Dong Yi Group. It was like the difference between saying, 'look at that big mountain over there' and saying 'look, that's Mt. Everest.'


“The building owner told us to get out,” said En Chan, as if talking about somebody else.


“Which building owner?”


“Our house.”


“What? Why? He's kicking you out now that the dojo master's gone? What a jerk!”


“He says he's demolishing the building and rebuilding it.”


“Oh..... that building is pretty old, huh?”


En Chan, who'd been sitting still, suddenly looked at the ramen box on top of the cabinet and said,


“Se Cham Ramen's from Dong Yi Group, right?”


Mr. Hong, who'd followed her gaze, nodded.


“Probably.”


“The multivitamin my mom takes every day's from Dong Yi Pharmaceuticals. I know because I buy it for her. Do you know who built the apartment complex behind the market there?”


“Dong Yi Construction.”


“Bingo.”


“That's not all. The fusion Korean chain food restaurant my wife likes is theirs too.”


“The company En Se auditioned with last time is D Entertainment.”


“Right. That's Dong Yi Group's too.”


“But they dropped her.”


“Bastards.”


A silence ensued. The inferiority and powerlessness, the feeling of injustice and unnameable anger that a commoner felt when they looked at a plutocrat made their lips heavy.


“You have to find somewhere to live. Want me to help you?”


At his words, En Chan smiled and said in a self-mocking tone,


“We have no money.”


“H-how much do you have?”


“Nothing but debts. But they say our sajang is a plutocrat.”


Suddenly, something hot flared up inside of En Chan. An emotion she hadn't known she had seemed to break into a thousand pieces. Something that had been stacking up in her heart unbenownst to her came tumbling down at all once.


“I've never once thought this before..... Well, no... when Dad died, and now.... but... the world is really unfair, isn't it? I really tried hard to live my best.... I tried my best to keep my promise... with my dad... and.....”


En Chan burst into tears. Mr. Hong didn't know what to do with himself. Ever since he'd gotten to know En Chan, he'd never seen her cry.


“Ch-chan-ah..... what's the matter.....”


“H-how could he? Tricking me like that..... And he was so far away..... I didn't know he was someone who was so far out of reach....... I d-didn't know......”


En Chan buried her face in her lap and sobbed. The harder she tried to control herself, the harder her emotions rose up from inside of her, and she could not stop crying. The memories they'd shared together rose up in her mind. Those memories came to her like scenes in a movie. When they'd first met in the street, and she'd thought he was an arrogant bastard, the time she'd met him in the hotel and had put her hand on his bare chest, the awkward kiss they'd shared in front of so many people, memories of Coffee Prince, the fight in the parking lot when they'd gone to buy dishware, when they played basketball, when he pierced her ear, when he wrapped her hand up for her......


Suddenly, shock struck down on her head. I.... I like him. The moment the thought came to her, an uncontrollable wave of sorrow crashed into her. Shock tore at her chest. It was painful, as if her heart was being ripped to shreds.


“W-what do I do..... oh God, ahjussi..... what do I do.......”


En Chan began to weep. Mr. Hong, feeling sympathetic towards her, awkwardly put out his hand to pat her on the back and tried to comfort her. But now that En Chan's tears had came out of their gate, they had no intention of holding back or stopping. Then abruptly she stood up. She went toward the window and turned with her back to him. She quickly wiped away her tears and turned around at him and said in a husky voice,


“I-I'm just embarrassed is all. To have looked up a tree I can't climb. For someone like our sajangnim, someone like me has no chance. He probably doesn't think of me as more than a spot on the ground, right?”


“Chan-ah.”


“Damn, how embarrassing. You c-can't tell anyone, ok? If you tell anyone, you be my son, heads up seven up. Ah-ahjussi.... I want to be alone for a while.”


Thick tears fell from En Chan's eyes. Just then, the employee's lounge door flung open. En Chan immediately turned her body toward the window and hid her tears.


“What are you going to eat for lunch? We're going to order from Gong Joo Restaurant today. Hyung, you want a bulgogi dubbab, right?”


“I-I'm not eating.”


“Ahjussi, you want—..... w-wait. What? Hyung, I think I heard you wrong.....”


“L-let's go outside.”


Mr. Hong dragged a dazed Ha Rim outside. Han Kyul was getting ready to leave to get to his lunch date with his mother. Ha Rim, who had been dragged out from the employee's lounge, said in a shocked voice,


“Hey, Nak Kyun. En Chan hyung's saying he's not eating lunch.”


“April Fool's Day's already passed.”


“I'm serious. Either that or I'm going deaf. Ahjussi, you heard it, right?”


“Just leave him. Channy has those kinds of moments too, you know.”


Immediately, everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to look at Mr. Hong. Nak Kyun, who'd been cleaning off the tables, stopped with a cup held up in the air. Sun Ki stopped drying his cup, and Han Kyul stopped in the middle of putting on his jacket. Everyone froze, as if someone had said “Red light.” The first one to hear “green light” was Han Kyul.


“What's going on? Is he inside?”


Mr. Hong stopped Han Kyul, who was trying to get into the lounge.


“He wants to be alone.”


“What?” Han Kyul looked at Mr. Hong in surprise, but all he could do against a head-shaking Mr. Hong was to look at the door.



*
*Chapter Eighteen* Blinding Memories Are Making My Heart Ache Part III




< Part 3 >



The expression on Han Kyul's face as he entered the restaurant was rather dark. He was angry at the arbitrary actions of the magazine, he was worried about En Chan who'd said he wouldn't eat lunch, and he was afraid of what his mother was going to say to him.


“I heard from Grandmother.”


“Let's eat first before we talk.”


“How can we just eat? Let's talk as we eat, then.”


Han Kyul put down the fork that he had been about to put in his mouth and sighed.


“Let's hear it, then.”


“Mmmm taste this. It simply melts in your mouth.”


Han Kyul forced his mouth open to receive the sea bass that his mother was offering him.


“How is it? It's delightful, isn't it?”


“If you're just going to repeat yourself, please don't. I still have time left for the promise I made with Grandmother, and I need time to think.”


“Really? All right, I won't then. But you know, they say you can tell that a tree is going to be magnificent from the time it's a sapling. I could tell since you were a child that you were going to be something great. It's not just Grandfather who knew. You was clear enough about cutting people off when you had to, but you also had a lot of affection to spare. You seemed cold and stiff on the outisde, but you would wordlessly comfort and support people. That's when I thought to myself, this kid will earn the trust and affection of many people. For people in business, if you can't earn peoples' trust, you can't do anything. I thought that you were an individual who had the basics down.”


“You must have been supremely disappointed.”


“I'm still waiting on you. How can a mother ever give up the hopes and dreams she has for her child?”


“One of the guys who works under me left home because of a conflict he had with his father about schooling issues. I told him to come out. Being forced to do something you don't want is no better than being dead.”


“How difficult it must have been for the father.”


Han Kyul told his mother about Ha Rim. It was the first time he'd ever told her anything about his daily life. Telling her about Ha Rim was a sort of justification on his part. It was like telling her that he was sorry and thankful at the same time.


“It's a difficult problem. I can say that easily if it's someone else's problem, but since it's so similar to my own....”


Suddenly his mother laughed to herself.


“What?”


“I was just thinking how glad I would be if you suddenly said you were going to study art or cinema. I wanted at least one of my children to enter the art world.”


“You have three children, though, Mother.”


“Yes, I do. I have three children. And how glad I am that I do.”


Han Kyul drank coffee and his mother ate ice cream.


“I hear your coffee house is doing extremely well. I hear rumors saying the taste of your coffee is quite excellent.”


“It's fun. When there are no customers, I have to wonder why there aren't. When there are a lot of customers, I have to wonder why there are. It's pretty exciting to analyze every situation that comes up.”


“It's too small a task for you. Your true vocation is something much bigger. You'll become bored with it soon enough.”


“I said I'll think about it.”


“And I said I understood, Choi sajangnim.”


It had been a more pleasant lunch than he had expected. When he stood up to leave, quite some time had passed.


“Are you going back to the company?”


“I have to to arrange to take your father home.”


After leaving the hospital, his father had gone back to work, and was on a strict no-smoking, five-day-workweek, 5-pm-quitting time schedule.


“Mother,” called Han Kyul as she was getting in the car. His mother then turned around and as if reading his mind, simply said,


“Forget about it. Just bring some roses when you come home from work tonight. Bright red ones.”


Han Kyul choked up as he nodded his head. The words of thanks that had been hanging in his throat passed into his heart.


After seeing his mother off, he was on the way back to the store when he received a call.


“Who is this?”


[Sajangnim! We're in big trouble, sajangnim!]


“Why? Did En Chan break another Royale cup?”


[R-royale cup? That, too, probably....]


“What? 'that, too, probably'? Did he break the Spanish vase?”


[That's broken too. B-but listen!! H-he himself!! H-he got himself hurt too!]


“What do you mean he got himself hurt?” said Han Kyul, who'd been about to get into his car. Suddenly he felt a chill going down his spine. “Take it easy and tell me slowly. What happened?”


[Wh-what happened was that... there were some punks who came looking for Sun Ki hyung.... flunkies by the dozen came and trashed the store. They said that Sun Ki hyung stole money from a hostbar and fled. Sun Ki hyung and I were eating lunch when they rushed in. We were in the lounge with the door locked. Channy hyung told us not to open the door....]


“YA! What the hell are you saying? Where's Nak Kyun? Put Nak Kyun on the phone!”


[N-nak Kyun? Ho-hold on a moment....... hey... he wants to talk to you...]


Han Kyul's insides burned with frustrated and he tore at his hair. He himself got hurt? Does that mean En Chan got hurt? He'd burned his hand in the morning, sure... Is that what he was talking about? Then what was this about the host bar? Someone trashed the store? What? Who did?! Why?!


[Hello?]


Nak Kyun picked up the phone. Han Kyul gripped the phone tightly and said quickly,


“Tell me what happened. Who got hurt?”


[En Chan hyung got hit in the head with a chair. He's unconscious. We're on our way to the Dae Won hospital emergency room. Come quickly.]


Han Kyul was not in his right mind. His entire head felt blacked out. He didn't even know the reason why he was driving like a maniac down the road. He didn't know where he was going or why, just that he was speeding down the streets, breathing raggedly. As soon as he reached the hospital he jumped out of the car and ran like crazy. A cold sweat broke out on his forehead. The sky turned yellow and the ground shook, making his insides quake as well. He felt like he was going to throw up.


“Sajangnim!”


That's when he discovered his employees. Ha Rim had gone pale and Nak Kyun's face was covered with scratches while his clothes were covered in blood. Mr. Hong approached him, limping.


“Wh-where is he?”


“Inside......”


Han Kyul, who'd walked straight into the operating room, was chased out by a surprised nurse. But in that short moment that he was in there, he'd seen En Chan lying on the operating table. His white shirt was drenched with blood. The nurse who'd pushed Han Kyul out asked him stiffly,


“Are you the guardian?”


Han Kyul tried desperately to pay attention to what she said and replied, syllable by syllable,


“He's my employee.”


“Ask the guardian to get here quickly. We have to operate immediately.”


At that moment, mother and daughter ran down the hallway, crying out,


“E-En Chan! Where's my En Chan!”


“Ahjumma....”


“Wh-where's my En Chan? Where's my En Chan? Ch-chan-ah.....”


“Are you the guardian?” The nurse asked, holding the mother up.


“My daughter, my daughter, what happened to her? Is she dead?”


“Mom! What are you talking about? Why would unni die? Sh-she's not dead, right? Unni's fine, right?”


“There's been some cerebral hemorrhaging. We need to go into surgery immediately, so come this way.”


“Cerebral hem-orrahging? Oh God, oh my poor child! Taking the place of her father as the head of the family and suffering through so much..... oh God, my poor daughter... my poor daughter....”


Watching En Se carry her weeping mother away, Han Kyul turned to Mr. Hong, looking stupefied.


“That's... well... you see...”


Mr. Hong sighed deeply and hung his head.


“Daughter?”


Nak Kyun's question was still ringing in the air when Ha Rim blurted out,


“Channy hyung, I mean, Channy nuna is a girl. That's what makes me even crazier. Fuckers! How can they smash a chair down like that on a girl? No Sun Ki you asshole, you just wait till I find you!”





*
*Chapter Nineteen* That Day





< Part 1 >




That day, having heard that he was a third-generation plutocrat, En Chan had cried until her eyes were swollen stiff. In that moment, she had realized that she had really liked him. She'd gradually come to know him while working in the coffee house with him. She'd come to know how he spoke, how he laughed, how he walked, and also how open he was, how fun he was, what an amazing man he was. She'd found out his past and his family and his thoughts, and she'd come to understand him and follow him. She'd unconsciously begun to resemble him and help him, and lean on him. As the sunset dyes the evening sky, her love for him had diffused and spread itself into her heart.


That day, she'd discovered that the dyeing of the heavens by the rays of the sunset were irrevocable. She couldn't know if it was love or co-worker camaraderie or friendship or just plain affection, or all of the above, but all she knew was that she liked him. When she found out that he was a tree she couldn't even dream of climbing, the loss she felt made her heart hurt badly. And so she learned that liking someone didn't necessarily constitute happiness, but that it included also pain and sorrow and suffering.


That day, after he had left, Nak Kyun and Mr. Hong had finished eating lunch, and it was Sun Ki and Ha Rim's lunch shift. En Chan was in the hall alone, greeting the customers as they came. Right then, the punk from the land of crows came in.


“Ya! Let's go at it. I definitely won't just leave today. Let's fight it out for real this time, you asshole!”


“Ya! You punk, where do you think you are....”


The punk from the land of crows stumbled in drunk, spewing ridiculous nonsense and making a scene.


“I went easy on you, and you little mouse of an asshole, are you looking down on me? You think being a Tae Kwon Do master makes you the shit, huh? Let's go at it for real today! If you beat me, I'll call you hyung!”


His incredibly stupid words added flame to En Chan's anger. That's when the dark men had suddenly rushed in. They blocked the entrance, squeezing in by the dozen, and cast a shadow over En Chan and asked in a snake-like voice,


“Hey, squirt. Where's Marine Boy?”


What was WITH all of these useless schmucks today? She was thinking to herself that her luck for the day was as rotten as hell when the crow punk squeezed himself into the fray.


“What the hell are these jackasses? If you've got business around here, wait outside. I was here first, asshole.”


And that was when things began to get out of hand. At the time, she didn't even know that No Sun Ki was Marine Boy or why they would be looking for him. The situation began with the customers fleeing in fear and the crow punk and one of the flunkies grabbing each other's collars. At first, she denied knowing any such person, but she figured they'd come here already knowing what they needed to know, so she began to ask what the reason was. Then they told her that No Sun Ki had run off with their sajang's money. Only later did she find out that he had done so to pay for his mother's hospital bills. Well, whatever the situation, it didn't look like the situation would come to an end without her giving Sun Ki over to them, so En Chan tried to appeal to them to talk calmly when the punk from the land of crows went and ruined everything.


“You fuckers! Do you know whose turf this is? You assholes are all dead!!”


He'd gotten carried away. Nothing could be done to prevent the resulting chaos.


“Ya! No Sun Ki! Come out! You better come out quick, you fucker! Do you want to die?!”


That was when En Chan finally lost her cool. Who the hell were these assholes to come and tear apart their store and ruin their business? No matter what No Sun Ki had done wrong, she couldn't put up with anymore. She could no longer suppress her fury and had flown into a double sidekick. She couldn't put the blame completely on Sun Ki or the crow punk. If she had only acted more rationally then, she wouldn't have gotten so seriously injured. And misfortune wouldn't have come so abruptly to her. He wouldn't even let her explain.


En Chan underwent surgery, and fortunately, the surgery as successful. About the time when her body began to recover, her mind grew tired of waiting for the person who never came to visit. Unable to wait any longer, she called him.


[Who is this?]


“I-It's me. The Tae Kwon V that had brain surgery.”


How could you not come to visit even once? These aching thoughts rose up to her throat, but, having committed a crime herself, she approached him meekly.


“H-have you been well? I heard you went into the company. You must be pretty busy, huh?”


[What do you want?]


His icy voice froze En Chan all over. Gripping the receiver tightly, En Chan didn't know what to do. She'd expected him to be angry, but she hadn't expected to be treated with this degree of coldness. If he was this angry, no wonder he hadn't come to visit, she thought.


“Y-you're pretty angry, huh? Aw man, I really was planning to tell you....”


[Tell me what?]


“Hey, don't be cranky. You see, um, last time, when we drank at the hotel, I tried to tell you, but you stopped me from asking....”


[If you're talking about you lying to me about being a boy, forget it. I'm not the owner of that coffee house anymore anyway. That's between you and Mr. Hong, who'll decide to use you or not, so it has nothing to do with me. If you're going to beg for your job, call him. Take care.]


With that, he hung up. No matter how many times she called back, he didn't answer. What else could that mean? He didn't even want to speak to her. He had said in such a business-like, stiff and dry manner that it had nothing to do with him. To En Chan, it had been the same as a death sentence. A death sentence that stated, 'This is the end of you!'


En Chan's predictions were validated by Han Sung, who'd come to visit her that evening.


“I had a drink with him yesterday, and he got absolutely trashed. He said while he was drunk that he'd been played. That for the first time since he'd been born, he'd been honest with a woman, and that that woman had played with him.”


“That I played with him? Man, this is driving me crazy. When?”


“He said he'd been betrayed. That since it was the first time he'd ever trusted anybody, it was the first time he'd ever been betrayed, too.”


Tears immediately sprung up in En Chan's eyes. She herself didn't know they were there, but they streamed down her cheek nonetheless.


“Damn it... I... I really didn't... b-betray him..... damn it.... this is unfair....”


En Chan wiped her tears away with her fist and plead her case to Han Sung.


“I-I really was going to tell him. I was going to wait for the right moment... It's my fault that I didn't tell him, but I was afraid he was going to kick me out of the store. I knew he was going to be this angry. That's why I couldn't tell him..... because I was afraid I'd n-never be able to see him again.......”


“That's just how he is. He's a contradiction. He's got a side of him that's as aloof as a Taoist monk, and another side of him that's full of vulgarity, and another side of him that's like a child. Right now, he's a child. He's angry, so he won't listen to anything anyone says to him.


“I knew it would be like that, but still.....”


When she'd found out that he was a plutocrat, she'd cried because of the feelings that had been gathering inside of her. It had been a shock that he was someone that was so far away. The fear that he was someday going to leave her, that the day would come when she'd never see him again, that anxiety had made her cry. But now, those fears had become reality. So this is what it feels like when the sky crumbles down...




*
*Chapter Twenty* Loving You Part I




< Part 1 >


Five months later.


En Chan didn't wholeheartedly approve of her mother's remarriage. She simply couldn't imagine that Mr. Ku would be her father. Her late father had been strong and kind and dependable, like a father should. But Mr. Ku seemed more like a friend than a father. Not knowing what to do, she asked Mr. Ku,


“If you had to choose between my mom and being awarded the amateur literature award, which would you choose?”


“How could you even ask something like that? Of course I'd choose your mother.”


“Then you're giving up the award?”


“Poems, I can write and show your mother. I can be satisfied with that.”


“So you're saying you'd choose my mother over the award, right?”


“Right.”


“Wasn't winning that contest the goal of your life for the past twenty years?”


“Man, you really don't approve of me, do ya, kid?”


“When did I say I didn't like you?”


“Are you saying you like me then?”


“Tsk. Shoo....”


The progress of En Chan's operation was good. The hemorrhaging had been external, so she was able to recover much more quickly than first expected. Even so, staying in the hospital had been torture. It had been more so because her mind had been ill at ease.


Her mom and Mr. Ku were married in a small ceremony held at a nearby wedding hall. It was her mother's second wedding, but it was Mr. Ku's first. Her mother, wearing a wedding gown, looked quite beautiful for someone reaching the age of fifty. A nervous Mr. Ku sweated all throughout the ceremony. Only a few close relatives, the Coffee Prince crew, and the market vendors came to the wedding.


“My heart would tremble at your sweet sweet voice—“


En Chan sang the wedding song with En Se. It was her mother's good fortune to be able to wed a bachelor as a widow with two daughters of marriageable age. Not to mention it was her mother who had needed convincing. It'd been five months since their family had moved into Mr. Ku's house after nearly being thrown out into the streets. While En Chan was undergoing post-op rehabilitation, Mr. Ku had been earnestly seeking her mother's love.


The two of them flew off to Jeju Island for their honeymoon. En Chan had already been on the verge of tears in thoughts of her father when her mother burst out crying first, and so she hadn't had a choice but to comfort her. En Chan reassured herself that although in some ways her mother's remarriage was upsetting, there would also be more good things waiting in the future. It would help them financially, and it would lighten the burden on her to act as the head of the family, and they would now be able to discuss En Se and her mom's futures. She didn't know if she would ever be able to bring herself to call Mr. Ku “Father,” but she got a feeling that she would come to rely on him. That was the way it had to be, and that was the way she hoped it would be.




A few days later, En Chan returned to the coffee house after having greeted her mother and her new stepfather, who'd returned for their honeymoon.


“I'm sure there's a lot you have to take care of, I told you to take the day off.”


“There's nothing to take care of.”


After the magazine article, the cafe saw even more customers. There were even people who'd stopped by deliberately just to taste the coffee, so there were days when none of them got a moment's rest. After the damages had been repaired, Coffee Prince had reopened under Mr. Hong's management. Nak Kyun had gone back to school and was only working evenings part-time, and Ha Rim was now living in a basement single and was studying quite diligently to get back into college. Sun Ki, who'd gone missing for months, began coming out to Coffee Prince last month. While En Chan was in the hospital, Han Kyul had said his farewells to the Coffee Prince crew and had gone into Dong Yi Group headquarters.


“Ahjussi, you gonna eat that?”


“Oh, yea, here. Take it.”


En Chan polished off all the leftovers, as she did everyday. These days, she never felt satisfied, no matter how much she ate. When she wasn't eating, she didn't feel hungry, but once she began, she couldn't stop. She may have to get an x-ray taken, to make sure her stomach wasn't harboring a beggar's ghost.


“Nuna.”


“Hmm?”


“En Se asked me to go with her to the audition tomorrow....” Sun Ki trailed off. Nobody knew how Sun Ki had been able to come back to Coffee Prince. All they knew was that Han Kyul was somehow connected to it because all Sun Ki would say was that the sajang had been helped him.


“You're off tomorrow, aren't you?”


En Chan knew why Sun Ki was hesitating. As a man with a past, he was asking her permission to hang out with En Se. She'd been dense to the feelings between her mother and Mr. Ku, but she'd had at least an inkling of the attraction between En Se and Sun Ki. She didn't know it when En Se was simply loitering around the cafe, but once Sun Ki returned to the store, she'd drop in constantly and hang around Sun Ki.


“If you go with her, I'd feel better about it. She pretends to be strong on the outside, but she's actually a pretty fragile kid. You have no idea how nervous she gets before an audition. Take care of her for me, yea?”


“Nuna.....”


“Don't shrink like that every time you see me. I'm ok now. And it's not even like you did it to me or anything. You know, for a guy, you really don't get over things, huh? Forget about it, kid.”


En Chan pat Sun Ki and on the back and went into the lounge to get ready to take off for the night.


“H-hey!”


Nak Kyun and Ha Rim, who'd been changing, jumped in surprise.


“Nuna! What's the matter with you! Try knocking first, yea?”


“Ya, I've seen all there is to see. What's with the sudden shyness, huh?”


En Chan slapped the bare backs of both boys and took out her clothes from the cabinet.


“It isn't the same anymore. You look like a girl now. Your hair's longer and you've lost weight.”


“Yea, you've really lost a lot of weight these days, nuna. But you eat so freakin' much! Where does that all go? Or do you secretly....” Nak Kyun made a retching sound.


“Ya, what am I, crazy? Why in the world would I throw up something as precious as food?”


“Or do you go jogging marathon-style at night under the moon?”


“You're the one who looks like he needs to exercise. There's nothing to see.”


En Chan tapped Ha Rim's side and came out of the lounge. When she came out from changing in the bathroom, the punk from the land of the crows was waiting for her.


“Nuna, ma'am, I'm here to pick you up.”


“Man, you're one annoying kid.”


Even so, En Chan took the helmet the punk held out.


“Ahjussi, I'm heading out.”


“All right. Good work. See you tomorrow.”


En Chan had recently found out that the name of the punk from the land of crows was Hwang Min Yeop. Min Yeop was planning on entering the army once he graduated high school. He said until the day he enlisted, he would take responsibility for her when she came to and went from work. At first she tried to dissuade him, but the kid had a stubborn streak, and there was nothing she could do. It looked like he was unnecessarily burdened by some kind of guilt, but she figured, he'd had it coming, so she'd let it be.


En Chan got onto the back of Min Yeop's motorcycle.


If I can accept Min Yeop's apologetic mind, couldn't he forgive me as well....


Everyone else believed that En Chan was doing fine. To others' views, she did, indeed, look fine. She ate well, she smiled often, and was energetic, like she'd been before. But actually, En Chan had been suffering from insomnia for the past five months. Until the day she left the hospital, En Chan waited for him. He'd been cold and cruel on the phone and wouldn't even pick up her calls anymore, and she'd heard that he was furious in feelings of betrayal, but she'd believed that he would eventually come to see her. But he did not. He couldn't be seen in the coffee house or room S11. He couldn't be found anywhere, as if he'd never existed in this world.





*
*Chapter Twenty* Loving You Part II


< Part 2 >



It was time for Coffee Prince's employee meeting.


“So what? We're going to raise Coffee Prince to become like Star?”


“Well, it's hard to say it'll grow as big as a worldwide chain, but it looks like he's willing to try out a franchise. He'll be investing, and we'll be providing the Princes' coffee and management know-how.”


“In other words, Coffee Prince Branches 2, 3, and 4? Our sajangnim's doing this, right?”


Han Kyul was still “sajangnim” to them all. En Chan shook her head.


“It's Dong Yi Foods. I'm going to meet the president of that company tonight and hear more about it. You have to come with me, Mr.Hong.”


“All right. But do you really think we can pull it off?”


“I think as long as we don't overdo it, we can. What do you think about opening up the second branch first and see how it goes and decide then whether we should keep expanding or not? The biggest asset our store has is that most of the customers are regulars, so we know them pretty well. Ha Rim always gives customers comments on their tie colors, new hairstyles, things like that, and En Chan hyung's memorized who wants their cup filled up and who wants only half a cup, who wants their coffee extra hot and who wants their coffee just as quickly as possible. There are a lot of people who come here because they find stuff like that comfortable. If there are too many branches, we'll lose our edge. Personally, I'd like to see branches set up in the countrysides. Not in the busy parts of town but in the outskirts, like us here, and small, so that they'll give off the feel of a friendly neighbor.”


“Ya, take Nak Kyun in my stead. Looks like he'd do a better job.”


“I can't, tonight.”


“Today's his girlfriend's birthday.”


“Oh, it's Soo Ae's birthday today, huh?”


En Chan found herself looking at him proudly. After returning to school, Nak Kyun had found a girlfriend. It was unbelievable that he hadn't had one before, but seeing that Nak Kyun had become far softer and more carefree made En Chan realize just how strong the influence of love was.


“Then you meet him by yourself tonight, Chan. When the talks start getting a little more detailed, let's all meet him together and discuss it in earnest.”


“All right. I should be going now. It's Friday and there's probably going to be a lot of traffic.”


“Oh, by the way, En Chan, starting tomorrow, I want you to go and get trained to become a barista.”


“Huh? Me?”


“You're not going to go back to the dojo, right? When we start building the second and third branches we're going to get busy, so you should take advantage of the time you have now to ge trained. I've already signed you up, so start tomorrow. What's the matter?”


“I don't know if I'll be able to do a good job....”


“You'll be fine. You work better under pressure. He said the longer the line of customers were, the faster and more accurately you seemed to work.”


“Who said that?”


“Oh-h... the c-customers did......”




*
*Chapter Twenty* Loving You Part III



< Part 3 >


Leaves scattered in the chilly wind. The streets had been emptied by the abrupt cold. The air inside the crowded bus was stuffy. En Chan opened the window slightly and the cold wind that rushed in blew through her hair. A gold earring twinkled on the end of her right ear.


The atmosphere of the jazz cafe Da Soop, where she hadn't been back since she'd worked there part-time, was still as good as ever. There were not a few customers who sat enjoying the slow jazz flowing through the air. When she arrived, Han Sung was already sitting down.


“You're here pretty early. I'm not late am I?”


“There wasn't as much traffic as I thought there would be. Did you eat dinner?”


“With my coworkers. You haven't eaten yet?”


Saying he hadn't had time, Han Sung ordered a steak and En Chan ordered beer.


“You seemed quite surprised to receive my call.”


“Oh... yes. I didn't know you would.”


“About two weeks ago, I met Han Kyul at company headquarters. He entered the company as a regular employee and he's already been promoted to proxy director. He's in the financial department. Did you know that?”


En Chan shook her head and took in a mouthful of beer.


“Actually, this franchise idea was first brought up by him, too. He'd thought it out pretty carefully. He even submitted a marketing plan, and I have to say, it was quite convincing. It might be that he was just smart about it, but it made even me feel that it would be a waste not to consider it.”


The moment Han Kyul's name had come out from Han Sung's mouth, En Chan's heart had begun racing. To tell the truth, she had anticipated hearing news about Han Kyul from Han Sung. But now that he was telling her what she'd wanted to hear, she began to feel more and more depressed. She felt angry and sad that he was doing so well and hadn't once contacted her in all that time.


“Your hair's much longer now,” said Han Sung, looking at the hair that covered En Chan's ears.


“You think so? I'm getting bored because it's not growing fast enough.”


Han Sung leaned back and looked steadily at En Chan. En Chan avoided the uncomfortable gaze and drank her beer.


“Is Han Kyul still acting the same way? Have you tried calling him?”


“No.”


En Chan raised her hand and ordered more beer.


“Take it easy.”


“I'm not going to make a fool of myself like you did, so don't worry.”


“You haven't changed a bit, have you?” Han Sung smiled before returning to his meal. While he finished, En Chan found herself buzzed after her first drink in a while. Han Sung had already learned all about the details of Coffee Prince from the marketing plan that Han Kyul had submitted, so the information En Chan offered was basically supplementary. Han Sung had the deciding authority, but he would have to discuss the details of the plan with his own subordinates.


“And Mr. Hong is in favor of this plan, right?”


“Well, Coffee Prince was Han Kyul's project, wasn't it? Coffee Prince was born through that person. The concepts for interior design, order forms, all of it. If he wants to do it, how can any of us say no? All of us employees owe him so much and we've all fallen for him.”


“Fallen for him?”


“He was like a guardian angel. He appeared just when we were all struggling and helped us all and then vanished into thin air. Of course we've all fallen for him.”


“That's not what Han Kyul says.”


“What does he say? Did he say anything? I mean, he still remembers us?”


“He said that his workers never ceased to stimulate and spur him on.”


“Stimulate? Yea, we did that. Nak Kyun went AWOL in the beginning and then Ha Rim left home, and Sun Ki.... Do you know anything, by the way? How he dealt with Sun Ki's case?”


“No.”


“I suspected as much.”


En Chan let out a sigh and took another sip of her beer.


“He's a mysterious one, that man. I can never tell what he's thinking.”


“Both of you have gotten much thinner. And sharper.”


“He rebelled like crazy, so why did he end up going into the company anyway? Does he like work that much? He probably lives buried in work, huh?”


En Chan, who'd begun to drink more quickly, began to slur her words. She slouched and her eyes clouded over while she began to talk wildly.


“Man, I feel like shit. These days, I remind myself of a bum. I eat and eat and eat and I'm still hungry, and I put clothes on but I feel cold like I'm naked. Man, I'm pathetic. Freakin' pathetic. Like a freakin' idiot. My insides hurts like I drank vodka on an empty stomach. My insides hurts so much....”


En Chan, who'd been grumbling, stopped speaking. It was because she'd seen Han Kyul and Yu Ju walking in the entrance together. Han Sung turned his head and looked at the two of them. Han Kyul's face went rigid as well. En Chan gripped the bottle she was holding tightly as if to break it.


Han Sung stood up.


“So we end up meeting here.”


En Chan put her elbows on the table and put her head on her palm. She glared at Han Kyul who was walking toward them with a scowl on his face.


“I forgot that the two of you are regulars here. It looks like you were in the middle of talking business, so please, continue.”


Han Kyul turned Yu Ju around and began to walk away when En Chan, who'd been watching him, yelled,


“YA! Choi Han Kyul!”


She stabbed the air with her finger and sprung up from her chair. She teetered but did not fall.


“You, boy am I glad to see YOU! YOU! Who the hell are you! What kind of stingy-ass jerk of a man are you!”


Han Kyul, completely ignoring En Chan, turned to Han Sung and said,


“Looks like she's drunk. You should probably take her outside.”


“Are you drunk, En Chan?”


At Han Sung's question, En Chan shook her head vigorously.


“NO!”


The shaking made her dizzy and she reeled, but she soon found her balance and continued to glare at Han Kyul.


“You were the one who thought I was a guy in the first place. You never asked me if I was really a guy or not. And now you're not even giving me a chance to explai myself? You bastard! Just who the hell do you think you are, huh? HUH? Say something, you twisted, miserable human being!”


Han Kyul looked at her, incredulous, before turning around, as if to say she wasn't worth dealing with, and began to walk away.


Until En Chan said this.


“You tell Ha Rim to come out, but you go in? What a traitor.”


Han Kyul whipped around and walked toward her with a terrifying expression on his face. En Chan flinched inside, but she placed her bets on the excuse that she was drunk, and stood her ground, glaring at him.


“What? Am I wrong?”


En Chan lifted her chin up and began to shoot her words at the cold gaze that looked down at her from so close.


“You pervert cabbage slug! If you're a man, act like one and act your age! How can you be so un-understanding? If your employee's been laid up in a hospital bed with an injury, shouldn't you come by to visit at least once? Even if I'd committed a mortal sin, you should've asked what my reason was for it. Am I wrong, you flea-minded old geezer!”


The customers in the store were looking on with amusement. But now Han Kyul himself was too angry to back away.


“All right. Fine. Try explaining yourself, why don't you? Try explaining the reason why you laughed at me and played around with my mind for months and months. It's probably a damn good one, right? It's not something as stupid as a few hundred bucks, right?!”


“Damn it! Yea! It was as stupid as a few hundred bucks! What are you going to do about it! Must be nice to have so much money, ahjussi. Must be nice to be able to earn money without having to lie to anyone! Was I so wrong? And when the hell did I ever laugh at you or play around with your mind?! I never did that!”


“Never did that? Never pretended to be an honest, flawlessly innocent kid so you could steal my heart away?!”


“When! When! I never did that! I tried to tell you honestly! But I got scared, all right?! I got scared that if I told you, I might lose it all! Why couldn't you help me and figure it out first? You dense moron! How can you know me for three months and not even know? Do you know what that did to my self-respect? Goddamn it! Am I.... am I really not it? You really don't feel anything towards me?”


Suddenly En Chan's face flushed bright red. She felt like she was going to die from humiliation. But she stood her ground. She stood her ground because she thought to herself that if she walked out from here, it would be the end. If she was never going to be able to see him again, she wanted him to tell her straight out right here, right now. She wanted him to tell her if she wasn't, so she could at least wake up....


“What am I, a gay? Why would I feel anything towards a man?”


He'd said it straight out. En Chan felt like someone had struck her with a chair. Wanting him to tell her straight out... apparently that had been a lie. Maybe it was because she was drunk, but the thought that she couldn't let him go rose up from inside of her. She wanted to grab onto him as a friend, at least, or even blood brothers. To think that she'd never see him again made her heart ache so badly she felt like she was going to die. She couldn't live like this anymore. This was too pathetic and heartbreaking and cruel....


“It was better when you were a boy. I wanted to make you my little brother because you were cute. You remember me saying that, right? But what? You're a woman? What would I do with a girl like you? You stop at nothing to get at some money and you stab people in the back. You bitch.”


At Han Kyul's ruthless words En Chan flinched, wounded. But her desperation rose higher than her anger. En Chan bit down on her lip as she lifted her hair to show her ear.


“Th-then let me be your little brother. I still have your mark. C-can't I be that, at least?”


The tears in her eyes shined and twinkled like the gold earring on her ear. Everyone who'd been watching them froze in silence. Only Han Kyul, who was breathing hard, looked like a living creature. Han Kyul shouted, his eyes more furious than they had been before,


“You think you're the only one who's lost self-respect? You stepped all over my pride! You ripped it to shreds!”


Han Kyul clenched his jaw and growled. When he saw a teardrop fall from En Chan's eyes, he finally exploded.


“How could a male not recognize a female? Do you know how humiliating that is to a man? There are some things men never want to let women see! Goddamn it!”


Han Kyul left. En Chan, who'd gone pale, rubbed her tears away with the back of her hand. She repeated the words he'd just said. Things men never want to let women see? What things? What did I see?


En Chan's self-control crumbled. She was angry and hurting and sad and in despair so she screamed desperately,


“I didn't see anything! I don't even know what you're talking about, so how could I have seen it?!”


And then he reappeared. He quickly walked over to her in big strides.


En Chan flinched in surprise at his roughness and caught her breath. He had come at her so recklessly that she thought that maybe he was going to hit her.


“It's this, stupid,” he said, almost at her nose.


The moment she thought, 'This? What's this?' her head was grabbed and pulled. En Chan realized that she was being kissed. When his tongue came into her mouth, she finally realized what 'this' was as well. En Chan, who'd been frozen, began to melt. Emotions and excitement suffused her as she wrapped her arms around his neck and hung on. A tingle of pleasure ran down her entire body. As if asking for a deeper kiss, En Chan's body began to bend backwards, and Han Kyul pulled her toward him with all his might. When their deep and passionate kiss ended, her lips, still lost in ecstasy, were straining toward his. Even when she belatedly realized that he'd pulled away and opened her eyes, En Chan was still in a daze. Han Kyul was smiling at her. Everyone who'd been watching their deep kiss came out of their trance and burst into applause and cheers.


After Han Kyul had run out pulling En Chan along by her hand, Han Sung and Yu Ju sat in front of each other awkwardly.


“Feels like I've just finished watching a movie.”


“It's a happy ending.”


“Men don't care about stuff like that.”


“What do they care about then?”


“Sex scenes and action.”


“You know, I think that's the most romantic thing I've ever heard you say.”


“Was I really that dry?”


Han Sung gave Yu Ju a rare smile.


“Thank you for helping.”


“Say nothing of it. It's also the owner's obligation to make pay attention to his business partner's emotional health. The lady got drunk quite easily on her own.”


“And Han Kyul got excited quite easily on his own as well. They must be made for each other.”


Han Sun and Yu Ju looked at each other with friendly eyes for the first time in a long time, just like they used to back before they'd been lovers, back when they'd been like brother and sister....



*
*Epilogue*





“And Sun Ki's too busy these days. I think we're going to have to hire some new people.”


[Are you sure it's for real? Can the guy really sing?]


En Chan was talking on the phone on her way to barista training.


“Enough to make you fall in love. Even I would want to give him a recording deal.”


[How could I trust your ear? All guys who live in karaoke bars know how to sing.]


“He made the audition, so what else is there to say? You think the judges were all scarecrows? Why do you think they just gave him the contract fee on the spot like that? You always pick on only me. Psh.”


[Hey, I gotta go. Conference.]


“I gotta go too, I'm at the lecture hall. See ya.”


[Wait. Where were we going to eat lunch again tomorrow? I'll come pick you up.]


“You don't have to do that. It's just a few stops if I take the subway. I'll see you at the entrance.”


[I'm just afraid you're going to be late like last time.]


“Oh, don't complain about ten minutes.”


[12.]



En Chan had already arrived at the lecture hall and Han Kyul had to go into his meeting, but they couldn't hang up. They hid the passionate words they wanted to say to each other and acted mischeivously.


[Ya, I don't want people thinking we're two men on a date, so dress accordingly.]


“In that case you should come wearing a dress, ahjussi.”


[Are you gonna keep on talking back to me? Girls are supposed to be soft-spoken and refined.]


“Maybe I'll gather together all the un-soft-spoken and un-refined girls around and make an anti-cafe against you, ahjussi. Ha, you scared?”


[Turning it into a fan cafe would probably be a piece of cake. I could probably make them turn to my side with a single picture. Hey, I really got to go now. Kissy kissy, Snookums.]


“Hey, I'm still a part of that anti-cafe, all right, Mr. Kinky? I'm hanging up now.”


The two of them giggled to themselves as they hung up and returned to their respective tasks. Han Kyul had risen to the position of head director, and had moved to the accounting department. To a next-generation proprietor, these promotions were actually meaningless; nevertheless, Han Kyul was learning the ropes step by step in preparation to take over the company. As long as he had made up his mind to compete with Han Sung for the top, he had no intention of losing. That there was a worthy adversary was beneficial for the company as well.





The next day, En Chan rummaged around in her closet for some time before asking for En Se's help. All that En Chan had in her closet were t-shirts and jeans and oversized jumpers. Other than that, there was only the dress suit that she'd worn for her mother's wedding, but that was appropriate for an amusement park. En Se, having laid out her own clothes in front of her sister, continued to hassle her into choosing quickly. In the end, En Chan put on a flowered blouse and skirt and a feminine jacket. She'd decided to pull out all the stops because she wanted to look pretty for him and also because of what he'd said about two men on a date.


On her one off day every two weeks, En Chan planned to eat dinner with her family. En Chan had been busy with the franchise project, barista training and working in the cafe, and having passed the audition, En Se was also practicing singing and dancing day and night, and wasn't often seen around. And so, they had set apart this day to come together to eat out.


Mom and ahjussi were beginning to look more and more like a real wedded couple. What them care and provide for each other sometimes made her feel that all her work had been for nothing. It made her feel kind of lonely, but when she thought back to the way she felt when she was with Han Kyul, she could more that understand their feelings. For the first time since her father died, her family sat around at the dinner table, happy and cheerful. They were coming out of the restaurant when En Se said,


“I'm gonna take off. I have an appointment.”


“You're going to go meet Sun Ki? The two of your practice together everyday, and you still have to see him on your off day? You give birth to a daughter and you raise her with your own hand, and all this, for what?”


En Se had provided an opening for En Chan to say,


“M-me too....”


If Mr. Ku hadn't been there, Mom would've had to walk the lonely way back to the house all by herself. She suddenly felt thankful for Mr. Ku.


En Chan ran to the subway station so as not to be late, but she just missed the train. It was all because of this damned flapping skirt. She got on the next train and had three stops to go when it became their designated meeting time. It was obvious that he was going to give her hell for being late again. She took out her cell phone and tried to call him, but it acted up and wouldn't work. She pounded on it and shook it, holding it out in all different directions, but she couldn't get through. To make things even worse, the playground was a sea of people. She sweated up a storm trying to find him in the pulsing crowds.


“Ya!”


En Chan, exhausted, looked at the sneakers that came into view and lifted her head.


“Oh! Finally!”


En Chan took in deep breaths and smiled apologetically, but Han Kyul's angry face didn't loosen up.


“Do you know what time it is?!”


“I'm sorry. Really, I'm really sorry. I was on my way and I missed the train and.... I freakin' ran. Look at me, I'm sweating. My physical strength's not what it used to be. I haven't worked out in a while....”


“Then you should've turned your phone on at least! How long were you going to make me wait in this crowd? You promised and promised that you wouldn't be late! Do you know how much I worried about you?”


“Y-you worried about me? Why would you worry about me? You worried I was going to get into a subway accident or something? I'm fine. I'm fine and I'm here, so please don't be mad.”


“Why'd you turn off your phone.”


“Oh, this stupid phone. It hasn't been working since I was in the subway. This stupid piece of junk...”


En Chan took out her phone from her pocket and was hitting it with the palm of her hand when Han Kyul snatched it away. He then chucked it on the floor.


“What's the point of carrying around a phone that doesn't even work!”


Still dissatisfied, he stomped on the broken phone and ground his heel into it. People walking by gathered 'round to watch him, amused. En Chan, surprised, gave up trying to stop him and simply watched on. She folded her arms across her chest and watched a seething Han Kyul for a while before saying,


“Feel better?”


Han Kyul breathed deeply and said,


“Yea.”


“Then look at me.”


After all the trouble she'd gone through to dress up, running had mussed her up all over. En Chan quickly rearranged her clothes and hair and posed for him.


“Mmmm. The lady has put on a skirt.”


“You finally see me?”


“Isn't it a bit small, though? We need to buy you some clothes.”


En Chan glared at him and he smiled and said,


“You're pretty. Very pretty.”


“Prettier than Miss World?”


“Miss World? Ohhh... Ya, that's been bothering you until now, huh? It's been on your mind for a while.”


Han Kyul chuckled to himself as he poked En Chan's cheek with his finger.


“Hey, I didn't have any fun that time. I don't even remember them.”


“Psh. What do you take me for, an idiot? You were smiling like your lips were going to rip apart and you threw me out into the streets and sped off.”


“I told you, I was already beginning to find you cute back then. Do you know how head-splitting it is to find a boy cute? If you're going to make up for how much you made me suffer, you have to do cute things for me at least 200 more times.”


“Who made who suffer? It's news to me.”


“I'm a master at the poker face. Never showing on our faces what's going on in our insides is our family specialty.”


“Whatever you say, sir. Let's go eat.”


En Chan turned around and headed toward the entrance. Han Kyul, who'd followed behind her, put his arm around her shoulder and pointed with his hand.


“Let's ride that first. I've always wanted to ride it.”


As if nothing had happened, the two of them went inside the amusement park. They mixed into the crowd and got on rides and ate ice cream and walked down flower paths. Sometimes they'd clasp hands, other times he'd have his arm around her, and other times they would simply look at each other....


After exiting the amusement park, they ate dinner at a high observatory restaurant. They sat down side by side on yellow banana shaped leather sofas in the small balcony-like area that jutted out from the rest of the space. They ate dinner and drank wine, looking out at the magnificent scenery from the window.


“Are you going to keep growing your hair out?” asked Han Kyul as he brought his lips to her hair and gave it a kiss. En Chan was resting her head on his shoulder.


“Yea. Why? You don't want me to?”


“It's not that I don't want you to. It's just that it doesn't fit with the Coffee Prince concept. That's a place where princes work.”


“Then you want me to continue to look like a boy?” asked En Chan. Han Kyul nodded without a single moment's hesitation.


“I want you to look like a boy to other men. So they don't move in on you.”


“You worry about the strangest things. There's nothing but women all around me.”


“Don't hang around too much with women either. By the way, you looked really out of shape back there. Let's start working out together starting tomorrow.”


“And how am I supposed to find the time? These days, I wish here were ten of me to go around. You know Chief Bong from Dong Yi Foods? He's a total tightass. He wants to have conferences every single day. He's already changed the marketing plan several times....”


“You meet Chief Bong every day? Hmm that geezer's got to go. I'll have to change him. Even I can't see you every day, it makes me jealous.”


“Ahjussi, don't overreact.”


“Cut down on the time you work at Coffee Prince. I've been thinking about this for a while now, but I think you should pick new employees and become the manager yourself. That way, you can pay closer attention to the franchise project.”


“Hm..... I'll talk it over with Mr. Hong.”



The two of them leaned against each other, looking at the night scenery. From time to time, Han Kyul would give En Chan's shoulders a tight squeeze. And from time to time, he would lay kisses on her head, her temples, and her cheeks, displaying his affection.



“There's something I'm curious about. Before you found out at the hospital, you really never once suspected? You never wondered to yourself if I was a girl?”


“What do you think?”


“Hmm. Answer 1,” said En Chan, lifting up a finger. “Never. Not even once. Answer 2, maybe just once. Answer 3, maybe in your subconscious, but never thought about it consciously. Why? Because you're a coward. Answer 4, you would've liked for me to have been a girl. Now, which one is it?”


“Hmm... the answer bank is pretty scanty. I especially don't like Answer 3. The answer is, Answer 5.”


“Answer 5?”


“I liked you, even if you were a boy.”


“What? What is that? What the?! Then when you kissed me on Valentine's Day, that wasn't just a prank?”


“I told you. There are some things men never want to let women to see.”


“Oh, right, I've been meaning to ask you. What is that? You didn't want to let me see you kiss me? I didn't have my eyes open when you did.”


“No, it's not that... it's just.... well, it's a type of...... the.....”


“The what?”


“Do you really have to hear the answer?”


“I can't stand being curious.”


“It's.... like sexual arousal.”


En Chan whipped her head around to look at Han Kyul in shock. Han Kyul looked at her as if daring her to say anything and then reached out and put her head back on his shoulder.


“You mean, you thought I was a boy and you felt that? That's why the tongue.....”


“Yea.”


“No way...... pervert cabbage slug!!”


“Yea, I don't know what else to say. But you know, when I think about it, Answer 3 might be right as well. If you were a girl, I would have to kick you out of the store, and I would've had to doubt whether you'd come to like me or my money.”


“You narcissist.”


“Not a narcissist... maybe a coward, like you said?”


“It's late. It's almost midnight.”


“I'll give you an answer bank.”


“Huh? You didn't ask a question, though.”


Han Kyul lifted up a finger in front of En Chan's face and said,


“Answer 1. You sleep with me tonight. Answer 2. You go to Dong Yi Hotel room S11 with me right now. Answer 3. We talk in my bed until the morning. Answer 4. You live with me for the rest of your life.”


After the last sentence, En Chan couldn't say anything for the pounding in her chest. Her heart was racing like a frenzied maniac. She hadn't talked to him about it, but it wasn't as if she hadn't give their future some thought before. The conclusion was always a deep sigh. She'd comforted herself by telling herself to be thankful and satisfied with her present happiness with him. To treat each moment preciously and to love him to her fullest.


“Now, what's your answer?”


With that, Han Kyul held out his cheek.


“What're you doing?”


“Answer me with kisses.”


“People are watching.”


“Hurry up. Or I'm going to feel up your chest.”


En Chan smacked his head with a cushion.


“God, you kinky pervert!”


Han Kyul shook his head and rearranged his mussed up hair before holding out his cheek again. En Chan scowled at him for a while before deciding there was nothing else that could be done. She leaned over slowly and smacked kisses on his cheek. When she stopped at the third kiss, he turned around.


“Answer 3? What was Answer 3 again?” He asked her, looking disappointed.


“Man, I don't know if I should really answer this lame proposal, but....”


En Chan stretched out her arms and held Han Kyul's head in her hands.


“I'm afraid if I'm not with you, you're going to die of boredom, so I'll do you the favor.”


En Chan smiled as she kissed Han Kyul on his lips. When she pulled away, he abruptly tackled her and En Chan fell backwards onto the sofa. Han Kyul was smiling above the fallen En Chan. He stroked her cheek and said playfully,


“You're awfully snuggly, snookums.”


“Come on, get off! The waitress is watching.”


Han Kyul pressed down on En Chan's shoulder as she tried to get up and lowered his lips.


“Get used to it. I don't care what other people think.”


Should she stop his kiss? But when she closed her eyes, she couldn't see anyone else either. There was nothing that could be done. She had to get used to it. He had said, after all, that it was for the rest of her life.....