Chapter 82.1: Catching the Tail (1)

Things became peaceful after Lanok left.

“Channy, I’m going to stay at the hospital today. Go out with Michelle and have a cup of tea at least or something, then go rest at home. Come here tomorrow,” Yoo Hye-Sook said.

“What are you going to eat for lunch and dinner?”

“You think I won’t be able to take care of our meals?”

Michelle could be feeling uncomfortable for Kang Dae-Kyung and Yoo Hye-Sook.

“I’ll see how things go and call you in the afternoon, then,” Kang Chan said.

Michelle followed Kang Chan and stood up with him.

“Goodbye,” Michelle said in poor Korean.

“Bye, Michelle. Let’s see each other again next time. I’ll be sure to treat you to a meal,” Yoo Hye-Sook said.

“You understood that, right? Let’s go,” Kang Chan told Michelle in French.

“Goodbye,” Michelle repeated and hugged Yoo Hye-Sook.

It was 2 pm when they left the hospital. Telling Michelle to leave like this wasn’t polite.

“We should eat. Where should we go?” Kang Chan asked.

“Somewhere with a good atmosphere!”

When Kang Chan glanced at her, Michelle linked her arms around his. “Channy, let’s drink beer.”

“Right now? Is there somewhere that’s open at this hour?”

The feeling of Michelle’s chest on his arm was uncomfortable, but it didn’t feel right to remove his arm because he remembered his kiss with Anne and how Michelle was on the verge of tears yesterday. They walked toward the parking lot and stopped in front of her car. It was a small and cute-looking imported car. Kang Chan thought about driving it, but he got in the passenger seat instead.

“Where are we going?” Kang Chan asked.

“You don’t have a place in mind, do you?”

“Yeah.”

Michelle drove the car out of the parking lot with a bright smile.

It was a Saturday, so the traffic on the Olympic Expressway was quite heavy.

“Channy, I don’t know about the young female student, but pay a bit more attention to Anne. That lady’s likely only thinking about you right now. Praise her determination to change and encourage her. When she’s stronger, let her know that there were people that kept looking at her. That security guard, for example. There aren’t only strong people like you in the world.”

“You’re not angry because of Anne?”

“I’m satisfied with you being uncomfortable.”

Kang Chan smirked.

“You’ve got the qualities of a playboy,” Michelle commented.

Michelle side-eyed Kang Chan with a mischievous look in her eyes.

“You don’t know how charming you are when you’re indifferent, do you?” Michelle asked.

“You’re the only one who thinks that way.”

“Hmph.”

Michelle coyly turned her head. Her deep-set eyes, sharp nose, blonde hair, and even her breasts he sometimes wanted to touch…

What went wrong with her? Should I just sleep with her?

However, Kang Chan was afraid of what would happen afterward. He didn’t want to experience the emptiness he felt when he went on vacation to France ever again.

“Channy, about the group dinner with the drama production team…”

While they were talking about D.I., they got on the Jayu Motorway. From there, they no longer experienced that much traffic. Their conversation had ended by the time they got off the Jayu Motorway. Not long after, they arrived at a large building made of logs.

They were surrounded by mountains, so there wasn't anything special in the area. Kang Chan liked the refreshing air that rushed toward him when he got out of the car, though. When he got out of the passenger seat and headed to the building’s entrance, Michelle rushed toward him and hugged him. She placed her head on his chest and put her arms around him. She was warm.

“Let’s stay like this for a moment,” Michelle said.

Sure, this much touching is okay

.

Kang Chan stroked her back.

“I’m happy,” Michelle commented, then raised her head. Her eyes showed she was turned on.

Kang Chan didn’t know whether her suddenly throwing herself at him was right, but this wasn’t. When all he did was look at her, Michelle winked.

“Michelle, I’m uh… sorry, but…”

“It’s fine even if you don’t love me. Just understand me right now the same way you understood Anne so I can bear through this.”

The coquettish look in Michelle’s eyes showed she wanted Kang Chan.

Buzz— Buzz—Buzz—. Buzz— Buzz—Buzz—. Buzz— Buzz—Buzz—.?

At that moment, Kang Chan’s phone rang. He flinched, perhaps because it was after Kang Dae-Kyung’s incident had happened. Michelle stepped away from him while exhaling loudly, sounding disappointed.

Buzz— Buzz—Buzz—. Buzz— Buzz—Buzz—.

“Hello?”

- Kang Chan, we found them! The fuckers are in Bundang. They’re staying in a villa-like house in the mountains, but I don’t know how many of them are there yet.

Kang Chan returned to his senses when he heard Oh Gwang-Taek’s excitement.

“Do you know the exact address?”

- Put ‘marinated grilled duck’ in Bundang on the navigation. We’ll find it if we follow the road right next to it. It’s the only house there. So, what’s the plan?

“Stay put, Oh Gwang-Taek.”

- Hey you fucker! I’m also a gangster! I also lived by fighting with knives! Don’t even try to exclude me from something like this or I’m going there first!

“Okay, okay! Then wait until I get there for now. Position your men somewhere else and go to the grilled duck place alone. Let’s decide what to do after we meet since there could be gangsters outside the villa.”

- I’m leaving right now, and I’m going to select twenty guys. I’ll see you later.

Michelle worriedly looked at Kang Chan who ended the call.

“I’m sorry, Michelle. Something really important came up.”

“Where do you have to go? I’ll give you a ride.”

Without complaints, Michelle went into the driver’s seat. There was still a lingering feeling from his conversation with her, but now wasn’t the time to think about it. Kang Chan inputted the restaurant in Bundang that Oh Gwang-Taek had told him about, and they left immediately. He then called Seok Kang-Ho.

- Hello? Are you still at the hospital?

“Oh Gwang-Taek said that he found the people that caused the car accident. Put ‘marinated grilled duck’ in Bundang on the navigation and go there. Don’t forget to pack your kukri.”

- Alright. Are you on your way there already?

“Yes.”

- 10 minutes! No, I’ll leave in five minutes.”

It had begun.

Kang Chan didn’t know how far he would have to go from here, but he was thinking of ending things with this timely opportunity.

“What’s with that look in your eyes?” Michelle asked.

Kang Chan’s eyes seemed to have been burning up again. He had been momentarily swayed, so he hoped to arrive at Bundang after setting himself straight.

“Michelle, there’s actually a girl that I like,” Kang Chan confessed.

Michelle glanced at Kang Chan. “It doesn’t matter.”

“I know very well what I looked like to you when we first met,” She told him bluntly, “I actually lived like that. But I truly do like you. I understand why you like that young girl, but as I had asked you in the past, don’t push me away.”

Does she really like me?

“Date a lot of people because you’re still young and have no experience. I have met someone that I’m going to love wholeheartedly, so waiting for you while watching you from the side like this is enough to make me happy.”

“Aren’t you upset or angry?” Kang Chan asked.

“No, but in return, hug me the way you did a moment ago every now and then. I’m fully satisfied with that.”

Kang Chan strangely smiled. How could she possibly say something like that without reservationeven though she looked like a barbie doll?

“It’s okay if we kiss sometimes, right?” Michelle asked.

“I’m not so sure about that.”

“That won’t do—that’s too cruel. You also kissed Anne, so what’s the problem with it? Give me the right to kiss you whenever I want twice a month.”

It felt like the male and female gender roles had somewhat changed.

“But your body was really nice,” Michelle commented.

That wasn’t something that someone should say to a person about to go into a fight.

“Make the reservation for the company dinner. I’m doing something with the people that came to visit my father at the hospital earlier, so whether I can go to the company dinner or not depends on that prior engagement,” Kang Chan told Michelle.

“Did something happen? I feel like you changed somehow?”

“Not sure,” Kang Chan evasively answered. He did change his mindset when he decided that he was going to forget about Africa, but he couldn’t think of a way to explain how he felt.

***

Kang Chan made Michelle stop the car somewhere he could see the restaurant. He then got out.

“Go back,” Kang Chan told Michelle.

“You’re not doing something dangerous, are you?” Michelle had been turned on until just recently, but she was now asking with a bit of fear.

Kang Chan smiled softly, closed the door, and turned around.

The way up to the restaurant was uphill. The low mountain was in front of him, and with that as the background, both sides of the road were full of small trees growing wildly with vines twisted around the trunks.

When Kang Chan stepped into the restaurant’s lot, a guy in the parking lot deeply bowed his head. Kang Chan frowned, but he had already received the greeting.

It would be better for Kang Chan to head inside the restaurant quickly instead of talking to the guy in vain and confirming that the gangsters had arrived. He should’ve met Oh Gwang-Taek and Seok Kang-Ho further down the road instead.

1. Jayu Motorway or Jayu-ro is a major north-south arterial highway in South Korea. Its southern terminus is in Seoul, and its northern terminus is at the Reunification bridge that leads into the DMZ. North Korea is visible from a section of the highway, and due to the close proximity to North Korea, this highway is heavily fortified with barbed wire and military observatories

2. Bundang is a planned community in South Korea. It was developed to encourage affordable housing and urban decentralization