CH 4.2

The sound of a cell phone ringing in the morning shook the bedroom. Cha Yiseok was buried in the duvet and fumbled with his hand. It was the moment when he put the phone he found on the blanket to his ear.

― Why is it harder to talk to you on the phone than the president?! You don’t even show your nose at home, are you still alive?!

The phlegm mixed with anger chewed the nerves. The voice that ruined the weekend morning was Chairman Cha. He was also Cha Yiseok’s father. He rolled his eyes and checked the time. It was nine in the morning. His father’s frequent checking ridiculed the purpose of living separately. Cha Yiseok put his head down and said in a sleepy voice.

“Good morning.”

– Good morning? Myunghwan is dying, and you are sleeping?

“Has he gone already? I thought there were two months left.”

– What the hell are you… !

Cha Yiseok dropped his phone from his ear. After a while, when the anger subsided, he put the phone to my ear again.

— … quacks who can’t even do one thing right! Myunghwan is unable to walk properly after undergoing chemotherapy. I’m about to retire soon, so how do I get the company running… Even though it was kept secret, the major shareholders are pressuring me to disclose the succession plan. To put the next CEO on the line. Those people who used to lick father’s feet, how dare they covet the place?

Chairman Cha’s voice was so angry that it was a pity that it wasn’t a video call. Of course, Cha Myunghwan was a good owner. He was a tidy person, and he never caused noise and accommodated the old folks. Hmm… Cha Yiseok took a cigarette and lit it. Cigarette smoke hovered around Cha Yiseok’s cold face.

“It will be fine, we have a high stake.”

— You sound comfortable. You too, don’t move sluggishly and think of a better way. Now that the shareholders’ meeting is right in front of you, don’t sit still and try to persuade the major shareholders. Do you have any idea what’s going on in the company while hitting on women left and right? Please take after President Cha, at least half of him!

Cha Yiseok said with an inaccurate pronunciation while biting his cigarette.

“Where will the blood1 go?”

— What did you just say?! Is that something you can say to your father… !!

Cha Yiseok dropped his phone away from his ear again. If he’s calling at this time, the heat would have risen to the top of his head, so he only wanted to deal with him in moderation and get enough sleep. Chairman Cha barely found his composure.

― Your sister-in-law will come later, so buy some food and accommodate her. If that kid talks nonsense…

Chairman Cha, who cut off his words, added again.

— Come back home soon. And call your grandfather to say hello often.

When he finished the phone call with his father, the sleepiness caught up. He buried his face in his pillow and pulled out a new cigarette. Cha Yiseok was born to Chairman Cha and his lawful wife while Cha Myunghwan was born to his paramour. Cha Myunghwan’s mother and Chairman Cha had been lovers since college, so Cha Myunghwan saw the world four years earlier than Cha Yiseok.

However, their grandfather, the founder of Taeryung Group, did not accept Cha Myunghwan’s mother as his daughter-in-law. The reason was that she was from an ordinary family that was useless to anyone in the Taeryung family. In the end, Chairman Cha married Cha Yiseok’s mother who was a politician. His mother had only the title of lawful wife, and never sees her husband, except during family events.

On the other hand, Chairman Cha gave special affection to Cha Myunghwan and even made him sit as the CEO. However, now that Cha Myunghwan had risen to power in Taeryung group, the gallbladder cancer he suffered from three years ago started recurring. The chairman, who was about to retire, tried to delegate all authority to him, but the major shareholders could not welcome Cha Myunghwan, who was battling cancer. In the midst of turmoil inside and out, Cha Yiseok took a step back from the cumbersome struggle for control and took a contemplative position. No, he just had to look like he was doing that.

Cha Yiseok dozed off while smoking a cigarette. At that moment, an albino Burmese python crawled out of the blanket. The red-eyed giant snake flicked his tongue and looked around. He was a gorgeous guy with an orange diamond pattern covering his back with a white border on a shiny yellow background. He was a housemate who had been chosen quite carefully from pattern to personality. Cha Yiseok dropped his head on his pillow and patted Soonyi’s snout.

“Are you awake? Want some food?”

Soonyi answered, flicking his tongue. Cha Yiseok got up from the bed and went to the food storage. The 80-pyeong apartment had only a refrigerator, TV, and stereo system. There was no bed or sofa. He enjoyed watching TV while rolling on the floor, and when he fell asleep watching TV, he was in his bedroom. As if there were only black and white colours in the world, the floors, walls, and furniture were either the former or latter.

Then, someone rang the doorbell. Cha Yiseok took water from his home minibar and drank it. The drugs leftover from last night were on the shelf and he ate them with his finger. The doorbell wept persistently. Cha Yiseok leisurely savoured the white powder on his tongue. Only when it completely melted away did he walk to the porch. He saw a woman through the intercom. Cha Yiseok leaned against the wall and watched the anxious woman. When I opened the door, he saw a woman in a luxurious one-piece holding a stacked lunch box. She was Cha Myunghwan’s wife and Cha Yiseok’s sister-in-law.

“The young master is home…”

Cha Myunghwan’s wife did not speak, but turned her gaze away, blushing her cheeks. Cha Yiseok knew he wasn’t wearing a top. He slid his arms around a shirt lying on the living room floor. He buttoned up and twisted his upper body. A woman who arranged her gaze came inside. She was still blushing.

“Do you know how many times I rang the bell? You didn’t answer the phone, so I was just going to go back. If you were sleeping… Ahhh—!!”

Cha Myunghwan’s wife threw the lunchbox and burst into a scream as she saw a giant snake that reached 2 metres in length crawled around in the middle of the living room. The woman leaned against the wall and trembled.

“Y-young master… O-o-over there… a snake…!”

“He was fed just now, so it’ll be fine.”

The woman took in her breath and became even paler. Soonyi needed to be a little bigger to eat people. If he swallows in one go and tears his jaw muscles, it will also tear Cha Yiseok’s heart. Cha Yiseok hugged Soonyi like a new bride, put him in the bedroom and closed the door. The woman walked away from the bedroom door and went into the kitchen. She babbled, collecting old side dishes from the refrigerator and refilling them with new ones.

“I knew this would happen. You didn’t even touch the food you brought. That’s why Grandfather is worried too. Grandfather is not the same as before, so he always asks me when the young master will come… Father is also frequently losing sleep too. His body is not as healthy as before so he’s getting weaker. That’s when he’s thinking of your brother.”

She talked nonstop and then suddenly stopped.

“Have you been… listening to what I’m saying?”

“No.”

Cha Yiseok replied. She said, “The young master is also quite…” and laughed. The woman closed the refrigerator door and approached.

“In the morning, Sungjae called me to say hello. At the end of the conversation, Sungjae told me… It’s hard for me to believe, too, so I want to check with the young master.”

An unexpected word came out of her mouth.

“That… about the healer…”