The Cheese in the Trap
The meditative music that filled Kwon Hee-jae’s bedroom suddenly cut off. Kwon Hee-jae, who had been sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, opened his eyes and frowned at Ju Seung-eon.
“You didn’t see me meditating? I was emptying my mind.”
“That’s why I asked why all of a sudden.”
“I thought a demon had possessed me.”
He got up, brushed the seat off his body, and stretched his arms wide. He couldn’t move his legs if he didn’t stretch once a day, so he had to loosen up.
“You weren’t a nihilist?”
“A theist, not a nihilist.”
“What happened?”
“I thought a demon had possessed me.”
Incubus.
After stretching, he headed for his desk and opened the mail that arrived every day. Most of it was legal documents from the law firm, mainly related to inheritance.
“So many things I own.”
He had known, but seeing the numbers in black and white felt strange. And that strangeness immediately pulled up memories.
Surely Lee Yoo-hee had tried to kill him. If she had held something in her hand, she could have pierced his throat and still not have been satisfied.
The only thing left in the place where death had brushed past was a tremor. Honestly, he had felt fear toward the young woman who seemed so harmless. Or was it awe?
It was the first time he had felt that way. He had only handled a few people who had rushed at him to kill him.
His life had been such a mess that he hadn’t slept without blood on his hands for days.
He had never felt that level of awe from anyone. Especially not from Ju Seung-eon right in front of him.
Someone had clung to him with a terrified face before, but he himself clinging to someone… that was new.
“There’s a therapist interview today. He’ll arrive in an hour and we’ll pick two out of ten.”
Kwon Hee-jae, buried in documents, lifted his head.
“I have to go for an interview?”
“No, I’ll do it. I’m trying to empty the house.”
“Then I…”
“Why don’t you go for a walk with Yeon-woo?”
“A walk.”
His lips moved as he rubbed them with the hand propped on his chin. Naturally, Lee Yoo-hee came to mind.
He had worked at a rental shop on Waikiki Beach.
“Yeon-woo would like that.”
“I’ll contact him. Since we’ll be seeing each other’s faces soon, it’s not bad to say hello in advance.”
“That mercenary you mentioned?”
“His name is Dan Sneyer.”
Ju Seung-eon brought the cane propped in one corner of the room and stood beside him. He naturally offered a hand.
Even though he had recovered quite a bit, Ju Seung-eon still treated him like a patient. That was overprotection. Serious overprotection.
Kwon Hee-jae answered with profanity to Ju Seung-eon’s overprotection, which carried some guilt.
“Get out of the way, asshole. We aren’t holding hands like a pair of guys.”
“Didn’t you say you loved me once?”
“Yeah, I love you like crazy. So pick a real therapist. It’s better to use Lee Yoo-hee than to pick someone half-assed.”
“Lee Yoo-hee?”
Without answering, Kwon Hee-jae snatched the cane from Ju Seung-eon and stood up. He changed into comfortable slacks and a white shirt, then grabbed his hat and sunglasses before heading outside.
Yeon-woo, who had been waiting for him, ran toward him with both arms open. He must have been thrilled for the first time since coming here to walk with his dad.
Kwon Hee-jae lifted the heavier Yeon-woo with one arm. He was glad he could still hold him; he had been thinking the kid’s weight was getting too much for him.
Manager Kang and Han Chae-ah waved from the parking lot, having put harnesses on Ung-i and Kkam-angi.
Kwon Hee-jae, walking with a straight gait while carrying Yeon-woo in response, turned his head slightly.
Ju Seung-eon, watching him from a pocket, pulled out a cigarette and lit it before calling someone.
[He finally called.]
A man with a British accent answered calmly.
“We’re departing now. Grab coordinates on Waikiki Beach and cover. Say hello to the client, Sneyer.”
***
Whenever a strong wind blew, the iconic flower trees of Hawaii would sway and release their sweet fragrance.
Manager Kang, keeping an eye on Kwon Hee-jae’s limp, pointed to a pretty beach pub.
“Sir, how about sitting there? Don’t push yourself too hard all of a sudden.”
“That sounds good. Hah, so my health has gotten this bad?”
“You’re still recovering. I’ll send coordinates to President Ju right now.”
He nodded and greeted the bartender before sitting at the seat right on the beach.
Yeon-woo, who had turned to look at him, waved his arms wildly. Han Chae-ah was sitting Ung-i down and giving instructions while Manager Kang reported current location to Ju Seung-eon.
How annoyingly hot.
Everyone was walking around in swimsuits or almost naked from the blazing sun.
That was why, that night, the face of a woman with cheeks flushed red came to mind.
A shadow fell over Kwon Hee-jae as he half-reclined on the sofa and pulled out a cigarette. There was only one person who could approach him in a place like this, so he wasn’t surprised.
“Dan Sneyer. Mr. Kwon.”
Lighting the cigarette and tilting his head, blue eyes curved into a smile.
“I don’t get why all my guards have blue eyes. Nice to meet you. I’m Kwon Hee-jae.”
Kwon Hee-jae reached behind him, and Dan casually took his hand. Dan’s hand, which didn’t match his pretty boy face and young looks, was surprisingly rough.
“You speak English well. Different from what I heard.”
“There’s a guy who reports like he’s eating shit. I grew up in the US when I was young. I understand and speak just enough, so don’t worry.”
Dan laughed lightly, took a seat at the opposite end of Kwon Hee-jae’s table, and a server brought ice coffee and beer, setting them down.
While the two men exchanged greetings, Yeon-woo and Han Chae-ah disappeared from sight. Kwon Hee-jae slowly looked around the beach.
With Manager Kang and Han Chae-ah together, Yeon-woo couldn’t possibly get into trouble, but he still felt uneasy.
“There he is.”
Dan, arms crossed while watching the beach, flicked his chin. Kwon Hee-jae followed the direction and his eyes narrowed.
Right where the waves were crashing. Precisely, the figure walking precariously along the boundary where waves broke.
“You’re worried.”
“It’s dangerous near the water with the kids.”
“Don’t worry. The kids will be fine.”
His tone carried an inexplicable confidence, and a meaningless smile lingered. But the kid and parent saw things differently from each other.
He fiddled with the water on his beer bottle for a while, then couldn’t hold back and stood up.
“Sneyer, if you’re guarding me, you have to protect my son first.”
He stepped onto the beach with the cane, heading toward the white sand where waves were crashing.
***
Why is Kwon Hee-jae here?
I thought he was staying indoors. And with Dan Sneyer.
Lee Da-in’s eyes, hidden halfway behind the counter, swept the beach. She had been avoiding him for days, but Yeon-woo and Ung-i had caught her eye first, and naturally Kwon Hee-jae was visible.
“This is the reservation window.”
The customer handed over the QR code on his phone. Da-in didn’t take her eyes off Yeon-woo and Ung-i as she handed the customer the board.
A strange feeling of unease crept in. Being good at focusing, once her target was locked, it wouldn’t leave her eyes easily.
Her target right now was Yeon-woo. Of course, she had been hired to protect Kwon Yeon-woo, so she couldn’t stand still after sensing danger.
The voices of customers handing over codes gradually faded. It was because she had selectively shut her ears.
Why was she so anxious?
The waves today were unusually long.
A surfer shouted.
“Run!”
People who had been waiting for the chance rushed into the sea with boards.
The waves pushing strongly from the far ocean weren’t very dangerous. The truly terrifying ones were the big waves that swelled up gradually and crashed against the shore.
[Only one more meter inside…]
He immediately ran.
Da-in had carefully measured the distance between the kid and the wave. Her adrenaline surged for the first time in a long time, and her heart raced fast.
That was why Da-in deliberately slowed her heartbeat. Panicking would ruin everything.
While Han Chae-ah turned her head briefly while holding Ung-i’s leash, Yeon-woo, who had stopped, bent his upper body and crouched.
Manager Kang, who hadn’t caught up to Ung-i, followed belatedly, and the waves’ momentum grew more threatening.
“Excuse me, give me the board quickly.”
Da-in’s focus, which had been locked on Yeon-woo, cooled. She pushed aside the customer handing over his phone and jumped over the counter in one motion.
“Kwon Yeon-woo! Get up!”
Da-in shouted.
Light footprints ran quickly across the wet sand that absorbed the waves. She ran at full power without caring about anything.
15 meters, 10 meters, 7 meters.
The moment the wave approached felt like a blink.
“Kwon Yeon-woo! Get up!”
In the second time she called his name, some eyes turned toward her. Yeon-woo’s bewildered expression grew close as if magnified.
The body seeming to be swallowed by the sand felt heavy.
With eyes wide open, she didn’t take her eyes off the kid.
People standing blankly as the swollen wave came closer hurriedly retreated.
And the moment startled Han Chae-ah let go of Ung-i’s leash and reached out to Yeon-woo, Da-in also reached out to Yeon-woo’s waist.
“Kyaa!”
The towering wave crashed right in front and engulfed them. Cold seawater surged to their shoulders in an instant, covering them.
As if their spines had gone cold from being sucked into the sea, but she couldn’t let go of the body heat tightly hugged in her arms and the desperate hands.
The cheers and cheers of surfers who had enjoyed the satisfying wave grew distant. For some it was a moment of joy, for others a flash of fear.
Her ears were full of water, making the sounds muffled. Da-in, hugging Yeon-woo while lowering her body, slowly raised her head.
The small hand clutching her collar tightly. The forehead buried in wet sand and the coughing from swallowing water. Then, the child’s wail bursting from scared heart that calmed her.
“Uwaaaang!”
What she had hugged wasn’t only Yeon-woo. Even Han Chae-ah, who had gone blank, had hugged Yeon-woo tightly and clung to Da-in’s arms.
And one more. Dan, who should have been by Kwon Hee-jae’s side, had supported Da-in’s back and swept wet hair aside.
“Fast, you.”
The moment Da-in saw Dan’s face, the tension in her body eased.
“Ha…”
Da-in collapsed to the floor with a thud and patted Yeon-woo’s back, which was still crying.
“It’s okay, Yeon-woo. I saw it all. It’s okay.”
She leaned down to kiss the kid’s forehead and forehead settled with sand, comforting him. In front of her crouching eyes, the two legs of the man who had approached limpingly appeared.
The man who arrived last had his breath trembling. The kid had wanted to say he was fine, but the moment their eyes met, he couldn’t say anything.
The man’s face, twisted with shock, anger, worry, and relief, distorted.
“Kwon Yeon-woo!”
He roared explosively.