The Unbelievers

Chapter 4

‘F**k! You ugly-looking bastard, are you crazy to die?! Huh?’

A few men with heavy shoulders kicked the stomach of someone lying face down on the dark ground, accompanied by rough curses. It was the man who had hit Eunseong yesterday. In the video, the group could be seen giggling on the side, smoking cigarettes and spitting phlegm on the street.

There was a woman who came with him…, Eunseong’s eyes quickly searched for the man’s companion in the screen. Since the woman wasn’t there, she must have run away or only the man was dragged here. The man, who had mistaken bravado for courage and believed arrogance was strength, curled up and groaned, almost spitting blood under the gangsters’ kicks.

Thud, thud, thud!

The sound of something heavy being struck dully echoed continuously.

‘You dare to hit my brother’s friend’s face, you b*stard! Who do you think you are, you son of a b*tch! Die!’

The kicks that made one wince just by looking continued, along with panting curses, against the opponent who was curled up and not moving as if dead. Eunseong had thought he was tough from being beaten by his father, but it was a misconception. It was the first time he had seen someone being beaten like this by a group in real life, not in a movie.

Choi Jung-eon flashed a look at Eunseong, who was frozen with his knees hugged to his chest, as if expecting praise.

“This is the bastard, right?”

The man being beaten like a piece of meat without even being able to scream was indeed the one who had grabbed Eunseong’s collar and slapped him last night. Though his face wasn’t visible, that unique jacket was definitely the one the man had been wearing yesterday.

“…What is this? What have you done?”

Eunseong looked back at Choi Jung-eon with unbelieving eyes. Choi Jung-eon smiled as if he was proud.

“I asked some guys I know. How could I just sit still when you got beaten? I had to get revenge for you. Eunseong, does it hurt a lot? Should I blow on it?”

Eunseong’s face turned pale blue, having never properly seen or experienced such group violence being wielded by men before.

Choi Jung-eon brought his mouth close to Eunseong’s stiff cheek and blew, “Hoo.”

“Why are you so stiff, our Eunseong?”

“…Hey, Choi Jung-eon. Are you crazy?”

“Eunseong, I did well, right? Give me a kiss.”

“Ah, f**k, that bastard was making a fuss about having to brush his teeth earlier, f**k, it’s disgusting! Eunseong, run away!”

One of his friends yelled in disgust and laughed loudly as he saw Choi Jung-eon trying to put his lips on Eunseong.

Eunseong reflexively pushed Choi Jung-eon’s face away with his hand. Even as his cheek was pushed back, Choi Jung-eon grinned.

“Has our Eunseong’s mood improved now? I asked them to beat him up badly, you know. F**k, the guys said he wasn’t moving at all, like he was dead. So they got scared and dumped him by the riverside and ran. If he died, it would be on the news, right? Since it’s not on yet, I guess he’s not dead.”

He spoke in a voice without any remorse or fear, as if joking around.

“I did well, right? Come on, praise me for doing well.”

Choi Jung-eon grabbed Eunseong’s hand and forced him to pat his head. Eunseong avoided the hand gripping his own.

“You’re joking, right? This is just a joke, right? You guys are just playing around, right?”

Eunseong couldn’t believe it. This wasn’t the Choi Jung-eon he knew. Choi Jung-eon’s eyes, which had been grinning all along as he watched Eunseong slowly backing away from where he sat, hardened coldly.

“What? I thought I did something praiseworthy, didn’t I? Did I do something wrong?”

“…Are you crazy?”

“No, I’m not crazy. I’m not crazy mentally or physically, I’m normal, and this is a very normal reaction. Someone hit our Eunseong, and it would be crazy to just let that go. Don’t you think?”

“…”

“That would be crazy, Eunseong. F**k, it’s wrong and crazy to just let it go when a friend was unfairly beaten. Hey, isn’t that right? F**k, did I make a mistake? Why does Eunseong’s face look like that? It’s a complete ‘I stepped in shit’ expression. Am I the shit now?”

Choi Jung-eon turned his head towards his friends and asked. As he ranted, he demanded from his friends why Eunseong’s expression had turned so white, saying he should be receiving an award instead, and what was going on. Eunseong stood up abruptly from his seat.

“Where are you going? There’s still plenty of lunch time left.”

“Let go, you b*stard.”

“I’m not done talking.”

“I have nothing to say. Let go!”

This wasn’t the violence he had seen enough of through his father. It was close to murder. He shook off his hand with all his might, but it was in vain. Instead, Choi Jung-eon’s hand gripped even tighter. Choi Jung-eon held Eunseong’s wrist and squeezed it with a strength that was frighteningly strong.

“I’m not done talking.”

“I want to go.”

“Sit down.”

“…”

“Sit down, Eunseong.”

Eunseong knew all too well from a lifetime of experience what happened when you didn’t obey them when they had that expression and spoke like that. He might be sitting still now even when treated roughly, but no one knew what would happen if he really lost it. If Eunseong disobeyed Choi Jung-eon’s words and turned away, he could become the protagonist in the phone video instead of that man from last night.

Eunseong sat back down next to him, almost crouching. He raised his knees and hugged them with both arms. He was so scared he could burst into tears. He didn’t know Choi Jung-eon was this crazy.

“Oh, our Eunseong is scared. Were you scared of me? I tried not to be scary. Were you very scared?”

“You’re joking, right? You’re lying with someone else’s video, right? You’ve never done anything like that, you’re just putting on a show, right?”

“Eunseong, you know.”

Choi Jung-eon scooted closer to the crouching Eunseong and placed his arm, which Eunseong had tried to gently push away, squarely on his shoulder and put his lips to his ear. The gym was hot as the air conditioning hadn’t been turned on yet. Even though the heat radiating from Choi Jung-eon’s body was hot, Eunseong felt cold. He felt chilly to the bone.

“Should I do this to your dad too? If I ask the guys, they might do it. No, if I ask them to do it, they definitely will. Because the guys find me cute.”

Choi Jung-eon whispered with moist breath, his lips touching Eunseong’s earlobe.

A chill ran down his spine. Eunseong immediately shook his head. Even though he had cursed his father, wishing he would die a sudden death from drinking too much, or that he would just die in his sleep leaving the multi-family house to him, when his father was passed out after causing a drunken ruckus, Eunseong now stood in the way of the blue blade of death descending on his father’s nape.

“You hate your dad, don’t you.”

“What nonsense… Are you really crazy?”

“If I go to your neighborhood at night, I can hear you crying all the way to the end of the alley.”

“…”

“Should I not do it?”

He asked kindly.

“Don’t. Who asked you to do it? You crazy bastard! Stay out of other people’s lives!”

Choi Jung-eon patted Eunseong’s shoulder as he shouted and shook off his arm, shuddering in disgust.

“Then will you keep getting beaten by your dad? Until you die? People die if they keep getting hit. If you get hit for a long time, you die. Like that bastard who hit you.”

“Choi Jung-eon, why are you like this? You weren’t this kind of person.”

He had just thought Choi Jung-eon was admired by the kids who played around as someone strong at school, but he didn’t know he was close to such vicious people. The Choi Jung-eon saying these frightening things was not the lacking kid he had been treating carelessly.

“Eunseong, I’m talking about you right now. Not about me.”

“…”

It was a threat to shut up and just listen. Eunseong closed his mouth and stared at him with frightened eyes.

“Ah, I really pity Eunseong. The teachers all ignore you, there’s not a single adult helping you, and the police, f**k, they just come and go after showing their faces.”

“…”

“Eunseong cries every night from being beaten by his dad, but everyone in that neighborhood pretends not to hear.”

He was used to this kind of thing, but what he said was true, and it suddenly made Eunseong upset. Eunseong’s eyes filled with sorrowful tears. Seeing this, Choi Jung-eon’s eyes distorted as if looking at something truly pitiful. He was displeased. He didn’t like the victim’s attitude of refusing and saying no when he should keep Eunseong’s father alive and was offering to help.

Choi Jung-eon’s hand grabbed Eunseong’s head. As he roughly brushed the fine hair seeping through his fingers in the opposite direction, Eunseong’s hair became a mess.

“Eunseong is about to cry. What should I do? I said I’d kill your dad for you?”

“Don’t do that.”

“Why not? I’m going to do it. I’m going to protect you.”

“What nonsense… Who’s protecting who? Don’t say such ridiculous things!”

Choi Jung-eon finally pulled Eunseong, who was trying not to be dragged by force, and made him bury his tearful face in his shoulder. Eunseong, who had been trying hard not to touch him, forcibly buried his forehead in Choi Jung-eon’s sweaty shoulder.

“Don’t cry, Eunseong. When you cry, it makes me feel weird.”

“…”

“It makes me feel like I should hug you and comfort you.”

As he said, he patted and comforted Eunseong’s back, which was trembling with fear. As he did so, Choi Jung-eon tilted his head to make his lips touch Eunseong’s earlobe more, trying to swallow the earlobe into his mouth every time he spoke.

He had been trying to ignore and look away when the guy behaved unpleasantly, but now there was no space to avoid. Choi Jung-eon’s blatant words and actions flowed down Eunseong’s tender nape and spine as a chilling sensation.

Choi Jung-eon, who had been breathing hotly at Eunseong’s frozen movement, leaned his face even closer and lowered his volume so others couldn’t hear.

“Eunseong, you have no one to protect you. You’re alone. So I’ll protect you.”