“Kim Jung-woo.”

The man casually tapped the name tag on his left chest.

“Nice face. How much for one night?”

Here we go again.

“Never been with a man before? Want me to pop your cherry?”

The others in the room snickered at the crude joke. Oasis once stood as a decent bar, but ever since some thug took over, the quality had declined significantly, and customer numbers had dropped considerably.

Soo-hyun had worked as a waiter at Oasis for a year, and his striking looks often attracted unwanted attention from customers. Usually women, but sometimes men made passes at him too, like today. Of course, he wouldn’t mind their touches if they were handsome. But those types always had ugly faces.

Just like this bastard.

The man in the purple shirt, drunk and glassy-eyed, looked Soo-hyun up and down.

“Thank you for the compliment.”

After that insincere response, the man’s hand moved to Soo-hyun’s backside. Soo-hyun put the bottle of alcohol down on the table and smiled artificially. As he finished setting up and tried to step back, the man opened his wallet. It bulged with 50,000 won bills.

For a moment, excitement surged through him. Some customers did give generous tips…

Looking at him with hopeful eyes, the man pulled out not money but a business card from his wallet.

“Call me if you need anything.”

Soo-hyun’s gaze fell on the card. The word “Entertainment” caught his eye. A company he’d never heard of. Seems like everyone and their dog runs a talent agency these days. Bastard. He gropes my as$ and then gives me a card instead of money. Smiling, he accepted the card with both hands respectfully and headed out, only for the man to slap his backside again. Just go.

“Yes, sir.”

After closing the door, Soo-hyun crumpled the card and tossed it in the trash. As he walked to take the next order, he noticed a commotion at the end of the hallway. A new hostess ran out with a flushed face, followed by the manager bringing in security. The drunk customer’s voice echoed loudly down the corridor.

He ranted about what the big deal was with just touching some girl’s br*asts. The hostess who left the room took out a cigarette at the counter and complained to the madam. Fatigue washed over Soo-hyun. He should have slept during the day. Instead, he had that strange dream.

As he dragged his tired body without rest, someone pushed past him. The pudgy figure in the purple shirt was the same bastard who had groped Soo-hyun and given him the card. He appeared even more drunk now, barely maintaining his balance.

A young waiter stopped him as he stumbled toward the wrong door. Watching him finally make his way into the bathroom, Soo-hyun glanced around. All the staff were distracted by the troublesome customer inside.

Step by step, he casually walked to the bathroom and carefully opened the door. The man had finished his business and struggled to pull up his pants at the urinal. Too drunk to properly zip up, he kept fumbling, then cursed, “Ah, f*ck it,” and gave up. Then he spotted Soo-hyun and squinted before beckoning him over.

“Come ‘ere and zip this up for me.”

His speech slurred and stretched out. Staring at the man’s unfocused eyes, Soo-hyun approached and zipped up his pants. Wearing expensive underwear, what a joke. After buttoning him up too, Soo-hyun stepped back, and the man made an incomprehensible gesture while mumbling.

“Thanks. I should give you a tip… a tip…”

The man opened his jacket and fumbled with the inner pocket before staggering. Soo-hyun steadied him and smiled.

“No need for a tip. It’s fine, sir.”

“No, no. I want to give you one.”

“Come on, sir. Your thoughts are enough.”

He supported the man and pushed him out of the bathroom. No, I need to give you a tip. A tip. Wait a second. His hand never reached the inner pocket, just brushed against the glossy fabric. Maybe he never intended to give a tip in the first place. If he had, he would have done so when he touched Soo-hyun’s backside. Soo-hyun redirected the man who headed the wrong way.

“Not there. You need to go this way. Here.”

Opening the door revealed a chaotic scene inside. Everyone appeared drunk and all over each other. Soo-hyun pushed the man in and quickly closed the door, only to find Dong-seok standing behind him. Dong-seok, friendly with Soo-hyun, had gotten him this job. Seeing his glare, Soo-hyun shrugged and turned away. In the last room, the manager still argued with a customer.

Acting nonchalant, Soo-hyun went to the bathroom and took out the wallet he had lifted from the man from inside his vest. Opening it revealed tightly packed 50,000 won bills. There must be at least a hundred of them. After pocketing the cash, he noticed a family photo.

The child, thankfully, didn’t resemble the man at all and looked cute.

Bastard. Aren’t you ashamed to face your child?

He flicked the man’s bulldog-like face in the photo.

“If you touch someone’s as$, you should pay the price.”

He opened the toilet lid and tossed the man’s wallet in. As he closed the lid and opened the door to leave, Dong-seok blocked his way with a disapproving expression. Soo-hyun calmly turned on the water and washed his hands. Dong-seok stood right next to him and held out his hand.

“Hand it over.”

“What?”

“The wallet you just took.”

Soo-hyun shook the water off his hands and showed his empty palms with a brazen look that conveyed he had nothing. Dong-seok reached for him, but Soo-hyun quickly dodged and pulled out the wad of cash from his back pocket. Dong-seok’s expression soured. Soo-hyun took out two 50,000 won bills and stuffed them into the pocket with Dong-seok’s name tag, suggesting a tip.

“On condition you keep your mouth shut.”

“Hey, you!”

When Dong-seok tried to grab the rest of the money, Soo-hyun shoved it down his pants. Patting his bulging crotch, Soo-hyun grinned.

“Go ahead and take it. But I’ll spread rumors that you grabbed my d*ck.”

Dong-seok gave him an exasperated look. Soo-hyun smiled mischievously. Just pretend you didn’t see anything. Why get involved in someone else’s business? Dong-seok followed, lecturing him. What’s wrong with you? I told you not to touch customers’ money. Do you think the boss will let you off if you get caught? Why can’t you get your act together…

Ignoring him, Soo-hyun entered the changing room and closed the door. It grew quiet outside. He undressed, took out the money, and put it in the inner pocket of his jacket before checking the time. It was 4 AM. An earlier finish than usual, but he had already told the manager, so the boss would understand. Besides, today was a special day. Though calling it special seemed odd.

Climbing the basement stairs to ground level, he felt he could breathe again. October dawns brought quite a chill. Zipping up his jacket as he walked, he noticed the relatively quiet streets. He hailed a nearby taxi, waking up the dozing driver who looked back at him.

“Hongje-dong, please.”

After a long ride, the taxi stopped in front of a 24-hour mart. Soo-hyun went in and bought an apple, a pear, soju, Bacchus energy drink, and his mother’s favorite cigarettes. After paying, he walked for quite a while. When he reached the neighborhood, a steep alley appeared.

Climbing up the hill, he passed people who seemed to head to work early in the morning. While this marked the end of Soo-hyun’s day, it signaled the beginning for others. Passing them, he arrived at a blue gate and peeked over the wall.

Fortunately, no sign of the landlady appeared. Afraid she might rush out demanding overdue rent, he muffled his footsteps. Carefully climbing the stairs to the rooftop room, he saw a dark figure smoking in front of the porch.

Recognizing him immediately, Soo-hyun sighed and cursed quietly.

Debt collection at this hour? Talk about dedication.

As Soo-hyun approached the door, the man stood behind him. He inserted the key into the hole and turned it, but the lock felt stiff and wouldn’t turn properly. He pulled it out, blew on it, and tried again when the man spoke.

“Baek Soo-hyun.”

The man called him by his real name, which few people knew, with familiarity.

“Let’s talk. I’m not here for the money.”

Soo-hyun turned around. What else would a loan shark come for besides money? The man served as a subordinate of Kim Chang-nam, a notorious loan shark who somehow tracked Soo-hyun down wherever he fled. Moreover, the interest accumulated so quickly that despite paying back a considerable amount, the principal remained untouched.

The person who came to find Soo-hyun today was Chang-nam’s subordinate, nicknamed “Axe.” Rumor claimed he earned his nickname from chopping off the wrists of those who didn’t pay, and sometimes Soo-hyun wondered how many wrists he had cut off.

“If not money, then what? Taking my kidney or something?”

Axe exhaled smoke with an expressionless face. Soo-hyun smirked, opened his jacket, and lifted his shirt. Scars showed clearly on his stomach and side.

“Too bad. Some other bastard already took it before.”

Axe took out his wallet and handed over a folded piece of paper.

“I have a job for you.”

Soo-hyun frowned.

“F*ck. Now loan sharks are offering job placements too?”

“Boss’s orders.”

A job from a loan shark—obviously it would involve questionable work. As he prepared to ignore it and enter his home, Axe stuffed the paper into Soo-hyun’s jacket.

“Kid, if you do this well, he’ll cut your principal in half.”

The hand turning the key froze. Did he hear that right? He turned to look at the man.

“What kind of job?”

“You’ll find out when you get there.”

When Soo-hyun didn’t respond, Axe looked at the bag he held.

“I’ll leave you to it then. Pay your respects to your mother properly.”

F*ck. Despite Soo-hyun’s glare and curse, Axe simply turned and went down. As he disappeared into the darkness, Soo-hyun, now alone, opened the door and went inside. His sparse belongings welcomed him. Taking off his shoes and stepping onto the floor, he felt the cold. Outside almost seemed warmer.

Soo-hyun placed the items he bought at the mart next to the sink and pulled out the note he had just received from his pocket. The crumpled paper had only a phone number written on it.