Lights Don't Go Out in the Annex - Chapter 15
CHAPTER 15
It felt like a different world there.
As she opened the door, the music and laughter grew louder and spilled out on the mild breeze. Inside, no one seemed to care about her.
They were all swaying, in a state of intoxication, lost in music, revelry and excitement. The music pouring out from inside the wide-open sliding doors echoed loudly, hitting their eardrums with force. Already, the air felt stuffy.
Perhaps because she had mentally prepared herself not to be surprised by whatever spectacle she will encounter that upon seeing a man and a woman intertwined together, it was as if it didn’t matter. The scene lacked a sense of reality, almost like watching a scene from a movie or drama.
A man and a woman were lying on top of each other on one sunbed, grinding on each other’s bodies. Another man on the next sunbed chuckled in amusement as he casually watched the scene unfold, seemingly enjoying the sight.
He cracked open his drink and downed it in one gulp, then tossed it down and slipped his hand inside his swim trunks with casual ease. The man’s hand moved beneath his bottom wear and upon witnessing it, Leeseo quietly averted her gaze.
While the windows on this floor poured out blinding lights, the only source of illumination in the poolside courtyard was the soft blue ambient light that emanated from the swimming pool. In the midst of the drunken, swaying crowd, Kwon Tae-gyeom didn’t stand out at first.
Relying on the dim light, it wasn’t easy to find Tae-gyeom even by turning one’s gaze all around. Everywhere she looked, numerous entangled bodies of men and women are what she sees. The atmosphere was thick with a sticky ambiance.
Leeseo decided to go inside first and find the first aid kit, and as she starts to head inside, she suddenly hears a commotion.
Turning her head instinctively towards the source of the noise, she saw two people near the pool area. They seemed to be either dancing or having an argument, with gestures that were hard to decipher. Then, in an instant, they stumbled sideways and toppled into the pool.
A flurry of white water rose as the waves surged, creating a splash that rippled through the pool. A column of water shot upwards and splashed in all directions, reaching even where Leeseo stood. Wide-eyed with surprise, she stared at the people who had fallen into the water.
Phuat. The two men rose from the water, gasping for air, and immediately burst out laughing. Then, they suddenly grabbed each other by the hair and kissed fiercely.
For a moment, all eyes were on them, and then the people around the pool burst into giggles. Some whistled, some cheered, and some threw beer cans into the pool.
Leeseo couldn’t make sense of what was so amusing about it. She felt completely out of place, as if she were in a truly strange world for not understanding what was going on.
“What are you looking at?”
One of the men who had fallen into the water have noticed Leeseo’s gaze, breaking off from the kiss and bluntly asked. Instead of answering, Leeseo lifted her head and looked upward.
Unlike this place, where the blue lights were eerily reflecting on the waves, there was a place where bright light was pouring down. Suddenly, an inexplicable sense of anticipation came over her.
Kwon Tae-gyeom must be on that floor.
Iseo quickly turned inward. The situation inside was not much different from the outside. The poolside area was just as chaotic and vibrant.
Leeseo hurriedly headed inside. The situation inside the house wasn’t much different from the outside. The good news though was that the people inside were at least dressed properly, compared to the debauched people stretched out near the pool, all of them in swimsuits or naked.
Leeseo approached the pantry where the first aid kit was located. A group of men sat around the island table facing each other, heads together in a conspiratorial manner. She caught a glimpse of what looked like leaves on a thin sheet of paper.
Are they doing drugs?
Such suspicion flashed through her mind for a moment, but she quickly looked away from the suspicious scene. There was no point in scrutinizing it closely. She shrugged it off and grabbed the first aid kit from the pantry.
With the first aid kit in her grasp, Leeseo headed upstairs. The living room was filled with people playing poker, drinking, and singing, but no one spared a glance at her. Like the white rabbit in Wonderland, Leeseo hurriedly moved her feet, ascending the stairs.
As she neared the top of the stairs, she ominously heard loud music mixed with erotic moans. The music was so loud that she wondered if her ears were playing tricks on her or if her hearing was off, but unfortunately, her premonition had never been wrong.
In the space where the stairs made a turn, she saw a couple entangled intimately. They were in the midst of a passionate intercourse.
Just like what Mrs. Seo had said, the house had plenty of spare rooms, so Leeseo couldn’t understand the urgency that they couldn’t manage to do the deed inside one of those spare rooms. However, the couple were too engrossed in the act of furiously mixing their bodies with only their pants undone, not even noticing Leeseo’s presence on the stairs.
Leaning against the staircase railing, the woman in a prone position grunted, her head hanging low as she whimpered softly. Thevman, positioned behind her, had a firm grip on her waist with both hands.
The man’s lower body moved at a tremendous speed, repeatedly thrusting his hips hard against the woman’s buttocks. As he rocked his hips back and forth, his thick penis between the woman’s buttocks appeared and disappeared.
Taken aback, Leeseo froze in place. For a moment, she thought it was Kwon Tae-gyeom, and her mind went blank.
The man, engrossed in the sexual act, with his gaze directed downward, finally noticed Leeseo’s presence belatedly and abruptly halted his movements. However, he only raised an eyebrow slightly, showing an audacious lack of concern, almost shamelessly so for someone who got caught having sex in public.
Contrary to her expectations of him hastily pulling up his pants from below, the man merely stopped his actions and spoke.
“I told you we shouldn’t come up to this floor.”
Fortunately, it wasn’t Kwon Tae-gyeom. Leeseo wasn’t sure why that was fortunate, but she felt a bit relieved without even being conscious of it.
The man’s skin was somewhat rough and uneven. Unlike Kwon Tae-gyeom’s clean and fair skin that resembled that of a well-bred noble, this man’s skin was moderately tanned. He wasn’t excessively tall, not to the extent of brushing against the ceiling, either.
While Kwon Tae-gyeom’s slender eyes exuded a sensitive, and somewhat dandy air, the man’s eyelids drooped slightly downward, giving him a somewhat reserved look.
She couldn’t understand why she mistook him for Kwon Tae-gyeom when there was hardly any resemblance between them. She couldn’t comprehend why her mind had gone completely blank for a moment.
“I don’t know, okay.”
The man said in a drunken, slurred tone. His gaze that was still locked on Leeseo, even as his lower body remained intertwined with the woman, seemed completely nonchalant.
The woman around his waist seemed to be vaguely annoyed by Leeseo’s presence, as she cast an annoyed glance at the man behind her.
“Oh, come on, you said no one was coming up.”
Despite the woman’s irritation, the man’s gaze remained fixed on Leeseo as he asked with a casual tone and attitude.
“Who are you?”
Leeseo lifted the first aid kit she was holding slightly and stated,
“I’m looking for Mr. Kwon Tae-gyeom since he said he got injured.”
After briefly glancing at the object in Leeseo’s hand and then alternately looking in the direction of the rooms on this floor, the man hummed and cleared his throat. Then he motioned towards the upper part of the stairs.
“Go up and check.”
Keeping her gaze fixed ahead, Leeseo dashed up the stairs. By the time she reached second floor, the sound of fabric rustling and skin brushing against each other had resumed from below.
Leeseo squeezed her eyes shut then opened them again. It truly felt like she had fallen into a strange land where everyone was out of their minds.
The living room on this floor was eerily quiet compared to the first floor, as if time had stood still. Except for a few bottles and broken glasses scattered on the table, it was as tidy as an uninhabited model home.
Leeseo slowly shifted her gaze. She saw faint traces of bloodstains that gradually led to the closed bedroom door. It was like the breadcrumbs left by Hansel and Gretel, saying that he was inside.
Walking up to the bedroom door, Leeseo knocked. There was no sign of movement from inside. But, she knew that Kwon Tae-gyeom was inside. He was probably waiting for her.
After taking a deep breath, she opened the door. In the brightly lit bedroom, Kwon Tae-gyeom came into view. He was sitting in a chair, leaning his back against it, in a relaxed posture. He looked like a mad king in a strange land.
His long arm was draped over the armrest of the chair. An unidentifiable liquid dripped from his fingertips to the floor. Leeseo’s brow furrowed as her gaze shifted to that spot.
In his other hand, he still held a glass of alcohol. The brown bottle on the modern table was already half-empty.
“I brought the first aid kit, you’re hurt.”
Leeseo closed the door behind her and walked over to Kwon Tae-gyeom, who set the glass he’d been sipping freely down on the table. The sound of glass against the table echoed in a clear and crisp tone.
“Hey, I’ve been waiting for you.”
“…….”
“I thought I was dying from the pain.”
Despite his exaggeration with words, his face remained devoid of any expression of pain. His face, loosened in inebriation, conveyed an unparalleled sense of calmness.