A Contracted Gangster Who Has to Die to Survive - Chapter 89

“Where is Madam? Why are you doing this?”

“She’s in the laundry room. Why did you wake up so early? You should sleep more. Do you want some water?”

“I’ll get it myself.”

Choi Taejoon spoke as he opened the refrigerator.

“What is all this?”

The fridge, which should have been nearly empty, was packed with neatly stacked food. It seemed to startle him, as he had never seen it like this before.

“Madam prepared it for you and the executive director while she’s on vacation.”

His slightly open mouth finally closed. He then took out a bottle of water, twisted the cap off, and drank deeply, the cool liquid disappearing in large gulps.

I stared blankly at the side of Choi Taejoon’s face.

His slightly puffy face was still heavy with sleep. Long eyelashes, a strong jawline, and the rhythmic motion of his Adam’s apple as he swallowed. Yet, with his tousled hair and drowsy expression, he looked softer than usual. A smile crept onto my lips.

So even someone this big could look cute.

“What are you thinking about?”

Choi Taejoon placed the empty bottle on the table and asked.

“It’s been a while since I saw your face….”

“Did you miss me?”

He frowned slightly, as if embarrassed by his own question. Then, rubbing his forehead with his fingers, he avoided my gaze.

“Yes. And it feels a bit strange too.”

“Strange? How?”

“Just… everything.”

He seemed to be trying to decipher the meaning behind my words. Then, as if realizing it was pointless, he chuckled and looked out the window.

The brilliant early autumn sky stretched endlessly without a single cloud. The trees, beginning to lose their green, shimmered under the sunlight.

“Let’s go out. Get dressed. You said you wanted to get some fresh air.”

It was a day long past the weekend he was supposed to come.

“But today isn’t the weekend.”

“My free time is the weekend.”

Choi Taejoon glanced at the clock hanging on the wall as he spoke.

“Where are we going?”

“Do you have somewhere in mind?”

“Yes.”

He raised an eyebrow, seemingly surprised.

“Where?”

Daehak-ro was a place I had often visited with my group members during our trainee days. Going further back, I had even come here to watch a play in which Dohyeon Tae had a minor role. It was a place full of various memories.

“It’s been a long time.”

Another reason I had chosen to come here was that I wanted to blend in with people my age.

Since becoming possessed by <Alcohol Swab>, my world had shrunk to offices, warehouses, and hospitals. Everyone I met was somehow connected to Taeseong Industries. I wanted to experience what it felt like to walk the streets like an ordinary person, free from any constraints.

“Why Daehak-ro, of all places?”

“No reason. There are lots of people here.”

A faint expression crossed Choi Taejoon’s face. He must have felt guilty—after all, I had been practically confined because of him, unable to go out freely.

“…Let’s come here again sometimes.”

“Great! Next time, should we go to Sinchon or Hongdae?”

“Whatever you want.”

Even though I had been an idol, I had never truly been able to do what I wanted. While I didn’t have to hide my face, I was still careful not to cause trouble for my team. Because of that, I naturally avoided crowded places.

“Aren’t you hot?”

“No.”

“I am.”

Even though it was early autumn, the midday sun was warm. I walked over to an ice cream freezer placed outside a convenience store.

“Let’s have some ice cream.”

Inside the freezer, an array of colorful ice creams was neatly displayed.

“Which one do you want?”

“I don’t want any.”

“Alright. But don’t ask for mine later.”

Even as I said that, I secretly picked one for Choi Taejoon as well.

“Here!”

He took it reflexively but looked uncertain about what to do with it.

I had expected him to return it, but instead, he just stared at the ice cream for a moment before unwrapping it. Holding the wooden stick between his fingers, he glanced at me.

A rabbit-shaped ice cream bar, with a mix of strawberry flavor and vanilla syrup.

“…A rabbit?”

“Heh. Yes, a cute little rabbit.”

I pressed my lips together, stifling a laugh.

“See that round part? Start with the ears.”

Watching Choi Taejoon eat an ice cream bar while walking down the street—it was something I had secretly wanted to see.

He gave me a brief sideways glance, as if he had seen through my thoughts. Then, in one bite, he nearly devoured half of the rabbit.

“The poor rabbit.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

He shot me an expressionless look.

It wasn’t quite the scene I had imagined, but at least he was eating it.

“I’m eating it because you bought it for me.”

Saying that, he tugged at the corners of his lips in a small smile. He wiped off the cream at the edge of his mouth and then finished the rest in one big bite.

On this particularly beautiful day, under the bright sunlight, stood Choi Taejoon, holding an ice cream stick and smiling—

My heart began pounding so fast it almost hurt.

Feeling my face heat up, I turned away, worried he might hear it too.

I peeled back the wrapper of my own ice cream and took a bite. But strangely, I couldn’t taste anything at all.

I had bought it because I was hot, yet somehow, I felt even hotter.

Without realizing it, I kept stealing glances at Choi Taejoon walking beside me.

The difference in our heights, his broad shoulders, and the fact that today he wasn’t in his usual suit but dressed casually—everything about him felt unfamiliar.

“Have You Ever Been to Daehak-ro?”

I quickly shifted the topic of conversation. The streets were bustling with actors advertising their plays, couples on dates, and groups of friends enjoying their time together.

“I’ve driven past it.”

“Have you ever walked around?”

“No.”

I chewed on the end of my empty ice cream stick and looked up at Choi Taejoon.

“When you were my age, where did you hang out?”

“I didn’t.”

That was the answer I had expected.

“Come on, you must have done something other than work. Didn’t you go out drinking? Sing at karaoke?”

Choi Taejoon frowned slightly as if trying to recall his past.

“I was in Macau. Someone I trusted betrayed me and ran off there. Took me about three months to track him down.”

He trailed off mid-sentence and looked at me.

So you caught him… and then what?

“It’s not an interesting story.”

“…No, it is! So what happened after you caught him? Did you beat him up? You didn’t kill him, did you? You can’t just stop in the middle of a story!”

His response was calm and indifferent.

“That guy is now Chief Seo.”

“…Oh. Chief Seo? You mean the head of security?”

“This conversation is pointless. Stop it.”

Instead of answering further, Choi Taejoon casually plucked the ice cream stick from my mouth and tossed it into a nearby trash can.

“I can’t believe Chief Seo did that… There are a lot of interesting people around you, aren’t there?”

“…I guess.”

“Manager Kim, Chief Seo….”

And me.

I was dying to know what had happened afterward—why someone who had betrayed him was now working for him. But from the way he avoided saying more, it was clear he didn’t want to talk about it.

Instead of pressing him further, I pulled him into a nearby café.

The open-air café had a seamless transition between the garden and the indoor space, allowing people to move freely between the two.

We took our drinks to a table on the grass and settled in.

“This is nice and refreshing.”

For the first time in a while, it really felt like I was spending a proper weekend. Even Choi Taejoon, usually tense and busy, seemed relaxed.

Early autumn, around 5 PM, was my favorite time of day. With the golden hues of sunset behind me, I rested my chin on my hand, crossed my legs, and swung my foot lightly as I hummed a tune from my group’s song.

When he first suggested going out together, I had worried about what we would do, how we would pass the time. But throughout the day, not a single moment had felt awkward. If anything, time was slipping away too quickly.

I knew how much effort he must have put into carving out this time.

As I raised my cup to take in the last bit of ice, my humming momentarily stopped—only to hear something unexpected.

Choi Taejoon was quietly murmuring the next lines of the song I had been humming.

“…!”

I swallowed the ice whole.

Did I hear that right?

I stared at him in disbelief.

“You… how do you know that song?”

“What song?”

He looked at me with a lazy gaze, his face bathed in the warm glow of the setting sun. For some reason, he looked unfamiliar. Or maybe… too familiar.

“The song you just sang.”

“I don’t know it. I just sang along because you were singing it.”

He just… sang along? But it was the exact next line of the song.

He lifted his eyes slightly and asked,

“Why? What song is it?”

It was our group’s debut song.

A song I had practiced relentlessly, nearly to the point of exhaustion, mastering every vocal and dance move. It had faded into obscurity without gaining much attention, yet it remained my favorite title track.

Even in my old world, it would have been surprising to hear someone sing it—so how, in Alcohol Swab, of all places?

But then I came to my senses.

There was no way Choi Taejoon would know that song.

Maybe he had just memorized it from hearing me hum it so often without realizing. I probably sang it mindlessly all the time.

“…No, it’s nothing. Can you sing a little more?”

“I don’t know it. That’s all I’ve got.”

“You have a nice voice. Really.”

This time, his gaze softened, his eyes darkening with an unreadable emotion.

“You too. I like it.”

Like—

The word was spoken slowly, deliberately.

The deep tone of his voice, the way he said it, and the fact that his gaze was fixed on me—it sent my heart into a rapid staccato.

Then, his hand reached toward me.

I flinched slightly, startled.

But all he did was remove my hat, gently smooth my hair back, and then place the hat back on my head.

“Let’s go.”

He let out a quiet sigh, as if reluctant to leave.

“I should get going. Manager Yoon has been blowing up my phone for a while now.”

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