* * *
The nearest university hospital was just two bus stops away.
Without a word, we boarded the bus and naturally sat far apart from each other.
I stared at his shabby, hunched back.
He didn’t look nervous. Not even restless.
Did he really shamelessly contact me just to get money for hospital bills?
While I was lost in thought, the bus arrived.
We walked into the hospital.
But the man—who’d looked uncomfortable ever since getting off the bus, clutching his stomach—suddenly came to a halt.
And then I heard it.
Grrrrgle…
His stomach wouldn’t stop growling.
It sounded like it was caving in on itself.
“Jeha… I haven’t eaten in days. Can we eat something first…?”
“…”
He really might be homeless.
I glanced at his pitiful state, then looked around.
It was after peak hours, so the hospital was fairly quiet.
He didn’t seem to be trying anything suspicious now…
I gave a small nod and walked toward the nearest cafeteria.
He had that look like he wanted me to pay—but I decided to just treat it like I was giving alms to a homeless guy.
Not that I’d ever done that before.
I ordered a simple soup set—something quick.
When I came back, he’d already ordered soju and sheepishly pushed a glass toward me.
Drinking… even though he’s “sick”?
Suspicious. I narrowed my eyes.
He looked embarrassed, fiddling with the soju glass.
“I just… I don’t know when I’ll ever get a chance like this again. It’s not good for me, but I wanted to have a drink with my son.”
Son, huh.
Even if he was sick, it didn’t change anything.
I had no intention of paying his hospital bills.
I’d curse him out and leave.
Block his number, done.
But then why did my chest feel so damn heavy,like there was a rock sitting on my heart?
After a moment’s hesitation, I picked up the glass.
Didn’t drink it right away.
Somehow, the trembling liquid reminded me of everything I’d endured until now.
‘If I can cut everything off with this one drink… maybe that’s okay.’
‘Just this once. The first and last time.’
I emptied the glass in one go.
‘This is for me,’ I told myself.
‘A drink for my own closure.’
And somehow, that made it easier to swallow.
“There won’t be a next time.”
At that, he bowed his head like a guilty man.
Then he picked up the soju glass in front of him and slowly poured it out into the trash.
What was he doing?
I frowned in confusion.
“I’m sorry.”
That one sentence…felt off.
I instinctively looked down at my empty glass.
Suddenly, the room spun.
I wasn’t a lightweight.
One drink wasn’t enough to knock me out.
Something was wrong.
“I’ll… I’ll definitely pay you… ba—”
His voice became warped, like it was coming from underwater.
My senses dulled, my body slumped.
I tried to stay conscious, but I was sinking, slow and heavy, beyond control.
“Sir!”
The shout jolted me awake.
He was already gone.
A splitting headache made it hard to think.
A worker was shaking my shoulder.
“You’re way too drunk for the middle of the day. You should head home!”
“What…”
Trying to figure out what had happened, I looked around—and froze.
Who knows how long it had been.
The soup was stone cold.
And beside it…
My phone.
And the OTP device I’d hidden in the inner pocket of my bag.
I’d kept it buried deep, not even trusting my goshiwon.
How the hell was it on the table?
“No. No way.”
My heart started pounding as I snatched up the phone.
A missed call—from the bank.
Dread flooded me.
I unlocked the phone with my fingerprint and opened the banking app.
My hands shook as I checked the transfer history.
[XX Bank]
Withdrawal: -9,999,900 KRW
Withdrawal: -9,999,900 KRW
Withdrawal: -9,999,900 KRW
…
Remaining Balance: 3,200 KRW
[△△ Bank]
Withdrawal: -9,999,900 KRW
Withdrawal: -9,999,900 KRW
Withdrawal: -9,999,900 KRW
…
Remaining Balance: 2,600 KRW
I stared blankly at the phone screen, forgetting to even breathe.
Was this real?
If my eyes weren’t deceiving me, then after several transfers of exactly 9,999,900 won, my entire savings had vanished like a lie.
All I had left was a single 50,000-won bill in my wallet and a measly 5,800 won of coins.
“Ha! Hahaha…”
My breath, which had been stuck, finally burst out—along with laughter.
This was real?
I couldn’t believe it, so I checked again and again, but the balance didn’t change.
How pathetic could a person get?
A father who siphoned off money while his son was unconscious…
Even recent dramas didn’t stoop to plots this trashy.
I laughed helplessly for a long time until my eyes stung, then covered them with a hand and curled up.
A bank employee cautiously asked if I was okay, but my trembling didn’t stop for a while.
It had already been a week since I lost everything.
In that time, I’d been in and out of the police station and digging around for information, until I finally managed to find the man’s address.
But when I went there, the place looked like no one had visited in ages—flyers scattered everywhere, dust settled over them.
According to a neighbor, he’d gone mad with gambling and hadn’t been back in a long time.
There was no way the money was still intact after a week.
Even my delusional hope circuits had enough shame to stop running.
That was it. Every fiber of my being was telling me it was over.
Ten years. I’d worked through every day off, barely getting any sleep, just to save up all that money—and it evaporated in an instant.
Taken by the man who dared to call himself my father, whom I hadn’t seen in twenty years.
That thought drained the heat from my body. Like a runaway locomotive finally grinding to a halt.
The fire inside me went out.
From that day on, I didn’t even think about tracking the man down.
I just lay in my tiny goshiwon bed like a corpse, staring up at the ceiling.
Without a phone, no one could bother me, and though Changbeom showed up at my door a few times, he was loud and got chased off quickly.
Not that I cared either way.
The only thing I did was drink water when I was thirsty and sleep when I was hungry.
Aside from that, I just kept staring at that blank white ceiling.
Another week passed like that, and with my mind growing dumber by the day, a strange thought suddenly occurred to me:
Have I ever actually been to a movie theater?
I’d watched summary videos on my phone now and then, but I had never once stepped foot in a cinema.
Not even once.
And I was twenty-eight.
I used to think that kind of thing was a luxury.
That someone like me didn’t deserve it.
I was always too busy trying to earn every penny I could.
But now that things had come to this, what was the point of all that?
Without a second thought, I shot up from bed and went to wash myself thoroughly.
I picked out the best clothes I owned—though that wasn’t saying much—and even fixed my hair in front of the mirror.
I don’t think I ever made this much effort even for job interviews.
Whatever. I’m going to the movies.
“One combo with caramel popcorn, and… nachos, a hot dog…”
It was a close call with the cash, but I even managed to grab a peanut butter squid snack.
The smell was just too tempting to resist. I was carrying so much food I barely had a free hand, and with a wobbly tower of snacks, I made my way into the screening room.
My glorious first theater movie was a top-ranked domestic sci-fi film.
Honestly, it wasn’t something I particularly wanted to see. I just went with the crowd favorite.
What was it… a “hunter” genre or something?
I wasn’t sure, but apparently, it was the hot trend these days.
Lots of famous actors in it too, and the reviews were glowing.
“H10, H10… here it is.”
Maybe because it was a weekday afternoon, the theater was nearly empty.
Ten people, tops.
Thanks to that, I got a prime seat.
So, was the movie good?
I was focused enough to say it was very entertaining.
I could see why this whole hunter-world thing was blowing up in cinemas lately.
I stayed slouched in my seat long after the movie ended, watching the ending credits roll by.
If only all endings could be that perfect.
It was only when a theater staff member came in that I finally stood up, body heavy.
I’d done what I set out to do—watched a movie at the theater.
Now it was time for the next destination.
When you ride around Seoul on a motorbike, you come across more abandoned buildings than you’d expect.
Some were old apartment complexes slated for demolition due to redevelopment—and my next stop was one of those places.
A gloomy neighborhood with barely any streetlights and almost no foot traffic.
Hard to believe it was still Seoul.
Avoiding piles of trash and rat droppings, I arrived at the apartment rooftop.
A few weeks ago, I’d come here drenched in sweat.
But now, the breeze blowing through the half-collapsed doorway felt cool.
Feeling strangely refreshed, I ran a hand through my hair and walked to the railing.
The dazzling night view of Seoul filled my vision.
“Wow…”
I sat on the edge of the railing, mesmerized, drinking in the scenery.
Weird. Had it always been this beautiful?
* * *
