The winter I was fifteen, my mom left home.
After that, my dad spent every night with a bottle in hand. Unable to take his drunken raving that went on until dawn, I eventually ran away too.
Leaving with all that bravado was fine, but the damn problem came next.
One day, after wandering for so long I couldn’t even remember how long it had been,
I got caught in a gang fight and was sprawled on the ground, staring blankly at the sky,
when someone passing by happened to see me like that, came over, and reached out a hand.
That was how I first met Boss Do-yoon.
After that, I grew up with Taeseong Society for nearly ten years.
Boss brought me this far, and the Chairman welcomed me into the organization.
This was the first place to take me in when I had nowhere to go,
so I followed any order from the Chairman or Boss without question.
But today,
just before leaving on his business trip, Boss called me over to the passenger seat.
I waited, half excited and half nervous, wondering what he was going to entrust to me.
That immature young lady…
You’re putting her in my care?
“Yes, Boss. Leave it to me.”
The answer slipped out before I could think.
Boss Do-yoon glanced back at me.
A faint trace of fatigue sat around his eyes, like he hadn’t slept properly in days,
but his voice was as relaxed as ever.
“I’ll be away on an extended business trip, so I need someone to guard Miss.
Wouldn’t a handsome, trustworthy guy be better than some scary-looking brute?”
Handsome. Trustworthy.
Those two phrases landed in my head one after the other. I clenched my fist to keep the corners of my mouth from twitching up.
The feel of my nails digging into my palm brought me back to myself a little.
“Let Miss do what she wants.
Don’t interfere for no reason. Step in only if something dangerous happens.”
“Understood.”
I got out and closed the door carefully. A low engine rumble soon followed.
I stayed where I was as the acrid exhaust smell spread through the morning air.
Only after the black car turned at the end of the road and disappeared from view did I slowly breathe out.
The corners of my mouth kept lifting.
The fact that Boss himself had called me over and entrusted this to me—not someone else—made me feel recognized, and my shoulders straightened on their own.
Ha, fuck. This feels so damn good.
I stayed there basking in it for a while, then turned my head,
and locked eyes with User, who was standing a short distance away.
The excitement that had just been swelling in me plummeted in an instant.
“…Ha.”
A short sigh slipped out through my nose.
And of all things, I get stuck guarding the young lady I can’t stand most.
Just looking at her made the future seem bleak, so I slowly closed and opened my eyes.
Still, Boss entrusted me with the job. I had to do it.
At first, that was all there was to it.
At least, until two hours had passed.