ALONG FOR THE RIDE.
603k
he does.
only after he collects said device and grants himself the opportunity of sitting in the front seat first, v-collar seemingly soiled in a brief reflection. three, two, one is silent this round, free hand grazing along the rim of the ashtray to his left. kiel figures itās a lot better to deal with demands this way, eye contact no longer being as necessary as it had been in the backseat through that damn rearview mirror. that, too, is silent - a plea, one that arrives just as fast as the fear on the other end of the line.
one inhale,
āpark soyeon-ssi wanted me to deliver a message to you.ā no english.
an exhale,
āsame place, same time.ā no stuttering. āor your wife wonāt be the only one who hears about it.ā
click.
furrowed eyebrows is a look heās outgrown since six am alone, lethargy making it too difficult for him to be fucked any further with doing something about it. with a small sigh following suit, the corner of his lips quirks up, mouth pressed in a tight line as he spares his phone a cautious glance. concern replaces lethargy fast. āhe⦠hung up first.ā
his gaze stays straight ahead, no effort in looking at death straight in the eye being made at all.
do we still win?
fear, predictably, always sounds the same.
itās nothing like those bullshit horror movies, high-pitched screaming (fuck, he hates watching them. Ā how stupid can you get? itās all wrong, so damn wrong. Ā they ought to learn a thing or two from sinjin). instead, itās the silence, that barely-audible sound of breathing; something struggling to breathe, remembering what itās like to be alive. and then realizing that, shit, iād really like to not die today!
you know.
predictable.
sidekick plants his skinny ass into shotgun; taeoh barely bats an eye.Ā better for him, anyways-- easier to reach, or strangle, whateverās necessary.Ā he doesnāt think heāll have to settle for the latter, though.Ā heās almost starting to like the guy. at least he hasnāt cried.
the kid recites his lines without a hitch, and itās all going according to plan. Ā more or less. Ā taeoh barely has a chance to reach over to change the radio station when the call ends more abruptly than heād expected. huh. maybe sangwonās smarter than he remembered.Ā
"no big deal.ā his foot weighs down on the gas pedal again until the carās screaming-- roaring. Ā he imagines the old man screaming instead and smiles grimly. Ā so maybe heās not going to cooperate. Ā he hadnāt said a word during the call but taeoh had heard him loud and clear (that sweet, sweet silence).
"weāre just going to have a little detour.ā
t-30 minutes until he gets on that plane.
or doesnāt.











