Chapter 33: The Unreasonable Demand

“You pretended not to know me earlier, so why are you suddenly acting like you do now?”

“Is that really important right now?”

Yeon-ho bristled with anger at Tae-young’s challenging question. Yet, he couldn’t quite pinpoint the reason for his irritation.

‘He’s acting like I’m in the wrong when he’s the one who messed up. How brazen!’

Yeon-ho struggled to identify the source of his sudden surge of emotion. Despite his annoyance, he realized the incident wasn’t truly important to him, as Tae-young had suggested. After all, he and Tae-young weren’t friends or even acquaintances; their connection was purely antagonistic, marked by constant bickering whenever they met.

Yes, he felt unpleasant, but it wasn’t a significant matter. Given their contentious relationship, such an occurrence wasn’t entirely unexpected. So why couldn’t he simply utter, ‘It’s not important, so drop it’?

Unable to find a clear answer, Yeon-ho offered a vague reply that mirrored his own confused state.

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know? What kind of answer is that? I have no idea what you mean.”

Tae-young furrowed his brow.

“It means think whatever you want.”

As Yeon-ho prepared to get back on his scooter, Tae-young suddenly wrapped his arms around Yeon-ho’s waist from behind.

“Hey, what are you…!”

Yeon-ho’s feet, which had been planted on the ground, dangled precariously in the air. Tae-young had effortlessly lifted him. With a half-turn, Tae-young then set Yeon-ho down, almost tossing him as one might release a wild animal.

“Hey!”

Yeon-ho, who had nearly stumbled forward, raised his voice. To be so easily picked up like a child by another man, regardless of their size difference, was not just an affront to his pride but a source of profound humiliation. Seeing Tae-young’s smug grin only fueled his rage further.

“You brute, with nothing but strength.”

“Perhaps you’re just too thin, like a sheet of paper.”

Tae-young taunted Yeon-ho, a condescending smile playing on his lips. Below the short sleeve, Tae-young’s arm, long and athletic like a basketball player’s, caught Yeon-ho’s eye. The forearm muscles on his watch-clad wrist, with only slight exaggeration, seemed twice the size of his own.

“You’re insufferable.”

Yeon-ho adjusted his helmet, fantasizing about landing just one punch. He had never before imagined resorting to violence. Yet, every time Tae-young’s irritating mouth ran, a latent aggression within him, usually unnoticed, seemed to awaken.

‘Hold it in. If I hit that jerk, I’ll only be hurting myself.’

As Yeon-ho suppressed his anger, Tae-young spoke, his playful tone suddenly gone.

“Are you upset because I pretended not to know you earlier?”

“No, I’m not upset. Why would I be?”

“Of course you are. You’re definitely upset.”

Tae-young perched himself on the scooter. His large frame made Yeon-ho’s scooter appear minuscule, like a child’s toy.

“Get off.”

“Why?”

“You’re too heavy; you’ll break it.”

Tae-young’s eyebrows shot up, and he protested with an incredulous expression.

“Hey, what do you mean I’m heavy? I’m maintaining 8% body fat for my double agent role.”

“Fat doesn’t account for much of your body weight. It’s all bone and muscle. You’re just big-boned.”

“You’re being childish.”

Tae-young’s eyes, filled with disbelief, swept over Yeon-ho from head to toe. Conscious of his gaze, Yeon-ho clenched his fists. He felt as anxious and uneasy as he did during his trainee days, when he’d worry about being caught by his trainer for secretly eating late-night snacks.

“It’s your fault. You’re forcing me to be childish. If you’re annoyed, then get off quickly. Who told you to sit on someone else’s scooter without permission anyway?”

“Childish and petty, too?”

“I’m not petty; you’re just lacking in common s—”

“Do you hate company dinners?”

Tae-young abruptly changed the subject. While Yeon-ho found it irritating that his sentence had been cut off, he welcomed the conversation’s return to its starting point.

Yeon-ho felt uncomfortable and longed to return home. Talking to Tae-young invariably led him to get caught up in his pace, prompting him to say and do things uncharacteristic of himself. It felt as if he transformed into someone else, and that feeling was both terrifying and repulsive.

“It’s not a matter of liking or disliking company dinners; it’s that I don’t belong there. I’m not part of your drama team, so why would I follow you?”

“You’re a background extra, aren’t you? Whatever your original profession is, weren’t you there as a background extra earlier?”

“That’s…”

He was at a loss for words, unsure of where to begin explaining.

“It’s a company dinner for everyone, including the background extras. Don’t try to get out of it; just come.”

“Why are you doing this? You know I’m not actually a background extra.”

“Is there such a thing as a ‘fake’ background extra? I’ve never heard of it.”

Faced with Tae-young’s illogical reasoning, Yeon-ho tilted his head back and gazed at the night sky. The Seoul night sky, devoid of stars, was as dark as his own troubled mind and, he suspected, Tae-young’s.

He knew Tae-young had a knack for being unreasonable. However, in the past, he could usually discern the reason behind his stubbornness, but now, he couldn’t even guess, leaving him frustrated and confused.

“Move. I’m leaving. If you want more details, ask the assistant director.”

Yeon-ho tried to push Tae-young off the scooter by shoving his shoulder, but he didn’t budge.

‘Why is his body so rigid?’

Yeon-ho was flustered but didn’t show it, pushing harder with his shoulder and forearm as if trying to move a wall.

“I said move! Can’t you hear me?”

“No. I won’t move.”

Tae-young not only crossed his arms but also stretched his legs out, crossing his ankles. This was a clear provocation. It was as if he was saying Yeon-ho’s pushes were nothing more than a gentle breeze.

“Hey, get off!”

“Oh, really? Pulling at someone’s clothes now. They’ll stretch, you know? It looks like they might tear!”

Tae-young exaggerated dramatically as the enraged Yeon-ho clutched his shirt.

“If you’re worried about your clothes stretching, then get up.”

“Are you sure? This is a bit expensive.”

Yeon-ho flinched at the mention of the cost. He didn’t release the shirt entirely, but the pulling force noticeably diminished. While it was possible Tae-young was lying to get his way, his hat, belt, and shoes were all designer brands, making it highly probable that his T-shirt was also a high-end item.

Yeon-ho had once been an idol. He had seen countless times how T-shirts gifted to popular members could fetch hundreds of thousands of won. Even if they looked like something sold in bundles at an SPA brand, a quick online search for the price would often reveal two more zeroes than expected.

“Fine. Do whatever you want.”

‘Alright,’ Yeon-ho thought, ‘let’s see how long you can last,’ and stepped back. Time, after all, was on his side. Tae-young couldn’t stay there forever. Once the staff finished preparing to leave, they would have to head to the company dinner.

“What’s he scheming?”

As Yeon-ho retreated, Tae-young frowned in bewilderment.

“Are you trying to get a running start? To gain momentum?”

“No, I’m just going to wait.”

“Wait? For what?”

Tae-young tilted his head, then let out a hollow laugh, a sudden realization dawning on him. He was disgustingly quick-witted, after all.

“I know what you’re aiming for, but it won’t go the way you think.”

Yeon-ho stared at Tae-young with a defiant expression, silently challenging him to speak his mind.

“If you don’t go, I won’t go to the company dinner either. I’ll just give my card to Jin-woo and tell him to pay.”

Yeon-ho groaned, pressing a hand to his forehead. He felt that if anyone, Tae-young would actually follow through with such a threat.

“So, we’re just going to stay like this all night?”

“We could, or should I just cancel the dinner?”

Yeon-ho was so dumbfounded that a bitter laugh escaped him. Tae-young probably thought he was making a threat, but it was a tactic that wouldn’t work on Yeon-ho in the slightest.

‘Logically, would someone who doesn’t want to go to a company dinner feel threatened by its cancellation?’

He wasn’t a child, yet his thinking was incredibly self-centered.

“If you want to be cursed at, do what you want. It’s your problem, not mine.”

“Why would I be cursed at?”

“Are you really asking because you don’t know?”

Seeing Tae-young stare blankly at him with innocent eyes, Yeon-ho felt a pang of alarm, realizing he might genuinely be ignorant.

“People are incredibly sensitive about things being given and then taken away. They view someone who gives and then takes back as worse than someone who only takes. It’s not like others suggested it first; you proposed the dinner, so if you go back on your word, do you think people will be happy?”

Yeon-ho spoke without pause, driven by a desire to save the man from himself. He was anxious that Tae-young’s unusual way of thinking might actually lead him to cancel the dinner.

“I can just explain the reason for canceling the dinner well.”

Even after Yeon-ho’s detailed explanation, Tae-young continued to speak as if oblivious to the ways of the world. While he understood that a top-tier celebrity’s detachment from reality was inevitable, it still felt strange. Despite Tae-young being a selfish individual, he was quite intelligent, so why was he failing to grasp the situation now?

“Did you even listen to me properly? I said it won’t work even if you explain it well! Why are you, an actor, so clueless about human psychology?”

“You’re really worried about me, aren’t you?”

Tae-young stared intently at Yeon-ho, then casually nudged his worn sneakers with his toe. At first, Yeon-ho dismissed it as an accident. However, he didn’t just nudge his foot once, but repeatedly tapped it.

Yeon-ho sighed at the restless, childlike behavior. While there was no child that big in the world, his actions were truly those of a spoiled brat.

Yeon-ho subtly moved his foot back, speaking with firm resolve.

“Don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not worried about you; I’m speaking for the staff. They’re already having a tough time; how much more demoralized will they be?”

Perhaps it was his imagination, but Tae-young’s eyes seemed to grow cold as he looked at him.

“How philanthropic of you. Looking out for the feelings of people you just met.”

Tae-young sneered, then stood up from the scooter. His eye level suddenly shot up, and Yeon-ho briefly fumbled, trying to find Tae-young’s face. In that moment, Tae-young stepped right in front of him and grabbed his elbow.

“But what if the staff’s morale is crushed? It’ll all be your fault.”

“What are you talking about? How is that my fault?”