Chapter 3 - Insu

I wasn't sure how the rivalry started. It could have been my older brothers doing. Or perhaps it began far earlier than that. When my father attended Saekwon High school. What I was certain of was that this rivalry would not end easily and not with me. Call me stubborn. Call me idiotic and an egomaniac. Those words didn't bother me.

This did. Messing with an innocent person's lively hood to wreck some gala I wasn't even supposed to be attending.

Gaeul dumped the shards of glass in his apron into the bin, then removed it and chucked it along with them.

"This shit is starting to get ridiculous. We spent months preparing for this and thanks to you it was almost ruined." Gaeul isn't really screaming, or he doesn't have the intonation of being angry. His voice is leveled and calm. Like it always is. Maybe he's not capable of losing it.

I was still over by the puddles, trying to pick up as much as I could. No matter how much I moped away it didn't seem to be getting any better.

"Give me that." Gaeul said behind me. "I shouldn't be letting the future owner of my company doing medial jobs like this."

He took the mop from me and rolled in a clean bucket, wringing it out and continuing my job for me. I walked over to the metal table and sat, helping myself to what's left of the hors d'oeuvres. They've gone cold, but somehow, they tasted better than earlier in the night. I'd be first to admit that their food was far superior to ours and didn't get the recognition it deserved.

I watched Gaeul and took in a hard breath.

The thing about him is he pushed my buttons, but in all the good ways. We'd been raised as brothers, two peas from two completely different pods. Despite our parents being the best of friends—formerly--we always ended up on the wrong side of each other. Not enemies, but not quite friends either. Our relationship was more of a silent agreement. Amicable for our family.

My earliest memory of Gaeul was a dreaded cousins wedding at seven. Dads' cousin and ironically, they had found out our families had been intertwined far much longer than their run in at university. Had my grandparents blown a gasket when dad told them he planned to attend a public university. Maybe. He'd only attended for two years before transferring to Saekwon university, letting Myoungjin tag along. But it was a controversy within the family. No Cha had ever attended any school that wasn't closely linked to our family name.

Dad was the first and my grandparents made sure he was the last.

It had been a beautiful day, perfect for a spring wedding outdoors. The cherry blossoms were in full bloom, and they'd even taken the perfect pictures. Until it began to rain, and everything went to shit. Cousin Ari was over in a corner, having her maid of honor redo her hair. She was laughing, telling everyone this wedding they would remember. Exactly what she wanted. Dad was over with Taeyoung sacrificing his tailored and perfectly dried suit because they were both the exact size.

If someone told me dad went that entire night in a soaked tux, I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself. Myoungjin was running up to them after bribing one of the teens for his tie and helped Taeyoung put it on.

"We'll be laughing about this for years." Taeyoung said, crooking his neck up so Myoungjin could wrap it.

"This must be a sign of a lasting marriage to come." Myoungjin told him despite his own marriage crumbling at his feet.

I had found Gaeul sitting alone, soaked from head to toe. The bottom of his light-colored slacks was covered in mud. He was the kid I had seen jumping in each puddle earlier. The lodge's cat had settled on his lap, covering him in fur and I remember he was shorter then. His feet were dangling off the end of the chair. Maybe that's where it began. My small hero complex that turned into something much worse.

I reached into the pocket of my suit for the hanky mom stuffed into it. "Here." I said to him, holding it out.

"Thanks." His voice was so tiny back then. Far from the deep and throaty tone it is now. I guess that made sense since he had barely passed my chest.

He grabbed the hanky and began to rub it against the cat's fur.

I lifted his arm to pull the fabric away. "It's not for the cat."

He sniffled and wiped at his nose with his dirty sleeve. "H... he was shivering. I just wanted to get him warm."

He'd also been a bit of a crybaby back then.

Sighing, I released his hand and dug my hands in my pockets. "Fine, but you have to get me a new one."

"Okay," he scooped up the cat in his arms and jumped off the seat, spreading his legs wide to catch his balance. He stuck his chin up and grinned. "What's your favorite color?"

"Grey." I said to him looking away.

"Pink is mines." He said linking his arm with mine. The cat hopped out of his hand, and he bent down to try and keep it from injuring itself.

"That's a girls color."

"So. Dad says it doesn't matter, I can still like it."

"Minho," Someone squealed and stared at us. "Look at this. They look so cute together."

That's when it started as some innocent joke between the adults. While standing side by side, we looked like a wedding cake topper. Me in my black suit and him in that cream colored his mom decided to put him in. Some cake topper we were. Not the normal one for sure.

"Ari come here." The woman called rushing her, waving her hand frantically as if we were going anywhere. "Give me your ring."

Ari wasn't one to argue, so she slipped it off her slim fingers and handed it over to the woman. She gave it to me then began to manipulate my body into a pose she was satisfied with.

"This is so precious."

I really did think there was something loose in the brain of that woman.

Over the years the origins of that dreaded picture had evolved. Changed even. Most days it was Gaeul who wanted to marry me. Others I was the one who'd begged Ari for her ring.

Whenever we argued our parents would take that picture out and threaten to publish it in some tabloid anonymously if we didn't stop. That's been years. The picture has now become some legend no one knows if its real or not.

Byong walked into the kitchen grunting and dragging himself along with heavy bags. He handed me a few and I could see the marks the bag handles left on his hands.

"I got all the ones Mr. Kim let me. He also wanted me to let you know that your dad hasn't paid him for the last round he got." Byong leaned against the table like he hiked the highest mountain to get the bottles.

Gaeuls face flushed red throwing a look at Byong. He'd said too much.

The rest of the night he'd ignored me. I tried getting champagne off his tray, but he'd grab the last glass and drink it walking away from me each time.

August

Summer had gone by in a blur.

Maybe because it marked the last year of our adolescence before transitioning to take over family businesses and giving up on dreams we used to have.

I found grandmother sitting at the table alone. She looked spent. Like the years taken to care of me and dad had removed twenty years off her. Grandmother was respectively named Kyuhee Seong at one point in her life.

Dad made sure she was comfortable. He made it so she never needed anything in life, but after I was born, she seemed more lonely and less complacent. Sometimes even arguing with dad when she thought he was stepping out of line. I think the last 18 years had hardened her.

I set a hand on her back, so she wasn't surprised when I came up and kissed her on the cheek.

"Good morning, darling." She said, hugging my arm because I was too far up for her to reach.

"Where's dad?" I asked. There were days he hadn't been at the breakfast table, but they were few.

"He's hauled up in his office. Probably talking business with Ye Jun." She told me, taking a sip of her coffee and scrolling through her phone.

"What type of business?" Each time I walked into this dining room, I thought I'd see the servers standing in line formation waiting for someone to wait on. Instead, I'd always have to grab my own plate and pile it high. Then I'd sit down and enjoy.

"I pay no mind to that nonsense. It bored me when I was a girl and that has not changed." She said.

I knew what it was about even before I asked her. It had been all they talked about for the past month and a half. And grandmother wanted no part in it. Her finger continued to swipe up on the screen of her phone. "Oh my god, Alexis is handing over the company."

She held up her phone so that I could see the news report on her screen.

Philanthropist Alexis Chang chooses unknown successor.

Read the headline with a picture of Alexis mid-sentence.

"Did you know about this?" Grandmother set her phone down and finished off what was left on her plate, looking at me suspiciously.

"It's news to me." I said, helping myself to more of the egg rolled omelet.

Alexis Chang was a name known to the world. The charities she overlooked spanned from orphanages to the fine arts. A dream started by her parents and continued by her when they both died a few years ago. She had no children, unmarried and that may have been why she'd been the epicenter of stories for most news outlets. Some people thought she was incompetent to run a business only because she was a woman. When the board tried to overthrow her, she fought. No one was going to bring in an unrelated man to run a business her family had single-handedly built. Omega or not.

Now it seemed, at 45, she was ready to enjoy what was left of her life in peace.

Dad walked in then, kissing grandmother on the cheek and peeking at the report on her phone.

"It's about time she decided to hand it over to a more suitable person." Dad quipped, taking his seat by her holding on to his tie so it didn't flap and accidentally end up in his coffee the kitchen staff brought out the moment they heard his voice. "Honestly, who's ever heard of an Omega running a big corporation?"

Except she had. And successfully so. Some would say she was a better businessman than Minho Cha. She had a slew of contacts he couldn't get his hands on and perhaps that's where his animosity towards her success came from.

There had been a time when dad hadn't always thought that. He would support her to the ends of the Earth. Back when women got pregnant, and men impregnated. When our DNA was pure and untouched. Before the government led us to believe our only chance of survival was to alter it.

"How did your talk with Ye Jun go?" Grandmother flipped her phone over to lessen the distraction when dad answered her.

"He thinks we should use some digital menus he's been working on. It'll be able to give them their perfect meal based off a few of their preferences." He took a sip of his coffee and flinched at its bitterness, but that's how he liked it. "I told him he should work out the details with Armon. I've never been good with tech stuff."

This was a usual morning interaction between my grandmother and dad. Between the three of us.

Everyone sitting in silence, letting the room fill of our chewing and sipping noises. Occasionally one of our phones would go off to fill the silent void.

"We've got a meeting with T group this afternoon." Then dad would start talking business. I tapped the screen of my phone so it lit up and I could see the time. And as always it started at 7:30. "I think you should be there for it."

"How long will it run?" I asked, picking up my plate and handing it over to Yue, who'd worked for us all throughout high school. She never looked me directly in the eyes, always turned her head when I tried, causing me to huff out. "I have a scrimmage match at 5 with Inkwon high school."

The rest of breakfast was uneventful. Dad filling me in on what the meeting was about so I could be prepared whenever I met with T group. Because there would be a time when eventually swimming couldn't be an excuse.

The smell of chlorine was intoxicating. Somewhat of a drug for me whenever I stepped a foot into the high school pool. A much-needed smack in the face, to bring me down to reality. The reality of swimming never being my thing. There was talent, a blind person could see I had acquired plenty of it from dad. But this had always been Joon's niche.

Standing in front of the swimming pool locker rooms, I looked at the old posters. At a time when our high school was reigning supreme, Joon looked alive. Completely in his element.

The problem with trying to forget is when no one allows you to. When they give you the same locker your brother had, and that same locker still contained most of his swimming gear. All the posters and memorials at almost every corner. Joon was Saekwon and I would always be the younger Cha. The least fastest of the two by such a small margin that it had to be counted to the millisecond.

Coach Lee banged his hand against the door when he walked in. He'd been losing his hair since his early twenties and now spotted a nice comb over that barely covered his balding.

"We need to make this match count." He always talked about these scrimmage matches like they were a do or die event. As if we would be stricken down if we didn't win. "Insu, I need you to bring this home for us."

Most of his chagrin was conduit to baseball speak seeing as before Coach Young retired, Coach Lee ran the baseball team. Before the school decided they had no need for them.

"No worries, Coach." I said in the most confident voice I could let out. I think most people confused it with my arrogance when they weren't one in the same. I stood up and put my hand on his shoulders when I noticed he had begun to sweat a bit and his chest kept heaving. "Who am I?"

"Minho Cha's son." Coach said unenthusiastically.

"And how many championships did he win?" I asked, speaking like I was trying to coax a kid out of a hiding spot.

"13." His tone of voice not changing.

"Coach! Saekwon will win this!" I told him our go to chant. "Repeat after me."

"Saekwon will win this!" We said together.

"We're going to drown those Inkwon pricks until they beg us to let them come up for air." Dohyun, our freestyle swimmer, jumped up onto the bench, the veins on his neck protruding from straining his voice. It never took much to get him going and when I managed to do that, because Dohyun always needed a push, the rest fell in line. Like bees to a swarm and Dohyun was the queen himself.

"Let's go!" They all yelled together. We left that locker room a bit more high spirited than when we first walked in.

Although my love for swimming was imprinted into me by my champion father, there was always a rush when I walked out onto the deck. That same rush I got when I stood behind the camera.

It had only been last year that Principal Jeong opened this event to the public. Before this was a quiet practice between the two schools, allowing me to soak in my humiliation silently.

I fixed my goggles, made sure they weren't going to slip off me in the middle of the race, then got right up to the edge of the pedestal until my toes were hanging, and bent down in formation. One of these days, it would be the last time I did this. The last time I looked over and saw that Inkwon high schools prick Kyuho Kim making a slicing motion against his throat with his finger. When that happened, I would be gracing God for parting me of my sins.

At the sound of the buzzer, I took one final relaxing breath before diving in.

The first leg of the race was smooth, slow to make sure I kept a good endurance for the last portion. Whenever I was in the water, I lived off the cheers around me. The world becoming brighter. As I dove to round and start the last bit of the race, I pushed off hard, and sped up. As I turned my head up to breathe, I saw Kyuho a few centimeters in front of me. These last few minutes counted for something. Especially since most of the team came up in second place. If I managed to beat Kyuho we might come out of it with a good start of the season. Before it even began.

"Kyuho Kim has the lead, but Insu Cha is trailing close behind. This is going to be a close one." I could hear the commentators muffled play by play of the race. And when my hands hit the wall and the buzzer went off, I heard the cheering of Inkwon high school. I pulled off my water cap and goggles, seeing Kyuho's smug face staring back at me.

"We'll see if you manage to do better at the real race." Said Kyuho getting out before me to join his team.

I punched my locker, allowing my anger to get the better of me. Sometimes I just couldn't hold back. The rest of the team piled in not long after with coach Lee behind them. He was patting some of the guys who'd taken the loss the worst. This was all practice. Weeding out the weak from the strong. That was half my team.

Coach Lee was used to losing, especially these last few years.

He placed his hands on his waist and exhaled loudly. "You know what. It's just one game. I'm sure Joon…" And these were the times I wished I wasn't the younger Cha. "Insu will bring us a win next time."

"And then when we lose, you'll say the same thing again." Chamin Park said, standing to go to his locker. He piled all of his stuff into his small duffle. "I don't think I can be a loser this year." He turned, pausing to look at me. "I'm sorry, Insu. I really hope you guys manage to get the championship."

Some of the other guys followed him. All apologizing on their way out. I'm surprised it took them this long to bail.

By the time the last guy left, it was me and two others. One of them I was sure was named Sungmin Choi. Some kid who had joined the team last year who was a decent swimmer. Still, even with him, we weren't anywhere close to being a capable team. That may be the only drawback to our glamorous high school. Our academics were wonderful and once upon a time our sports excelled even further. That was ages ago.

Coach used one hand to rub his temples and looked up at the ceiling. "I don't need this right now." He looked at us and I could see the disappointment written all over his face. We might as well not have a team.

Kai had his driver pick me after my match, my anger overpowering. He knew how I got after each one and probably guessed that I needed him because Dae-Hyun had been too busy taking out his frustrations in the ring.

"Coach is right. It's one match." Kai said. "And it's a meet that doesn't even matter."

"Of course, it matters! This meet predicts how the season goes for us." I tell him, flapping my arms for nothing better than to help my anger.

"This happens every year."

"And every year we make it to the finals only to be beat by Inkwon all because of this race. I tell you we're cursed." I huffed and cracked open the window. I had gotten so worked up I was seeing stars and the windows were starting to fog up.

"You're not cursed, you guys' suck!" Kai would say he's brutally honest. Sugar coating things wasn't something he did, and I wasn't sure he could go easy on people. At least not since Junho's been gone.

A sweet scent hit me then. It was a mix of baked pastries and icing sugar. Something that had always called my attention since I was little. I saw we weren't going down our regular route, we had made it to the restaurant districts of Itaewon. My heart for some reason was pounding and I couldn't stop it.

When the car stopped, Kai slid forward in the seat to talk to Bum. "We will call you when we are ready."

He shoved me on the side to get me to open the door and grabbed something from beside him before stepping out.

We didn't make it a habit to come to Itaewon. Not unless it was Halloween, and we were dolled up in something no one could recognize us in. It could be because our parents thought businesses here weren't up to their standards as they tended to cater more to a foreign crowd.

It was a busy night for La luna grande. They had been doing well for themselves since catering dad's events. I wasn't surprised seeing the crowd. Over by the bar I saw Nabi looking over at us and she smiled. I liked Nabi. She was fun, sweet, even a massive firecracker when she thought people were taking advantage. She took no one's shit. Like Gaeul.

"Gaeul, Kai's here." She called over her shoulder, trying to concentrate on mixing a drink.

I almost get knocked off my feet when Gaeul came out from the back in a black shirt and matching jeans. He's wearing black boots and dangling earrings I hadn't ever seen him wear before. They were pink crosses with black studs, and it felt like the person I remembered. There were always pieces of that little kid that would break the surface.

He walked over and that sweet smell intensified.

"You're a life saver Kai," he said, reaching out for the bag Kai had in hand. Even closer, I could distinctly say his scent was like almond cookies fresh out of the oven. Delicious, sweet but not too much. As he outstretched his arms, I took the chance to stare at his tattoos. The only time I'd ever seen them was during matches when he had swam for Inkwon high school, but it had been so brief.

I could see a pair of wings with a face hidden within them. Then Gaeul pulled back before I was able to explore more.

He leveled his eyes at me.

There's nothing worse than being caught ogling someone. Maybe it wasn't exactly ogling, but close enough.

"We ran out of orange liquor for our signature drink of the night. Sorry to make you get it, but Nabi would kill me if I left her alone." He pulled the bottle out of the bag and rolled it up, stuffing it into his pocket.

"Do you mind if we stay for a drink?" I asked.

Gaeul opened his mouth to argue, but Nabi pushed her way in front of him.

"Of course not, I have the perfect table for you in our VIP section."

Nabi led us to the closest table to the bar then went to make us some drinks, snatching the bottle of orange liquor from Gaeul as she did.

He stood there staring and I stared back. Something about him made me want to challenge him…. always.

He leaned on our table. "Finish your drinks and then leave." He said harshly.

"How can you be so cruel to your future boss?" I feigned that I was hurt.

"Boss?" Nabi asked juggling two cups in her hands and a plate of chips. "Where can I apply to have a hot boss like you?"

"Don't encourage him." He said a small frown pulling at his lips.

Then, I wondered about the type of people Gaeul dated before. Were they anything like me? Alpha in nature and mental in the head. He probably avoided those types like the plague. Maybe I was deluding myself to believing that I was the exception.