Compensation Bill

The atmosphere was still tense, only the sound of our breathing could be heard. The thugs had left, their motorcycle engines fading into the distance. I remained silent, waiting a little longer until their footsteps completely disappeared.

Do Hwan slowly stood up and extended his hand. "Come on, let's go before they come back."

Without accepting his help, I stood up on my own and dusted off my clothes and hair.

We walked down the increasingly deserted alley. I tried to recall the way home, but it seemed we had wandered too far. As we neared the end of the road, Do Hwan turned to me.

"You want to go home, right? I'll take you."

"No."

"Then?"

"You don’t need to know, do you?" I snapped, staring at his face for a few seconds before looking away again. "I don’t want to get into more trouble because of you," I muttered under my breath.

Do Hwan let out a rough sigh. "Do you want those bastards to come back?"

I frowned. "They were your guests, in case you forgot."

"True, and I never asked you to interfere in that matter."

"You think I wanted to?"

"Just by standing there, you’ve already shown that you always meddle in other people’s business."

"I wouldn’t interfere if I hadn’t seen you getting beaten up like that. And for your information, this is all your fault."

Do Hwan fell silent. He closed his eyes in frustration. "Okay. It’s my fault. I’m sorry. But let me take you to your destination—I can’t leave you alone after what just happened," he insisted. "I promise I’ll leave right after."

I hesitated, but seeing the determination in his eyes, I finally agreed and stopped arguing. Besides, he had already apologized—I wasn’t going to prolong the issue with someone who still had an open wound on the corner of his lip.

We walked quickly, and in no time, we arrived in front of the convenience store. However, as I approached, the atmosphere inside was different from usual.

I immediately noticed my mother standing in the corner, speaking to an angry-looking man. Her face was pale, and her right hand clutched something that looked like a receipt.

I stepped closer. "Mom?"

She turned to me with a stern expression but said nothing.

The man turned around and glared at me. "You’re her daughter? Good. Let everyone know that your mother has caused me a huge problem. You must pay for the damages!"

"What do you mean?" I asked, still confused about what was happening. What compensation?

The man threw a piece of paper at my face. "See for yourself!"

I picked it up from the floor and read the document—it was an invoice. The large number printed on it nearly made my heart stop. Apparently, the store was being sued due to a system error that caused a significant loss of inventory, and we had to compensate tens of millions.

My hands clenched around the paper. I was at a loss for words. Where would we get that much money?!

My mother stepped forward and suddenly slapped me hard across the face.

I was still trying to process everything when she shouted, "This is all your fault, you cursed child! You must pay for all the damages!"

I held my cheek, which was starting to burn. Slowly, I lifted my head to meet the eyes of the woman who was now yelling at me.

"What did I do?"

"You’re asking what you did wrong? Your mere existence is already a mistake to me!"

Silence.

No one said a word. I was truly speechless.

"Enough! I’m not here to watch you two argue. Who’s going to pay for this? If you don’t, this store will be shut down, and you won’t get a single cent!"

My mother and I turned pale. No matter what, this store was our only source of income. What would we do if it closed down?

Do Hwan, who had been silent all this time, suddenly stepped forward. "How much is still needed?"

We stared at him, confused.

"We need to pay at least half of it immediately, or the problem will get worse. Thirty million. Can you help us?" my mother asked.

I frowned. What was she doing, asking a complete stranger to pay for everything?

"Mom, what are you doing?"

She stepped closer and grabbed Do Hwan’s arm. "I can give you Narin if you agree to help us."

Give me away? Was she insane? Did she think this was some kind of game?

Do Hwan shifted his gaze to the man. "Give me your account number. I’ll transfer the money tonight."

"Do Hwan!" I tried to stop him, but the man quickly handed him a piece of paper.

"Alright. Send it by tonight. If not, by morning, this store will be gone."

---

The man had left, leaving only the three of us inside the convenience store.

Silence filled the air.

I massaged my temples, feeling overwhelmed by all this trouble. I turned to my mother, who seemed completely unfazed, already tidying up the mess left behind by the man’s outburst.

"Mom, do you realize what you just did?"

"What do you mean?" she asked without even glancing at me.

"You just asked a stranger to pay all that money. And he’s underage, Mom," I explained, hoping she’d see how wrong this was.

She looked at me. "You two came together. How can he be a stranger?" She resumed what she was doing. "Besides, I don’t care if he’s underage. The rich are still rich."

She then took off her vest and handed it to me before walking over to Do Hwan, who was leaning against the cashier counter.

"Oh dear, what happened to your handsome face?"

Do Hwan quickly straightened up. "It’s nothing. Just a little accident."

"Don’t worry! Narin will take care of your wounds. At least she’ll be useful to you. I’ll be going now."

"Alright. Thank you, Auntie."

Then, she left, leaving just the two of us in the store.

In the back corner of the store, I grabbed the first-aid kit and walked over to the outdoor seating area. "Come here!"

I opened the kit while glancing at Do Hwan. "You’re a rich guy who likes playing hero, huh?" I asked while dabbing alcohol on the wound at the corner of his lip.

He winced slightly but didn’t answer.

"Why go through all this trouble? There’s nothing in it for you," I continued.

He looked at me and answered casually, "Because I want to."

I scoffed. His answer sounded too simple. "If you’re that rich, why not just buy the store?"

"I’m not interested in running a business," he replied.

"Crazy!" I muttered.

"Besides, I’m getting something in return," he said, suddenly leaning in closer.

I frowned in confusion.

"Your mother gave you to me," he added.

I was so startled by his words that I accidentally pressed harder on his wound, making him flinch and pull back.

"Are you trying to kill me?" he asked, annoyed.

"Who told you to talk nonsense?"

"Nonsense? You heard her yourself. Your mother said it in front of everyone. And I recorded it."

"Huh? For what?"

"As evidence."

"You’re going to blackmail me?"

"What do you think?"

I nodded in understanding. "Fine. So what now? You want to sell me? You need my organs?" I held out my arms. "Go ahead, take them!" I challenged.

He stared at me for a few seconds before flicking my forehead so hard that I winced.

"Idiot! With your skinny body, what part could even be sold?" he sighed.

"Ugh!" So annoying.

After a brief silence, he finally said, "Relax. I don’t actually plan to take advantage of this. I just want to help you."

For the first time, I saw a different side of him.

"Thanks. I’ll pay you back, but I need some time."

"Take your time!"

I nodded and secretly smiled. Somehow, I was beginning to open up to him.

"In return," he paused and turned to me, "how about we form a study group?"

"Huh?"

How did he know about that? I hadn’t said anything yet.

"Actually, I met our homeroom teacher after school today," he explained, answering the big question in my mind.

"Oh, I see… But you don’t have to agree to it. You’ve helped me too much already. I won’t burden you with tutoring. I’ll tell the teacher you’re busy and can’t help me."

"I didn’t agree to it to help you," he said.

"Huh?"

He folded his arms and leaned back against the chair. "I’m lonely. I need someone to be my servant."

"Are you insane?"

Yep. This was his true personality. I took back everything I thought earlier.

He just shrugged, flashing that infuriating smirk.

---