Into The Thrill

He shouted at him. He, with his hands placed on the car body and door, leaned in deeper to stare intently at Haewon's face.
"Just get out. Otherwise, I'll drag you out and throw you over my shoulder."

It was a ridiculous threat.
"I'm not embarrassed by that. It would be a problem for a public official. Just the rumor of you entering a hotel with a man slung over your shoulder would be the end of your prosecutor career."
Haewon glared at him as if to say, do as you please.

"It won't end with that, but now that I hear it, that makes sense."
"I'm not getting out, you understand?"
"I won't get angry. Just get out."

"..."
"I won't get angry."
His voice had softened considerably. He thought Haewon was scared of his anger. It was absurd. Haewon wasn't afraid, whether he got angry or flipped out; he wasn't scared of anything.

"I won't get angry, so get out."
"Why are you angry? What have you done right? You smash up someone's car, you smash up someone's nose. That's a crime."
"Don't provoke me, just get out."

"I told you not to order me around."
Haewon tried to close the door that he was holding onto. His hand was quicker. The door did not close, and Woojin's hand held it.
"I really won't get angry."

His voice had become very gentle. But Haewon didn't trust it. He distinctly felt something like a killing intent, the sharpness of a blade aiming right under his chin.
A hotel valet waiting to park the car noticed their argument and disappeared with another car.
"How can I trust you. I can't trust you. I saw everything, you just tried to kill me."

"What can I do to make you trust me?"
"I won't trust you no matter what you do, and I won't get out no matter what, okay?"
"Fine. It’s cold, close the door."
Haewon grabbed the door handle and pulled hard, and to his surprise, the door closed easily. He could see Woojin standing outside the car window. Suddenly, Woojin opened the back seat door and grabbed Haewon's violin. Haewon turned around in shock.

"What are you doing...!"
"Coming to get it."
Woojin closed the back seat door and went into the hotel with the violin case. Despite his resistance, Haewon unexpectedly sprang from the car very nimbly.

"Hey!"
He shouted and chased after him. Woojin, holding the case handle, crossed the lobby. Hearing Haewon calling him, he glanced back and, stepping into the elevator, spread all his fingers to repeat the number ten twice. His lips seemed to say twenty.
"Wait, just a moment...!"

Ah, it was no use. The violin was being taken hostage in his hands. Haewon ran but couldn’t catch the closing elevator. He quickly pressed the button and anxiously waited for another elevator. He got into the rear elevator that arrived first and pressed for the twentieth floor.
Haewon frantically pressed the close button as if possessed. Fortunately, the elevator went straight up to the twentieth floor. He slipped out before the doors fully opened.
The twentieth floor housed a French restaurant. Woojin was waiting at the entrance to the restaurant. Haewon hurried after him and snatched the case from his hand. Woojin readily handed over the violin.

"Come here."
He gently wrapped his arm around Haewon’s shoulder, pushing him ahead into the restaurant. Haewon, not moving, felt a push on his back. Reluctantly holding his violin, he walked ahead. Seoul's top French restaurant was fully booked.
Heading towards the VIP room, which you couldn't reserve even with a year's notice, Woojin pulled Haewon's arm. A staff member, recognizing Woojin, knocked and opened the door.

Haewon followed him inside. In the VIP room sat the president of HanKyung Group, Kim Jeonggeun, his wife, Henry Chang, and Henry Chang's mother.
Haewon widened his eyes, not understanding the situation, and turned to Woojin. Woojin bowed politely to them.
"Sorry for being a bit late; I was bringing my junior."

"Ah, yes, right. Wasn’t your junior at our symphony?"
The meal had already started, and as the sommelier poured the wine, Kim Jeonggeun asked. Henry Chang recognized Haewon and waved a greeting.
Woojin took a seat and offered the one beside him to Haewon. Completely unprepared for these people's presence, Haewon looked at Woojin, who only softly motioned him to sit down quietly.

"Aren’t we acquainted? Haven’t we met before?"
Kim Jeonggeun kindly asked Haewon, who hesitated.
"We met at a hotel party before."

"Ah, right. I remember now. Were you Woojin's junior? What a coincidence."
Reluctantly, Haewon greeted Kim Jeonggeun and sat down. A staff member quickly came in to set the tableware and brought the appetizers. Various types of cutlery were placed on the table.
"So, Woojin's junior?"

Kim Jeonggeun's wife asked.
"Yes, we graduated from the same school."
"Then you’re an alumnus of mine too?"

As Woojin replied, Kim Jeonggeun joined in. Haewon was just learning that he and Woojin had attended the same school. The law and music faculties were close enough that they might have crossed paths at school, but Woojin was six years his senior, and if they did attend at the same time, it would have been for a very short period.
Kim Jeonggeun introduced Woojin as a close friend to Henry Chang. Woojin courteously greeted Henry Chang and his mother.
As the dishes arrived, Woojin glanced at Haewon and picked up a spoon. There were so many pieces of cutlery that he seemed worried Haewon might make a mistake, so he started teaching him table manners.

Annoyed that Woojin thought he couldn't handle even basic things, Haewon just ate on his own.
The conversation focused mainly on /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ Henry Chang and his mother, who had devotedly supported him. Henry Chang was a classical music enthusiast and patron, and it seemed that Kim Jeonggeun and his wife, along with Henry Chang and his mother, already knew each other well. There was no sense of awkwardness or discomfort among them.
The conversation continued mainly in English. Haewon had learned English since childhood, and although he had given up due to his mother's passing and had prepared for study in the USA, he was able to participate in the conversation without difficulty. He was intrigued by the behind-the-scenes stories of Henry Chang's concert tours with famous conductors in London and New York.

"But what was your name again?"
Kim Jeonggeun's wife suddenly asked Haewon, clearly disliking his presence at such a gathering.
"I'm Mun Haewon, a violinist with the HanKyung Cultural Orchestra."

Woojin answered for him, and she glanced at Woojin before turning her gaze back to Haewon.
"I've never heard of Mun Haewon. How old are you? Which competitions have you won?"
"Why does that matter?"

Kim Jeonggeun frowned at his wife's rude question.
"I haven’t won any competitions, and I left the symphony, but luckily a vacancy opened up due to someone being arrested, so I was able to rejoin."
As Haewon answered, Kim Jeonggeun and his wife stopped eating their foie gras and looked up simultaneously.

"Who from the orchestra was arrested?"
Kim Jeonggeun's wife asked Woojin. The foreigners kept quiet and called the sommelier to refill their empty wine glasses.
"There was some embezzlement within the foundation. The arrested member was involved in admissions fraud, but the foundation issue is separate. The trial is ongoing while they are detained."

"Did you investigate that?"
"That's how it turned out."
Woojin answered her aggressive question nonchalantly.

"Do you know how much money we pour into the orchestra each year? Woojin, how could you conduct such an investigation without even hinting at it to me? You've smeared the company's reputation!"
"You weren’t in Korea at the time, so I couldn't contact you. I'm sorry."
"Let’s stop this; we have guests. We’ll talk later."

Kim Jeonggeun scolded her. The woman hesitated slightly before turning her eyes back to Haewon.
"How old are you?"
"Twenty-eight, no, twenty-nine now."

The year had passed, and now Haewon was twenty-nine. He suddenly felt old as he responded.
"Don't you know who I am?"
"You seem to be Mr. Kim's wife."

"Mr. Kim's wife? You really don't know who I am?"
It turns out that even a chaebol madam can take offense at age and ask someone they've never met before to delve into who they are. Asking someone's age and if they know who she is seemed universal, regardless of wealth or status.
Haewon twisted his face in disdain.

"Is this some kind of quiz? If there's a prize, I might guess."
"What?"
"I saw you for the first time today, how should I know who you are?"

As if he really knew, Haewon retorted to her. The woman's face turned red.
"What do your parents do? Do you even have parents?"
"People are born because they have parents. Are there people born without parents?"

Under the table, Woojin placed his hand on Haewon's thigh as if to say stop. He did not remove his hand, keeping it there. The bold, creeping touch prompted Haewon to lift the fork he was holding. The implicit threat of stabbing if he did not remove his hand did not make Woojin's hand fall from his thigh.
"Look, Mr. Mun Haewon. My wife didn't mean it like that, she's just upset you didn't recognize her. Don't you know Seo Ok-hwa?"
"Oh, you don't know Seo Ok-hwa, the soprano?"

Henry Chang's mother twisted her Korean pronunciation as she asked.
"Madam, she was a famous soprano when she was young, Seo Ok-hwa... she was a prima donna at the New York Metropolitan. She quit when she met Mr. Kim and came to Korea. That's why she asked if you knew her. Right, madam?"
"I don't know her. She must not be that famous."

"What is all this?!"
Seo Ok-hwa shouted, apparently very offended. Kim Jeonggeun tried to suppress a bursting laugh by clamping his lips tightly. Woojin's hand pinched Haewon's thigh slightly. Seo Ok-hwa put down the knife she was holding and crossed her arms, asking more pointedly.
"If you're Woojin's university junior, did you study abroad or locally? Music should be studied in its homeland. Are you poor?"

"My goodness, madam."
Kim Jeonggeun half-smiled and half-soothed as he grabbed Seo Ok-hwa's arm. She shook off her husband's hand and spoke.
"Then play something. Let's see how well you can perform."

She pointed to the violin Haewon had left beside him. Haewon put down his utensils and stood up. Woojin's hand automatically fell away.
"I'm sorry. I think I was too rude. I shouldn't have come to such a place carelessly. I'll be leaving now. Have a pleasant time."
Haewon bowed deeply and grabbed his violin.

"Look at him. You have some pride, don't you?"
"Where do you get off saying that?"
Kim Jeonggeun sternly scolded the woman. Haewon slung his violin over his shoulder and said,

"I don’t have pride in this situation; I just do things when I feel like it and don't when I don't. I don’t feel like it now. I don’t like opera, so even though you told me her name, I don't recognize her. I don’t know every dog and cow in different fields."
"What, what, what?!"
"That's a bit harsh."

"Was that too harsh? Sorry for being harsh."
Woojin looked troubled, seeming to hold back laughter or maybe sorrow. Henry Chang and his mother observed the red-faced Seo Ok-hwa.
"Why did Woojin bring such a kid here?!"

She shouted displeasedly. Henry Chang and his mother seemed embarrassed, ignoring her attitude.
"He said he couldn't come because he had a promise with his junior, and since he said the junior was from the orchestra, I forced him to bring him along."
Kim Jeonggeun sighed faintly.

"I was thoughtless. Would it be alright if I left first?"
Woojin also stood up.
"Yes, go ahead. And Mr. Mun Haewon."

Kim Jeonggeun called Haewon. Haewon looked at him.
"Speaking without filtering isn't courage, it's recklessness. This woman is one of the board members of the orchestra foundation. How do you plan to handle the repercussions? Was there some upset that made you lash out like that? This isn't an easy place, you know?"
As his husband raised his voice, Seo Ok-hwa glared at Haewon sharply, as if saying, what are you going to do about this?

"People in high places often abuse their power to swing their weight around. You changed conductors because there was no sign of careful selection in their program, did you direct that too, madam?"
"What? Hey!"
She screamed, her voice filling the air impressively like a true soprano. Kim Jeonggeun finally became conscious of Henry Chang and his mother. He seemed slightly embarrassed as he jabbed Seo Ok-hwa in the ribs.

"Stop it and apologize now. An adult should apologize. You were rude."
"This is really not it. Me, to him? I've never even heard of him!"
"Mr. Mun Haewon doesn't know you either. You're the same. It's just mutual."

"I was a prima donna in New York for over ten years! How can you compare me to him?! If you hadn’t gotten me pregnant, I’d still be active on the stage! I’m still in great shape!"
Seo Ok-hwa shouted as if really distressed. She truly was a soprano. The VIP room echoed, and even in her shouting, her voice was beautiful.
"Madam, calm down. Young people are all like that these days."

Henry Chang's mother intervened. Woojin roughly pulled Haewon away as if scolding him, grabbing his arm. Holding onto his forearm, Haewon walked out of the French restaurant. He pressed the elevator button and Woojin let go of his arm.
"Who told you to just take the violin? Do you even know how much this is worth? Do you think you can just buy this with money?"
"Was that supposed to get me back?"

"Anyone would have done the same."
"Are you out of your mind, or do you just not care? Don't you know?"
"Why did you bring me to a meal with people I don't know?"

"I was going to eat with you even if it killed me today. I refused the invitation, but then they said Henry Chang would be there, and you like Henry Chang."
The elevator arrived. He didn't need to be pushed; Haewon was already getting in when Woojin nudged his back. Haewon stepped into the elevator, telling him not to touch, swatting his hand away.
"What?"

"That's why I wanted you to meet Henry Chang. The fact you're crazy wasn't part of the plan."
Woojin had intentionally brought him to this gathering so he could meet Henry Chang personally. Haewon did like Henry Chang but not enough to want to meet him personally.
"How do you know whether I like Henry Chang or not? When did I ever say I liked him?"

Haewon couldn't recall ever discussing Henry Chang with him.
"You seemed to dislike Beethoven's sonatas, but you liked Brahms."
"..."

"Of course, a greenhorn who's been wrapped in his mother's apron strings and hasn't even held a girl's hand would struggle to perform Kreutzer."
He talked as if he knew the hidden stories of Kreutzer, despite claiming to be a music layman.
"My ears prefer you, in many ways."

He added unnecessary compliments as he patted Haewon's head. Haewon stood there dazed, not even thinking to swat his hand away.
The fact that Woojin had seen today's performance meant he had come to watch. Haewon looked at him with wide eyes, surprised.
"Did you think I wouldn't come?"

"...You didn't contact me. You said you were late because of a meeting."
His lips curled into a loose smile.