Deal Breaker - Chapter 16
Kanghyeon muttered as if talking to himself, then stared intently at Hyeji. Was he trying to read her mind, or did he have something he wanted to say? Maybe both.
“If you were actually thinking about signing with Borodin, I can match whatever conditions he offered. And more.”
“No thanks.”
“Why? What did he offer that made you reject him so fast, without even blinking? I could sell my Han River-view apartment to match his offer, if I have to…”
“Marriage.”
Kanghyeon’s normally smooth brow furrowed deeply.
Borodin was the one who had proposed marriage. He had brought piles of luxury goods by brand, saying that if she married him, she could have those things every day, promising her everything. He even showed her pictures of mansions, villas all over Europe, and a luxury yacht docked somewhere in France, saying that if she married him, all of it would be hers.
“That guy must be pretty desperate.”
“It seemed that way.”
“To propose to a girl who’s just barely an adult… He should just call it a slave contract, honestly. Since when did marriage become another word for slavery? Oh, I guess it always has been. Either way, what a bastard.”
“Right? It’s completely over the line, isn’t it?”
“…Yeah, totally over the f… yeah.”
Maybe embarrassed at cursing in front of someone he’d just met, Kanghyeon awkwardly copied Hyeji’s words and laughed. His smile was awkward, too.
“Ha… That’s the one thing I can’t match…”
He ran his hand roughly over his face again. From the look on his face, he seemed to have forgotten she’d already refused those terms. Though, to be fair, what came after was pretty shocking.
“Hyeji-ssi.”
After struggling with his thoughts, he finally called out to her, his face set as if making some big decision.
“Should I just give you my apartment? The one in Banpo-dong…?”
“No need.”
“Why not?”
“Because there’s no fun in buying it unless I save up my own money.”
If there were a game that sold the final level’s reward as an item, Hyeji would never buy it. What made a reward valuable was the time and effort spent to earn it. A reward gained all at once without that steady sense of progress felt meaningless.
“And besides, I have no intention of signing with him anyway.”
“Why not?”
“Because he has chest hair.”
One of the photos Borodin had shown her was of him on a sunbed on the yacht’s deck, drinking some kind of champagne and trying to look sexy.
With his upper body exposed. But there was barely any skin showing…
“His chest hair is seriously…”
“……”
“I thought, if he ever goes bald, he could transplant hair from there and not lose a single strand, there was so much.”
“……”
“And he was really proud of it, too. Maybe he thinks it’s manly, but to me…”
Just thinking about it again made Hyeji shudder and rub her arms.
“So chest hair is a deal breaker for you.”
Kanghyeon, who had been listening in silence and without expression, gritted his teeth after that comment. Sensing a bad omen, Hyeji leaned in and cautiously asked,
“CEO… you don’t have any… right? Chest hair…”
But Kanghyeon didn’t answer. He just clenched his jaw tighter and lowered his head, covering his face with one hand. She couldn’t see his expression, but she could clearly hear a groan.
“This is driving me crazy.”
“Uh… wait, you do have it?”
Did I make a mistake? Was I being too harsh about chest hair?
“I mean, it’s not my preference, but it’s fine, right? And if you ever go bald, you’ll have hair ready for transplant. I mean, not that I think you’ll go bald! You have lots of hair, seriously. Uh, well… anyway, sorry…”
Flustered, she started rambling and ended up apologizing. Still hiding his face, Kanghyeon waved a hand.
“No. I don’t have any. Don’t worry.”
“Whew, thank goodness. I was really shocked for a second.”
“Me too, honestly.”
When his fingers parted and she could finally see his eyes, she realized—he was just barely holding back laughter.
“Haa, Hyeji-ssi, you’re going to drive me insane.”
The conversation had stretched so long that she ended up getting dinner and even a ride to her place. Now that he knew she wasn’t rich, there was nothing left to hide.
“Thank you for today. Then, see you.”
She bowed and turned to go in, but Kanghyeon held out his right hand. Oh, a handshake. Hyeji took his hand without thinking, and was startled.
Where their palms met, her skin tingled and felt hot. At first she thought she’d imagined it, but the sensation was unmistakable.
As if static electricity was running through her, all her tiny hairs standing on end, the jolt traveling from every part of her body to the hand touching his. Strangely, her heart pounded. Her knees felt weak.
“So guiding really does happen this quickly.”
Kanghyeon looked down at their joined hands and murmured, and Hyeji finally understood. Ah, so this is what contact guiding feels like. She’d shaken hands with other Espers before, but never experienced anything so vivid.
“The match rate really is no joke.”
He grinned and let go. It was fascinating. Hyeji stared down at her own hand. As his hand withdrew, he reached out again and pressed his fingertip to hers. The tingling sensation came back.
“This is the foothold for me to become world number one, and for you to buy a Han River-view apartment. We can be each other’s stepping stones.”
Kanghyeon’s hand dropped away. This time, for good.
“Of course, the decision is entirely up to you. I hope, whoever you choose, it turns out to be the right choice for you.”
Hyeji curled her hand, still feeling the warmth where the Esper’s touch lingered, and hid it behind her back as she smiled confidently.
“Yes, I’m going to make the best choice for myself, better than anyone else.”
