Dopamine Addiction - Chapter 44

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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44.
Hee-ju’s expression stiffened awkwardly under his prolonged gaze.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Just am.”
Hee-ju cast her eyes away again, and though Liam’s smile deepened each time she did, it didn’t seem to be having the desired effect.
A motel night without the teenage nuisance in tow.
After dinner, what came next was essentially predetermined. Hee-ju shifted the conversation, as if trying to scrub away thoughts that kept drifting in unwanted directions.
“Wasatch State Park covers 21,592 acres. Converting to metric, that’s… 87.38 square kilometers. How are we supposed to find a single cabin in all that space? It’d be like searching for a needle in a haystack.”
“The saving grace is that it’s used by so many people for golf, camping, and mountain biking—so two people wandering through the mountains shouldn’t draw much attention.”
Just then, the Restaurant Owner approached the table and set down their plates. The conversation paused.
“Enjoy your meal.”
“Thank you.”
Hee-ju, speaking warmly, reached for her taco as she watched the owner’s retreating figure.
“The taste isn’t bad.”
“Not remarkable either, though.”
Hee-ju continued, lost in thought as she chewed her taco.
“They won’t chase us all the way here, will they?”
“Hard to say. If they gave up that easily, they wouldn’t have started in the first place.”
Liam had already finished one taco and brought a burrito to his lips. Even the way he ate with his hands was graceful.
“Liam…”
Hee-ju spoke without thinking. Liam glanced at her, as if inviting her to continue.
When their eyes met, she faltered. He seemed like a completely different person from the man who’d been setting Improvised Explosive Devices.
Which was why she was curious. Which version was his true self?
And she wondered too: who had he called at dawn? What had they said to him? Why had his face looked that way—
Like a child who’d had his toy taken away, too sad and wronged to ask for it back.
But she couldn’t ask. Doing so might entangle his life with hers. Might weave their two lives together as tightly as warp and weft.
“Tell me.”
Liam raised an eyebrow leisurely. Hee-ju swallowed the words rising to her throat and looked away.
“Thank you.”
“For what?”
Little things like this were slowly dismantling her walls. The gentleness of treating important things as if they were nothing.
With Liam, she felt she could always rely on him, come what may. He’d stand by her side even if it meant making an enemy of the world.
The moment that thought took hold, Hee-ju shook her head sharply. As soon as she steadied her wavering heart, a practical problem awaited her.
“I’m going to need to withdraw some cash. That won’t work, will it?”
“Only if you want a visit from the CIA tonight.”
“I thought so.”
Hee-ju answered glibly, picking at a pickle with her fork as she grumbled.
“I’ve never felt the value of money quite like I do now.”
“You like money?”
“Who doesn’t?”
“How much?”
To such a silly question, Hee-ju answered matter-of-factly, as if chatting with teammates over coffee after a meal.
“Winning the lottery would be perfect. The FIRE movement is every office worker’s dream.”
“What’s the lottery payout these days?”
“A billion won?”
“More modest than I’d expect. Want me to give it to you?”
“…What?”
As if he’d asked, “Want my burrito?” Hee-ju looked up a beat too late. Her round eyes narrowed with suspicion.
Liam added casually,
“A billion won, I mean. You marry me and I’ll give it to you.”
“My mother told me not to follow just anyone who offers money. My parents gave me a pretty decent education, actually.”
“I’m not joking.”
Hee-ju set down her fork. Then she met his slate-blue eyes directly, laughter dancing in them.
“Do you actually want to marry me? Seriously?”
“Nothing I couldn’t do.”
“Then why doesn’t it feel sincere?”
A brief silence fell between them.
Liam set down his burrito and wiped his hands slowly. The Restaurant Owner, stepping out from the kitchen, sensed the odd atmosphere and turned back inside.
The dining hall held only Hee-ju and Liam.
An uncomfortable quiet stretched on. Liam returned to his usual expression, leaning back in his chair.
With one leg crossed, he spoke softly.
“It might actually be quite nice.”
“What might?”
“Living with you.”
This time, Hee-ju said nothing. Silence descended again—she’d lost count of how many times now.
“So how about we try being sincere about it?”
“…I’m not ready to handle that yet.”
Hee-ju’s voice grew small.
Liam’s gaze softened. Despite the gentleness in his expression, his voice carried a certain firmness.
“That’s your problem.”
“Weren’t you supposed to be giving me a choice?”
“I was going to. But I’ve become sincere.”
Liam shrugged lightly, a gesture tinged with regret.
Hee-ju, having dug her own grave, brought the chicken to her lips. At least she wouldn’t have to speak while eating.
Only after she’d swallowed everything in her mouth did Hee-ju speak again. Her gaze had lost some of its usual sharpness, tinged with resignation.
“You must have about five watches, right?”
“Watches?”
At the sudden non sequitur, Liam glanced at his own watch and let out another quiet laugh.
“Is a billion won really enough?”
“That’s settled. I should be the one paying you anyway. Since I’m your employer.”
“Do you have a billion won?”
At the blunt question, Hee-ju furrowed her brow sharply.
“Employing you costs a billion won?”
She had no intention of working him for free. She was prepared to pay a price regardless. Clean accounting was tidier that way.
But a billion won was a different matter entirely.
Liam lifted his chin with a shameless grin.
“I’m expensive, as you know.”
“…”
“I could knock a bit off if it’s too much. We are colleagues in the same organization, after all.”
“…How much?”
“Nine hundred ninety million?”
For someone like Hee-ju, it was a sum she could never accumulate in a lifetime. First she’d build seed money through stocks, then convert it to real estate, and…
“There’s another way, actually. Want to hear it?”
Liam leaned forward and whispered in a suggestive tone. Hee-ju swallowed dryly, thinking his voice was exactly like the serpent tempting Eve.
In the end, succumbing to temptation, she found herself asking,
“What is it?”
“It’s my price, so you pay me with your body. Then we’re even?”
“…That’s what I was planning anyway.”
“…”
“The question is whether my body’s worth that much.”
“…”
“It is. So we’re square. Even steven. Six of one, half a dozen of the other. Plus minus zero. Okay?”
Liam finally burst out laughing, head thrown back, mouth wide open. “Ha-ha-ha.” His delighted laughter filled the restaurant.
Yes, living with her might actually be quite fine.
Suddenly, he felt a hunger he hadn’t known before. Liam had been born a Spare. It was a fate bestowed upon him, a curse he could never escape.
He’d spent his whole life as someone’s substitute, worthless until the original disappeared.
But what if she wanted him? If someone nobody else desired wanted only him?
Chose him as the First Choice, not the Backup Option?
That might actually be interesting. More interesting than watching her walls crumble.
“Are you done eating?”
Liam’s voice changed. Low and thick. Hee-ju reached for her burrito, then hesitated.
Hearing the laughter, the Restaurant Owner had come out, but sensing the charged atmosphere in the dining hall, he retreated to the kitchen again.
Liam’s gaze deepened. The density of air around him rose. He was communicating everything except words.
That he wanted to sleep with Hee-ju.
An inexplicable chill ran through her. Hee-ju clenched her fist slightly and spoke, hesitantly.
“Why? Is there something we need to do?”
“I’m thinking of using something we bought a few days ago.”
“Something we bought a few days ago…?”
Hee-ju couldn’t finish her sentence, her eyes darting around. She’d belatedly realized what that thing was.
“Um, I haven’t finished eating yet.”
She picked up another piece of chicken and brought it to her mouth. Liam rested his chin on the back of his hand, watching her intently.
“Is it good?”
“…Yes.”
“Glad to hear it. Eat slowly. Eat plenty. You’ll work up an appetite soon.”
“Why…?”
Hee-ju asked back with an uneasy look. Liam simply smiled in response.
Hee-ju reached for her burrito again. She was already getting full, but she couldn’t bring herself to stop eating. If she did, she’d be the one getting eaten.
Liam surely noticed she was forcing herself to eat. Yet he didn’t rush her.
Finally, Hee-ju set down her fork and rose from her seat with a resolute expression.
“Let’s go.”
Even a hawk takes the first strike. She paid the bill and left the restaurant.
Liam, holding his bag in one hand, chuckled softly as he followed her out.
***
Hee-ju walked toward the motel, acutely attuned to the sound of Liam’s footsteps behind her. For some reason, they were unusually clear.
“…”
No. Actually, she knew the reason.
She was hyperaware of Liam because she knew what was about to happen.
The unhurried footfall, the quiet breathing, the shadow falling before her.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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