Dopamine Addiction - Chapter 59

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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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59.
“This is where it all started.”
“I’ve been wanting to ask for a while—isn’t that a curse?”
“Don’t pretend you don’t understand Korean just when it suits you.”
Hee-ju caught the mischievous edge in Liam’s voice and countered firmly, then jerked her chin toward the wall.
“Go on, get the clock down for me.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Your wish is my command.”
Liam fetched a chair from the Kitchen and removed the clock hanging on the wall. Then he returned to Hee-ju.
As he set the clock down on the Living Room table, Hee-ju swallowed hard.
What could it be? What did her father possess that drew the attention of both the CIA and the Mafia?
At last, the moment to find out had arrived.
“I’m opening it.”
Liam nodded at her words. He’d been about to offer to do it himself, but stopped and kept quiet instead.
What lay inside the clock was her father’s legacy—she had the right to examine it first.
Hee-ju studied the exterior carefully. Nothing particularly stood out.
She flipped the clock over. Tick-tock, tick-tock—only the sound of the second hand pierced the quiet room.
She opened the casing and removed the battery. The clock went still.
But there was nothing inside. She flipped the clock back over to examine the face, but found nothing of consequence.
She shook the clock. No sound came from it.
“What’s going on?”
Hee-ju’s brow furrowed.
Had she gotten it wrong? Was it not the clock? Or had he left nothing behind at all?
No. If that were the case, the CIA and the Mafia wouldn’t be chasing me. He must have left something.
If not the clock, then where could it be?
Just as her mind began to spiral, Liam returned with a Screwdriver.
“Found it in the toolbox in the Wall Cabinet.”
“Thanks.”
Hee-ju began separating the back panel. Clink—the first screw landed on the table. Then another.
Neither spoke. Hee-ju’s mind remained busy, and Liam had no wish to disturb her thoughts.
Clink—the third screw came loose. Finally, the last screw was set on the table.
Hee-ju looked at Liam. When he nodded, she slowly peeled away the back panel.
Meshed gears came into view, along with unfamiliar components and wires.
There.
Something was fixed to the inner wall with tape—sealed so it would make no sound if shaken.
An indescribable emotion stirred within her. Hee-ju’s eyes squeezed shut without her realizing it.
It felt like the thrill of finally finding what she’d sought, and the relief of claiming her father’s inheritance.
Eyes open, Hee-ju reached out slowly. With careful hands, she peeled away the tape and brought the object before her eyes.
She muttered in an even tone.
“It’s a USB.”
Liam retrieved Hee-ju’s Bag from where it had been on the floor.
“You had a Laptop.”
“You carry my Bag around and now you know what’s in it better than I do.”
Hee-ju let out a laugh that sounded almost like a sigh, and Liam answered in an untroubled tone.
“Well, there’s no black bra in it, so I assume you’re wearing it.”
“Liam!”
Hee-ju yelped. Her face flushed crimson in an instant.
Liam turned to her with an unbothered expression and handed over the Laptop.
“Plug it in.”
Hee-ju cast him a sidelong glance before opening the Laptop. She waited for it to boot, then immediately connected the USB. With a soft chime, a folder appeared.
The folder name was a meaningless string of English letters and numbers. Hee-ju clicked without hesitation. A prompt asking for a password appeared.
……
Hee-ju looked at Liam with an uncertain expression. He gave a light shrug.
“If the CIA and the Russian Mafia are both after it, there’s bound to be a password.”
“I should have thought of that sooner. Now it’s just a useless brick.”
Liam, who had been deep in thought, suddenly spoke.
“What about your birthday?”
“What? The password?”
Hee-ju shook her head as if the idea were absurd. A self-deprecating edge crept into her words.
“I’m sure he didn’t even know my birthday. He was never that interested in me. If he had been, he would have called long ago.”
“But the fact that he thought of you before he died means he cared.”
There.
Anger surged up. Hee-ju’s eyes narrowed sharply. As if he knew anything.
Her voice turned cutting of its own accord.
“Ah, right. Sherlock Holmes. I forgot for a moment. Seems his interest was so great that he only reached out when he was dying. Ignoring me when I was looking for him all those years, and then only contacting me when it was time to die—!”
She recognized she was venting her frustration on the wrong person. But the surging anger was impossible to contain.
It would have been easier if Liam had gotten angry or sneered at her. But instead, he apologized sincerely.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
……
That made her feel even more pathetic. In the end, she clamped her lower lip between her teeth and swallowed the words threatening to spill out.
Liam slowly reached out and drew her into his arms from behind. He bent down, his lips brushing against her hair as he whispered softly.
“At first, I found it amusing when you got angry. I wanted to crack that expressionless face. Anger looked better on you than playing it cool.”
……
“But not anymore. Watching you angry or sad doesn’t entertain me the way it did before. Do you know why?”
“……Because you’ve fallen head over heels for me, I suppose.”
Her blunt reply made Liam laugh. “Ha, ha, ha.” With each laugh, Hee-ju felt the vibration against her skin.
The dark, knotted emotions unraveled layer by layer. The feelings that had grown lighter gradually dissolved away entirely.
It was a strange thing. The person who made her angry was the same person who made the anger disappear.
Perhaps.
Hee-ju breathed in quietly. Perhaps she was more sincere than she thought. About that madman.
She straightened up and pulled the Laptop closer to herself.
“Well, it doesn’t cost anything to try.”
Liam naturally wrapped both arms around her waist. Holding her from behind, he rested his chin on her shoulder.
Hee-ju typed four digits for the password. Her finger hesitated over the Enter key before pressing down. “Click.”
Chime.
“……See? I told you it wouldn’t work.”
She realized her voice sounded far too disappointed once she’d spoken. Despite what she’d said, she’d been hoping.
“Try your full birth date instead.”
“I doubt that’ll make any difference.”
Hee-ju grumbled but dutifully entered the numbers as he instructed.
Objectively speaking, Liam was not a tender person. He was neither generous nor gentle.
Yet he made Hee-ju tender, made her generous, made her gentle.
“If my birth date is the password, I’ll give you a hundred dollars—”
At that moment, the screen changed. The folder opened, and the files inside appeared.
A soft laugh drifted past her ear.
“Don’t forget—a hundred dollars.”
“……I never said I’d give it.”
“Are you really going to be stingy about this?”
“You’re the one being petty over a hundred dollars. What happened to your talk of giving me a billion?”
“That was about living with me. Are you willing to live with me?”
Liam tilted his head, his chin still resting on her shoulder, his lips hovering barely an inch from her skin.
His breath tickled the fine hairs on her neck. Her heart pounded faster and faster.
Hee-ju kept her expression deliberately calm as she clicked on a file.
“I’ll consider it if I get sick of working.”
“Stop now. I’ll take care of you.”
The hand that had been on her stomach began to move slowly. Long fingers slipped under the hem of her shirt and found the bare skin beneath.
The sensation of his fingers on her naked skin was unfamiliar. Hee-ju tensed involuntarily.
The fingers tracing her belly drifted higher. They pressed each rib, traced across her sternum.
Each touch made the fine hairs on her body stand on end. Try as she might not to notice, all her awareness converged on his fingertips.
Liam moved like a searcher, subtle and silent. Without hurrying, working with patience, he whittled away her resistance.
Soon his fingertips found soft lace. He brushed the edge with his index finger, then slipped his hand beneath her bra.
But then—
“What is that?”
Liam’s voice changed. Focus returned to his drowsy eyes.
Hee-ju, who had been breathing softly, stiffened abruptly. Then she followed his gaze to the Laptop screen.
Hee-ju’s brow knitted.
“Looks like blueprints.”
She scrolled through the files. Several images appeared in sequence, interspersed with incomprehensible numbers and formulas.
After staring at the screen for a long moment, Liam rubbed his chin with one finger. His eyes narrowed as he muttered, almost to himself.
“Looks like a Weapon Blueprint.”
“A Weapon Blueprint?”

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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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