Dopamine Addiction - Chapter 87

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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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87.
Once Benjamin confirmed the police had vanished from view, he rose from his seat. Hee-ju followed close behind, her face taut with tension.
The secretary handed documents to an airport staff member. The official glanced at the papers, then Benjamin, then Hee-ju standing behind him, and nodded.
The three walked forward unhurried. As they passed the staff member, his eyes flicked toward Hee-ju once more.
Hee-ju’s shoulders stiffened. She forced herself to look composed and offered a smile to the official who’d caught her gaze.
When he smiled back, his eyes finally released her. Hee-ju exhaled in relief—but paused just before the departure gate doors.
“…….”
She turned around. A man gazing up at the departures board with dull eyes. Another absorbed in his cell phone. A third hurrying as though running late.
Liam was nowhere among them.
Hee-ju moved forward. After passing through the departure gate, an airport official waited for them. Following a brief security check, they proceeded toward the tarmac.
They boarded a cart and rode it to the aircraft. The boarding stairs descended. The official stopped the cart at the foot of the stairs and called out cheerfully.
“Have a pleasant flight.”
The secretary disembarked first, offering Benjamin a hand as he climbed down. Hee-ju followed quietly up the stairs behind them both.
At the final step, she drew a long breath.
‘Don’t look back. Liam isn’t there anyway.’
She clenched her fists and stepped inside the cabin. The heavy door shut with a metallic thud.
Seated by the window, Hee-ju gazed out at the tarmac. She felt Benjamin’s stare on her cheek but didn’t turn to acknowledge it. Instead, her eyes followed the bustling airport staff.
‘It’s over.’
Yet her heart felt strangely heavy—as though nothing had truly ended. The reason was clear: the absence of a man who should have been beside her.
‘You have to be safe, Liam.’
Hee-ju clasped her hands together in wordless prayer. Eyes closed, she sat motionless. Soon the aircraft began to move.
The plane taxied down the runway and lifted into the air, that queasy weightlessness settling in her stomach. Slowly, inevitably, America receded from view.
***
“Run!”
At Liam’s command, the flight attendant took off. The two of them sprinted down the escalator and cut across the second-floor lobby.
Salt Lake City International Airport wasn’t particularly large, but year-end holiday crowds had packed it with travelers.
Liam wove through the throng toward a stairwell on the opposite side, maintaining a careful distance—close enough that they wouldn’t lose sight of him, but not so near that they’d grab him immediately.
He had to keep their eyes fixed on him for as long as possible. They had to believe the woman running beside him was Hee-ju.
At least until the plane took off.
“There—that way!”
He bounded down the stairs without caution, where several people congested the passage. A woman he collided with stumbled.
“Ahhh!”
Liam quickly reached out and caught her by the shoulders, steadying her.
“I’m sorry.”
When Liam offered an apologetic smile, the woman who’d been about to curse simply nodded calmly.
“It’s fine.”
“Thanks.”
Liam glanced upward. Two officers suddenly appeared at the top of the stairs. Without breaking stride, he continued down.
Then he glanced back at the flight attendant with a look of pleasant surprise. Catching his meaning, she spoke with unmistakable pride.
“I was on the track and field team in high school.”
“I’m lucky, then.”
Liam chuckled, his eyes flicking past her shoulder. The officers had just reached the bottom of the stairs and were scanning left and right.
One spotted them and shouted to his partners.
“That way!”
“Let’s go.”
Liam sprinted toward the exit. As they burst through the building doors to the outside.
“Stop right there, Liam Kloff.”
Two men blocked his path. Liam came to a halt and slowly raised his eyes. The faces were familiar.
Hunter and Anthony—the two who’d been chasing him. Both had their guns trained on him.
“…….”
Liam showed no alarm, raising one hand and offering Anthony a warm smile.
“Long time. You’re looking well?”
“Thanks to you.”
“Glad I could help.”
Anthony’s jaw tightened at the memory of what Liam had done to him.
Police officers arrived moments later. When Hunter flashed his badge, they exchanged a few words with him and withdrew.
Liam watched the officers leave, then turned his attention back to Anthony. He instinctively knew which of the two was the real threat.
“I thought you’d be eating donuts outside the Melpis Mansion.”
“That was the plan, until somebody slipped out the back door. So, how does it feel to be caught?”
“Caught? Since when does the CIA have domestic jurisdiction? Where’s your warrant? Can you really detain innocent travelers like this?”
“Don’t worry. It’s not you we’re after. The one we want is the woman behind you.”
Liam raised his eyebrows as though surprised, a playful smile crossing his lips.
“You have business with this lady? But you’ve never met, have you?”
Hunter’s frown deepened at Liam’s ease of manner.
But Anthony wasn’t ready to concede. He smiled triumphantly, unable to resist one more jab.
“Don’t worry about her. We know her very well. We’ve been watching for a long time.”
Liam’s eyes narrowed as he gauged the time. By now, the plane should have taken off. This was enough.
He turned with a bright grin to look at the woman behind him.
“You know this man? He works for the CIA—Anthony is his name. Though he and I aren’t particularly close.”
At that moment, the flight attendant, who had kept her head bowed, removed her hat. Then slowly raised her eyes.
“!”
Hunter and Anthony’s faces twisted. The woman standing before them was not Hee-ju. She was a complete stranger.
‘What—what is this?’
As Anthony and Hunter exchanged glances, the flight attendant shook her head.
“No. I’ve never met you before.”
“As you can see.”
Liam’s mouth twisted into a smirk as he regarded Anthony. The moment it hit them—that they’d been duped—Anthony’s lips contorted.
“Damn!”
His eyes blazed. In the same instant, Hunter bolted back into the terminal. Anthony shot Liam a venomous glare.
“It’s already too late, isn’t it?”
“It certainly is.”
Liam shrugged lightly. Anthony’s teeth ground together.
“You cunning bastard.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Anthony swept his hair back with a deflated sigh. Liam flashed him a radiant smile.
“Is there anything else? If not, I should probably be going.”
“You might want to stick around. We’ll be running into each other again soon enough.”
“You certainly seem fond of me. Sorry, but I can’t return those feelings. Have a happy holiday, though.”
With that, Liam nodded to the flight attendant. The two walked together toward the parking lot. Liam paused mid-step and looked up at the sky.
A single aircraft crossed through the blue expanse.
***
As Hee-ju stepped out of the taxi, she drew her coat collar tighter. The bitter wind bit through to her bones, and her shoulders hunched involuntarily.
Walking into the apartment complex, she passed several neighbors. Their voices filled the air—complaints about noise between floors, gossip about grocery prices, an endless stream of chatter.
The simple privilege of understanding others without great effort was, she realized, a blessing far greater than she’d imagined.
At her front door, Hee-ju paused and cupped her cheeks in her palms. In those few moments, her hands had gone numb with cold.
“Breathe.”
She drew in a long breath, forcing the corners of her mouth upward. After entering her code, she stepped inside, the wind howling fiercely against the door behind her.
She got off the elevator at her floor and stood before her familiar apartment door. This time, instead of entering her code, she pressed the bell.
Soon she heard footsteps approaching from within. The door swung open.
“Who is—Hee-ju!”
Her father, who’d looked up without expression, suddenly went wide-eyed at the sight of her standing in the doorway.
“What? You don’t even call, and you just…….”
Her father’s words came haltingly, as though he had much to say but didn’t know where to begin.
He rushed out in bare feet and pulled her into a crushing embrace—so tight her ribs ached.
“I’m home.”
Her father nodded at her greeting, then called out loudly into the apartment.
“Honey, come quick! Hee-ju is here!”
“What? Who’s here?”
Her mother rushed out, tears already glistening in her eyes.
“Hee-ju!”
Still held in her father’s arms, Hee-ju looked at her mother, and her expression softened into a smile.
“I’m sorry, Mom, Dad. I lost my cell phone and couldn’t call.”
“We were so worried……. Never mind. Come here, let me hold you. You, move aside.”
Her mother pushed her father away and opened her arms to Hee-ju.
Hee-ju walked toward her slowly and collapsed into her mother’s embrace.
In truth, as Hee-ju was taller, she was technically holding her mother—but the word “held” felt more right somehow.
Hee-ju rested her cheek against her mother’s shoulder and closed her eyes.

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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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