Dopamine Addiction - Chapter 9

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

9.
With that, Hee-ju began walking with angry strides once more.
Liam let out a soft chuckle, raised his eyebrows briefly, and in an instant closed the distance between them.
“Don’t mention it, Sahara.”
“Well—”
Just as Hee-ju was about to say something, a taxi came into view. She waved frantically. The taxi rolled slowly toward them and came to a stop.
Liam opened the door, extending one hand with a courteous smile.
“Ladies first.”
Hee-ju drew a quiet breath. Her mind was already in turmoil. The scattered pieces of the puzzle had tumbled everywhere, and she had no idea where to start fitting them back together.
But the man before her kept turning her inside out.
If I get angry, I lose.
Reminding herself of this, Hee-ju slid into the taxi. Liam settled naturally into the seat beside her.
“Where are we headed?”
Where should she go? After a brief hesitation, she opened her mouth.
“The Marriott Hotel.”
“Yes.”
The taxi pulled away, and silence filled the car. Hee-ju clenched her lower jaw, fighting back a wave of nausea.
Liam, meanwhile, lounged with his arms crossed, gazing out the window at the scenery. Or more precisely, at Hee-ju’s reflection in the glass.
Watching her suppress her discomfort, Liam’s expression softened. Strong one moment, vulnerable the next. Innocent, yet calculating. It was a curious mixture.
She really is fascinating.
The murmur, barely audible, dissolved into the engine’s drone without a trace.
***
Liam brought the coffee cup to his lips, his gaze fixed on the window. Beyond the glass, Hee-ju was on a phone call with someone.
Some color had returned to her cheeks, but her complexion remained pale. Perhaps that was simply her natural state.
But there was no way to know. This was his first time meeting Hee-ju. All he knew of her was that sharp voice through a black screen—nothing more.
“Except for how cutely she lies.”
Hee-ju’s hands rose and fell as she explained something. She drew squares in the air, pressed her forehead, and made a cutting gesture across her throat.
As Liam chuckled, Hee-ju ended the call and shoved her mobile phone into her pocket.
She rubbed her dry cheeks with both palms for a moment, then sighed—she’d lost count of how many times now.
With a troubled expression, Hee-ju stared out at the street, then her shoulders sagged as she came back inside the cafe.
Liam turned his head with a smile.
“More interesting every time I look at her.”
A moment ago, she’d clearly entertained the thought of simply running away. If she had bolted then, she wouldn’t be nearly as intriguing now.
To flee when you know you’ll be caught—that’s gambling on a slim chance, and that’s the same as being foolish.
And Liam despised foolish people. In that sense, Hee-ju still held his interest.
“If the odds of shaking me off were high, she’d run without hesitation, without a moment’s doubt.”
That was what he found fascinating—her pragmatic edge, her stubborn refusal to give up too easily.
Hee-ju walked straight to the counter, placed her order, and stood by the bar waiting for her coffee. She gazed out at the street absently, as if organizing her thoughts. Or perhaps waiting for her scattered mind to return.
Either way.
Her coffee arrived. Cup in hand, she walked to the table. The moment she sat, Liam spoke.
“What did Team Leader Han say?”
Hee-ju’s brow furrowed sharply.
“How did you know I called Team Leader Han? Do you know Lip Reading?”
“Ha ha.”
Liam laughed lightly, as if he’d heard a clever joke. Then, crossing his long legs, he answered in an offhand tone.
“In a situation like this, the first priority is obvious. You need to dispose of the body quietly. To keep things from escalating, you’d need local help.”
“Exactly.”
Hee-ju lowered her head listlessly and rubbed her temples. Her frown showed no sign of easing.
“He’s sending people. Before that, we can only hope the local police don’t show up. So—”
She paused and looked at Liam with an even deeper frown.
“Why are you here?”
At that moment, Liam leaned forward slightly. The distance between them narrowed in an instant.
“Why? Because you ran, so I came to catch you.”
His quiet voice seemed to seep not into her ears, but into her skin. Hee-ju stared at him, lost for words, her eyes widening.
Liam’s eyes narrowed to slits as he smiled.
“A word of advice: don’t run from me again. When people run, I can’t help but chase.”
Gulp—Hee-ju swallowed involuntarily. It felt as though she were facing not a person but a carnivore. A predator from which you must never show your back.
Liam leaned back against his chair and added lightly.
“Besides, headquarters told me to keep my head down for a while, so I have time to spare.”
“Oh.”
Hee-ju remembered the harsh words she’d thrown at him that day and muttered something barely audible.
“If I was too hard on you then, I’m sorry. I apologize.”
As she did, she quietly grumbled to herself: ‘This is why field operatives are…’ Surely he’d lost his mind if he’d chased her all this way—from London to South Korea to the United States—just because of one comment.
Not that it was anything special. Among field operatives, madness was common, and Hee-ju often grew exasperated playing backup for them. Though if any of them was the maddest, it was clearly this one.
Coming all the way here from there. As if.
“Well, thanks to you, a life that was nearly lost has been saved. Shall I call you Hee-ju, or would you prefer Sahara?”
“Call me whatever you like.”
“Then Hee-ju it is. And you call me Liam.”
Liam spoke with the politeness of a gentleman. Not that a madman could ever pass for sane.
Hee-ju began again. “So—”
“How does it feel, having seen someone you wanted to meet?”
“Hmm.”
Surprised by the question, Liam cupped his chin in one hand and observed her carefully, his expression grave as a critic studying a work of art.
Then Hee-ju realized she’d asked a foolish question. She’d forgotten the person in front of her was a madman.
Despite his languid expression, his gaze was as intense as the sun. She didn’t know where to look.
“Never mind. More importantly—”
At that moment, Liam’s eyes narrowed as he smiled.
Her heart plummeted. It was likely a sinister premonition. There was no other explanation.
“Better than I expected.”
“…Better? I didn’t expect anything?”
“Well, that’s part of it.”
Wait, what is this guy doing? Just as Hee-ju’s eyes widened—
“You’re pretty.”
“…”
“More than I imagined.”
Suddenly, Hee-ju’s face flushed crimson. The heat rose so quickly she could feel it herself. Her neck itched as if she’d just pulled on a new sweater.
A sharp horn blared from the street. Someone shouted at a cafe employee, and a person sitting behind them dropped their cup.
Noise erupted, yet the world seemed muted, as if submerged underwater. His slate-gray eyes deepened in hue. Hee-ju held his gaze, barely breathing.
Liam smiled softly and straightened in his chair.
“Well then, back to business.”
His smile vanished in an instant. The atmosphere around him transformed completely.
“Who were those men earlier?”
Hee-ju exhaled the breath she’d been holding and took a sip of coffee. Thump-thump—her racing heart gradually returned to its normal pace.
She turned over his question in her mind, one she’d mulled over countless times on the way here, but ultimately shook her head.
“I really don’t know. I arrived in San Francisco this morning, and I don’t know anyone here. I have no idea who would want to hurt me.”
“Who knew you were going to that house?”
“I stopped at a nursing home to see my father, and he asked me to go to his house—he wanted me to retrieve a watch my mother left behind. I only found out my father’s address today, and no one knew I was going there beforehand.”
She paused, her brow furrowing slightly. She realized she’d failed to ask the most important question.
“But Liam, how were you there at that exact moment?”
It was asking how he’d found her in a country as vast as the United States. Suspicion flickered in her eyes.
Noticing this, Liam shrugged casually.
“I heard you’d gone to the States for personal reasons, but no one knew which region. I looked into it myself—no family or relatives living in the US. But ‘personal reasons’… so I asked a friend who specializes in this sort of thing for a favor.”
“A friend? You’re surprisingly bold about admitting you had me investigated. In Korea, we call that stalking.”
To Hee-ju’s sarcasm, Liam continued without concern.
“Turns out one name came up. An American name: Alan Smith. A Korean name: Kim Hyun-tae.”
“…”
“Your father.”
“Kim Hyun-tae.”
Hee-ju murmured the name, eyes downcast. It felt unfamiliar, as if she were pronouncing a foreign word.
Only then did she realize she’d spoken her biological father’s name aloud for the first time.
Liam continued.

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