Time Mansour - Chapter 11



Only Noblemtl

Episode 11: Jim and the Compass

Black market tickets.

It’s a strange thing to me.

I had to go back in time to the 1960s to find this word in my memory.

My mother inherited the husband-eating gene from her maternal grandmother.

1960, with the aftereffects of the Korean War still lingering.

My maternal grandfather passed away first, during a time when jobs were scarce even for men.

So, my grandmother said she went around to theaters in Chungmuro, such as Daehan Theater, Danseong, and Scala, and sold tickets on the black market.

Before I was even born.

It’s a story from a very long time ago…

My mom played the piano while stepping on the pedal of the sewing machine.

I vaguely remember my mother telling me stories while pressing the needle like a keyboard.

**

5:40.

It was almost time to leave work that Manager Cho and Deputy Manager Kim returned from the conference room.

I thought you’d come into the office proudly like a general.

Surprisingly, both of their expressions were stiff.

“How was it?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. The atmosphere was so tense. Team leader Go Chang-seok couldn’t even raise his head.”

“That bastard Go Chang-seok. I was going to kill him, but… the director and the manager did more than that, so I couldn’t even open my mouth.”

Manager Cho shakes his head from side to side.

To the point where even the world’s best manager, Jo Jin-woong, had to give up.

The atmosphere seemed more tense than expected.

“Anyway, this time it turned out really well, Deputy Chief Ko.”

I didn’t feel sorry for Deputy Director Ko.

That’s right

It wasn’t particularly refreshing.

thank god.

I’m so glad it’s not me.

That was all I could think about.

if.

I wondered if it was just me, but then I looked at other people’s faces.

Everyone had the same expression on their face as me.

**

On the way home.

I’m fiddling with my phone on the bus.

-Starting a chicken restaurant.

My YouTube search bar has become more colorful lately.

Unfamiliar words started appearing frequently in my search bar.

So I sat on the bus and watched the video of them frying chicken over and over again.

“I want to hit you.”

The chorus I sing every day comes out of my mouth without me realizing it.

Just like the Otube algorithm, my mindset has completely changed.

As my motivation to move forward disappeared, my mind was at ease.

I no longer have the confidence to do things the way I used to.

All my life, I thought my sister was a burden.

however.

Looking back.

In fact, wasn’t it the compass of my life?

Suddenly, that thought occurs to me.

**

-This stop is Odong Fog Park Station.

When the bus announces, stand up from your seat and press the bell.

So the bus door opens and we arrive at the stop.

-The specialty of Odong is fog.

The park was so foggy that a line from a novel came to mind.

The smoke from cigarettes smoked by foreign workers drifts aimlessly through the park.

It’s a familiar sight now.

“I’ve been here for quite some time now.”

A neighborhood with no connections.

I moved here without much hesitation because it was the cheapest place near the JoongAng Bank IT Center.

‘I guess I won’t have to leave.’

As I told Director Chun, I had no intention of moving.

It’s also because of my sister’s room.

Rather than that.

I feel like if I leave home, my memories with my sister will disappear too.

Because even the faintest memories seem to be fading away.

To be honest, I was scared.

**

Inside the cafe.

A vibration resonates from a small speaker hanging from the ceiling.

Music flowed out along with the air conditioning wind.

Hot music is rising.

The cold music subsides.

Only lukewarm music, neither here nor there, remains in a certain part of my heart.

It keeps bothering me in a corner of my mind.

“Huh? Red Blue? Right?”

“That’s right. It’s the title song of this album.”

Director Chun points to the speaker on the ceiling and asks me.

I nodded to his question.

“I still can’t believe it. Director Jeong. He’s an idol fan.”

“Is it that weird?”

“That’s right. You were a person who only knew work. But it’s better to see you now.”

A smile spread across Director Cheon’s lips.

The prominent cheekbones stand out.

Even after seeing Director Chun’s bright smile.

The first thought that comes to mind is unbelievable.

I feel skeptical about myself for thinking like this.

As the years go by, I lose more and more of my humanity.

Every time I went to work, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was ruining myself.

While hiding their true feelings like that, they had a daily conversation with smiling faces.

As if something suddenly occurred to him.

match.

Director Chun hit both palms of his hands.

“Oh. Right. Did you hear? I think your bank will test our product too.”

“Huh? You guys? Dogs only use Black Hard products, right?”

I asked back at his words. I had no choice.

Because your bank implicitly considered itself a competitor, Blackhard’s market.

“Thanks to you, Director. We now have a reference called Jo Seong Bank.”

“I tried it, so I can trust it.”

“In the financial sector, stability is the most important thing.”

JoongAng Bank left behind the first case in Korea.

Thanks to that, I heard that other banks are also interested in our products.

But I didn’t know that even your bank, which I had given up on, would contact me.

“Director Jeong? Director Jeong? Why are you suddenly like this?”

What the fuck.

I can’t control my facial expression when I hear the grim news.

If your bank also has white soft products.

If you’re not careful, you might end up doing it wrong.

All five major banks could have purchased licenses for White Soft’s platform products.

Substitute.

why.

‘Why does business keep going so well?’

Suddenly, a line from a certain movie comes to mind.

**

The wind rustles the leaves.

The dark clouds make an ominous sound as if they are about to finish their long journey.

Thud. Thud.

When spring comes, flowers bloom, and when it rains, taxis can’t be caught.

“What should I do?”

Dark clouds are gathering over my face too.

Raindrops hit the asphalt and bounce up.

The rain poured down heavily as if trying to fill the empty bag with moisture.

Another reason why subcontractors’ employees avoid Joongang Bank is transportation.

Joongang Bank IT Center.

The outskirts of the metropolitan area without a subway station.

Transportation was so bad that even the nearest bus stop required another 15 minutes of walking.

There’s no sign of the rain stopping.

When I turned on my phone to check the weather forecast, a disaster text message had already arrived.

I guess there’s no use waiting.

I don’t know.

I close my eyes tightly and hold on to the umbrella stand in the midst of the fierce wind and rain.

**

Rattling.

As soon as I kicked the door open and came back into the house, I took off my damp socks.

It’s really hard to make a living.

After grumbling that he was full, he lightly shook off the water.

My eyes are drawn to the laundry piled up in the corner.

Did you have any spare clothes?

Ah. Tomorrow is the weekend anyway.

I think that’s fortunate.

Put the clothes you just took off in the washing machine and turn it on.

After roughly drying off the water from my body.

While I was debating whether or not to wash.

-Jiying. Jiying.

There was a vibration from above the refrigerator.

White Soft Managing Director Lee Yoon-cheol.

Check the name in the phone book and answer the phone.

“Hello. Mr. Lee?”

“Yes, Director Jeong. It’s been a while. I hope you’ve been well.”

A familiar voice comes from the other end of the phone.

He was an employee at White Soft before I joined the company.

“Well. It’s always the same. Client. Home. Client. Home.”

Director Jeong really hasn’t changed at all. I can hear him laughing on the other end of the phone.

Manufacturing sales dealing with infrastructure products.

Originally, I was an employee with no work to do because the products and customers I was in charge of were different.

When I was working at my previous company, I went in as a fill-in for another employee and worked with him for a few months.

“Yes. What’s wrong?”

“Ah. Director Jeong, it’s none other than you. Are you still working at Jo Seong Bank?”

“Yes, it’s still there.”

“Then you must still be in Ansan.”

“yes.”

There is a brief silence as I answer.

After such a brief silence.

“This weekend, maybe? No, tomorrow, are you free?”

The managing director asked me.

“Tomorrow? Um… Nothing much is going on.”

“Then, can I see you for a moment tomorrow? I’ll go to Ansan.”

“I hope you’re okay. It’ll take a while, though.”

“It’s okay. Let’s have lunch together tomorrow.”

I answered that I understood without much thought.

I had previously worked at Sasung Semiconductor and we had a hard time together. It wasn’t like we couldn’t have lunch together.

“But… Director Jeong. Do you know where I am…?”

“Aren’t you from Seoul? Did you happen to move around here?”

“No. The company. You know that I moved to Blackhard, right?”

“···”

uh?

What did you say?

**

Wheein. Wheein.

The wind blows from the dryer.

The scent of fabric softener spreads with the heat.

Putting off laundry has been an old habit of mine.

A skilled hand blows hot air into wet clothes.

I’ve done this so many times that I’ve gotten pretty good at it.

“Can I look at it?”

Although they are competitors, they have different customers and different products.

This executive director was also originally an employee of White Soft.

We’re not complete strangers. It’d be okay to just see each other’s faces for a little while.

I shook out my shirt, thinking about it so lightly.

A dry shirt flutters in the air.

As if nothing happened.