BITTER SWEET. | J. JK

THIRTY-SEVEN.

VERY VERY LONG CHAPTER COMING YOUR WAY. BUT JUICY AF SO KEEP GOING BABES

Under the ashen grey chandelier swaying from side to side slowly, the hazy light illuminating weakly the small dark room. No windows, just a metal armored door, the suffocating air had nowhere to escape to. The glass cup filled with whiskey, the two cubes of ice melting leisurely, dancing in his hand as his long fingers tapped a quiet rhythm against the cup, as his eyes observed carefully his hand of cards. A discreet, victorious smile curling up in his lips. The chocolate brown hair male was in a lucky strike tonight.

Leaning back in his rather uncomfortable wooden chair, the pebble shadows veiling the left side of his face, only the small twinkle of his ebony eyes was visible. His shinny hair brushed to the side and pulled back, exposing his forehead, his feet up in the board table, rocking the chair back and forth lazily, beneath the ghostly suspicious light, flashing annoyingly. Throwing a small quantity of chips at the middle of the table, assured that, for the third time in these few hours, he would win another round.

Blackjack. This was how he spent his late lonely nights for years now. In an undercover casino, hidden between the darkest Seoul alleys, where even sunlight couldn't reach. Here, it was always nighttime, the only light was the moon, which occasionally, peeked through offering shy beams of light, but they were quickly swallowed by darkness. He always came back, every night, seeking for the same feeling.

The rush provided by danger. The penetrating stress taking over his body. The sweat rolling down his forehead, his hands shaking compulsively, tangled in each other, the breathing getting faster and faster searching for a blow of fresh air, the quick movement of his dark eyes, the nervous smile creeping up on his lips, the suffocating waiting for the cards to be turned. And, after, the reward, compensating all this suffering. Unbelievable amounts of money earned just like that. Fast and easy money had always fascinated him. Since childhood days, spent in the streets deluding people, fooling them.

The rush of not knowing what would happen next. The rush of putting his life in risk for the next hit of cards. The feeling of having control but, at the same time, not having it at all. His little guilty pleasure that, soon, had taken over his life. But, most importantly, gambling made him feel safe and welcome, in a sick twisted way, but it did. For the night, he felt important and having a purpose in his life, even though that was just a way of his addiction to keep luring him back to play. Again, and again.

"What about a friendly round?"

The young male's eyes travel up to see a tall man, slightly older. He wasn't Korean, immaculately dressed in an expensive sleek suit, his black hair mingling with the gloom of the room. A cocky expression drawn in his face. A chill ran through his body, sensing the creepily aura the unknown man had. He eyes down at his chips, pondering if it was a good idea, and then back up. Why not?

"Sure. Sit down." The young man gestured nonchalantly, taking a sip of his drink, his gaze never leaving the man. From the moment the man sat, the murky brown hair male knew who he was, the grey-ish black shadows accentuated his define jaw lines and the deep eye orbits, the lazy light catching the mischievous glow of his skin. The younger man was quite impressed of seeing the latter, here in Seoul, especially in a humble illegal casino like this.

The black hair male sat, comfortably; grabbing immediately a cigar, lightening it, bringing it to his merlot lips and after, releasing the ashen grey smoke covering his face.

"What do I owe this pleasant surprise from a business man like you, here in Seoul?" The younger one asks curious. The man in front of him, which in some way he admired, never done anything, without a logical reason behind, and that assumed, still to discover, reason started to tingle the brown male's neck anxiously.