“Oh. I guess that makes sense.”
“No, it doesn't,” said Denny, laughing. “Damn, do you ever disagree with anybody?”
Eunjae thought about it. “No. Not really. At least, not out loud.”
Denny laughed some more. “Well, you should. You might even be good at it.”
Again, Eunjae felt that laugh all around him, boisterous and joyful as a game of tag. Although the conversation with Jungwoo remained an open wound, he ended up laughing too. And then he remembered he was supposed to be asking for help.
“I was wondering,” Eunjae tried again, “if you could help me buy a plane ticket.”
Denny narrowed his eyes. He set his phone down on the countertop, hitting Eunjae with the full force of his scrutiny. “What did you say?”
“A plane ticket.”
Sit up straight!ordered Invisible Jaehwan.This is not the posture of a winner!
Eunjae hurriedly corrected his posture. “I need to buy one. But I have to figure out how to do it without anyone tracing the card to my actual location.”
“You want to buy a plane ticket and leave? You've finally had enough of our hospitality?” He cracked a knuckle, then another. “You don’t care that Yeonnie will be sad to see you go?”
“She’d be sad? About me? Really?”
“Answer the original question! Why do you suddenly need to buy a plane ticket?” But before Eunjae could respond, Denny’s face lit up with comprehension. “Nah, that's not it. You don't want to leave. You want them tothinkyou left. And you don’t want them to know you’rehere. In this apartment. Eating my food and wearing my clothes.”
“Yeah,” said Eunjae, nodding urgently. “I think this will get me at least a few more days. I just need… a little more time.” He bowed. “And thank you for the food and the clothes.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll invoice you later. Who'sthemin this situation?”
“I can't tell you. I’m sorry.”
“Trick question,” gloated Denny. “It's Interpol. I knew that already. And how can you be sure this card of yours will work? It might have been canceled, or it could trigger an alert when it's used in a different country.”
“They wouldn't have canceled it. That card is the only way I can pay for anything unless I use cash, so they'll be waiting to see if I use it.”
“Right.” Denny stretched the word from one syllable to at least four. He crossed his arms, reverting to what Eunjae had come to think of as his habitual forbidding expression. “And you thought I'd be the best one to ask about this because…?”
Eunjae sat up even straighter, a feat he hadn't originally considered possible. “Because you have resources,” he replied, serious as the printed program for a funeral. A funeral which might very well be his own, if Denny Han suddenly felt like punting him into the nearest asteroid belt.
The ensuing silence lasted just long enough for Eunjae's life to flash before his eyes. And then Denny grinned at him, all dimples and teeth.
“Correct. So are you flying economy or coach?”
19
“DoIwanttoknow what you and my brother were scheming about in the kitchen last night?”
Eunjae stood at a crosswalk next to Jiyeon, holding a massive umbrella over their heads. The trek back from the library had morphed into a waterlogged gauntlet, made perhaps a little too exciting by the threat of getting splashed as cars went by. He adjusted his grip on the umbrella and replied, “Probably not.”
“Hmm.”
“The thinking noise. I'm in for it now.”
She laughed. “Don't bother offering me a penny for my thoughts. I don’t want your pennies. I don’t care if you have ten whole pennies, even. I've decided I'll just avoid thinking about all the trouble you and Den could get into. Got it? I have no thoughts about it. Zero.”
The pedestrian light turned green. Eunjae turned out the lefthand pocket of his borrowed rain jacket as they crossed, emphasizing its emptiness. “Couldn't afford your thoughts anyway. I'm broke. I could pay you with a song, I guess.”
Jiyeon glanced over at him. “You can sing? Really?”
