PASSION

Chapter 18

Seringue.

***

The man's first impression was very silent and blunt. He was a little over 30, maybe close to 40. A face that was hard to guess the age was mixed in the crowd in front of the gate.

It looked surprisingly soft and friendly when he smiled with a couple of wrinkles around his eyes with the tip of his mouth raised carefully, but unfortunately, the man did not smile very well. Almost all of them adhered to an expressionless face and a mouth that could not open.

As soon as he got out of the gate, the man immediately stood out among many people who surrounded him and waited for customers, friends, family members, or engaged in solicitation. In Johannesburg, the stopover that left three and a half hours ago, there were quite a few whites, but Dar es Salam International Airport was all black. Among them, he stood out because he was a white man standing alone.

Inside a small airport building, which doesn't look much different from any other rural bus terminal, the man straightened up when he saw them exiting the gate.

"Long time no see, Rick."

There was no light of welcome or joy on the man's face, who reached out for the first time in a while. It was only after a blunt formal handshake with Ilay that the man looked back at Jeong Tae-ui. Still reaching out with a smileless face, he said.

"Mr. Jeong Tae-ui? I heard from the boss. Good to meet you. It's called Yuri Gable."

"Oh...Nice to meet you. I'm Jeong Tae-ui."

He thought his name sounded somewhat awkward, and Jeong Tae-ui held his hand.

He didn't know there would be someone to meet. He thought he should fly all the way there without any measures and ask the hotel at the information center.

Jeong Tae-ui, who was reflecting on his name after saying, "Yuri Gable," recalled his memory only then. He has heard it before. He is a man under Kyle who wanders around the Middle East in search of Jeong Jae-ui's whereabouts. Then he eventually found a clue.

Jeong Tae-ui glanced at Ilay. Ilay was looking around the airport with an indifferent face.

"A small group."

"Is it your first time in Africa? In Africa, most international airports are about this size. Johannesburg Airport is unusually large."

Gable said business likely and turned around and walked out.

Jeong Tae-ui quickly followed him, who seemed to have no sign of waiting.

"I've been waiting for a long time. It took longer than I thought to get a visa."

He thought it would come out soon because it was a local visa, but the work process was slow. So in the end, most of the other people could only come out of the gate. But he didn't expect anyone to wait, so he came out relaxed.

"If I had known you'd be waiting, I would have been in a hurry. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Jeong Tae-ui."

Jeong Tae-ui looked at him politely and answered. As expected, he has a clear pronunciation. However, when he saw that the words slowed down a little only in the case of Jeong Tae-ui, he felt like he was paying special attention to pronunciation. Jeong Tae-ui laughed.

"You can just call me Tae. Feel free to speak."

Gable nodded, but he didn't say much. It's been a long time since he has seen such a quiet and blunt Westerner. Of course, he saw a few quiet guests while staying at Kyle's house and it was difficult to talk to Peter until he got close to the gardener, but this man is even more special.