Whispers Before Dawn

Chapter 7

A peculiar rumor had reached Chang In's ears, and he wasn't quite sure how to digest it.

"Rick is currently dating an Asian, someone who was calling him by a name that can't be spoken."

It wasn't the kind of gossip Chang In usually gave much thought to, but this one struck a strange chord. In all his years, he had never heard anyone call Rick 'Ilay'—except for his family. Well, his family and, once, his own nephew, Tae-ui. And Tae-ui, after all, was also Asian.

The thought made Chang In's stomach twist uncomfortably. No, it couldn't be. If Tae-ui were in Hong Kong, he would have told me, wouldn't he? Chang In mused, trying to dismiss the suspicion that had crept into his mind. But the rumor lingered, nagging at him in the back of his mind—the strangest he'd heard in a long while.

Unable to shake the curiosity, Chang In decided to bring it up, casually, when he crossed paths with Rick later that day.

"Rick, have you heard the latest rumor about you?" Chang In asked, laughing as he made the question sound light, teasing, even though the curiosity weighed heavily on him.

Ilay—Rick—glanced at him with a half-smile, something guarded flickering in his eyes. "I've heard it in passing..."

"And? What's your take on it?" Chang In prodded, his laugh trailing off, watching Rick carefully.

Ilay didn't answer right away, his expression unreadable. "If you believe in rumors, then it's true" he said cryptically, his tone casual but deliberate. "Otherwise, it's not."

The answer sent a jolt through Chang In's thoughts. Rick didn't outright deny it. Usually, if there was no truth to a rumor, Rick would've brushed it off as nonsense, ending the conversation on the spot. But this response—ambiguous, cryptic—meant something else. There was truth buried in the rumor, and Chang In could feel it.

As Rick walked away, Chang In's mind whirled with the bits and pieces he'd seen over the past few months. Little interactions between Tae-ui and Rick that he had brushed off as harmless, coincidences. But now, all those moments seemed to point in one direction—a direction Chang In was unwilling, deliberately, to look toward.

Could Tae-ui really be the one involved with Rick? The thought lingered, heavy and undeniable, despite how much Chang In wanted to ignore it.

******

One morning, Ilay's inbox pinged with a new message from an unknown contact. He raised an eyebrow, curious.

Subject: Missing you and your pretty hands
Attachment_1.png
Do you like the beach?

Ilay clicked on the attachment, and a smirk tugged at his lips. The image was of Tae-ui, standing on a beach with his back to the camera, wearing only a pair of shorts. The blue ocean stretched out in front of him, and the whole scene felt carefree—like a playful taunt.

Ilay's fingers hovered over the keyboard for only a second before he typed his reply:

Ilay:
Sure, I've always wanted to try Sex on the Beach.

He hit send, leaning back in his chair, amused. But when he checked his inbox moments later, the response made him raise an eyebrow.

Reply:
USER NOT FOUND

Ilay blinked, staring at the screen in disbelief. Before he could even process that, another email landed in his inbox a few minutes later, this time from the same mysterious contact.

Subject: Today's article feed
Body:

How to be a good tourist?Beach etiquettesHow to keep the beach clean?