LEFT WITH WORDS || KIM TAEHYUNG

Chapter 3: My Hope

"How is your dad doing?" Hobi broke the silence as he took a stroll with Tae in the campus.

"As usual. Drunk all day. Yesterday he assumed that I quit my job when he noticed a frustrated look on my face. Even I didn't tell anything. It's better off with him thinking that I'm jobless. Then he won't ask for my money anymore"

"By the way, when did you give the negative to her yesterday?" 

"Around 5pm I guess. Right before she left. She said that she'd hand it over to the filming crew today morning, 'cause they already left by that time"

"Why doesn't the manager trust you?" 

"It's not that he doesn't trust me. He just trusts Lee Su Ni more" Hobi answered coolly with hands in his pocket like he was prepared to be fired.

"But why? She's your junior above all!" 

"And also-" he looked at Tae and continued "a girl"

Tae stopped, while Hobi explained "She seduces the manager a lot. In fact, she might even be sleeping with him"

"What?"

"That's how one grows in the film industry dude, by impressing their seniors in whatever way they can" He replied without a change in his tone

"Then consider me stuck as an asst. script writer forever, until I too get fired."

"Anyways, let's search around the place for the negative. Don't lose hope, Hobi. I'm sure we'll find it" 

"But what's the point even if we find it? Because of what happened, no one would ever trust me. Let alone talk to me" 

"Hmm. For that, we must clear your name from suspicion" 

Along with other workers, they searched for the negative in all the floors, only to find nothing.  

As they passed by Su Ni's place, Tae found his watch beside her handbag. 

"This is it!" he shouted excitedly.

"Isn't that your watch?" Hobi almost picked it up, when Tae stopped him.

"Let it be. First let's head to the bar that's after my house" he said, and stroded towards the exit. Being clueless, Hobi followed him. 

Tae stopped a cab outside the building, and both of them got into it. After he named the destination to the diver, Hobi enquired why they were headed to the bar. 

"Actually, yesterday night I left my watch in the bus"

IU's Blueming was playing in the stereo. As much as Tae wanted to listen, the song didn't correspond to the serious situation he was in, so he felt relieved when it ended.

"Why did you leave it?" Hobi asked.

"Well...a bad memory crossed my mind during the journey. It was lying broken since long anyway. So thought better to get rid of it. But it seems like Lee Su Ni found it"

"But how?" 

"Look, after my stop there are only two bus stops until the main bus station. Do you remember mentioning to me where she stays?"

Hobi widened his eyes. 

"Yes, she stays near the last stop of the bus. And the next stop after my house is where the bar is. So yesterday if she found my watch, it means after drinking in the bar, she waited for the bus and got into it. In the morning she must've searched for the negative in her house, but obviously didn't find it."