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The whole apartment is dark, but he doesn't bother about finding the light switch because it isn't going to work anyways. He's behind on his payment for electricity, water, and gas. Taehyun carefully takes of the expensive black fur coat and folds it with precision before putting it on the only chair he owns.
He immediately starts to feel how cold and the man shivers. He pressed his teeth together as he takes off the white shirt. He takes extra care of it because it is made from silk and one of the most expensive shirts he owns.
He puts it on a hanger and hangs it into his wardrobe. There are more shirts of all colors and designs; everything wears names of important brand names that most people only know from the distance.
The freezing air hits his skin and lets goosebumps appear all over it, but Taehyun pays no heed to it and continues with his black pants. He finds a stain on it while he folds it and the man thrashes it into a corner of the room. He lets out a shout in anger and grabs his hair in frustration.
It's ruined! I can't use it again...
I must buy a new one.
Taehyun groans and staggers towards the mattress on the ground. He drops on his knees and rolls his body into the blanket. The fabric is cold, but he knows it will turn warm soon enough. His head finds the pillow and he closes his eyes, trying to find sleep.
It's absolute silence in his apartment, but it's not silent in his head. He keeps worrying about how the stain got onto his pants and how he is going to pay for a new one. The month is far from over and he has already paid a lot for that bag from Italy.
He wonders how many meals he will have to skip, wonders if the money will be enough to pay for the rent next month, wonders if he can even go to one more party without overdrawing his bank account.
Not once does he ask himself if the new pair of pants can wait or if he should refund the bag.
This is the truth about Kang Taehyun
He is not rich.
Taehyun is a poor college student, who barely makes it by the end of the month every time. He works several part times jobs to buy all the brand stuff he owns. He has been buying those expensive items for years and has neglected other things for it, like food, sleep or paying his bills.
He doesn't live in a big mansion with butlers and maids following his every wish.
He lives at the corner of Seoul where only the scum resides. His flat is small, and the bathroom is close to the size of a public toilet stall. In theory, he could shower and use the toilet at the same time. He can't afford more than that.
His parents don't own famous companies.
His parents are dead and even before that, they were both two nobodies. His father drank a lot and never had a job, while his mother had to overwork herself to feed the family.
Why all the lies? Why not put his money into more important things?
Taehyun has been poor his whole life. He has experienced how poor people are treated by those who have more. All his life he had been nothing but a shadow - a being barely worth living in the eyes of others.
He had been called a bum, beggar, cockroach, and useless piece of shit so many times. Growing up without his parents' love and losing all his friends had made him lonely and bitter, but Taehyun had also learned something. The more money you had; the more people respected you.
He couldn't change the fact that he is poor, so he just became a rich man on the surface. He dresses in expensive clothes, buys the newest and hottest stuff to show off. Taehyun pays the drinks of people he has never met before and it works like a miracle.
Suddenly, everyone loves him, and he is in the spotlight no matter where he goes. People look at him with envy in their eyes. He feels strong when he notices their gazes on him -the silent admiration in their eyes because he has a lot of money.
The man knows that the admiration in their eyes is as fake as his web of lies, but he doesn't care. All he needs is their gazes, the crowd surrounding him and showering him with attention. It's worth not eating for days or weeks if he can be a star in return - a sparkling star that everyone looks up to.
It's worth almost freezing to death in his flat if he can feel warm for a few hours between the bodies on the dance floor. It's worth neglecting his sleep by learning for his studies if it gets him the admiration of the whole student body in return.
It's worth being a fake.
That's what he tells himself every time he can't fall asleep - that all of this is worth it because outside his apartment he can be someone else. He can be the king of fools.
The ace of hearts.
He can be perfect.
The man notices that he can't fall asleep, so he grabs the book about human anatomy that is lying next to his mattress. Taehyun uses a flashlight to throw some light on it to read.
Better make use of the time instead of just lying around.
His first job starts in 3 hours, but he makes use of every minute to learn for his upcoming exam - until he falls asleep with his head resting on the book.
The flashlight starts to flicker ten minutes later and soon dies, but that goes unnoticed by the sleeping male.
Otherwise, he would be worrying about the costs of new batteries already.
