Chapter 46 - Hunting 2

A short and overweight man, with hair thin on top and sporting a wan and careless appearance, entered the cafe. He was rubbing his hands from cold and, from the shimmering drops on his shoulders and greasy hair, there was light rain outside.

Eun Ha looked away from the cafe's new client to pull the curtain beside her and peer around the corner where she had left the Hunter.

But Professor Shin was there, like an lurking giant owl in overcoat and hat, under the light pole, holding his duffel bag, looking vigilant. Eun Ha had an unpleasant déjà vu, rubbed her arms trying to dismiss the chilling feels, and looked away, not knowing what was worse: being inside the suffocating cafe, or outside with her tutor.

Probably tonight, for whatever that Hunter hunted, both.

Eun Ha's gaze turned back to the newcomer. The man looked annoyed with the noisy couple, looking at them with suspicion and contempt. Completely ignoring Eun Ha, he walked over to the counter where the Confectioner was, in a careless and ostensibly gait. Though she had a feeling this nasty-looking man was a troublemaker, Eun Ha just had an idea, and needed to check its viability. She got up to go to the restroom, past them.

The door to the only restroom available was next the kitchen door, on the side of the counter. When passing near the men talking quietly, she heard:

"I thought I was clear, Mr. Lee. I need my money today..."

The monotone reply was: "You may take what's in the cashier today."

"And what you've got today, huh? I see your cakes are rotting on the shelf."

Eun Ha purposely opened the kitchen door and peered inside, pretending to be mistaken on what door was the restroom's. She saw the woman absently tossing the contents of a box into the trash can. The kitchen was clean, but bleak and cold; quite unlike the wonderful cozy and happy kitchen at Jolly Bakery, where she grew up in. The woman turned to her with a startled look, and Eun Ha nodded apologetically and closed the door in mock embarrassment. Also realizing the gaze of the two men over her, she hurried to the restroom.

Suddenly the lamp above her head, the one that flickered with a strange noise, made a loud noise and went out completely. Eun Ha got a scare, almost jump from fright. She heard behind him the loud, rather unpleasant laugh of the newcomer client.

"The girl need not be afraid of a mere burnt out lamp. Need to be afraid of what you'll find in the restroom! Guess what, hahahaha?!"

Eun Ha looked back over her shoulder, unsure if she should answer, but the cafe owner spoke_in a voice that sounded irritated but powerless to react. "Don't keep my customers off with empty hints, Mr. Kim!"

"Why? Might the girl BE MISLEAD TO BELIEVE there's a ahem, mouse, or more than one, in there?"

'Oh, gross! Why did he have to talk about rats?! How am I going to get in the restroom now?' Eun Ha was disgusted of thinking she might find a rat inside the restroom already.

"Stop it, I can't pay you that way."

'Is he being blackmailed by this nasty guy? ' She took a deep breath, and opened the bathroom door. But there was nothing there ready to squeal and run toward her feet; it was a reasonably clean, but rather old bathroom, with cracked and grimy tiles.

'Omo, omo, what do I do now?' She gripped her wand tightly and looked in the mirror. For a moment she had the impression that she had seen something move near her in a glimpse, but there was nothing there. The n.a.k.e.d light marked her expressions and shadowed her face, and she realized that her hair was soggy and frizzy looking since hours ago. 'Omo, I'm hideous! If there's a monster here, it will be the one scared instead. Haha ha. Better get this fixed.'

She again felt a strange sensation in the tip of her ear, but reached into her bag and pulled out a hairbrush, quickly straightening her hair as best as she could in those conditions.

'If I'm going to ruin the bathroom hopelessly, better use it now, right?' She put the brush away and reached in and began to lower the waistband of her black pantaloon. Her gaze darted to the empty bathroom corner as she sat on the toilet. Her heart pounded strangely, and she stopped in the middle of her sitting movement.

Outside, the conversation near the bathroom door could be heard, though a bit muffled. She could only understand a few parts, because the man who entered the cafe after her was speaking louder and cynically, pressing on the Confectioner. Eun Ha was starting to get mad at this idiot.

"You think my family can be content living in misery? We are about to be evicted, Mr. Lee! And it's your fault! Yours alone! Get it over with! I don't like or wish to keep coming in here every week, or even messing up your business, but I can't wait any longer…"

"…What can I do, I don't have any money left. Even here, we are covered in debt."

"…I've said already what can solve this thing between the two of us. I will leave you alone once you do it. Once for all. I have a buyer for your industrial mixer. At least my debts also can be reduced and I can accept this much as the total of what you owe me. I can be this nice. And if I can sell it early by the morning, I also can pay my rent tomorrow."

"...I said I can't, the factory machinery and everything inside the building are going to be collected for public auction; that's all I know, and…"

"Don't be like that… What can I say, huh? May your current location be made public to your other creditors will make you feel like I feel? How can I be the one being bothered by creditors while you are living peacefully…?"

'Aishh, I'm going to turn this freak into the frog he already looks like!' she thought, rolling her wand on her leg in anxiety. The bathroom door looked like it was going to crack open, or so it felt to her, and she finished quickly, washing her hands, but the water running noise apparently reminded them that a stranger might be listening to their conversation. A heavy silence followed, while she struggled to turn off the faucet til the end, with no success. It kept dripping water after her use. Eun Ha leaned and forced a bit more the faucet handle, and felt a presence looming behind her, big and dark. With a hasty move, she expired the air of her lungs and turned, raising her wand ready.