Tuesday morning, 7am, Andy’s place

Minwoo was awakened by the sound of someone knocking on the door of the room he’d slept in.

“The boss said you wanted to be up at 7am”, a rough voice came through the door and Minwoo sat up in bed. He was still fully dressed, right down to his thick white socks with the words left and right sewn into the cotton across the appropriate set of toes.

“I’ll be down in a minute”, Minwoo said as he gout out of bed and looked around the room, there was a sink and mirror in one corner of the room and he went over to wash his face and found a brand new toothbrush inside a cup on the counter. He grabbed it and brushed his teeth, washing the foul taste of last nights soju out of his mouth, “Stupid Minwoo…. you know better than to drink like that when you have work the next day”, he mumbled to himself through a mouthful of toothpaste. He rinsed out his mouth, spit into the sink and rinsed it carefully before he left the room and went back downstairs. He could smell strong aromatic coffee in the air and when he reached the living room it was full of men dressed in the same kind of slick suit Andy had worn yesterday. The two men that had picked him up the night before looked at him and bowed slightly.

“We didn’t mean to scare you yesterday, Mr. Lee”, the taller of the two said and handed him a steaming hot mug of coffee, “sometimes we don’t listen that good…..”, he mumbled and went to sit on one of the couches. The other handed him something wrapped in a paper packet.

“We don’t usually do breakfast around here but I went out and found you some hottoek…. I hope that’s alright”, the man said, he was a similar height and build to Minwoo but more plain the in face. Minwoo opened the paper wrapper and steam rolled out, it scented the air with a sweet greasiness that made his mouth water and he took a bite, the filling was so hot he had to chew carefully to keep from burning his mouth.

“Where is Andy?”, Minwoo asked after a second bite of the sweet pancake.

“He hasn’t come out yet”, one of the other men said and pointed at the bedroom their boss had slept in the night before. Minwoo nodded and slipped the wrapped pancake into his pants pocket, its heat radiating against his leg, grabbed a second cup of coffee and headed in that direction. The men watched with curiosity as he used his foot to tap on the door and and used his elbow to to open the door and slip when there was no response.

“Wake up, Andy”, Minwoo said quietly as he flipped the light switch on and looked around the room. He saw a huddled figure in the middle of the bed, Andy sat upright with the blankets around his shoulders.

“One of the guy will take you home when you’re ready”, Andy said quietly, unable to look Minwoo in the eyes. He had been up half the night feeling terrible about he’d done and Minwoo in his room made him want to disappear.

“I brought you coffee”, Minwoo said and went over to the bed an sat on the edge of it and held the coffee out to the younger man. Andy took it reluctantly and held it in his hands as he peeked at Minwoo quickly then took a sip.

“Last night”, Andy said then pursed his lips slightly, “I shouldn’t have done that…. Eric or not. I’m really sorry about that. Sometimes I just get so jealous.” He whispered the last part. Minwoo scooted a little closer and slipped the pancake from his pocket. He carefully tore it in two and handed the younger man half of it. Andy accepted it gratefully and took a few bites and chewed them slowly before he began to speak in a soft voice.

“Every one of those guys is my friend, almost like brothers. We went to the same schools but after we graduated high school my life took a different path. While they all went to college and got their degrees, I struggled to survive. I did lots of things I’m not proud of…. things I’ve never even told them about. Besides the job at the massage parlor I also worked in a gay host bar, as a model, and I even considered but then one day I ran into Hyesung and he had just opened his drag club. He let me wait tables for awhile and work in the kitchen. Because of him I was able to save enough money to start as a loan shark and I managed to work my way up to where I am now.” Andy sipped his coffee and finished the pancake and looked at Minwoo to see his reaction. The older man had a soft expression on his face and when he reached out and placed his hand on Andy’s arm, the younger man blinked rapidly. “I saw a lot of ty things living like that and now I can help keep families out of trouble when they have no where else to turn,”

“You have no reason to be jealous……nothing has happened. Sure, I won’t deny there is some chemistry but I have a full plate myself. Once Hana get’s out of the hospital there will be physical therapy to do and she will have to pick up the pieces and mourn her boyfriend. A boyfriend of my own is the last thing I have on my mind.” Minwoo was trying to make Andy feel better somehow and when he saw one corner of Andy’s mouth lift he felt relieved.

“Also, I don’t think any less of you, knowing your past. Everyone has something they aren’t proud of”, Minwoo said as he took a drink of his coffee.

“This contract….. is is something you aren’t proud of?”, Andy asked, considering how difficult this must be for Minwoo.

Minwoo chuckled and shook his head,” Oh no, there are many, many more things that I’ve done that I’m not proud of. This is merely a business transaction, right?”

“In a way yes….. but I think that all of us want to be your friend when it’s all over. I hope you won’t mind”, Andy said in a bashful tone, looking like a kid once again. Minwoo grinned and reached out to ruffle Andy’s hair.

“I don’t see why not…… but no more massages, Andy-ah”, Minwoo’s tone was playful but both men knew he was serious. They sat silently and thought about the conversation and finished their meager breakfast. Andy cleared his throat as he slid out of bed.

“You should probably get ready for work now, I’ll have the guys take you back to your house when your ready”, Andy said as he turned to head for the bathroom attached to his bedroom. “Just give one of them your account number and I’ll make sure the deposit is taken care of.” Andy suddenly felt awkward and as he walked away he felt Minwoo’s hand on his arm. When he turned he saw that Minwoo had a smile on his face.

“I can’t get at least a hug? That’s what friends do after all”, Minwoo said cheerfully. Andy’s cheeks went red and he nodded his head slightly. Minwoo turned him and pulled the slight man into his arms and hugged him for a second before he released him. Andy gave him a goofy grin and ran away and went into the bathroom and shut the door. He waited until he heard his bedroom door shut before he let out a giggle.

“He’s so adorable! No wonder Eric wanted to help him.”

The drive back to Minwoo’s house was a silent ride and when the thugs let him out they all wished him a good day at work before they drove off.

“Two down, three to go”, Minwoo said to himself as he got into his truck and drove to the hospital. Hana was sleeping peacefully when he got there, the machines doing less of the work for her than the day before. Her nurse went to get Dr. Choi and when the older man got there, he and Minwoo sat in the chairs beside the bed.

“Mr. Lee, I feel that Hana could wake up at any time now. We did a CAT scan and her cranial swelling has gone down completely. At this point it’s just a waiting game.”

Minwoo gripped the arms of the chair and leaned forward a little, “Really? She’s doing that well already?”

“We believe so, but she still hasn’t stirred at all. Make sure that we can get in touch with you if she does, I’m sure she will want to see you as soon as she wakes up”, Dr. Choi said. He was about to say something else but just then Minwoo’s phone went off. He slipped it out of his pocket to look at it. It was a text saying that the full amount from Andy had been deposited.

“If you will excuse