Chapter Text
Ga On twists and turns, trying to tackle the weighted blanket he gifted himself with his hefty paycheck. He had gotten promoted to the role of the Chief Judge just last week with great appreciation and cheers from the entirety of South Korea. He couldn’t face the crowd as they rushed to him with hearts in their eyes. He couldn’t face the new president without resenting the political system. He couldn’t bear to face Judge Oh Jin Joo because she knew why Ga On looked more depressed than he’s ever been.
When the once-shiny metallic name plate with black letters of ‘Kang Yo Han’ engraved onto it was replaced with ‘Kim Ga On’, he couldn’t process the feeling of guilt. He needn’t have felt any of the pointless emotion; he tried his best every day at the court to make it out alive and gain justice, but without Judge Kang’s cruel ways of attaining whatever it was he required, his job got hard. Very hard.
Ga On woke with droplets of sweat glistening his skin. He felt suffocated, like in a vacuum, and went in to pour a drink for himself. His glass bottle of water was now replaced with a branded flask of strong alcohol that he was accustomed to drinking with an empty stomach. The burn was felt throughout his body and the zing woke him completely, zapping him away from his intrusive thoughts.
He pulled out a napkin and rubbed it swiftly across his forehead that was covered with matted, unwashed hair. He stared at himself in the mirror with disgust etching on each of his features. He looked like he was going through hell. He was, but he wouldn’t admit it. Without Kang Yo Han, things would always be hell.
He never thought that when the personification of devil would leave his life, world would become more hellish. Corruption was around like the wind. Crime rates unparalleled.
Ga On couldn’t comprehend how every functional part of his life was heading to doom. His life felt simpler before. He would say entitled, lawful shit. Screw up majorly. And miraculously, Kang Yo Han would come to save him, every single time. Kang Yo Han pushed and pulled him around, and Ga On loved to pretend he hated it—despised it even. But now he wished for nothing more than for Yo Han to be the Devil On His Shoulder and tell him to do what was right, even if it was technically wrong.
The meeting scheduled with the President was on the exact day Ga On had decided to look like a stoner. He quickly shaved, and put on his most expensive suit and headed to his car park. He danced around the Cadillac Yo Han had left him, making sure to not bang the massive door on his neighbor’s car. He slid in ungracefully and tried scrubbing off a coffee stain on his steering wheel at the same spot he had found a sticky note saying, “Don’t dare damage it.”
Ga On went into an empty conference room and sighed loudly, noting how he was late and yet nobody was at the table ready to grill him. He heard shouts of laughter and screeching at a distance, and braced himself for the gluttons coming his way. He bowed as each crazy man entered the room, and tried to put on his most convincing, ‘I’m not actually drunk.’ smile.
The conference—just as expected—was useless and extensive. The President was no better than the old one, and the system he had fought against with Yo Han was making a comeback, Ga On wasn’t prepared enough for. He lost a minute of his life every time he tried to put sense into any words said by anyone at the long table. When Ga On tried to make a valid point, laughs boomed in the room and fingers were all pointed in his direction.
“He has still not seen the world. It’s alright, all fine,” the president said each time with a giggle that was easily making Ga On red. It was always bad being laughed at by people, but it was definitely worse when clowns themselves thought you were one. The rest of their discussions about wives and wines was faded out of his brain and a slow, steady voice made its way through the chaotic silence.
“Do it well. If you don’t, I’ll come back.” Hallucination is never preferred. Ga On thought he must have really hit a new low now that he went beyond dreaming about Yo Han around him. His imagination, he thought, had gotten extremely realistic with how stealthily he had felt Yo Han’s hand slide across his chair. With how accurate the glint of pomposity was in his voice.
“No, it can’t be,” Ga On murmured and wasted not a second more before rushing out of the office room, not bothering to inform anyone. No one cared, and it wasn’t like Ga On cared too much either. He possibly had the chance of meeting Yo Han out there, to rush to Yo Han, to punch Yo Han straight in his face, and then crush into him undoubtedly.
He ran. A lot.
“Kang Yo Han,” he croaked, a wide distance between them. And then screamed the same three syllables, not minding anyone surrounding him. Said man turned around, dressed like a Grim Reaper. His half smile making Ga On teary-eyed for reasons unknown. Ga On couldn’t move. His feet stuck to the ground without his consent. His breath hitching and mouth quivering. “Kang Yo Han,” he mouthed again, pushing his lips to form something resembling a smile.
“Kim Ga On,” Yo Han said, mimicking Ga On’s gestures and raising his eyebrows, knowing how intensely it provoked the latter. Ga On choked out a laugh and Yo Han’s eyes seemed to light up. Yo Han bit his lip and tried for a smile again, right before turning around and walking away from the scene, making Ga On question his sanity.
“No. Hell no,” Ga On shivered. “He’s not leaving me in shambles again.”
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“Associate Judge Oh,” Ga On spoke into the phone after finally reaching Oh Jin Joo. He should’ve known how hard it was going to be for her to pick up because now she was spending every Saturday at rich people parties, with Ga On’s passes he was never personally interested in. “Call me Jin Joooo!!!” She slurred.
“I’m leaving the country for a couple da—weeks,” he started carefully.
“Where you heading to?”
“Zurich,” he replied, making sure to not give away too much information.
“My god, why?” She snickered.
“Just got a call stating that I actually have a brother situated in Switzerland, who is probably in his last few months right now,” Ga On said, knowing at this point he could get away with telling her anything.
“Dude, that’s rad! Must be a rich brother you’ve got. Congrats.”
“Yes, so ‘Rad’,” Ga On chuckled and ended the call after feeling at peace about the fact that someone was informed about his departure.
He sent an official email to the Court Show directors, mentioning something about how he would be gone for an indefinite time period due to a family emergency. Not exactly a lie, considering how he truly felt about Yo Han and his niece.
“Switzerland, here I come,” he announced to his empty condo, his heart fluttering in inexplicable ways.