Player 457

Chapter 2: "Ddakji"

I stand up, clenching the blue paper in my right fist. Staring into the floor before me, I raise my right arm in a striking position.

I am focused, and calm. If I can play well, I'll end up getting easy money from this childish game.

I throw the paper to the floor. It lands with a hard smack. It bounces a little, but flaps back to the ground. It didn't flip.

"I- wait-" I stutter, as the Salesman stands up. He holds the red paper in his hand, and throws it to the ground. It makes a powerful landing, flipping all the way over.

Unbelievable.

He turns back to me and grins. "I believe you owe me 100,000 won now."

My mouth gapes open.

"Um, the thing is-"

"Don't worry. I know you don't have that kind of money right now."

A sigh of relief slips out of my mouth.

"Instead, you can pay with your body."

Hold up.

My cheeks warm up in embarrassment. "Ok, listen mister, I don't know what kind of sick creep you are, but-"

"I'll take off 100,000 won for each slap." He clarifies. Somehow, his voice is still calm.

"I- Slap? Um, where?"

"Your face, of course."

"Oh. Um, yeah, that makes sense. Right." I stutter.

"So how about it."

I breathe deeply, bracing myself. "Go ahead."

He raises his arm back, and slaps me hard across my cheek. It leaves a burning, tingling sensation. It hurts. Really bad.

I cradle my cheek, cursing. It's painful, but I still want to keep trying.

"Let me try again." I say, still wincing from the slap.

I throw the paper to the floor, with another SMACK.

It doesn't flip over.

The salesman raises his eyebrow, then takes his turn.

SMACK

It easily flips over.

I brace myself once more. He slaps me again.

"Again" I say, breathlessly.

My paper flies to the floor.

SMACK

It doesn't flip over.

The salesman throws his to the ground.

SMACK

Then another smack, as he slaps me.

The cycle of this repeats over and over. I lose track of how long we've been standing here, and how many times I've been hit.

Ok. This time, I'll actually win.

Closing my eyes, I take a deep breath. I raise my hand, and throw down the paper with as much force as I can muster.

SMACK

I peek my eyes open, just slightly.

It flipped.

"YESSS LETS FUCKING GO" I holler in triumph, jumping up and down.

I run closer to the salesman, and grab the front of his shirt. My open palm is raised and ready.

"You little-" I start, swinging my hand down to make impact with his smug face.

He catches my hand quickly. "Miss? The 100,000 won?"

Oh. Fuck. I wanted to slap some sense into that bastard.

"Ah. Ok..."

He quickly lifts two crisp yellow bills from his briefcase. The faintly smiling face of Saimdong greets my eyes.

"Here you go." He says, handing me the money. "Your welcome, miss."

I stare at the paper in my hands giddily. I just made money. How much food could I buy with this? Although, it would be smart to put it aside to pay for my debt.

"You know, there are other games like this where you can make even more." The salesman pauses. "It must sound tempting, right?"

I scoff. How stupid does this guy think I am. "Listen ahjussi, I'm poor. Not an idiot. This is probably some kind of new pyramid scheme, and I am desperate; But not that desperate."

The man before me cleared his throat, and glanced at his wrist watch. "Earlier, you signed away your physical rights. Your name, Kwon Haesu. 25 years old. You lived in an orphanage in Seonyu-ro. You attended Seonyu high school. After aging out, you worked part time at Haneul Convenience Store. You made deals with gangs, took out loans from them, and eventually deserted them. You owe 170 million won to loan sharks, and 50 million to the bank.

My stomach sinks. "Who are you? How the hell do you know all of that?"

The man carefully slipped out a brown business card from his jacket pocket. He placed it carefully in my hand.

On the front, in black ink, there was a circle, triangle, and a square. I flipped the card over, and saw a phone number.

8650 4006.

The salesman smiled warmly. "Just think about it, ok? We don't have many spots left.

With that, the subway doors opened. The salesman calmly closed his briefcase, and marched into the subway. I watched from the bench, still in awe. He, now inside of the train, grabbed onto a handle. The doors slowly closed.

I glanced back at the card in my hands. I noticed my cracked and dirty skin.

8650 4006.

...Maybe I was that desperate.

*( note: I hope that everyone that reads this is enjoying my shit writing, lol. I promise things are going to start moving a little faster starting next chapter. I'm going to try to update at least once a day, maybe more if I have some free time. This is purely fan fiction, so if I get any details wrong... uhhh... artistic expression!!! Anyway, I apologize for the long note. Please have fun during your time here, and hit that star button if you are enjoying! )*