Flowers Are Bait

Chapter 170:

As Gyu-baek continued down the never-ending hallway, his heart pounded in his chest like a jackhammer. He could feel the sweat beading on his forehead and his breath coming in short gasps.

The smooth, slippery surface of the marble floor seemed to conspire against him, causing him to lose his footing with every step.

His toes screamed in agony as he clenched them tightly in his shoes, trying to maintain his balance.

Despite the darkness that surrounded him, he could feel the weight of the oppressive black walls pressing in on him from all sides.

There was no respite, no escape from this endless maze of black marble and wooden walls.

Gyu-baek felt a desperate need to break free from this suffocating environment, to see something other than the darkness that surrounded him. His mind drifted to the familiar comfort of a blank sheet of paper, waiting to be filled with the black ink of his pen.

Gyu-baek can memorize an entire book, but a place like this was making him busy that he kept on hitting his head.

It has been a month since he came into this maze.

Back in the truck, Gyu-baek fell asleep observing a scorpion in the trunk then he frowned at the sudden light from sun. The first thing he saw was some tough looking men.

“… Sir, was there a person in the list of things you picked up?”

“Who the hell put this thing in here…!”

“What are you all talking about?”

The men all gathered around the trunk. Gyu-baek tried to slide back but there was nowhere else to go.

“Do you think he’s young master’s child?”

“Think before you speak. He wouldn’t have a child!”

His subjects all chatted amongst themselves.

“Stop saying something so gooey and romantic.” The biggest man in the group frowned.

Kwon Chae-woo was so heartless that he would carry on the torture himself, so there was no way such cruel man would have a normal relationship.

Thinking about him having a kid itself was disgusting.

He immediately reported the wrong object that was picked up and Jang Beom-hee held Gyu-baek’s neck at the unexpected situation.

Gyu-baek was then dragged to some random dog house.

“I’m not a dog. These are not feet, they’re arms….!”

Gyu-baek was waving his hands and tried to persuade them, but he ended up being shoved into a chicken coup he was barely able to fit. There were other children with their heads sticking out while looking dead in the eyes.

“I’m not a chicken. I’m, I’m…”

He was used to being the observer, not the observed, but now he found himself trapped in a situation beyond his control.

But being locked up in such a small place for the first time made him so upset that he was all flared up. His tears were dropping.

“Japanese Giant Hornet, Hormiga Veinticuatro, African honeybee, soldier ants, botfl…” The child was grinding his teeth while reiterating what is known to be the most dangerous insects on Earth to find comfort.

The food they provided was dog food and what little water they gave tasted like steel.

Gyu-baek thought of the director’s male (Kwon Chae-woo) during all this.

The director’s male who was in good shape, strong, strong teeth and strong back legs.

As he was reminiscing the male he was missing, Jang Beom-hee came to see Gyu-baek.

As Jang Beom-hee looked at the child who wouldn’t calm down, his face was a mixture of emotions. But he seemed to have made a decision.

“Follow me,” he said, his voice gentle yet firm.

Gyu-baek didn’t know what to expect as he followed Jang Beom-hee, but he was surprised to find that the second place was the complete opposite of the dog house. The sunlit stairs led them to a han-ok, a traditional Korean house that made Gyu-baek tilt his head backward just to look at its grand size.

The house was surrounded by a stunning garden, bathed in sunlight and filled with the most beautiful array of flowers that Gyu-baek had ever seen. The scent of blooming flowers filled the air, and birds sang joyfully in the trees.

Gyu-baek’s mouth opened wide in wonder, overwhelmed by the beauty that surrounded him. For a moment, he forgot all about his previous confinement in the chicken coop, lost in the magic of this new place.

In the house that the child followed Jang Beom-hee into was a silhouette of a man looking out the window.

He was standing against the light so it was more of a shadow.

“Is it that child?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Wash him up and put him in a room.”

“Then…”

“He’ll come on his own.”

As soon as the man turned around, Gyu-baek felt a chill run down his spine.

He clenched his eyes shut, unable to face the cold gaze that was directed towards him. Even as he was dragged out like a sack of potatoes, he kept his eyes closed, unwilling to meet the man’s eyes.

Thus began Gyu-baek’s life of luxurious imprisonment. He was given everything he needed – a roof over his head, food to eat, and clothes to wear.

But he was still a prisoner, and the gilded cage he lived in did not make up for the loss of his freedom.

Every day, Gyu-baek would run down the hallway, trying to escape.

He wanted to go back to the Spruce Hospital, to the fertilizer that the Director made and Choo-ja’s fancy nails.

He missed the familiarity of his old life, even if it was far from perfect.

“Director!” he would shout, hoping to catch someone’s attention and make a break for it. But each attempt was in vain, and he would always find himself back in his luxurious prison. The attendee of the mansion glanced back, sighed and was radioed someone. There was more so of annoyance than alert.

This place was like a cave that kept on getting deeper. Then for the first time, he found a door.

“….!”

Gyu-baek alertly heard the footsteps that were chasing him so he opened the door.

The room was so quiet that it felt chill. The humidifier blasting mist and periodic sound. Gyu-baek blinked exactly three times then opened his eyes.

“…. It’s the male.”