Time slipped by in mere minutes, following the incident where the flirtatious cop used cunning tactics to catch the soft-faced criminal.
Screech... crash...
The screech of brakes pierced the air, followed by a thunderous collision. The impact sent Asanai lurching forward, his body slamming against the steering wheel before the seatbelt yanked him back into his seat.
The young man pulled the handbrake and scrambled out of his car, ready to unleash his fury on the other driver. His brand-new car—still bearing its red license plate—had barely kissed the asphalt for a full day before getting rear-ended.
The culprit was a sleek black Mercedes, S-Class, clearly expensive. Good. At least the owner had deep pockets, making negotiations simpler and quicker. Last time, when an old pickup truck had rear-ended him, instead of receiving compensation, he'd ended up paying the driver because the man's young son had smashed his face against the console, nearly losing all his teeth. Asanai had felt sorry for the child and covered the medical expenses. The boy's mother had thanked him profusely and now worked as a housekeeper at his company.
The other driver emerged from his vehicle—a tall man in a dark suit, slightly taller than Asanai himself. His face remained impassive, showing no trace of panic or distress.
For a fleeting moment, Asanai felt a strange sense of familiarity. That face looked familiar, though he couldn't place where he'd seen it before.
"I apologize. I didn't mean to rear-end you. I've already called my insurance—they should be here shortly." The stern-looking man spoke softly, his voice deep and measured, each word carrying weight.
Asanai's anger simmered—a natural response to having one's car hit, especially a brand-new, expensive vehicle that had barely seen a day of use.
"If you'd meant to hit me, my car would be scrap metal by now," he couldn't help but retort sarcastically.
"I don't think it would be that bad. Your car seems sturdy enough—otherwise, they wouldn't be selling it for seven or eight million," the stone-faced man replied, pretending not to notice the sarcasm.
"How were you even driving? How did you manage to hit me? What a waste of time."
"I wasn't trying to hit you. Besides, I think you stopped rather suddenly."
Asanai bristled at the criticism. "I didn't stop—I slowed down. Someone was crossing the street, so I had to brake. Otherwise, they'd be flattened on the asphalt by now."
"I had to brake too, because I didn't want to crash into your beautiful car. Neither of us wanted this to happen, so it was an accident. Or do you think I did it on purpose? Think about it logically." His face remained stern and emotionless, but his tone grew more intense.
Asanai had to admit the man had a point, but his anger still bubbled beneath the surface. Seeing that impassive, untroubled expression on his opponent's face only made him more irritated.
"Don't let emotions control you," came a soft murmur from the stone-faced man's lips, as if he were talking to himself, but Asanai heard every word.
Like a balloon pricked by a tiny needle, Asanai stepped closer, ready to argue until the man saw sense. But he froze when those sharp, piercing eyes locked onto his. Some kind of power radiated from them, making him hesitate momentarily. Despite that expressionless face, this man clearly wouldn't back down—and seemed dangerous enough.
"Let's not make this into something bigger. I don't want to fight. Let's just wait for the insurance." He spoke in that same flat tone before turning back toward his car, opening the door, then glancing at Asanai once more.
"We should move our cars out of the way now. Either way, I'm at fault. I'll take responsibility—I'm not going anywhere."
Asanai's anger hadn't subsided. The man appeared to be a high-level executive—he was an executive too—but this stone-faced individual demonstrated remarkable self-control. Asanai felt foolish for letting his emotions run wild and losing his composure. If this were a business negotiation, he'd be at a disadvantage.
Asanai walked back to his car, still trying to recall where he'd seen that tall, dark-faced man before, that familiar face he couldn't quite place.
He pulled his car to the roadside and made a call to reschedule his appointment. Turning on some soft music, he leaned back against the headrest, closed his eyes, and breathed slowly, trying to cool his temper. He'd have to wait about half an hour for the insurance adjuster. Actually, that was fine—he'd get to sit quietly for thirty minutes. He'd been working like a madman, staying late into the night without proper rest. His own company was just starting to find its footing. Nothing too worrying, nothing to stress about, nothing to think about.
Think. There was something, someone he thought about. He thought about Atikom.
A year had passed. He'd only recently learned that Atikom had moved away, to where, he didn't know, even farther from him than before.
But even when they'd lived close by, Atikom had still seemed distant. The space between them had always remained vast.
Asanai jolted from his reverie when loud knocking echoed against his side window. It was the stern-faced man from the other car.
He rolled down his window, looking at the stone-faced man questioningly.
"Turn off your engine. Let's wait inside that restaurant over there instead. Keeping your engine running like this isn't good—it's creating unnecessary pollution. We need to work together to reduce global warming."
After delivering this order, he straightened up and started walking away, but turned back to glance at Asanai with a look that commanded him to follow.
Asanai pressed his lips together. His barely-controlled temper flared up again. That expressionless face of the tall man was beginning to grate on his nerves.
Why should I sit inside? Global warming could wait. I alone couldn't melt the entire planet.
Did the man expect me to sit in the restaurant staring at his face? No way. That would be insufferable.
Wasn't I the one who'd recently championed an eco-friendly car project to reduce global warming? Had he forgotten already?
Asanai sighed, remembering the last project he'd completed for the automotive company before quitting to start his own business.
Fine, he could wait in the restaurant. They'd sit at separate tables with their backs to each other—he wouldn't have to see that stern, emotionless face anymore. Just looking at it made him lose self-control. All those yoga classes and mental training exercises had been completely useless.
Trin looked up at the person who'd just entered the restaurant, unable to suppress a slight smile. The familiar-looking young man reminded him of someone he hadn't seen in nearly a year. That temperamental attitude, that hot-headedness, a bit petulant but reasonable enough—after being properly 'provoked,' of course.
The young man plopped down at a table diagonal from his, turning his back toward him and revealing his broad shoulders. A middle-aged man eating at another table looked up in confusion as this well-dressed, modern young man suddenly slumped into the seat across from him, then glanced at a woman approaching with a cute little boy in tow before looking back at the handsome young man again.
Every table in the restaurant was occupied. Asanai realized he was taking someone else's seat and quietly apologized before standing up.
"Sweetie doesn't want vegetables, so why did you tell them to add vegetables?" A woman talked to man sitting next to her about their son.
"Come on, just eat it. Don't be so difficult. Get used to eating vegetables, okay, little Tony? You'll grow up strong if you eat your vegetables."
The couple continued their gentle argument, mixed with the little boy's whining about not wanting to eat vegetables. Asanai stood there, turning left and right in confusion, until a deep voice spoke up.
"Mister, come sit over here. This spot's free." Then Trin added silently to himself, Why would you take someone else's chair?
He found the temperamental man's lack of self-control amusing.
Asanai shrugged. Though he didn't want to share a table with his opponent, he couldn't think of any other options at the moment. He sat down in the chair across from him, angling his body to the side and looking straight ahead.
"Would you like something cold to drink? It might help cool down your temper."
Asanai shook his head. Was he trying to provoke him? Could someone with such an expressionless face actually be good at provocation?
"Here's my business card. When the insurance arrives, you can leave quickly. I've already wasted too much of your time." Trin's voice remained flat.
Asanai picked up the business card and examined it.
Trin, a short name, single syllable, perfectly suited to its owner. Someone who appeared calm, spoke in brief, sharp phrases, clearly accustomed to giving orders.
"Whose two Mercedes in front of the shop that crashed into each other?" a gruff voice called out from the restaurant entrance. Both men looked over and stood up.
The police officer nodded, gesturing for the car owners to step outside. Trin moved to turn around but paused, waiting for Asanai to walk ahead of him.
Outside on the street, Asanai told the lean but sturdy young police officer that he and the other party had reached an agreement—he hadn't called the police.
"Oh, someone on our patrol reported the accident, so I rushed over to check."
"Thank you, Sergeant," Asanai smiled broadly.
"We're protectors of public peace—we have to take good care of the citizens. If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave. Goodbye."
"It's great having a police officer like you, Sergeant. I feel so much safer, especially from people who drive carelessly and like to crash into others." Asanai glanced sideways at Trin, who stood nearby, still maintaining that impassive expression, showing no displeasure at being indirectly criticized.
The young sergeant, dedicated to serving the public, walked away while pulling out his phone to report to his superior.
"Hello? Sir, you don't need to come anymore. These two are getting along fine—no need for mediation. They've reached an agreement."
Asanai disagreed with the sergeant's assessment. He had no intention of letting this go easily. Even if insurance covered everything, he'd demand additional compensation for wasted time, for injuries. That's right, his head had hit something. It was probably starting to swell now.
He raised his hand to feel his forehead. It did hurt a little.
"Are you hurt? Maybe you should get some treatment first," Trin had been watching him.
"I'm fine," Asanai reflexively answered, but then remembered he wanted to claim damages. Might as well mess with the stone-faced man a bit. Seeing that stern, cold expression made him feel spiteful.
"I need to see a doctor. Probably internal bleeding, bruising." Asanai turned to look into Trin's eyes. "I hope you'll take responsibility."
"Of course. I'm at fault, and I'll take responsibility. May I have your business card too?" Trin extended his hand.
"I'll call you myself," Asanai replied curtly, then turned and walked back to his car, beginning to find this amusing.
Let me mess with this ice prince for a month or so. Let's see if I can crack that expressionless facade.
Asanai saw the insurance agent parking his motorcycle next to his car and walked over to meet him. A strange emotion crept into his thoughts. Despite feeling slightly annoyed by the stern expression and cold 'attitude' of this man, something made him want to engage in this battle of wits.
Little did the young man know, Trin wasn't made of ice but rather, he was a fire-breathing dragon.
***