#Chapter 2 : Staring At My Soul

Douyi stared at the business card in the manager's hand.

HM Entertainment.

The company that he had only heard of in TV or advertisement.

The opportunity he once would have accepted without hesitation.

Yet he slowly shook his head.

**Douyi:** "I'm sorry, but I'm not interested."

The manager looked surprised.

**Manager:** "Are you sure? Opportunities like this don't come often."

Douyi forced a smile.

**Douyi:** "I appreciate it, but I have responsibilities."

The manager studied him for a moment before handing him the card anyway.

**Manager:** "Keep it. Just in case you change your mind."

Douyi hesitated before taking it.

**Manager:** "Dreams have a way of finding us again."

After the manager left, Douyi stared at the card for a long time.

His heart wanted to say yes.

His mind wouldn't allow it.

Training required time.

Time meant less work.

Less work meant less money.

And money was something he desperately needed.

For his mother.

For the debt.

For survival.

That night, Douyi called his best friend,

Yowan.

**Douyi;**"let's meet and grab some drinks,I also have some news".

After sometime Yowan came.

**Yowan:** "WHAT you got scouted by HM Entertainment?!"

**Douyi:** "Keep your voice down."

**Yowan:** "How am I supposed to stay calm? Was not your dream becoming a singer !"

Douyi sat quietly on the edge of his seat.

**Douyi:** "Dreams don't pay hospital bills."

The excitement in Yowan's voice faded.

**Yowan:** "Still... you should think about it."

**Douyi:** "I can't."

**Yowan:** "Why not?"

**Douyi:** "Because my mother is sick. Because we're drowning in debt. Because I don't have the luxury to chase dreams."

Silence filled the call.

**Yowan:** "You'd be amazing, you know."

**Douyi:** "That doesn't matter."

**Yowan:** "It does."

**Douyi:** "No, Yowan. Reality matters."

**Yowan;**"Don't worry about money I will help you since you are my best friend.i know where you can earn lots of cash quickly".

**Douyi;**" How and Where? I'll not going to do any illegal job".

**Yowan;**"NO, it's not illegal and many VIP go in that bar near ganwar street,, and they gave huge tips, and it's gay bar since you are pretty, so you can get many tips."

**Douyi;**"it's not like a decent job but I will think about it ".

Three days later, reality became even crueler.

Douyi was in the middle of work when his phone rang.

It was the hospital.

His heart instantly sank.

By the time he arrived, his mother had already been admitted.

A neighbor had called the ambulance.

Douyi rushed into the hospital room.

Machines beeped softly.

His mother looked smaller than ever lying in the bed.

Paler.

Weaker.

Fragile.

The sight shattered something inside him.

He pulled a chair beside her bed and held her hand.

Tears finally escaped.

For years he had endured everything silently.

For years he had remained strong.

But now he couldn't.

**Douyi:** "Mom..."

His voice broke.

**Douyi:** "I'm sorry."

Tears rolled down his cheeks.

**Douyi:** "I'm sorry I haven't been able to give you a better life."

He lowered his head.

**Douyi:** "Dad left us with nothing but debt."

His shoulders trembled.

**Douyi:** "But I promise you..."

He squeezed her hand tightly.

**Douyi:** "I'll find a way."

More tears fell.

**Douyi:** "I'll earn enough money."

**Douyi:** "So please stay with me."

**Douyi:** "Please don't leave me."

That night, he called Yowan.

**Douyi:** "Tell me more about that job."

Yowan immediately understood.

**Yowan:** "Are you sure?"

Douyi looked through the hospital window.

**Douyi:** "I don't have a choice anymore."

The following evening, after finishing his normal shifts, Douyi arrived at an upscale gay bar.

The building looked luxurious.

Crystal lights hung from the ceiling.

Expensive suits.

Designer watches.

Wealthy customers.

Everything felt far away from his usual life.

The manager barely looked at his resume.

Instead, he looked at Douyi.

Then smiled.

**Bar Manager:** "You'll do."

**Douyi:** "Just like that?"

**Bar Manager:** "Trust me."

The manager laughed.

**Bar Manager:** "Customers will like you since you look pretty cute."

For several nights, Douyi worked hard.

The salary and tips were better than any job he had ever had.

Every bill he earned brought hope.

Hope for his mother's treatment.

Hope for their future.

On the fifth night, however, things became difficult.

He was asked to deliver drinks to a private VIP room.

The atmosphere inside made him uncomfortable.

People were drinking heavily.

Music filled the room.

People are kissing everywhere and hocking up.

Everyone seemed lost in their own world.

Douyi kept his eyes lowered.

**Douyi:** "Your drinks, sir."

One older customer suddenly grabbed his wrist.

Douyi froze.

**VIP:** "You're new. I have never seen someone so pretty before."

**VIP;**"What your name pretty boy".

**Douyi;**"jungwoo".(since they have to use face name).

**Douyi:** "Please let go, sir."

The man smiled.

**VIP:** "Sit with me for a while. Sit on my lap."

Douyi's stomach twisted.

He wanted to leave immediately.

But then he thought about his mother.

The hospital.

The bills.

The medicine.

He forced himself to remain calm.

Then he sits on VIP lap and that nasty pervert old man but that old man caressing douyi thighs and try to unbutton his shirt.

But after finding an excuse, he quickly left the room.

Hours later, the customer handed him a large tip.

More money than he usually earned in several days.

**VIP:** "You could earn even more if you lay with me."

Douyi stepped back.

**Douyi:** "Thank you, but no."

The man's smile disappeared.

Douyi left without looking back.

The manager scolded him afterward.

Not harshly.

But enough to remind him how difficult the job could become.

Exhausted, Douyi took out the trash near the back alley.

The night air felt cold.

Quiet.

Almost peaceful.

Then he noticed movement near the end of the alley.

Then he see two people kissing and hocking in the corner of dark ally behind this old building.

He looked away immediately.

But when he look again he saw the man whose been kissing another man is staring at him as if he could devour his soul.

Their eyes met, leaving him shocked and flustered.

**Douyi;**"It wasn't his business".

As he turned to leave, a strange feeling crawled up his spine.

As though someone was watching him.

Douyi looked back.

A tall man wearing a black jacket stood in the shadows.

The stranger's face was partly hidden by darkness.

Yet his eyes were visible.

And they were fixed directly on Douyi.

Not looking away.

Not blinking.

Just staring.

Douyi's heart skipped a beat.

An uneasy chill ran through him.

As that stranger just walk towards him.

Douyi get more nervous.

The stranger slowly tilted his head.

Douyi pause for a second like(how can someone be so hansome this man is like a model or movie star).

That stranger is very hansome douyi can't able to stop staring at his face.

Douyi immediately recognised that it was that same man.

Without another second of hesitation, he hurried back inside the building.

He didn't know it yet.

**But that single glance was the beginning of a story that would change his life forever.**

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