Hirvan was lost in his thoughts as he looked up at a vast dark sky with sporadic small stars. This location evoked many fond memories for him, some of which were joyful and some of which were sad and painful.
However, all of them had one thing in common, and that was loneliness. As a young boy, he carried the responsibility of raising two toddlers in a new city, without the money or qualifications needed to find a decent job. Besides, shady people with questionable businesses or intent to exploit, who else would hire an eighteen-year-old boy?
The harsh reality had taken its toll on his spirit and mind. At the time, he had no other choice but to join the famous Tiger gang.
This club was the result of his painstaking effort in his late twenties. Tiger was under the supervision of an elderly man who had lost his sole son in a gang battle one year before joining. Either his luck or his curse led the old man to show his fatherly love towards him and groom him to become his successor. The majority of the gang members were opposed to his being chosen as the next head of the clan. Even Van did not have any desire for that and thought it was absurd. Nevertheless, the old man had more influence in Astra City than any other person. If he tried to refuse, Van should have kissed Goodbye to live in this city.
You could say why was important to stay here rather than move to other places. The answer was simple. Hirvan was attempting to hide from the grandfather of his two sons.
To clarify, there was no blood relation whatsoever between him and the two boys. Their mother, Rosaline, was his adopted sister. She was the one who had picked him up from a trash can and saved his life. Throughout the first eight years of his life, Rosaline was the one who took care of him wholeheartedly. They were separated when she was twelve and was adopted by a prestigious family. Hirvan believed that she had abandoned him in order to have a splendid life. Oh, how wrong he was.
Hirvan forcedly shut his eyes to prevent his tears from falling. He searched his pockets for a cigarette to take his mind off of the dark abyss of his past.
The only positive aspect of this body was its colourful past of rebellion. Hirvan had no trouble smoking or drinking without raising suspicion.
Hirvan skillfully exhaled the smoke after lighting the cigarette. He was the only one in the organization who had the habit of holding a cigarette in a certain way. Rather than putting it between his pointing finger and the third finger, he was accustomed to putting it between the fourth and the little finger.
The old man, declaring this was representing the Ren family, made sure to teach him forcefully this method of smoking when he changed his name from Hirvan Smith to Ren Lian. He reasoned that Smith's surname was too common, making it easy for people to recognize his origin, and it was advisable to change it to fit better with the family.
Hirvan sneered at his foolishness at that time. The old fool in him was delighted to oblige it.
" Do you have a lighter?"
His thoughts were interrupted by a deep, familiar voice.
Hirvan turned back and was face-to-face with the least favourite man in his past life.
That stone expression and dead fisheyes stared back at him intensively.
The cells in his body were in a state of high alert. From when he was there? Did he see his way of smoking?
Hirvan cursed his damn luck. Out of all the people here, how did this guy spot him?
Despite his internal panic, Hirvan was seen as a foolish and arrogant boy outside.
He took out the lighter and threw it at the stone-cold man.
Prior to his death, Hirvan had two trusted subordinates: a female known as a Geisha who managed the organization's finances and a male known as the Grim Reaper who managed the gang's activities.
Hirvan had a psychological shadow from both of them.
As Andrew studied the young man, he lit his cigarette. The decision to go to the rooftop was spontaneous. He still has not come to terms with the death of the leader. It's hard to imagine anyone forgetting that this incident as how odd it was. Maybe it was due to the absence of his body that it made it difficult to accept his departure.
How many times has he come across the back of the lonely figure in this location? Even though he was slim and skinny, everyone in the gang had absolute confidence and trust in him to protect them and their interests wholeheartedly. It was definitely peculiar.
When he opened the door, for a second he thought it was the same person, but the bizarre red hair woke him up.
' Ah, I could never see that man again…'
Andrew calmed down and walked towards the boy. Nevertheless, he was astonished by the scene before him. This method of smoking...
He gulped nervously. This does not make sense...
No one should know this …
The man was disgusted with it and never revealed it to others after the old man passed away. It happened around a decade ago...
Andrew felt his voice was stuck in his throat.
The name he desperately wanted to call was on the tip of his tongue, but logic had prevented him from saying it. He took a deep breath and asked for a lighter to initiate a conversation with the boy.
Hirvan was on pins and needles. He was screaming at himself inside of his head.
' Ahhhh, that was a rookie mistake!! Did I lose my vest this fast?'
Despite living and working with macho dudes in the gang, he still possessed childish behaviour that he wished to conceal from others.
He had a strong fondness for sweets and desserts, but he prioritized maintaining his image as the boss of a gang over his own liking. So he had honed his skills to hide his emotions and desires from others. Despite his body's urge to flee from this man, his face remained unchanged. As he continued to smoke nonchalantly, he turned to see the night sky.
"From whom did you learn to smoke like that?"
Andrew asked him, suppressing his turbulent emotions.
" Isn't it cool?" Hirvan smiled devilishly to mask his uneasiness.
" I saw it in a video on social media and fell in love with it. Why? Do you want me to teach you?"
Flirting with this stone guy is the best method to drive him away. Hirvan thought proudly.
He approached the man with sparkling eyes and grasped his wrist.
"You possess a powerful hand. It's not a good idea to hold delicate things with this. However, I am a fan of challenging things, so if you satisfy me, I could teach you."
While saying that, Hirvan slowly circled his finger on Andrew's palm with suggestive eyes, waiting for his angry outburst.
contrary to Hirvan's expectation, Andrew found his lively and mischievous expression captivating and aroused a distant memory of the former leader. There was a time when he caught him looking at a row of desserts secretly in a shop. His eyes resembled those of a cat spotting and playing with a jumping fish.
'Why does this young man remind me of him this much? Is it because I am missing him that I project him to everyone now?'
Andrew lamented dejectedly but did not move his hand.