Chapter 6
“No… I mean, I am worried, but… usually, when a man brings a woman to a hotel, that’s the kind of thing people worry about.”
“What does that mean?”
“Well… do you really not know?”
Instead of answering, Wooseok stared intently at Hyeju. Realizing that he was someone with so little knowledge about male-female relationships that he had to ask her for dating coaching, she thought he might truly be oblivious, so she cautiously began to explain.
“Because a man and a woman are alone in a hotel room… when people talk about being worried, they usually mean… worrying about that kind of thing happening between a man and a woman.”
“That thought didn’t cross my mind at all. Didn’t you just imagine that all on your own, Assistant Manager Hyeju?”
“T-There’s no way!”
With that, Wooseok nonchalantly flipped through the brochures and notices neatly placed next to the bed until he found the menu, then turned back toward Hyeju.
“Have a seat.”
A single round table and two chairs were set up by the window, overlooking the city. The atmosphere was perfect for a couple to sip wine while looking down at the cityscape.
Following Wooseok’s instructions, Hyeju sat down like a hostage, took the menu, and briefly looked out at the city view before admiring Wooseok’s face reflected in the glass. She couldn’t keep her mouth from hanging open.
To think she had almost thrown away the chance to admire the Team Leader’s face from this close—it was a foolish thought. What did it matter if she was treated like a celebrity’s manager? Just being able to stay by her ‘bias’s’ side was a huge blessing.
Besides, sitting together like this made them look quite like a couple. Though the idea of someone like her being the Team Leader’s girlfriend was completely absurd.
“Aren’t you going to choose?”
“Ah, I-I’ll choose.”
Hyeju flipped through the menu.
This was definitely Korea, yet the names of the dishes were written in English, with lengthy Korean explanations underneath that made it impossible to take in at a glance. For instance, under the English name ‘Tomato Linguini,‘ it read: ‘A linguini pasta that captures the fresh aroma of Southern Italian olive oil and freshly harvested basil, made with tomatoes brimming with Mediterranean sunshine that are peeled and meticulously deseeded immediately after harvest, then slowly simmered and aged at a low temperature for over 100 hours.’
The prices of the menu items were just as staggering as the long descriptions. With inflation already driving her to grumble about not being able to afford restaurants near the office, looking at the price of the Mediterranean Tomato Linguini made it impossible for her to summon the courage to order it in her right mind. Still, the thirteen-thousand-won seafood ramen seemed reasonable enough to order.
“…Ramen. I’ll have the seafood ramen.”
In the midst of that, having ordered ramen brought to mind the famous movie line, ‘Do you want to stay and eat ramen?’ making her face flush bright red right in front of him. Fearing that the Team Leader might take her ordering ramen in a room where they were entirely alone the wrong way, she lowered her gaze before casting a fleeting glance up at him.
As expected, Wooseok was glaring at her with one eyebrow raised askew.
He must have misunderstood after all. Just as she was about to apologize, Wooseok spoke first.
“Assistant Manager Shin Hyeju. Do you really think I’d reach the rank of Team Leader just to have an assistant manager treat me to a meal? Just order comfortably.”
…It turned out she was the only one having strange thoughts.
“Ah… Then… um. I’ll have the exact same thing you’re ordering, Team Leader.”
“No. Wouldn’t it be better to order something different?”
“Pardon? Why is that…?”
“That way, it’s easier to share. That’s what people do when they’re dating.”
“D-Dating?”
“I’m asking you to help me practice, starting with sharing food right now.”
Wooseok’s words, when they’re dating, kept ringing in her ears, making everything else he said sound distant and muffled. She was the one who came to give dating coaching, so what was she supposed to do if her eardrums joined her heart in malfunctioning over the Team Leader’s completely meaningless comments?
“You don’t have any particular dietary restrictions?”
“Yes. I eat everything well. Oh, except for sea cucumbers or spoon worms.”
“…Spoon worms.”
“…Yes.”
“You didn’t really need to tell me that much.”
“But you asked if I had any restrictions…”
“It’s highly unlikely for spoon worms to be served as hotel room service, Assistant Manager Shin Hyeju. Maybe if we were at a raw fish restaurant.”
“That’s true…”
He stared intently at Hyeju with a cool expression that masked whatever thoughts he was having. Hyeju involuntarily shrunk her shoulders. After gazing at her like that for a long while, Wooseok let out a sigh and massaged his temple.
“Then I’ll just order whatever.”
After casually scanning the menu, he picked up the receiver to place the room service order and returned to his seat.
Since the food hadn’t arrived yet, nothing but silence filled the air in front of the empty table.
Thinking that she had to start teaching the Team Leader about dating right here and now made it impossible for her to open her mouth.
On top of that, her face felt hot and her stomach was tingling, which seemed to be because she was incredibly nervous with the Team Leader right in front of her.
“Hyeju-ssi.”
“Team Leader.”
When they ultimately called out to each other at the exact same time, Hyeju couldn’t bear the awkward atmosphere and abruptly stood up from her seat.
“I-I’ll be right back from the restroom.”
She figured she could pretend to have constipation, map out what to do next while she was there, and come back. With that, she headed toward the restroom.
However, the glass door of the restroom was sparkling transparently.
Furthermore, given how immaculately the hotel restroom door had been cleaned, it wouldn’t even be strange if someone failed to notice the door was there, slammed their head into it, and passed out. She couldn’t commit the atrocity of pulling down her pants in a place like this.
“Actually, no. I’ll step outside for a bit.”
“Step outside? Where to?”
“Um… I suddenly got an urgent phone call! It’s a personal matter.”
“Your phone didn’t ring, did it?”
“Haha. It’s on silent, so you probably didn’t hear it. I-I’ll be right back!”
Leaving those words behind, Hyeju opened the door and practically fled the room.
What is seriously wrong with me…
Hyeju wailed out loud.
Why was she always such a blundering mess whenever she stood before the handsome Team Leader?
Leaning against the wall right next to the door, she slid down and racked her poorly functioning brain. Should I tell him to serve some food onto his girlfriend’s plate once the meal arrives? She couldn’t possibly know what kind of conversations are good to have or what actions win points when usually having dinner together.
Recalling the date scenes from the novels she had read in the past was of no help whatsoever.
In the novels Hyeju read, scenes of eating meals were rarely described at length or in detail.
Unless someone was secretly rubbing their foot against a leg under the table, or a woman had crawled underneath to kneel and perform fellatio. The acts coming to mind right now were at least not things that would happen between an ordinary couple.
“Oh…?”
Then, a brilliant idea flashed through Hyeju’s mind. Since the Team Leader was such an innocent novice that the concept of intimacy didn’t even occur to him when coming to a hotel room, he might not even sense any strangeness no matter what she taught him.
“Excuse me, ma’am?”
Perhaps a considerable amount of time had passed while she was out here, as a hotel employee had arrived out of nowhere and was standing in front of the door with a serving cart loaded with food.
“Ma’am, if it isn’t too much trouble…”
“Ah, I’m the guest staying in Room 1403, I just stepped out for a moment…! I think we can just go in together.”
“In that case, could you tap your key card?”
“I didn’t bring my key with me…”
The employee wore a troubled expression. For some reason, it felt like she was being viewed as a suspicious person, making her worry if they might call a security guard.
Hurriedly, Hyeju pressed the doorbell instead. The door opened, and Wooseok revealed himself. He had unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt.
Hyeju’s shoulders drooped in sheer dejection. To think she had missed the moment Wooseok undid his top buttons while she was stepped outside for a short while.
“Come on in. Ah. It seems your urgent phone call wrapped up nicely, Hyeju-ssi?”
“Yes, it turned out that way.”
Knowing full well that it was a lie, the employee wore a peculiar expression.
Entering the room alongside the employee, Hyeju stood awkwardly inside the room and waited for the table to be set. Once the employee left, the previously empty hotel table had been transformed into a restaurant setup in an instant.
Hyeju took her seat and offered an awkward smile to the Team Leader.
“Wow. It looks delicious.”
“Let’s eat.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you for the meal, Team Leader.”
The meal that began in silence was, as expected, awkward. People say you shouldn’t talk about work when eating, but sitting with her superior meant work was the only topic she could think of.
Why is it so hot? Is it because I’m too nervous?
With her face burning, she fanned herself with her hands before cupping both sides of her face to cool it down.
“Hyeju-ssi.”
“Yes, Team Leader.”
“Are you that uncomfortable around me?”
“No, not at all.”
“Then, are you comfortable around me?”
“It’s not exactly… like that either…”
Whether he wanted an answer saying she was comfortable or an answer saying she was uncomfortable, Hyeju grumbled inwardly while maintaining a bright smile.
