“A one-person business? When?”
“After you joined your company. Getting a business license isn’t that hard. You know that.”
“Well, that’s true, but…”
He seems quite flustered. As a ‘working adult’ senior, he’s been telling me company stories and giving various advice, and suddenly I say I have a company—was he surprised?
“What’s the point of just playing around? You’re not here either, so I’m just bored.”
“You playing around? You study incredibly hard and you’re super busy with this and that. When I’m with you, I actually get anxious thinking I’m living doing nothing at all.”
Is that so?
Was Han Yeoul’s restlessness my responsibility?
What’s there to be restless about? You can live without doing anything. I’ll do everything for you.
Anyway, now that it’s come to this, even if there are some modifications to our life plan, it’ll all end up in the right place. So it’s fine. Thanks to this, I’ve moved the plan up a few years too. Our… marriage.
I struggled to hold back the laughter that kept trying to come out. Pretending nothing was wrong while eating, as if listening to Han Yeoul’s stories, I wielded my chopsticks diligently while humming a tune inside. I’m going crazy with anticipation for tomorrow.
“Then are you starting work too? A design company or something like that?”
“Similar. Since the condition Father set in exchange for not joining the company was to create designs that could be supplied to ‘Pine Furniture.'”
I answered half-heartedly. He’s asking again about something he already knows anyway. He probably wanted to confirm. Whether ‘our Seonjae’ is really properly managing his career path well. When he’s like that, he really acts like a big brother. When he was only born a few months before me.
Is this what a working adult senior is like…
I laughed again but held it back. Anyway, even that side of Han Yeoul is cute. While letting Han Yeoul’s advice-like words go in one ear and out the other, I pretended to listen attentively. I’ll be working alone anyway, the company is just for appearances, and I’m someone who does work that’s far from the ‘company life’ Han Yeoul talks about.
I’m grateful for the advice, but more important to me than that was what kind of face Han Yeoul would make when I propose tomorrow.
“Our Seonjae will do well.”
Even in the midst of all this, I hear these words clearly. Han Yeoul’s words filled with faith in me. Lovely Han Yeoul’s voice that’s 100% sincere.
“Really?”
So I keep wanting to confirm. Whether you love me as much as I love you. I already know we only have each other, but I keep wanting to confirm over and over—I definitely like you way more than you like me.
“Yeah. Really.”
I lightly kissed the lips of Han Yeoul, who smiled with his big eyes folded prettily. Han Yeoul’s fragrant pheromones rippled pleasantly.
“Thank you, if our Yeoul cheers me on, I can do anything well.”
Patent Firm Seorim.
Standing in front of Han Yeoul’s company, I looked up at the sign. They say it’s a mid-sized firm in the industry, but the scale was smaller than I thought. Most companies have legal teams anyway, so even if they land work, it’ll probably be hard to get work from major corporations.
It’s fine for Han Yeoul to work here. It’s probably a suitable company with not too much, not too little work.
The meeting was at 11 AM.
It was a time I set thinking that after meeting for about an hour, I could take Han Yeoul out for lunch. The meeting was set with Han Yeoul’s team leader, but anyway, I’d end up meeting Han Yeoul eventually.
“Ah, hello. Are you CEO Yoo Seonjae?”
“Ah, yes. I’m Lee Seung-wook, who greeted you over the phone.”
Han Yeoul’s team leader, sitting across from me in the meeting room, smiled with an affable impression without being wary of me, true to being a beta. Right. So this is that person who’s ‘good at office life.’
I’ve occasionally heard from Yeoul during dinner time. That his team leader seems a bit opportunistic. What could be better than that? Opportunists don’t miss opportunities when they arise. And I’m going to give him that opportunity.
“Did you review the documents I sent?”
“Yes, of course. If you’d just give us that opportunity…”
“As I mentioned over the phone, I have only one condition.”
“That… but if we operate the team with such distinctions based on traits, there might be internal human rights issues…”
“Isn’t that usually what happens when only ‘alphas’ get special treatment?”
“Well, that’s true, but still…”
“If you don’t want to, let’s just forget it.”
I stood up from my seat. Lee Seung-wook was startled and waved his hands frantically.
“No, no! Of course we can do that.”
“Then shall we make a contract?”
After finishing the formal contract, I asked Lee Seung-wook to call Han Yeoul. He seemed puzzled, but thinking it wouldn’t be bad to introduce his team member anyway, he readily called Han Yeoul. My Yeoul, who entered opening the meeting room door, was as always pretty and dazzling.
Could a suit suit someone that well? So he’s been showing that to others every day?
“Seon… jae, why are you here?”
“Han Yeoul-ssi, do you know him?”
Seeing Han Yeoul flustered at the sight of me, Lee Seung-wook asked, seeming more flustered. Only then did I smile widely and tell Lee Seung-wook.
“He’s my lover.”
He muttered with a blank face, “Ah, that pheromone…?”
Seeing that this beta who can’t even smell pheromones knows about it, it’s obvious without seeing how much Han Yeoul became gossip fodder at this company over that incident. I feel a bit sorry.
“I apologize for the discourtesy. I was worrying so much about our Yeoul that I unknowingly ended up causing trouble for the people here.”
“Oh no, not at all!”
Yeah. You better say it’s not. I’m your client now.
“Aigoo, we chatted too long, didn’t we? Come to think of it, I didn’t even give you my business card. Let me introduce myself again—I’m Team Leader Lee Seung-wook of Patent Firm Seorim. This is our patent attorney Han Yeoul. You know him well. Yeoul-ssi, give him your card.”
“Yes? Yes…”
Yeoul hesitantly held out his business card to me with a flustered face. Patent Firm Seorim, Patent Attorney Han Yeoul. I already have several of Yeoul’s business cards. But receiving it like this is special, so when I get home I should frame it.
“Nice to meet you. Here, this is my business card.”
I handed my business card to both Yeoul and Lee Seung-wook. Yeoul’s lips twitched as he stared at the business card for a long time. He seems to quite like the company name that’s like a code only we know.
“Should I call you CEO Yoo Seonjae, or would it be better to call you Artist? Since you’re an artist after all?”
Lee Seung-wook was already starting to wag his tail. As expected, this type of person is easy to handle. Now that he knows about my relationship with Yeoul, Yeoul’s office life will be a bit easier too.
“Whatever’s comfortable for you.”
“I thought so. I was surprised that the person who won the grand prize at the Italy International Furniture Design Competition was Korean, but I was really shocked that it was Artist Yoo Seonjae. Especially since I heard rumors that you don’t participate in competitions.”
Good job. Well done, Team Leader Lee. You know how to give lip service.
What do you think of my surprise? I put quite a bit of effort into doing it without Han Yeoul knowing.
Yeoul just stared at me intently with a surprised face.
“Well… I’m a believer that the beginning should be grand so the end will be even grander. I wanted to start with something, and unexpectedly things turned out like this.”
“Of course, of course. That’s wonderful.”
After various conversations, we finished the contract and concluded the meeting. With this, I officially became a client of Patent Firm Seorim. More precisely, Han Yeoul’s client.
“I’ll just go get one approval and come back.”
While Yeoul briefly stepped away, Lee Seung-wook couldn’t hide his pleased expression and greeted me once more saying please take care of us. He looked ready to bow his head a hundred, a thousand times.
“Then, Team Leader, since you’re being so kind, could you do me one favor?”
“A favor? What…”
“I’m planning to propose to my lover today.”
“Ah, propo… what? Propose?”
Lee Seung-wook’s eyes widened and he made a fuss.
“So, could Han Yeoul-ssi go on an external appointment with me today?”
“Aigoo, of course. Yes, yes. Take him for as long as you want.”
Lee Seung-wook bowed his head as if rolling out a red carpet in front of me. Smiling, I bowed back to him saying please take care of us in the future.
Even while walking outside the company with me, Han Yeoul seemed dazed. Looking at his expression where nothing seemed real, I felt a sense of success creeping up about halfway.
