After the Tuesday afternoon meeting, a storm swept through the Planning Division. A storm of handovers.
Ahead of the relay interviews on Friday, the Team Leaders gathered separately and whispered among themselves. Let’s have Team 2 take back the greeting cards. No, let’s give that to Seungju. From now on, seasonal products should go to Team 1, right? Then should paper goods go to Team 5?
The Team Leaders put all their effort into bringing advantageous work to themselves through underhanded agreements. Below them, team members shed tears of blood organizing the progress and details of projects for the handovers.
And to complete all the underhanded fighting and handover organization, Seungju worked like crazy yesterday. It was a sensation he’d felt for the first time in a long while—having so much work that he was about to lose his mind. In the midst of that, receiving the temper of the Director whose mood hit rock bottom, Seungju wanted to die.
He endured just for this. The off-site work General Manager Baek Muyeon promised. The chance to escape the office.
That was also the reason he had to work himself to death, but he didn’t care. Whenever quitting time approached while there was still so much work left, whenever the reality check of Josamosat hit him that he had to work this hard for just a few hours of off-site work, he disciplined himself. If I can just leave the Director’s side, I can do even more than this.
And just as Seungju had hoped, he was standing outside the office during this leisurely time on a sunny day. He finally ended up raising both hands high. Freedom, I’m free.
A black sedan emerged from the parking lot. Seungju recognized at a glance that it was Muyeon’s car. Because it was an expensive car.
The expensive car came and stopped in front of Seungju. Seungju opened the passenger door.
“Excuse me.”
“Yes, get in comfortably.”
Seungju carefully sat down so his shoes wouldn’t dirty the expensive car. When he closed the door and fastened his seatbelt, the car started. There was no noise or vibration at all. Seungju was a bit impressed inside.
He naturally looked at Muyeon’s hands gripping the steering wheel. He’d felt it before when he was holding a paper cup in the break room, but his hands were really big. They seemed to be a knuckle bigger than Seungju’s. The manly knuckled hands and firm wrists looked good.
Seungju realized in an instant that he was smiling like an idiot. He naturally turned his head slightly to check his face reflected in the side mirror. His face, which had brightened ghostly fast as soon as they left the company, was relaxed innocently like an elementary school student. This won’t do. Let’s calm down.
So the reason Seungju had been waiting for this moment wasn’t solely about escaping the office. Going off-site alone with someone he liked. It was an event in a realm Seungju hadn’t even imagined. It happened to be spring and the weather was good. He was happy.
Muyeon spoke up.
“It’ll be about 3 o’clock when we arrive. We don’t have much time.”
“It’s okay. We just have to move around busily.”
“Haha… It’s okay to move around slowly. We have to come out every week anyway.”
Seungju jumped inside. Every week? We’re going off-site every week? No, is it okay for such a good thing to happen? He didn’t hide his happy feelings.
“It’s nice that we’re coming out every week. The office is too stuffy.”
“Right, how stuffy must it have been for you to be sitting on the rooftop on a day with so much fine dust.”
“The Director wasn’t there that day.”
“I thought so.”
Seungju nodded. From what he’d observed over the past few days, Muyeon was smart and quick-witted, just like the rumors said. Of course, when he wanted to say something, he didn’t read anyone else’s mood at all.
He seemed to have quickly noticed how ridiculously the Planning Division was running and what the reason was. Thanks to that, Seungju could mention the Director’s tyranny indirectly to some extent.
He suddenly thought. This man would probably notice that he was excessively in a good mood and strangely happy.
And Seungju’s thought was accurate.
“Are you that excited because you can’t see the Director?”
“What?”
“Your face looks good, different from when I see you at the office.”
“Escaping the office is always a good thing.”
He was startled because it felt like he’d been caught thinking about what he’d just been thinking, but Seungju brazenly moved past it. It’s because of you, you. I’m in a good mood because I came out with you. He couldn’t say that.
Arriving at a large shopping mall in the suburbs, they started market research. They first stopped by a household goods store that had recently started expanding its branches. They were busy taking pictures of every single concept, display, and item. It was quite a task to pay attention to even in-store events and discount items.
Seungju, who had been diligently using his brain and thoroughly combing through the store until halfway, soon gave up. It seemed faster to just take lots of pictures and organize them while looking at them later.
At the second store they visited, Seungju was standing in front of a corner where bowls and mugs were displayed. Pastel-colored tumblers that would obviously catch anyone’s eye were lined up in a row. Seungju thought while taking pictures. It’s definitely spring. These kinds of items were everywhere, but they were steady sellers for that reason.
“They’re pretty.”
“Right? I took pictures.”
Muyeon, who had approached at some point, said. Seungju looked up at him and smiled.
“Should I buy one?”
“Mugs are doing well right now, but tumblers and tableware seem like items we need to think about more. Product lines like this that need a certain level of quality guaranteed are a bit difficult on the production side.”
“No, not that.”
Muyeon picked up the largest size tumbler. It was pastel mint. When Muyeon held it, the large tumbler looked small. Seungju closed his mouth and looked up at him.
“I’m going to buy it.”
“Ah… yes.”
“Team Leader Seungju, pick one too. I’ll buy it for you.”
“What?”
“You use a tumbler well. Change to a pretty one.”
While saying that, Muyeon smiled. That smile that knocked on Seungju’s heart. Seungju’s mind went blank.
“Thank… thank you…”
“This one’s pretty. Do you like blue?”
“Yes…”
Muyeon picked up one more tumbler in sky blue.
“It’s a couple item.”
What?
Poor Seungju’s reason no longer functioned. This time too, his social skills, which were more important than instinct to an office worker, worked hard. Seungju barely showed a response-like response to Muyeon, who was showing him the tumblers in both hands.
“You have… good taste. Thank you.”
“Not at all.”
Muyeon put the tumblers back in their place and got new products packed in boxes from the back. Seungju looked around. Fortunately, there was a shopping basket right next to them. He quickly held out the basket to Muyeon. Muyeon smiled and took the basket.
“Thank you.”
He gives thanks even for the small details that a subordinate should naturally take care of. Looking at the two tumblers being put into the basket, Seungju shed tears in his heart.
He’s truly a person who has both character and common sense. And he’s kind too. It was a crime to come pounding into someone’s heart without even using a turn signal, but that didn’t matter.
After combing through all the sections worth seeing, Muyeon paid. As he left the store, he handed Seungju the shopping bag with the tumbler.
“Here.”
“Thank you. I’ll use it well.”
“Your manner of speaking becomes incredibly polite when you receive something.”
“Ah, well of course. Gifts are good things.”
“Do you like it? Your reaction earlier was kind of…”
“No, no. I really like it.”
Seungju hugged the shopping bag tightly to his chest. And he said with emphasis.
“Thank you.”
Muyeon smiled broadly as if satisfied. And said.
“Team Leader Seungju.”
“Yes?”
“You’re cute.”
And then he laughs as if he said something funny.
What the hell is he saying? This is a crime. Someone please report him. He’d thought this before, but there really were aspects of his jokes that were hard to keep up with. To respond appropriately to that, Seungju’s brain didn’t work particularly usefully this time either.
He was trembling so much that he felt like he might vomit his heart out of his mouth. Of course, instead of his heart, Seungju spat out rather meaningless words.
“General Manager, really, well… really… ha… haha.”
“Is it funny?”
In the end, Seungju failed at managing his expression. Is it funny? Looking at Seungju making a dumbfounded expression, Muyeon laughed even louder.
“We only looked at two stores, but it’s already almost 6 o’clock.”
“What? What…?”
“Should we go eat dinner?”
Muyeon naturally started walking. Seungju’s body automatically followed him toddling along.
Following Muyeon as if bewitched, Seungju thought. First, about Muyeon’s conversation skills. He has the ability to push the fox-like Director in the blink of an eye. So the fact that Seungju just stammered like an idiot wasn’t solely because he was lacking.
Second, about what cases there are where being called cute isn’t used as flirting. When a superior says such things to a subordinate at the office, it usually meant two things. When a subordinate’s actions are young and adorable so it warms the heart, or when they’re insanely impudent. And when a man says such things to another man, there’s also a slight meaning that the pathetic bastard looks funny.
Seungju was seriously disturbed. In order not to accept Muyeon’s words as flirting, he had to reach the conclusion that he was looking down on him. He didn’t like that.
But he didn’t want to feel like he had a crush on a handsome man. For that, Seungju’s pride was grabbing his ego by the collar.
Unable to do this or that, Seungju, who had been moving his feet, suddenly came to his senses. They had already come to the parking building.
“I thought you were going to eat dinner?”
“Yes. Why?”
“Are we going somewhere else?”
“Would that not be okay?”
Of course there was no reason why that wouldn’t be okay. But Seungju had just heard really strange words from Muyeon. A different suspicion suddenly sprouted in him.
‘Would that not be okay?’ This bastard, his way of speaking is a bit strange.
