#120
How could a yellow fever racist like Josh have a job?
If someone asked that, Hwi-kyung would tell them to look up and check their own workplace colleagues. There’s always someone like that in any group or gathering. Based on Hwi-kyung’s experience from the twelfth iteration, when he was sent back in time after suggesting weekend hiking, if everyone around you seems normal, you’re probably the weird one.
While it would be ideal if all members were sensible, typical companies always had a few nonsensical people. To be honest, Josh was like gravel scattered on a gravel path. A slightly larger piece of gravel, but the kind of weirdo you commonly see.
The world was full of people worse than Josh. Not only those who harassed subordinates, but those who gaslighted with phrases like “the company runs fine without you” were as numerous as stars in the sky.
If asked to recall just one terrible boss, nine out of ten people would respond, “Do I have to pick just one?” Or they themselves were the terrible boss.
For this reason, Hwi-kyung had no intention of cutting Josh’s lifeline. While it was undeniable that he was an annoying person, realistically it was impossible to drive out all such people.
Arbitrarily cutting people just because you don’t like them is what makes a company “black.” Besides, it was beyond Hwi-kyung’s authority. He had no hiring and firing power. How could he do something at a foreign company assignment that he couldn’t even do at BK Entertainment?
[Josh was fired?]
[Yes. The HR team received as many as 12 reports related to human rights violations.]
[…I didn’t report him.]
[I thought so. Twelve seems too few—it can’t be the end.]
In America, firing is easier than in Korea. Same-day dismissals actually happened frequently. Believe it or not, after receiving notice of termination, one had to vacate the office that day or soon after.
Still, it was somewhat surprising that Josh was fired on the same day after 12 human rights violation reports. Usually, same-day dismissal notices were given to F1 visa holders who hadn’t yet received permanent residency.
Josh was an authentic white American (Hwi-kyung thought he wasn’t in his right mind the moment he recalled the word “authentic”). In any case, First World white people didn’t lose their jobs in an instant just for making some racist remarks. It was disgusting, but that was reality.
Perhaps BK Entertainment had pressured the studio. Since they couldn’t be on bad terms with a partner company, they probably casually mentioned something like “We heard you have a racist in your company?”
So there would have been at least a formal investigation, and employees who already disliked Josh would have subtly reported his past behaviors to superiors.
Hwi-kyung thought once again that people lived the same everywhere. In any country, if you wait, jerks eventually get their heads cut off and float away. If you can’t control your personality and temperament, you’ll eventually end up like Josh.
[Isn’t this fortunate for you, Hwi-kyung?]
Haruka, who had happily delivered the news of Josh’s dismissal, asked probingly. She seemed relieved that Josh, who always asked questions like “Do you really only eat sushi?”, had been fired.
But Hwi-kyung couldn’t wholeheartedly share her relief. Though he disliked Josh too, if he added to the conversation here, he might hear comments about how Asians only stick together. Hwi-kyung had already experienced racial factional fights in Shanghai.
Hwi-kyung smiled subtly, neither affirming nor denying. Being worried about making careless moves was the same in both Korea and America.
The expectation that strange rumors wouldn’t spread like they did in Korea had long disappeared. The speed at which words spread was faster than light everywhere.
As soon as he got home, Hwi-kyung couldn’t contain his curiosity and asked Gyo-ha:
“Did you get him fired?”
Gyo-ha had been groaning lately due to his thesis presentation. Apparently, writing a thesis for assignments was one thing, and presenting someone else’s thesis was another. Hwi-kyung traced his fingertips over Gyo-ha’s increasingly gaunt face.
Leaning his cheek against Hwi-kyung’s palm, Gyo-ha slowly shook his head. This time, it truly wasn’t something Gyo-ha had directly done. He had only indirectly moved things along, merely rolling up his sleeves because he thought Hwi-kyung’s colleagues would let Hwi-kyung leave if they left Josh alone.
But Hwi-kyung didn’t seem to believe Gyo-ha’s denial. It was understandable considering how many times Gyo-ha had turned Hwi-kyung’s surroundings upside down under the pretext of helping him.
“Why do you look so tired? Have you been sleeping?”
“No.”
“Come here. Let’s lie down.”
Even while not believing that Gyo-ha hadn’t done it, Hwi-kyung was more concerned about Gyo-ha’s complexion than Josh’s lost livelihood. Gyo-ha, who had been prepared for a lecture about not arbitrarily cutting people off, surrendered himself to Hwi-kyung, who pulled him to bed without any further questioning.
“Get some sleep.”
“I can’t sleep now… I only managed to write the table of contents today.”
“What do you mean you can’t? Since when have you been such a model student who does assignments well?”
“I won’t be able to graduate early.”
“You don’t have to.”
“You’re trying to avoid marrying me, aren’t you…”
“Why would I do that? I came all this way with you to marry you.”
The two lay side by side on the bed. Though they had separate rooms, Gyo-ha had ordered a bed in his room large enough for both of them. Hwi-kyung hadn’t stopped him.
Lying together like this, everything often felt alright. Gyo-ha reached out and tightly embraced Hwi-kyung. Held like a bedtime attachment doll, Hwi-kyung let out a small sigh.
“You wouldn’t cancel after being the one to propose, would you?”
“Would you cancel?”
“I won’t cancel unless you say you don’t want to.”
“Then it can never be undone.”
Recently, Yoon Se-young and Lee Sung-ha had broken up. After all that fuss, they ended up separating… To be precise, Se-young had played with Sung-ha and then tossed him aside with an “Ah! That was fun!”
As a result, news reached Hwi-kyung that Lee Sung-ha was on his knees like a #RegretfulMaleLead, begging Se-young to take him back.
Honestly, to Hwi-kyung, the couple’s separation was just amusing gossip, like celebrity news. It was quite satisfying to hear that Lee Sung-ha was being dragged around by Yoon Se-young without even getting a chance to kiss her.
But Gyo-ha seemed to have taken the breakup news differently. He was shocked to hear that Se-young, who had been about to marry Sung-ha, had arranged everything for the wedding and then called it off right before entering the venue.
How could this be? What if Hwi-kyung dumps me too?
If Hwi-kyung had known, he would have pulled Gyo-ha’s hair out. Hwi-kyung had no intention of abandoning Gyo-ha in the first place. He was an unusually responsible man who wouldn’t ignore someone who had injured his hand and couldn’t graduate from graduate school because of him.
Even if Gyo-ha wasn’t wealthy, Hwi-kyung had planned to keep him. How could he release Lee Gyo-ha alone into this harsh world? People who lived with their heads in the clouds until that age were subjects for protective supervision. Don’t grow up! Just live innocently!
But unaware of this fact, Gyo-ha trembled, afraid of being abandoned like Sung-ha. Graduating early, quickly holding the ceremony, and becoming spouses before Hwi-kyung changed his mind seemed safest.
“You don’t have anything to worry about… Just get some sleep. You haven’t been sleeping well lately.”
Just as Gyo-ha had once comforted him, Hwi-kyung held Gyo-ha and slowly rubbed his back. As their bodies pressed together without any gap, he could feel Gyo-ha’s heartbeat gradually quickening.
Although the contact was meant to help him sleep, Gyo-ha always interpreted Hwi-kyung’s touch with different intentions. This guy, not planning to sleep today either… As soon as he felt the body temperature against his thigh, Hwi-kyung quickly realized that Gyo-ha had no intention of sleeping.
“Doing this every day, yet worrying about marriage…”
“Sniff, Hwi-kyung, please hold me tight…”
“Sigh…”
Gyo-ha, who had buried his face in Hwi-kyung’s chest, slightly raised his head and kissed under his chin and neck. Having no choice but to hold Gyo-ha, Hwi-kyung let out a long sigh. Is this a lover or a child…
* * *
A ring was placed on Hwi-kyung’s left hand three days later. For whatever reason, Gyo-ha had taken out the proposal ring he had kept sealed in a drawer.
“From now on, always wear this.”
“When did you get the ring measured?”
“The very day you said you wanted to marry in America.”
“…”
“So I could immediately lie down and offer it if you changed your mind.”
Should he consider this good or weird? Compared to the male protagonists in the romance dramas he enjoyed watching, Gyo-ha was severely lacking in charisma.
Hwi-kyung felt the ring that fit his hand perfectly. He liked the silver ring that wrapped snugly around the ring finger of his left hand. Though it was just a simple accessory, it was virtually a token that bound them to each other.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
