“What kind of person is the CEO? I mean…”
“You’re asking if he’s difficult to serve?”
Shin Jihoon smiled knowingly.
“Not exactly, but he’s not an easy person either. Ah, this is something we should discuss over drinks. I’ll tell you at the company dinner later.”
“Company dinner?”
“Come on, the secretarial office doesn’t have that many dinners. So don’t even think about skipping it, okay?”
“…Yes.”
Seoyoung answered, hiding her disappointment.
“This is your seat, Yoo Seoyoung-ssi. And here, take this.”
Shin Jihoon pointed to a desk and placed a tablet on it.
“You’ll use this at the company from now on. The work manual is in the shared folder, so when I give you the password, open it and change it immediately. Documents can only be viewed on the internal network, and unauthorized printing is prohibited. Email uses a dedicated server exclusively for the secretarial office, and if external transmission is detected, the security team will respond immediately, so keep that in mind.”
“Yes.”
Shin Jihoon continued his explanation in a friendly tone, step by step. Seoyoung listened attentively, but her gaze occasionally drifted toward the CEO’s office door. Despite considerable time having passed since her arrival, Sa Kangjun’s door remained closed. Was he working? Or was he not in his office?
“Oh my, look at the time. The cafeteria here is delicious. Would you like to have lunch before you go?”
“No, I should be going now.”
“That’s too bad. See you tomorrow then.”
After saying goodbye to Shin Jihoon, Seoyoung got into the elevator. Although she had spent half a day there, she felt like she had nothing to show for it. It was as if the wind that had leaked through the hole in the center of her heart was spreading emptily throughout her body.
After confirming the elevator door had completely closed, Seoyoung immediately leaned against the wall. She carefully lifted her right foot and gently took off her shoe. Blood had formed on her pressed skin, suggesting a blister on her heel had burst.
“That was stupid.”
To celebrate her new job, she had bought a suit over the weekend and purchased the shoes displayed next to it. She thought they would be fine since the heels weren’t high, but wearing new shoes had been the problem. Just as the tired Seoyoung belatedly reached out to press a button, the elevator door unexpectedly opened again.
Startled, she looked up to find a large silhouette standing before her.
“Hello.”
Kangjun entered the elevator with a smile.
“Hello, CEO-nim.”
Seoyoung quickly slipped her foot back into her shoe and greeted him. Though it had certainly hurt before, her nerves were now so on edge that she couldn’t feel the pain. Sa Kangjun wore a jacket over a shirt with one button undone and no tie. His casual, relaxed appearance was extremely attractive. His intense presence blocked the hole in her heart and filled the entire elevator.
“I heard the news. Looking forward to working with you.”
“Thank you. I’ll work hard.”
“Just don’t work so hard that you can’t walk.”
Kangjun chuckled, pressed his fingerprint on the reader, and pushed the B7 button. Seoyoung, who had been staring blankly at his arm passing in front of her chest, looked at him, wondering what he meant. Kangjun’s gaze was directed at her right heel. He must have noticed the damaged skin.
“Ah, wearing new shoes caused a bit of…”
“You really put in effort to look good today? That’s appreciated.”
Though at first glance it seemed like praise for an employee’s attitude, something about it peculiarly bothered her. Not understanding why, Seoyoung unnecessarily pulled back her painful foot.
“Where do you live, Secretary Yoo?”
“Gangseo District.”
“Gangseo District. A perfect distance for making excuses when you’re late?”
“I won’t be late. I also have plans to move.”
Her commitment was sincere, but the moving plan was spontaneous. It was natural for a superior to worry that an employee’s residence might affect their work, and Seoyoung wanted to erase that concern. Though she felt guilty about adding the lie, gaining trust was more important than remorse. After all, she was already standing before him as a bundle of lies.
“Hoo,” Kangjun smiled with an interested expression.
“If that’s true, check with the finance team. You should get a decent moving allowance.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
The conversation paused after those words. It was awkward for a prospective secretary who hadn’t even started her first day to ask questions. With nowhere to look, she just stared at the elevator door, but she could feel a gaze on her cheek. At the sound of a chuckle, Seoyoung found herself looking at him.
“Why are you doing that?”
“Feels like something just passed by.”
“What do you mean?”
Confused, Seoyoung looked around. There was nothing. It made no sense for something to pass by in a narrow, enclosed elevator. Haah, looking at Kangjun touching his forehead while laughing, it seemed like she had missed something. While she was standing there awkwardly, rolling her eyes, the elevator stopped. As the door opened, Seoyoung quickly bowed her head.
“Then I’ll see you tomorrow, CEO-nim.”
Just as Seoyoung was about to rush out after her greeting, Kangjun quickly grabbed her wrist. Their eyes met as Seoyoung instantly turned around. Her captured wrist felt burning hot. Why on earth?
“I said something passed by. The floor you need to get off at.”
“What?”
“If Secretary Yoo gets off here, the security team will come to catch you.”
Kangjun gestured with his eyes toward the ceiling outside the elevator. A CCTV camera was visible. Surprised, she turned her gaze to see that the number on the button panel was B7, not L. The weapons testing laboratory that only A-level personnel could access. Only now did she recall Sa Kangjun pressing his fingerprint when pushing the button. How could she make such a foolish mistake?
“Be careful. You might end up in handcuffs if you’re not careful.”
“I’m sorry, CEO-nim. I must have forgotten to press the button.”
Seoyoung turned pale and bowed her head. She had been so focused on her painful foot that she hadn’t pressed a button when Kangjun entered. Afterward, she had been too focused on him to notice anything else.
Kangjun released her wrist and pressed the L button. In the ascending elevator, his question fell onto the top of Seoyoung’s head as she stared straight ahead.
“I was wondering. Is Secretary Yoo usually this absent-minded?”
“No, I’m not.”
Seoyoung turned her head abruptly to look at him as she spoke.
“I don’t usually make many mistakes. I’ve never had problems at my previous workplace.”
“Ah, so you only act this way in front of me?”
“I wasn’t focusing on myself and was paying attention to you instead. Because you’re my superior.”
Perhaps because she had shown him something embarrassing? Seoyoung boldly countered with the words he had used during the interview. She felt relieved, as if a thorn had been removed.
“Ah. So you wore uncomfortable shoes just to impress me too?”
Kangjun cleverly connected her words back to the starting point of their conversation.
“I appreciate it again, but I’d be more grateful if you just wore comfortable shoes and focused more on doing your job well.”
As he finished speaking, the elevator door opened. Kangjun took out his wallet and extracted a card to hand to Seoyoung.
“Don’t take the crosstown train. Take a taxi. Your foot must hurt.”
Kangjun let out a mischievous smile. Her feeble resistance hadn’t even registered from the beginning.
***
“Did you get hired by a ghost company?”
“Be honest. You just didn’t want to buy beef for us, right?”
“Always thinking only of yourself.”
Messages from Sena had arrived. It seemed she had looked up what kind of company Bantech was after hearing about Seoyoung’s new job. Unlike major corporations, it had a modest website with minimal external exposure, which clearly bothered her. If she read the news carefully, she would know that wasn’t the case, but that was unlikely. Seoyoung pressed delete and looked at the laptop on her low table. It displayed a photo of Bantech’s chairwoman, Sarin, which she had managed to find.
“So that’s the chairwoman.”
Seoyoung applied disinfectant to a cotton ball and dabbed it on her heel.
“Ouch!”
It was supposed to be an alcohol-free disinfectant. She had deliberately chosen one that would hurt less, but it was useless on the burst blister. Wincing at the stinging sensation spreading deep into her skin, Seoyoung carefully covered the wound with a bandage. Then she turned her attention back to the screen.
Seated in the VIP section at what appeared to be a military-related event, Sarin was confidently shaking hands with someone. She was a woman of remarkable beauty with an overwhelming charisma. And beside her stood So Yujung. Given how young both women looked, the photo was likely taken when Sarin was a lobbyist.
In her youth, Sarin had been involved in many scandals with influential figures both domestically and internationally, but most seemed to lack credibility. Of course, the fact that Sa Kangjun was born meant she had someone she loved or needed. Due to Sarin’s thorough secrecy, the identity of Sa Kangjun’s father remained unknown. Who could it be? The person who left a blue shadow in his dark eyes.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
