“I’ll be getting off first, then.”
Yeon Yiseo bowed politely to Ethan and stepped toward the elevator doors, but Ethan reached out and caught the closing door with one hand. Startled by the sudden move, Yeon Yiseo’s eyes widened.
“I heard you pushed yourself to the point of collapse just to deliver the file Natalie left behind at the product launch. I think I forgot to thank you properly for that.”
“Thank you. But honestly, Natalie deserves more credit than I do. She handled everything while I was out sick.”
“I heard about that too. All of it included—I just wanted to say thank you.”
Yeon Yiseo hadn’t expected to be singled out for a thank-you like this. Understandably so—Ethan wouldn’t have known any of it if Natalie hadn’t gone out of her way to report it. And to make that report, she would’ve had to admit her own mistake. Yet she still gave the credit to Yeon Yiseo. That in itself was surprising.
She didn’t have to do that. Rather than feeling grateful for getting credit, Yeon Yiseo was now more worried about what kind of evaluation Ethan might have given Natalie. He decided he’d have to talk to her about it sometime. He recalled how considerate Natalie had always been toward him as a Beta.
Especially yesterday—he couldn’t shake the guilt of how coldly he’d responded to her. The way she told Ethan the full story… Natalie wouldn’t have done that unless she genuinely thought of him as a younger brother. Feeling anxious, Yeon Yiseo looked down at his own feet.
“Well then.”
“Have a good evening.”
Yeon Yiseo bowed again. Only after the elevator doors closed and Ethan was out of sight did Yeon Yiseo exhale a long breath. Somehow, it felt like he’d made a definite impression on Ethan. Sure, the office only had a few secretaries, so they’d interacted before—but after today, he had a feeling things might change a little going forward.
“The story’s narrative…”
He muttered the words under his breath. So things are going to happen, one way or another, huh? He couldn’t say for sure yet, but the whole situation left him feeling unsettled.
For now, what he needed to do was head to the General Affairs Department. After all, he was just another salaried office worker.
After finishing his errand in General Affairs and returning to his desk, Yeon Yiseo went to find Natalie. When he asked what exactly she’d reported to Ethan during the launch event, she looked confused for a second but quickly caught on and smiled.
“Oh, that? I just told him what happened, nothing more.”
“You could’ve just let it slide, though.”
“Well, the CEO said he saw you outside the event venue. It wouldn’t make sense for someone who’d left sick to show up on their own, right? So I just explained it as it was. Don’t worry too much about it. Besides, it’s true that I made a mistake.”
For a moment, Yeon Yiseo almost nodded along. But as she said it, the truth was—she didn’t have to tell the full story. She could’ve glossed over the details. The fact that she didn’t made him wonder about her motives. He couldn’t figure out why she’d chosen to do it, and it didn’t seem like she planned to tell him, either.
“Thanks. But… please don’t do that again.”
That’s not what I meant to say.
Yeon Yiseo winced internally at the cold tone that came out of his mouth. He could have said it more kindly. If he were better with people, he might’ve been able to express his gratitude properly. But he didn’t really know how.
“Hehe. Alright. You’re such a sweet person, Yiseo.”
Still, she responded as if she understood exactly what he meant.
“Maybe not as sweet as you, Natalie.”
“See? That’s exactly why I like you, Yiseo.”
In the end, Yeon Yiseo smiled back at Natalie, who was grinning wide. The reason he could survive working in a place with such an overwhelming workload wasn’t just the paycheck—it was also because of colleagues like her.
He wanted to treat her to a meal, but his wallet was in a sad state at the moment. And tossing out a vague “let’s grab food sometime” would only make him sound insincere. So he decided to keep that meal invitation tucked safely in his heart for now.
After that, Yeon Yiseo returned to work and became swamped with tasks again. The fiery resolve he’d shown earlier—clenching his fists and vowing to work hard—had burned out completely by the time he was about to clock out. He moved his tired legs, telling himself they’d recharge by morning.
Once he got home, he barely managed to wash up before collapsing onto his bed. Staring up at the familiar, worn ceiling, he found himself wondering what being an Engaged Player even mattered anymore.
He blinked a few times, realizing he should probably put a cold compress on his swollen face—but the thought of getting up was just too exhausting.
How nice would it be if someone just took care of all that for me?
A sibling, a parent, a partner—anyone like that. Just someone else sharing the same space.
He missed the sound of another person living their life beside him. But the wave of drowsiness soon swept over him, and he closed his eyes, telling himself he’d just rest for a moment.
“Huh… What the…”
He’d only shut his eyes for a second, but when he opened them again, it was already time to get up and go to work. The injustice of it all stung.
Sometimes he wondered if living like this every day was really okay. But then he’d think about people working jobs even harder than his for less pay, and he’d feel a sliver of gratitude again.
After all, this was the bare minimum he had to earn just to scrape by.
“…Let’s get up.”
The window was still dark; the sun hadn’t even risen yet. Yeon Yiseo slowly sat up.
“Tomorrow is another day.”
It was a famous line from a famous movie, but it didn’t hold much hope for Yeon Yiseo.
If anything, it felt like he was caught in a never-ending loop—like the sun would rise whether he wanted it to or not, and he had no choice but to go through the motions again. But he couldn’t say no. He couldn’t run away. So he moved his body and began to get ready for work.
At the office, he sat at his desk and reviewed his tasks for the day. As always, there was a mountain of work.
Sure, one project had just wrapped up, but that didn’t mean he could take a break. And just knowing that didn’t make it any easier. What amazed him the most was that Ethan, despite the workload being too much for even two secretaries to handle, took care of everything on his own.
Was it because he was a dominant Alpha?
“Yeon Yiseo.”
“Oh! Y-Yes!”
Yeon Yiseo had just been thinking about Ethan when the call came through, making him jump. Startled by the sudden alert with his name on it, he scrambled to his feet and headed to the CEO’s office.
He couldn’t help but wonder if Ethan had called him in on purpose, remembering their conversation in the elevator. Not that he could ask outright.
“Yes, sir. You called for me?”
“Mm.”
He must’ve called me for something… But was it really necessary to look at me this much?
Feeling Ethan’s eyes on him, Yeon Yiseo reflexively lifted the corners of his lips into a smile. His swollen cheek ached as the facial muscles tensed, and the pain made him wince—resulting in a strange expression.
“Still swollen, I see. Didn’t do anything about it at home?”
“I meant to, but I was too exhausted and fell asleep right away. It’ll go down on its own eventually.”
As he spoke, he tacked on a smile, worried he might sound like he was blaming Ethan for not giving him enough time to rest. Ethan, however, looked confused for a second before murmuring an “ah” of realization.
“That’s right. You’re a Beta.”
“Yes, sir.”
Only then did Yeon Yiseo realize why Ethan had looked so puzzled. Unlike Betas, who needed a full eight hours of sleep to function properly, dominant Alphas could get by on just five. Ethan, being an extreme-dominant Alpha, probably needed even less than that.
For someone like him, Yeon Yiseo’s words might have sounded odd. ‘After work, there’s still time—why didn’t you take care of it then?’
“Well, I’m a Beta, after all.”
As soon as he said it, Yeon Yiseo wondered if his tone had sounded off. He glanced at Ethan nervously, but the man didn’t seem offended.
No—indifferent was the more accurate word.
“So, may I ask why you called me in?”
Surely, it wasn’t just to talk about his face. And Yeon Yiseo’s guess was right—Ethan handed him a small USB drive.
“Take this to Scott Industries. After that, you can clock out for the day.”
“Understood.”
Scott Industries?
He couldn’t tell whether this was a personal errand or a work-related task. But did it really matter? Probably not.
Either way—getting off early?!
What a surprise bonus. Nothing could’ve made him happier.
Sure, getting to Scott Industries by subway would take a while, but he could live with that. Drunk on the idea of an early day, Yeon Yiseo beamed as he accepted the USB and turned to leave the office.
“Leaving early means you’ll have time to take care of that swelling.”
Huh?
Yeon Yiseo froze mid-step at the voice behind him. Unsure if he’d heard right, he looked back—and locked eyes with Ethan, who was glancing up from his papers.
When Ethan raised an eyebrow as if asking “Is something wrong?”, Yeon Yiseo gave a quick bow and left the room, saying it was nothing.
