DFLT 37

If it were me, I would have already bowed my head and started apologizing, but Dojin shot back without the slightest bit of intimidation.

“What nonsense are you talking about? I’ve been saying it all along. That he’s a junior I care about.”

“No, what you cared about wasn’t Ji Yeonoh, it was the damn tofu.”

“Yeonoh is the tofu?”

Yeonoh blinked his eyes, trying hard to understand the situation.

So, the diamond spoon Dojin was talking about was Heonyoung…. That’s why I met Dojin at Heonyoung’s residence, and why I ran into Heonyoung on the day I went to meet Dojin. As the clues that had been floating randomly in the air connected, Yeonoh’s open mouth couldn’t seem to close.

“Wait, wait a minute!”

Dojin, too, seemed to be replaying this situation in his head, as he held up his palm and put a brake on the situation.

“You, how did you know he was Yeonoh?”

“Because he’s my subordinate.”

“Huh?”

Dojin’s eyes, having learned a fact he was completely unaware of, widened so much that I wondered if they could get any bigger.

“So you were chattering on about Ji Yeonoh day and night without even knowing where he worked.”

“But Yeonoh is…”

“Because he’s a Beta?”

So because TG is a company that traditionally hires Alphas, he was naturally excluded from the options. The place where I met Dojin for mentoring was also the TG Foundation, but in the end, it seemed even Dojin hadn’t considered that I might have joined TG, and my mouth tasted a little bitter.

“After all that fuss, Kang Dojin turned out to be an Alpha supremacist after all.”

“Hey, Seo Heonyoung. How can you say something like that?”

“Sunbae.”

Dojin, whose expression hardened, clearly not pleased with Heonyoung’s rather aggressive words and actions, took a step towards him. Yeonoh, flustered by the ominous flow of the situation, grabbed Dojin’s wrist to stop him. A small sigh, filled with both apology and trouble, escaped from between Dojin’s teeth as he swept his bangs back.

“Hah…. Yeonoh, I’m really sorry. That wasn’t my intention.”

“It’s okay.”

If this continued, it was clear that everyone would become uncomfortable, and Yeonoh, who didn’t want to trouble everyone because of himself, forced a smile as if he didn’t mind.

We couldn’t just stand awkwardly in a corner of the hall forever, so we moved to a table, but the awkwardness, which I thought would get better with a change of scenery, didn’t improve at all. It was incredibly uncomfortable to be sitting across from Seo Heonyoung after what had happened last week. A bed of thorns would have been preferable.

“So the junior hyung was talking about so much was Mr. Ji Yeonoh?”

Do Sehyun, with her arms crossed, had a face that was trying hard to hold back the smile that was about to escape by stretching her philtrum, as if she found something very amusing.

“It suits you. Do your best.”

What on earth was I supposed to do my best at, and why did her tone sound so sarcastic. Do Sehyun was clearly smiling brightly, but strangely, my mood only got worse. I glanced at Seo Heonyoung across from me, but he seemed to have no interest in this conversation at all. It felt like I was the only one conscious of last week’s events and fretting, and I couldn’t help but feel my pride hurt.

“I was so clueless, wasn’t I? There’s nothing more uncomfortable than meeting your boss in a private setting.”

“That’s probably not something to say when that boss is right in front of you.”

“Shut up. You have no right to speak.”

Dojin started the conversation and smiled, but the corners of his mouth were contorted as if he was embarrassed by how the situation had turned out. Seo Heonyoung, with his arms crossed, retorted with displeased eyes, but Dojin grumbled and cut off his provocation with a single stroke.

“Come on, it’s not like that. I’m the one who never told you, sunbae.”

Still, I had to show some sincerity to Dojin, who had invited me with good intentions, so I decided not to focus on my own feelings. At that, Dojin’s moist eyes sparkled as he asked the two of them.

“Isn’t Yeonoh really nice?”

“You’re a little… strange.”

Seo Heonyoung, who, unlike Dojin, was equipped with something akin to the eyes of a dead pollack, expressed his contempt. I had once wondered what Seo Heonyoung, who had only ever been in a strict vertical relationship with me, would be like in front of people he was comfortable with. Upon confirmation, there seemed to be no particular peculiarities. Having a sharp tongue is just a habit derived from his personality.

“When it comes to being strange, I’ve never seen anyone stranger than you in my life.”

Dojin, not yielding to Seo Heonyoung’s provocation, retorted huffily. It was surprising that two people who were polar opposites could be so close, but I soon realized. If there were two Seo Heonyoungs, those two would become enemies who wouldn’t even meet on a single-log bridge.

“Yeonoh, I’m going to go say hi to some acquaintances. Want to come with?”

“Ah, yes! I’d love to.”

For Yeonoh, who had been waiting for the atmosphere to loosen up, there was no more welcome suggestion, so he gladly got up from his seat. Dojin, who was accepting the half-joking resentments and happy greetings from his acquaintances who had appeared after a whole seven years, did not forget his purpose in bringing Yeonoh here and introduced him.

The business cards I had brought just in case came in quite handy. Although the titles on the business cards I received in return were mostly for high positions compared to the ordinary employee’s card I handed out. It wouldn’t have been strange if my business card was crumpled up and cleared away with the leftovers on a plate, but I decided to find meaning in the fact that I had exchanged names and made an impression on people I didn’t know.

At the last table they reached, an acquaintance offered Dojin a glass of champagne, but he adamantly refused.

“Sorry, I brought my car.”

“Why are you backing out? You even brought your secretary.”

Did he mistake me for a secretary because I had been standing so politely and without a presence? Still, the atmosphere was such that it wouldn’t have been strange.

“You crazy bastard, no! He’s a junior I care about.”

“Ah, really? You should have introduced him earlier. I’ve been very rude.”

“Not at all. Haha, it happens. I’m Ji Yeonoh.”

Dojin immediately responded by patting his acquaintance’s shoulder, and Yeonoh, who was watching, handed over his business card and greeted him first. The other person, after scratching the back of his neck and apologizing, seemed embarrassed and casually read what he had received.

“If it’s TG Group, then that’s Heonyoung’s company, isn’t it?”

“Ah, that’s right. I recently worked in Executive Director Seo Heonyoung’s secretarial office.”

“Really? Could you be the legendary secretary, that person?”

“The legendary secretary…?”

“The secretary who was not only the first Beta employee Seo Heonyoung hired but also the one he defended in front of a three-term congressman’s son.”

“…Well, it’s true that I’m the first Beta employee.”

The description was pointing too directly at me. Yeonoh racked his brain, wondering when on earth he had become a legendary secretary without even knowing it.

“Then the protagonist of the rumor is Yeonoh, right?”

Starting with the story of how impressive it was that he had lasted three years under Seo Heonyoung, the chatter between Dojin and his acquaintances continued to their recent updates. Yeonoh, who had been listening intently, was naturally pushed to the edge of the conversation and was looking around when his gaze happened to land on Seo Heonyoung. Seo Heonyoung, sitting side by side with Do Sehyun, was listening to Sehyun chatter with an excited face, looking as if he was having a great time. Then, as if sensing Yeonoh’s gaze, their eyes met.

Dojin’s voice, which filled the space, grew faint and blurry, and Seo Heonyoung’s gaze on my cheek felt strangely hot. It was definitely just a formless gaze, but why was my whole face getting flushed. It might have been because I was caught staring.

“Hm? Yeonoh.”

I forced myself to turn my head away, but Dojin was looking at Yeonoh and prompting him for an answer.

“What? Ah, I’m sorry. I was just thinking about something for a moment.”

“How about we go out by ourselves? It seems we’ve greeted everyone to some extent.”

It had definitely felt like an eternity that Seo Heonyoung’s gaze had been on me, but it was a moment so short that a single question could be asked. A new sense of emptiness washed over me. Why on earth did I get excited like a child just because he glanced at me for a very brief moment. I even had the illusion that I could hear Seo Heonyoung’s sneer ringing in my ears, even though I hadn’t heard it.

“Now?”

However, Yeonoh, who was very concerned about leaving the two of them behind and storming out, hesitated, and Dojin whispered.

“They don’t care about us anyway. They’d probably be happy if we just slipped out.”

True, the atmosphere around those two was overflowing with a pink-tinged mood. If I were to stubbornly push my way past that boundary, I would clearly become a thorn in their side. Yeonoh, thinking it would be better to be quick-witted and get out of the way, nodded his head.

“Yes, I think that would be good.”

So instead of returning to our seats, we chatted with a few acquaintances and gauged the atmosphere appropriately before we were able to leave that place.

“Want to have dinner before you go?”

I was hungry because my appetite had disappeared when Seo Heonyoung appeared earlier as I was about to grab some simple finger food, but I was even less in the mood to put something in my mouth.

“Sunbae, I’m a little tired, so I’d like to head home now…”

“Ah, there was a lot going on today, wasn’t there? Haha.”

“Thank you so much for today. It was a good time.”

“Okay, get home safe.”

I needed some time alone to sort out my jumbled thoughts. If I went straight home like this, it would be difficult even to do that because my family would be there. I said my goodbyes and was walking to the bus stop when I thought I heard the urgent footsteps of someone running from behind, and then my hand was caught.

“Yeonoh!”

It was Dojin, looking somehow anxious. Puffs of breath scattered from between Dojin’s teeth, his cheeks flushed red in the cold air.