DFLT 52

The stormy days passed, and by the time I came to my senses, the week I had promised Do Sehyun had flown by. Contrary to my worries, the effects of the suppressants weren’t particularly noticeable. It was just that the intensity of my work had increased compared to before, and only fatigue was accumulating.

Today is Friday, so I should return the watch sometime next week, I thought, and greeted Heonyoung, who had just gotten into the car.

“Good morning, Executive Director.”

“Right.”

For three years, I had woken up at the same time every single day without fail to pick up Seo Heonyoung and drive the same route, yet I felt this tired from the morning. Was my body protesting, asking if I still thought it was the same as before? But then, Do Sehyun’s worry-that-wasn’t-a-worry, telling me to take care of myself while bringing up my age, came to mind, and a sudden surge of irritation rose in Yeonoh. What, how much older is he anyway…

Besides the markedly increased fatigue, there was one other thing that had changed from before. It was the fact that whenever I glanced at Seo Heonyoung through the rearview mirror, our eyes would often meet in the mirror. After it happened a few times—Seo Heonyoung’s gaze in the mirror would be on my face, and when our eyes met, he would quickly look away—Yeonoh fell into thought.

‘Did I really make some kind of mistake…’

He must be looking at me because something is bothering him. Is he not saying anything because he doesn’t want to ruin his mood first thing in the morning?

“The air seems to have gotten much colder.”

When their eyes met in the mirror again, Yeonoh spoke up first, hesitantly. And he immediately regretted it. What was the point of mustering up the courage to say something that wouldn’t get a reply anyway?

“It has.”

Yeonoh doubted his ears at the reply that came after a long pause. He wasn’t sure if Seo Heonyoung had just responded to him. The tone was insincere and curt, but it was still much better than no response at all.

It seemed the weather really had gotten colder. Even though I was wearing a coat, a chill pierced me to the bone. When I was bundling up in my outerwear, Seowon had told me not to make a fuss because it wasn’t that cold, but seeing the fish-shaped pastry stalls on the street seriously preparing for business, it probably wasn’t just Yeonoh making a scene.

“Mr. Yeonoh, are you that cold?”

As Yeonoh sat at his desk wrapped in a blanket, passing team members commented as they saw him. Yeonoh, in turn, asked Team Leader Park Kyung-hwan with a puzzled face.

“Aren’t you cold?”

“It just seems similar to yesterday?”

“It was quite cold yesterday, too.”

“Mr. Yeonoh, you weren’t wrapped in a blanket yesterday. You just wore your coat all day.”

The temperature is similar to yesterday? As soon as Team Leader Park left, Yeonoh searched for the Seoul weather. The low temperature was only about 1 degree lower than yesterday. That’s strange. To me, it feels at least 5 degrees colder.

He tilted his head for a moment, then made his way to the break room. He intended to warm his hands with a hot coffee. A glass cup that was good for holding warmly would be better than a well-insulated tumbler.

“There should be a cup somewhere.”

The company kept mugs for guests, but since he had been away from the secretarial office for quite a while, the arrangement of items had changed a bit in the meantime. The drawer where the cups were originally kept was now full of tea that no one knew who drank and pre-portioned sugar.

Just in case, Yeonoh stood on his tiptoes, opened the cupboard door above his head, and let out a sigh.

“Hah, these alphas…”

When Yeonoh was in the secretarial office, he was usually the one who served tea to guests, so the cups were placed in a low drawer to match his height. But these tall alphas had placed such infrequently used cups in a high cupboard. Since their hands could reach them anyway.

“I think I can reach it.”

He lifted his heels and stretched his arm out long, but he could only barely touch the surface of the cup.

“If I touch the surface and gently turn it…”

He figured he could use his fingertips to gently turn the glass surface of the cup toward the handle, and when the handle faced forward, he could hook his finger in and pull it down.

It was a truly, incredibly simple task, but the moment he pulled the finger hooked on the handle forward, the cup, which was heavier than he thought, hit Yeonoh’s fingernail and slipped from his finger.

In other words, a glass bludgeon disguised as a glass cup was in free fall toward Yeonoh’s head.

“Uh, uh…!”

Which meant that in a few seconds, a disaster would occur where either the glass cup would break or Yeonoh’s head would break. As soon as he recognized the situation, Yeonoh covered his head with both hands and let out a short scream.

“Aack!”

I had accepted my impending fate, but I felt no dull pain on the back of my hands covering my head, nor did I hear any sharp shattering sound. What’s going on? Did the cup suddenly decide to defy the acceleration of gravity and levitate in mid-air? Yeonoh cautiously opened his eyes and lifted his head. The first thing he saw was a large hand wrapped around the cup.

“Huh?”

Yeonoh, who still hadn’t fully grasped the situation, followed the arm connected to the hand with his eyes and tilted his head all the way back. Seo Heonyoung, holding the cup, was looking down at Yeonoh.

“…Hiek!”

This position… is too close! Horrified, Yeonoh told himself that he absolutely had to turn his head, but it felt like their lips would touch if he moved. On top of that, he fell under the illusion that he was being sucked into Seo Heonyoung’s jet-black pupils, which held Yeonoh with dry eyes that conveyed an unidentifiable emotion. Heonyoung, too, did not avoid his gaze and stared at Yeonoh’s face for a long while.

It was a little later that Seo Heonyoung’s pupils, so black they had become hazy, returned to normal. He blinked his focused eyes, and the sound of him placing the cup on the sink was a dull thud.

“Be careful.”

Considering Seo Heonyoung’s usual behavior, I expected a sharp, reproachful remark, but he just told me to be careful without saying much else.

“Ah, th-thank you…”

Embarrassed and awkward, Yeonoh tried to turn his body forward to thank him properly, but he couldn’t move. It was because Heonyoung had slightly pushed Yeonoh’s body forward as he rushed over to catch the cup. In other words, their bodies were pressed together from their upper to lower bodies.

“Stop fidgeting.”

“Ah, yes.”

When Yeonoh answered in a trembling voice, Heonyoung’s body carefully pulled away.

“Hah, dammit.”

But then Seo Heonyoung swore in a hoarse voice. Worried that something had happened while he was catching the cup, Yeonoh tried to check on him.

“What? Executive Director, are you alrigh—.”

“Look forward.”

“What? Yes.”

Heonyoung cut Yeonoh’s words off sharply.

Yeonoh, who was exceptionally good at doing what Seo Heonyoung told him to do, answered briskly without even thinking of turning around.

“…Fuck.”

Spitting out a raw curse, Seo Heonyoung left the break room just like that. Only when Heonyoung’s back was out of sight did the strength leave Yeonoh’s legs, and he collapsed onto the floor.

“Ah…”

As the tension eased, the condensed emotions and sensations of the moment hit him belatedly. Seo Heonyoung’s body heat, the gaze that had touched his face, and his half-hoarse voice all mixed together, making his chest churn.

Even in that half-conscious state, the memory of Seo Heonyoung’s insanely handsome face, encountered at close range, remained vividly in his mind. His heart was already sprinting at full speed, so much so that he didn’t need coffee.

“He must have been disgusted.”

That must be why he swore so harshly and left. Yeonoh painstakingly gathered the fluffy emotions floating in the air and got his coffee.

Back at his seat and wrapped in his blanket, Yeonoh was deep in his work when the vibration of the phone on his desk broke his concentration.

[Dojin sunbae: Yeonoh, are you busy?]

At Dojin’s message, Yeonoh picked up his phone, flinched, and looked around. Heonyoung was discussing work with Chief Kim, so it seemed okay to take a short break for a simple message.

[I’m okay for a moment. ㅎㅎ What’s up?]

A reply came immediately from Dojin, who read the message right away.

[Dojin sunbae: You haven’t been to our office yet, right?]

[No, not yet.]

[Dojin sunbae: Want to come visit today?]

It was a Friday, and Yeonoh was also curious about Dojin’s office. Just as he sent a reply saying he would go, the office door opened.

Putting his phone down, Yeonoh placed both hands on the keyboard at the speed of light.

The two men’s conversation continued even after they came out of the office.

“Then let’s proceed with that, and let’s follow up again tomorrow.”

“Understood, Executive Director.”

Vzzzt. At the vibration of his phone, Yeonoh’s gaze unconsciously landed on the screen.

[A message has been sent by Dojin sunbae]

Ah, it must be Dojin’s reply. It was probably a message to set up a time, so deciding to check it later, Yeonoh tore his eyes away and furtively shifted them back toward the two men to gauge the situation. And he almost screamed.

It was because Seo Heonyoung’s gaze, which had been on Jinhwan’s face until just a moment ago, was now directed at him. He must have eyes in the back of his head. Otherwise, there’s no way he could be so perceptive.

“Ah, one more thing.”

“Yes, Executive Director.”

“The glass cups in the break room, either put them in a lower drawer or get rid of them. There was almost an industrial accident today.”

Chief Kim Jinhwan had a large question mark floating above his head in confusion, but Yeonoh knew the meaning instantly. Because the subject of the ‘industrial accident’ Seo Heonyoung was referring to was none other than himself. Fortunately, instead of asking for the meaning, Chief Kim immediately replied that he understood.

“Secretary Ji, stop slacking off during work hours.”

I thought he might let it slide, but as expected, that was just wishful thinking. Yeonoh replied that he understood in a voice that was barely a whisper.