TSG 105

Finally, the day had arrived for the announcement of the bid results. Shin Tae-oh left the CEO’s office.

It appeared that Shin Tae-oh, the CEO himself, was planning to handle the situation personally, as a line of executives and related personnel followed behind him in two rows.

“Babe. Let’s go.”

When Shin Tae-oh called out, the staff in the secretary’s office naturally looked at Chief Secretary Lee Jin-ho, assuming he was the one being addressed. However, the response came from someone else.

“Understood.”

It was Se-hyun, who had only recently returned to the company, moving with his bag in hand.

“Come stand next to me.”

Not only that, but Shin Tae-oh pointed to his side when Se-hyun tried to take his usual spot at the end of the line. Without saying much, Se-hyun moved to stand where he was told, always accustomed to standing one step behind Shin Tae-oh.

“Someone else will drive, so stay close to me.”

“Understood.”

“Isn’t the bag heavy?”

“It’s heavy, but it’s fine.”

Before Shin Tae-oh could offer to carry it, Se-hyun held out the bag on his own.

“Please take care of it until my hand fully heals.”

“Alright.”

As if there was nothing more to say, Shin Tae-oh and Se-hyun got into the elevator. After the others following them also entered, the doors closed.

The staff in the secretary’s office, who had been silently observing the two, exchanged puzzled looks.

“I’m confused. Is it just me?”

“No, me too.”

“Are they dating?”

“That’s what I’m not sure about. The CEO always spoke like that.”

The two secretaries took turns expressing their doubts.

“The ‘babe’ isn’t sudden, but… it doesn’t feel like just a casual ‘babe’. It’s like saying ‘babe’ to your actual ‘babe’? But then again, if it’s the CEO, he might say ‘babe’ to a ‘babe’ who isn’t ‘babe’.”

“Stop talking. The more you talk, the more confused I get.”

The other person waved his hand while touching his head.

“If they’re dating, they’ll let us know.”

“I guess so?”

Since no one would be particularly shocked if they were indeed dating, the staff quickly lost interest. Meanwhile, Lee Jin-ho, who had silently been listening to the conversation, stared at the elevator Shin Tae-oh had just taken.

He knew the CEO probably wouldn’t try to hide it much, but the unexpected one was Se-hyun.

“He’s not ordinary either.”

Maybe that’s how he managed to endure three years working under Shin Tae-oh.

Lee Jin-ho, who was equally extraordinary and had been working as Shin Tae-oh’s secretary for even longer, moved to do his job.

⍣⍣⍣

The two companies that had once dominated the news appeared as partners.

Based on their business proposal, they had been selected as negotiation candidates. They had won the bid.

SR chose to move forward step by step by honestly identifying and resolving its own issues and introducing a new brand through the consortium.

The first step towards the articles that would pour out in the near future and the progress of the large-scale complex they would be developing was a company dinner to strengthen their relationships.

Only those who want to drink alcohol will drink. The main course was beef, which was enough to generate excitement and ensure high attendance.

‘Why are they leaving out the most important thing?’

Se-hyun couldn’t hide his skepticism. After all, wasn’t beef still unappealing if your boss is at the table? His confusion was cleared up by someone nearby.

“It’s okay if all the superiors are gathered in one place.”

Park Ha-seong, seated next to him, kindly explained, though the issue was that Se-hyun had only thought that to himself.

“I knew because you were looking at each person one by one.”

“You know you’re included in those people, right?”

Se-hyun’s remark was directed at Shin Tae-oh, Ha Jin-seong, and Park Ha-seong, all sitting at the same table. In the past, it had been amusing to watch Ha Jin-seong and Shin Tae-oh interact, but now, he no longer wanted to be around them.

Did he dislike Shin Tae-oh just because he was his boss? No, it wasn’t that. It was because he had become a deeply involved lover beyond just a superior.

“My secretary seems uncomfortable.”

“I’m just keeping my promise to buy meat.”

“Why come when you could just give the card?”

“To swipe it myself. And to see a friend’s face while I’m at it.”

The subject of their conversation kept involving Se-hyun.

“Since when are you friends?”

“Then I’ll call him Se-hyun.”

Ha Jin-seong mumbled “friend, Se-hyun, Se-hyun, friend” back and forth, fueling Shin Tae-oh’s irritation.

“Don’t call his name.”

“He’s not my secretary, so why should I keep calling him Secretary Ahn? Unless he works for me.”

“Looks like you’re planning to steal my person under the guise of a company dinner. How about Chief Secretary Lee instead of Secretary Ahn? He’s really good at his job.”

The sharp jab Shin Tae-oh made with a smile seemed to hit Ha Jin-seong squarely, causing his lips to twitch.

“Wouldn’t it be exhausting having a senior as your secretary?”

“Aside from the occasional informal speech, it’s fine.”

Ha Jin-seong seemed to know Shin Tae-oh and Lee Jin-ho’s relationship well, and this unexpected conversation made Se-hyun unintentionally lean in to listen.

If Chief Secretary Lee Jin-ho heard this, who knows what he’d say. Anyway, the conversation was so childish that Se-hyun wanted to get up, but Park Ha-seong kept grilling meat for him, making it impossible to find a chance.

While eating the meat, Park Ha-seong gave him another piece and said, “You’ve worked hard.”

“Others have worked harder than me.”

All Se-hyun had done was pass on the materials everyone had worked so hard to compile to Shin Tae-oh.

“Ah, would you like some water?”

Just as Park Ha-seong noticed Se-hyun’s empty glass and reached to pour, a larger hand suddenly covered the cup, stopping him.

“I’ll do it.”

Park Ha-seong quickly complied with Shin Tae-oh’s intention not to take care of Se-hyun any further, putting down the water jug. Instead, he started grilling meat as he had been doing, while Shin Tae-oh poured the water himself.

“Why don’t you just openly advertise your relationship?

Ha Jin-seong clicked his tongue in disgust at the sight.

“It’s better if everyone knows. Or you could date too.”

At Shin Tae-oh’s nonchalant response, Se-hyun looked around. For the first time, he felt grateful that only the four of them were sitting at a separate table.

“I don’t do that kind of dating. It’s boring and uninteresting.”

“You have to try it to know if it’s fun. It’s so nice. Just looking at them is good, and smelling my lover’s pheromones is nice too.”

Se-hyun flinched as he listened to Shin Tae-oh’s examples. Whether intentional or not, mentioning pheromones in front of Ha Jin-seong was…

“That’s why I don’t date.”

Se-hyun tried to stop him as Ha Jin-seong calmly responded, but he was a step too late.

“Who would like an Alpha without pheromones?”

It’s really fortunate that they’re sitting at a separate table from the others. Otherwise, Ha Jin-seong’s secret would have been revealed.

‘But why did he say it?’

Se-hyun was surprised that Ha Jin-seong revealed with his own mouth that he had no pheromone scent. Something he wanted to hide for his entire life, why would he…

“Don’t look at me like that. Who do you think made me say it?”

“Are you saying it’s because of me?”

Se-hyun put his hand on his chest with a bewildered look.

“You rejected me.”

“So what? I said I’d be your friend instead.”

“That’s the same thing.”

That may be true, but what does that have to do with revealing the secret? If anything, Se-hyun felt more wronged and was about to speak up when someone else intervened.

“What’s this? When did you confess?”

Shin Tae-oh, who had been listening, looked alternately at Se-hyun and Ha Jin-seong with a deep furrow between his brows. Under the pressure of being asked when exactly this happened, Se-hyun swallowed hard and pondered.

Hadn’t he once mentioned in the hospital that he had confessed his feelings to “Hongcha”? Should he reveal that this “Hongcha” was actually Ha Jin-seong? Or maybe talk about their meeting at the café?

“I’ll tell you later.”

Right now, that wasn’t the important issue, so Se-hyun brushed it off. Neither Shin Tae-oh nor Ha Jin-seong pressed the matter any further.

“Anyway, I gave up everything due to the pain of being rejected by Ahn Se-hyun.”

“No, why because of me…”

It was hard to maintain composure at these words, which were as shocking as Se-hyun abandoning the original work. Moreover, pheromones weren’t a subject Ha Jin-seong could mention so casually.

Knowing he was a person who panicked when he realized he hadn’t sprayed pheromone perfume, it was even more so.

That’s not an easy thing…

“Se-hyun.”

At Shin Tae-oh’s call, Se-hyun turned around and saw what Shin Tae-oh was pointing at with his eyes. Ha Jin-seong’s hands under the table had turned white.

It wasn’t that Ha Jin-seong had moved past it—he was trying to free himself.

Ha Jin-seong grumbled again, “Who would like an Alpha that’s no different from an artificial flower?”

“Artificial flowers are pretty though.”

The unexpected response came from Park Ha-seong. While Ha Jin-seong was frozen by the unforeseen answer, Park Ha-seong calmly flipped the meat. And he pushed the cooked pieces towards Se-hyun.

Even Shin Tae-oh raised an eyebrow in displeasure at the blatant favoritism. The funny thing is, when Se-hyun noticed this reaction and gave some meat to Shin Tae-oh’s personal plate, his displeasure quickly disappeared.

So, is sharing meat all it takes to make things better?

Se-hyun gave Shin Tae-oh a look, urging him to eat, then glanced back at Ha Jin-seong and Park Ha-seong. Suddenly, the two of them had started talking again.

This combination was definitely a first.

“Of course, they’re made to imitate flowers…”

“Yes, that’s why they’re beautiful. And that’s all that matters.”