Chapter 27
The two of them were lying sideways, facing each other.
“Already sleepy? It’s still bright outside.”
“Why am I so sleepy…? I’ve been busy these days…”
Seola rubbed her eyes like a child with her fingers.
“Are you giving me a passive-aggressive attack now? You mean I gave you too much work?”
Seola chuckled softly.
“I just had a lot of things going on… this and that…”
Until just a few days ago, she could never have imagined lying in the same bed with a man like this, falling asleep together.
“Aren’t you sleepy? I’m really tired…”
“I wanted to read a book…”
“Can’t we just sleep and read tomorrow?”
Their eyes were already closing.
“Sleeping better in a haunted house than I ever imagined…”
Suhyeok couldn’t understand it.
“Did you usually have trouble sleeping? Insomnia?”
Seola asked slowly.
“Not exactly. I just wake up often.”
“Are you a light sleeper?”
“…Well.”
Suhyeok seemed to hide something he wanted to say, but she didn’t ask further.
It was his private life.
It was part of the contract.
Still, just before falling asleep, she learned a small fact about his private life.
He had been active in the university theater club.
It was good that at least one of them was good at acting.
With that thought, she fell asleep.
In his warm and safe embrace.
But!
This company seemed to have some law forbidding sleep.
⌜5555555555! Five is online!⌟
⌜[Alert] Move toward the Risk Management Center! 555…⌟
When “Five,” or Chairman Han Taek-il, who rarely appeared in a year, showed up, it was no trivial matter. The scale of the incident was obvious.
But the genre of the incident? Unpredictable.
“Infatuation! ‘Chi’ means foolish, ‘jeong’ means love! A very stupid and filthy love.”
Chairman Han Taek-il was extremely quiet and composed… unless angered.
Today, the culprit of the “infatuation” incident was someone from a regional branch. Even though none of the Risk Management Center staff had anything to do with it, they had no choice but to listen to a lecture.
The incident overview:
This morning, on the workplace platform Vertical, an affair involving a TI Electronics employee was exposed.
Worse, the evidence video was taken inside a TI electric vehicle with employee discount benefits.
Within hours, the employee’s identity became a hot topic across online communities and SNS.
“An affair is the filthiest thing in the world. And that filthy act… dared to happen in our sacred company car!”
Although a perfect white-collar genius, Chairman Han sometimes used his hometown dialect roughly when angry.
He was called “Taekilpa Ohyabong,” shortened to “Taek-O,” then “Taek-5,” finally just “Five.” That was why Han Taek-il was “Five.”
“If any more affairs or office romances are caught in our company, I’ll pull out the guts and fry them. Understand?”
“Yes, Chairman.”
All Risk Management Center staff responded.
“Focus on work at work! Not your love life! From now on, office romances are strictly forbidden!”
The employees were slightly unsettled.
“I told you to work, yet you’re playing at romance. If caught, oh boy! Director Han, you oppose office romance, right?”
Suhyeok remained silent.
“No answer? Then, here in front… Assistant Manager Im…”
The employee whose ID card caught Chairman Han’s narrowed gaze turned pale.
“Assistant Manager Im Seola. Are you for or against office romance? Should it be allowed or not?”
Seeing Suhyeok behind her, Seola blinked at him and swallowed nervously.
“No, Chairman… I oppose it.”
“Oppose?”
“Yes… I oppose.”
Chairman Han laughed heartily, then concluded his lecture.
“See? Just like our diligent employee Im… everyone should focus on work. Soon, Membership Training will be intensive, so give a little more effort. Thank you.”
Han Taek-il’s mood improved instantly after Seola’s words, returning to his usual composed standard tone.
“And, Director Han, let’s have a word.”
The chairman elegantly opened the center director’s office door and entered first. Suhyeok followed with a weary, displeased expression.
“The director has gone from embezzlement, employment irregularities, and now… an affair? What is happening in this company? Should we hold a ritual or something? Tch. How will we handle this?”
Suhyeok, exasperated, didn’t even meet the chairman’s eyes.
“Do I have to manage this kind of risk too? It’s not our center’s duty.”
They were calculating NCR (Net Capital Ratio) and suddenly ended up in a comedy.
“The company’s image is plummeting!”
“Our center doesn’t manage employees’ personal misbehavior.”
“Mom? Look at this guy. He refuses to act.”
Suhyeok rubbed his temple, silently enduring.
“The media response team has already handled the basics. Beyond that is not our jurisdiction.”
“Our? Mom? He’s been here a few days and already covering for his team. Unbelievable.”
“If you have nothing else to say…”
“I’m leaving! You heartless kid!”
Suhyeok peeked through the blinds.
“Please watch your words in the office, Chairman.”
“There are no secrets in a tiny company. Everything will come out anyway! Move aside.”
Suhyeok stepped aside, suppressing his irritation. The chairman tried to tap his shoulder but missed, hitting his elbow instead, then left.
“Phew—”
Suhyeok sank deeply into his chair, leaning back, trying to regain composure.
The reason he had agreed to return temporarily for only a year was family.
And now he had to face his father unexpectedly like this.
He opened and closed his eyes; the depth of the abyss inside him was profound.
“Hey, do you know a secret no one at the company knows? I heard it directly from Team Leader Yang.”
Two marketing staff were touching up their makeup in the powder room, chatting.
“Team Leader Yang? Ah, Yang Min-ho? I still can’t get used to him being a team leader. First time someone in their 20s became a team leader here, right?”
“Right. He’s capable.”
“Luck, maybe.”
“No, that’s skill.”
“True.”
It wasn’t skill if colleagues did all the work and he took the credit.
“Anyway, that’s not important. Don’t tell anyone. Team Leader Yang…”
They paused as someone entered the restroom, pretending to be busy.
Then they saw it was the cleaning lady and giggled.
“Ah, you scared me. I thought someone else was coming.”
“Can I give this to you, ma’am?”
Some people treat outsourced staff as equals if they act cute; polite language wasn’t an issue.
“So, what’s the secret about Team Leader Yang?”
“Risk Management’s Im Seola.”
Of course. This was predictable.
They had been hostile since marketing days, even since their rookie period.
“Im Seola? What about her?”
“Don’t be surprised.”
“What is it! Ugh, this is so annoying to hear.”
“She slept with Team Leader Yang.”
…This was an unexpected development.
