Vol. 1 Chapter 24: Chapter 24
Translated by Naralara
Edited by Naralara
“…?Mr. Inseop.”
Inseop turned around in surprise at the sound of a voice calling out to him from behind.?Manager Cha, who was smoking a cigarette, approached him with a big smile.?Inseop hurriedly put his bandaged hand in his pocket and hid it.
“Manager, today…”
“Did you see to all the urgent matters?”
“Yes. I’m?sorry.”
He didn’t want to cause trouble, but as a result, Inseop had nothing more to say.
“It’s fine.?It’s been… I hope there are no urgent matters in the future.”
“Yes.?I understand.”
“Today, I especially… Okay. Just for today.”
Manager Cha put his hand on Inseop’s shoulder.?The smell of cigarettes was so strong that he thought he was going to cough, but Inseop struggled to endure it like an adult.
Even after getting into the elevator, manager Cha did not release his hand on his shoulder.?While Inseop was thinking about when it would be a natural time to lower his hand, the elevator stopped at the office on the 9th floor.
All the office lights were off.?Inseop was surprised and looked at the manager standing next to him.
“I think the CEO has left work.”
“What??Yeah.?He said he was waiting here.”
“Obviously, I told you to come here by 9 o’clock before…”
Then all of a sudden, the office lights came on and sparks came from all over the place.
“Surprise!!”
“Surprise!”
“Ahh!!!”
Inseop screamed and hugged Manager Cha.?When people hiding in every corner of the office suddenly set off firecrackers, Inseop screamed louder than before and hugged the head the manager.
“Mr. Inseop, over there, Mr. Inseop…”
The more he tried to remove the frightened Inseop, the more he tightened the arm he was holding.
CEO Kim, who brought the cake with spraklers from the corner, started singing Happy Birthday without noticing it.
“Happy Birthday to you.?Happy Birthday to you.?Happy birthday dear Inseop.?Happy Birthday to you!”
Everyone clapped and rejoiced.?Inseop couldn’t even raise his head properly because he couldn’t assess the situation.?His heart was pounding and his vision was blurry.
“Inseop.?What are you doing??The cake is heavy.”
When CEO Kim called his name, manager Cha forcibly removed Inseop’s arm.
“Mr. Inseop.?What are you so surprised about?”
“…?Ah…?”
“It’s you birthday, so you should have expected a birthday party.”
Manager Cha’s playful remarks made him realize that Choi Inseop, the person he borrowed the name from, celebrated his birthday today.?Also, the fact that the reason Cha volunteered to be Lee Wooyeon’s manager today without saying anything was because of Choi Inseop’s birthday.
“Make a wish.”
CEO Kim held out the cake in front of Inseop.?The people in the office clapped and shouted Inseop’s name to put out the candles.
“Congratulation.?Mr. Inseop.”
“Happy Birthday.”
“Congratulations on being discharged from the hospital.?Good luck in the future.?Quickly put out the candles.”
“Make a wish!”
Choi Inseop looked like he was about to cry.?Because he didn’t deserve to be treated like this.?Even so, the kindness of people was so nice that tears welled up.
Inseop quickly blew out the candles because someone could see his red eyes. And before someone turned on the light in the office, he said, “Excuse me,” and opened his mouth.
“Huh? Why? Are you touched? You’re so touched that you want to work here forever, right?”
CEO Kim replied with a smile.?Choi Inseop tried to pretend to be normal and said words that were contrary to his heart.
“I am embarrassed by this.”
“What?”
“…?I don’t like this.?So, in the future, never… I hope you don’t take care of me.”
He deliberately spat out harsh words, knowing that he would never get a chance for the office people to celebrate his birthday again.
Everyone was at a loss for words at the sudden gloomy atmosphere.?Inseop said goodbye and left the office.
As he waited for the elevator, he felt the tears running down his cheeks.?Behind him, he heard manager Cha calling out to him.?Inseop did not wait for the elevator and ran in the direction of the emergency stairs.
Thinking that if Manager Cha followed, he would be caught soon, he started going up the stairs in the opposite direction.?When he reached the roof after passing the tenth floor, he opened the door and burst into tears.
“Ugh—.”
Even now, he wanted to go down to the office and hold hands and say thank you to everyone.?’Thank you for doing well.?If we do well in the future, I will be more grateful.?Let’s be friendly?It would be fun to watch a movie together on days when there is nothing to do.?I would be very grateful if you could call me and talk to me when I am lonely.’?To be that kind of friend.
He wanted to vomit out the words inside and maintain a friendly relationship.?But to him now, all those things were just luxury.
Because in the first place, he came here to betray Lee Wooyeon as well as the people who work with him.
‘Don’t be foolish.?I have to act like an adult.’?However, it was very difficult to maintain that line.?Choi Inseop covered his face with both hands and cried profusely.
“Ugh–.?Ahh!”
As he wiped away his tears, he fell backwards in confusion.?The man who was smoking a cigarette leaning against the roof railing was throwing an interesting gaze towards him.
“…”
He bit his lip in frustration that shook his whole body, but the tears didn’t stop. Lee?Wooyeon threw his cigarette and started walking towards Inseop, who had fallen down.?Surprised by the momentum of Lee Wooyeon approaching, smiling with his hands in his pockets, Inseop fell to the floor and stepped back.
“Uh…Why…?At home…”
“Why am I here instead of home?”
Inseop nodded his head instead of answering.?Tears still flowed down his collar.?He should have stopped crying, but he was so shocked that he couldn’t.
“I stopped by because Manager Cha had something to do here for a while.?They said it would take 10 minutes.”
Inseop knew that Lee Wooyeon hated driving.?He didn’t know why exactly, but because of his inclination, Inseop was surprised and disappointed that he drove himself home today.
“There are eyes that watch me below, so I often smoke here.”
“…?Yes.”
He resented himself for overlooking the fact that the office was on the way to Lee Wooyeon’s house.?It was shameful to death that Inseop was found out by Lee Wooyeon, that he was not an adult at all.
“Why are you crying?”
Lee Wooyeon squatted in front of Inseop and asked, putting his face close.
“…?”
“Why are you crying like that?”
“…?sorry.”
He couldn’t think of anything else to say other than ‘I’m sorry’.
“What are you sorry for??I’m just curious as to why you’re crying.”
It was an expression of pure curiosity, with no worries or regrets for the other party.?The moment the always quiet and sincere manager ran up the roof crying like a child, another question came to his mind.
Why was this bastard like this?
Lee Wooyeon tilted his head slightly and asked again.
“Why are you crying like that?”
Idiot, the words were hidden with a smile.
Choi Inseop desperately shook his head to think of a valid reason.?What should he say??What could he say to keep the image of a calm and mature manager?
Inseop, who was moaning and thinking, remembered the surprise party that happened earlier.
“I was surprised… so I cried.”
“What?”
“I cried because I was so moved that they held a birthday party for me.”
It wasn’t entirely wrong.?If he analyzed the reason for crying, it was 20% emotion, 70% remorse, 10% pessimism.
“Is it your birthday today?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
He couldn’t say that he didn’t even think of the birthday written on the paper until CEO Kim held out the cake today and said happy birthday.?Inseop blurted out, “It’s okay.”.
“Were you so moved that people prepared a party??Enough to come up here alone and cry?”
If he saw an adult man crying loudly, wasn’t it polite to pretend that he didn’t see it and move on?
Inseop thought that he could not understand Lee Wooyeon’s intentions, who questioned him as if to confirm the fact that he was crying like a child.
“…Yes.?I was touched.”
But now he had no choice but to bow down and answer.
“Are you so moved by that?”
“…?Yes.”
“Your ideal type is anyone as long as they’re friendly, right?”
“What??…Yes.”
He didn’t know why it was being said here, but he answered it for now.
Lee Wooyeon’s soft laughter was heard from above.
“It’s easy, but also difficult.?I never knew.”
“…??”
This was the person he didn’t know.?Choi Inseop did not understand why Lee Wooyeon was smiling like that and why he said it was easy and difficult.
“Then, even if I treat you kindly, will you cry like that?”
“Ah…? that is…?”
“Will you cry more?”
“No.?It’s not like that.”
He didn’t want to bother anyone while he was working.?Even if it was Lee Wooyeon, the target of his revenge.
He was going to work as best as he could and be fired.
“I’m not crying.?Today, I was just a little surprised and suddenly burst into tears.?You don’t have to worry.”
A faint disappointment passed over Lee Wooyeon’s expression upon hearing In-eop’s answer.?Disappointment melted into his dark eyes as quickly as a snowflake that fell on a bonfire.
“I am very worried.”
Just as he was about to answer that he should not worry about that now, CEO Kim opened the roof door and came up to the roof.
“Inseop!”
“CEO…?”
Inseop quickly turned his head and wiped his face with the palm of his hand, fearing that CEO Kim would know that he was crying.
“Why are you making my manager cry?”
It was in vain with Lee Wooyeon’s words.
“Did you cry??Did Inseop cry?”
“Yes.”
Lee Wooyeon laughed and made a crying sound.?If Inseop could fly, he wanted to jump off the roof right now.
“Huh??Why??You’re not mad?”
“Why are you angry?”
“No, he got angry and went out saying that it was burdensome to have a party. I thought you were angry because I called you for something like this.”
“Didn’t you say you were moved to tears?”
Inseop’s face flushed like a drunken man.?Under the current circumstances, he felt that it was useless to pretend to be cold and use a business-like tone. However, he could not reveal his feelings by crying.
“Are you really touched??I thought you were angry for calling you again.”
When CEO Kim put on a relieved expression, Inseop felt even more sorry. “I’m sorry,” he said, bowing his head, and CEO Kim smiled wildly.
“It’s fine.?If that’s the case, let’s go back and have a birthday party.”
“…”
He felt like dying.
Refusing a birthday party like a cold city man and having to go back there with puffy eyes.
“I thought Inseop was good, but his heart is softer than he looks.?It’s just a birthday party.?You were that thankful?”
“…?Yes.”
It was true that he was grateful, so he answered meekly.
“If you’re thankful, you can do well from now on. Isn’t it?”
“Yes.?I will do well.”
When Inseop responded obediently, CEO Kim chuckled and laughed as if he was satisfied.?Lee Wooyeon noticed that all of this was Kim’s shallow trick to keep Choi Inseop by his side.?It was clear that only his asshole manager, who was bewildered and bowing his head, was unaware of the fact.
He really didn’t know.
If he thought he understood the inside, he was hard to understand, and if he thought he was hard to understand, he acted surprisingly simple.
“Lee Wooyeon.?Are you going down to the office too?”
CEO Kim hesitated and asked.?Of course he was not going?It was a question with hope.
Lee Wooyeon smiled brightly.?It was a really sweet smile.?CEO Kim Hakseung remembered the past when he was deceived by that smile, and it was heartbreaking.?Lee Wooyeon’s smile suddenly reminded him of the time he was drinking with Manager Cha, who cried out that he was a public fraud.
Even if he pretended to be polite and friendly, Lee Wooyeon’s frame was a filthy bastard.?He wasn’t the kind of person who devoted his time to his manager.?And Kim didn’t want that either.?He didn’t want to see Lee Wooyeon’s eyes at the party. He wanted to have fun.
“Why would you ask such a obvious question?”
“Hahaha. Is that so?”
Yeah.?If he asked him, only his mouth would hurt.?He won’t go to his manager’s birthday party anyway…
“Of course I should go.”
“What?!”
“It’s my manager’s birthday.?Asking the obvious.?Representative, you’re too much.”
Choi Inseop’s expression became complicated.?It was a face that could not believe what he said.?Lee Wooyeon put his arm around Inseop’s shoulder and interrupted him.
“Then let’s go down.?CEO.”
Choi Inseop was dragged down the stairs by Lee Wooyeon’s arms with a depressed face.?CEO Kim quietly took out his cell phone.?It was time to tell the bad news to manager Cha who had left Lee Wooyeon and come right away.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes.?I’m okay… Ugh.”
Choi Inseop, who had been walking before, stood up against the wall and groaned for a while before starting to walk again.?During the party, he couldn’t refuse the drinks that people offered, and he took one drink at a time, and that was what happened.
Choi Inseop refused to take a taxi or accept a ride.?All he said was that it was okay because his house was within walking distance of the office, slurring his words.
Lee Wooyeon, who drove Inseop home for the first time today, knew that those words were not entirely wrong.?Inseop’s house was located halfway between the office and his house, and it was within walking distance.
“Ah… Uh…?”
Of course in a sane state.
Choi Inseop, who had been walking and leaning against the wall repeatedly, eventually collapsed to the floor.
With his hands in her pockets, Lee Wooyeon cast his eyes on Inseop, who was having some difficulty. No matter how late it was at night, Lee Wooyeon rarely walked home. However, after a long time at a party held in the company, everyone was drunk. Manager Cha started drinking the wine as soon as the party started, without anyone having time to try it. It was an expression of his clear will that he did not want to become Lee Wooyeon’s driver.
The other employees also drank in a pleasant atmosphere when Inseop returned.
Lee Wooyeon also drank a few glasses of wine served by CEO Kim, who had a depressed face.?In the end, there was no one to take the chance.?He never called for surrogate driving, so in the end, Lee Wooyeon followed Inseop along the road.
“Ah… I’m daisy.”
“What did you say?”
“I’m daisy. No, I’m dizzy.”
Inseop bowed his head and muttered incomprehensible words.
“Wake up.?In this weather, it’s still too much to sleep on the road.”
“…?Yes.”
After answering, Inseop did not think about getting up.
“Are you going to stay here?”
“Yes…”
“Then I will go first.”
“Yes.?Bye…”
Unable to finish saying goodbye, Inseop’s body fell from leaning against the wall.?Lee Wooyeon took out his cell phone and checked the weather for the night.
Minus three degrees.
It wasn’t the weather where one would freeze to death by spending one night on the road.
Lee Wooyeon left Choi Inseop lying behind and started walking.?Because of the chilly night air, people walking on the road accelerated their steps.?He wore a hat deeply and covered half his face with a scarf, but some of the passers-by turned their heads to look at Lee Wooyeon.?But no one stopped and spoke to him.?Still, he stopped in the middle of the road.
After thinking for a moment, he started going back down the way he had come up.
Choi Inseop was lying on the floor in the same position he had fallen before.
“Wake up.”
There was no use in talking.?Perhaps he had fallen asleep after all, as he did not even give an insincere answer.?On the road, only the occasional sound of passing cars could be heard.
Lee Wooyeon tapped Choi Inseop’s shoulder with his toe.?With a slight frown on his face, Inseop showed no sign of getting up.?Wooyeon pressed his foot on Inseop’s shoulder and shook it slightly.?It was useless.
If Choi Inseop was left as it is, it was clear that the schedule for tomorrow morning would be disrupted.?It was the day the drama filming started, so he had to prepare from dawn.
If Choi Inseop did not appear, Wooyeon could fire him as an excuse.?It was a very good opportunity.?If it had been another manager, he would have done it without paying attention.?Because it has been a month already.
Lee Wooyeon looked down at Choi Inseop’s face, lying on the floor.
It was a young face.?Even if he said he was still a student in school, he would believe it.
He was skinny enough to wear a suit.?It was amazing how he could do so many things with that body.
“What the hell are you doing?”
The world was a series of things one would never understand. Since he got to know that, Lee Wooyeon had been fooling around. He realized that it would be a waste of time thinking or wrapping his head around something he didn’t understand.
But this was a little different.
Even while lying in the hospital room, Lee Wooyeon suddenly thought about why Choi Inseop did that and he could not stop thinking about it.?When he came to his senses, he went into the next room and looked down at Choi Inseop, who was sleeping.
That didn’t mean there was an answer though.
Lee Wooyeon touched Choi Inseop, who was asleep at his feet, with his foot again.?As he kicked a little harder, Inseop raised his head, and frowned.
“Wake up.”
If he didn’t listen this time, he thought he’d just go, whether he froze or not.?Lee Wooyeon was a human that would remain the same.
If Inseop had not hugged Lee Wooyeon’s pants with tears in his eyes, he would have done so.
“…?”
Lee Wooyeon was someone who was different from ordinary people and their emotion, but in this situation, he couldn’t help but be a little shocked.?While he was thinking for a moment whether he should put strength on his feet and let the thing sticking to his pants come off, Inseop blinked his big eyes and spoke.
“Don’t go Jennie.”
“…”
He thought he was a fool, but it seemed to be true that there was a woman he was dating.?Did he even meet foreigners?
Inseop hugged Lee Wooyeon’s feet even tighter and muttered the name Jenny a few more times.
“Fuck, who are you calling Jennie?”
Lee Wooyeon grabbed Choi Inseop’s shoulder and shook it relentlessly.
“Hey.?Choi Inseop.?Do you have any friends to contact?”
Choi Inseop smiled, not even opening his eyes.
“Do you have any friends?”
“…?do not have.”
“Isn’t there one?”
“Yes…?I don’t have one.?I don’t need…?”
While trying to ask why he was talking informally, Lee Wooyeon bent down and took out a cell phone from Inseop’s pocket.?He was thinking of finding the woman named Jennie and telling her to pick up this bastard.?That was all the goodwill he could bestow.
Lee Wooyeon’s eyes widened as he looked at the call list on Inseop’s cell phone.
Office, Lee Wooyeon, Office, Office, CEO Kim, Office, Manager Cha, Manager Cha, Office, Office,?and Lee Wooyeon.
The name Jennie was nowhere to be found.?He searched the list of phone numbers from start to finish just in case, but all the numbers stored were people related to work.?So was the text.?It was all about checking Lee Wooyeon’s schedule and checking his clothes.?It wasn’t a normal person’s cell phone.
If someone looked at Choi Inseop’s cell phone, his whole life was directed towards Lee Wooyeon.?While standing in the street and checking Choi Inseop’s cell phone, Lee Wooyeon’s lips gradually moved upward.?He reached out and grabbed the unusual manager’s shoulder.
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