episode_0032

“Mr. Bujang, hello!”

“Oh, yeah.”

“Oh, have a good day today~”

“Sure.”

Every time I see Mr. Bujang, I feel strange. It’s like something is pressing down on me from below. Is it because of what I felt on the subway…?

Ever since that day when Mr. Bujang’s thing got wedged between my buttocks, things have been weird. The feeling of something touching my buttocks hasn’t gone away. Something hard and hot, that’s probably Mr. Bujang’s ㅈ──

‘What am I thinking…!’

Unexplainable emotions surge up. Until now, Mr. Bujang seemed like a nice person. But with Suhyun’s work and everything, I’m starting to feel emotions I shouldn’t.

I was a bit surprised when I heard that Suhyun actually had a crush on Mr. Bujang. Back then, I teased her about it being an old man’s taste and comforted her, but now that I’m in the same situation, I feel somewhat resentful.

“He’s definitely good-looking but….”

I thought he was really handsome when I first joined, but with a 6-year age gap, I gave up from the start. I prefer someone my age or younger. Older guys always try too hard to take care of you, so it’s not my thing.

But what’s going on. Suddenly feeling this way. It’s all because of that thing.

“Jihee.”

“Yes, yes!?”

“Where does it hurt?”

“Oh no! I was just lost in thought for a moment… What’s up?”

“Oh~ I’m planning to take a week off starting next week.”

“Oh, okay! I’ll take care of it.”

“I told you last time. Don’t overwork yourself when you rest.”

“Yes……”

I used to find it annoying when someone cared about me unnecessarily, but when he spoke in a low voice, I felt fluttery for some reason. What’s with this guy! When did I start feeling this way!

His appearance became neater, his hair well-groomed, making the already handsome man look even more attractive.

‘He’s totally cheating by managing himself so well….’

He used to be handsome but also fun, but now he’s become a flawless middle-aged man. I decided not to engage in office romance, but I might not be able to keep that promise.

‘Should I confess to him?’

It often happens in romance webtoons. Confessing to someone you’ve liked for a long time, only to be rejected because they see you as a childhood friend and not a romantic interest, that kind of tragic story. In the end, the protagonist chooses someone better than that person.

Mr. Bujang and I are not childhood friends, but still, after spending 3 years together, it’s highly unlikely that he would have such feelings for me.

‘But still….’

There comes a moment when even the protagonist wavers towards the childhood friend. And in reality, if you don’t have a marriage partner later on, you’re likely to end up with that childhood friend, whether you see them romantically or not.

‘So that’s why I decided to go to Mr. Bujang.’

So. There’s a chance.

~~~

“Mr. Bujang.”

“Why again.”

As usual, when I arrived at work, Chief Choi came to pick a fight. Judging by his playful expression, it was nothing serious.

“You look particularly neat today.”

“Is that so? I think it’s the same as usual.”

“No, there’s something about your outfit… Anyway, it feels different from usual.”

“Hmm….”

Well… there is a slightly uncomfortable feeling like something is off about my outfit. That’s probably because Yoohee tidied up my clothes for me this morning.

─It’s crooked. Fix it properly. I won’t do it if you don’t.

─Have a good day at work, sweetheart♥

…Just imagining it makes my heart flutter, I probably won’t be able to focus on work properly.

Come to think of it, today is the first day of my part-time job. I wonder if I’ll do well. I’m not worried because it’s Yoohee, but at the same time, I’m a little worried because it’s Yoohee. What am I saying.

“Mr. Bujang. Is this correct? It seems like the value is entered incorrectly….”

“Just a moment….”

Sure enough, probably because I was thinking about Yoohee, I was immediately pointed out by Suhyun. I’m really….

When a young person gets married, they imagine waiting for their spouse after work, and end up getting distracted at work like a fool.

“No, this won’t do.”

Shaking his head to clear his mind, he corrected the typos and errors. No matter how good it may be, he couldn’t afford to make mistakes. Besides, Yuhee might come back later than me.

“Hmm… I feel like I forgot something.”

There was something he had to do while waiting for Yuhee to come back, but he forgot what it was. Hmm… What was it….

“I’ve taken care of it, sir!”

“Thank you.”

A message came from Jihee saying that her vacation request had been approved. Oh, right, I had made plans to watch a movie.

“Will we go right after work today?”

“Oh, yes! Is there anything you want to watch?”

“Just a moment.”

Hmm… I can’t think of anything to watch. Maybe it’s because I’m not really interested in movies. The horror movie I watched the other day was one of the few decent ones among the ones I have left to watch.

“Do you have something you want to watch, Jihee?”

“I want to watch this!”

She sent a message with a very sweet movie poster photo. Well, it’s a personal message, so it doesn’t really matter, but it might look like slacking off to others. Hmm… It does look like slacking off.

『Sweetly, disgustingly.』

The title was provocative, but surprisingly it was rated for ages 12 and up. Come to think of it, I was debating between a horror movie and this.

“Let’s go with that.”

“Okay~ What do you want to eat for dinner?”

“I’ll just eat whatever’s there.”

I don’t know what’s around here because I’ve never been here before. And the cost of living here is too high. It’s Gangnam, so it’s understandable, but still.

“Okay~”

Jihee seems unusually excited today, or rather, she seems to be in a hurry. But she’s better than me. I made a mistake with the numbers because of Yuhee.

Hmm, I wonder how Yuhee will handle dinner. Will she eat before coming? Or should I prepare something?

“Hmm….”

I’m not completely incapable of cooking, but I don’t have the quality to say it’s delicious. It’s just edible. And I can only cook fried rice dishes. I should have taken a cooking class.

“What would you like to eat, sir?”

“Oh, I’ll pass.”

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m just not feeling well….”

Of course, it’s a lie. I can’t tell other employees that Yuhee packed me lunch.

“I’ll pass today too~ It’s that time of the month….”

“Oh, is that so? Take a day off.”

“No~ Have a good day, Manager~”

“Alright… off you go, Soohyun.”

“Yes.”

If it’s that time of the month, she should take a day off. Our company is pretty lenient about that. Jihee doesn’t take days off even when she should.

“Well, I’ll be back in a moment.”

There were only two of us left in the office, me and Jihee. Well… normally I would have eaten here, but the timing isn’t right.

I quietly put the lunchbox and the thermos with water in my arms, and went up to the rooftop. It’s a smoking area, but at this time, not many people come up, so I can eat cleanly if I eat quickly.

“Oh….”

Receiving a lunchbox that I’ve never received from my mom, no, from my girlfriend, my heart was touched.

Golden rice cooked with fragrant eggs. A pink heart is drawn on top, as if food coloring was used. The side dishes included meatballs and kimchi, and there was even rolled omelet, a must-have in a lunchbox.

The taste was top-notch, of course. The juiciness of the meatballs and the savory flavor of the egg rice harmonized in my mouth.

If it felt a bit heavy, I could eat some kimchi, and the rolled omelet was perfectly cooked, making my mouth happy.

“Maybe I should gather some strength after eating this.”

The saying that sincerity determines the taste of food seems to be true. It already looked delicious, but thinking that Yuhee put her heart into it made it even more delicious.

Is there a happier moment than this? A smile unknowingly crept onto my face.

I stopped in my tracks.

“…Boss?”

At the familiar voice, my head turned involuntarily. Jihee was standing right in front of me, looking unusually cheerful today.

“Oh… Jihee.”

“What’s that?”

“Oh… this.”

I couldn’t come up with any excuses. I couldn’t mention Yoohee’s presence, but I also couldn’t just tell a blatant lie to cover it up.

“I, uh, thought of starting to cook….”

“Cooking…?”

“Yeah. I watched some cooking channels on YouTube and felt like I wanted to try making something myself.”

“Ah~”

Luckily, she seemed to believe me. Although I sometimes watch cooking channels for vicarious satisfaction or to satisfy my appetite, I’ve never actually felt the urge to cook.

“So, did you make this?”

“Y-yes.”

“Can I try one of the meatballs?”

“Sure. Go ahead.”

“Thank you~ Wow, you’re really good at this!”

“Thanks.”

I felt a pang of guilt, knowing that I didn’t actually make the food.

“Here, have a sip of this. Drink up.”

“Really? Thank you~”

I opened the thermos lid and handed her some water. The lid also doubles as a cup, making it convenient for drinking. Watching Jihee drink, I realized I was thirsty too.

“Boss, about that….”

“Yes? What is it?”

“Oh, it’s nothing! Thank you for the meal! I’ll head down first!”

“Yeah. I’ll be down soon too.”

This might be the first time Jihee and I have shared a secret. It feels strange to have grown closer. And since Jihee is someone who keeps secrets, she probably won’t tell the other team members about this.

“Wait.”

Was Jihee a smoker? The thought briefly crossed my mind.