Chapter 10
What had she been dreaming about?
She had been scammed in a real estate deal, forced to move from one motel room to another, only for Moon Doyoung to suddenly appear as her landlord…
Right. She’d had a horrible nightmare like that.
No, wait.
That wasn’t a dream!
Danbi’s eyes flew open.
The scene that came into view was the spacious interior of a car.
It took her a while to realize that she was back in reality—whether that while was long or short, she couldn’t tell.
“Awake?”
Doyoung’s gentle voice brushed against her ears.
Danbi rolled her eyes around.
A soft blanket was draped over her body.
“Um… did I fall asleep?”
“You must have been really tired.”
The corners of Doyoung’s eyes curved into crescent moons. His gaze was filled with a warm tenderness.
“You were snoring.”
Danbi shot upright, only to bump the crown of her head against the ceiling.
“Ow, ow…”
Unable to bear the embarrassment, she opened the car door and stepped onto the ground. Wrinkling her nose, she rubbed the top of her head.
Doyoung got out after her and strode toward the elevator.
Danbi hurried after him in short, quick steps.
“Did I sleep for a long time? You should’ve woken me when we arrived.”
“You didn’t sleep that long. And how could I wake you when you were sleeping so peacefully?”
“Did I really snore?”
Doyoung pulled up one corner of his mouth and let out a quiet chuckle.
The laugh sounded suspiciously like confirmation, and Danbi’s face fell.
“Just tell me I didn’t. I don’t have any weird sleeping habits.”
“People don’t usually know about their own snoring or sleeping habits.”
“Still, just tell me I didn’t snore.”
“All right. You didn’t snore. You just slept quietly and peacefully.”
The elevator descended to the underground parking garage with a ding that echoed through the air.
Doyoung stepped inside and pressed the button for their floor. The doors soon closed, and the elevator began its slow ascent toward the ground floor.
“But, Danbi.”
“Yes?”
“Don’t take a half-body bath tonight.”
“Why? Because it’s too late?”
“If you snore in the bathroom, the ceiling will shake. The people upstairs will come down.”
Danbi clenched both fists and ground her molars.
“I told you, I don’t snore…”
Doyoung quietly laughed, clearly amused by how quickly Danbi became worked up.
Who on earth decided that a weekend had to be exactly two days?
When every working adult was suffering from the Monday blues, shouldn’t Monday count as part of the weekend too, for the sake of basic human decency?
On Monday morning, she dragged herself out of bed, muttering curses under her breath, her body as heavy as cotton soaked with water.
By now, the smell of food filling the house on weekday mornings no longer felt strange.
She headed naturally toward the kitchen.
It looked like today’s breakfast was sandwiches.
But Doyoung was nowhere to be seen.
Just as Danbi was looking around the house, trying to figure out where he was, the master bedroom door suddenly flew open.
“You’re up?”
Her sleepiness vanished instantly.
Danbi’s eyes widened as she slowly looked him up and down.
Today, he looked like the third-generation heir of a chaebol family, dripping with sophistication. He was dressed in an impeccably tailored suit with an unmistakable sheen of quality, a tie hanging around his shirt collar.
“Do you know how to tie a tie?”
“Sunbae, are you starting work today?”
Danbi blinked and stepped closer to Doyoung.
Remembering the movements her mother used to make when tying her father’s ties as a child, she took hold of the tie hanging around his neck.
Doyoung bent his knees so that she could comfortably tie the knot at eye level.
“You must be really nervous about your first day.”
“Yeah. I am. Really nervous.”
Danbi’s hands paused.
Did he mean he was nervous about his first day at work?
Or was he talking about this situation right now?
The strangely double-edged meaning of his words made her fingertips almost tremble.
“Any advice for me as a fellow office worker sunbae?”
At Doyoung’s mischievous request for advice, Danbi decided to play along for a moment.
She wiped the amused smile from her face, adopted a serious expression, and widened her eyes.
“Did you bring a notebook and pen? It’s important to develop the habit of taking notes. Don’t let a single word from your senior go in one ear and out the other. Listen carefully and take everything seriously.”
“And?”
“Hmm. Avoid office romances whenever possible.”
“Why?”
Because I don’t want to see you dating another woman.
Ah, no.
It didn’t matter anymore who he dated.
Danbi quickly came to her senses, adjusted the knot of his tie just right, and patted his shoulders as though to say she was finished.
“I’m kidding. I’m sure you’ll conduct yourself just fine, Sunbae.”
With a cheeky grin, Danbi gave him a little push from behind, and Doyoung slipped his feet into the dress shoes waiting by the entrance.
“Make sure you eat your sandwich before you go.”
“Yes. I’ll gratefully eat it and head to work.”
For some reason, it made her feel as though they had become newlyweds.
The romantic feelings that had been lying dormant for a while quietly raised their heads.
Maybe living alone away from her family for so long had made her miss the warmth of having someone by her side.
The way he told her to eat breakfast before leaving made her feel as though she had finally gained someone firmly on her side.
Just before Doyoung stepped out the front door, Danbi clenched both fists and gave him an encouraging boost.
“Sunbae, fighting! Don’t get too intimidated just because you’re a new employee!”
Doyoung smiled brightly and waved.
“Thanks. See you later.”
Danbi waved back as she saw him off.
She made a mental note to buy some fried chicken on her way home for Doyoung, who was starting his first day at work.
“Good morning!”
“Danbi, you’re full of energy even on a Monday morning.”
Heejin gave her a thumbs-up as she followed Danbi into the office.
“Everyone has a hard time on Mondays, so I should at least give you all some energy.”
Danbi responded cheerfully, and warm laughter blossomed throughout the office.
She set her bag down at her desk and pressed the power button on her computer.
While it booted up, she opened the notebook where she’d neatly organized her tasks and checked her schedule.
“Oh, right. Danbi, you know we’re getting a new team leader today, right?”
She’d forgotten.
Just how little work had Team Leader Park actually been doing that she hadn’t even noticed his absence?
Manager Seok had been leading the team so capably that Danbi had completely forgotten a new team leader was coming.
While Danbi blinked in surprise, employees from various corners of the office chimed in one after another.
“You mean the person behind all those rumors is coming to be our team leader?”
“I figured that would happen. The head of Strategic Planning is in direct contact with the executives, after all. Isn’t it about time the position finally found its rightful owner? It was far too important a position for Team Leader Park.”
The only office rumors Danbi knew about were rumors concerning office romances or affairs.
“What rumors?”
At Danbi’s innocent question and cluelessly darting eyes, Heejin gestured for her to follow her into the break room for a moment.
With practiced movements, Heejin started up the coffee machine.
Kanghyun, who Danbi hadn’t even noticed entering, stood beside her with a tumbler in hand before speaking.
“Our new team leader is the chairman’s grandson.”
“Whaaaat?”
Danbi raised her shoulders and clapped a hand over her mouth.
She stared wide-eyed at Heejin and asked if it was really true.
Heejin took a sip of the freshly brewed coffee and nodded.
“Apparently. I heard he’s thirty? There’s even a rumor that he’s the youngest team leader in the company.”
“Then he’s a parachute hire?”
Danbi curled her hand around her mouth and lowered her voice to a whisper.
“They say he graduated from university in Korea, immediately went overseas for a master’s degree, and only recently returned. He doesn’t have any work experience, so I suppose you could call him a parachute hire.”
“I guess bloodline succession really is unavoidable in Korea’s chaebol companies.”
“Tell me about it. Still, I think I could put up with him as long as he isn’t like Team Leader Park.”
Danbi almost felt a little bitter about not having a diamond umbilical cord of her own, but it wasn’t as though the two of them could really be compared on equal terms.
It was probably much easier to accept reality as quickly as possible if she wanted to survive.
“According to the rumors, the chairman’s grandson is handsome enough to put most actors to shame.”
At Heejin’s words, Kanghyun’s shoulders flinched.
His face stiffened ever so slightly as he glanced at Danbi, gauging her reaction.
Noticing the subtle atmosphere between them, Heejin snickered and took another long sip of her coffee.
“That’s so unfair. If you’re going to be blessed with one thing, you should at least give up another. The Creator sure was stingy.”
Danbi rested her chin on the table and grumbled.
Kanghyun silently nodded in agreement.
“What can you do? The world they live in is way up there, above the clouds.”
“I am curious how handsome he has to be for a rumor like that to go around.”
Heejin suddenly asked,
“Danbi, do you like handsome men too?”
“Is there anyone who doesn’t like handsome people? You know that saying, don’t you? That once you get married, you can basically live off your husband’s face. Apparently, even if you’re furious with him, one look at his face and all your anger melts away.”
“There is a handsome man right in front of you, Danbi.”
At Heejin’s words, Danbi’s gaze immediately turned toward Kanghyun.
He was the only man standing right in front of her.
A brief silence descended.
Kanghyun’s face turned bright red.
Watching him, Heejin and Danbi burst into giggles and clapped their hands together.
“Oh, of course! Our Assistant Manager Ji is quite handsome too!”
“Are you teasing me?”
“Of course not. Not at all. I mean it.”
At Danbi’s shamelessly playful response, Kanghyun’s face looked as though it might explode from embarrassment.
“The new team leader is here!”
Assistant Manager Jung came rushing into the break room and gestured frantically for them to hurry back to their desks.
The three of them hastily grabbed their tumblers and returned to their seats.
Until just moments ago, Danbi had completely forgotten that a new team leader was coming.
But after hearing all the rumors about him, she found herself curious.
In any case, he was someone who had the chairman himself firmly backing him.
She should probably make a good first impression, right?
With a serious expression, Danbi fixed her gaze on her monitor and began tapping away at her keyboard.
Act like I don’t care. Pretend I’m an employee who works hard whether the team leader is here or not.
Thud. Thud.
The heavy footsteps of someone entering the office echoed in her ears.
At last, the subject of everyone’s gossip stopped in the middle of the office.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Moon Doyoung, and as of today, I’ve been appointed team leader of Strategic Planning.”
Moon Doyoung?
That wasn’t exactly a common name.
Were people named Doyoung just naturally rich and handsome?
Maybe she should have changed her name to Hong Doyoung.
“I’m Seok Giyeong, manager. I look forward to working with you, Team Leader.”
Starting with Manager Seok, she could hear one employee after another getting to their feet.
Danbi stretched out her legs and finally raised her head.
“Gasp!”
The exclamation that tore through the air drew everyone’s attention toward Danbi.
Thinking she might have seen wrong, she rubbed at her eyelids.
Whether she opened her eyes wide or narrowed them, whether she shook her head vigorously and looked again—
It was Moon Doyoung.
The tie she had personally tied for him that morning was unmistakably proof that this was the very same Moon Doyoung.
“Su-Sunbae, why are you…!”
His sharply defined features filled her field of vision, so striking they were almost intimidating.
His eyes met Danbi’s with deliberate steadiness.
A faint, warm smile slowly spread across his lips, despite the imposing air he had been deliberately giving off.
“Team Leader.”
“…”
“…Please call me that while we’re at work.”
