CH 122

Yoonshin perceived that Sehun was still trying to test Yoonshin’s limits, so he replied with as much composure as possible. “That family already has an unamendable, deep rift. To my knowledge, the wife is already considering divorce. Perhaps this could help her case.”

“Okay, that’s that, but what about the employees of Youngjin Construction who’re going to get swallowed up by another corporation out of the blue? I’m going to cut down the price as much as I can. That’s what Taesan wants from me. There will be a mass termination in this process… A few months ago, you would have thought about them first. Now, you’re working on my team—wholeheartedly at that.”

“You were the one who told me to abide by the rules of Doguk when in Doguk,” Yoonshin retorted.

Sehun pursed his lips, at a loss for words, then he leaned into his chair. The backrest of the chair made a grating noise like someone slamming on the brakes of a car. There was a short interval of nerve-racking silence. Sehun broke the silence first. “Prepare two drafts—low and high-impact—for press releases, and leave it on my desk by 8:59 a.m. tomorrow. I’ll call you after I skim through.”

“Understood.” Yoonshin bowed deeply then left with light steps. Whatever the means, he was pleased that Sehun had started to give him proper work. He was delighted that he was of some use.

Sehun watched as Yoonshin returned to his office, then he picked up his pen. He checked off the key points in the documents on his desk.

After some time, he suddenly threw down his pen in exasperation. His vexation manifested in his fingers like sweat seeping out during sweltering heat. His poker face crumbled apart.

He scowled and chewed his tongue. The furrow in his brow deepened significantly. He threw his head back against his chair and bit his red lips.

Sehun had thought that his headache had improved, but it relapsed. Yoonshin was the cause.

“You do work by the book and really well… but why do I feel like shit?” he muttered to himself.

Sehun had wanted Yoonshin to act like this all along. He constantly reprimanded Yoonshin for his lack of action several times. Yoonshin Do was doing everything properly. Perhaps Yoonshin was good at adapting because, after a few mistakes, he was doing a decent job at imitating Sehun.

Yet, everything that he could ignore so far was reflected clearly like a looking glass. Yoonshin’s unsophistication made him crueler and more merciless.

Sehun wondered—what he had wanted came true, but now that the result was right before him, it ate away at his heart.

Ironically, the possibility that this wasn’t what he truly wanted occurred to him. He had never wavered like this before, so he was bewildered.

“Damn it,” he snarled between his teeth. He tried to shake off his thoughts about Yoonshin, who was quickly taking after him, and focused on his documents.

* * *

For once, Yoonshin had taken the cab home. He thanked the driver and got off. In his hand was an opaque plastic bag with a few bottles of carbonated drinks, snacks, headache medication, and lemon-flavored candy. He scanned the contents of the bag before unwrapping a lemon candy, popping it into his mouth.

Just then, a strong gust of cold air blasted against him, so he gathered the front of his jacket more snugly. The earth had nearly gone full circle around the sun and was racing toward the end of December.

“Ugh, it’s so cold,” he mumbled.

Yoonshin braved the cold with his phone clutched in his hands. He tapped out a message with a date when he was relatively free.