I decided to throw everything else away and think only about that. I gripped the fountain pen tightly, wrote my name at the bottom, and signed with a flourish. I folded the paper neatly, put it back in the envelope, and slid it toward Jung Inhyuk.

“Come to the company for now.”

“…The company?”

“To your designated seat.”

I must have really touched Jung Inhyuk’s nerve. My head throbbed. He tucked the envelope into his jacket pocket and opened the wardrobe, taking out pants and a shirt before tossing them onto the bed.

“Get changed and come down.”

“…Yes.”

Jung Inhyuk left the room. As the door shut, I let my shoulders sag and covered my forehead with my hand. The thought of going to his office starting tomorrow made a sigh escape on its own. I would have to curl up under a cramped desk all day, endure all kinds of harassment, and really follow him to meetings dangling around like his keyring.

I picked up the IV bag carelessly thrown on the floor and set it aside, then took off the patient gown.

✿ • ✿ • ✿

When it was well past time to get to work, Park Suwon came to pick me up. He gave me a polite bow and opened the back door. I pulled my ball cap low and got into the car. I kept my head down and fiddled with my phone, trying not to meet his eyes as much as possible.

Park Suwon didn’t say much to me either. The car glided smoothly onto the road. In the silence and awkwardness, I could barely breathe. I silently prayed we would arrive as quickly as possible. The car stopped in front of the company.

“I’ll open it for you.”

“It’s fin…e.”

I awkwardly used polite speech and hurried out of the car. Honestly, seeing Park Suwon was uncomfortable and embarrassing.

During the two days when the heat cycle was on, there were times I would lose consciousness for a while, then wake up and find food, cigarettes, or water on the desk.

The place where I went through the heat cycle with Jung Inhyuk was the hidden room in his office. The only people who knew about the hidden room were Park Suwon and Chairman Jung, and if Jung Inhyuk had disabled fingerprint security, it could be entered with just a password.

There was no way someone as meticulous as Jung Inhyuk would have increased the number of people who knew about the hidden room. If that was the case, the only person who could have brought those things and cleaned them up was Park Suwon. At the very least, he would have seen how disheveled I became and what kind of pheromones I leaked.

I wished he had a more shameless personality, because having to keep seeing his face in such an awkward state was mortifying. As soon as I entered the company lobby, the security guard who had been informed in advance came up and guided me to the elevator. Since it was after business hours, the lobby was quiet.

“Manager Jung said to come up with Director Park. Please wait a moment.”

At the word wait, I frowned hard. That made rushing out of the car the moment I arrived feel pointless. And I certainly didn’t want to crawl under the desk in front of Park Suwon, at the very least.

Even if he wasn’t a friend, showing that humiliating side of myself in front of someone else hurt my pride. While the security guard looked away for a moment, I slipped into the elevator that had just opened.

“W-wait a second!”

The security guard noticed too late and reached toward the elevator, but the doors shut a moment before he could.

To get into the executive office, I had to pass through the secretarial office. I killed my footsteps and approached cautiously. Sumin, who was seated at the desk, noticed me and stood up.

“Hello. I was told to wait, so I’ve been expecting you.”

“…Is Manager Jung inside?”

“No. He’s in a meeting.”

“Then I…”

“Follow me.”

Sumin prepared a notebook and pen for me and led me to the meeting room one floor up. Inside, Jung Inhyuk and the other employees were watching a video. Sumin slipped quietly into the room first and made space for me.

“You can come in. Manager Jung said in advance that you were here to observe because of a film shoot. So you don’t need to worry too much.”

“Yes, thank you.”

After Sumin went back downstairs, I carefully entered the meeting room. A few people turned to look when they heard my footsteps, but maybe because they had been told in advance, none of them paid me much attention.

I sat in a seat near the door and opened my notebook. It was absurd that someone who wasn’t even a company employee was attending this kind of meeting. But what could I do? If Jung Inhyuk told me to kneel, I had to kneel. If he told me to crawl, I had to crawl. I spent my free time doodling in the notebook.

“The product will be released in four total colors, and we’re excluding the existing mint blue while adding a coral line, targeting women in their twenties and thirties.”

Jung Inhyuk, who had been sitting quietly, straightened up and pressed the power button on the microphone in front of him. The employees tensed up and adjusted their posture just because he had turned on the mic. I also stopped drawing and lifted my head.

“Do you have the color concepts ready?”

“We’re still preparing them.”

“Coral is a color that can easily look tacky, so let’s hear the reason you chose it.”

“…Ah, well, recently we conducted a survey targeting women and men in their twenties and thirties, and there were many responses wanting a new color rather than the existing ones, so we decided to try it.”

“You want a new color, and you chose coral? Has the concept suddenly changed to something shocking while I wasn’t looking?”

The color drained from the face of the employee standing at the podium as the presenter. He tried to ask his teammates for help, but time passed and no one answered. Jung Inhyuk pressed the microphone button again and continued.

“The public wants something new, but when it comes to actual choices, they go with the safe option. Fulfilling the needs of customers who like something new is fine, but I think we should play it safe. What do you think, Team Leader Go?”

The man who had been flipping through a thick file folder lifted his head and awkwardly smiled. Then he quickly switched places with the presenter and stood in front of the podium.

“Manager Jung’s point is reasonable. We’ll make up for this part as quickly as possible and report back again.”

Jung Inhyuk nodded and turned off the mic. Just when it seemed the meeting might be ending, he turned the microphone back on again. I lifted my head in confusion. Jung Inhyuk’s gaze was on me. The moment our eyes met, I reflexively lowered my head and looked away.

“Our company model and actor Lee Shinjae is present here as an observer.”

The employees’ gazes poured over me. I gave an awkward smile and bowed my head in a half-sitting, half-standing posture. But then, suddenly, Team Leader Go tapped the microphone with his fingers, drawing everyone’s attention.

“Manager Jung, what do you think about marketing with Lee Shinjae’s color, since he’s been active as our company model for four years now? It just came to me, so it’s not concrete, but making a limited-edition model in the color Lee Shinjae wants…”

“…Lee Shinjae’s color. That’s an interesting idea.”

“Since Lee Shinjae has been active with a mystique image, I think just attaching the name Lee Shinjae would create some buzz. Lee Shinjae’s color, limited edition, it’s also suitable for stirring up the media. And if photos of him actually using it are exposed in the press, we can expect an even better effect.”

“Not bad. Write up a detailed plan and bring it to me.”

With that, Jung Inhyuk said he was ending the meeting and stood up. I also hurriedly grabbed my notebook and pen and followed him out. Outside the meeting room, Park Suwon and Moon Sujin were standing there with Jung Inhyuk. As Jung Inhyuk started walking, Sujin stood beside him and prepared to brief him on his schedule. Just as she was about to speak,

“I’ll be looking through some backlogged documents at the company today. Adjust the schedule.”

“Huh? Ah, yes, understood.”

Jung Inhyuk said firmly. Sujin looked flustered and let her eyes fall blankly to her tablet. As she walked while looking only at the tablet, her feet tangled and she stumbled.

I instinctively reached out and caught her. If I hadn’t caught her, she would have fallen backward and been badly hurt. I steadied her after she spilled into my arms and asked if she was okay.

Maybe because she had been startled badly, Sujin just stood there blankly without saying anything for a moment. Jung Inhyuk also stopped and looked back at the slight commotion.

Sujin finally came to her senses, quickly straightened her clothes, and thanked me. I nodded expressionlessly and stayed close behind Jung Inhyuk. Jung Inhyuk walked over to Sujin.

“Are you all right, Secretary Moon?”

“…Yes. I’m sorry for causing a disturbance.”

“As long as you’re not hurt.”

A hollow laugh slipped past my lips. Jung Inhyuk, hiding his true face completely and pretending to be gentle, was revolting. Knowing better than anyone the cruelty and coldness hidden behind that face, I found the whole situation funny in a bitter way. Jung Inhyuk stopped Secretary Moon in front of the office door. Then he took a card from his wallet and handed it over.

“You must be tired. Why don’t you and the secretarial office staff go have a simple tea break?”

“Ah, thank you.”

Jung Inhyuk left Park Suwon outside and entered the office. I took a deep breath until my chest expanded fully, then followed him inside. The door closed behind me. Now, this space contained only Jung Inhyuk and me. Jung Inhyuk naturally took off his jacket, hung it on the rack, and sat down. Everything on his desk was neatly arranged.

I killed my footsteps and approached, standing beside him. Jung Inhyuk rolled his chair back and made room so I could get under the desk. I shut my eyes tight and slipped into the gap he had created. As I tucked myself under the dark desk, Jung Inhyuk drew his chair in close again.

I leaned against the filing cabinet side of the desk and let out a long sigh. I had no idea what I was supposed to do under this dim desk all day. But my worries didn’t last long. The rustle of paper turning, the scratch of a pen nib over paper, the tapping of keyboard keys, all the tiny sounds Jung Inhyuk made slowly opened and closed my eyes.

There had once been a time when I found this desk comforting. When I had lain down under it with a body thoroughly worn out by Jung Inhyuk through the night, I had even cried at the stability this cramped space gave me. I had felt wronged and miserable, but I had resigned myself because I knew that no matter how hard I struggled, I couldn’t escape this hell.