“Ah, Hajoon, make sure Sun-hi checks our company’s social media accounts. I have dinner coming up soon, so I won’t be available. If you could check on our stocks and report them to the higher ups for me, that would be great.”

Those words jolted Hajoon out of his daydream. He quickly straightened up and wiped away the drool that had accumulated from staring at Senior Li Iseul for too long. 

“I’m just kidding,” Iseul smiled. “I shouldn't ask you to shoulder all that responsibility.”

“No no, Nuna, please, allow me,” Hajoon couldn’t decide whether to dismiss her or not. When did he ever dismiss her, in fact? He would rather let a truck run him over before saying no to Iseul.

“It is settled then,” Iseul replied, however, the soft look on her face dropped when she turned around. But as she made to leave, Hajoon grabbed her by the forearm, nearly making her fall.

“Ah! I’m so sorry, Nuna,” Hajoon began. “I forgot to ask if you’d like to….”

“I have to go,” Iseul said, her disinterest evident as she gently pried Hajoon’s hand off of her. “If you have any other inquiries, please email me.”

With that, Iseul walked away in her usual manner, leaving Hajoon in the awkward aftermath at his desk.

“Is that a rejection, I see?” A junior emerged from the other side of his desk. It was Jang Sun-hi, the youngest member whose internship had just ended. “Hyung, I think Nuna is already into someone.”

Sun-hi had a youthful appearance, with her baby face and brown bob cut. Her usual style included patterned socks, bulky sneakers, jeans folded into jorts or cuffed above her ankles, and an assortment of graphic tees. Most people wouldn’t have guessed she was studying culinary arts just by looking at her.

“Sun-hi, return to your desk.

“Besides, it’s not a surprise, that’s the Nuna of most men’s dreams. I wouldn’t dare to ignore her requests,” Hajoon sighed, holding his head as he racked his brain for another excuse to have her sit next to him again.

Li Iseul embodied a blend of classic elegance and understated sophistication. Her makeup was always flawlessly done, highlighting her features without being over the top. She preferred dark, modest clothing that contrasted beautifully with her fair skin, adding a touch of drama to her look.

Her long, flowing hair, jet-black and sleek, fell gracefully to her tailbone, accentuating her femininity. She often wore round-toe heels that were just the right height—not too high, not too short—providing a perfect balance between style and comfort.

Iseul had a composed, poised presence that naturally drew attention and respect. Her gaze was sharp and discerning, capable of seeing through pretense. Though she maintained a professional distance, there was a subtle warmth in her interactions that made her approachable, even if she tended to keep things on a formal level.

“You mean yours?” Sun-hi plopped a thick stack of documents onto Hajoon’s desk. “Hyung, snap out of it. The CEO himself is here today. Don’t let Senior Li distract you from your duties.”

Hearing that, Hajoon shot a glare at Sun-hi. She was getting a bit too mouthy for a junior.

Moon Hajoon was generally respected, except when interacting with Senior Li, when his dorkiness became evident. This vulnerability paved the way for his unlikely friendship with the three headaches of his department: Jang Sun-hi, Bak Yumi, and Joo Yunhee.

“Don’t forget the meeting. You said you’d attend in place of Yumi-nim, Mr. Moon,” Sun-hi continued, clearly enjoying his embarrassment over his missed chance with Iseul.

Within their department, Sun-hi was the most outspoken—except in the presence of their boss, Choi Samuel. She would shrink like dried gim at the mere sight of him.

From what Hajoon had heard of the CEO of Choi Foods, or his boss…

Holding the stack of documents between his thumb and index finger, Hajoon threw his head back and sighed loudly. He thought about the women in the meeting room, and their judging eyes. They might be less critical if they stayed home to take care of their families.

But when the image of Senior Li popped into his mind, he quickly took it all back. His lips curled into a tight line, and the bigotry left him almost instantly.

“In this day and age? Grow up, Moon Hajoon.” He cursed at himself. Having said that, he immediately walked through a scene he shouldn’t have. 

The sound of clothes shuffled around, belts took turns to make their clank sounds, combined with the visual of a familiar in his own department making out with none other than his boss, all through a small gap between the door.

The sight of shiny brown locks mingled with the other’s dull black hair. That handsome face couldn’t be mistaken for someone else. Hajoon thought he was hallucinating.

Samuel, CEO of this god forsaken company that Hajoon came to work for.

Beneath the handsome exterior lied a more troubling side. Samuel’s “pretty face” masked an “ugly heart,” a man who can be manipulative and self-serving. From what Hajoon heard from the ladies at least.

He didn’t think Samuel’s strange deep-seated aversion towards women was because he was gay this whole time. 

This couldn’t be right, he thought, while wiping his eyes thrice. 

Their lips locked right on each other with their genitals out, the sight was enough to leave Hajoon’s jaw dropped. And yet he couldn’t keep his eyes peeled away. Invested, the senior’s hand reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. His shaky thumb struggled to hit record at first from how fast his heart was beating. 

Is this the right thing to do? Hajoon’s shoulder angel asked.

Yes it is, dipshit, you don’t know how much workload this bastard gave our whole department because we were there when his mood soured up! The devil on the other side answered.

“They’re both men…” The oblivious man gasped, he had never seen two men so passionate. They were practically gnawing on each other’s lips, their eyes locked onto each other like a scene straight out of a romance movie. In fact, the way Samuel treated his worker was almost the same as a man to any woman during sex. The way his arm wrapped around the other’s waist, while the other hand fingered them open…

“Ahh, gentler, Samuel…” the male was quickly hushed with Samuel’s palm, but a coquettish look remained on his face.

He couldn’t watch it anymore. The intimacy happening before his eyes tainted the company, the very same grounds his co-workers stood on. This was a violation, in the man’s eyes. But still, Hajoon couldn’t keep his eyes off of Samuel’s beautiful visage. 

The CEO had always had a way to draw other people in like bees to nectar. And him having a foreigner’s blood course through his veins made him a peculiarity amongst the elites. Perhaps this was what drew Hajoon in as well, even for just a brief moment during a very inconvenient encounter.

Hajoon might have lingered on for a bit more if it weren’t for the oncoming footsteps. As he scrambled away, he dropped his glasses that he had tucked in his breast pocket. Hajoon tried to hunch over to grab it, but seeing that he would be caught snooping if he lingered on, he quickly tucked his phone back in his pocket and ran. 

Samuel was alerted of the footsteps. At first, he planned to continue and used the situation as a fun voyeurism play. However, with the addition of footsteps from Hajoon being closer than he thought, Samuel quickly seized his activity. His little buddy also went soft when he remembered that Oh Taeung, his adoptive brother and secretary, would bitch at him about being messy at work again.

For a moment, Samuel shrugged it off, buttoning up his shirt while waving his hand at the worker dismissively. His disinterest was palpable; it was clear he didn’t want to continue. As he adjusted his clothing and turned to leave, a loud crack echoed under his heel.

Startled, Samuel quickly moved his foot aside, his breath catching in his throat as he glanced down. His heart pounded furiously, each beat like a drum in his chest.

There, lying shattered on the floor, was a pair of rectangular men’s glasses. The sight of them sent a jolt of panic through him. His mind raced, and his pulse quickened as the gravity of the situation hit him. The broken glasses were a glaring reminder of his lapse in discretion. Frustration mingled with terror as he clicked his tongue, the harsh sound of it barely masking the mounting dread. How could he have been so careless? 

Samuel almost regretted thinking with his dick. And yet, he found himself oddly exhilarated by the thrill of hunting down the man who had caught him. The adrenaline coursed through his veins, heightening every sense. Each step he took was fueled by anticipation.

The meeting room door burst open with a suddenness that drew everyone’s attention to Hajoon. All eyes shifted toward him, studying his disheveled appearance and the intense expression on his face.

“Senior Moon, are you alright?” A woman at the conference table asked, her voice tinged with concern as she noted his unusual demeanor.

“Y-yeah…” Hajoon stammered, struggling to find the right words. His mind raced, unsure how to comprehend the shocking scene he had just witnessed or what he was feeling.

“Your face is very red. Are you feeling unwell?” Another colleague chimed in, her concern growing as she noticed the way Hajoon’s voice wavered with each word. His pallor and the lack of energy in his voice only heightened their worry. The room fell into a hushed murmur, the unease palpable as everyone awaited his response.

But he didn’t say anything else. Hajoon sat in the meeting room among his colleagues, trying to focus on the meeting despite whatever was going on in his chest. His mind kept racing back to the earlier incident — how he had hurriedly fled the scene. The shock of that moment and the urgent need to escape still weighed heavily on him.

The meeting was filled with various discussions and updates, mostly led by the women in the room. Hajoon, seated near the middle of the table, struggled to keep his attention on the agenda. His responses were distracted, his usual sharpness replaced by a cloud of anxiety. Every so often, he would catch a concerned glance from one of his colleagues, who seemed to notice his preoccupation.

He tried to push aside thoughts of the video evidence he had managed to secure before fleeing—the image of Samuel’s sexual indiscretion now stored safely on his phone. While he wasn’t directly involved, the thought of such activity being enacted in his workplace, involving his boss no less, was beyond disgusting. Which brought Hajoon to another thought. 

Samuel is young and wild, perhaps the pressure of being forced into the boss position caused his behavior to go rampant like this. But the initial disgust Hajoon felt for what he saw still gave him goosebumps.

The buzz of the meeting felt almost surreal against the backdrop of his earlier experience. Hajoon forced himself to participate, yet his thoughts were all over the place. Lost in his own world, Hajoon didn’t notice how crumpled the papers in his hand had become. He wondered how long he could keep this up, while he figured out what to do with the recording.

As Hajoon exited the meeting room, navigating through the bustling office hallway, he still felt rather out of it. The murmur of office conversations and the clatter of keyboards seemed distant, overshadowed by his own inner monologues. He probably wouldn’t be able to look at — whoever Samuel was groping — the same, ever again. 

Just as he turned a corner, Hajoon’s eyes landed on Samuel walking past him. The sight of his boss, seemingly composed and unaware of the earlier scene Hajoon coincidentally walked into, sent a jolt of panic through him. His heart pounded, the rise and fall of his chest becoming obvious combined with his tightened face. Samuel was in his usual sharp attire, his confident stride a stark contrast to Hajoon’s inner turmoil.

His brows furrowed and his lips pressed into a thin line. Crossing his arms over his chest defensively, he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. 

Their eyes briefly met—despite Hajoon’s best try to avoid seeing Samuel—and Hajoon forced a polite but strained smile, his stomach knotting with anxiety. Samuel’s casual nod and friendly demeanor only added to the Hajoon’s confusion. The sight of him, so untroubled, made Hajoon’s predicament even more profound.

Would anyone even believe me? Hajoon asked himself.

Samuel’s two-faced nature allowed him to navigate social circles with ease, often concealing his true goals while maintaining a facade of affability. This brought the company a lot of favorable partnerships, Hajoon would not discredit Samuel in that regard. However, the mean streak that surfaced occasionally betrayed his underlying ambition — in short, he didn’t care much about others beyond what he could reap out of them. He was a chaebol, a seemingly bitchy one at that.

What can you even do to someone like that? The question appeared deep in his mind, a perfect one at that for self reflection. 

Thinking back at it, Hajoon was only a pebble compared to that half-blood corporate genius.

As Samuel continued on his way, Hajoon stood rooted to the spot, grappling with a whirlwind of feelings.