Mr. Kim held the cup in his hand and signed.

An employee that he's close to looked at him, "Mr. Kim, don't drink if you don't want to," she said quietly. 

"It's okay," Mr. Kim replied before drinking the cup in one go.

Despite his reassurance, it wasn't okay, as Mr. Kim melted down onto the table only a few minutes later.

The employee next to him tried to shake him awake, "Mr. Kim?"

"mmm, five-five more minutes," he mumbled.

"I think Mr. Kim is out cold," the employee said, looking towards the one who was more familiar with him.

"what should we do? Do you know his address?" they asked her.

she signed and pulled out her phone, "let's call him a cab."

Before the two could make sure Mr. Kim was safely on his way home, he shot up from his seat and gathered his belongings. 

"Sir! I'll see you tomorrow," he shouted. 

The team leader looked at Mr. Kim and simply waved his hand, "yes, get home safe." 

"M-Mr. Kim!" one of the employees tried to stop him from walking out, and assumingly, walking home. 

However, Mr. Kim was surprisingly quick on his feet and was out the door before anyone could call him a cab. 

"Do you think he'll be okay?" one asked. 

"I'm sure he'll be fine," another replied. 

Out on the sidewalk Mr. Kim made his way home, with his suit jacket hung across one arm and his bag dragging across the sidewalk.

Everyone who passed him could tell he was clearly drunk, and a few even gasped a bit whenever he tripped forward a little on nothing. 

Mr. Kim stopped in the middle of the street, looking up at the night sky with some stars sprinkled across it, 

"pretty." He smiled.

Although he worked hard to simply earn a living, Mr. Kim felt like his life would always seem incomplete. 

All he did after graduating college was work, he didn't have the energy to hang out with old friends or even socialize with his co-workers. 

But, in these small moments where he can stare at the sky and think it's pretty, it makes it seem a little more worth it. 

***

Mr. Kim woke up in his bed the next morning, in the same dress shirt and pants as yesterday. He wondered how exactly he got home as his whole body seemed heavy and sore. 

Apart of him thought that it was simply his age catching up to him, although he's only twenty eight, but the other didn't want to believe his age was the reason.

It could be a hangover, but it wasn't just his head that was aching and feverish, it was his whole body. 

Even though he seemed to be sick, Mr. Kim still got up and started getting ready for work thinking it was just a mild ailment. 

It wasn't till Mr. Kim got to the company's lobby that he realized it was more serious than he thought. As he swiped his employee card, he noticed the other employees whispering to each other and glancing over at him. 

Although it made Mr. Kim self conscious, it also made him think that he really was so sick that others could tell from just one look. While in the elevator, he zoned out as everyone else quickly got off as it stopped on each floor. He felt that his fever had definitely become a serious issue, as his breath started to become more labored with each floor passed. He started to feel so hot to the point that he decided to take off his jacket, and when he did, a woman who was still in the elevator with him looked towards him. 

"e-excuse me?" there was a slight tremble in her voice.

Mr. Kim looked towards her, his senses still there, "yes?"

"Are you okay?" she asked with a concerned expression. 

"ah-yes, I'm just sick," Mr. Kim replied.

"I see." she said, with a tone that seemed like she didn't fully believe him.

The elevator stopped yet again, and the woman along with a man who had apparently been covering his nose with his hand quickly stepped out. 

Behind the doors could close, the woman spoke again, "I hope you feel better soon." 

In the end, it was only Mr. Kim left in that elevator as his floor was the next stop.

Still, in the short time Mr. Kim couldn't seem to catch his breath. 

Even as he was walking in the hallway towards his office space, his legs were trembling as if they had no strength in them. 

Mr. Kim walked close to the wall, almost leaning on it trying to maintain his balance. 

But, behind him there was the sound of the elevator door opening again accompanied with footsteps and a light scent of fresh baked goods. 

It was this scent that made Mr. Kim lose what little strength that he had, which made him fall onto the hallway floor, gasping for breath.

"hu-huh?" Mr. Kim said outaloud. 

Even if he had gotten a cold mixed with still recovering from exhausting the company dinner from last night, it didn't make sense to him what was happening to his body. 

The footsteps quickly approached him and so did the smell of freshly baked sweets. 

Like walking into a French inspired bakery first thing in the morning, when the bakers have just pulled out their first batch of croissants from the oven. Toasty, flaky, and buttery. A nice sweet to start the day or a mid afternoon snack. 

This scent however, was making his body tremble more as it got closer to him. 

"Hello? Sir are you okay?" a voice asked.

Mr. Kim could still hear, however it seemed like his body didn't want him to reply. 

The owner of the voice walked in front of Mr. Kim, kneeling down to his level. The man was on one knee, with his briefcase sitting down beside him, and he held a handkerchief over his nose.

Mr. Kim looked up slightly, and to his surprise the source of the voice and scent was his boss, the department head.

As the scent now grew stronger, so did Mr. Kim's desire to get closer to it, he unknowingly reached out his hand towards the man in front of him. 

"I-I don’t know what’s happening,” he said, gripping onto the shirt of the man in front of him. He looked up to his boss with dewy eyes,

“Help,” he sniffled, “please help me.” 

His boss wore a perplexed expression, despite his usual cool demeanor, “Mr. Kim” he spoke. 

“Do you have your suppressants?” He asked, while he used the handkerchief that was pressed against his nose to wipe Mr. Kim's forehead. The sudden appearance of a stronger alluring scent caused the man to furrow his brows, he looked around the two, trying to see if there was somewhere for Mr. Kim to rest. 

“Wha-“ Mr. Kim gasped for air, “what are those?” His trembling voice asked. His body was burning up with a high fever but trembling as if cold, and for some reason, he was in a state that he couldn’t understand nor wanted anyone to see. Although one hand was holding onto the boss’s shirt, the other was attempting to cover the front of his pants to try and hide it from the very boss he was clinging onto.

Although he didn’t want anyone to see Mr. Kim in the state that he was in, the man knew that he had to do the reasonable and responsible thing.

So he took his phone out of his pocket and dialed his assistant, who was someone that couldn’t sense these pheromones that Mr. Kim was admitting. 

“Mr. Cho, I need you to drive an employee home,” he spoke into the phone. 

“Sir? Is he okay?”

“Yes, you can use my car, I just can’t be in the same room as him for long.”

Although the boss wasn’t directly saying what was wrong with the employee, Mr. Cho caught on rather quickly to what the situation was.

“Sir, I’ll be right there.” He said.

After hanging up the phone, the boss’s confidence that he could keep a hold of his reason started to dwindle as Mr. Kim’s scent and begging for help increased as the minutes waiting went by.

Mr. Kim’s flushed face was covered in sweat as his eyes, which were tightly closed shut as if he was in pain, were overfilled with tears. Despite being in this seemingly painful state, his grip onto the boss’s shirt wasn’t weakening. 

“Ple-please,” he whimpered, “help,” his voice faded. 

The boss swallowed his spit, looking at this employee that was beyond tempting, but before his reason could be overtaken with dark desires that he would undeniably regret. the boss took his two hands and slapped his cheeks, “focus.” He muttered. 

Just then, his assistant came running towards the two, “Sir!” He shouted. 

“Sir, you can leave this to me,” he said, taking over holding onto Mr. Kim while trying to help him up. “Please go calm down in your office,” the assistant said as he walked the feverish Mr. Kim to the boss’s car. 

The boss was left there to deal with Mr. Kim's bag and suit jacket among other more embarrassing things.