Music blared in his ears as his fingers drummed rapidly across the keyboard, occasionally moving for the mouse to make adjustments to the design. Lee Jun spared a thought, imagining the final draft of his promotional design. He smiled to himself as he knew it would be his best work yet, he had incorporated all he had recently learned from the Graphic Design Training Session which Management had insisted Lee Jun attend.
Next, Lee Jun moved to import a banner picture from a different folder to complete the project when something struck his temple, startling him. His hand shuddered and made a severe mis-click. Lee Jun looked up angrily, seeing Hei Lin staring at him smugly and gesturing to Manager Kim's office door.
Lee Jun took a deep breath, using CRTL-Z to undo his error, quickly saving his work before turning off his monitor then making his way to his boss' office.
He said nothing to Hei Lin as he passed by. He was used to her behavior and he knew engaging with her verbally would only cause her to lash out loudly with insults and curses. He only blamed himself for getting into the zone and tuning out the office entirely.
The glass-paned door to Manager Kim's office is closed. As he approached, Hei Lin suddenly jumps between him and the door, her clear soft palm outstretched at him.
"My pen." She said, demandingly.
Lee Jun stares at her for a moment, confused.
She continues, "You can't even thank me for letting you know Boss Kim needed you." She speaks so… rapidly "He called for you, you know, and you are just plugged up in your own world, listening to your childish games ehn. Why would you cover your ears at the workplace - ehn? What if there is an emergency? Do you think I will always be calling your name Lee Jun, Lee Jun, Lee Jun every time?"
Heads began to poke up from behind cubicles or swivel towards them. They all knew how much Hei Lin seemed to have an intense dislike for Lee Jun. She never missed an opportunity to rail at him.
Lee Jun however just stepped past her, he locked eyes with her, yet maintained a passive expression, swiftly knocking twice on Manager Kim's door before entering.
Sunlight streamed through a large window behind the large moustached man hurdled over a desktop computer that somehow seemed too small for him. A vibrant green plant stood on an open filing cabinet where random folders were sticking out. On the desk, a half empty mug of coffee sat beside a stack of papers, several cigarette butts swam in the brown liquid. The rhythmic sounds of clicks on a keyboard was suddenly punctuated by a sharp hiss, drawing Lee Jun's eyes to the wall mounted automatic air freshener dispenser.
"I hate that thing." Manager Kim suddenly said.
"It is kind of loud." Lee Jun said softly.
Manager Kim looked up at Lee Jun. "I noticed you were working on something, are you done?"
Lee Jun shook his head, "It was the Flier for Big Bai Buns, I was almost done, but I heard you wanted to see me."
"Really, you're working on that?" a smile crept on Manager Kim's face, "Good job. Hmmm… to see you? No , I asked Huo Hwa to get me someone to work on the Song Account. There's a lot to cover there, but… actually you just might be the best person for the job." Kim looked him up and down. "You will have to stay late though."
Lee Jun hesitated for a moment, then shut his eyes and blurted out, "I do have a date tonight sir!" he quickly added, "I-I'll do the work, I don't mind staying late but –"
Manager Kim laughed once, "Finally, here I was starting to think you weren't interested in – " He coughed, stopping himself "It's okay Lee, maybe there's no need to leave very late but get started on it today. I want it done before Friday, no matter what."
"Thank you sir," Lee said with a small bow. He turned to leave and heard a lighter click before he shut the door behind him. He checked the office wall clock. 5:33pm. There was still plenty of time.
Lee Jun was able to take the train across the city. Along the way, he bought a set of cheap flowers, the best he could afford at the time. He found Yang Rin waiting for him under a street light. His heart skipped a beat when he saw her flowing red dress dancing in the evening breeze. Even at a distance he could make out her oval shaped face and tiny freckles.
She turned and spotted him, so Lee Jun quickly shoved the flowers behind him hoping to surprise her. In moments he had forgotten about his office, his workload or anything else. He and Yang Rin talked for almost an hour, laughing and enjoying each other's company before heading for a nearby street vendor she knew of.
Lee Jun paid for some street meat that Yang Rin insisted would be the best thing he ever tried, and she was right. They enjoyed soft and savory roasted meat whilst laughing and drawing glances from the occasional passerby.
The evening quickly turned to late night and Lee Jun walked her to her apartment building entrance. They both had to work early the next morning and in that mutual understanding, the couple shared a long passionate kiss while blocking the entrance.
As he skipped back towards the train station, Lee Jun replied to Yang's good night message, noticing how late it really was for the first time that night.
Fifteen minutes later he was disappointed to learn the train station had shut down due to urgent maintenance.
He considered booking a taxi, except the cost of a trip home was far too expensive, so Lee Jun buttoned up his jacket, placed a single earphone in one ear and began walking home as quickly as possible.
Ninety minutes later, Lee Jun neared his apartment building. He stopped at the crosswalk and checked both sides. He was about to cross when he heard a loud meowing that came out of nowhere. Startled, he jumped back in fright only to see a white and brown colored cat stretching while looking in his direction.
'Tsk'
He moved to cross when a truck suddenly barreled past him at high speed, its wind pressure so intense he lost his footing and fell backward. The truck screeched to a halt, it's driver poked his head out, hurled a few curses at Lee Jun before speeding off again.
'D-Did that cat just save my life?' he thought to himself.
Lee Jun looked back for the animal, but it was gone. His eyes widened and he looked around only to spot its bottom sticking from behind a trash bin.
'Thanks either way'
This time, he checked both sides of the road constantly as he crossed to the other side. He brought out the keys to the apartment building and just as he inserted the keys. He caught a strange reflection on the glass door.
A strange swirling pattern of exotic colors filled the night sky entirely. Lee Jun turned and stared at the unusual phenomenon. It was like nothing he had ever seen with his own eyes before. Some colors danced violently across the sky clashing with other colors creating new intense patterns, while other colors zipped and dashed around as bolts, balls or streams of ethereal colors. Lee Jun was transfixed.
KKKKKKKKKRRRRRRRRRMMMMMMMMMMM
The sound was sudden, all-consuming and came from everywhere at once. He clutched both ears to block it out, yet he felt his very bones vibrate to the thrum of the discordant note. Lee Jun's spine jerked backwards, as he was unable to control his body's reactions.
He saw a myriad of colors and heard a cacophony of unintelligible sounds.
His legs quivered and gave out, causing Lee Jun to slump in a folded heap. His body jerked several times as his eyes rolled back into his head and blood seeped out of his nose, eyes, mouth and ears.
The phenomenon lasted only forty-five seconds.
Across the city, the state, the nation, people were found slumped, bleeding and unresponsive. Many unlucky groups were either driving or were being driven when someone passed out; taxi-drivers, bus-drivers, train-drivers, boat-captains, pilots, they lost immediate control, resulting in one of the worst chain disasters in the continent's history, to date.