Kim Ji-won walked down the spacious, brightly lit hall with a light, unhurried gait. He wore an expensive, perfectly tailored suit. He carelessly brushed a dark strand of hair from his forehead, revealing a handsome face.
The employees, barely hearing his approaching footsteps, dropped what they were doing and lined up along the walls, bowing in greeting.
"Good morning, sir."
"Hello, Director."
"Hello, Director Kim."
Ji-won never returned their greetings and paid them no attention, not even deigning to give his subordinates a glance.
As soon as Ji-won approached the door, the secretary opened it, letting him pass first, and stepped in after him, closing the door behind him before immediately rushing to pull out the leather chair. Ji-won sank into the seat, and Yeo-jun gave a short bow, standing across the desk from him.
Yeo-jun held a folder in his hands. He opened it, placed it on the desk, and slid it toward Ji-won, then raised his head, casting a quick, guarded glance at the director from under his brows. Ji-won interlaced his fingers, rested his chin on them, and stared at the secretary.
Yeo-jun straightened his back.
"At nine-thirty is the opening of the new boutique in Eldorado. At twelve, lunch with foreign partners. After that, you have a meeting scheduled with Mr. Park," the secretary paused, his fingers gripping the edge of his jacket a little tighter. "Also, Mr. In called. He asked for a meeting again."
"Leave everything as it is," Ji-won replied. "And as for In... schedule it for the twenty-sixth."
Yeo-jun frowned slightly and tensed.
"But, Director... That's in two weeks. You have already postponed this meeting twice."
"If he needs to, he'll wait." Ji-won leaned back in his chair, clasping his hands behind his head.
The secretary froze, then folded his hands in front of him.
"Yes, sir."
"And now," Ji-won shifted his gaze to the window, losing interest in the conversation, "bring me coffee."
The next half hour turned into another torture session. Ji-won brought the cup to his lips, barely touched the rim, and set it back down with a clink.
"Too strong."
The next cup.
"Too weak."
The third attempt.
"Too sweet. Bring me tea instead."
Yeo-jun returned with a cup of freshly brewed oolong. Ji-won skimmed the cup with an indifferent glance and turned back to the window.
"Take it away. I don't want anything anymore."
Yeo-jun looked at his boss's profile.
He brought him the same coffee every day, brewed it himself, and every time his boss decided to be capricious. Yeo-jun was already used to it, but sometimes it was truly emotionally exhausting.
Yeo-jun turned around and left the office.
Behind the frosted glass of the reception area, a small group of employees clustered around the water cooler.
"Poor Secretary Lee," whispered a girl from the finance department, nervously adjusting her badge.
"Having to put up with such antics every day," snorted her colleague, glancing sideways at the director's door.
"Sure, he's handsome, rich, and all that, but his personality is hellish."
"I guess what they say is true," sighed a third. "A person can't be perfect in everything. You either get the looks or the personality. Sigh."
A nearby employee from the sales department tugged at his jacket lapels and smirked smugly:
"Well, I wouldn't say that. Take me, for example: I have a great personality and good looks."
Everyone slowly turned their heads toward him, giving him a long look that expressed a mix of pity and contempt. Without uttering a single word, they turned away in sync and dispersed to their workstations.
"What?" the guy blinked in confusion, staring at the retreating backs of his colleagues, and awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "I was just telling the truth..."
A large crowd had gathered for the opening of the new boutique, and Kim Ji-won stood in the center looking as if he owned not just the building, but the very air everyone present was breathing. Secretary Lee stayed half a step behind him, keeping to the shadows while remaining constantly at hand.
An older, well-groomed lady approached Ji-won.
"Mr. Kim, greetings!" she cooed as she drew closer. "We are so glad you attended our event."
Ji-won inclined his head slightly.
"How could I miss it," he replied with a customary smile.
His gaze immediately slid past the woman. Yeo-jun smoothly shifted behind her. Meeting the director's eyes, he mouthed the word: "Kang."
"I am confident, Ms. Kang, that our collaboration will be long and mutually beneficial," Ji-won's face lit up with a dazzling smile.
"Thank you," she placed a hand on her chest, flattered, but was immediately distracted by someone in the crowd and waved in greeting. "Ah, I'm afraid I'll have to leave you."
"Of course," Ji-won continued to smile.
"Please excuse me, enjoy yourselves," she made a farewell gesture and fluttered away.
Ji-won saw her off with a gracious nod. But the moment Ms. Kang turned away, the radiant cordiality instantly vanished from his face. He turned to meet his next acquaintance.
"Oh, Mr...."
"Moon," Yeo-jun mouthed.
"Mr. Moon, I didn't expect to see you here!" and the director once again smiled blindingly. "Likewise, likewise..."
They moved unhurriedly through the hall; Ji-won exchanged handshakes and customary pleasantries while Yeo-jun followed him.
Finally, they found themselves away from the main crowd. Ji-won stopped by a glass display case.
"Secretary Lee, let's wrap this up," he tossed out, looking somewhere over people's heads. "My muscles are going to cramp from smiling so much."
The secretary pulled back his jacket cuff with an elegant gesture, checking the time.
"If we leave now, we will have about twenty minutes of free time before the next meeting."
"I'll rest in the car."
"Very well, Director. Let's go."
They left the stuffy hall, which reeked of expensive perfume. Yeo-jun walked behind the director. Stepping outside, where their car was supposed to be waiting, they stopped.
The glass doors of the shopping center slid shut behind them. It was stiflingly hot outside. Ji-won stopped at the edge of the sidewalk. He rested both hands on his lower back, arching slightly to release the tension, and irritably tugged at the knot of his silk tie, loosening its grip on his neck.
"Bring me something to drink," he threw out without turning around.
"Yes, sir. Just a minute," Yeo-jun gave a short nod and, quickly scanning the signs on the opposite side of the street, melted into the crowd to find a decent coffee shop.
Left alone, Ji-won closed his eyes. He took a deep breath when suddenly the quiet was shattered by a harsh, scraping sound, followed by a clatter.
An elderly janitor in a faded hat pulled low over his forehead, pushing a cleaning cart in front of him, had stumbled awkwardly. A bucket sitting on the edge tilted over, and murky, soapy water splashed onto the asphalt, drenching Ji-won's polished, expensive shoes. Dirty drops instantly soaked into the hem of his light-colored trousers, and moisture slicked across the surface of the shoes.
"Aish!" Ji-won recoiled sharply to the side, hissing in disgust through his teeth.
His mood, already spoiled by the heat, completely plummeted.
"Watch where you're going, old man!"
"I'm sorry, sir... Forgive me," the janitor fussed, frantically trying to gather the scattered equipment and fix the situation.
Ji-won looked down. Ugly gray streaks marred the expensive, handcrafted leather.
"Do you even know how much these shoes cost? You haven't earned this much in your entire life."
The old man let out a shaky breath, leaned forward, and, stretching out the sleeve of his jacket, tried to wipe the drops off the footwear.
"I will fix it, sir, just let me..."
Ji-won pulled his foot back in revulsion, as if a leprous animal had reached out to him.
"Don't," he snapped, measuring the hunched figure with a withering glare. "If you don't know how to walk properly, stay home."
At that moment, Yeo-jun emerged from the crowd. He was carrying a cup of iced coffee.
"Sir, what happened?" he ran closer, offering the drink.
Ji-won didn't even look at the offered cup; his thirst was gone, and his mood was ruined.
"Deal with this," he tossed out, ignoring the outstretched hand, then turned and headed toward the black company car that had already pulled up to the curb.
Left alone with the old man, Yeo-jun crouched down, righted the overturned bucket, and began gathering the dropped items.
"Are you all right, ahjussi?"
"I'm fine, son, fine..." the old man, still not lifting his head, hurriedly took the brush Yeo-jun offered him.
The secretary straightened up, smoothed his jacket, and bowed to the elderly man.
"I apologize," he said quietly. Then, grabbing the coffee, he rushed to catch up with his boss, who had already disappeared into the car.
Ji-won sat with his legs crossed, turned toward the window. His fingers irritably drummed a rhythm on the leather armrest. Yeo-jun sat down next to him.
"Do we have spare shoes?"
"Yes, Director. In the trunk," the secretary replied, settling the cup into the cupholder.
"Throw these away," Ji-won didn't even look at the footwear. "They are ruined."
Yeo-jun got out of the car, retrieved a new pair of shoes, and threw the soiled ones into the nearest trash can. After that, the car pulled away smoothly; their twenty minutes of free time had passed.