"He did what?!" Choi Yujin yelled as quietly as he could. "How?....pardon my language but what. the fuck?!"
It was only the first day on the job and Miles, according to Chairman Hee-soon's assistant, Choi Yujin, had made two major mistakes.
First, he revealed that the boss offered a handshake and he received it warmly. Which for some reason his assistant went crazily offended about.
He had repeatedly told Miles during the interview that when Chairman Hee-soon offered anyone a handshake, it was a sign of trust and if in the long run, that trust is betrayed, he would come for their head with everything he's got. Miles totally forgot about it because it sounded weird and hilarious and he received the handshake when it was offered.
The way his assistant, Mr Yujin was going about it though. Miles could sense a little... jealousy, maybe, in his voice. He considered asking politely, 'Mr Yujin, are you for any obvious reason, uh....jealous?' but he filed the thought away.
The second mistake however was a serious case. It was about entering the Chairman's room. This was clearly crossing the line according to Mr Yujin.
'But how the fuck would I clean his room without entering it?' Miles thought and frowned at the situation. 'Please cut me some slacks.'
But he couldn't say all that was on his mind at all. Seeing his own boss 'butt out' naked on his first night on the job was clearly crossing the line. Even if it wasn't on purpose.
He bowed deeply. "I sincerely apologize, Sir. Please put in good words for me to the Chairman. I really need this job."
"Wow. Is that your utmost concern right now?!"
'Duh!' Miles rolled his eyes, thankful that he was bent so Mr Yujin couldn't see him. There was something else bugging him that was greater than all this but for now he needed this to end on focus on that.
He sighed. "Let's get this over with." He said out loud without realizing.
"I'm sorry?" Mr Yujin leaned forward raising an eyebrow.
'Oh shit! That wasn't supposed to be heard.' he thought.
"I didn't mean to sir, I swear. I.... I apologize for my mistake." Miles begged as he bowed even deeper.
"Leave him be, Yujin!" A deep voice came down from the staircase before the figure appeared.
It was the Chairman in..... pajamas?
Miles stole a quick glance before bowing in greeting. "Good evening, sir."
"Good evening. You're still around? Yujin, why are you still keeping him hostage?"
"Sir, It just that..." Mr Yujin tried to protest but Hee-soon gave him no chance to speak.
He waved him off. "It's already 10PM and it's his very first day. Do you want to make me look bad? About what happened, it's nothing. He's bound to make mistakes isn't he...aren't you?"
Miles bowed, hiding his smile as the Chairman literally saved his head from Mr Yujin's banter regardless of his mistakes. He had already apologized many times when they came across each other during the last few hours and each time, Chairman Hee-soon just patted his shoulder and told him not to worry. 'It's nothing' he had said.
"Yujin," the voice jolted him back to the present. "Drive him home. That's your punishment."
"But Sir, I didn't do anything wrong. So why am I getting punished?"
"Okay then. Mr Yujin Sir, would you mind taking this young handsome fellow here to his humble abode safely before midnight? It would be of great delight, Sir Yujin." Hee-soon said in a perfect British accent before laughing his ass off. Miles was impressed by the accent. It was.....sexy. 'God...no!'
Yujin on the other hand rolled his eyes and sighed loudly. "You hear that.... The Chairman is supporting you. Are you happy now? Don't get used to it. Let's go."
Miles bit back a smile as he said his thanks to Chairman Hee-soon who winked back in response and walked away.
Immediately, Miles raced off to grab his backpack and head out to the elevator. He was offered a room in the penthouse but giving the situation and the specific thing bugging him on his mind, he declined.
Plus, he wanted a little freedom to enjoy his time in Korea despite working almost every day of the week.
As soon as he grabbed his backpack, he dashed into the elevator to meet Mr Yujin which he instantly regretted.
Mr Yujin gave him another many hours of 'unwanted' lecture that lasted from the moment he got into the elevator to the moment the car pulled up at it's final stop at his apartment.
"Good night, Mr Yujin!" He said, immediately hopping off the car and waving goodbye. 'Please go. Please' he thought as he flashed a fake smile to show gratitude.
"Thanks for the lift" he added.
"Yeah. Also, don't forget all I've said Miles, Okay? Good night."
Miles bowed and waved goodbye, holding a fake smile until the car was far off. He cursed and sighed as he head for his apartment. He was exhausted.
One very long barrage of staircases that led to his apartment on the third floor of this five-story building later, he finally collapsed on the bed.
The first day to mark the start of a new life in a new country was a hell of a day. He missed lunch and dinner not because he wanted to but because something had been bugging him since his first encounter with his boss, Kim Hee-soon.
"That's right, before anything else...."
Miles brought out a notebook from his backpack where he had written specific things that he found very similar to what he remembered from the novel. He spent an hour reading the early chapters of the novel and what he found was this: His thesis about him living the actual webnovel real life was not true...yet.
Unlike the main character Charles, who was bold and very straight forward with his approach to anything he found interesting, Miles was the complete opposite. He was timid, shy, introverted and quiet.
And Although some of Kim Hee-soon's dialogue matched perfectly, a lot of it did not. In the webnovel, Charles didn't burst into the Chairman's room to meet him butt naked. There was no Choi Yujin in the entire story.
Miles let out a deep sigh. "I'm just overthinking it. I'm just..." He collapsed on his bed. Just before he fully shut down like the old hp computer he was at that moment because he was exhausted, he set out a plan to watch for the next one week and then he would come to a conclusion and an action plan.
***
By the end of the first week, Hee-soon had to admit: Miles was really good at his job. Exceptional even. He was indeed a qualified candidate.
The penthouse had never looked better. Every surface gleamed, the laundry was done perfectly, shirts pressed, colors separated, delicates handled with care.
The meals were exquisite and appeared on schedule and they were really good. There weren't anything fancy, it was just homemade food that reminded Hee-soon of something he didn't have anymore. A time before all of this. Before the empire and the blood and the business and the....fear.
But Miles himself? He was growing nervous day after day.
He barely spoke unless he was spoken to. He jumped every time Hee-soon entered a room, which, fine, Hee-soon knew he moved quietly, it had never been a problem before, it was actually useful, but somehow watching Miles nearly drop a perfectly folded shirt every single morning was starting to feel less like a quirk and more like something personal.
He apologized for everything. Putting a glass down too loudly. Vacuuming during a phone call even though Hee-soon had told him twice it was fine. Once, memorably, for existing in the hallway at the same time as Hee-soon.
It was, in a word, adorable. Which was a problem.
Because Hee-soon didn't do adorable. He was business focused. He was disciplined and diligent. He did cold when cold was necessary and warm only when it served a purpose. He did not catch himself watching the way Miles reached for things on high shelves, the quiet flex of muscle under dark skin, the way he bit his bottom lip when he was concentrating on something small and difficult like folding a fitted sheet.
He especially did not do that.It was absurd and it needed to stop.
Especially after what happened on Thursday evening.