Chapter 46: Chapter 46.
Chapter 46.
Shin looked himself in the mirror. He was wearing a black turtleneck sweater. He mumbled, “Does this look awkward?”
It was 9 AM on a weekday morning. It had been so long since he was able to oversleep on a weekday. He even had the leisure of making and drinking his coffee unhurriedly. It also was very rare for him to wear regular clothes on a weekday, especially not since his college years.
Until high school, he had to wear his school uniforms or a training uniform. Once he began to work, he had to wear business suits.
It was only in university that Shin learned about fashion. Siwoo was an especially helpful friend who taught him how to dress well. Siwoo always felt Shin didn’t dress well enough, considering what a great physique he had. Now that he thought about it, Shin realized Siwoo hadn’t contacted him since their dinner. As he packed his bag, Shin checked his cellphone. There was one message from Minjae.
-Today at 10 AM at Sadang Station Gate 1, right?
Today was the first day of the office moral workshop. Everyone was going to meet at the Sadang Station where they would take the shuttle bus to a resort in Muju. It was an overnight camp-style retreat. Its goal was to increase morals and unity among the different divisions.
Shin usually didn’t like camps because he had to go on so many of them for sports. But this time, it was different. Everyone was given the list of all attendees, and Shin noticed that Woojin’s name was included. On top of that, Shin learned that Woojin and himself were assigned in the same group.
Shin sent a message to Woojin, which he did every morning now.
-Are you awake?
Shin wondered if it would be better for them to just live together. He picked out a coat to wear and heard his phone beep. It was a reply from Woojin.
-Do you want to grab a coffee together before we go to the station?
It was a pleasant surprise to see how Woojin now felt comfortable with Shin. Shin laughed happily.
***
In the shuttle bus, the team arrived at the Muju City Hotel, which was located in a resort. The company rented the entire hotel for this workshop. An announcement was made when they arrived.
-Lunch will be given to everyone in the form of a bento. Starting at 3 PM, the sports competition will take place in the internal gymnasium. Please arrive at the lobby by 2:30 PM to check-in.
The HR team was working quickly to get everything ready. A total of four shuttle buses were rented and the seats were assigned randomly to mix up everyone from different divisions. Woojin sighed deeply, already feeling uncomfortable around so many of his co-workers. Jihoon watched him and asked, “You are already regretting coming, aren’t you?”
“…”
“You are wishing you planned a business trip today, aren’t you?”
“Stop.”
Since their dinner a few days ago, Woojin had been feeling the awkwardness with Jihoon. But today, Jihoon talked to him as if nothing happened. In fact, Jihoon smiled at him brightly like he used to before, making Woojin feel relieved.
On the list that was sent to him this morning, Woojin saw that he was assigned to the same team as Jihoon.
Jihoon offered Woojin, “Do you want me to carry your bento?”
“It’s fine.”
Woojin walked ahead and was about to get on the elevator when someone grabbed his shoulder from behind. As expected, it was Shin Kim, who smiled at Woojin brightly. Ignoring Jihoon, who was frowning, Shin sighed and walked into the elevator with Jihoon and Woojin. Minjae followed from behind, looking at Jihoon and Woojin awkwardly. He bowed lightly.
Shin asked Woojin, “5th floor?” When Woojin nodded, Shin smiled and pressed the button as he grabbed Woojin’s lunch box to hold it for him. Jihoon’s frown became uglier. Shin replied with a grin, “I’m on the 5th floor as well. What a coincidence.”
Minjae looked at Shin and said to him with a frown, “What are you talking about? A coincidence? Assistant Manager Woojin, you are in the same room as us. When Shin saw you from afar, he handed me his lunch box and ran after you.”
Minjae lifted the two lunches he was holding to show them to Woojin and Jihoon. Shin continued to smile down at Woojin. When Woojin noticed that Shin’s hair was a bit messy, he reached up to fix it. Jihoon’s face crumpled into a scowl. Thankfully, Minjae was too busy checking his lunch box to notice.
Woojin replied quietly, “So I guess we are to share the room together.”
The truth was, it was Woojin who checked the list first before Shin. Woojin never attended these workshops. The only reason he came this year was all because of Shin.
When Shin mentioned how sad he felt about not getting to see Woojin for two days, Woojin impulsively RSVPed “yes” to the workshop invitation by email. When Yeonwoo Ji was confirming the list of attendees, she was shocked to see Woojin’s name. She came up to him to ask a few times if he was sure about it.
Shin murmured, “We can probably eat dinner together.”
Their eyes met, but the shy Woojin turned away quickly. His ears felt like they were burning.
The elevator finally arrived and Jihoon announced, “Let’s go.”
He quickly grabbed Woojin’s wrist and pulled him closer. Jihoon looked angry.
Jihoon had been acting oddly lately. He used to make an excuse to leave the office all the time, but nowadays, he remained in his chair most of the day. He rarely went on business trips anymore. Even the team leader thought it was odd. It seemed that Jihoon was drinking a lot lately too.
They were walking in the hallway when suddenly, someone exclaimed, “Wow, who do we have here?!”
Woojin knew who it was immediately just by his voice. He closed his eyes unhappily.
Minjae greeted the man excitedly, “Oh, Chief Eejun Bae!” Eejun was wearing a white polar shirt and jeans. It was a simple look and it suited him very well. Beside Eejun were a few female workers hovering around him. Woojin was reminded of how incredibly social Eejun was.
Eejun was the complete opposite of him.
At first glance, Jihoon and Eejun seemed very similar, but Woojin could tell the difference. Jihoon acted warm and kind, but he still had a subtle but clear emotional wall around him. Eejun, however, acted cold a lot of the time, but he had a big heart and could be very nosy.
Eejun walked towards Woojin and joked, “Wow, we are going to be next door neighbors. Should I thank the HR team for that?”
“…”
“You look good, Woojin Choi.”
“You said that already several times when we were in Germany.”
Woojin replied to him in annoyance, making Eejun grin. Eejun bowed teasingly.
Eejun loved to tease Woojin since they were kids. It was rare for Woojin to show any reactions, so when he actually did, Eejun grabbed the chance and teased him mercilessly. There were even times when Eejun was reprimanded by his and Woojin’s parents for going too far. Eejun would pretend to be sorry, but as soon as they were alone again, Eejun would tease Woojin again.
Eejun often asked Woojin endless questions.
“Why do you always look so blank?”
“Are you just pretending to be emotionless?”
“Do you truly have darkness inside of you?”
“Do you like someone?”
Now that Woojin thought about it, he wondered if Eejun just wanted to be his friend.
Eejun noticed Jihoon and greeted him as well, “Oh, I see that Mr. Kang is here as well.”
“…”
“You look very happy to be with Woojin, Assistant Manager Kang.”