Another Day, Another Shot

The Misplaced Mail

PROMPT: Letter

Yoon Se-ri was going through her hate mail until she opened a letter that wasn't meant for her.

THE MISPLACED MAIL

Hong Chang-sik is the ever stressed team manager of Yoon Se-ri. He acts as her right-hand man or personal assistant. It actually doesn't matter what you think his job title really is because he does everything. Everything.

Even receiving and compiling hate mail for Yoon Se-ri given by Cha Sang-woo's upset fans because of their dating rumour, Mr. Hong is tasked to do them.

Mr. Hong doesn't even get why his boss even bothers to read the hate mail. But Yoon Se-ri does anyway and he couldn't do anything to understand her reasons behind doing so. He was never really able to fully comprehend what's going on inside her brain anyway. No matter how much he tried.

~

Just like Santa Claus, Mr. Hong arrived at Yoon Se-ri's apartment. But instead of coming over with sparkly wrapped gifts and 12 reindeers on a sled, he was dragging a sack filled with weekly hate mail for his boss.

Yoon Se-ri opened the door of her glamorous apartment fit for a rich high-class businesswoman like her. She was holding a wine because it was the weekend. She was "relaxing" whatever that word even meant. She was probably taking a break but will continue answering work emails and drafting contracts after she finishes the glass of wine she was holding.

"Just leave them there," Yoon Se-ri told her team manager. Mr. Hong bowed and bid his goodbye but before he could even take a step away from the entrance door of her apartment, she reminded him of other work-related matters he needed to attend to. They were that workaholic.

As the door closed, Mr. Hong muttered, "She's really crazy." He scratched his head and started walking away. The thoughts that filled his mind already stressed him too much.

Mr. Hong still couldn't believe how long he was able to stay in Seri's Choice. Because believe it or not, Yoon Se-ri was actually a nice boss if you stay on her good side and work hard for the company's growth. She gives back because she values her employees despite her reputation of being a "terror" boss.

Yoon Se-ri is actually grateful to those few who stayed loyal to her company no matter what. And Mr. Hong, her trusted team manager, is one of those loyal people.

~

Yoon Se-ri sat on her couch facing the Seoul skyline as she continued sipping on her favourite red wine.

Se-ri took a peek inside the sack. As usual, there were red envelopes marked with huge X's or her face printed with scratches and whatever harsh doodles you could think of. But she was used to them and she knew that inside each of these letters were fans' declarations of how she was unfit for their beloved Cha Sang-woo.

As Se-ri was getting a handful of hate mail from the sack filled with letters to read and burn afterward, an envelope fell to the floor. She picked it up and studied it. It was as if the letter was calling for her to open it. And she did.

Se-ri flipped it over, ripped it open, and started to read the letter.

~

"... Sincerely, Ri Jeong-hyeok."

Se-ri was digesting the content of the confession letter she just read. Something deep inside her was telling her that she's meant to receive and read the letter because she felt the need to help this man.

After a few minutes of contemplating what to do next, Se-ri decided to text the man who wrote the letter. It was easy to contact him anyway given that he wrote his number on the letter hoping that the girl would contact him after reading his heartfelt confession.

The letter was so heartfelt that it almost sounded like a one-sided love if it was possible to actually come to this conclusion from what Se-ri just read. As a businesswoman though, her guts never failed her whenever she was about to make a huge decision regarding the future of her company.

So let's see if Se-ri was right about this letter too.

~

[Text Exchange]

Se-ri: "Ri Jeong Hyeok-ssi?"

Jeong-hyeok: "Who's this? How do you know me and how did you get my number?"

'He's so blunt though,' Se-ri thought after that one exchange.

Se-ri: "Well, Mr. Ri, I happen to receive a letter but I'm pretty sure I wasn't the intended recipient. It's a confession letter."

Se-ri: "Oh and I Googled you by the way. So I know you're a very talented musician, a pianist to be specific. So I find it hard to believe that such a man like you accidentally sent a confession letter to someone else."

Se-ri: "But that's about it. So I assume you're a very private person too. Don't worry, I value privacy too so your mishap and secret is safe with me."

After triple texting, Se-ri thought she went overboard but it was too late since she couldn't take her texts back.

Se-ri's phone said Jeong-hyeok read her text messages so she thought he just left and wasn't about to reply anymore. But she was wrong.

Ri Jeong-hyeok calling...

After a few heartbeats and a teeny tiny bit of nervousness, Se-ri answered the call.

"Please tell me you didn't read a letter that wasn't meant for you to read," Jeong-hyeok's masculine and cold yet charming voice reached Se-ri's ears the moment she accepted and let the call through.

'I wonder if he's handsome too,' Se-ri thought. Before she could get carried away and imagine him and all his handsome glory, she replied. "Unfortunately, I read it. I'm sorry. But not really?"

There was a short pause until Se-ri continued talking.

"Crazy as I may sound... that's what Cha Sang-woo's fans think of me anyway so might as well embrace their perception of me... they send me these hate mail calling me all sorts of harsh names..." Se-ri continued rambling instead of actually talking about what she and Jeong-hyeok were supposed to talk about.

"I'm sorry but I'm already lost with your nonsense babbles and ramblings," Jeong-hyeok cut Se-ri off.

"What I was trying to say is that we could meet up because for some unknown reason, I really want to help you get this woman. And I'm an expert in these kinds of things. I'm a woman after all," Se-ri replied confidently.

But we all know Se-ri has no clue about dating at all. Because if she did, she wouldn't be wasting her time with Cha Sang-woo.

"Uhm... okay, I guess?" Jeong-hyeok replied, confusion and doubt clearly heard from his voice.

"Great! Let's meet in a coffee shop here in Gangnam. That is if you don't mind," Se-ri started planning their meet-up.

"Brave of you to assume I'm within the area or at least near the area. For all you know I might actually be from North Korea," Jeong-hyeok replied.

"You're not?" Se-ri challenged Jeong-hyeok's reply. She remembered the return address printed on the envelope of the letter.

"Just text me the exact name of the coffee shop and the time we'll meet and I'll be there," Jeong-hyeok replied to hopefully end this bizarre yet funny conversation.

"See you!"

~

Little did they know, the universe actually conspired to set up these two beautiful souls to meet each other. The "misplaced" letter was meant for Se-ri to read because Jeong-hyeok, the man she just texted and called, was not just meant to pass through her life. He was truly meant to stay in her life.

Se-ri finished the last sip of her wine but accidentally spilled a few drops on the letter. "Oh it's not like he couldn't write one again." She gathered the rest of the hate mail and put them inside the sack again. She stood up and left the opened letter on the table.

Little did Se-ri know that the next time she will receive and read a confession letter, it's going to be from the same man. But this time, it's really meant for her.