I woke to a pounding sound. I had fallen asleep, my head pillowed in my arms on the table. I wiped the drool from my lips and went to open the door. An elderly gentleman, one I had seen eat often, was there. I remembered his name as the dream fog cleared.
"Jennie said to be here at 9:00," Byung Man said, rather surprised I wasn't Jennie.
"Come in and let's get started." I opened the door wider and stepped aside. I was worried about Jennie. It wasn't like her to let anything slide. I got Byung Man into the shower room and went to check on Jennie.
I found her back at the desk, staring at the lawsuit. There were black circles around her eyes. I was thankful there weren't any tears. She must have run out last night.
"Byung Man is here," I said as business-like as I could. Jennie looked up to me with a forlorn look.
"Does it matter?"
"Yes," I responded. I had a litany of reasons to go on and knew they would fall on deaf ears. Short and simple was the only good response.
"They are destroying me." I saw defeat in Jennie's eyes.
"The banquet will be next." I said it firmly. I didn't want to sugar coat it. Jennie's eyes widened with fear.
"It will bankrupt the Kitchen," she said. I sat down on the cot as I watched her face go ashen.
"I won't let that happen." There was determination in my voice, hopefully something Jennie could latch onto.
"I don't think we can stop these people," she said, holding up the stack of papers. I gave her a confident smile. The smile held more confidence than I felt, but she needed more.
"No one's going hungry, Jennie. I need to speak to some old friends to see if we can't turn this around." I pulled the donor book out again and turned to the page with Soojoo's name and pointed at it. "She thought this place was worth funding. I promise you, her donation won't go to waste. Ever." Jennie's face firmed up.
"What do you want me to do?"
"Make sure you open at 4:00." I needed to handle this alone. "And don't lose heart. It's going to be a very long week. Let me take care of the rest." she stood up and nodded her head.
"I'll make sure we stay open," Jennie said, "whatever happens, thank you for trying." She moved past me quickly. Her determination had returned, but not her confidence. I felt a little sorry for Byung Man, he was bound to catch the brunt of her frustration. I sat down and made the first call.
"Yang and Associates, this is Hoyeon may I help you?" the receptionist greeted me. I knew Hoyeon, but I really didn't want to explain myself.
"Yang Hyunsuk, please," I said, trying to jump past the hurdle.
"Mr. Yang is busy right now, would you like to leave a message?" It was bite the bullet time. I took a deep breath.
"Hoyeon, it's Kim Jisoo. I really need to speak with Hyunsuk," I said it quickly, hoping she would just let me through without an interrogation. No such luck.
"Jisoo! oh my god, are you alright?" There was concern in her voice that exceeded the relationship we had had in the past. I guess notoriety does that to a person.
"I'm fine Hoyeon. It's really important that I speak with Hyunsuk," The secret was out. I needed to move forward at a quick pace now.
"Alright, I'll see if I can get him out of the meeting. Hold on a minute," Hoyeon said, then added, "Soojoo was right, you sing wonderfully." I felt my throat knot a bit. I had forgotten she had known Soojoo. The two would talk during the company Christmas parties. I just sighed a 'thank you' and waited for Hyunsuk.
