Love Maze

06 | keep your composure, jung

Shit, Jae-In curses to himself mentally as the girl smiles a bit too much at him. The girl's gonna think I'm into her.

"You six are lucky to be chosen as the six competing to be my son's assistant." His father joins the empty space beside Jae-In, the weight of his heavy palm cupping Jae-In's shoulder.

Jae-In's lips barely lift into a smile, the effort he puts into it not as evident. But when he tilts his head towards Nolan, the whole facade of his fake grin crashes into a thin line. Self-control, Jung, you have to have it. He swallows thickly, turning away from the questioning look on Nolan's face.

"All of you are to obey Jae-In's requests, but if you fail to succeed, my son will dismiss you instantly." Jae-In fixes his gaze on the floor without a single word, an attentive pairs of eyes burning his skin with each passing second.

His eyes flicker upwards only once, and when he does, he notices Nolan is the last one to bow.

☰

"May I have a word with my son?" Senior Jung doesn't need to say more as he dismisses everyone in the room after Jae-In goes through an excruciating forty-minute meet-and-greet session with the six assissants.

Jae-In is thankful for once, as the skin around his mouth aches from forcing a grin, his teeth aching dully from clenching them too hard. He sighs in relief the moment the door shuts behind the last person, his eyes closing for a quick second to regain control of what's left of his patience.

These people, besides the ones who have caught his particular interest, are beyond irritating, ruining Jae-In's mood for the rest of the day. If he could only skip past the awestruck looks and unnecessary apologies from the others, he'd be more than enthusiastic about this decision.

"So, Min's son has been telling me about you slipping back into your...interesting habits." Jae-In drags a tired hand down his face, angry at himself for not taking into account Suho's tight friendship with his father when he decided to choose Nolan as his first pick.

This is not a conversation he wants to have at the moment, but knowing his father, he can't escape even if he wants to. His father has this invisible hold on him, and if Jae-In slips up, that hold will suffocate him. It's not the best feeling in the world, so Jae-In puts great effort into avoiding it.

Looks like you messed up, Jae-In, he scolds himself internally as he waits for his father's usual lecture.

"As one of my successors, I can't allow that." His father yanks his hand away from his face, his fingers tightening around Jae-In's wrist as Jae-In's attention magnetizes to his father's disgusted features.

It's like being a little boy again, except he isn't failing to properly tie his shoes or clean up his toy cars. Jae-In hates feeling so small, hates the feeling of his shoulders seeming to cave in as the overwhelming presence of his father towers above him menacingly. His father's gaze is like a branding on his skin, painful and inevitable as he stares Jae-In down with such fury it makes him want to disappear.

"If you try to mess around with these assistants, the punishment will be severe." He snarls in Jae-In's face, his other hand coming under Jae-In's jaw, forcing him to meet his gaze.

"I won't." Jae-In struggles to find his voice, his words coming out breathy and shallow. "I promise."

"Act like a man, Jae-In." His father tightens his hold on him, squeezing his face and wrist so tight Jae-In hisses. "Do you know how embarrassing it is for someone to have tabloids talking about how much of a slut their son is?"

Jae-In's eyelids flutter shut, but his father jerks him backwards, his eyes instantly flying open as he feels his legs brush against his desk. He doesn't want to remember that scandal, or any of the scandals his old self had been the main attraction in. Each and every bad memory he ever locked away seems to rush into his head, the effect more overwhelming than any drug he's used.

My father's the worst drug of all. Jae-In grits his teeth, fighting through the pain his father happily inflicts on him without any care. Any more and he swears his wrist is going to snap and his jaw's going to break. If only my mother was still around.

"Be like me, son, if you want to succeed. It's about time you grow up." The man he's ashamed to call his father drops his hold, standing back as he watches silently as Jae-In holds onto his desk for support.

Jae-In sits against the edge of the table underneath him, clutching his bright red wrist close to his chest. "Did you hear me? I want you to grow up." Jae-In barely stifles a nod as a muscle twitches in his clenched jaw.

"Of course," he whispers hoarsely, and with that his father turns to exit. Jae-In rubs at his face with his good hand quickly, not wanting to face the punishment for acting weak in front of his father.

"Oh, and by the way," his father calls over his shoulder, earning half of Jae-In's attention, "I expect you to treat those assistants of yours with no respect. It's best they hate you rather than fall in love with you and want to end up in your bed."

Jae-In mutters a quiet agreement as his father finally leaves, and like many other days, Jae-In wonders if things can get any worse.