Last one!
The office was filled with hushed tones, ringing phones and silent typing. Juna took three seconds to massage her neck before tapping speedily at her computer again. This was the eleventh email she had constructed after having to reorganize an entire spreadsheet of endless numbers and names. Something she normally wouldn't have to do but it had been passed to her after her coworker made errors.
For that she wished she could at least slouch in her seat right now. Unfortunately, the office was designed to have open work spaces. There were walls to separate neighboring desks but wide open where there weren't any. In Juna's case she was only blessed with two walls. Her back was exposed to two other work clusters and the roomy walk way. Always leaving an eerie prickling up her spine—at least when she thought too much about it. After all, not all work encounters were pleasant.
On the bright side, her lunch break was coming up. All she needed was to wrap the email up with a closing statement, words of thanks, and sign.
Send and done!
A quiet sigh emerged from her satisfied grin until she felt her hunger creeping in. Without hesitation Juna scooped up her purse and headed toward the break room.
The break room was massive. No. It wasn't a break room. It was a café. Before the company expanded again, everyone was dining in a real break room. There was a kitchen, a few sofas and some tables. But this! Most of the room was white except for one wall which was accented with a wooden texture. Which matched the tables well. Along the longest wall was where we could order food and drinks. There was still a kitchen area, but most people bought their food now. Next to that were two lounging areas, each with their own TVs. And of course the dining area was the largest area. Not even Juna's shared apartment was this big.
She sat herself on a table closest to an exit, before unloading her lunch box from her purse. As she removed the lid, the delicious smell hit her nose. Early in the morning she prepared gimbap and mandu for her lunch. In a little plastic bag held a handful of juicy red cherries. Juna tied her hair back in a temporary mess before digging in. The dumplings were cold, but she didn't mind.
Every now and again her eyes looked up to those who were also filing in during their breaks while others left at the end of theirs. Everyone seemed to be well acquainted with each other except for her. It was like being at school in America all over again. Except this time she didn't mind the isolation. She learned that working hard for approval wasn't worth the energy. And making connections became a burden eventually anyway. Her current circle was enough for her. Min Joo, Kyung Soo, Myung Hee.
Juna casually surveyed the room once more, cheeks puffing out. The woman froze. Her eyes wide, jaw hanging.
"Oh no!" She mumbled with a full mouth.
Across the room was one of her old coworkers, Dong Sun. He once was her desk neighbor in the previous building and was relocated to a different department when the switch happened. The man gave off the vibe that he had been interested in her. It was such a relief when he switched departments. Unfortunately, they ran into each other last week. He asked a lot of questions that she knew would lead to some kind of proposal to spend time together. It was an awkward meeting that she tried her best to be as vague as possible in her answers. She escaped making any agreements then, but she wasn't in the clear yet. He looked to be searching the cafe for someone.
There was no room for risk. Juna picked up her things—her purse in one hand, her lunch box in the other—and scurried for the exit. She pushed herself against the wall and peaked back in to make sure he hadn't seen her. She watched as he got closer and closer to where she'd been sitting. It seems he was losing hope, which naturally inflated her own.
"Wait." She watched with anxiety as he began talking to a couple that was sitting near her earlier. "Oh no, that person knows my name! That's not fair!" Suddenly they pointed toward her. Juna snapped back behind the wall, her face distorted in dread. Her thumping heart made her rib cage ache. "This is bad." She peeked even more cautiously.
"EEK!"
He was already steps away from the door! There was no time to think. Juna ran. There was no plan. How could there be one when she still hadn't explored the new building enough to know its exact layout? She just ran. Right into a dead end. But there was an elevator here. She jumped into the pocket of space where she could hide. The hand holding her purse tapped at the button more vigorously than a jackhammer on the asphalt.
DING!
Thank goodness! As the door opened she shuffled backwards, being careful of her food. But she heard the voice of Dong Sun approaching closer in the hallway.
"Hello?"
Again, the scared woman hid in the corner against the controls. Punching the 'close' button desperately. When the doors finally activated, Juna shut her eyes as she mentally begged for mercy. If she saw a hand come through, she'd surely faint. Still crumpled to the side to stay hidden, she could hear her heart racing in the quiet metal box. One eye peaked open at the door. The doors closed too sluggishly. After what felt like a lifetime, the final sound of the doors' meeting was music to her ears. Success! She relaxed. Her heart pace finally began to slow.
"That was close!" She panted. After catching her breath she checked on her lunch. "Ah, none of the dumplings fell at least." Juna plucked one with her fingers and ate it before closing the box and tucking it back in her purse.
Ding!
"Hm?" She looked at the display which indicated stopping at the garage level. "Ah, I must've hit the button by accident. I might as well get off and finish lunch elsewhere." She sighed to herself. When the door opened she stepped out into a concrete space, cars of many colors lining the parking lot. At one end was a sign with an image of stairs. "Oh! The Fire Escape!" Relief settled in. Surely she couldn't be bothered there. Juna hopped off towards it.
The woman rode the elevator back up with a sway of contentment. There was nothing in the world that could refuel her like delicious food and privacy. Juna's reflection was so clear in the metal doors, the color in her face more vibrant. However, it could've been a side effect of her suspenseful escape earlier. Recalling it gave her goosebumps. Being naturally anxious, her overactive mind began playing out worst case scenarios. One of them consisted of the elevator stopping unexpectedly before the doors opened to reveal Dong Sun. Her nails began digging at the leather of her handbag again. No, stop it, Juna! You don't need this kind of stress.
As she waited facing her reflection, she gasped noticing her hair was still up. She took it down and quickly brushed it neatly before the doors opened. There was no other room on this floor, yet they bothered to build a hall, which she found strange. There were posters of the company's successful artists every few feet. Each one had lights shining from behind its edges like the movie posters at the cinema. She acknowledged a passing workmate before stepping into the office doors. After passing numerous work clusters she finally reached her own. Four more hours. No problem, she encouraged herself. But before she could sit,
"Shin Juna ssi." A deep voice called to her.
When Juna turned, her eyebrows shot up. She bowed immediately to the tall, thin suited man. "Gyejangnim," she acknowledged. Her exterior was business-like but her mind was racing. Why would the team head approach her?
"Please come with me." He turned and walked away.
Juna stared after him perplexed but did as she was asked. Should she just ask him now what the matter was? Was there an issue so bad that he couldn't talk to her at her desk? Then it occurred to her. What if someone saw me eating in the fire escape and reported me? Her lip jumped between her teeth. That must be it! People can be so petty nowadays! They wouldn't fire me over this would they? They came up to a heavy door with a plaque saying, Department Director.
The Department Director's office? Isn't that too much for a small safety violation? She gulped.
The team head went in first and held the door open for her. "Thank you." When she saw who was in the room, it took all she had not to react. She and the team head bowed and greeted the department head along with a familiar face who sat across his desk. Myung Hee, her godmother.
"Please have a seat." The middle aged man at the desk invited. Juna and her team head sat next to Myung Hee. "I hope I didn't pull you away at an inconvenient time." He indicated toward Juna.
"Not at all. I had just returned from my lunch break," she assured. The man nodded as his fingers laced together. "Though...can I ask what this is about?" Her eyes shifted towards her godmother.
"Well, as you know, Ji Myung Hee here has been a part of Victory Leap Entertainment since its beginning stages. Her passion for the company burned so strong that she expanded her involvement towards more than office management. I even recall one time I've seen her mopping the floors instead of the janitor in the early years."
Myung Hee chuckled. "There's really no need to mention that right now," she blushed.
"Ah, but please bear it a little longer." The director nodded politely. "This all relates to why Juna ssi was brought so suddenly after all." Myung Hee nodded her understanding. He continued, "She's been an impromptu driver for our artists when the media became too overwhelming. She's put her sewing skills to use when we were short on seamstresses. She led the actions we took to evade false accusations from the media. Every type of staff team you can think of, she's contributed to all of them. Myung Hee has earned much respect in this company, which is why when she recommends someone for a job, the company trusts her judgement...even if it may lay outside the norm."
Juna looked at Myung Hee with admiration. The older woman's maternal instincts were strong. She knew that well from her years growing up in Gwangju. But Juna never knew just how much dedication she had for this company; how far she'd gone. In fact, it hadn't occurred to her that she still worked for this company. Whenever she mentioned her job, it always seemed that she did something completely different every time they caught up. Now she understood why.
Eomeoni, you really are cool. But I still don't know what this has to do with me.
"Myung Hee has family matters to attend to and will not be with the company for a while." He said. Juna blinked. Family matters? She hadn't told me anything about it. "You may already know but for the past four or five years, she has worked closely with our most successful artists, BTS, as their personal assistant."
I didn't.
"And she has recommended you as her substitute while she's away. It is an unusual transition that wouldn't normally be allowed. However, it's like I said. Her judgement is trusted in this company." He looked pointedly at Juna who resisted sinking in her chair. Her palms were damp and her cheeks were giving off heat waves. "But the choice is up to you."
Her face remained calm, unlike her racing thoughts. She didn't know what to say. To be honest she really wasn't sure if the situation was real anymore. Why in the world would Myung Hee recommend her for this? Everyday had been perfectly predictable so far. She knows how much I hate surprises! And then Juna remembered. The text:
Say you'll accept! You'd be doing me a big favor! Don't forget okay?
Once again, Juna resisted the urge to react in an unprofessional way. She wanted to tell Myung Hee that she should've given her a heads up about this. That is, until she remembered that maybe she would've if Min Joo hadn't taken her phone the other day. Ah, so this is her fault too. But now wasn't the time to complain about life. She needed to give an answer quickly!
If she said yes-
WHY WOULD I SAY YES?! So I can seem like a spoiled brat who can't earn her place in the working world? So I can wait on greedy little narcissists society likes to call idols? Why?!
On the other hand, Juna couldn't ignore that Myung Hee said she'd be doing her a favor, that she had family affairs that must've been so bad she couldn't tell her own goddaughter. What could've happened? Her heart clenched in her chest. Was he okay? The younger woman sighed to herself as she knew what her answer had to be. After all, what would it look like if she declined one of the most respected people in the company? It was a double edged sword.
Juna grinned politely. "I'll admit this was quite sudden. But I too have come to trust her judgement. So I will accept. That is, if it's of no inconvenience to the department."
"We've already prepared arrangements for your absence," said the department head.
"You'll finish your shift for the day and tomorrow you'll complete an orientation with me. I'll contact you with further details later today," Myung Hee smiled.
Juna smiled and nodded politely. Her inner thoughts weren't as such. What would the next few weeks bring her?