Baek Ha Rim

i looked at chae hyungwon, trying to figure out what was going on in his mind. he seemed to be unfazed that i was giving him a certain look; a look that was questioning why he suddenly had interest in how my date went.

"how was it? was yoo kihyun nice to you?" he asked again.

i thought about ceo yoo and i. rather, the kiss that almost happened between the two of us immediately came to mind. his lip lightly brushing against mine and that intimate moment i abruptly stopped, i thought about it along with the image of him storming off this floor appearing dismayed.

"it was lovely and he was an absolute gentleman just as i had expected. ceo yoo was raised very well, and i could see that so were you, sir."

"are you sincerely praising us or is that another textbook answer? miss baek, you don't have to lie. i'm very much aware that i'm not the nicest person one would come across in the company." he spoke with a smirk, slightly rolling his eyes and shaking his head.

no matter how much he demanded authenticity, i couldn't get myself to put my guard down and be genuine in front of him. who knows? it might actually cost me my position in the company and every interaction i get is a test that requires setting my best foot forward.

"don't you have any questions for me?" he tilted his head a bit to the side, expecting me to at least come up with something entertaining or interesting.

was he perhaps trying to get a conversation going between us?

"why do you ask about my dinner date, sir?" i shot my chance.

ceo chae appeared to be thinking of an answer. i guess, he was taking a moment to put his thoughts in order.

"yoo kihyun dates a lot, but it's unusual for him to date someone from my company. i don't really know if he's serious about you so don't get your hopes up either. my cousin tends to experience a lot of fleeting emotions and lots of girls have already come right after him expecting him to commit."

now was he warning me about it for my own sake or was he trying to put me down?

"i don't expect anything, sir. ceo yoo particularly asked for a dinner date as a way for me to pay him back after he helped me recover from fainting. it's nothing less or more than that to me."

"well, that's refreshing." he shrugged and let out a small laugh.

"you've probably also dated a lot of those types for you to say that, sir."

"sure, that's not entirely wrong." he was quick to admit.

i shook my head and released a quiet sigh trying to make my reaction go as unnoticeable as possible.

"i did my part in helping you that night you fainted, too. don't you think i should also earn some sort of favor?" he brought up.

"i saved you that one day from the photoshoot and picked up onions you bought when they fell the first time we met, sir. on top of that, i already work for you and your company in general." i reasoned out.

"well.. fair point. but like you said, you work for me. i guess i'll take that as a chance to save any special requests from now on."

i straightened my back as i sat and averted my gaze towards the wide pools surrounding us. the night view was beautiful, and it was just me and ceo chae together. the workers were far away, and the thought that i was missing another opportunity to advance my motives crossed my mind.

i could already envision my stepfather's disappointment the moment i come back home at this point.

"how long are you gonna stay in the water, sir? it's a bit chilly tonight and don't you wanna... swim around?"

"you said it's chilly. so, this warm jacuzzi is enough." he answered with his eyes remaining closed as he enjoyed the small jacuzzi pool all to himself.

i exhaled as silently as i could and tried to readjust my sitting position again.

"i have a curious question though, miss baek.. is bright yellow your favorite color?" he suddenly asked out of the blue.

"...yes, it is. uhm, that was a very random question, sir."

he suddenly raised his eyebrows and swam a little bit closer to me. it was as if i had just grabbed all of his attention by admitting such a simple thing.

"right? i knew it would be. it was a wild guess, miss baek. you normally give off the impression of someone uptight and inclined to monochromatic colors, but that yellow umbrella was a very questionable choice."

"i like yellow because it is a happy color; it's vigorous and hopeful. hearing you speak like that seems like you dislike my favorite color very much, mr. chae." i shook my head slowly while the corners of my lips curved up into a small smile.

"yellow also indicates betrayal and danger, miss baek. and yes, i express myself in a very obvious manner as you can see." he let out a small laugh.

looking at chae hyungwon upclose evoked a certain feeling inside of me. it made me feel giddy in a way, and it was hard to control the butterflies i felt.

but every time i saw him, he also reminded me of his father which he resembled very much. a hidden criminal; a face which i loathe. having all of this hit me at once never fails to spark internal turmoil in me.

it was all too difficult to discern.

"is black your favorite color?" i asked.

"anyone could tell." he shrugged.

"hmm.. sleek, chic, and classic. black associates to power and mystery. on a side note, it is often tied to death. darkness and evil are also concepts i don't find too appealing." i spoke, looking at him straight in the eye.

the way he looked back at me was revealing a sense of fascination. he was trying to figure me out and all my reasons as to why i was suddenly speaking so negatively. seeing that, i quickly went in with another matter to talk about as a form of distraction.

Chae Hyungwon

"you mentioned that you express yourself blatantly, sir, and i think it would be impossible to be so consistent with that. is there any instance in your life where your actions contradict your feelings?" miss baek suddenly asked.

i stared intently into her eyes for a few moments until i decided to break away first. looking down, i attempted to flash another confident smile, but i failed and felt sadness creep on to my face. it translated subtly but it was enough for her to pick up on. it was a pathetic moment, i thought.

"i like how you think, miss baek." i started.

i contemplated on her question a bit more until i finally felt myself give in. i was already starting to warm up to her anyway.

"kwon eun gyeol. that's all i can say." i answered while avoiding her eyes.

there was a quick moment of silence between miss baek and i. i didn't know if she was expecting me to elaborate on it more, but i was certainly not going to give in. building a wall and putting up a front was something i was always good at. 

"dragging a relationship you don't see a future in is not your obligation. committing to someone just for the sake of it means you're also leading the other party on. although breaking things off early and being upfront will hurt, it saves the both of you from an ill-fated relationship and prevents good memories from being tainted with a bitter end. i hope that one day, you'll find the courage to be honest about this to others and to yourself, ceo chae." 

with just these words, i immediately knew i was being drawn deeper. her ability to connect and to display sensibility was mesmerizing to me. she was a presence easy to have around and her innate wisdom was already recognizable.

simply, i felt more and more attracted to baek ha rim who was sitting right in front of me. 

"thank you." i weakly blurted out.

i immediately felt surprised that i had said those words aloud myself. i blurted it out so raw, with heartfelt sincerity. i looked at her immediately wondering if she had noticed how i must have felt awkward expressing my gratitude.

"i don't say these words often, but your words struck me and you hit every point. you just picked up on the situation so well." i admitted.

i felt myself getting shy but i was controlling it by pushing a colder look on my face. it's rare for a girl to make me feel nervous; more so a mere employee in my company. it was always me dominating and shaking others up with my presence.

but ha rim? she didn't have to do much to make me feel a thousand sparks.

"i feel honored then. i appreciate your 'thank you' a lot, sir." she spoke with a genuine smile.

"ah, but that time we first met outside the company, sir, where were you headed to? you missed the bus after all." she suddenly remembered.

"i was supposed to head to eun gyeol's house with her family to cook them a meal."

"did you use the onions that fell?" her eyes widened in anticipation.

"...yeah, i took your word and used them after cleaning them up thoroughly. thankfully, their stomachs are fine up to this day, i guess." i slightly chuckled.

"i told you so. i knew it would be fine."

"sure, but they still didn't really enjoy the feast anyway. i know that didn't have anything to do with the onions, though. it's just me plainly having underdeveloped cooking skills."

she started to smile a little bit more after hearing me speak about that day. i took the chance to savor the moment of looking at her; being fascinated by the peaceful sight of her under the night sky.

"and you? what were you doing there?" i suddenly asked.

"oh, i was visiting... just family members." her pace of speaking got faster.

"extended family? or your parents? where are they from?" i asked, sincerely being interested.

she suddenly appeared distracted, and i could feel her slowly getting detached from our topic. i suppose she was not having it.

maybe she was a very private person, and so was i. being able to empathize, i felt that i could definitely respect her not going into details.

"sir, it's getting late. maybe we should go back? i don't think staying in the water for so long would be good, too." she suddenly brought up.

"alright." i quickly got up from the jacuzzi with her mention.

i walked out from the pool and headed to the chair where i placed my robe. i took a quick glimpse of miss baek from behind as i put the robe on to cover my body. she had her back facing me and had kept her head strictly faced forward.

i couldn't help but smirk a little, noticing her considerate gesture of respect and privacy as i changed into the robe.

"let's go." i appeared right beside her and motioned for us to start walking back inside the rooms of the hotel.

i looked ahead, feeling myself smile in satisfaction for what this night had presented me with. ha rim and i simply got the chance to exchange a good conversation, and it already made me feel like i had just won something.

focusing my eyes on the glass doors from afar, i suddenly saw the silhouette of familiar man walk right back inside. with that, the smile i just had on a while ago disappeared in a quick second.

what i had just taken a glimpse of felt suspicious to me as if we have just been watched this entire time.

who could it have been?

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hi guys! here's the update i promised! i hope you enjoyed guys, and please leave me a vote or comment~!

i'd be tiny bit busy but i will definitely keep updating! fighting!