It had been two weeks after the interview and Tiffany had not received any news from the company. Taeyeon, her new friend slash her soon to be line manager if she would be accepted in the company also had not contacted her at all. She hoped that Taeyeon would at least contact her to give a slight hint whether she got accepted or not. But here she was still in her old office, waiting for the news.

She unlocked her phone and browsed through the contact list to find Taeyeon's number, hesitantly called or texted the girl to ask about the interview's result. But then she remembered how scary and intimidating Taeyeon was when she interviewed her. So she called off the idea and locked her phone again when suddenly the phone rang. She checked the caller to find an unknown number on the phone screen.

"Hello." Tiffany answered the call.

"Hello Miss Stephanie Hwang. This is Irene from Human Resources team of GG Corporation. How are you?" The voice replied to her answer.

"Oh hi Mrs. Irene! I'm great. How are you?" Tiffany replied excitedly when she realized it was the HR Manager of GG Corporation. She had been waiting for her call.

"I'm fine. I'm fine. Thanks for asking. I would like to inform you about the result of your interview two weeks ago, Stephanie." Mrs. Irene finally revealed her objective of calling Tiffany. Tiffany suddenly became so nervous and scanned the room to make sure no one was eavesdropping to her phone call. The situation was safe then she continued the conversation.

"Ah, sure Mrs. Irene. I hope it will be a good news." Tiffany responded with a smiling voice.

"Of course it is a good news. We have decided that based on your CV and the interview, you meet our requirements. And if you don't mind, we would like to invite you for another discussion regarding to the package and benefits for you in this company. When will you be available this week so I can match your availability with Miss Kim Taeyeon?" Mrs. Irene finally told Tiffany the news she had been expected for the whole two weeks.

"I'm available on this Friday. Will that be possible?" Tiffany replied as she stole a glance at her calendar that showed she was free this Friday.

"Okay, Friday. Could you please wait for a second, Stephanie? I will check Miss Taeyeon's schedule for that day." Mrs. Irene excused herself.

"Okay ma'am." Tiffany replied as she heard some clicks on the phone. She guessed that Mrs. Irene was now checked on her laptop to find Taeyeon's schedule.

"Miss Taeyeon is only available on Friday at twelve? Is that okay with you? So we can have a lunch meeting?" Mrs. Irene offered.

"Sure thing, ma'am. Lunch meeting sounds good to me." Tiffany excitedly answered.

"OK, great! So, we will see you on Friday, lunchtime. I will inform you the place later but it will be around our office since Taeyeon's schedule is pretty pack that day. So, you can come to our office and we will head to the meeting place together." Mrs. Irene wrapped up their appointment.

"Sure, great. I will see you, then." Tiffany replied.

"Sure. Thanks Stephanie."

"You're welcome, Mrs. Irene."

Tiffany had this wide smile on her face after the line was cut. After two weeks of waiting she finally got good news. She would join GG Corporation one of the top ten best companies of the year. She still smiled widely when a pair of hands gave a gentle message on her shoulder. She looked up to find the owner of the hands.

"Oh hi, Nick!" Tiffany smiled even wider when she saw a handsome man who stood behind her.

"Hi, Tiff. What's with the wide smile, babe?" The man answered.

"Hey, I told you not to call me 'babe' in the office. You know our office's rules. No romantic relationship between the employees." Tiffany frowned a bit while turned her chair around to face the man behind her.

"Oh I'm sorry, honey." The man kept teasing Tiffany.

"Nick, say it one more time and we'll break up." Tiffany did not really mean the sentence but she just wanted the man to understand that she was being serious.

"Hahahaha, okay Tiff. Okay. Just don't break up with me, please." The man put her cute puppy eyes, playfully begged Tiffany not to break up with him. The latter brought back her smile on her face when she saw the man's face. Nick was sure the man who never failed to make her smile.

"It's lunch time now. Shall we go now? So I can have a date with my girlfriend rather than talking with my colleague." Nick offered.

Tiffany let out a small laugh, grabbed her phone and purse then made a sign for Nick to go first so their other colleagues and most importantly their bosses would not be suspicious. Nick got the message and walked away from Tiffany. Tiffany put her purse on her lap and unlocked her phone to find instagram app. She liked some photos when a random idea suddenly popped out. She tapped on the search tab and typed: "Taeyeon". She looked at the search result but before she could find what she looked for, her phone screen showed an incoming call from Nick.

"Babe, I'm waiting in our your favorite Padang restaurant, okay?" Nick informed.

"Sure. What did I say about calling me 'babe' earlier, Nick?" Tiffany warned him as she grabbed her purse from her lap, stood up from her seat and made her way to leave the office.

"Oh, come on. I'm not in the office right now. So I can call you 'babe'. You're the one who can't call me 'babe' since you're still in office." Nick teased her. Tiffany laughed at her boyfriend's joke.

"Okay, okay. I'm on my way. Don't start without me, okay?" Tiffany replied as she walked faster.

"Sure, ma'am. Just be careful. No need to rush, okay? You know I will wait for you even if it takes forever." Nick answered sweetly.

"Aw, what a sweet talk, there. I'm flattered." Tiffany felt her cheeks got warmed as she heard Nick's answer.

"You know how sweet I can be when it comes to you, babe. Now, I'll just hang up. Remember, no need to rush. Okay?"

"Sure. I'll see you really soon."

"Sure. See yaaa, babe."

The line was cut and Tiffany continued walking to her favorite restaurant. It only took her fifteen minutes to get to the restaurant and saw Nick as soon as she entered. Her boyfriend seemed to occupy with his phone most probably checking on his instagram or playing some RPG games. Tiffany made her way to the guy then leaned down as she pecked the latter's cheek. She did not really care about people staring at them. She grew up in US and what she did was not something exaggerating so she did not really mind about what other's thought about her when she kissed her boyfriend in public.

Nick seemed shocked at first but when she noticed it was Tiffany, he smiled wide. He patted an unoccupied chair beside him, signing Tiffany to sit. Tiffany gladly sat beside her boyfriend and landed another kiss on Nick's cheek.

"What's with the kisses? I thought you were about to break up with me back then." Nick teased his girlfriend.

"No, I had no intention to break up with you. I just didn't want us to get problems in the office. You know the rules, right?" Tiffany gave him her eye smile while patted Nick's cheek gently. Nick smiled but soon let out a sigh that got caught by Tiffany.

"Why, babe?" Tiffany asked worriedly.

"Nothing. It's just we've been in a relationship for six months but we still have to hide it most of the time, especially in office. You know how desperate I am to announce the world that you're mine?" Nick smiled as she looked at Tiffany lovingly.

"Then, I'm sure I have a very good news for you today!" She answered excitedly.

"What is it? The company changed the rules?" Nick asked with a hopeful expression.

"Nope, but we can date openly really soon. I just got accepted in GG Corporation! Can you believe that?" Tiffany could no longer hold her excitement. Nick opened his eyes wide as he heard the news. Tiffany had told him couple of time how much she wanted to join GG Corporation. She also updated him about the interview but she did not seem confident about how the interview went but here she was, telling him that she got accepted in her dream company.

"Really, babe?" Nick looked at her in disbelief. His girlfriend nodded excitedly like a little girl who just got her birthday present.

"Wow!! I am so proud of you!" Nick smiled wide and caressed her girlfriend's cheek.

"Thanks, babe. I will still need to take care of my resignation that would approximately take one month. Just wait for a month and you can announce the world that I'm yours." Tiffany chuckled at her own remarks, making his boyfriend blushed. She then leaned in to give a light peck on Nick's lips.

"One more month, babe." She repeated.

"Yes, one more month." Nick followed as he looked at his girlfriend lovingly.

After a short romantic moment they had, Nick call the waiter to get their orders and they had their lunch. They even made a romantic to-do list once Tiffany started to work in GG Corporation. Finally, after six months of dating, they would no longer play hide and seek with their colleagues and bosses. They could finally date openly like what they always hoped for. Tiffany could not wait for Friday to sign her employment in GG Corporation. It would be her gate to a new chapter of life, also a new chapter of her relationship with Nick.

****

It was ten o'clock on Friday and Tiffany was already in front of GG Corporation building. Her heart thumped wildly as she made her way entering the office complex. She did not really think about the offer she would get. The company itself was her dream company and it was still hard to believe that she got accepted especially after she had to face the intimidating Taeyeon for the interview. She unconsciously walked to the coffee shop she visited on her interview day. She stared at the door of coffee shop, remembering her silly encountered with Taeyeon. Who would have guessed that Taeyeon was really going to be her line manager? She smiled noticing the fact.

"Why are you smiling at the door, young lady? Are you having a conversation with the door?" A familiar voice brought her back to reality. She turned her head to the voice and saw smiling Chris beside her.

"Chris!!!!" Tiffany squalled in relieve that she at least met someone she knew. Chris grinned and made a sign to high-five instead of shaking hands, which gladly returned by the girl.

"I'm so happy to see someone I know." Tiffany told Chris.

"Honestly speaking, I forgot your name but I still remember you. You're the applicant who bravely joined Taeyeon's table." Chris smiled sheepishly as he confessed that he did not remember the girl's name. Tiffany laughed at his honesty.

"Tiffany! Just call me Tiff. And I hope I don't have to introduce myself again the next time we meet because I'm sure you're going to see me often soon after I start working in this company." Tiffany smiled happily.

"Wow! That's a great news! Do you like to grab a cup of coffee? I am going inside." Chris said as he made his way entering the coffee shop. Tiffany nodded and followed Chris. As soon as she entered the coffee shop, she scanned the room to find most of the tables were already occupied except for the table that was claimed by Taeyeon as her favorite spot. She then remembered after the interview back then, she also hardly found free table in this coffee shop. Tiffany walked to the counter ordered a cup of hot chamomile tea to Chris.

"It's ten o'clock and what are these people doing here? Aren't they supposed to be working at this time?" Tiffany asked Chris after mentioning her order.

"Ah, they have the so-called agile-working thing in this company. I don't really understand the meaning but more or less it's like they don't have to stay in office all day as long as they finish their job." Chris explained. Tiffany nodded and walked to the only free table in the room, which was Taeyeon's favorite spot. She then took her phone from her bag and opened her instagram, immediately remembered that she once tried to find Taeyeon's instagram account couple days ago. She thought it would be fun if she managed to find her soon to be line manager's instagram and saw her posts. She searched for Taeyeon's name and found an account named 'taeyeon_ss' which showed a familiar face as the avatar. She tapped on the profile to see the posts only to find some photos of Taeyeon with important people and some conferences she attended. She chuckled at the pictures. She actually expected to see the human side of Taeyeon instead of finding this kind of serious posts. She tapped on the 'follow' button, closed the app and opened line app to send a message to Nick.

Tiff: Babe, I'm arrived at GG Corp safely.

A few second later, her phone beeped signing an incoming message. Nick replied her message. Seemed like his boyfriend was not busy at the moment.

Nick: Glad to know you've arrived safe and sound, babe.

Tiff: I'm waiting alone right now and still have two hours to go until the appointment. Am bored. Wish you were here :(

Nick: Hope so, babe. Unfortunately I'll have a meeting in ten minutes so I can't accompany you :(

Tiff: It's okay, dear :) Have you prepared yourself for the meeting?

Nick: Not really >.< My boss will represent our team so I don't really have to worry.

Tiff: My baby is such a lazy ass.

Nick: My baby is such a demanding gf.

Tiff: Yes I'm demanding but you love me though :*

Nick: How can I not love you, the love of my life? :*

Tiff chuckled at Nick's reply.

Nick: Babe, I gotta go to meeting room now. See you tonight, kay?

Tiff: Sure, babe. Miss you already. Love ya!

Nick: Love yaaa~~ (kisses)

Tiffany smiled as she closed the chat window and randomly stared at the people in the room. She noticed that most of them had their laptops opened on the table, while the rest seemed to be on the phone with a serious conversation. She looked at them in admiration. She soon to be one of those people, working for GG Corporation, one of the top ten companies of the year. She could not wait to sign her employment and started a new work-life. Later Chris delivered her order and left her alone again. She opened her bag to find a novel. She always brought a novel in her bag just in case she had to wait like now. She opened a page, which marked by a small fold on the corner of the page and started reading.

She was drowned in the novel she read when a ring from her phone brought her back to reality. She immediately answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hello Stephanie. This is Irene from GG Corporation. Taeyeon is already with me and we are going to the coffee shop on the ground floor of our office building. Can we meet there?" Mrs. Irene informed Tiffany the meeting point.

"Hi Mrs. Irene. Coincidentally I am already in the mentioned coffee shop. I will just wait here." She replied nervously noticing she was about to sign her employment really soon.

"Okay. We're going down now. See you, Stephanie."

"Okay, ma'am. See you."

The line was cut and Tiffany checked her watch. It was ten to twelve, no wonder Mrs. Irene and Taeyeon were ready. Minutes later she saw two ladies came into the coffee shop. She immediately stood up when the two women scanned around the coffee shop. The older one finally noticed her presence and both women made their way to Tiffany's table. Mrs. Irene extended her hand to Tiffany, which she gladly returned.

"Hi Stephanie, sorry for making you wait. How are you?" Mrs. Irene asked as they shook their hands.

"Great, Mrs. Irene. How are you?" Tiffany replied. She asked as they released their hands.

"I'm great." Mrs. Irene replied.

Tiffany then shifted her eyes to Taeyeon, finding the latter also extended her hand, offering for a handshake. She reached the latter's hand.

"And how are you, Miss Taeyeon?" She asked politely. She noticed that Taeyeon was on her professional mode. She found the intimidating Taeyeon like what she met in the meeting room rather than the cute Taeyeon she talked to in the coffee shop.

"Great, Miss Stephanie. Nice to meet you again." Taeyeon gave her professional smile that always plastered on her face.

"Let's take our seat, ladies." Mrs. Irene pleased all of them to take the seats. Then waved at Chris asking for the menu book. Chris soon approached their table with three menu books on his hand and put it in front of them.

"I will have spicy cheesy chicken and iced long black with no sugar, please." Taeyeon ordered without looking at the menu.

"Mine would be Spaghetti Aglio E Olio and orange juice." Mrs. Irene told Chris her order.

"I will have Penne Pomodoro, please." Tiffany finally put her choice on pasta.

"Spicy Cheesy Chicken and iced long black for Miss Taeyeon, Spaghetti Aglio E Olio and orange juice for Mrs. Irene, last but not least Penne Pomodoro for Miss Tiff. Have I got your orders right, ladies?" Chris repeated their order with a wide smile as usual. All three women nodded, Chris then excused himself to make their order.

"So Stephanie, first of all congratulation, you've surpassed the other applicants for the job." Mrs. Irene warmly announced.

"Thank you Mrs. Irene. Could you please call me Tiffany? I feel a little bit awkward with the nickname Stephanie." Tiffany couldn't hide her happy face and showed her eye smile.

"Haha, it's okay. No problem, Tiffany. I have discussed with Taeyeon about the package and benefits you will get once you join the company. I already put on the details in this document. You can read the document and shall there any questions or other consideration, please feel free to discuss." Mrs. Irene said as she handed the document to Tiffany. The latter opened the document and read them carefully word by word to make sure she did not miss any details that would lead to misunderstandings. As informed by Mrs. Irene, the document covered the detail of package and benefits she would get from the company. Tiffany tried her best not to scream in excitement when she saw the amount of salary she would get from the company was twice from her salary in the current company. She even reread the sentence to make sure the amount was true. She hardly put up a poker face in front of two women in front of her as she continued reading the benefits she would get including full insurance coverage, operational car, and housing allowance. She would also get additional cash advance for any business trips she would have to attend.

Her reading was interrupted when Chris came with their order. Mrs. Irene invited her to have her lunch which she politely declined since she only had one more page to read. She flipped the page to find it was the contract that she needed to sign. She then put the document on the empty chair beside them and started to eat her lunch.

"So, how is it, Miss Tiffany?" Taeyeon opened the discussion as they ate their meals.

"Honestly speaking, the benefit is actually exceeding my expectation." Tiffany answered honestly

"Glad to hear that. Is there any clause that you want to ask?" Mrs. Irene asked. Tiffany stopped for a moment, remembering the sentences in the contract that would be her consideration.

"I think the contract covers everything clearly. But if I may, I want to clarify some statements. First, the probation period will only take three months instead of six months? And during the probation period my status will be contracted employee. What will happen next?" Tiffany asked as she remembered one of her main considerations.

"Yes, the probation period takes three months only. Our team needs someone who can adept well within short span of time so we can work as a team in maximum potential as fast as possible. And if you happen to pass the probation period, you will definitely be our permanent employee, get the maximum benefits as stated in the contract and it is also possible to get some salary increase, not really big for sure, but it will be based on your performance during the probation. Hopefully you will be able to exceed our expectation. And if you happen to fail, which we really do not expect, we will try to find another team that will suit you more. Our Human Resources team is really expert in putting the right people in the right place. So, you don't have to worry much. But still, as I stated before, we hope you will be able to exceed our expectation." Taeyeon answered Tiffany's question clearly. The latter nodded, as she understood the point. She now felt a bit burdened by the company's expectation. She was also aware that Taeyeon was definitely intimidating when it came to work-related stuff. Tiffany does not even dare to look at Taeyeon for too long.

"Do you have any other question, Tiffany?" Mrs. Irene asked and gave her a friendly smile. Tiffany felt thankful for Mrs. Irene presence. She had no idea how nervous she would be if she had to face the intimidating Taeyeon all by herself.

"Yes, ma'am. The contract states that I need to agree to be assigned in any city within the country and abroad. I also need to agree to travel domestically and internationally. May I know in which city or country I most probably assigned, and how often shall I need to travel within a year?" Tiffany asked.

"As for the opening you applied for, it will be based here, in Jakarta. So you do not need to worry about being assigned in other city or country for now. And for the travelling time Taeyeon might have the answer for your question." Mrs. Irene answered one of Tiffany's questions and asked Taeyeon to answer the second question.

"Your traveling time will be vary from once to three times a month. It depends on the projects we work on or meetings with our business partner and global partnership representatives, which based in various cities in Indonesia. You will also need to travel internationally to attend GG Corporation global conference once a year. But other than the conference, you will only need to travel locally." Taeyeon answered Tiffany's question with the same professional tone and manner. The latter again, nodded, signing that she understood all the information she needed to know.

"Okay, I totally understand the overall contract now. And I will be reporting directly to Miss Taeyeon, right?" Tiffany threw another question to the two women in front of her.

"Yes, Tiffany. Taeyeon will be your line manager and will be responsible for your performance during your probation period." Mrs. Irene explained.

"Alright, it's all clear now, Mrs. Irene, Miss Taeyeon. Thanks for answering my question." Tiffany smiled politely to both women. Mrs. Irene then invited her to continue her lunch while telling her about the company's value and environment generally to give Tiffany's a slight picture about the company she was going to join in. After finishing their meals, Mrs. Irene asked Chris to take their plates from the table. As soon as Chris took their plates, Mrs. Irene opened the discussion again.

"So, Tiffany. Will you need time to think about our offering, or we can hear your answer now?" Mrs. Irene asked.

"I believe I have met my decision already that I would gladly join GG Corporation." She answered as she put the document on the table, ready to sign the contract.

"It's glad to hear the answer, Tiffany. When will you be able to start working, then?" Mrs. Irene gave warm smile to Tiffany.

"I need to send one month notice for my resignation in my existing company. I already read in the contract that my employment will start one month and two weeks from today. So, that would not be a problem. By the time, I will be finished my employment in my current office and will be fully ready to work in GG Corporation." Tiffany explained as she signed the contract and handed it to Mrs. Irene. The latter accepted it gladly and offered a handshake with Tiffany.

"Welcome to GG Corporation, Tiffany." Mrs. Irene welcomed her. Tiffany smiled widely as she returned Mrs. Irene's handshake.

"Welcome to the company." Taeyeon also said as she extended her hand for a handshake. Tiffany unconsciously let out a soft chuckle when Taeyeon welcomed her. It felt like a déjà vu. Taeyeon already said it even before she joined the company and now to hear it again, it felt so right.

Taeyeon on the other side noticed the soft chuckle and she smiled a bit. She guessed that Tiffany might think about their first encounter. Taeyeon could still remember that she said the exactly same sentence when she first met Tiffany. And of course, she said the sentence again in purpose to know whether Tiffany would still remember their first encounter, and she felt so relieved that the girl actually remembered it.

"Thanks Tae." Tiffany accidentally called out the nickname she gave to Taeyeon. And as soon as she realized that, she mentally face-palmed herself.

"You're welcome, Fany." Taeyeon gave her a cute smile that showed the dimple on her chin, making the girl in front of her watched her in disbelief for hearing the nickname. But soon Tiffany gave her the sweet eye smile, which Taeyeon loved to see.

Soon after, Mrs. Irene and Taeyeon excused themselves to get back to their office. Tiffany once again thanked them for the opportunity given to her as they bid their farewell. Tiffany sat back on her chair while the two women made their way to the counter to pay the bills and finally walked out from the coffee shop. She pulled out her phone from her bag to check for any message she missed during her meeting with Mrs. Irene and Taeyeon. She received some messages from her best friends, asking her to inform them the result as soon as she finished. She didn't reply their messages instead she opened the chat window she had with Nick before. She wanted Nick to be the first to know the good news. She was typing on her phone when someone placed a cup of hot chocolate on her table.

"Taeyeon asked me to send this complimentary drink for her new team member." Chris informed the girl before Tiffany could ask the question.

"Aw, so sweet. Thanks Chris." Tiffany smiled.

"You're welcome, Tiff. But I think you should send your thanks to Taeyeon instead of me. Sometimes I wish my boss is as nice as her." Nick told Tiffany half whispering, making sure no one heard his last sentence. Tiffany laughed at it.

"You have no idea how intimidating Taeyeon is in the meeting room. You witnessed how stressed I was after the interview, didn't you?" Tiffany replied also in whisper.

"Really? OK, I won't wish for that anymore, then. Thanks for this highly secret information." Chris responded playfully, making the girl burst out another laugh. Tiffany closed the window chat between her and Nick after Chris leaving her alone. She opened her contact list to find Taeyeon's number. She then decided to send a short message to the girl.

To Taetae:

Hey Taetae :D

Thanks for the complimentary drink.

And thanks again for the opportunity to join the company :)

A reply came soon after.

From Taetae:

You're welcome, Fany :)

Glad to have you joining the company

After reading Taeyeon's reply she smiled again and switched to the chat Nick's chat window again.

Tiff: Babe! Signed the contract already! It's official!

Nick: Babe! I was about to contact you but you got me first. Congratulations!!!!! How was the discussion?

Tiff: It was so smooth, babe. And the offer is really good. I don't need to think twice.

Nick: Congrats once again, my baby Tiff! We'll meet up for dinner, right?

Tiff: Sure! And it will be my treat! I just signed my new chapter of life. We should celebrate it.

Nick: Yes, your new chapter of life. And our gate to date openly <3

Tiff: It is, babe :) it is <3