Chapter 6

Press releases - A written communication sent by various parties to news agenices for the purpose of announcing something. (eg: SM sending statements to the media saying Tiffany is preparing for her solo, no release date.)

Copy editor - An editor that improves the formatting style, and accuracy of the article. Also decides the design and layout of the article. 

Angle - The focus of a story/the approach towards an issue

==

All Tiffany’s thoughts of making friends with Taeyeon evaporated the following day.

She flipped the morning papers, scanning the headlines with a glass of iced latte. Because of her injured ankle and her workload, she had forgotten to read the newspapers yesterday. Tiffany almost burst a vein when she read the scathing article about the press conference from two days ago.

The article questioned the validity of Park Dong-bin’s claim and the odds of him winning the case. The relative inexperience of the attorney was highlighted, which caused the girl to choke on her drink. It also briefly mentioned how the share prices dipped slightly after the press conference, which might indicate the lack of confidence from the shareholders with regards to the short-term stability of the company. If the case were to drag on, it might do no parties any good. The long term stability and profits of the company might be affected due to the uncertainties in leadership. The article ended off with a bold prediction that there would be no winners, and that the biggest losers would be the loyal employees themselves.

She folded the papers and tossed it aside, still fuming over the article. How can anyone even question her ability? Granted, it was her first major case but she believed that she had proven herself enough with her 100%, impeccable track record. Did anyone in that godforsaken news agency even bother to check her track record? She wasn't finished. The press photo! The photo was way too small and not flattering at all.

As much as Tiffany hated to admit, there was no doubt that the article was well-written. Heck, it even raised certain points that Tiffany would not have thought of. It was balanced, clean and straight to the point. Very much like the person who wrote it. Her eyes stared at the fine print at the top of the article. Taeyeon Kim.

By the afternoon, Tiffany’s anger towards the doubts raised by Taeyeon (and many others) was replaced by a sheer determination to get things done and win the case.

Going through her third glass of latte of the day, she buzzed her trusty secretary in. “Come on Seohyun, it’s time for lunch.”

“Lunch?” Seohyun’s eyes widened. Tiffany was a workaholic and she made sure everyone in the office knew about it from her first day in the office. After a morning of angry phone calls and frustrating paperwork, the last thing that she expected from her workaholic boss was an offer to break for lunch. In the midst of a sticky case to boot!

“Yes, lunch. And you are coming with me. Forget about the box of cherry tomatoes and egg salad that you packed from home. Give it to someone else.”

Seohyun had to smile. Despite her boss’s demanding work ethic, she cared for her subordinates and that was what really matters at the end of the day.

“Bring your laptop along, I still want to iron out some kinks before our next meeting with the Parks.”

No surprises there, she knew her boss would not let her off so easily. She was long used to working through lunches. It was the part and parcel of having Tiffany Hwang as your boss.

On the other end of Seoul, Taeyeon tossed her car keys haphazardly onto her desk as she rushed into the newsroom.

Like Tiffany, she too had a bad morning. Right after she got her caffeine fix from her favourite cafe, she got a call from a stuttering Jong-Seok who told her about the leak. Her team had been painstakingly following the case for the months. The interview with Madam Hong from yesterday was part of it. And now, it was all gone in an instant.

Was news leak common in the business? Very. Ethics? What's that? It's all about the newpapers circulation, readership, the ad revenue and trashy headlines these days.

“Meeting in five.” She told her small team of two - which consisted of Yuri and Jong-Seok the intern. Upon hearing that, the pair hastily grabbed their laptops and the relevant materials.

Yuri and Jong Seok exchanged nervous glances in the conference room. They too, only discovered the leak this morning when they were scanning the internet for the headlines of other news agencies.

Taeyeon rubbed her throbbing temples before taking a deep breath. Stay calm, stay cool and stay collected. “How could our ideas have gotten out?! How could they have known we have been working on this?”

“Taeng--

“I can't believe it.” A slam on the conference table reverberated across the room, catching the pair off-guard.

“Taeng…”

“We are putting that special on hold till further notice. I am not gonna chase after other people’s coat tails.” She took a deep, deep breath to quell the raging fire in her belly. “We will focus on the Park family for now. I am thinking we do the South China Sea conflict for our next week’s special instead.”

“But Taeng, we have been following this for such a long time. It would be such a waste to give it up.”

“Yuri, I'm never giving this up and you should know better than anyone else. I'm just saying we put it on hold for now. It would be a waste of our efforts if we rush our special out without anything substantial and ground-breaking. We wouldn't be bringing anything new onto the table at this moment. Especially now that Daehan Daily released theirs. We will wait for the right time and for new angles.”

Jong Seok could only nod in approval, thoroughly impressed with the foresight of his sunbae.

“I understand. I will send an email over to the professors over at the university to arrange for an interview with regards to the South China Sea dispute.” Yuri noted down the meeting agenda.

“Seok ah, I want you to scan the press releases for any potential leads that we can follow up on. Also, check our allocated space for next week’s column with the copy editor. I want to know the exact dimensions we have to work with.

Jong-Seok nodded, noting his share of work down as well.

She took a brief glance at her watch. “I have a meeting with Sooyoung after this. So let's get as much as done as possible. Keep your dinner plans free. Bonding night.”

Yuri had to protest. “What? No! I have dinner date tonight.”

“With?”

“That girl!”

“Bring her along.”

“No way! We aren’t even officially official yet”

“Then ditch her tonight. This is an order.”

Yuri mumbled under her breath about how this job was the biggest reason why she was single and unavailable. To which Taeyeon replied with a flirty wink and indicated that she was available 24/7, every day of the week. It only earned her a jab in the stomach and a snarky “I would rather date a walrus than you” comment.

==

“I have heard about the leak. Is everything okay?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you need me to dig more? Maybe we would be able to find the source of the leak.”

“Nah. It doesn’t matter anymore. A leak is a leak and there’s nothing much we can do about it. I was thinking we do a special on the South China Sea conflict instead. A little dry and probably an overdone topic but I think it would not be a problem if we can approach it from another angle.”

“Taeng…I know how important that case is for you. I understand.”

“I am a pro, Soo. I can separate my personal life from work just fine.”

“I know you can. I am not talking to you because I am worried about your performance. You’re the hardest and brightest journalist that our agency has. It’s just that…” Sooyoung paused to pick her words carefully, knowing just how sensitive her friend can be.

“That I am too obsessed with the past and I need to move on and get a life?”

Sooyoung let out a sigh. “I am just concerned about you. We all are.”

“The day I move on is the day I reveal the truth to the world and nail him down. Only then my heart can find peace. You promised you would help me.”

“I did. Samchon was just like my father figure. I want justice for him too. But not at the expense of your wellbeing.”

“Then you will help me, Sooyoung. Help me find me find my peace.”

Sooyoung saw how steely Taeyeon’s eyes were and remembered the sort of pain her friend had to go through. Those dark days wrecked her completely and when she came back, she became a whole different person. Her father’s death came like a sudden rainstorm on a sunny day. That cheery, easy-going Taeyeon was replaced by one that is distant, temperamental and sometimes difficult.

Whatever earlier intention she had to change Taeyeon’s mind dissipated. “I will always have your back, Taeng.”

==

With a huge mug of frosty beer in hand, Taeyeon recalled her previous relationship. It was outright dysfunctional from the very beginning. They met at a networking party. The woman was a young, sizzling-hot reporter fresh out of college. There was a ten years between them although Taeyeon’s baby face did shave years off for her.

Not that the really mattered late in the night.

Taeyeon enjoyed tugging the skimpy underwear off the woman, running her hands along the contours of the warm body, mapping the entirety of it with her lips and spending the rest of the night pressed against it. The ecstasy that came with the was what kept her coming back. The relationship sustained for as long as the woman was willing and ended the moment the woman got sick and tired of the strictly “friends for benefit” relationship and complained about how they did not have a “deeper” relationship.

Taeyeon secretly disagreed for she remembered how loud the woman was when her fingers curled deeply in her warmth. It was a pity though, Taeyeon really liked loud girls in bed.

“Yah Taeng! Stop zoning out! “

“I'm not.”

“Yes you were, Noona.”

“Eat your pasta, Intern.”

Yuri bitterly commented as she downed another mug of beer, “I ditched my soon-to-be official girlfriend just to rot here with the two of you.” She sighed dramatically. “I hate this job.”

“Didn’t I tell you to bring her along?”

“Not over my dead body. I don't want you laying your filthy hands on her.”

“But isn’t this a bonding session?” Taeyeon had to smirk when Yuri threw a death stare at her. “I am not that kind of person and you know it.”

“Of course, of course. How is your hot lawyer anyway?”

Her smirk disappeared at the mention of that name. “She’s not mine I have nothing to do with her.”

“Didn't she return you your pen?” Jong Seok quipped.

“So?”

Yuri pressed on, showing no signs of giving up. “And you sent her home after she hurt herself.”

“I did.”

“And you asked for her number.”

“I didn't.” She asked for mine though.

Yuri narrowed her slightly dilated, bloodshot eyes and leaned closer against the counter. “Why”

“She's not my type.”

“Like I have said before, she’s totally your type.”

“Yeah Noona, you ditched an interview for her!”

“Drink your free booze and shut up, Intern. I am not one of those desperate gays that goes around asking for numbers of anyone decently looking.”

“She’s more than just decent though. She's hot...really hot.” Yuri mumbled, the haze of the alcohol slightly taking over her.

“Wait till you find out just how annoying she can be.”

The free booze, courtesy of Taeyeon, continued to flow all night as the trio talked just about everything under the sun.

It might be the after effects of the booze. Because Taeyeon had this thought of cutting off all ties with Tiffany right before Yuri started puking all over her blouse.