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Numbers; a never-ending string of numbers.

After a few more spreadsheets, Taeyeon felt her temples throb—finally realizing where her headaches were coming from. She was skeptical at first—because technically she had been working with numbers ever since and she never get tired of them before—but recently just looking at them triggered more pain at the back of her head than the actual wound she got from her accident.

She went to the extent of having her eyes checked but it wasn't her eyesight. She figured now, that it was her overly taxing job.

"You okay, Kim?"

Taeyeon looked up from her monitor and met eyes with her boss, concern written all over his aging face. He had a soft smile but his eyes clearly showed worry, something she had been seeing on him ever since she went back to work after her accident.

"I'm fine, sir," Taeyeon finally answered, "just a little headache."

"You've been having frequent headaches recently. Have you gotten that checked already?"

"Yes, sir."

"And?"

"The doctor said it was—" Taeyeon paused, contemplating whether to continue. The old man was looking at her expectantly and she wasn't sure if her answer would get her into trouble. Nonetheless, she swallowed thickly and decided to answer honestly. "He said it was stress."

The old man just hummed, nodding as he scratched his chin. Taeyeon waited for something more, but all he did was reach over the cubicle divider to pat her head before walking away towards his office.

-----

The small clock beside Taeyeon's computer chimed, signalling the end of her shift. She sighed as she leaned back, closing her eyes as she massaged her temples in slow circles.

"Hey Taeyeon."

She opened her eyes and saw her colleague peering over the cubicle divider. "Yeah?" She asked, sitting properly.

"Boss wants to see you before you leave."

Taeyeon nodded, waved a bit as her colleague left for home. She eyed the stack of printed spreadsheets that laid beside her computer, sighing while she fixed her things.

-----

She could feel the sweat dripping from the back of her neck as she gripped on the printed spreadsheets, twisting the stack of paper in her hands. She was shaking and she was having a hard time breathing, chest feeling tight and throat bone dry.

"A-Am I getting fired?" She squeaked, suddenly having the urge to throw up.

"What—No!" Her boss suddenly yelled. He was baffled just as much as her.

"Look," he started again, more calm, "all I'm saying is that you need to rest. Take a break, go on a vacation, do stupid things!"

Taeyeon frowned at the last bit.

The man sighed, returning to his seat behind the huge, expensive ebony desk. He opened the sole folder laying on it and pulled out a paper. "Do you know what this is?"

She shook her head.

"This is your employee record from Human Resources. It says here that you've never taken any vacation leaves ever since you started here three years ago. And that the only time you missed work was when you got into that accident." The old man placed the paper on the tabletop before sliding it towards her, "You have three months worth of paid vacation leaves just waiting to be claimed, Taeyeon. See that?" He pointed at the bottom part before raising three fingers in the air. "Three. Months."

Taeyeon kept quiet. She didn't know how to react. When she came to meet her boss, she thought it was just about the spreadsheets she worked on the whole day. She never expected anything like this.

"W-What do you want me to do then?" Taeyeon asked, eyebrows furrowed, confusion written all over her face.

The old man behind the desk suddenly smiled. "I'd like you to file a sixty-day leave—"

"Sixty days?!"

The man flinched and Taeyeon gulped, suddenly realizing what she did. "Sorry sir," she muttered.

He waved it off, leaning towards the table again to retrieve the record. "You're one of my best employees, Taeyeon," he said as he returned the sheet in the folder. "You're diligent, hard working—heck, you even had perfect attendance if not for that accident. But I saw how stressed you got recently—your doctor even said so—that's why I want you to take a break."

"But, sir—"

"No buts," he cut her off, "or I'll fire you for real." He finally ended, with a smirk nonetheless, and Taeyeon knew then that she didn't have any say in the matter anymore.

-----

In spite of the headache-inducing numbers, Taeyeon genuinely loved her job. She was good at it, and she liked working with numbers unlike most people. It's an occupation not many pursued, but Taeyeon saw potential in it and there was notably less competition.

But now that she wouldn't be working with any for a while, she felt like a stump. There was nothing to work on at home, and just when she thought she would be busy catching up with her chores, she had managed to clean her whole apartment--floor to ceiling--in just half a day.

This is why she didn't like taking breaks, Taeyeon thought as she stood under the shower head. She didn't like being idle; she didn't like having nothing to think and worry about. She was never used to having a clear mind—a mind devoid of numbers and figures—because it only reminded her of how boring and monotonous her life was.

Taeyeon sighed as she rinsed her hair, feeling the ends of the scar at the back of her neck. She would never understand the reason why she was alive, because she was sure a hundred percent that it would have been better if she had stayed dead.

-----

"Hey, Ginger."

The puppy stood on its hind legs, her outstretched hand. She smiled when he playfully bit her finger lightly before scurrying away, as if telling her to follow him.

"I've been neglecting you, haven't I?" She said as she trailed behind the excited puppy, watched as it ran around the living room floor. It emerged from under the coffee table with a soft ball in its mouth.

"You know we can't play catch here anymore, you'll wreck everything."

The puppy tilted it's head to the side, ball still in its mouth.

"You're not as small as before, Ginger. We can't—"

The ball suddenly dropped, and the dog walked away.

Taeyeon frowned, only to have Ginger come back with its leash in between his teeth this time.

She pulled it from his mouth gently, shaking her head as she attached it on the dog's collar.

"You're really smart, aren't you?" Taeyeon said, getting up from her sofa before heading towards the door with the dog calmly walking beside her.

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