XII

Wendy thinks that she did not expect much of her new secretary. She could be anything, really. As long as she is hardworking and respectful, she does not mind.

Anything but this.

She watches as her black-haired secretary – Kim Taeyeon – types quickly on the computer, sparing her not a single glance. Said secretary was extremely early for work, reported to Wendy, took her files without even asking and is currently working on them at lightning speed. All while bearing a poker face – the kind screamed I don’t like you but you’re my boss so I can’t say anything and I can only pull a poker face. It makes Wendy wonder what the universe did to Kim Taeyeon that made the woman a cynical typhoon of pent-up anger.

She really doesn’t want to give her credit but the woman is efficient. She kind of hates her secretary already and it is kind of a mean feat to make Wendy burn with annoyance within the first five minutes of a first meeting. She taps her fingers on her desk, simply watching (with clear irritation) her secretary clear her work swiftly. She has no idea if the secretary is actually producing good work and resolves to check for sloppy edits. Walking out of her office, she knocks Taeyeon’s desk twice, making Taeyeon look up.

Wendy doesn’t miss the subtle eye-twitch Taeyeon does. It feels like she is unwelcome when Taeyeon is supposed to be her secretary.

“Yes, Miss Son?” she asks through gritted teeth, not even bothering to smile.

It isn’t like Wendy to ignore someone because the action is just plain rude. But she chooses to do it this time, frowning as she picks up several sheets of papers, bringing it closer to her face. She skims the report, eyebrows furrowing deeper and deeper as she flips the pages.

By the last line, she is clenching her jaw tightly, thoroughly dissatisfied. She places the papers on the table, turning to look at Taeyeon. The latter only meets her eyes steadily, looking bored and disturbed.

She swallows (her pride) and barely manages to utter softly, “Good work.”

Surprisingly, Taeyeon looks hardly amused by the fiasco, an expression of shock on her face instead. It seems like she was not expecting Wendy to compliment her. She averts her eyes, clearly taken aback. She’s looking at everywhere but Wendy and her hands are fidgety, like she doesn’t know what to do with them. The secretary looks nothing like the cynical woman Wendy thought her to be. She soon recovers, choosing to nod silently and go back to her work.

Wendy, although partially embarrassed and ashamed due to her wrong judgment, stays with Taeyeon, watching her tap the keys on the laptop. Despite her pride, she knows a good worker when she sees one. Taeyeon waits a beat before shooting an inquisitive stare at Wendy, who only smiles politely, leaning against the desk.

“… Yes, Miss Son?”

 “Thank you.”

“For?”

“For joining this company, for helping me. It means a great deal. I’m sure you could have gotten a much better position elsewhere with your resume.”

“In that case, I’ll be handing in my resignation letter in two weeks.”

The reply makes Wendy burst with laughter, hands now on the desk to support herself. Her shoulders are shaking with mirth and she’s coughing as she tries to recover.

“You’re funny, Miss Kim.”

“I wasn’t trying to be,” Taeyeon deadpans, just staring at the CEO who is wiping a tear at the corner of her eyes.

“Doesn’t matter. It looks like you’ll be greatly appreciated here.” Wendy waves to dismiss Taeyeon’s reply, still chuckling.

For the second time in a row, Taeyeon looks like she’s at a loss for words, looking at her computer screen for a long time. Wendy does not take the lack of a reply to heart, knowing that Taeyeon is most likely an introvert. A brief silence passes by and the girl is about to leave Taeyeon to her work. However, she is pleasantly surprised when Taeyeon does reply, looking up at Wendy with earnest eyes.

“Looks like you won’t be seeing my resignation letter two weeks later,” Taeyeon says.

Her eyes look different – clearer, brighter, shining with amusement.

And Wendy doubles over in laughter again.

///

The sudden headache which descends upon her kills her willpower instantly. The human body is a fascinating and quizzical thing. It puzzles Wendy deeply, how she can go from healthy to terribly sick in the span of a few hours. At least, that is what she would be thinking if she actually had the energy to do so. It almost feels like someone is squeezing her brain, making the organ shut down. Both of her hands fly up to hold her head, which currently feels like deadweight.

There is a knock on the door and Wendy is so sensitive to sound right now, she feels like it’s a knock to her head. The noise rings in her ears and she groans weakly, murmuring a ‘come in’ to whoever’s outside. Taeyeon enters and almost immediately, she frowns in concern. Wendy spots the change in expression and forces a weak smile.

“Well, you don’t look too good there, Miss Son,” her secretary comments wryly.

“It’s okay.”

“I can push back your meeting if you wish.”

“No, don’t. This one is important. I have to go.”

“Reschedule,” Taeyeon insists, “You look terrible.”

“I’m meeting new investors. This will help the hotel by leaps and bounds.”

“I know, but you falling sick won’t help the company at all.”

As if on cue, she blanches and rushes to the washroom quickly, not even bothering to shut the door. Wendy feels her legs give way as she falls to her knees right in front of the toilet bowl. She gags and throws up her lunch, unable to contain the retching sounds she makes. She grips the sides of the toilet bowl tightly as she empties the contents of her stomach. It takes a while but when she’s finally done throwing up, she doesn’t even have the energy to stand, only crawling to the side and feeling for the flush, pushing it down when she finds it.

She leans against the toilet seat, feeling terribly light-headed and weak-limbed. She can feel the beads of cold sweat on he