“Seriously, who does he think he is?” I grumbled, putting down my utensils on the plate with a clink of metal.

          Jongin chuckled at my displease, shoving a spoonful of his Aglio e Olio into his mouth. “That’s not his worse yet,” he warned me, munching on his noodles. “But I applaud you for your bravery. I wonder what hell he will put you through after your courageous act.”

          “Chew before talking,” I winced in revulsion at the sight of the latter seated before me. “I don’t understand how you can be best friends with him, that contemptuous block of ice!”

          “He’s actually not a bad person,” he defended, gulping his iced water after swallowing his food. “He’s recently been stressed over the new Autumn collection which will be soon revealed. Also, he has his other reasons for behaving like this as well.”

          Right, the upcoming Autumn collection. That’s the whole purpose of my employment in Oh Couture, I thought to myself. Nonetheless, I steered clear of the topic to eschew any suspicion of me. Dismissing it, I scoffed, “quit standing up for him.”

          “I’m speaking the truth!” Jongin exclaimed, a meaningful expression clouding his eyes which I could not comprehend. It was a mixture of nostalgia, pity and sadness. “I knew him since we were young and he was an optimistic child.”

          I raised an eyebrow, intrigued. His description of a completely different Oh Sehun piqued my curiosity. “What happened?” I mindfully asked.

          I watched as Jongin crease his eyebrows, sighing. “He lost his parents at an adolescent age, and he was the only heir to their company, Oh Couture,” he explained. “Nonetheless, he wasn’t of age to live on his own by law. Hence, he was fostered by a kind woman who constantly cared for him despite his unfeeling personality since the passing of his parents. Eventually, he opened up under her warm guidance but altogether, lost her when he turned twenty-two. Since then, he dedicated all his time on Oh Couture and never invested in any emotional relationships.”

          My heart ached for Mr. Oh upon knowing his difficulties. I knew the pain of losing a loved one the most, for I had gone through the passing of Mother. Mr. Oh had it even tougher – he lost his loved ones twice. I would imagine how difficult it will be for him to open up to another person.

          Nevertheless, my mind reminded me that it should not be a reason for his impudent behaviour. I balled my fists, determined. As an outsider who best understands his feelings, I should path and shed light on his emotions for him. Being cold to everyone was not a long-term solution for him as it would take a toll on his health.

          Giving Jongin a tight smile, I uttered genuinely, “thank you for telling me these.”

          “Wait, aren’t you supposedly on a diet?”

          Wrapping up the last fashion piece I had to critic, I stretched my arms and held back a yawn from escaping my lips. I run my fingers through my hair messily, eyes dipped on the heels of my feet. They were sore and red which made me wince whenever I had to walk around the office. After I dropped Mr. Oh off at the Japanese restaurant for his dinner appointment (with absolute silence and so much tension in the car), I busied myself with tasks and ran errands around the office.

          I glanced around, noticing that it was empty except for Hyungsik and the other males who asked me out for lunch. It was almost an hour after the working hours and it made sense that most of the employees would have left. Drinking a sip of my tea which has gone cold, I flipped open my diary.

          First day of work at Oh Couture, I wrote. Infuriating day with no progress. Jongin said that the new Autumn collection will be released soon.

          Closing my diary, I sank into my chair with a deep sigh. It has barely been a day and I felt like all energy has been drained out of me. I bit my bottom lip and peered at my watch, envy lacing my tongue bitterly. Despite completing my tasks, I could not simply head home as other employees did. I mentally cursed my secretary position for necessitating me to send Mr. Oh home.

          My stomach growled – an indication that I was famished. Was he going to let me wait forever? I have not even had my dinner! Dismissing my thoughts, I submitted to my heavy eyelids and somewhere in the semi-darkness, sleep claims yet another victim.

          Almost an hour later, Mr. Oh returned to the office. Upon catching a glimpse of my sleeping figure, he nudged me on my shoulder and I jolted awake. Rubbing my eyes, I cleared my throat noisily and sat up straight almost immediately.

          “Why are you still in the office?” Mr. Oh questioned.

          I pressed my lips, a tinge irritation churned in me as he was asking the obvious. “Because I have to send you home?” I questioned rhetorically. Almost instantly, my stomach growled. I blinked in slight abashment.

          “I brought some food,” Mr. Oh muttered awkwardly, placing a paper bag on my desk. “The restaurant was closing and they gave us some of their leftovers.”

          My lips parted in surprise, dumbfounded by his actions. Upon witnessing his retreating figure, I adverted my attention to the paper bag. I removed its contents and found out that there were containers of sashimi and almost every type of sushi the restaurant could sell. I also noticed an ointment and a few pieces of band-aids.

          I doubt the restaurant closed that early, I thought to myself.

          Smiling, I applied some ointment on the heels of my feet and stuck on the band-aids to ease its pain when I put on my stilettos after. A warm fuzzy feeling crept up my heart at the thought of Mr. Oh showing small acts of care. Glancing at him through the glass walls of his office who promptly busied himself with work, I fought back a foolish grin and indulged in my dinner.

          “Skipping breakfast again?” I asked casually upon crossing the threshold of Mr. Oh’s apartment.

          Mr. Oh ignored me and stood in front of his full-length mirror, adjusting his tie. Pursing my lips in disapproval, I approached and stood in front of him. He gave me a stern glare for I was blocking his m