“—we are looking for someone… more qualified –”

“—your resume is impressive but I’m afraid we are unable to give you a position at this time –”

“—you are not what we are looking for –”

“—if we don’t call you back by the end of the day, that means –“

“We will not hire someone with a criminal record.”

Yixing flopped onto the couch in the corner of the coffee house, dropping his files all over the table with a crash loud enough to attract the attention of all the patrons in the small shop.

“Oi, Lay, you are going to scare off all the customers,” Baek Hyun remarked, kicking Yixing’s foot lightly as he set down a large cup of Hoji tea latte. His eyes swept over the files on the table to the dejected face of his housemate. “I take it your job search has not been successful again?”

Yixing buried his head into the cushion, shaking his head along with it. “The same old reasons… no one wants to hire a criminal.”

The noise in the coffee house suddenly dropped at the word. Baek Hyun glared at the patrons looking over at them until they returned back to their conversations, though clearly still eavesdropping on them. Fortunately Yixing was in his own world and continued to ramble on without lifting his head from the cushion.

“A New Life is not happening for me right now, Bacon,” he whined. “Are you sure your boss doesn’t need another barista?”

“Sorry, I tried asking,” Baek Hyun said apologetically, sliding into the seat next to Yixing and patted the latter’s knee. “Look, maybe the criminal record isn’t the reason you aren’t hired. Maybe you’re setting too high standards.”

“What standards?” Yixing sat up straight, the cushion falling from his face, and directed a glare at Baek Hyun. “What standards can I possibly set for a waiter, a ticket stub collector, or a stupid amusement park attendant? I’m running out of ideas here.”

“Did you try searching for jobs online?” a quiet voice asked meekly. Yixing brightened slightly and pulled the newcomer over to sit on the couch, squeezing Baek Hyun to the other end.

“The internet’s too confusing,” Yixing complained. “Why don’t you hire me, Kyung Soo? I make a better barista than Baek Hyun.”

“Lies! Don’t listen to him!” Baek Hyun spluttered, shoving Yixing in the ribs.

Chuckling, Kyung Soo pulled out his mobile phone and clicked on a mobile application that had Career Search plastered all over its main screen. “Here, look at this. Some of these employers prefer to be a bit low-key so they don’t advertise in the papers.”

“Why didn’t you show it to me?” Baek Hyun complained noisily (“That’s because I need my great barista!”) but Yixing ignored both their voices as he made grabby hands at the phone and eagerly searched through the ads.

Dog walker, nah. Dogs hate him.

Babysitter, no thanks. He reckoned babies were allergic to him since they always cry without fail around him.

Personal assistant…

- Organising of meetings

- Time/diary management

- Responding to urgent requests

- Co-ordinating and booking travel arrangements

- Has initiative

- Outstanding verbal skills

“Go for it! That sounds like a high paying job,” Baek Hyun quipped over his shoulder. “Good thing they didn’t mention ‘excellent memory skills’ or you needn’t apply.”

Yixing smacked Baek Hyun lightly on the arm. “Should I really?” he asked doubtfully, glancing over to Kyung Soo for advice. “But don’t you think they’d be pickier over my background?”

“Why don’t you not put that in?” Kyung Soo suggested softly. “Don’t let them know you served time. It’s not like you killed someone.”

“That’s a good idea,” agreed Baek Hyun. “I’m stunned I’m not the one who came up with it.” He prodded Yixing’s calf with his shoe. “It sounds like a great opportunity. If you don’t try it, I’m kicking you out of my apartment.” He peered at the screen. “Yah, it says the walk-in interview is today. Go home and change. Now.”

***

An hour later, Yixing found himself seated at another café, only one that is obviously more posh and expensive than Kyung Soo’s coffee house. He swallowed the lump forming in his throat, feeling more nervous than all the previous interviews he went for combined, and fidgeted with his black pants.

Inwardly he was a little curious what company this was. Why hold an interview in a café? Did they have something to hide? Yixing hoped the company wasn’t a cover for, say, debt collectors because hell, he would not know how to chase someone for payment. (Plus debt collectors did not need personal assistants… did they?)

An impeccably dressed woman looking in her early thirties approached his table and sat down across Yixing. She fixed her maroon-framed glasses and stared unapologetically at Yixing, making him want to fidget even more but he forced himself to look back unwaveringly.

Finally unable to stand the silence, he bowed slightly. “Hi, my name is Yixing,” he said, “I’m here to interview for the position of personal assistant.”

“You’re not Korean.”

Oh. He had forgotten that might be a barrier. “I’m not,” he agreed, “I’m Chinese, but I’ve lived in Korea for seven years.”

“What were you doing for seven years?”
 

“Studying,” Yixing said with a straight face, clenching his hands underneath the table and digging his nails into his palms. Please don’t see through the lie. Please don’t see through the lie. “Studying music and dance.”

He was surprised to see a smile crack on the woman’s lips.

“Great, so you have some knowledge on the industry then. Our client is… preparing to go into that industry—”

Oh? A celebrity?

“—He’s Chinese too so you two will have lots in common,” the woman said. “I trust you will keep him out of trouble – I swear sometimes his manager is worse than him when it comes to appropriate behaviour.”

Wait… did that mean—?

“How soon can you start?”

His eyes widened. “A-anytime!” Yixing stammered, before clearing his throat and breaking into a bright smile, overwhelmed by how quickly he was hired.

She laughed and took out a piece of paper to scribble down something. “Here is the address of my client. He has an event at 8pm today so be at his place at 6. I won’t tell you too much about him in case that scares you off… I’ll let him introduce himself to you.” She flipped the paper over and wrote another number. “This is his current manager’s number.”

She slid the piece of paper across the table to Yixing and patted his hand lightly. “I don’t mean to scare you but I hope you stay on. He’s already frightened off a few PAs and managers... if you do then there will be a huge incentive for you in June.” Her gaze ran over Yixing’s painfully formal shirt and dress pants. “You might want to go in something more comfortable. There will be quite a lot of… physical labour.”

***

“I GOT THE JOB!” Yixing shouted into his mobile phone happily the minute he stepped out of the café. He grinned maniacally at the passer-bys shooting him curious looks, not bothering to hide his face as he usually did since he got out of prison. He couldn’t believe his luck, at how easily he was hired. Working with a celebrity too! Who would have thought it’d be possible?

“Congratulations,” Baek Hyun chuckled over the phone. “This calls for a celebration! How about I meet you at that pub a few blocks away after I get off work?”

“No can do. I’m starting work in a few hours,” he said, tucking the phone between his shoulder and the side of his face while he searched for loose change in his pockets for the bus ride. “Why don’t you be a good wife and wait for me to come home and we can celebrate then?”

“Starting work already? How desperate must they be?” Baek Hyun scoffed. “I am not celebrating at home. After the amount of trouble it took for you to get a job… we are going out to celebrate. Give me a call when you end work and I’ll meet you at that pub. Got it?”

Rolling his eyes, Yixing nodded before belatedly realizing Baek Hyun could not see it over the phone. “Yes yes, jagiya,” he said mockingly, grinning. “I’ll call you later.”

The bus ride back to Baek Hyun’s apartment felt like it took forever. Yixing hopped off the bus steps smilingly, too excited over his job to let anything rain on his parade. The ratty watch on his slim wrist read 3.44pm which gave him barely enough time to change into a pair of jeans and a plain v-neck tee with a long-sleeved plaid shirt thrown over it before he had to leave the house again.

It took him a while to locate the address in Apgujeong but Yixing soon arrived at the obviously upmarket neighbourhood. He must be a really popular celebrity then, Yixing thought, if he could afford to live in a neighbourhood like this.

in a deep breath, Yixing pressed the doorbell at the gate of the two-storey house. “Hi, I’m here to report for work,” he said to the intercom. “I’m—” Before he could finish his sentence, the gate creaked open to let him in.

There was a buzz of excitement in the house when Yixing stepped inside even though he could not see anyone. Loud voices slipped out of the room upstairs that didn’t sound entirely too happy. He swallowed his discomfort and hesitantly climbed up the stairs.

“Hello? I’m here to report—” he started to say again when the door flew open and there stood an extremely tall giant with a shocked expression that was identical to Yixing’s.

“… Kris!?”

A/N: I'll only write new chapters when each chapter get a certain number of comments... so please comment something? ;; Hope you guys like it~