Icosahedron
BastardSwallowing a yawn from staying up late the night before, brainstorming as to what can be done about her laptop (well, what’s left of it), Mei Lin reaches the second to top floor around 7:45am, a good fifteen minutes before she is expected to show up for work. One would assume that Mei Lin is still under the influence of jetlag, but over a week in China had done plenty to clear that out of her system.
Mei Lin finds the black circle to be empty, seeing how the other two secretaries have yet to arrive, and slides into her chair with a bit of a yawn. She takes out a mirror to check her handiwork. If staying up late the night before hadn’t been enough, Mei Lin had woken up extra early this morning to apply extra make up (not that you could tell) and pick out the best clothes she had. I haven’t tried this hard since prom.
After making Yi Fan’s schedule for today and the rest of the week, it isn’t until the other secretaries and Gale walking by does Mei Lin notice that Yi Fan is late. “Wow, you’re here early,” Gale says. “And hot damn.”
“Too much?” Mei Lin asks.
“No, you look… great.” Is she trying to impress him?
“Let’s hope he thinks so too. He just might fire me for being ugly.”
“You’re kidding, right?” Gale laughs at the joke, only to let her laugh fade at the unchanging expression on Mei Lin’s pallor. “Wow, that boy has some issues.” Gale glances up at the glass office. “Well, he can’t fire you if he doesn’t show up for work. Maybe he has a hangover.”
“Or maybe there was traffic,” Yi Fan says as he emerges from the small hall of the elevators.
“Pretty boy can speak English,” Gale states, this being the first time she has heard the young man doing so.
“You think I’m pretty?” Yi Fan asks. One might think he’s hitting on her, but the rolling eyes of the other secretaries tell you that he’s just being an arrogant again (and that they understand English).
“Yeah, pretty cheap,” Gale snips back, referring to the bar tab.
Yi Fan mentally flinches at the memory of last evening’s events but doesn’t miss a beat, “If that’s the case, then why are there so many assistants in the Developmental Department? Maybe I should stick to my nature and just fire some.”
Mei Lin stands up at the threat of her friend’s job. “You can discuss that at the meeting,” Mei Lin says.
“What meeting?” Yi Fan demands.
“The meeting that was suppose to be held yesterday at one, sir,” Mei Lin replies with a forced smile, remembering the events that had happened during that time instead. “Concerning the staff of the Developmental Department.”
“I’m not going to that meeting; it’s a waste of my time,” he says, walking up the steps before going into his office. “What’s there to discuss?”
Mei Lin scrolls around her tablet as she walks. Yi Fan had hoped that she would walk into the glass, but he’s sadly disappointed. “According to the memo, it’s about my team, sir. Huh, I guess it would be a waste of time considering the deal that was stuck between your father and myself.” Mei Lin sends out a memo to cancel the meeting and inform everyone involved of the change. “My team is made up of temps though, sir. I believe it would be a better idea if we promote one of them to have a more permanent—”
“Why?” Yi Fan asks bluntly.
“With the help constantly changing, sir, the project might get lost in the process.”
“How about no?” That isn’t a real question.
Mei Lin sighs to herself and reads to Yi Fan his schedule for today. “Performance reviews still need to be written—”
“You can do that,” Yi Fan says.
“But sir, I hardly know anyone at this company, and most certainly not enough to write a performance review.” Mei Lin almost stutters at the absurdity of the request.
“Does it look like I care? You can pull it out of a donkey’s for all I care.”
Yi Fan is spinning in his chair slowly, tossing a regular, chrome icosahedron into the air and catching it repeatedly. Mei Lin takes a breath as Yi Fan stops and faces the view. There’s something rigid in his voice this morning and it’s not from a hangover. Well, maybe that had contributed a little bit. The extra edge is a signal that Yi Fan wants to be left alone for the day and Mei Lin gladly bows and leaves the room.
She finds herself on the first floor again, asking Lu Han for yet another list. “This time, he has me doing something,” Mei Lin says before Lu Han has the chance to ask. “I need a list of everyone that Yi Fan supervises and any and all performance information you have.”
Lu Han chuckles at the word “supervises” because that is one thing that Yi Fan hardly ever does. “Performance reviews due?” Lu Han asks as he taps away on his keyboard.
“Yeah,” Mei Lin sighs. “Tomorrow.”
“You’re actually going to try doing this?” Lu Han asks as they walk to the printer.
“'Try' is the operative word here,” Mei Lin replies, feeling the weight of the task already.
“There’s not much in terms of the latter of your request, but there’s a list of who you can talk to,” Lu Han says, handing Mei Lin the papers which are still warm from the laser printer. “Next time, just call and I’ll have it sent to your tablet.”
“Okay,” Mei Lin says as she hurries to leave. “Xiè xiè, Lù Lù!” ("Thanks, Lu Lu!")
Lu Han chuckles to himself at his sudden, new nickname. Gale wasn’t kidding, she truly is a sight one has to see to believe.
Mei Lin spends the next two hours running around the building, gathering information and typing up performance reviews. When she’s done, all that’s missing are Yi Fan’s signatures. Mei Lin climbs the steps, but the spring is quickly lost when Mei Lin finds Yi Fan with his back to the door and still facing his view. She stops completely when she sees the almost empty liquor bottle and dry crystal glass on his desk.
“What do you want?” Yi Fan demands, the edge in his voice even sharper now.
“The performance reviews are done, sir. I just need you to sign them,” Mei Lin says in a very timid voice.
The room is then silent as Mei Lin waits for a response. There is none and all that can be heard is Mei Lin’s breathing, which she consciously reduces. With a glance at the time, Mei Lin leaves the performance reviews on an empty part of Yi Fan’s desk before leaving. To Yi Fan’s surprise, Mei Lin comes back shortly and sets something else down on his desk. Curious, he turns around in his chair to find Mei Lin pouring tea from what looks to be a traditional set.
Mei Lin wrinkles her nose at the smell of alcohol and how Yi Fan reeks of it. She takes a glance at her boss and asks herself how she could’ve possibly missed the dark circles and bags under his eyes. Yi Fan is also just now noticing how Mei Lin looks today as well. Not bad.
Mei Lin sets the empty bottle and glass back on the coffee table, which, today, has an assortment of expensive spirits and now a total six glasses. How long has this been here? And where did it come from?
“What kind of tea is this?” Yi Fan asks, running his fingertip over the rim of the porcelain cup.
“Pu-erh,” Mei Lin says.
Yi Fan sips it without any further question while Mei Lin stands not too far from the desk so that she can refill his cup if need be. Meanwhile, Mei Lin takes this time to get a closer look at her new boss. Standing to his left again, Mei Lin notes the three studs in the man’s ear: two on his lobe and one that hides under his wisps of hair, just under the helix. And from there once can see that Yi Fan hadn’t bothered to style his hair today as it is relaxed atop his scalp like a loose, jagged bowl. The lopsidedness of his tie only adds to the fact that Yi Fan hadn’t bothered to the details at all this morning.
When she notices that his cup is empty, Mei Lin reaches over for the pot, but Yi Fan lifts his right hand without looking at Mei Lin, indicating for her to stop. Mei Lin puts the set back on the tray and sets it on the coffee table. When she straightens herself out again, Mei Lin finds that Yi Fan has his back facing her again.
Mei Lin bows even though Yi Fan can’t see her before leaving. What’s interesting is that Yi Fan could see her; he had seen her on the reflective glass. For a moment, Yi Fan is left wondering how Mei Lin is going to handle today now that Yi Fan has made it clear that he wants to be left alone. Why did I even come to work today? He asks himself this in spite knowing the answer. Had he not shown up for work, Mei Lin—or even worse, one of Mr. Wu’s lackeys—would’ve come to the house and would’ve personally escorted Yi Fan to the office. He would’ve ended up here one way or another, the only difference being whether or not his father knows about what had happened last night. I wouldn’t be surprised if he has yet to know.
Yi Fan is playing with the icosahedron in his hands again, squeezing the metal as if it’s a stress ball, and then tracing its many edges with his fingertips. In attempt to add to what little rest he had gotten last night, Yi Fan throws himself on one of the couches, his lanky body spilling over the armrests when doing so. He reminds himself to get something that will accommodate for the length of his body before closing his eyes.
Mei Lin glances up at the office. The view from down here only allows one to see a bit of the glass on the other wall and most of the ceiling along with its lights. One has to wonder if those things are even necessary or functional, seeing how there is a lack of a switch in that office and how Yi Fan rarely stays in the office after sundown.
Mei Lin gets a call from the front desk, informing her that Yi Fan’s former lunch date has arrived. The word “” crosses her mind as Mei Lin rearranges her workspace and checks herself in the mirror. She greets the young lady with a bow and smile as she and her assistant come off the elevator. Her timing could not have been any worse; Kwon Bo Ah: daughter of a possible oversea business partner is here and Yi Fan is passed out drunk in his office looking anything but his best.
“He has some nerve, keeping a lady waiting like that,” she says, feeling insulted. “I guess all the rumors about him are true then.” Mei Lin neither confirms nor denies this. “Well, where is he then?” Her Chinese has flaws, but no one within earshot dares to say anything.
Mei Lin’s mind draws a blank, but Ms. Kwon spots the young man’s name glossed over the glass doors of his office and begins to make her way up the steps. Mei Lin panics and quickly climbs ahead of her, taking a glance into the office herself. Yi Fan is still sleeping. “Yi Fan Xiān Shēng isn’t feeling well today,” ("Mister Yi Fan isn't feeling very well today,") Mei Lin says in polite manner.
“Is this some sort of joke?” she asks, letting out an appalled laugh. Mei Lin isn’t sure what it is exactly that Ms. Kwon had said, but she knows it couldn’t have been good considering her tone and her use of her native tongue. “I came all the way from Korea; I, at the very least, have the right to meet him.”
Mei Lin keeps Ms. Kwon on the first three steps so that she is unable to see into the office. “How about a cup of tea?” Mei Lin suggests, showing her to a small conference room down the hall. “He’ll be with you shortly.” As soon as she is out of sight, Mei Lin makes a dash for Yi Fan’s office. “Sir,” Mei Lin says, shaking Yi Fan’s shoulders lightly. “Ms. Kwon is waiting for you, sir.” Yi Fan stirs but refuses to open his eyes. Mei Lin winces at the strong smell of alcohol and even more so at the severity of this situation. “Please, sir.” Mei Lin can’t believe that she’s begging.
Yi Fan sits up so abruptly that Mei Lin is surprised enough to be knocked off her feet. He glares holes into Mei Lin and straightens his blazer. Just when Mei Lin thinks he’s going to meet with her, Yi Fan goes to his desk and sits down instead.
“Sir, she’s waiting,” Mei Lin says, more desperate than anything.
“Does it look like I care?” Yi Fan asks, tossing the icosahedron repeatedly again.
“But, sir—”
“Look.” His voice is firm and demanding. “You either leave and tell her that I will not be seeing her today—or ever for that matter—or you can pack your things and go. Either way, you’re leaving this office right now.”
Yi Fan watches Mei Lin’s expression on the reflective glass and listens for her to leave. He pushes a button on a small remote and the blinds slide over every panel before closing the office from any sort of view.
Quitting is not an option that Mei Lin could live with. She scrolls down her contacts to find “The Little Deer” before pressing call.
“Wèi?” ("Hello?") Lu Han answers.
“Hi, I need everything you have on Kwon Bo Ah. What she likes, what she doesn’t like, the works,” Mei Lin says.
“How did you get this number?” Lu Han asks as he types away on his computer.
“You said to call,” Mei Lin says.
“But I never—”
“You have your resources, I have mine. Now please, anything at all.”
“Streaming it to your tablet—It was Gale, wasn’t it?”
“No,” Mei Lin answers. “But had I known that she had your number, it would’ve made my life easier.” Mei Lin’s eyes skim over all the information as it comes across her tablet. “Thanks.”
Mei Lin makes a dash to the cafeteria and places a special order to be delivered to the small conference room. She makes another mad dash back to the conference room just as Ms. Kwon is about to leave. “Where is he?” she demands.
Mei Lin can’t blame her for being upset; she would be too after being stood up twice by someone she has yet to meet. “Yi Fan Xiān Shēng went home,” ("Mister Yi Fan went home,") Mei Lin lies. “The company doctor says that he’s ill and needs rest.” Just then, the food arrives. “May I offer you a complementary lunch for your trouble?”
Ms. Kwon is reluctant, but the time since her last meal is very persuasive. She sits down and Mei Lin serves her an authentic Korean meal. Comfort food, joy. Ms. Kwon is skeptical, but her compliments to the chief are said after the first bite. “Someone did her research.” Mei Lin waits for any further comment. Her assistant hands her a tablet, which has a profile of Mei Lin on its screen. “So is it safe to assume that you’re his current secretary?” Ms. Kwon asks in English, now that she knows that Mei Lin will be able to understand her.
Mei Lin nods and takes a sip of her coffee. “They say you will never meet the same secretary twice,” her assistant says. Mei Lin makes eye contact with Ms. Kwon’s assistant for a moment before her attention is directed back to this special guest.
Mei Lin’s not sure what her assistant said, but Ms. Kwon lets out a laugh. “So he’s fickle as well as rude. Such a shame, really, I heard he’s actually quite handsome; that is, if you can get past the ugly personality.” There’s no comment from Mei Lin, so Ms. Kwon decides to speak some more. “So are you going to quit or will I get you fired?”
“I have no intention of doing the former and it is my hope that the latter does not occur,” Mei Lin says, matching Ms. Kwon’s smooth tone.
“So what’s stopping me from going to the chairman’s office right now?” Ms. Kwon leans in a bit, now done with her meal and very curious as to how the little newbie before her is going to convince her already made-up mind.
“To be honest, nothing. But something’s keeping you from doing it, or else you would’ve left as soon as you finished eating,” Mei Lin says. “Granted, I would like for you to at least consider what you were considering when coming here.”
“I wasn’t considering anything when coming here,” she says. “And whatever it might have been, I am certainly not going to consider it now.”
“Yi Fan Xiān Shēng is not the best representation of this company—” ("Mister Yi Fan is not the best representation of this company—")
“Then what is if the future of this company isn’t? I’m not going to invest in something that honestly has no future.”
“That’s not very fair of you to say—”
“You’re right. It’s not fair to judge what you haven’t seen, but that in itself tells me that he doesn’t care enough to bother. Either you know something that I don’t—which, I’m sure you do—or this truly isn’t worth my time.”
“What can I do to convince you otherwise?” Mei Lin asks, curious rather than desperate like Ms. Kwon had hoped.
She thinks about this for a moment before sitting back in her chair. “You can tell me why you’re working so hard for such an . You did your research on me in less than fifteen minutes and know enough to serve me some of my favorite foods, so surely you did your research on him before applying for this job.”
Mei Lin lets a smile slip at the last words and Ms. Kwon takes notice. “I didn’t apply for this job. I actually have a different job in this company. He hired me. For what reason, I have yet to know, but he did and here I am. I haven’t signed anything yet to make it permanent—”
“You have no intention of quitting when there’s nothing to quit,” Ms. Kwon says in realization, finding this girl to be intriguing. “So tell me, why are you still here?”
“It’s only day two,” Mei Lin says, hardly believing it herself.
“You still haven’t answered my question,” Ms. Kwon says, sipping her tea.
“I’ve been told that I’m too nice and caring for my own good,” Mei Lin says honestly, looking into the depths of her coffee. “To be honest, I’m not sure. I’m just being what I am and he’s just being who he is; I’m just doing my job in trying to make his a bit easier.”
Confused more than ever, Ms. Kwon looks up at her assistant who has just about as much input as a pet rock would. Maybe my understanding of English isn’t as great as I thought it was. “What—What reason do you—”
“Does there need to be a reason?” Mei Lin asks, feeling the déjà vu of this conversation. “Sometimes, it is what it is.”
Ms. Kwon shakes her head a bit to clear her head and takes another sip of tea. She decides and gets up, Mei Lin mirroring her actions. The two leave and Mei Lin follows behind them back to the elevators. She is relieved when her assistant presses the down button. “We will be making another trip to China in four months for the convention in Beijing. I hope to finally meet him then.” The elevator opens. “And I hope to see you as well.” The elevator closes and Mei Lin lets out a breath of relief.
Two minutes later she gets a call from “The Little Deer.” “I don’t know what it is that you did, but Ms. Kwon just left with a hope that ‘this will be the start of a wonderful friendship.’” Lu Han chuckles to himself at the sound of a relieved sigh and what he assumes is Mei Lin plopping down on a chair.
“Xiè xiè, Lù Hán,” ("Thank you, Lu Han,") Mei Lin sighs. “Xiè xiè.” ("Thanks.")
Lu Han laughs to himself again before hanging up.
Mei Lin is exhausted and it’s only midday. She has to remind herself not to rub her eyes and ruin the lovely make up she still has on. Looking back up at Yi Fan’s office, the blinds are still unwelcoming. Mei Lin brings up some more tea and some fruit and crackers, assuming that Yi Fan has yet to eat today. She knocks before entering and finds Yi Fan sitting up in his desk chair but with his eyes closed. I guess he’s asleep.
It is a relief to find that no other liquor bottles are emptied. After setting the tray down on his desk, Mei Lin can’t help but look around his office. The shelves to her left have items from various parts of the world and it is sad to note that there’s not a single picture anywhere in this entire office. Little does Mei Lin know that Yi Fan had not been sleeping and had been aware of her presence the moment that she had knocked on his door. He watches her now as she examines the souvenirs with her eyes and walks to the other side of the office, tilting her head to the right as she reads the book spines.
There is an entire shelf of self-help books. Probably gifts from forced occasions and passive-aggressive associates.
Yi Fan picks up the fork and starts eating the sliced fruit. Mei Lin jumps at the sound of metal against ceramic. Mei Lin flushes pink and quickly bows in apology before making her way to leave. “Hold it.” Mei Lin halts. “This isn’t enough food for someone even half your size.”
A wave of relief washes over Mei Lin. Yi Fan criticizing her is a sign that he’s recovering from whatever it was that had bothered him. Mei Lin turns around and does a slight bow. “Sir.” She leaves and gets him a proper lunch. When she returns, the performance reviews are already signed and he eats alone as Mei Lin delivers them to everyone who works under Yi Fan to get them signed for proof that they received their review.
A familiar face greets Mei Lin when she wants to enter Mr. Wu’s office. “You can’t go in there,” she says, stopping Mei Lin with a firm hand.
“But Ms. Wang—” as Mei Lin had found out, “I have the Developmental Department and Public Relations Department’s performance reviews.”
The chairman’s secretary stares at Mei Lin as if she had just told her some distasteful joke. Yanking the file from her arms, Ms. Wang is shockingly surprised, as her wrinkles seem to grow deeper as her eyes scan each and every page. She quickly turns around and knocks on the president’s door with a regretful rhythm.
There’s a sound from the other side and Ms. Wang opens the door slowly. “Pardon—”
“What is it? I thought I had just told you to leave me be.” Mr. Wu’s voice is low—deep but powerful. Mei Lin notices that he has the same edge in his voice that his son has and wonders if he had been drinking as well. “Zhè shì shén me?” ("What is this?") he asks, noticing Mei Lin’s presence.
That’s her cue to speak. “I have the performance reviews for—”
“My son,” Mr. Wu says, nearly spitting at the words, “Actually got some work done?” The laugh croaking out of Mr. Wu’s throat is unsettling, but Ms. Wang’s saddened demeanor tells a different story. “Ms. Kwon was pleased,” he says. “So you got him to meet with someone important and some paperwork done? I should give you a raise.”
Mr. Wu is clearly not in his right mind, but Mei Lin sees no sign of alcohol in his office. Emphasis on the word “sees.” Mei Lin tries to speak up again, not wanting there to be any miscommunication. “He didn’t meet with her, sir, I did.” The fury throbbing at Mr. Wu’s temples compels Mei Lin to speak again before Yi Fan is in trouble. “He isn’t feeling well, sir,” Mei Lin explains.
For reasons unknown to Mei Lin, Mr. Wu relaxes again in his chair. “Leave the reviews and get out,” he says.
Even though Mei Lin and Ms. Wang don’t exactly have the best business relationship, Mei Lin still looks at Ms. Wang with a questioning look of concern. Ms. Wang sighs and says in a very low voice. “Madam was diagnosed with jī wěi suō xìng cè suǒ yìng huà last night after Yi Fan Xiān Shēng found her collapsed at the foot of the stairs.”
Mei Lin took enough medical classes to have her eyes widen at the disease and the name escape her lips in an eerie whisper. “ALS…”
Translations/Author's Notes:
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Icosahedron = "In geometry, an Icosahedron is a polyhedron with 20 triangular faces, 30 edges and 12 vertices. A regular icosahedron with identical equilateral faces is often meant because of its geometrical significance as one of the five Platonic solids..."
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Pu-erh = From experience, it has a light but rich taste.
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Xiān Shēng (先生) = Mister when used after one's surname (or given names in this case, which is less common) or Sir when used alone. Often a sign of respect but in the business world, it's to indicate that they may also be your superior. Depending on how it's used (whether or alone or not, whether it's after the surname or given names) will indicate the relationship between the person speaking and the person whom they are referring to. Both Ms. Wang and Mei Lin use Yi Fan's given names so that he is not to be confused with Mr. Wu, and likely also to show that she doesn't quite exactly have the upmost respect for him (Ms. Wang: because he doesn't deserve it; Mei Lin: because he hasn't earned it).
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"The Little Deer" = Just to clarify, in her contacts, it's in English.
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jī wěi suō xìng cè suǒ yìng huà (肌萎縮性側索硬化) = Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)
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