The manager and Partner refused to speak to Joohyun. They spared her no time, and was only instructed to pass everything on hand to the new girl they have hired to replace her. It was cruel, the thought of being replaced immediately. Is it true that the society gave no room for mistakes? Despite being helpless, she knew she had to move on and look for other opportunities elsewhere.

“Dad, I’m fine. My job is amazing, I will try to find time to visit you soon. Put on thicker clothes, it is getting chilly. Take good care of yourself, Dad. I love you.” Joohyun waited for her father to hang up before she ended the call. She sighed, it was awful to lie to her father, but she thought that he did not need additional worries in his life. Based on his character, he would have rushed down and demand an explanation from her ex-bosses.

Joohyun sat down and scrolled throughthe internet for job applications. She thought about her proposal and Jung Yunho. Would he be shocked about the news when they inform him that someone else would take over her place? It would reflect so badly on her again. She sent her resume to a few companies and decided to call it a day.

“Seo Jooohyun, listen to this!” She received a message from Yonghwa. She smiled and clicked play. She could hear the guitar playing, and after awhile, Yonghwa’s voice could be heard. She closed her eyes and focused on the lyrics. It was a beautiful love song.

“Wow.. I never knew you were this talented.” Joohyun decided to call him instead of replying. “You are the first person to hear this song, don’t you feel honoured?” Yonghwa teased. “Well thank you Mr Jung Yonghwa-ssi, can I have your signature as well?” She joked. “Sure, when we meet again. What are you doing at this hour? It is already 1am.” He asked. “I’m…just busy with some stuff.” Joohyun hesitated a bit. She did not know if she should share with Yonghwa the news. “What’s up?” It was a useless attempt to cover up, he knew her as well as her father, or maybe even better than her own father.

“I lost my job.” Joohyun answered briefly and sighed. “Is it because of that matter that day? I thought you managed to clinch the deal.” He replied calmly. “Yeah… but it still happened. I’m a little puzzled as well, but there is nothing I can do about it.” She smiled sadly. “Hey, give me awhile, someone just called me. Call you back later.” Yonghwa suddenly said and hung up immediately.

Joohyun put her phone aside and picked up her book since she did not have work tomorrow, she thought she could continue her favourite hobby, reading. She was thirty minutes into her book when she heard the doorbell rang. She was a little nervous, who would be looking for her at this hour? Looking through the peephole, she realised it was Yonghwa. “Oh my god Yong what are you doing here?” She looked at him in shocked.

“To accompany you.” He grinned happily as he lifted and showed her the cans of beer and fried chicken he brought with him, before making his way into her apartment. Her heart felt warm, even though she was far away from her family, Yonghwa is like a family to her.

They decided on a movie after going through rounds of arguments and Joohyun fetched her blanket from her room. It was nearing winter and the weather was getting chilly. They snuggle close to each other under the blanket.

“Thank you Yong…” Joohyun mumbled as she let her head rest on Yonghwa’s shoulder. It was going 3am and she could barely keep her eyes opened. Yonghwa did not respond, but instead pulled the blanket and made sure that she was covered properly.

Morning came quickly, when Joohyun woke up, it was already 10am. She found herself in her own bed and Yonghwa was nowhere to be found. She reached out for her phone on the lamp table and saw a message from him. Realising it was video received, she opened up and saw Yonghwa’s face covering her screen. “Good morning, Seo Joohyun-ssi! Breakfast is already on the table. Give yourself some time to find another job, I’m sure you will be able to. And don’t forget to miss me!” Yonghwa smirked and ended the video. Joohyun laughed, it was definitely Yonghwa’s style to send her such a thing.

==

Joohyun spent her morning flipping through the newspaper advertisement looking for jobs that she could apply. Most of the openings required experience, and being a fresh graduate, she had close to none. She was starting to panic after receiving a call from the landlord regarding the three months rental that was up for payment, else, she would have to move out of the apartment in two weeks.

An advertisement caught her eye and she immediately dialled the number. She was delighted that the speaker was looking for someone urgently and scheduled an interview for her in the noon that day. How lucky was she? She suddenly felt excited and started to prepare to make sure she looked her best for the interview.

“You must be Seo Joohyun.” A man greeted her, he looked a little intimidating, carrying a smug on his face. “Y-yes… I am here for the interview.” Joohyun replied with a little confidence, trying to conceal the nervousness. She suddenly felt a little timid, the office was a little rundown, and it did not looked like the usual firms. The surrounding looked old and dusty. “Boss is waiting for you inside.” He gestured with his head, nodding towards the door.

“Hi, you are pretty. Take a seat.” A bald and huge middle aged man said to her. She was starting to feel a little uncomfortable with the environment. “You know..with a face like yours, it is too wasteful to work in a society full of men. You should consider working WITH men instead.” He said crudely. Joohyun understood what he meant. “I’m sorry, I saw your advertisement on the newspaper looking for a financial consultant. I am trained to be a financial consultant..” She put it nicely. She was beginning to get a little mad from the man's tone. “Oh really? You got fired from your previous firm I’ve heard. Maybe you should really reconsider your career path.”  Joohyun’s cheeks started to feel hot. He knew what happened. “The industry is very small, do you think words will not spread?” The guy added on. He was enjoying her change in expression.

“I’m sorry, I better leave.” Joohyun stood up while the man used his meaty arm to stop her. “Where do you think you’re going? I’m offering you a better alternative, you can earn much more than being an unknown financial consultant.” He smirked. She felt disgusted and ignored his words, taking her bag with her, she reached for the door knob. Seconds later, she felt the man’s body on hers and was touching her anywhere he could reached. "Look at your body..the amount of money people will be willing to pay." He whispered into her ears. Joohyun got a shock and immediately pushed him away, causing him to hit the table. The man became furious and slapped her. He continued to force himself on her and managed to tear the first two buttons of her blouse, and when Joohyun regained her consciousness from the impact, she kneed him in the groin and escaped.

Tears were streaming down her face as she held onto her torn blouse tightly. She felt relieved when she saw random people on the streets again, and decided to sit down at the bus stop to calm herself down. Her body weakened from the shock and she could not imagine what would happened if she did not escaped. Her cheek was swollen from the attack.

For that moment, Joohyun felt lost. She was jobless, her rent was up.. and she had nowhere to go.