One
Late HoursNumbers were racing, chasing each other across the screen, utterly demented characters. Quicker, my boss instructed with a snarl in his voice. Slow down, I will disarrange the order of the numbers, I don't inform him. His hands were wrenching the back of my chair in frustration, banging occasionally as if that would frighten me to type swifter. He withdrew from my cubical, striding down the hall as if he was preoccupied with too much work to be dealing with me, then bellowing at another coworker. I sighed, when will I have the opportunity to escape from this hell hole? I had plenty of other applications to fill, coffee shop, pet-sitter, even a cashier at a store, anything but this. I have been occupying this space of mine in this company for little less than a year, about six months or so. It was long enough to have myself ripping the strands of my hair and gnawing at the paint on my fingernails. This job costed me my sanity.
"Yeojin," a worker from the space next to mine beckoned. "I'm going to head out early, you're most likely going to be the last one out again. You know the drill by now." How couldn't I? Lights, garbage, turn any lit monitors off.
"Have a nice weekend, say hi to the baby for me," I grinned at her before she slightly bowed and I returned to my work. Still a pile-high of checks to enter, even though I was trying to make a dent in it for almost nine consecutive hours. My job, an occupation that anyone could fulfill, only consisted of entering numbers and the names other businesses to retain the updated purchases through checks. Everyone else had higher paying positions and with more use than of mine, but I was going to abandon this spot just as I did with my other jobs in the past.
I decided that my eyes have taken enough brutal treatment for the day and shut off my monitor, mouthing a 'holy ' as I rubbed the sleep out of them. Just a few more items on my checklist- turning all the monitors and lights off, then taking the trash that sat outside of the employee kitchen- and I can return home, to my bed and curl in the silky sheets. It wasn't until it was pitch black and I lit my way with my phone's flashlight that I noticed a figure in front of me.
"Taehyung!" I exclaimed, clutching my chest for a breath. "Why do you do that?!"
My best friend, since sixth grade in middle school, my partner in crime, my homie was here. In fact, he was always there whether it was supporting, comforting, or caring for me, he was always the one right by my side.
He chuckled, displaying his square-smile that I adored. "It's fun," he said as he squeezed me in his arms.
I pounded a fist on his chest, "You're such an ." I then giggled along with him, finding his positive attitude very contagious. He made me feel as if all the weight from my burdens and stress just vacate and disperse into thin air, I was walking on clouds with just him in my mind.
"You really mean that?" He confronted me, with his hand on his chest acting as if he was sincerely wounded or offended. "I-I'm hurt."
"I bet you are," I jokingly pushed him forward to continue walking. "But I was kidding if it kills you that much."
"It doesn't," he snorted, earning a shake of my head then a roll of the eyes.
We managed to reach outside the work area and into the lobby in peace, allowing all the events of the day to soak in our brain and seep our muscles with exhaustion. Taehyung worked at the local coffee shop located in the radius of our apartment, having the more boisterous job of us both. He actually interacted with people throughout the day whereas I, on the other hand, could speak to the wall at most.
"How was work?" I inquired before I pushed the door open for us, his hand helped to open the door, the close distance between us almost making me choke on my words. "Busy?"
"Yeah, I mean I slipped on coffee again," he grinned a humiliated grin as he gazed at his sneakers. "But it wasn't me this time, it was that block-head again."
"Again?" I whipped to glare at him, but necessarily Taehyung; more at that brainless being. "Isn't that his third time already?"
"You would've thought he learned by the second time but yeah, third time this week."
I shook my head in utter amazement, that guy had to be dropped on his coconut when he was younger. I've realized that if I tallied all of the recent mistakes this employee has been creating, I wouldn't have enough fingers to count on. It wasn't something to be amused with anymore, I don't think I could comprehend as to why he wasn't fired yet.
Taehyung unlocked and opened the passenger door for me, shutting it just as I perched on the leather seat. He strode to the opposite side, my eyes trailing after him just like every other day, this was our routine: he picks me up from work, he drives us home, we spend the night together, then repeat. I could imagine what people would say, that how could I could be so content with him by my side with no other relationship but friendship, but I'd be lying if I said I was fine with being friends. It wasn't my decision nor my place to take the first step, not with my confidence and self-esteem shooting through the Earth's crust.
"How was your day?" He shifted the stick into drive, backing up cautiously, then turned to the left to exit the establishment's parking lot. I replied with the typical answer of nothingness, once again my life as of now wasn't too thrilling or filled with nail-biting anticipation.
"Did you eat yet?" I inquired, noticing the rumbles beginning to churn my stomach.
"I was waiting for you," he paused when he stopped at stop sign, then made a right. "I already cooked the rice."
"Thank you."
I was praying that he couldn't view the way my cheeks were burning with embarrassment. He acknowledged the fact that I despised working there but yet he still supported me and when I didn't feel like going to work, he shooed me out of bed and assisted me into proper clothing. And I would do the same for him if I was awake before he was up.
"Don't worry about it. I know you feel bad, stop thinking that you're a burden," he abruptly placed his arm on mine, out of reassurance and comfort. "Just work your hardest until another job opportunity comes up, okay?"
"Fine, I will."
"Good." He reclaimed his hand, the warmth also trailing off with his touch, the ghostly imprint retaining on the hairs of my arms. We had these little moments, tiny moments that were small enough to shove in a shoebox or toss in a pocket, where something intimate would be occurring but we wouldn't know what to do; or at least it was me of thinking all of this. He would do the smallest actions but it would get my emotions rallied up. Yet, I brushed the feelings away with a broom and a dust pan and dumped them into the back of my mind. We were friends and only friends, nothing else until death does us apart.
I packed the burdensome and sorrowful feeling away before it submerged me into another depression, something that would be ongoing until something else occurred in my life. Though there were some feelings and moments that we shared, it was nonetheless difficult on my part; not willing nor having the confidence and boldness to confess these little butterflies in my stomach that aroused with the thought of him. I ignored them, turned a blind eye and completely averted the thoughts that would suddenly surface, they were useless since I couldn't do anything. Nothing, just a numbness consumed instead.
"Hey," Taehyung's voice, lightly shaking me to a conscience mindset. "Are you feeling alright? You're extra quiet tonight." He reached his arm out to touch my forehead while retaining his eyes on the road- to assure himself that I wasn't ill- which I swatted away, claiming I was perfectly fine and just required some shut eye. He didn't defy nor object my abrupt and unexpected behavior, he acknowledged the fact that I was now only fueled on coffee and not the same drive and motivation that I began this job with. It was physically and mentally exhausting.
The car to an all familiar road that lead to the apartment complexes, a place that was my new home since I had started attended college. The school I was currently registered in was too distant from home to be driving back and forth for hours, my mother suggested that I should be in proximity so I had a slim chance to be late to my classes. I didn't particularly enjoy the layout of this city, the bland skyscrapers or the racing cars, for I took interest into more rural and country landscapes. It was something about the breeze that fluctuated between the tree's leaves and the smell of pine just gave me hope and inspiration for a better life, not that my life was negative or unpleasing; just for my life to increasinly excel and to be happy with myself.
I had almost forgetten he was inquiring my condition so I replied once the thought came into mind. "I'm fine, don't worry." I attempted to shoot him a smile, even though it was wonky and not sincere.
He complied to my plea of agony, my body was aching everywhere internally and externally to the point I wouldn't be surprised it would shut down at any moment; and complaining to him wasn't going to alter anything even the slightest. As the view of the parking lot, that belonged to our section of the building, I was just drowning relief. No more questions, no need to answer, just eat, shower, and watch TV with him. And it wasn't that I despised being asked how my day was or anything, I just didn't want to elaborate what was actually consuming my thoughts because I knew that he knows that I wasn't thinking about my day, let alone about him.
The dashboard and gages that were once illuminated in an electric blue- that strained my eyes to stare at for too long- now disappeared simultaneously as Taehyung turned the ignition off. We were home.
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