As the car door swung open Jaehwan jumped in surprise and leaned further into the passenger side trying to make himself as small as possible. Taekwoon slid into the driver’s seat and took a glance at Jaehwan. Taekwoon felt a pang in his heart as he noticed the way Jaehwan had hunched himself on the other side keeping his head down. Jaehwan had fortunately stopped crying but his eyes were swollen red and he was still breathing heavily, his body drenched in a cold sweat.

Jaehwan could see out of his peripheral vision that Taekwoon wanted to say something, but Taekwoon ultimately gave up and leaned back in his seat and let out a sigh. Taekwoon had never been good at expressing his feelings, and although he was used to it, Taekwoon found himself frustrated at his inability to say anything comforting.

The silence felt like a heavy weight pressing down on Jaehwan and he could feel tears beginning to resurface as his anxiousness got to him. He had no idea what was going to happen…his boss had just walked in on him about to do that. Jaehwan was completely mortified and he wasn’t sure whether or not he wanted to know what Minjun might have told Taekwoon.

Jaehwan wanted to break the silence and explain himself but he couldn’t muster up the courage to say anything. His throat was parched and he felt like he would combust into another emotional wreck if he opened his mouth. He had been trying so hard at Jelpi and to think that it might all be over was terrifying.

Minutes passed before Taekwoon finally broke the awkward silence, “Jaehwan…I’m sorry.”

This was the first time Taekwoon had ever called him by his name and by the tone of his voice it sounded like Taekwoon was going to be giving him some bad news. Jaehwan couldn’t hold back the tears any longer. It’s happening. I’m going to get fired…again.

Taekwoon felt horrible as he saw the tears silently falling down Jaehwan’s face. He was about to reach out to Jaehwan but wasn’t sure if that would be appropriate and unconsciously left his hand awkwardly hanging in the air.

“I’m truly sorry Jaehwan…I could tell you were upset during the meeting yet I continued without asking you what was wrong. You were obviously not comfortable enough with me to refuse going to today’s meeting and that is my fault as your supervisor. My employees should feel comfortable voicing their concerns to me, and in that regard I have failed. Again, I’m very sorry.”

The words were spoken in a rush and Taekwoon let out a deep breath when he finished. That was probably the most he had ever spoken to one of his employees and Taekwoon hoped that he was somewhat able to get his thoughts across.

Jaehwan wasn’t sure if he actually heard what he thought he heard but as he cautiously glanced at Taekwoon the concern reflected in his eyes confirmed that yes: Taekwoon was actually apologizing to him.

This made Jaehwan even more confused. After a few moments he was finally able to gather his thoughts and stuttered, “S-so I’m not fired?”

Jaehwan spoke in such a hushed tone and looked so fragile and Taekwoon realized how uneasy Jaehwan truly was.

“No, you’re not fired Jaehwan. You have done absolutely nothing wrong. You are an essential member of the Jelpi family. Whatever you do in your personal life has no connection to work. Please do not worry about your career. As long as you continue to work at the same caliber as always you’ll be with Jelpi as long as you so choose. Do you understand?”

The conviction in Taekwoon’s voice finally made Jaehwan feel at ease. A wave of relief washed over him and this was the first time in years where Jaehwan finally felt a little secure. He still didn’t know how much Taekwoon knew, but for now he was just happy he wasn’t fired.

Taekwoon had always seemed distant, but from this short encounter it seemed that Taekwoon truly cared for his employees more than most people knew. Jaehwan was truly grateful.

They sat there in silence as Jaehwan absorbed what just happened and then Taekwoon started the car and began to exit the parking garage. “You can take the rest of the day off Mr. Lee. Where do you live? I’ll drop you off at your apartment.” Taekwoon had resumed his usual work behavior.

Jaehwan wasn’t sure why he was so disappointed Taekwoon didn’t use his first name again.

When they pulled up to Jaehwan’s apartment Jaehwan was trying to figure out how to convey his thanks but before he could utter anything Taekwoon quietly asked, “Are you feeling better?”

Jaehwan slowly nodded his head which seemed to make Taekwoon relax a little. Taekwoon looked a little nervous and Jaehwan was surprised to hear him say, “I’m not exactly sure what happened today…but if…if you ever need to talk about it, I can listen.”

Jaehwan didn’t know how to react. He was truly touched, “I…I’ll think about it. Thank you.”

Right when Jaehwan was about to step out of the car Taekwoon surprised him again by making another statement, “You’re not alone Mr. Lee. You have friends that care about you at the company, especially that Mr. Kim. I hope you know that. I hired them so I know they’re good people. You can speak to them. They won’t judge you.”

Taekwoon then gave him a short pat on the shoulder and then he was driving off leaving Jaehwan to muddle with his thoughts.

~~~~~~~

That night Jaehwan found himself splayed out on his bed exhausted. The words of Taekwoon kept circling his mind and he began to think about everyone at Jelpi. During his time there everyone had treated him nicely and Jaehwan realized that they truly were indeed his friends. He got along with them way better than his previous co-workers and never once did they make him feel out of place.

Maybe Taekwoon was right. Maybe he should give them a chance instead of assuming they’d turn on him.

When Jaehwan arrived at work the next day his stomached dropped when he saw the office bustling with people and everyone whispering towards each other. He was beginning to panic when Wonshik came up to his cubicle with a little too much enthusiasm, “Dude, Jaehwan! What happened yesterday? Everyone’s saying Chief Jung is might get fired for losing business with Deep Blue Inc.”

“What? What do you mean? Is he in trouble?” Jaehwan couldn’t believe this was happening. This was all his fault.

“I’m not sure…the CEO called him in this morning and he’s been gone for a while.”

As if on cue Taekwoon walked back into the department and a hush fell over the whole office.

Taekwoon started, “Many of you have probably already heard that we are no longer doing business with Deep Blue Inc. That is correct. We have two new investors that will be partaking in our project instead. We’ll need to make a few adjustments but other than that we should be able to proceed as previously planned. All new information will be emailed out shortly. Please resume your work. Thank you.”

Taekwoon walked back into his office as if nothing out of the ordinary had just happened.

Wonshik let out a chuckle, “Aish, looks like we were panicking for no reason. Of course Chief wouldn’t get fired, he’s one of the best. But why are we stopping business with Deep Blue?”

Wonshik gave Jaehwan a questioning glance but all Jaehwan could muster was, “I’m not exactly sure.” And that was the truth. Did Minjun mention something to their old boss that made them cut ties with Jelpi? Or did Taekwoon do something?

“So nothing weird happened yesterday or anything? This change is kind of sudden”, Wonshik wasn’t necessarily trying to pry but he was always the curious one.

It was now or never. “W-well…something kind of happened?”, Jaehwan let out a deep breath. Wonshik was a friend. He should trust him. “Can I tell you about it later?...there’s something else I’d like to talk to you about too.”

The seriousness in Jaehwan’s face made Wonshik concerned but he simply nodded. If Jaehwan needed to talk, he’d listen.

~~~~~~

They later found themselves over at the nearby mom-and-pop restaurant having a late dinner. Jaehwan was chewing on his lip and had barely touched his food when Wonshik interrupted his thoughts, “Jaehwan…is everything alright? You seem really nervous. Is it about yesterday?”

Jaehwan let out a deep breath and soon everything was spilling out of his mouth. He told Wonshik about Minjun, about working at Deep Blue, and lastly all the details about what happened yesterday.

“I’m going to kill him! Are you sure you’re okay Jaehwan? Aish! I should go beat his . It’s a good thing we’re no longer doing business with them. Good riddance. So Chief Jung cut ties with them?”

Jaehwan felt like he was soaring. Wonshik was a way better friend than Jaehwan gave him credit for. He was ashamed for not entrusting him sooner.

“I’m actually not sure what happened…I wasn’t there when Chief Jung spoke to Minjun.”

“I bet it was Chief that called everything off. He’s like that you know? You know his secretary had a stalker a few years ago? Taekwoon drove her home for weeks to make sure she got back safe until the guy got arrested. And Hakyeon! Hakyeon was bullied at his old company and Chief roughed a few of them up before he made Hakyeon quit and work for Jelpi. He’s pretty protective. Too bad he didn’t beat Minjun up or something! But no wonder he’s our boss, he must’ve worked all night to get two new investors in such a short amount of time.”

Jaehwan was flabbergasted. This was the first time he had heard any of these stories about their boss. And Wonshik was probably right…Taekwoon must’ve had to do a lot of extra work to acquire the new investors, all because of him. He felt a little guilty but Jaehwan decided to think about that later…he had to clarify one more thing.

“So…just you know, to make sure…you’re not freaked out that I’m gay…right?

Wonshik tilted his head in confusion. “Of course not! It doesn’t bother me—wait…you’re not...in love with me are you?”

Jaehwan barked out a laugh, “No, I’m not! You don’t have to worry.”

“Phew, that would have been awkward. Hey, wait a minute! Why not? Aren’t I handsome?!”

Jaehwan really couldn’t contain his laughter this time. His stomach was beginning to ache but the pout on Wonshik’s face made him chuckle even more. Man, he was so glad to have met Wonshik.

When Jaehwan finally caught his breath he just gave Wonshik a cheeky smile and winked, “Don’t worry Wonshik, you’re very handsome. Just not my type.”

Wonshik gasped in mock offense, but then gave Jaehwan a bright smile, “So then who is your type hmm? Hongbin? Sanghyuk?”

“Ugh, no way! I could never go out with those little devils.”

This time it was Wonshik’s turn to laugh. He understood too well the turmoil of knowing Sanghyuk and Hongbin.

“Hmm…then what about Chief Jung?”

Jaehwan found himself choking on the water he was drinking. “Wha—no, of course not!”

Wonshik’s eyes lit up like a kid on Christmas, “Aha! I see.” Wonshik had a huge grin plastered on his face while wriggling his eyebrows.

Jaehwan quickly changed the subject and Wonshik graciously let it go, but for some reason Jaehwan couldn’t seem to calm his rapidly beating heart.

A/N:I just got a new computer b/c my old one was about to die. Sorry, not too much Keo in this chapter but more in the next! I have an exam next week but I'll try to get another update out as soon as I can.

Thanks for reading and let me know what you think!