9. Cheer Up Baby!

"Pasta."

"Ballet."

"Pizza."

"Roses," Ten finally added.

"I opt for meatballs."

Seulgi let out a heavy sigh.

"Does anybody else have anything interesting to propose before I seriously lose it?" Seulgi asked to the 8 employees in front of her.

"What do you mean lose it? My ideas are great," Taeyong interjected. "And I'm literally the only one proposing stuff apart from Ten."

"Yes thank you for your... original input Taeyong," Seulgi awkwardly said. "You're hungry and we get it but lunch is in 30 minutes. We are not going to have a chicken concept for the next issue."

"No because you know what's better than that? Chicken nuggets," Taeyong nodded to his own idea.

Seulgi was going crazy. Since the moment Taeyong joined the meetings as his new status in the company required, he kept being foolish and proposing weird stuff just to get to her nerves.

"Yooah I believe you were working on something for the spring catalog?" Seulgi tried to change the subject.

"Ah unnie, you know me," Yooah excitedly started. "I thought of flowers and bright settings. I already chose the colors!"

"If her color scheme goes with 17 different shades of pink again I'm resigning," Taeyong threatened.

"You just got promoted Taeyong, enough with this," Seulgi dismissed. "Go ahead Yooah."

The girl in question got up and walked to the computer to open her presentation. As soon as the images appeared on the screen, a heavy silence invaded the room except for Taeyong who made his disapproval clearly evident. He cringed, loudly sighed and let his head fall on the table before looking to his empty notepad.

Seulgi sighed too at the third pink concept Yooah had prepared for the March issue.

"Yooah, you do realize that there are more than one color in the world?" Taeyong said before Seulgi could even comment on the sweet mess in front of her.

"Yes I know, why?"

The room fell dead silent again and Taeyong facepalmed himself.

"It's a spring issue I admit Yooah but there are other refreshing ways to represent spring. Colors like yellow, orange, teal or even green are bright and make people happy," Seulgi tried to say nicely.

"But we wanted it to be youthful," Yooah pouted. "What else makes you think of youth other than pink?"

"It's not a baby shower," Taeyong mumbled under his breath although everyone heard it. Ten nudged him for that comment before returning his attention back on Seulgi.

"Are we still using the flower theme?" he asked her.

"That's too old fashioned," Seulgi answered before standing up. "We need to represent spring with someone, not objects. People don't identify themselves in plants... although they could."

Seulgi thanked Yooah and asked her to go back to her seat before turning off the projector.

"Okay, I will need everyone's help this time," she started as she took out a pen to write on the white dry board behind her. "Even you Yuta."

The said man woke up from his sleep with a jolt and looked around him to see that Youngho and Jaehyun were laughing at him.

"I was thinking of putting an idol on the cover," Ten said. "There are many female idols with a refreshing and young image."

"Good," Seulgi said before writing Ten's idea at the centre of the board. "Who?"

"SNSD Yoona!" Yooah said.

"Taeyeon!" Sujeong proposed.

"We are not talking about your personal preferences but about the person who will be on the cover of X Korea's first spring issue of the year," Seulgi sternly reminded the fangirls in the room. She still wrote the names on the side just in case. "A new season means a new approach. The first spring issue is crucial so anybody has an idea?"

"Red Velvet Joy," Taeyong chimed in.

"Any reason?"

"She's cute," Taeyong shrugged as Seulgi rolled her eyes. "Fine. I heard she has a refreshing image and something about being linked with apples."

"Mina, any idea?" Seulgi asked after writing Taeyong's recommendation.

"Can't it be a man?" the short haired girl asked innocently.

"No," Seulgi declined. It came out more aggressively than she intended. "I mean, uh, no."

"Your misandry is showing Director Kang," Taeyong softly laughed.

Seulgi threw her marker's cap at him and the room laughed.

"Then Choi Sulli," Mina proposed after everyone returned back to their serious mode.

Seulgi wrote the idol's name and turned to take four other suggestions. The small group decided to go for a vote and finally decided to take the two members of SM's last girl group.

"So what do Joy and Yeri inspire you kids?" Seulgi said before putting the two girls' name at the centre of the board. It was time to brainstorm.

"Youth," Taeyong said.

"Energy."

"Friendliness."

"Flowers."

"Purity and power."

Seulgi took note of every proposition she heard.

"Ten, tell me what you like about spring," Seulgi said. "Not more than two things."

"I like how I can wear what I want because the temperature is between two extremes and the warmth in general."

"So fashion and lighter clothes as well as warmth," Seulgi noted. "Thank you. What about you Sujeong?"

"I can go see cherry blossoms with my family," Sujeong smiled. "And finally not get judged for eating ice cream."

"Family, together, cherry blossom and... forget the ice cream," Seulgi scrunched her nose as she recopied the words on the board.

They went on with the same task for ten minutes until there was no space left on the large board. Seulgi asking questions to inspire her employees and them finding things related to a specific subject was just the usual. Seulgi went through her purse to find her dry-board eraser as the younger employees of the creative department gritted their teeth or sighed. It was the most painful moment. Seulgi started taking out useless words and concepts she definitely wouldn't use for this project in groups of four at first and then one by one. By the end, there were only five words on the board next to the two idols' name. Warmth, family, youth, light and purity.

"Just making sure but by light you mean not heavy, right?" Taeyong asked with a raised eyebrow. "Because if you wanted a completely white cover I could've slept in this morning."

"By light I mean simple," Seulgi specified. "Natural, clean, quiet, smooth, uncomplicated, effortlessly pretty, not heavy. Is that clearer?"

Taeyong gulped and nodded. Seulgi was always ten times scarier whenever she wore heels and a blouse. And it was worse when she entered a meeting room.

"With that being said, I will need you to finish the tasks I will assign to you before the next meeting, in two weeks," Seulgi said before taking off her glasses and putting back her pen in her purse. "Jaehyun and Youngho for the color scheme, Sujeong and Yooah for the model arrangement... you can directly ask Jisoo for help, Mina and Yuta for the place and setting of the photoshoot and Ten I want you to finish a template on your own. The cover is all yours," she finished with a smile.

"And me? What do I do?' Taeyong pouted.

Seulgi turned to Taeyong with two raised eyebrows. She had completely forgotten about him. She never gave him any tasks before so it was a first.

"It's only your second meeting, I can't assign you a project right away."

"So I'm only a decoration?" Taeyong frowned.

"Well, do what you always do Taeyong," Seulgi shrugged.

"And what do I always do?"

What you want, Seulgi thought.

"Why don't you ask Ten to show you how to do a cover template?" Seulgi proposed. "I'm sure he'll be happy to take you as his assistant."

Taeyong automatically turned to Ten with puppy eyes.

"Is it fine with you Ten?" Seulgi asked.

"Do I have a choice?" Ten sighed.

"Always."

"No."

Taeyong and Seulgi both looked at each other with surprise before she frowned at him.

"I mean, yeah you can say no but why would you, I'm like your best friend," Taeyong mumbled under his breath.

Taeyong pretended to sulk for a good minute with his amazing acting skills and stopped once Seulgi got fed up and told him to act his age. Ten agreed with a bright smile to release the tension and seeing that this was settled, Seulgi wished everyone a good lunch before getting out of the meeting room.

"Is it just me or Director Kang hates me? I get reprimanded for breathing," Taeyong exaggerated for dramatic purposes as everyone let out a sigh. He was doing it again. "I know she has a grudge over men in general but I'm always the scraped goat! You guys are my witnesses, don't just sit there and use your voice to protect your innocent and defenseless colleague!"

Just as soon Seulgi came back.

"Taeyong," she called. Her tone was neutral but her eyes showed something else. Once was enough, Taeyong got the message.

"Yes, in your office in five minutes. I will be there," he smiled.

Seulgi stepped out of the room for the second time in less than a minute to go to her own office. She had many documents to finish and some reviews to do for the November special with the actors of the trendiest drama of the moment. And Taeyong, yes she had to talk to him too.

As if on cue, Taeyong entered her office as soon as she was done with her first file. He was 10 minutes late, as usual.

"Come on Seulgi I was just joking," he said as he stepped inside. "I know you're sensitive over this kind of subject but I was just having fun with the kids."

"Go out and knock before entering," Seulgi said without removing her eyes from her computer's monitor.

"I don't—"

"Get out and knock," Seulgi repeated again as she glared at him.

Taeyong took two steps back with his hands in the air to signal that he was giving up and closed the door. Just as soon, two dry thuds echoed in the room.

"You can come in Taeyong."

"I take this back you clearly hate me," he said before sitting down on the chair in front of her.

"I'm just trying to educate you but it seems a bit too late for that," Seulgi half joked.

"I'm thankful but that's just how I am and I know you don't hate it."

Seulgi looked up to see him playing with a random pen on her desk.

"I don't hate it?" she repeated confused.

"I'm probably the only man in your life who can entertain you without giving you a headache."

"In my life?" she chuckled. "I have an older brother and a loving father, thank you. And that is false. The headaches you give me are just different."

Taeyong disinterestedly shrugged.

"I still stand by my point."

Taeyong started scribbling on a colorful note he found on her desk once again and drew some cute animals on it. Seulgi wondered if he didn't have anything more important to do like work but then she remembered she was the one who asked him to come.

"Taeyong," she hesitantly called after a long pause.

"What?"

"Am I too mean?"

"Yes I'm human too and I need a lot of love to function Seulgi," he seriously answered.

"Not with you," she hit his arm. "In general," Seulgi mumbled. She started feeling stupid for even asking. "Am I too mean?"

"Why?"

"If not mean then a bit too impulsive... or rigid?"

"What did you do?" Taeyong frowned.

"About two weeks ago, I blocked someone's number because I was mad..."

"So what? It happens all the time."

"Because he didn't answer me after 40 minutes," she awkwardly continued.

"Yes... huh that's kinda severe." Taeyong finally stopped drawing on Seulgi's paper and looked up.

"You think so too?" she bit her lip. "I figured too so I unblocked the number a few hours later but I just got more deceived."

"Who didn't answer you?"

"It's not really about who, it's a long story..." Seulgi shifted in her seat. She wasn't really comfortable telling Taeyong everything that happened. Not only because she didn't want to be judged but also because she knew she had to stop telling him all about her life. He even knew now that she had an older brother.

"Why does it bother you so much? If you unblocked that person then stop feeling guilty," Taeyong simply said before letting go of the pen. "If that person didn't answer it's probably because they didn't have anything to say."

"I wished you were wrong but I have no idea and I don't think I want to know," Seulgi sighed as she turned off her computer. "I think I'm just going to leave it as it is. I spent great years avoiding all of them, I just have to do it again."

"Weren't you already avoiding them again?" Taeyong frowned. "Wendy aske