The main door pushed open loudly, the sound of keys jingling making Seungwan glance up from her desk. Joohyun let the door fall shut behind her as she balanced her car keys and the sandwich bags in her arms. Seungwan stood up and went over to her new boss, taking two of the small bags from her arms. “Here, let me help.” She said, wanting to repay her in some way for buying her lunch.

    “You’re kind, Seungwan.” Joohyun said with a smile. “One of those is yours, the other is Yerim’s.”

    “I’ll take it over to her.” Seungwan said with a nod, going over to Yeri’s desk and tapping her on the shoulder. “Lunch is here.”

    “Oh!” Yeri said, looking up at her and stopping her frantic typing. “Thank you!” She took the bag and set it on an open spot on the desk. “How has your first day been?”

    “Good, I like having things to do all day.” Seungwan replied.

    “That’s good.” Yeri sighed. “If you ever need anything just let me know. I’m only a desk away.” She winked jokingly, making Seungwan laugh. She liked Yeri already.

    “I’ll let you get back to work.” Seungwan said, making her way back to her own desk.

She noticed Joohyun’s office door was ajar and was about to sit down when she heard Joohyun’s voice saying, “Seungwan, could you come in here a moment?” Still clutching the bag that held her sandwich, Seungwan went into Joohyun’s office hesitantly. The office was clean and orderly, her desk polished and organized. Pictures were hung on the wall behind Joohyun, most of Joohyun and Seulgi, but many of the two of them along with Sooyoung and Yeri. None seemed to include family. “Go ahead and sit.” Joohyun said, gesturing to the chair opposite her desk. “I was hoping we could take this opportunity to get to know each other a little bit.”

“Oh okay.” Seungwan said, exhaling a low breath. She sat, crossing her legs, fiddling with the hem of her skirt. Joohyun studied her, head tilted to the side, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth.

“You said in your application that you are twenty eight…” Joohyun trailed off, looking at what Seungwan assumed was a printed copy of her application. “Have you graduated university?”

“Yes, from Temple University.” Seungwan answered, feeling a little insecure. She had not missed the degree from Harvard framed on the wall in her visual search of Joohyun’s office.

“What did you study?” Joohyun inquired further, looking at her, eyes full of what seemed to be genuine interest.

“I majored in music and minored in communications.” Seungwan said, her voice small. Most people thought she was ridiculous when she told them she majored in music, told her that’s why she struggled so much with money.

“You have an interest in music?” Joohyun’s voice filled Seungwan’s ears, and she couldn’t help but feel warm all over under Joohyun’s gaze.

“I love music.” Seungwan answered. “I sing and play the guitar.”

“That’s wonderful.” Joohyun said, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. “How did you end up applying for a desk job then?”

“I was working in a record shop, but I was let go from that job.” Seungwan mumbled. “I saw this job application online and figured it was worth a shot, especially since it pays well.”

“Well I’m glad you applied.” Joohyun said back, taking Seungwan by surprise. She had been expecting to be asked why she had been fired. She certainly wasn’t going to offer that information up without Joohyun asking though. “You’ll get your weekly paycheck on Fridays, unless you’d prefer another day.”

“No, Friday is good.” Seungwan answered quickly. Joohyun nodded curtly.

“How long were you unemployed before this position?” Joohyun asked softly.

“Two months.” Seungwan replied.

“That must have been hard, money wise.” Joohyun went on, something shadowing her eyes. Seungwan simply shrugged, not wanting to admit how awful the last two months had been, only eating dinner, maybe lunch if she was lucky, her utilities constantly being shut off, having to walk everywhere no matter how far. She kept her eyes cast down, away from Joohyun, who was still watching her intently.

“I managed.” Seungwan muttered, her hands wringing together in her lap. Silence fell between them, and Seungwan felt heat creeping up her neck at Joohyun’s stare.

“Well I won’t keep you too long.” Joohyun finally said. “Go and eat your lunch.” Seungwan finally glanced back up, seeing an almost wistful look on Joohyun’s face. She nodded, saying nothing, and then headed out the office door back to her desk.

Seungwan spent the rest of her afternoon taking phone calls and continuing to go through the files created by previous secretaries. She found herself wondering why Joohyun had fired so many people before her. Joohyun seemed incredibly sweet, too sweet in fact, and Seungwan could not imagine the woman firing anyone. She tapped her pen on her desk mindlessly, rhythms to some unwritten song in brain, as she waited for a new phone call to occupy her. Her mind was wandering, always landing on her new boss; How did she come to be a criminal lawyer? Why were there no pictures of family on her wall? How was she so kind and warm to Seungwan when every article detailing her cases called her cold? The idea of Joohyun being cold, of having any expression other than her soft smile that made her eyes shine, made Seungwan’s stomach turn. But the question that plagued Seungwan more than any other was how many secretaries had come before her, and why did they get fired so quickly?

Across the office, Yerim’s voice made Seungwan’s ears perk. “Miss Kang?” She heard Yerim say into Seulgi’s open office door. “I’m leaving now, I have to make it to night classes.”

“Alright Yerim, thank you for letting me know.” Seulgi called back, voice sweet sounding. “Good luck at class!”

“Thanks!” Yerim turned to go, looking over to Seungwan and saying, “Bye Seungwan! See you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow, Yeri.” Seungwan replied, eyes darting to the clock. It read 4:57. The end of her shift was at five o’clock.

Sooyoung’s door swung open and the woman made her way into the main area of the living room. “I’m heading home, Seulgi!” She called in a sing song voice. She came over to Seungwan’s desk, asking, “How was your first day?”

“Good.” Seungwan answered genuinely. She really enjoyed this job, despite her usual hatred for mundane desk jobs. Her colleagues, specifically her new boss, made work more interesting.

“I’m glad.” Sooyoung replied, smiling brightly. She went to Joohyun’s office, pushing open the door and leaning on the door frame. “I’m heading out, Joohyun. Seulgi is probably right behind me.”

From inside the office, Seungwan heard Joohyun’s quiet voice. “Okay, I’ll see you both tomorrow.”

“Don’t stay here too late.” Sooyoung said, her voice firm.

“Sooyoung-”

“I don’t want to hear it, Hyun. Go home. Work isn’t everything.”

“I’m fine.” Joohyun’s voice sound icy, and it made Seungwan cringe inwardly. She glanced over her shoulder quickly, hearing Sooyoung sigh and watching her straighten up. Seulgi walked by Seungwan’s desk, smiling politely at her before standing at Sooyoung’s side. Seungwan quickly looked away, reading her clock; 5:08.

“We’re leaving, Hyun.” Seulgi said. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Alright, Seul. Be careful.” Joohyun said back, sounding more like herself.

Seulgi looked over at Seungwan, and Seungwan could feel the gaze on the back of her head. Seulgi then whispered, “She’s probably waiting for you to leave before she goes, you know.” Seungwan pretended not to hear. Joohyun only sighed. Seulgi and Sooyoung left shortly after, following each other out the door. Seungwan began packing her things up slowly, wanting to see if Joohyun would be leaving or if she would stay in her office.

“You don’t have to wait around if I’m still here, you’re free to leave at five.” Joohyun said. Seungwan spun around, seeing her boss standing in her office doorway.

“Oh, I uh-” Seungwan found herself stammering. “I was just-” She stopped abruptly.

“You were just…” Joohyun gestured for her to continue.

“I was just waiting to uh, to make sure you were okay.” Seungwan mumbled back, avoiding eye contact.

“You…” Joohyun trailed off, like there were no words to encapsulate what she wanted to say. “I’m fine, really. Just a bit of a workaholic.” She smiled, though it felt false to Seungwan. “Go ahead home, Seungwan. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Yeah, I’ll see you then.” Seungwan turned to leave, making it to the door before looking back to see Joohyun still watching her. “Goodbye, Miss Bae.”

“Goodbye, Seungwan.” Joohyun murmured. “Safe travels.”