3rd POV

Back in office a weekend later, Siyeon was having trouble adjusting to a heartbroken JiU. She was inefficient, swore more often than not, and got irritated as easily as a middle-aged woman waiting for her turn at a grocery store. She was human, after all. 

Handong made a great effort to fill the gaps and holes, smartly knowing how to speak to JiU without getting on her nerves…if she had any, she was more like a ticking time bomb, every time she spoke the timer counting down from 30. WIthout her, SIyeon would not have been able to handle JiU on a workday.

Over the weekend Sua had spent lots of hours with JiU, connecting like they were long lost friends, even Siyeon was surprised - she kept getting surprised these days - and maybe a little jealous. Sua definitely brought out her caring side quite extensively, attentive to every little thing JiU was sensitive about, all the words she said. She might have learnt more about JiU than Siyeon already knew.

In this way Handong and Sua were key players in managing Siyeon’s stress levels.

“Siyeon-ssi, um eonnie,” Handong stumbled over the formality, cutely unfamiliar with it. “I have lost sight of JiU-eonnie, is she meeting a client? I thought she was restricted to office work this week.” Slight panic swirled through her eyes.

Only then did Siyeon notice her breathless tone, she must have ran from room to room. 

“She is meeting with a business friend, not a client. A late lunch I presume.” Siyeon checked her watch. “She says it’s work-related, about the Europe Trip next year…but she probably just needs a distraction. We’ve had some tough meetings.” 

“Understood.” Handong bowed and turned to leave.

“Handong,” Siyeon called her name and she was facing her again. “Do you know what happened to JiU?”

A mild look of discomfort crossed her face before she masked it into a contested expression. Like she wanted to say something but at the same time didn’t.

“I heard about what had happened, but respectfully, I am only aware of one side of the story. Hence I do not wish to assume anything.” She stated quietly.

Siyeon frowned. Who did she hear it from? Had Yoohyeon’s roommate spread it to a gossip site? Was it spread around the office already?

She held back a deep sigh. “Handong, just tell me this, has any of such information been released online? Or did you find out since you’re acquainted with the involved parties?” She had no plans to force anything out of the latter, she was more worried about it disrupting the company’s momentum. 

Handong picked up where her concern lay. “I am only acquainted with the involved parties…as far as I’m aware, nothing has been uploaded online.” She confirmed. 

Siyeon opened to further question who, specifically she was acquainted with, Yoohyeon and Yoohyeon’s roommate coming to mind. Or both.

“Okay.” She finally said. “Thank you for not assuming anything. Do you have any questions for me regarding JiU? On a more personal note, I mean.” Siyeon leaned back into her chair to resume a relaxed posture, much more relieved than she was seconds ago.

Handong couldn’t help but ponder about it since she only knew one side of the story. But she wasn’t comfortable crossing the line since JiU was her boss, and Siyeon was also her boss. Having been around them for 4 years, she has seen more changes in Siyeon than she has seen in JiU. She never was curious to learn more about them outside of work, simply as much as their work settings naturally allowed it. 

“I don’t wish to interfere until JiU-eonnie feels better. I can tell she is in pain.” Handong’s tone softened towards the end, Siyeon saw in her eyes how much she cared for JiU. More than she thought. “I wish to interfere if and when JiU-eonnie, or you need my help.” She then bowed.

Siyeon in some air between her lips, she herself was lost on what she was going to do with JiU. “I see, thank you for your kind words…” She let out the sigh she was holding back. “If I’m being honest here I don’t know how to help JiU, she isn’t opening up where she needs to, it’s like she is trying to stay afloat but leaves the weight at her ankles.” 

Handong nodded softly. She could understand that to a certain extent. “From what I’ve seen over the years, eonnie is built like a business machine,” She stopped herself from leaning against the wall. “She seems to remain professional on and off the scene.”

Siyeon chuckled to herself, “You don’t know how true that is. I’ve never seen someone speak formally to a pocha auntie or uncle…I get embarrassed sometimes.” She admits.

Handong felt a small giggle rest at the back of . “That sounds like eonnie. I know she can’t take time off as a CEO, but maybe she should take a step back from the prioritised projects for a while. I could see what I, and the department managers could do to fill that in.” She proposed a practical solution.

Siyeon hummed in agreement. “She should give her brain some rest. Maybe see if her heart can heal.”

“I’m sure JiU-eonnie would want to act on her feelings as soon as she can. The question is how.” A hint of worry pinned at the word ‘how’. 

“That’s true…” Siyeon sighed. “I pray she doesn’t do something stupid.” She mumbled.

Handong found a bigger problem. “I’m sure she will put the company before herself…but it’s tough since she’s the affected one. With a strong support system she’ll manage.” She assured.

Siyeon was more assured. She herself needed someone who understood JiU’s personality as a whole, to talk about her. She believed Handong in a sense that she’s been through all the conferences, dinners, evaluations, exhibitions, where she would see JiU in different lights. She had gone drinking with them too, once, a long time ago, then did she really see what JiU was like when her heart was the main driver of her existence. 

An hour later, JiU came back. Her eyes were still hollow and blank, seeming to be trained onto the floor the entire time. Even her posture was small, not like the confident JiU she saw sign the papers in front of the board years ago. She was losing herself.

“Siyeon…why am I so weak like this?” She sprawled across her couch, closing her eyes with a frustrated sigh.

The latter smiled to herself. Of course JiU wouldn’t admit that she was heartbroken. 

“Let me distract you for a minute now, we’ve received confirmation for Europe next year.” Siyeon rested a document on her stomach. “Our first stop is the Netherlands.”

“Seriously? I wanted somewhere warmer…” JiU sat up to take a look at the printed plan.

“That’s right up your alley because Spain is on the list too, only the dates aren’t confirmed. In the meantime you can enjoy the abundance of wine and cheese in the Netherlands. Belgium waffles is also only a train ride away.” Siyeon appealed.

“I am looking more forward to that than the business. You could say I do business to afford to eat good food.” JiU nonchalantly replies.

Siyeon decided to tell her about her chat with Handong. “I spoke with Handong earlier, she knows what’s going on.”

She didn’t expect JiU to nod in response, meaning to say that she either wasn’t surprised or knew this already.

“That night, Handong was already waiting for me at the office’s carpark. Like she expected me to come here. If she hadn’t known what was happening with me and Yoohyeon, why was she waiting at the carpark? She stood at the pillar where I always parked. At that time I was too upset to notice anything, simply glad to see a familiar face.” JiU elaborated between pauses, her next sentence shocking Siyeon. “Within a couple questions thrown around, she revealed that she was dating a close friend of Yoohyeon’s. She didn’t mention a name, but of course I knew who it was. Her roommate, Lee Yubin. Yoohyeon didn’t have any other close friends…” Her voice cracked at the end.

“Lee Yubin…” Siyeon didn’t know why the name sounded so familiar to her. 

“Handong tried to interfere with me staying at the office, but I lashed out on her.” JiU quietly continued, looking at the ceiling with guilt. She then chuckled suddenly. “Si, Handong is actually kinda scary.”

“Huh? Why?”

“She knows us better than we think she does. Before I slipped past her into the lift, she forced a couple hangover drinks in my hands. I just grabbed it thinking it was alcohol.” JiU facepalmed at the memory, but was impressed by Handong.

“So you’re telling me, Handong is the middle person of this whole situation, with me being your best friend, and this Yubin person being Yoohyeon’s best friend? And somehow Handong is interconnected with all of us? What in the world of K-drama is this??” Siyeon was bewildered. The name Lee Yubin still stumped her, sounding like a nagging voice in her memory…

“That’s pretty much it. I wouldn’t hold any grudges against Handong, she has done so much for me even having heard Yoohyeon’s side of the story…which makes me really look like the bad guy.”

Siyeon turned to her strictly.  “Minji, you have to apologise to Handong, Yubin and Yoohyeon.”

JiU scoffed. “They don’t know me. Why should I? I’ll just move on and send an apology note once things calm down.’’ She expressed denial.

Four words flashed through Siyeon’s mind in big, bold, red letters: ‘5 Stages of Grief.’

“Minji, would you rather have a client that treats you with respect and is loyal to you for a long-term or a client that is only loyal and respectful to you for a short-term?” Siyeon needed to put this matter in a business perspective.

“Of course the former. That’s Biogon to us.” She named one of MinTech’s most loyal clients in the past 4 years, always working well with departments and overall one of the more efficient companies they had come across.

Siyeon jumped at the chance. “That’s right. Now don’t you feel that with Yoohyeon?”

She received silence. JiU had covered her face with a pillow. Siyeon wanted to let out a frustrated scream.

“Eonnie, please, think about it hard, with your heart, with your ENFP heart,” Siyeon insisted, “Yoohyeon is more than just a fling to you right?” She ripped the pillow off of JiU’s face.

JiU kept looking at the ceiling, seemingly stubborn to confront her feelings. But Siyeon was too frustrated to see that JiU needed time to figure it out herself, she was quick to switch into work mode and ignore everything else. 

The reason why Siyeon was greatly worried was because she knew that with just a message sent, rumours could develop and destroy MinTech. She wanted JiU to do something about it quickly, and wondered why JiU wasn’t worried about it either.

With that train of thought she turned cold, “Kim Minji, answer me.”

The CEO could hear her icy tone and forced herself to answer. “She is better than a fling.”

Not the most convincing answer but an answer nonetheless. Siyeon knew JiU wouldn’t lie to her about her feelings. If she did, she would know.

After a couple rounds back and forth, Siyeon disappointedly stood up to make her final point.

“Minji, I always believed that you’re a genuine person. But, you’re really a jerk to Yoohyeon if you only wanted to keep her around to treat her like a fling.”

She walked out of the office to go to the next conference that she had taken over from JiU. She felt the heavy air follow her as she met Handong in the hallway. Siyeon now saw Handong in another light. As much as she was a key player in this situation, she wouldn’t know what she could be sharing behind closed doors. After all, you could never really trust someone one hundred percent. She just knew that she needed to put the company’s priorities first while helping JiU in the background, at least until the situation improved. Not forgetting building her future with Sua at home. It wouldn’t be an easy task and Siyeon hoped that at least at work, Handong would be helping them with the best of intentions.

~