Kyungsoo’s laughter could be heard from down the pristine hallway, until it reached the very desk that welcomed people to the level of the building. The workers felt endeared by it, and that was the persona that the young man put upon himself in the corporation. Educated and good looking, Kyungsoo to the average day to day person would label him a man who just got too lucky.

In a way, he was.  In a way, he wasn’t.

While the laughter still bubbled its way down the hall and to the ears of workers, the individual to which the sound belonged to had lounged himself on his seemingly uncomfortable office chair. Legs crossed over, he wiggled his petite behind into the leather. It was brand new, he was told.

“You’d sink right into it!” and the delivery man gave him that standard quality-is-best smile.

That was before, and Kyungsoo still hadn’t felt that ‘sinking in’ the man was talking about. Unintentionally spinning, his knees had collided against the mahogany of desk, and a sound escaped his lips at the discomfort.

“Soo, are you alright? What was that noise?” the voice buzzed from the phone, and Kyungsoo shook his head, even though he couldn’t be seen.
“It’s alright, just this damned chair won’t agree with me. What were you saying?” Large eyes focused themselves on the edge of a piece of paper, nimble fingers playing with the corner as he spoke into the phone.

“I was thinking we could all go to this new bar. We could celebrate your promotion!”
“It’s not a promotion, Baek.” The tone reflected how much Kyungsoo didn’t want the promotion his friend was talking about.

It would only mean that he would have more work to do, less hours to sleep. He didn’t want that. He was young, and dark circles under your eyes weren’t exactly an asset. It was already hard enough to get in touch with the people he was closest to, because according to his father, attending to the matters of the corporation were much more worthwhile.

Kyungsoo’s foot gently hit the desk in silent protest. He wasn’t entirely built for this, but he didn’t want to have more on his plate. Like paying the bills or making sure he had a place to stay. No, he only wanted to make sure everything was clean and tidy.

“You know what I mean,” Baekhyun reasoned, sympathy b at the edges of his voice.
“We can go to the bar. Can you organise it?”
“Sure, of course.” 

“Thanks,” and before the other could say anything, Kyungsoo hung up, settling the phone down and exhaling in a rush. Workers passed by his office, giving him a small wave to which the young man didn’t return.

CEO. What did that word mean again? Head of the corporation, he would be the one to deal with decisions that would determine the wellbeing and the lives of others. To his family however, they were just handing over the torch. A family heirloom, was that all this was? Yet, they were famous, they had money, and they were international.

Any other young man that was in Kyungsoo’s place would be living the dream. Kyungsoo didn’t think so. Dreams were for those who had too much time on their hands. A quote that his father had said one time, yet it contradicted all he stood for.

Kyungsoo didn’t understand his father, sometimes.

Eyes wandering around the expanse of his office, they had settled on a piece of framed paper, set next to the monitor of his computer. The words were printed in bold, the lines thick and strong. It was an emphasis of the sentence to which it announced.

“Don’t tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results.” – George S. Patton Jr.

He had stared at the words for more than he should, until he reached over and slowly put the frame face down. Kyungsoo would put the frame upright later.

Later.