“Have you accepted my gift, Baekhyun?”

Baekhyun stilled for a moment as she was about to bite her strawberry cheesecake. She was in the middle of her usual ‘friendly dinner’ with Mr. Park, but this time was a bit special. The man told her to dress properly since he would take her to one of his favorite restaurants in town. “I will send you home right away if you are brave enough to wear your usual pitiful formal attires for work,” he had warned Baekhyun earlier at the office. That was why she went straight home after work to make Luhan help her put her best gown for this special occasion. She thought that she had been following the instructions completely. However, Mr. Park seemed not pleased by the way he coldly remarked Baekhyun’s appearance since the beginning.

And now he was asking about a gift Baekhyun had never known.

She carefully picked up her words as she fidgeted in her seat, being uncomfortable at Mr. Park’s earlier question. “I’m sorry, Sir, but which gifts were yours?” Her voice was barely above whisper. Baekhyun even wasn’t sure her boss could hear her statement before the man threw the coldest glance she had ever seen. Byun Baekhyun gulped nervously, feeling trapped by such an intimidating look Mr. Park possessed. She could only bow until her chin was nearly touching the table, trying to remember if there was something like a jewelry box or shopping vouchers.

“The puppy stuffed toy. Where is it?”

Baekhyun’s jaw almost dropped as she recalled the lame toy she threw away this afternoon. “T-the stuffed puppy? W-well, it’s... I left it at home, sir,” she tried to reason through ragged breaths. They fell into an uncomfortable silence a second after when suddenly Mr. Park leaned closer, his nose almost touching Baekhyun’s. Being shocked by his manner, Baekhyun automatically backed away, nearly tumbling from her seat. Just by looking at his locked jaw and hard gaze, Baekhyun was sure Mr. Park knew everything his employee had done to his poor puppy.

“Later on, try to appreciate every gift that you get, Miss Byun, before anyone stops giving you something because they think you don’t deserve their gifts at all,” stated Mr. Park, making Baekhyun shaken on her seat. The man hadn’t retreated to his seat yet. Baekhyun was silent, contemplating on Chanyeol’s scolding before she felt something soft touching her temple for a brief moment. “From now on, I will teach you how to be grateful for every single thing that someone gives to you, Byun Baekhyun. And I won’t tolerate any objection. Get it?”

At the end of the dinner, Park Chanyeol had officially claimed Byun Baekhyun as his girlfriend.

***

“He tricked me, Luhan. He ing tricked me.” Baekhyun had been throwing outbursts to her pillows since two hours ago. Luhan didn’t understand what part of being tricked was Baekhyun talking about but she was sure who her best friend was talking about. That certain Mr. Park must have had something to do with Baekhyun’s temper. That was when Baekhyun’s phone suddenly rang. Luhan saw the Chief’s name on her screen. Baekhyun tumbled as she tried to get down from the bed, hurriedly dashing to the bathroom before picking up the call.

“What took you so long to answer my call?”

Baekhyun nearly dropped her phone in the bathtub when she heard him grumbling through the speaker. Hell, she didn’t expect to be provoked by his deep, hoarse voice this early.  This was annoying her to the core due to the arousal she felt a second later. Baekhyun shut her eyes tightly, reminding herself not to fall into his trap for the umpteenth time. It was so hard for Baekhyun not to be intimidated by that handsome devil that possessed such a lewd voice named Park Chanyeol. She tried to calm herself first before speaking.

“I’m sorry, sir. I was... I was still at the bathroom when I heard you calling.” She inhaled slowly as she continued, “What can I do for you, sir?”

She heard a low grumble again, making her body shudder involuntarily. What had Mr. Park done to her? This wasn’t fair at all. “Drop the Sir and Mr. Park because from now on you’ll be calling me Chanyeol.” Baekhyun almost gasped at his statement. “Remember, you still have to meet me today at the Amusement Park.”

Baekhyun nodded absently before replying. “Y-yes, sir—I mean—Chanyeol.” She tried to hold herself from crying in frustration. Baekhyun didn’t get why her heart trembled painfully on her chest. “I will be at the Amusement Park five minutes before the settled time,” she assured.

“No need to. I will pick you up. Give me your address and be ready ten minutes before five.” Then he hung up.

Luhan almost jumped from the bed as she heard Baekhyun entered the bedroom boisterously, flailing her arms in panic. “LUHAN! GET READY TO HELP ME DRESS BECAUSE I HAVE A DATE WITH THAT EVIL BOSS THIS AFTERNOON!” She screamed in horror.

Going on a date with Mr. Park—or Chanyeol—wasn’t something that Baekhyun had ever imagined before. She thought that her boss had no intention to date such an ordinary employee like her, not that she felt self-conscious. She knew her beauty was her pride, and she also got brains. Her previous boss always complimented her hard work and he was nothing like Park Chanyeol. This man had added misery to her life from the first time he asked Baekhyun to come to his office. Nevertheless, Luhan said he was just desperately in love with her from the start.

Baekhyun hadn’t decided yet whether she should feel honored or doomed by his sudden attraction to her. It couldn’t be called attraction since Chanyeol’s attempts to show his attraction were nothing but demands. Baekhyun still pretended that this date was part of her job. She still thought that Chanyeol was her boss and being her girlfriend was one of the tasks that Baekhyun had to complete for him. Even when their amusement park date ended, Baekhyun still assumed that this was still work for her boss.

Chanyeol called her every morning and bid her goodnight every time she was ready to sleep. He put different presents every day on Baekhyun’s desk anonymously before he demanded Baekhyun to keep it minutes later. He still made Baekhyun go to dinner with him every single night and took her home afterwards. Those job-like dates lasted for more than two weeks until Baekhyun felt like he had been with Chanyeol for too long. It took less than six months for her to be aware of the tingling sensation every time she sees Chanyeol’s name appear on her phone screen.

But it only took an hour for Chanyeol to shatter Baekhyun’s heart into pieces as he decided to call off their ‘fake dates’ because of his upcoming marriage with the woman who got his parents’ blessing.

Baekhyun didn’t have to be told twice to get away from him. Chanyeol earlier said that shewas to be transferred to another department by the end of August, exactly a month before his marriage. He still told her to come attending the ceremony but Baekhyun paid no mind to his remarks. “I’m sorry, sir. I’m afraid you can’t ask me to do this and that again since I’m going to be transferred tomorrow. And if you don’t mind, I will excuse myself to greet my new chief.” And with that, Baekhyun walked out from Chanyeol’s life.

Later that night she admitted to Luhan in her drunken state that she had been in love with Park Chanyeol for the longest time. Her best friend had been having a hard time to calm down the fragile Baekhyun, never letting go of her embrace until the poor girl fell asleep. Luhan wiped the remaining tears from Baekhyun’s cheeks, trying to hold back her sobs as she looked at her best friend’s dejected expression in her sleep. Baekhyun had never let anyone see her suffering before, not until she met Park Chanyeol.

P.S : I'm going to do double update so be prepared xD Betaed by nikka yay!