Chapter#3
“This is your desk.”
Yulhee guided Si-hyuk to the empty seat on her left. Along with Sora, who sat on her right, it meant she now had one more person to take care of.
She swallowed the sigh that almost escaped and began explaining the basic work system.
“First, I’ll show you how to check in and out using the company intranet.”
Even though her tone was stiff and the explanation could have been boring, Si-hyuk listened carefully. He nodded occasionally as if he understood and even took notes on important points.
“Do you have any questions so far?”
“How should we manage document history?”
“There’s a separate file in each folder for tracking history.”
“Then is there a specific way to organize subfolders?”
“They’re mainly divided by project, and in detail…”
As she answered his questions, Yulhee couldn’t help but be impressed.
The only questions Sora—whom she had trained before—asked were things like, “Can I go out for lunch?” or “Can I take leave on the same day?”—nothing related to work.
She even forgot things that had already been explained, forcing Yulhee to repeat herself multiple times.
But Si-hyuk clearly already understood the structure of the system. From a trainer’s perspective, he was an ideal new employee.
Yulhee looked at him with new interest. At that moment, he looked up and met her eyes.
“I think I’ll be bothering you a lot from now on.”
He smiled gently.
His eye color is unusual.
His eyes were much lighter than typical. They reminded her of freshly brewed black tea—warm, calm, soft yet deep.
Once you met his gaze, it was hard to look away.
She felt like she had seen eyes like this before. Lost in thought, she forgot to respond.
Just then, Yeonju approached and answered instead.
“She’s busy, so if you have questions, ask me.”
For a moment, the warmth in Si-hyuk’s eyes turned cold.
He slowly turned to look at her. Though he still smiled, it felt emotionless.
“Thank you for your concern.”
After his polite but distant reply, he turned back immediately.
“Please continue.”
When Yulhee met his warm hazel eyes again, she looked confused.
Did I imagine that?
Still, the chill she had just seen lingered in her mind. After blinking a few times, she resumed explaining.
Yeonju, who had been lingering awkwardly nearby, finally gave up and returned to her seat.
But she kept glancing at him. In fact, all the female employees were watching Si-hyuk.
They paid attention to every small movement, typing constantly. The nonstop keyboard sounds made it obvious they were chatting about him.
Thanks to Si-hyuk becoming the center of attention, Yulhee felt relieved. Otherwise, she would have been the main topic on the company messenger.
And focusing on teaching him helped her forget her uncomfortable reality, even if only for a while.
“Alright, let’s go eat.”
As soon as it hit 12, Team Leader Yooncheol stood up.
He often said eating together improved teamwork, but in truth, it was just an excuse because he had no one else to eat with.
“Let’s go eat, Assistant Manager.”
Yulhee looked at Sora in disbelief as she acted friendly.
After everything—like the chocolate earlier—she couldn’t understand how Sora could act so shamelessly.
She wanted to respond out of stubbornness, but just imagining eating with Byungjoo and Sora made her feel sick.
“…My stomach isn’t feeling well, so I’ll skip lunch today.”
At her cold reply, Sora’s expression darkened slightly.
“Sora, let’s go.”
Now that he didn’t need to hide it, Byungjoo openly took care of Sora.
“Today’s menu is braised ribs! Si-hyuk, do you like that?”
“The cafeteria’s braised ribs are famous! What a coincidence for your first day!”
“If we’re late, the line will be long. Let’s go!”
The female employees gathered around Si-hyuk, lightly pulling his arm.
Yulhee turned back to her monitor, planning to finish her work during lunch.
Then someone placed a hand on her shoulder.
Startled, she turned around to see Si-hyuk standing very close, looking concerned.
“Is your stomach really that bad?”
“No, it’s not serious.”
She felt flustered by how close he was, but couldn’t push him away.
“I’m fine, so please go eat.”
He smiled.
“Actually, I’m a bit nervous since it’s my first day, so my stomach isn’t great either. If you’re okay with it, would you like to have porridge together?”
“Oh, Si-hyuk, your stomach hurts? Then I’ll come too—”
Yeonju quickly tried to join, but he firmly shook his head.
“You said the cafeteria ribs are really good. You shouldn’t miss it because of me. Enjoy your meal.”
Then he turned to Yulhee.
“Shall we go?”
As she followed him, Yulhee expected it to be uncomfortable.
She wasn’t good with people, and eating alone with a coworker felt like a burden.
But surprisingly, it wasn’t awkward at all.
“I find it hard to keep up with trends. Just when I adjust, they change again.”
“Same here. So I just decided to live unfashionably.”
“Let’s call it ‘classic’ instead.”
Yulhee laughed without realizing it.
Si-hyuk led the conversation smoothly with light but interesting topics. He didn’t force the mood or ask overly personal questions.
This kind of comfortable conversation was new to her.
“Your porridge is ready.”
The server placed two steaming bowls on the table.
Si-hyuk scooped some into a small dish, stirred it to cool it down, and placed it in front of her.
“It’s still hot, so blow on it before eating.”
Yulhee stared at the dish in surprise.
She couldn’t usually eat hot food well—but even her boyfriend Byungjoo had never taken care of her like this.
After hesitating, she took a bite. It was perfectly cooled. As the soft porridge went down her rough throat, her uneasy stomach felt better.
“You should eat too.”
“Please speak comfortably, sunbae.”
At his sudden suggestion, she hesitated.
Normally, she would draw a clear line—but for some reason, she didn’t want to with him. Besides, he was two years younger.
She nodded slightly.
“Alright, I’ll speak casually. Then you can also be more comfortable—just call me Assistant Manager Kang or something…”
“When we get closer… I’ll do that then.”
Yulhee thought they wouldn’t get that close—but didn’t say it out loud.
At that moment, she didn’t know.
That they would become entangled in a relationship far deeper than she could ever imagine.
