TBR 11

Chapter 11

The private post only fueled the employees’ curiosity.

Soon, the office was filled with the loud clatter of keyboards.

And Park Minchan, the new employee sitting next to Somang—who was suspected of being the illegitimate child—appeared calm despite everyone’s stares.

Instead, Deputy Director Gam seemed more on edge than ever.

<From today, Park Minchan will be working in the TF team, a new employee, not a young master.>
<Hello, I’m Park Minchan.>

As Minchan bowed his head, Daesik waved his hands frantically and bent so deeply that his forehead almost touched the floor.

<I-I’ll be counting on you, Young Master. Hic! I-I’m really sorry.>

With Gam Deputy Director’s absurd slip of the tongue and the community post, the employees were now convinced that Minchan was the rumored illegitimate child. By tomorrow, probably no one would be unaware.

Somang rolled her eyes slightly to the left.

Fair-skinned, flawless, and handsome despite being a man, with expensive brand clothes for a newcomer—everything about him made Gam Deputy Director’s words suddenly very credible.

“Excuse me, Deputy. Did I do something wrong?”

Her eyes, quietly returning to her place, were caught by Minchan.

“Oh, no. Why?”

“I just wondered if I made a mistake since you were looking at me.”

Feeling guilty for secretly assessing him, Somang cleared her throat and tried to appear composed.

“Did HR give you a system ID? The initial password is your birth date, so log in and change your password first.”

“Yes, Deputy.”

“There’s a building guide and server manuals on the desktop, so familiarize yourself with them first.”

“Yes.”

[Gam Daesik/Quality Management: Deputy Baek, you didn’t forget, right?]
[Gam Daesik/Quality Management: You can find out everything about the Young Master, from food preferences to hobbies, right?]

Sigh. So tiring, so tiring.

Somang’s brows furrowed as she read Gam Daesik’s messages. She had ignored him once, but the constant notifications and his wandering around to pressure her had worn her down. She opened the first drawer.

[You and Me: 100 Questions and 100 Answers]

It was a Q&A pulled from the internet, covering everything from hobbies to living arrangements.

With this, she could finally get a break from Deputy Gam’s harassment for a while.

“Can you fill this out? I need to know the basics about team members.”

With a plausible reason, Somang handed Minchan a printout without a title and a pen.

“Deputy, all of this?”

The stack of paper was indeed thick.

“Yes. Since you joined the TF team late and most tasks require collaboration, the faster you bond with the team, the easier work will be.”

Flipping through the sheets, Minchan gave a subtle smile.

“This will definitely make bonding happen quickly.”

Hearing the scratching of the pen, Somang returned to her seat. Soon, Section Chief Song peeked over the partition.

“The team leader is out today. With a new employee here, how about going out to eat together for a change?”

At a nearby Chinese restaurant, the team finished lunch, each holding a coffee.

“Minchan, you’ve been the hot topic since this morning.”

“Me?”

“You’re not just any newcomer. TF team newcomer—this is extremely rare, you know?”

“Oh, really?”

“Of course. Usually, even internal employees need a recommendation letter and performance record to join the TF team. How did you get in directly?”

“I don’t know.”

Despite Section Chief Song’s persistent questioning, Minchan only gave a calm smile.

After a few more draining conversations, the other team members lost interest and paired up, walking back to the office.

In the lobby, Dahee from the management team approached them cheerfully.

“Section Chief Song! Deputy Baek!”

Somang waved back but glanced at Minchan.

“Minchan, if this feels awkward, do you want to head up to the office first?”

“Don’t worry about me.”

It was an ambiguous response—was it yes or no? The tone was polite yet detached, as if saying, I’m fine, just handle it yourself.

“Then let’s go up together after this.”

Smiling, Somang blended into the group, while Minchan followed a step behind, sipping his drink.

“Deputy, did you know a new pasta place opened here?”

When Somang shook her head, Dahee waved her hand in front of her face.

“Why? Is it famous?”

“The owner is Dahee’s first love! They broke up in high school when he moved away. They even got free wood-fired pizza and steak!”

Eunjung laughed, while Dahee’s face turned bright red.

“Ah, I can’t live with this.”

Embarrassed by the attention, Dahee searched for someone else to tease, and the focus shifted to Somang.

“Baek Somang, your first love was supposedly handsome enough to rival actors! Wasn’t he supposed to marry you after returning from the U.S.? Right?”

Dahee snapped her fingers, trying to recall.

“His name was Yuhan… Yuhankyung? Something like that.”

“Oh, no. Your memory isn’t good. You must be confusing him with someone else.”

“What? You forget after saying it once or twice. Tell me, are you marrying him when he comes to Korea? He still hasn’t come, right?”

As the circle tightened, Somang stepped back toward the café exit.

Pause.

She stopped as a warm body pressed against her back.

“Minchan, I’m sorry.”

Turning around, she saw Minchan leisurely standing a few steps away.

Then whose solid chest was pressing against her?

A creeping sense of dread ran up her spine.

“Oh, team leader, hello. Did you have a good time on your outside duty?”

Why do ominous feelings never fail?

Somang bit her lips, lowering her head.

“Yes. Just finished.”

“Oh! Now that I think about it, your name seemed similar to the team leader’s.”

Hangeol raised his brows.

“Who?”

Dahee’s lips moved, and panicked, Somang shouted:

“What… what are you saying! My first love is dead!”

“What…?”

“Died five years ago. So, stop.”

Dahee’s eyes blinked, turning pale, while Hangeol struggled to suppress a smile.

After brushing her teeth and logging into the server, Somang saw her messenger icon flashing rapidly.

Swish. Swoosh.

Opening the airplane-shaped app, she saw a message from Dahee at the top.

[Jeong Dahee/Quality Control: Baek Somang, sorryㅠㅠ I didn’t know.]
[Jeong Dahee/Quality Control: If something this serious happens, shouldn’t you tell me?]

The following “I’m truly sorry” emojis made Somang squeeze her eyes shut. She didn’t even know where to start.

‘Death.’

No one could misunderstand the word, and the surrounding air instantly turned cold.

Dahee’s face had gone pale, and even Eunjung, stirring her straw, hesitated.

Meanwhile, Hangeol, who had unwittingly revealed his chest, was laughing.

The corners of his lips quivered like exploding flowers, ready to let out a clear laugh.

After calling his name countless times, she knew—he was her first love.

What could she do? Too late to play it cool, she stood stunned.

Ding ding.

Somang reflexively picked up the phone.

“Deputy Baek, can you ask Section Chief Song to come here?”

Hearing the familiar voice, Somang lowered her head.

“…”

“….”

In the silence, she peeked at Section Chief Song’s chair.

Empty. The chair had spun halfway around.

“He’s away, Section Chief Song. I’ll give you his extension number.”

Somang hung up, her voice firm, while a playful low voice echoed behind her.

• Even ghosts can make calls. I thought you were really dead since you didn’t speak for so long.

Haha. Gripping the receiver, Somang still felt no relief.

“If there’s nothing more, I’ll hang up.”

She placed the phone down, ignoring curious stares.

“Deputy Baek, is Team Leader Yuhan your first love?”

Minchan, holding the completed 100 Questions and Answers sheet, leaned slightly forward and whispered.