“So, Mr. President, you have to acknowledge that my workload has exceeded the amount I am getting paid for. Kang-Hee, Ye-Eun, Seung-Jae… my hands are full of their work. I am cleaning up their mess by myself. Even if Ye-Eun, who is in her postnatal period, could come back soon, until then I cannot do it with only Seung-Jae, Mr. President. No way.”

“……”

“I know you always consider carefully who you employ. It would be hard to hire a replacement, or even a temp, because of Kang-Hee and Ye-Eun. At most, their maternity leave could last 2/3 years, and it could be a pain to dispose of the temp once both come back. I understand. But even if not Ye-Eun’s share, at least Kang-Hee’s… Ah, no, I am being too hasty here and that is not for me to judge, but if you would consider hiring one temp for our team…”

“……”

“Mr. President, are you listening?”

“……”

“Mr. President?”

Normally, Si-Jin would have already shut her mouth when she said “I cannot do it”, “No way” and “You have to acknowledge it”. His reaction was way too strange.

Na-Yool glared at the back of his head with an annoyed expression. But suddenly her face tensed up with anxiousness as she was concerned that he might have passed out in a standing position.

“Mr. President?”

“……”

“Mr. President, are you alright?”

Na-Yool was now seriously worried. With her current unstable state of mind combined with her anger, maybe it was her who could not hear a thing. As she focused her attention on Si-Jin, she could hear a heavy breathing that broke the silence in an ominous way.

It was kind of like a groan, almost imperceptible, as if he were out of breath…

“…Ha, uuugh…”

“Oh my god, Mr. President. Are you sure you are okay?”

The document was held high in the left hand, which Na-Yool could barely see from her side, and shined under the high light stand. She noticed that the paper was slightly wrinkled, as the hand firmly squeezed it.

Something was definitely wrong. From a distance, it looked as if his body, which until now seemed to just lean on the desk, dangerously shook. It was so tense that Na-Yool could almost see his spine through his shirt, which hugged his back. It looked as if he battled an indescribable pain.

Was his stomach hurting? Maybe the appendix? Yes, if it was the right side it should be the appendix. If it was painful enough for him to clutch on it, it must be serious. And the way his right arm moved as if he had put some strength in it and suddenly lost energy – it was not natural. What could possibly be so painf-

Now was not the time to think. Even if she did not like him, Si-Jin had to be helped. She bit her lips and walked towards him with haste.

“As I thought you’re not well, Mr. President.”

“Ha…”

“Look at your breathing! How painful it must be, for you to not even be able to speak since earlier! I know work is important but think about your—”

“……”

“—health… first…”

“……”

“……”

Her eyes met his “head”, as their hot and cold breaths intertwined in the air between them. Na-Yool’s hand, which had grabbed Si-Jin’s shoulder, quietly slid off.

Just then, a wireless earbud, blasting heavy music, fell from Si-Jin’s ear. As if it had waited for the right moment, a flaunty guitar riff started to play and resonated in the heavy silence.

Time had stopped.

There she was –  in front of her perverted boss who was enthusiastically jerking off as he worked overtime.

Chapter 2 – Midnight Saturday, 00:00 a.m.

“……”

At this very moment, the sensation of time had stopped was probably an illusion created by a shared sense of desperation. It was hard to tell whether it was a short time period that felt like an eternity, or if a long time had actually passed.

Both stared at each other blankly, like some cavemen deprived of language.

How nice it would be if time had indeed stopped. Unfortunately, as the guitar riff that rose from the floor increased in volume, Na-Yool felt the fast flow of time run through her skin.