Used To Getting His Way

Kim Hana had finally had the opportunity to meet the other new hires. When she returned from the meeting, she was assigned a desk beside Han Deji, a young woman with straight black hair while Cho Young-soo, a young man with dark brown hair sat opposite them. A small introduction passed around them before they all returned to their work. It was a busy day. Of all times to get hired, right in the middle of chaos. The three hires barely spoke as work was delegated to them. Kim Hana was designated more work by Leader Lee. Before noon came around, she had already been taken into three meetings. The moment noon stuck, many went to get a quick lunch. Mrs Kim a soft-spoken woman in her thirties urged them to stop working and go get a meal. She showed them to the eatery on the first floor where most of the staff ate. Lunch was part of their employment package, a reason why Kim Hana always wanted to work for a big corporation.

She was about to get her meal when a call came in. She picked up the call the moment her eyes rested on the caller ID.

“I am parked in the basement one. Come down for a moment,” Kang Seo Joon’s voice sounded the moment the phone touched her ear.

“Okay,” Kim Hana excused herself to leave.

“It can’t be Leader Lee calling for you again, right? He should let you eat,” Mrs Kim said.

“No, I have someone waiting for me outside,” Kim Hana explained.

“Okay, go. Don’t forget to come back on time,” Mrs Kim said and Kim Hana bowed slightly and slipped away. She ignored the two men already on the lift as she entered the elevator and rode to the first basement. She was not sure if she would be able to find him, so she pulled out her phone just in time for his call to come in.

“Seo Joon-ssi, where are you?” she asked, not noticing that the two men walking right past her glanced her way a bit at the call of his name.

“In front of you, second row. The car indicator is blinking,” he answered and she looked in that direction. It did not take long for her to find his car. The back door opened and paused and moved towards it.

“Get in.” she heard him say from inside and she took a seat beside him. The moment she sat down and shut the door, she noticed two others in the car.

“Have you eaten?” he asked before she could react.

“No, I was about to,” she answered.

“Driver Shin, to Lotus pavilon,” he said.

“Yes, sir,” the driver answered and started the engine. As the car started moving, Kang Seo Joon looked at his assistant sitting in front.

“Hand it over,” he said and Assistant Jang hurriedly passed a small nylon bag to him. Kang Seo Joon took out a tablet and a bottle of water and handed them to Kim Hana. She looked at the painkiller and muscle relaxer and thanked him before taking it.

“You did not bother to treat yourself this morning. Did you go to sleep after I left?” he asked while rummaging through the nylon.

“I even came to work early. Besides, I am not sure if I can sleep,” she answered.

“You just forgot? You can’t be sick after tomorrow, you know that,” he said and she nodded in reply. Of course, she knew. Given what had happened last time, it was unsure what they would have to face when they got pulled in. She needed to be in the right condition.

He passed her the ointment and took back the bottle of water. Kim Hana put the ointment on her shoulders, rolled up her left-hand sleeve and rubbed on a generous amount. She still had to put some on her ankle and the left side of her waist, but this was not the place so she put away the ointment for later.

“You did not get wounded, did you?” he asked.

“No, You?” she asked.

“No. Did you get the mask?” he asked and she paused and he gave her a deep look.

“It’s not today,” she responded.

“You never know. Hana-ssi, I am getting the feeling that you might be a bit of an airhead,” he said with a slight frown.

“I just forgot it once,” she said.

“Once is enough. I think a mask is easy to forget. You might need something more useful.” he said.

“I won’t forget it tomorrow,” she insisted with slight irritation and turned her attention to the traffic outside allowing silence to return to the car. Assistant Jang who had been watching the two from the rearview mirror felt slightly uncomfortable at the silence. A look and he knew his boss was slightly annoyed. Silence followed them all the way to their destination. The car came to a stop and Assistant Kang hurriedly opened the car door to let his boss out. Kim Hana walked out and joined him as the three of them walked into the glass building.

“Welcome Chairman Kang, Your room is ready.” A tall manager stepped forward and led the three to a private room. He nodded to a sever to open the door and showed them in. Kim Hana and Kang Seo Joon took a seat while Assistant Jang stepped back allowing the manager to present the menu.

“What will you eat?” Kang Seo Joon asked Kim Hana paused and ordered a lot of food.

“When did you last eat?” he asked.

“Yesterday Afternoon I had a bowl of noodles,” she said as the manager took their order.

“Chef Gang has created a new dish. Would Chairman Kang like to try it?” the manager asked and Kang Seo Joon nodded and waved away the manager.

“Hana-ssi is used to skipping meals?” Kang Seo Joon asked.

“Yesterday, I went shopping to cook enough food to stock up for the week but that stalker made me spend too long at the park. By the time I came back to buy anything, it was getting dark and you know what happened after that,” she answered. Noticing it was only two of them in the room, she took out the ointment and pulled out her shirt tucked into her trousers, slid her hand under the shirt and massaged her bruised side with the ointment. Her actions did not escape Kang Seo Joon’s eyes. He poured himself a cup of tea as he watched her frown in pain.

“You held that in all morning. What about your ankle? You were walking odd,” he asked and she paused.

“It hurts a little,” she answered.

“Bring it,” he said and she raised a brow in confusion.

“Let me do it for you,” he explained and she slowly complied, raising her leg his way from under the table. He took her leg, placed it on his lap and raised his hand to her to give him the ointment. She placed it in his hand and he took a generous amount and gave her ankle a slight rub, causing her to flinch.

“You call this hurting slightly?” he asked.

“It was manageable to walk on,” she said and he tilted slightly to glance at the four-inch heel beside the table. His actions spoke volumes, causing her to snort.

“A bruise is not enough to stop a good heel from gracing a foot,” she said as she nonchalantly poured herself a cup of tea. She took a sip of the tea and frowned in disgust.

“Isn’t Ice tea tasty? Why does this one taste so bad?” she resisted the urge to spit it out.

He picked up the phone and made a call.

“Assistant Jang, go pick up flat shoes for Miss Kim,” he said and looked to Kim Hana throwing judgemental eyes.

“What is your shoe size?” he asked.

“38” she answered. And he relayed it to Assistant Jang and put away his phone.

“Chairman Kang is not going to ask me to pay it back, right? You bought it of your own free will,” she said.

“You need to keep some free time tomorrow, we need to get you a turtle neck shirt,” he said and she paused at how random his words were.

“Why?”

“A design that can roll past your neck up to your face, Eliminating the need for a mask,” he said and if looks could kill, Kim Hana’s eyes would have split Kang Seo Joon in two. A knock sounded from the door and Kang Seo Joon called for them to enter. Servers arrived and placed down their food and started leaving.

“Bring me a cola,” Kim Hana asked those leaving.

“Bring her an orange juice,” he said and her sharp gaze descended on him again. The servers glanced between them, accepted the order and left.

“Seo Joon-ssi, I am getting the feeling that you may be a bit controlling,” she said the moment the door closed.