Lip Balm | Wooyoung

10

Tuesday

"Good Morning!" Seonghwa chirps as usual, automatically standing up to greet Hyunmi as she walks past. She flashes him a quick smile and mumbles "Morning" back, speeding to her office. She has a lot of work to get done today.

She stops in her tracks as soon as she sees Jongho and Mingi, clearly only having arrived a short time before her as they are still unpacking their bags. Jongho glances up and freezes, before taking a deep breath and continuing his task.

She uncomfortably proceeds to enter her office, sighing out of disappointment. It feels like an impossible task to become friends with any of them. She has tried talking to Seonghwa in the past but every time she does, Hongjoong interrupts or finds some excuse to keep her away.

If she had the chance to get hired somewhere else, she'd take the job in an instant.

That reminds her to check her email for any new job offers. She's been trying for over a year but has had no luck. She knows that she's reaching too far, attempting to apply to high paying jobs straight away. Hyunmi knows that she'll be well able to get a smaller job fairly easily, but they all pay much less than her current job and she really needs the money right now. It's only a matter of time before her sister is cured...

Hyunmi shakes her head. There's no point in dwelling on regrets. She should focus on her work right now instead. She lights her scented candle, officially starting her day in a fragrant atmosphere.

Her mind works hard for hours and she doesn't lose focus until she hears a light knock on her door. "Come in," she calls out.

Hongjoong steps in with a wide smile. "Hello! How's work going?" he sings, entering with a spring in his step. Hyunmi forces a smile, the event from the day before still lingering in her mind and putting her on edge. "Great!" she lies, wanting nothing more than to nap in her bed all day right now.

"Then you deserve something nice! Let's go out for dinner tonight, it's my treat," he offers. The girl's eyes widen and her first instinct would be to frantically refuse, but then she remembers how she's supposed to stay on his good side.

But if she does things like this, she'll just be feeding into the rumours that Jongho is such an avid believer in.

"Thank you so much for the offer! I actually have other plans for dinner tonight though," she bashfully responds, palms growing sweaty after lying to him. Hongjoong's smile falls rapidly and he nods. "That's alright. Have a nice day," he quickly says wearily before leaving again.

Hyunmi raises an eyebrow. It's not like him to become so upset. But then again, she has never refused something from her boss in person before either. She wouldn't be lying to say that she doesn't want to enforce Jongho's rumours, but another thought also pesters her mind.

Wooyoung kissing her this morning...that is one thing that she feels like is holding her back. She's simply his friend with benefits, right? So it's not like she'd be cheating on him if she went for dinner with Hongjoong.

But something in her stops her from going too far with only Wooyoung on her mind. She glances at the clock and notices it's her break. She pulls out the container from her bag and beams at it, feeling especially warm knowing that her neighbour is the one who made it for her. He really does seem more caring than she had thought.

She begins eating the food, savouring every bite. Wooyoung's cooking never fails to amaze her. She feels like she needs to return the favour, although he doesn't know how to cook. Still, she wants to try.

And then it suddenly hits her. She didn't come to work in her own car today. For the first time in years, she's going to use public transport.

She shudders at the thought of the filthy bus. But what other choice does she have? She hopes they at least replaced the old, musty bus in these past few years.