All of My Days

12

Early January 2019

"So did you or did you not?"

Seri kept walking, chuckling at her friend's interrogation. She enjoyed the banter, even though the jokes were usually at the expense of her private life. Shelley loved nothing more than make fun of Seri's lack of jam.

"I'm not telling," she said, approaching the lunchroom door. This was their first day back at work after the holidays, and seeing her friend brought Seri into a good mood this morning. Until the interrogation started.

"You know I don't do one-night stands," she stated pointedly as she pushed the door to the lunchroom and let her friend in first. The older lady gave her a look and was about to say something when Seri walked in after her and hushed loudly: "Anymore!"

The door swung closed behind them and Seri looked away from Shelley's mocking face, finally seeing that the staff room was not empty as they expected. 2 IT tech guys were sitting on the small couches facing each other, their conversation clearly coming to a halt as they heard Seri's words.

"Oh... hi," embarrassed, she turned towards the kitchenette, pulling out an apple from her lunch bag to rinse it in the small sink. She took her time drying the apple thoroughly with a paper towel, listening to the voices behind her. Shelley has placed her lunch into the microwave and made herself comfortable sitting next to Max, the IT tech they've known for a while. He was working in another department, but they've bonded during union events previously. The new IT tech who has monopolized her thoughts throughout the entire holiday break sat across from him, seemingly oblivious at the fact that he was making her uneasy.

And now he heard what she said about one night stands.

Perfect start, Seri.

She exhaled through her mouth, collecting herself.

You can do this. Be nice. Treat him like any new colleague.

She threw the paper towel into the recycling bin and turned towards the room, plastering a friendly smile on her face. She sat down on the other side of the couch Jeong Hyeok occupied, who looked up at her, nodding politely acknowledging her presence.

"So... did you guys have a nice break?" She asked then, taking a bite of her apple.

The microwave beeped then and Shelley went up to pick up her food.

"I did. Jeong Hyeok was just telling me he worked most of the time," Max said, nodding at his teammate.

"Oh, that's no fun. Your family must have hated that," Seri said as if she just remembered that he has a family.

He cleared his throat uncomfortably before answering.

"No, they're ok."

Seri chewed her apple slowly, thinking. Noticing his discomfort at the question, she mentally checked a box on the "him/not him" list she was compiling in her head. This one was tricky again. Maybe he just didn't like that she thought he wasn't being a good family man.

"So what did you do over the break, Seri?" Max asked then, bringing her back from her thoughts. "Besides, you know..." he gestured vaguely at the door, referring to the conversation they overheard earlier.

Seri gave him a polite smile that did not reach her eyes.

"Went snowboarding. A little road trip to Whistler. Crashed on Shelley's couch for New Year's. Nothing special."

"Are you saying my couch is not special enough for you? I am hurt," Shelley joked. "Tell us about Whistler though, was it packed?"

"As usual. But the spa was not, surprisingly, so we spent half a day there before heading back to the city," Seri responded, seeing with her peripheral vision that Jeong Hyeok went back to his lunch. A thought occurred to her suddenly. "Went to a karaoke bar with a friend afterward," she blurted out, keeping an eye on his profile.