Hate At First Sight

19

Tae sat in the noodle shop, constantly checking her watch, wondering when Choi would arrive. He was thirty minutes late for their last business meeting and she felt annoyed, uncomfortable...there was no peace within her today.

After her conversation with her father last night, she became restless, thinking about what she was doing with Choi when she was getting married in a couple of weeks. She was getting married to a prominent businessman back home and she would be set for life after the marriage yet here she was, chasing some temporary happiness.

I fucked up so bad, she thought, upset with herself.

The doorbell tinkled and she looked up only for her hand to randomly jerk and spill hot vending machine coffee on her white dress. She jumped out of her chair at contact and immediately grabbed a napkin, hastily wiping the large stain on lap, unaware that she was only making it worse because the napkin was losing its blue colour when it became wet, staining her dress further.

"Tae," the voice of Choi said as he grabbed her hands to stop her from damaging her dress worse. She was angrily wiping the stain, her mind elsewhere.

When she looked up at him, tears filled her eyes.

"Come on. Let's get you home," he gently said but she did not budge.

"We can't leave," she croaked, wiping her eyes. "My father is joining our meeting."

He let go of her and stared at her. "Here?"

She nodded, just as the doorbell tinkled again. She and Choi looked up as an older, grey haired light skinned man walked in, dressed in jeans and a coat with a scarf around his neck and glasses perched on his nose.

The man smiled as he greeted Choi, shaking the young man's hand. Then he looked at Tae and her dirty dress disapprovingly.

"I spilled coffee on myself and the napkin I used lost it's color into my dress," she quickly explained as she sat down. "Gentlemen, please have a seat. We can get started."

Choi sat beside her father, staring in contemplation at her. He kept wondering what was going on because she was not herself today and just a minute ago, she was almost in tears, freaking out. He glanced at her father, a remarkable looking older man who commanded respect as soon as he stepped into the room.

Tae cleared her throat to speak but her father put his hand up, silencing her. He looked at Choi.

"Before we get started, Mr. Choi Hyun, I understand that there is something going on between you and Taera?"

Choi choked on air before he calmed down. "Um..." He glanced at Tae who was giving off a venomous look to her father even though he was ignoring her. "Tae and I... we're...Mr. Lobane, Sir...can I just be honest with you?"

Tae's father nodded.

"Tae and I are just having fun. I am aware that she will be leaving in a few days to go back to her home country and I have no problem with it. We are two adults that consented to what we currently have going on and I promise you, Sir, that in no way will our relations affect the quality of business we trying to get going. Tae is an amazing business woman and she knows exactly when it's time for business and when it's time for pleasure. When she leaves, I...I promise that whatever it is going on between us will come to an end."

Tae's father stared at him, quiet for a moment before he spoke up. "You do know that she breached protocol by fraternising with a potential add-on to our company, right?"

Choi looked at Tae who was already staring at him, looking emotionless. "Yes, sir."

"I therefore have to take action against her and suspend her from handling your account. She will be on the first flight back home tomorrow and you and I can discuss what remains to be finished with your proposal in the remaining few days."

Choi clenched his fist under the table. "I understand, Sir."

"While we are at this..." Tae's father turned to his daughter. "Would you like to tell Mr. Choi Hyun the news or should I?"

"What news?" Choi asked, not liking where this was going.

Tae stood up from the table suddenly and excused herself to the bathroom, leaving the two men alone.

"What news?" Choi asked again.

"Tae is leaving the group of companies because of...other obligations."

"What obligations?"

"I am afraid that I cannot disclose those. But Mr. Choi Hyun, thank you for being honest with me even though I could see that you only gave me half the truth."

"Why is Tae so upset?" Choi quietly asked. He had half the mind to go to the ladies' bathroom to make sure that she was ok but something told him to let her be and talk to her father instead.

Her father sighed. "I'm going to be honest with you, Choi. You are a lovely man and under other circumstances, you would be perfect for Tae but I am afraid that this is where your little tryst with her ends. Tae belongs not to you but to another. For the rest of her life."

"Huh?" Choi didn't understand.

"Choi...Tae is getting married."

Everything slowed down around Choi and all the sounds suddenly drowned out, leaving only the words of Tae's father ringing in his ears. He could faintly hear his heart slowly beating and the scraping of a chair beside him yet he could not register anything that was happening around him.

Somebody was calling his name and by the time it registered that it was the voice of Tae that was calling out his name, he had stepped into the traffic.

A car horn blasted and tires screeched loudly in his ears. Then blinding pain was the only thing he felt as he felt himself hit the ground.

He gladly welcomed the darkness that swallowed him in an instant.