More Short Stories!- Kai Ships Only

Beomkai- Overshadowed

This was it. Four years of hard work in the making, all boiling down to this. Kai's manager was stepping out of his meeting to tell the department who got the promotion. His face looked sullen. That wasn't the face of a man with good news. Everyone in the office looked at each other, trying to figure out what happened in there.

The man cleared his throat. He loosened the knot in his tie then rubbed his brow. His voice became soft with a hint of anger. "Ladies and gentlemen. What was supposed to be a day of good news, I must regret..." He could barely look his team in the eye. "You know what? Screw the formalities! I was just told I have to let five of you go despite how well we did this quarter." The man looked directly at Kai. "I'm sorry."

Kai was close to tears. He did not go above and beyond, every single day for the past four years, just to get fired for budget cuts.

Jobless. That thought was hard to grasp. He had never been fired from anything before. A young man in a multi-thousand dollar suit, walked out from the conference room. He smirked at Kai then walked away. Kai knew exactly why he was fired now.

Beomgyu Choi was the worst person he had ever met in his life. He stole his high school boyfriend, sabotaged his scholarship to his dream university and now stole his job. Kai worked for the Choi corporation. He knew that. He knew exactly who was the heir to it when he applied. He, however, did not expect Beomgyu to be taking it over at his age. They were only 23 years old. His manager kept apologizing for the "new leadership direction" but all he paid attention to was a patch of long brown hair walking towards the exit.

It wasn't like Kai to wish ill on anyone but he also wouldn't be sad if the Choi was run over by a bus (a few dozen times). Regardless, there was nothing he could do about the situation. His boss walked up to his desk while he packed his stuff. Kai was told how sorry he was. He knew he was valued by his boss but it all felt pointless now. What good is being a "phenomenal employee and person" if you can get fired without warning? It was complete bullshit.

"Hey kid. I know you're mad, and I am too, but I'll tell you something. You text me if you need a recommendation okay? Kids like them get handed everything and we get to pick up their scraps. It took me 10 years to get into my position just for some brat with no experience to become my boss."

"You'd really write me a recommendation?"

"Of course."

His boss left him alone after that. Kai at least had a recommendation now. That small bit of hope was all he had. If he thought about anything else, he would surely start crying.

Headphones went into his ears with noise canceling on. His box of office supplies went into the dumpster. Then, he started the two mile walk towards his shitty apartment.

Two hours earlier. Beomgyu was pulled into his dad's office. He complained "did you really need to send your assistant after me?"

"For once in your life, shut up and listen."

"I'll listen when you say something important to say!"

"SIT DOWN!"

Beomgyu was scared. His dad never yelled at him in public to protect their images. This was serious.

Mr. Choi closed the door then took his seat at his desk. "I am tired. Your mother is tired. Your brother has lived up to our family name by starting his own business and becoming a feature in Forbes magazine! And you?"

"Dad-"

"You've done NOTHING but fuck around and waste the family fortune! You've never taken your future seriously! There's a kid here who's younger than you, and has nothing to his name, yet at this rate, he's going to transcend you by the time you're 30."