In Dreams | Jayhoon

Page 14

 Jay sighed, leaning back into the gray swivel chair. The illuminating light of the monitor gleamed on his face, emphasizing his facial features promptly. It was currently 7:34 p.m., and Jay had dinner with Areum in less than an hour or so. The minutes passed by in a daze, and soon enough, it was time to head home for the majority of the workers. Jay clicked off the monitor screen, peeking a quick glance at the table across from him. Empty. Sunghoon was gone once again.

The entire day had been quite a hassle for Jay—running errands, dismantling between the loops of documents and discussions, obeying Mr. Park—which isn't as simple as imagined. He still had a few more files left unfinished, so he planned to finish the rest tomorrow and then enjoy his weekend to the fullest (which was sleeping all day). He rearranged his desk, checking the drawers for trash or any other miscellaneous items that were not required. His eyes darted to the beige-colored mason wall clock hanging right above Sunghoon's office desk. It was now 8:12 in the evening, and the latter sighed, drowning in the warmth of his chair. Just then, his phone chimed, indicating a notification had popped up on his home screen from Areum. She texted Jay, letting him know about the dinner reservation, the place, and the time. She also stated that she'd drive there before him and would be waiting for him at one of the nearby tables.

A small smile played upon his lips, imagining the crinkles on Areum's face as she spoke. He was excited to have dinner with her, as this was his first time having dinner with a colleague alone. Though this dinner date would go rather unexpectedly,

"Won-ah, aren't you heading home?" Jay asked, standing over the counter, where Jungwon's figure was slumping against his desk. Jungwon rolled his eyes, sitting up straight and heaving an aggravated sigh. "You think that nut job will take it easy on me? Heeseung is no different than your boss, Jay-ah." Jay chuckled under his breath, shaking his head lightly. "I still have to finish the files, since Mr. Heeseung will most likely be attending meetings tomorrow," Jungwon threw a lopsided smile towards Jay and leaned back in his chair. "You're probably going to go straight home, right?" He asked. Jay pretended to think, humming lightly before shaking his head. "Actually, I have dinner with someone today, and that someone is Areum." Jay watched Jungwon's mouth hang open as he sat up, a gasp escaping from his lips. "A date?!" He exclaimed, obviously shocked. "Since when the fuck did you start getting interested in dating and relationships?" He asked eagerly. Jay only chuckled, standing straight now and smiling lightly.

"Well... I wouldn't call it a date, since it's just a colleague's dinner. But you can think whatever you like." He spoke, pressing his lips in a thin line, stepping away from the barrier separating the two males. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow." He simply said that, ignoring Jungwon and heading for the elevator.

Meanwhile, Jungwon sat there, baffled. He wasn't sure whether Jay was lying or not, but a small part of him felt happy, knowing his friend would date someone soon. He literally thought Jay was dating Areum, but let's not dive into Jungwon's delusions.

Jay took his coat off to ease his shoulders, shaking them lightly. The building wasn't as shimmery and bustling as it was throughout the day, which was particularly fine for Jay, as he didn't prefer large crowds of people anyway. His steps halted in front of the elevator doors, pressing the button to call the elevator, and he patiently waited.

His mind drifted off to the thought of the dinner and how it would go. He wondered if Areum would maybe confess her feelings tonight. Or maybe she would enclose her feelings and just stay as guarded as ever. But then, the image of Sunghoon also flickered inside his head—and out of all the things he could ponder over, it was today's memory, in which Sunghoon had called him pretty out of nowhere. His lips curled into a thin smile, his hands tightening around the coat. Just then, the elevator arrives, the doors sliding open. He stepped inside, pressed the ground floor button, and watched the doors slide shut.