Kiss & Make Up | Lee Jeno

13.

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚

Areum grabbed her bag from the locker, glancing quickly in the mirror before slamming it shut. The tired look in her eyes was all the motivation she needed to get home as soon as possible. She just wanted to get out of there.

As she stepped out of the employee locker room and into the hallway of the salon, her relief was short lived. Standing in her path was someone she really didn't have the patience for.

"Areum!" Hera's overly bright smile greeted her, the kind that never reached her eyes. "There you are. I was just looking for you!"

Areum's shoulders sagged. She really wasn't in the mood for whatever favor Hera was about to ask. But she forced a polite smile, though it came out more like a grimace.

Hera's eyes scanned Areum from head to toe, her smile dimming as she noticed the bag slung over Areum's shoulder. "Oh, are you heading home already?"

"Yeah," Areum nodded, her smile tightening. "I'm done for the day."

"I see..." Hera trailed off, her tone filled with forced disappointment. "I was wondering if you could—"

"I'm really sorry, Hera," Areum cut in quickly, already knowing where this conversation was headed. "But something came up at home, and I need to go."

Hera blinked in surprise, her fake concern faltering for a moment before she recovered, waving her hands dismissively. "Oh, it's totally fine! Don't worry about it, I'll ask someone else. See you later!"

Areum watched Hera walk off, the tension easing from her shoulders the moment she was out of sight. She knew Hera was just putting on a nice act to get more favors from her. But right now? Right now, Areum wasn't having any of it.

She'd spent the entire day covering for her, and no one was going to steal any more of her time.

With a deep sigh of relief, Areum finally stepped out of the hallway and into one of the main rooms, her heart feeling a little lighter as she said her goodbyes to the staff, including her best friend, Harin. Each step toward the front felt like a weight lifted off of her, knowing her day was finally over.

When she approached the front desk, the two receptionists were busy with their usual end of day routines.

"Done for the day, Areum?" one of them asked, flashing a grin as she looked up from her computer.

"Yep," Areum replied with a genuine smile, grabbing the iPad to clock out. It felt good to finally be able to go home. She'd been doing favors all day, and she was more than ready to leave.

"Did you manage to get that coral palette you were talking about?" the receptionist asked, her tone curious.

Areum sighed, a bit of disappointment slipping into her voice. "No, not yet. I was hoping to try it out today, but I guess I'll have to wait until tomorrow."

"Aww, that sucks." The receptionist nodded in sympathy. "Don't worry. I'm sure it'll be here first thing tomorrow. They said it was coming fast—"

The chime of the front door opening cut off their conversation. Both receptionists immediately switched to greeting mode, smiling warmly at whoever had just walked in.

Areum, however, wasn't fazed as she continued tapping through the clock-out process on the iPad. She'd been working there a long time and knew that they were properly doing their job, so when the conversation was cut short, she wasn't offended. If anything, she was ready to go home and sleep.

But then, she heard a voice. A familiar one.

Areum froze. Her fingers halted mid signature as she instinctively looked up, her eyes darting to the entrance.