As soon as Mark arrived at his room and was seated at his table, the secretary walked in to inform him today's schedules.
"Good morning."
"Morning, sir."
The secretary waited as Mark was taking out the files from his briefcase and then opened the computer. With wifi, once the computer was opened, an email popped up on the screen.
Park Jinyoung?
Mark clicked the email open and inside he read the words, finding out that it was a Sick Day email.
What happened to him? Then the incident from yesterday became vivid again. So the HR manager was ill after getting his whole body soaked in the rain yesterday.
"... so at 2pm,-"
"Does he usually catch a cold easily?" asked Mark to the secretary, who stopped her sentence midway, startled. Mark had not even noticed when she had started talking.
"I mean the HR manager. He's just sent a Sick Day email, so is he ill often?"
The secretary thought for a moment, and said, "No, I don't think so, sir. He's rarely absent for heath reasons. Why would he catch a cold?" The question was only from confusion, instead of wanting an answer.
"He was in the rain yesterday," answered Mark voluntarily. "It can't be worrying, right? Maybe, just a simple cold."
"He's strong enough. Nothing serious probably."
Mark nodded. "So what're the schedules?"
But, another email appeared on the screen, and Mark signaled her to wait for a moment.
From Cho Leesung. Subject: Not feeling well.
"Cho Leesung? Who's he?"
"Ah, that's one of the new staff still in the probationary period."
"A new employee?" He had heard that name for once or twice. From whom? Mark typed in the name in the employee file, and the photo and the personal information appeared. Now, his suspicions were right; so that boy was also calling in sick. But Mark remebered yesterday; that boy had his own umbrella and even if he had got wet, it could not have been as bad as Jinyoung.
At lunch time, Mark entered the cafeteria with the secretary. This was just a normal day, but Mark took a glance around the place, and of course, there was no Jinyoung.
"How can you be so sure? Did he call you?"
"No, but didn't you see Jinyoung oppa was all wet yesterday and Leesung helped him get to the car parking? Just guessing, he might have phoned Jinyoung oppa at night, to ask him if he was okay. And the rest, you just imagine." Seoyeon proudly answered Chanmin's question.
"So you mean Leesung is at Jinyoung hyung's place, right now? Like to tend to him? He is absent for that, not because he is sick? Wow, Seoyeon, you're seriously. I could've never thought of that. Leesung, Leesung, you-"
"Is that true?" Mark's sudden voice from behind startled the trainees, and they were shocked to find that the CEO had overheard what they had said.
"I'm asking you! Is that true?" asked Mark, raising his tone, which frightened the trainees, who now hung their heads low, nudging each other to answer his question.
"You were saying all the things just a while ago, and now all of you have nothing to say?"
"S-Sir, we are not s-sure. I just guessed. B-Based on what I saw yesterday," stuttered Seoyeon, who felt they all were in trouble, especially Leesung, just by seeing the CEO's fury. She hung her head low again as soon as she finished talking.
The longer Mark stood there, the more wrath he felt rising in his mind.
"You all know that is against the rule? Calling in sick without being ill."
"Yes, sir," everyone muttered, and looked at him.
With a warning glare at them, Mark turned around and stormed out of the cafeteria.
"Now, Leesung's going to be in trouble. Shit, Seoyeon! And you too, Chanmin, you should've looked around before talking about that!"Minhyuk hissed at them, as soon as the CEO was out of their sight.
"Who would have thought that he had been near us? Well, well, I should be more careful next time. Sorry, Leesung ah."
After a while, the trainees went back to eating, yet quietly with the tension hung in the atmosphere.
Mark slammed the door shut behind him when he got inside his room.
What was that? He also had had that suspicion when he read that boy's email. With his own umbrella, why could he have been sick? Now, Jinyoung was ill, and that boy was tending to him.
He paced about the room, with his mind still seething with anger. In such situation, how could he anymore trust Jinyoung's words that nothing at all was going on between them?
With his mind clouded with wrath, Mark couldn't think of anything straight. What could he do? That was the question repeating in his head.
At last, he sat down on his chair, and took out the employees' files. There were a lot, but those of the managers were on the top, and it did not take long to find Jinyoung's.
There was his phone number in the personal information. And Mark took out his phone from his coat pocket to call that number.
But the call went straight to voicemail, saying that the phone was turned off. So he even switched off his phone? Everything was worsening Mark's fury, and he left the idea of calling Jinyoung.
There was, however, another thing. He eyes landed on Jinyoung's address, and he typed it in his phone, to look at it later.
One way or another, he was determined to contact the younger today, and whether the trainees had said was true or not, he would surely find it out.
His mind was now in a frenzy; how could he focus on work again now? Lunch was also missed, but that was nothing when compared with his unsteady mind and the images of the HR manager with his trainee in a private place together, popping up inside his head. Mark shook his head frantically, convincing himself that he only wanted to find the truth out.
The whole day, it was difficult to keep his mind stable at work, for the first time since he had worked here. After work, according to the address, he drove straight away to Jinyoung's place.
