What's Wrong With Assistant Kang?

18. The Blackout

It was sometime close of five in the morning; most people would be sleeping deeply during this hour, yet, waking up this early for work reasons was nothing new for the corporate director of C&R and his chief assistant. Jaehee was used to coming early to Jumin's penthouse before to give him a recall of his lengthy schedule for the day.

She walked inside the living room distractedly revising and re-reading a clipboard in her hand while paging through it quickly. Jumin was standing in front of a tall mirror (if Zen knew he only owned one mirror, he would scream), tying a red tie around his collar before taking it off with frustration. It just didn't seem right.

Then he grabbed another one, this time purple, and examined it profusely. Discontent, he put it away as well, now staring at a royal blue one. Seeking to multi-task while putting on different ties, he spoke up. "Assistant Kang, please give me a report of my schedule for today," he asked; eyes still firmly on the mirror.

"Oh." Jaehee finally looked up from her clipboard, and cleared her throat. "As you know, at seven o'clock, you have a meeting with the director of the Metropolitan Library," she informed him. "And the main goal is to come to an agreement with Mr. Lee where C&R can gain half-ownership of the library, and thus gain monthly profits as well as positively impact the company's image."

Jumin nodded slightly, satisfied with the flawless report. However, he still seemed irritated while inspecting various ties. Jaehee tilted her head to the side in confusion. "Is there a problem, Mr. Han?" she inquired, thinking that maybe he didn't like her report.

"Selecting ties for each special occasion is such a pain..." He muttered with a frustrated sigh, brows creased in a frown.

Jaehee glanced away in thought. Well, it was true each tie a director chooses can determine how successful a meeting could be. For example, black and white ties should be reserved only for funerals or other solemn events, red ties could be used to intimidate a corporate rival because of the fiery color, purple ties could be interpreted as arrogance, and blue ties...

"I could help you with that!" she chirped, raising a finger with determination.

"Huh?" Was all Jumin was able to say with surprise as his assistant practically ran towards him; any sense of personal space most likely forgotten as she laced her hands on his collar.

"For this occasion, a blue tie would be ideal," she said, eyes half-closed in concentration as she tied it around his neck effortlessly. "Because the color blue is often associated with peace and tranquility..."

She finally opened her eyes again, looking at him with a pleased smile. "...And that's the sort of relationship we want with this director," she finished speaking and fastening the tie, passing her hand over it to get rid of any remaining creases.

Jumin was speechlessly staring at her, eyes widened in shock. His assistant could clearly see the colors of the sunrise outside reflected on his dark eyes, making them look lighter.

Jaehee tilted her head again. "Is there something wrong, Mr. Han...?" she asked, purely perplexed.

The raven-haired man finally snapped back to reality, blinking. "No," he said blankly, turning around and leaving.

Jaehee frowned slightly; she was confused since she was sure she saw a slight tint on his cheeks before he moved away. Was he embarrassed?

She shook her head at her own thoughts, deeming them impossible.

Meanwhile, Jumin was feeling something burst with joy inside of him. Of course, he wouldn't let anybody know that.
---

Jaehee was more than surprised when Jumin told her to come with him to the meeting. Normally, in special, confidential assemblies such as this, she just had to stay at the office for the rest of the day; taking care of less important paperwork and waiting for him to come back while reassigning his schedule; after all, she was just an assistant, she supposed.