Pick Up the Rejected Pure Love

It’s been a week since I started working.

Reflecting deeply, I realized how naive I was to think I could easily navigate social life.

Commuting by subway, being jostled by crowds left and right, the struggle was real. If Han-gyeol hadn’t been there to catch me, I might have fallen at least once.

And what about the company?

There’s a mountain of things to memorize, and any mistake means someone has to redo my work.

I tried desperately not to lose my focus, but mistakes were frequent, and I often found myself in a fluster, a sorry sight indeed.

Yet, I couldn’t afford the luxury of feeling overwhelmed.

“Eun-ha, could you bring me the contract from the fourth quarter of last year?”

“Yes! The one from the fourth quarter, right?”

I rushed to the drawer where the contract from the previous year was kept.

But what was the password again?

Should I ask once more? But I’m sure I just asked a few days ago.

What if I get scolded?

02... what was it again... 0228, maybe?

Let’s just try it.

I carefully pressed the password, but it beeped loudly.

Why is it so loud, really..!

I quickly pressed the four-digit code. However, the sound indicating a wrong password echoed through the office.

It must have been 0218!

I pressed the password again, but it seems I got it wrong once more. After the second mistake, a colleague nearby told me the correct password.

“Eun-ha, it’s 0217.”

“Oh-! Th, thank you.”

Ha- I made another mistake.

I took the contract out of the drawer and handed it to the colleague next to me.

“Senior, here’s the contract for the fourth quarter.”

“Ah- thank you. Just leave it there and get back to work. Huh?”

Whenever someone says ‘huh?’ while I’m working, chills run down my spine.

I was terribly worried about what mistake I might have made this time.

“This is the contract for the first quarter. Could you bring the one for the fourth quarter, please?”

“Ah- my apologies! I’ll bring it right away.”

Why am I always so scatterbrained?

I hurriedly brought the contract back.

It was such a trivial task, yet I handled it so inefficiently.

But there’s no time to dwell on feeling down.

I need to compile the market research data.

I understand now why my brother quit.

Is it too much to expect a twenty-year-old to excel at social life? Yet, looking at Han-gyeol, it doesn’t seem impossible.

“Han-gyeol, did you finish what I asked for yesterday?”

“Are you referring to organizing the Quarter 4 statistics or updating the weekly stats?”

“The Quarter 4 statistics. How long will it take?”

“I’ve already organized the Quarter 4 data and uploaded it to the cloud. The weekly stats update is currently under review and should take about thirty minutes.”

“Is that so? Do I need to review it myself?”

“No, there’s no need. I’ve double-checked everything.”

“That’s impressive... Thank you for your hard work.”

“Thank you.”

He’s my boyfriend, but how does Han-gyeol blend in so naturally?

Han-gyeol from Team 2 and I from Team 1 do the same job, yet he’s never made a mistake.

He quietly sits at his desk, taking calls and handling tasks without any sign of panic.

“Eun-ha, about the research you were working on yesterday, how much longer will it take?”

“Oh! Yes, I planned to finish it by this morning.”

“Thank you. Take your time, just make sure there are no mistakes, okay?”

“Yes!”

The thought that I really couldn’t afford to make any mistakes hit me hard. I diligently organized and reviewed the data before uploading it to the cloud.

I’ve reviewed everything, so why do I feel uneasy?

I wanted to say with confidence that no further review was needed, but honestly, I wasn’t sure.

“Eun-ha, shall we go for lunch? What do you like?”

“Yes!”

Our team went to lunch before Han-gyeol’s Team 2 did.

Even though we were in the same space, I couldn’t stay close to him.

I wanted to talk to Han-gyeol... but I should hold back.

“What do you like?”

“I’m not picky; I eat everything.”

“That’s the hardest answer to work with~”

“Ah! I, I like pork cutlet!”

I couldn’t think of anything else, so I mentioned food Han-gyeol likes.

“Then let’s go have pork cutlet.”

“Should we? There’s a new place that opened up nearby; let’s try it out.”

“They also serve cold buckwheat noodles there. I’ll have that.”

I quietly followed the senior colleagues leading the way.

I just want to go home!

***

As soon as I sat down, I placed the spoon and chopsticks on the table.

The senior above me kindly poured water into cups and distributed them.

Should I keep the utensil container next to me and pour water first from now on?

Is it okay to let the senior pour the water?

I really don’t know much about these things.

“Eun-ha, how do you find work? Is it tough?”

“It’s okay..! Haha... Everyone’s been really nice.”

I answered with an awkward laugh.

I miss Han-gyeol. I miss him terribly.

“You’re going to university soon, right?”

“Yes! I’m scheduled to start in March.”

Surprisingly, they didn’t ask about my mother.

Probably everyone knows that I’m the CEO’s daughter. That might be why they were curious about Han-gyeol, who is in the team next to mine.

“Who did you come with? A friend?”

“Ah- Yes. A friend-!”

Han-gyeol and I decided to keep our relationship a secret for now.

“Your friend is the same age as you, right?”

“Yes, yes. We’re both twenty.”

“Oh, I see. But I haven’t seen you two talking at the company?”

“Yes. We’re close, but we thought it would be better to use honorifics at work... Yes. Something like that.”

I said bashfully, and all the seniors smiled.

“That’s wise? Both of you seem very mature.”

“Th, thank you.”

In reality, I couldn’t talk to Han-gyeol at the company.

Even when our eyes met in the hallway, Han-gyeol would just nod his head and pass by without even a slight smile.

I knew it was the right thing to do, but I couldn’t help feeling a bit sulky.

I decided it was just me being childish and let it go.

I’ll just have to do everything at once in a month. I’ll wait until then.

Just you try running away.

***

After lunch, I could finally take a brief break in the office. I headed to the pantry for a drink and bumped into Han-gyeol.

I really wanted to hug him and snuggle right there and then but I held back.

“Looks like you came for coffee...”

I blurted out, awkwardly formal.

The situation seemed funny. I bit my lip hard and looked up at Han-gyeol.

“Yes. Just passing by. Oh- you dropped this earlier.”

Han-gyeol spoke in a matter-of-fact tone.

“Huh? What did I drop? Oh-!”

I accidentally slipped into informal speech, but Han-gyeol just put something in my pocket and moved on. I stared at his retreating figure as if trying to burn a hole in it.

He really won’t smile, not even once?! Just you wait, seriously-!

I pulled an isotonic drink from the fridge in the pantry. Then, I took out what Han-gyeol had slipped into my pocket earlier. Seeing the orange-flavored candy made my spirits soar instantly.

A smile naturally spread across my face.

Why is Han-gyeol so adorable? I decided to forgive him for not smiling since he gave me an orange candy.

Popping the candy into my mouth felt like gaining strength to endure the afternoon.

“Sweet.”

After finishing the candy, I returned to my desk.

As soon as it was afternoon, I started working again and pushed through until the end of the day.

Just 3 more weeks! In 3 weeks, I can live with Han-gyeol.

But today seems to be one of those days where nothing goes right.

“Um, Eun-ha?”

“Yes?”

“About the research you did this morning.”

My heart sank.

“Yes, yes...”

I’m anxious.

“It seems the VAT(Value-Added Tax) section is missing.”

“Oh- the VAT? You just add 10% to the supply value later, don’t you-?! Oh-!”

“For buildings, only the building part is subject to the 10% VAT, not the land. So, you can’t just apply 10% to the total selling price; you need to separate the building and land values. It looks like you’ve only noted the total selling price for the buildings.”

That was the part they mentioned before, but I completely forgot.

“I’m so sorry. You had mentioned it before...! I just forgot. My apologies.”

“It happens. Can you make the corrections tomorrow?”

“I’ll stay and finish it today-! It was supposed to be completed by today anyway.”

“Hm- you sure? Then, just do what you can without overdoing it. There’s still some time left, so don’t rush.”

“Yes-!”

Despite it being time to leave, I couldn’t head home.

One by one, the seniors left, and so did the team 2 members.

Han-gyeol too, briefly said goodbye and left before me.

“I’ll be heading out first.”

“Ah- Yes!”

It’s my mistake, after all.

I can’t rely on Han-gyeol for this.

It’s something I need to take responsibility for and finish.

Yet... it’s a bit tough.

I wished I could handle things smoothly like Han-gyeol...

--- The End OF The Chapter ---

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