A Beastly Boss (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 5

“What is it?”

Surprised, she opened her eyes and parted her lips—something soft and squishy slipped right in between them. A sweet taste touched the tip of her tongue.

“Chocolate.”

Her speech came out muffled because of the thing now inside her mouth.

It was a Choco Pie, slowly melting away.

Eun Woo tilted his head slightly as he watched her, his straight lips forming a pleasant curve.

“Go ahead and eat it.”

Startled, Seul Hee just held the Choco Pie in her mouth without chewing, blinking only her eyes. Mr. Ok urged her once more.

“Hurry up and eat it.”

“Right now?”

“You’re running low on sugar, aren’t you? That’s exactly why you need to eat it now.”

His long finger tapped lightly once again against the tip of the Choco Pie. The slight jolt pushed it a bit deeper into her mouth.

“Thank you.”

Carefully taking the Choco Pie, Seul Hee took a bite. The sweetness spread through her whole body, and her blurry vision gradually sharpened.

What on earth was going on?

He was being unusually kind. Normally, he would’ve already launched into a long lecture by now—probably scolding her about how important it is to take care of her body.

Could this be the effect of last Saturday’s dinner?

Was it because she’d asked him out? Or because she’d cried in front of him and now he pitied her?

She looked up at him—unexpectedly, Eun Woo was gazing down at her with sharp eyes.

But contrary to her expectations, his gaze wasn’t gentle at all.

“Ms. Yoo Seul Hee.”

“Yes?”

“Why don’t you eat breakfast before coming in? What would you do if you fainted at work? If you got dizzy while holding a patient and collapsed onto the floor, wouldn’t the puppy get hurt?”

She let out a sigh under the barrage of questions.

He didn’t actually want answers; he was the type to beat people to death with question marks. At his sharp reproach, Seul Hee faintly let out a hollow chuckle.

Of course, he was still Mr. Ok. Kindness? What kindness? He’d probably make her do a hundred push-ups if she made even the tiniest mistake today. Right now, he clearly cared more about the puppy than her dizziness.

Forget about any “effect from last week.”

But he was right.

If she collapsed during surgery while assisting from behind, it’d be a serious problem.

“I’m sorry. I’ll pay more attention.”

Even as she obediently apologized, her lips curled slightly without her realizing it. Seeing this, Eun Woo spoke again.

“Seul Hee.”

When she looked up at the gentler tone in his voice, the inpatient ward door suddenly burst open from behind them. It was the Manager, who oversaw the entire hospital’s operations.

“Oh my, Seul Hee, Mr. Ok—what are you two doing here?”

While they’d been fiddling over the Choco Pie, Eun Woo and Seul Hee had unknowingly drawn very close to each other.

The Manager’s dark eyes fixed on them both.

What should she say? Should she admit she’d been eating a Choco Pie?

Feeling strangely guilty about eating inside the ward, Seul Hee quickly swallowed the remaining Choco Pie in her mouth and opened her lips as if she hadn’t eaten anything at all.

“We’re here to feed the inpatient dogs their breakfast.”

She hadn’t done anything wrong, yet somehow she felt caught.

“Is that all?”

“Yes.”

A subtle atmosphere hung in the ward.

The Manager frowned slightly for a moment, then shrugged.

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

“The Director came in today after a long while. He called a morning meeting, so please come out.”

“Understood.”

After the Manager left the ward first, Seul Hee mumbled under her breath.

Mr. Ok…

“But how did he even know I was hungry?”

Was it that obvious?

Somehow, Eun Woo, as if he’d heard her whisper, turned to look at her. She blinked under his intense, piercing gaze.

“Curious how I knew?”

“Huh? Yeah.”

Then Eun Woo raised his hand and moved closer.

Startled by how suddenly he closed the distance, she instinctively swallowed and stepped back—but he was faster. His firm fingertips touched her lips.

“Oh!”

There was chocolate smeared on the corner of her soft lips.

His finger gently wiped it away. She should’ve pulled back, but his unexpected action left her too shocked to do anything but inhale sharply.

His finger brushed over that sensitive spot.

Her red lips flushed hotly.

“Ms. Yoo Seul Hee, you tremble your lips when you’re hungry.”

“…”

“You always do. So from now on, call me before your sugar crashes. Don’t faint on me like that.”

He was too close. Her heart pounded loudly.

Contrary to Seul Hee’s flustered state, Eun Woo simply shrugged and walked out. Watching his back disappear with crisp footsteps, she pursed her lips.

She couldn’t tell if that was kindness or not.

Wiping her lips with the back of her hand, she quickly left the ward.

Her whole mouth was still sweet.

***

Dolmare Animal Hospital—a mid-sized clinic with three veterinarians and four staff members.

Today, since all employees were present, everyone had gathered in the waiting room. At the center stood the veterinarian Park Hee Cheol—short in stature with a friendly-looking face, his bald head glistening in the light.

“Well then, good morning!”

Hee Cheol was both the hospital’s Director and Seul Hee’s maternal uncle. Seul Hee had never even owned a pet before, but it was largely because of her uncle that she ended up working at this animal hospital.

After quitting her previous job due to harassment from her team leader, Seul Hee had stayed cooped up at home for a while. Although she knew she needed to start job hunting right away, she just couldn’t bring herself to do it. It was her mom who finally pulled her out of that slump.

“Starting tomorrow, you’ll go work at your uncle’s animal hospital.”

“An animal hospital? What kind of nonsense is that? I’ve barely even touched an animal—how can I possibly be an animal nurse?”

“Just try it for three months. You can look for another job during that time. If you still hate it after that, I promise I’ll never interfere in your life again.”

No matter how much she protested, she couldn’t change her mother’s mind.

After all, in Seul Hee’s household, Mrs. Park Myeong Ja’s word was law—and divine decree.

And so, three months had passed since she started working there.

Looking back, her mom had been right. Though it felt like nepotism and she struggled initially due to lack of experience, working at the animal hospital turned out to be surprisingly enjoyable.

Of course, not everything was perfect—there had been awkward moments too.

Her eyes drifted toward Eun Woo. Just then, as if sensing her gaze, Eun Woo turned from looking at the Director and met her eyes directly.

She hadn’t been caught staring, right?

Seul Hee quickly looked away.

“Manager, could you go over today’s schedule?”

“There’s a disc herniation surgery at 10 a.m. Mr. Ok will be the lead surgeon, the Deputy Director as first assistant, and Chae Rin and Seul Hee will assist. In the afternoon, there’s one benign tumor removal surgery.”

Right—this wasn’t the time for distractions.

That morning, Seul Hee was scheduled to assist in a major surgery.

Of course, her role was minor—just preparing necessary items from the back—but even small tasks mattered for shortening surgery time.

This was her first time participating in such a big surgery. She’d studied hard all last week for this day, so she’d be fine. Straightening her posture, Seul Hee made a firm resolve.

***

“It’s over.”

The long, grueling surgery had finally ended.

As she did the final cleanup, Seul Hee barely managed to steady her wobbly legs.

I’m going to die.

The surgery, originally scheduled for three hours, had stretched well past four, ending only after 2 p.m.

The veterinarians performing the surgery must’ve been exhausted, but for Seul Hee—who’d never assisted in a major operation before—the entire time standing behind them had been one continuous state of intense tension. By the end, she was on the verge of collapsing.

If it hadn’t been for the Choco Pie Eun Woo gave her, she might’ve truly passed out from low blood sugar.

Even now, her hands trembled as she cleaned up.

“Seul Hee.”

“Yes?”

Chae Rin, a colleague of similar age but far more experienced, gently took Seul Hee’s shaking hand.

“Did you happen to bring a packed lunch today?”

“No, I was planning to buy something from the bento shop.”

“Then I’ll finish the cleanup here—go get lunch.”

“Oh, I can’t let you do that.”

“It’s fine. I need to get one for the Deputy Director too. Hurry back—you look like you’re about to faint.”

Smiling, Chae Rin gently pushed Seul Hee out of the operating room.

In the end, she took orders from the other staff for their late lunch and hurried outside. Her stomach growled so loudly it echoed as she walked—she was starving.

Just then, someone appeared beside her.

A crisp mint scent tickled her nose. Startled, she looked up and met sharp eyes.

It was Eun Woo.

“Mr. Ok—you’re going somewhere?”

Why was he standing so close?

He was so near that, for a moment, Seul Hee’s breath caught in her throat.

“To the bento shop.”

“Oh, shall I go get it for you instead?”

“It’s fine. Let’s go together.”

No, it’s not fine for me.

Ever since last weekend, being alone with him had felt awkward—and right now, she was too exhausted to endure any of his nagging.

Plus, he was standing way too close. Her heart pounded irregularly.

Thump, thump.

She couldn’t take it anymore.

To break the tension, she blurted out something.

“Um… thank you, by the way, for the other day.”

“For what?”

“For saving me when my boyfriend—I mean, ex-boyfriend—tried to drag me off.”

“It was nothing.”

Then, suddenly, Eun Woo’s eyes narrowed.

“Ex-boyfriend?”

“Ah, yes—we broke up.”

After bumping into Chan Jeong and her team leader last Saturday and going home, Chan Jeong had flooded her phone with texts.

[Seul Hee, it was just a coincidence.] [It was work-related.] [We just went to strengthen our friendship.]

First he claimed it was work-related, then suddenly it was about “strengthening friendship”? Even his messages contradicted each other.

“As they say, you need brains to lie well.”

Seul Hee muttered, frowning.

Not wanting any more entanglement, she didn’t reply to any of Chan Jeong’s messages. Then came the relentless phone calls—so many that when she left her phone in the changing room and returned after finishing her shift, it was completely dead.

Finally, she sent him a message:

[Let’s never run into each other again—not even by accident.]

More than the pain of the breakup, the betrayal of finding out he’d been cheating with her team leader made her unwilling to even think about Chan Jeong anymore.

“It’s a bit TMI, but I told him we should break up as soon as I got home that day.”

Hearing this, Eun Woo’s lips curled into a smile.

“That’s good.”

“What is?”

“Because someone like you doesn’t belong with a guy like that.”

That smile made her dizzy.