“Argh!”

Jeonghun screamed and hopped around, clutching his leg before falling backwards.

Coincidentally, it was the same shin that Juwon had already kicked last night, so the pain was doubled.

Park Gwajang glared at Jeonghun, who was writhing in agony with a bright red face, her brows furrowed.

Then, Ina and the female employees looked at Park Gwajang with startled eyes.

“Is this guy completely crazy? Does he keep spouting nonsense out of the blue? Huh?”

Jeonghun collapsed on the ground, glaring at Park Gwajang as if he would kill her when two men came running from a distance.

“Park Gwajang! What’s going on?”

It was Lee Daeri and Han Daeri from the sales team.

The two men, who had run over with startled faces, tried to assess the situation by looking back and forth between Jeonghun and Park Gwajang.

“Ah, well, this crazy bastard suddenly appeared and started picking a fight with our Seo Daeri! Spouting nonsense!”

“What?”

Lee Daeri, with a shocked expression, glared at Jeonghun.

“This… this crazy bastard dares to hit someone?”

Jeonghun screamed and tried to rush at Park Gwajang, but Lee Daeri and Han Daeri quickly grabbed his arms.

“What? Crazy bastard? Is a young punk like you spouting curses out of the blue? And I’ve known our Seo Daeri for 5 years, and she’s absolutely not the kind of person to do the dirty things you’re babbling about! You, who come to someone else’s company in broad daylight, drunk and causing a scene, are exactly the kind of trash who would do such a thing! You crazy bastard!”

At Park Gwajang’s shouting that would make even a locker cry, people around them were startled and stared at Park Gwajang.

No one knew that the usually smiling and good-natured Park Gwajang had such a tough side to her.

Ina also blankly stared at Park Gwajang’s unfamiliar appearance for a moment before coming to her senses.

She felt both gratitude and guilt towards Park Gwajang, who had defended her and even said great things in this unpleasant situation where she became the center of attention because of her.

“What’s what? What about my face? You bastard! Hey! You’re all being deceived by this Seo Ina bitch! You don’t know how much she badmouths you behind your backs…”

As Jeonghun was yelling loudly, Park Gwajang suddenly picked up her cell phone and called somewhere.

“Yes, is this 112? I’m in front of a company and I’d like to report a stalker. Yes, yes. A stalker has come and is harassing our female employee. Yes, yes. The location here is…”

“Hey! Who’s a stalker? You crazy!”

Jeonghun shouted at the top of his lungs, his eyes bloodshot.

“Yes, yes. You heard him just now, right? Yes. That’s the stalker’s voice. Ah, then we’ll hold him here…”

“You bastard!”

Jeonghun glared at Park Gwajang, gritting his teeth, then used all his strength to shake off the two men’s arms and ran away without looking back.

At the sight of him running away at a speed that would put Usain Bolt to shame, Park Gwajang took the phone away from her ear.

“Tsk, tsk… what a pathetic bastard.”

Lee Daeri asked Park Gwajang, who clicked her tongue while looking in the direction Jeonghun had run off to, with a puzzled expression.

“Huh? Park Gwajang, aren’t you on a call right now?”

Park Gwajang silently held up her cell phone to show Lee Daeri.

Only the phone’s wallpaper was visible, not a call screen.

“Oh, you didn’t actually report it?”

“No, I was just pretending.”

The female employees looked surprised at Park Gwajang’s words.

“Wow, Park Gwajang, your acting skills are no joke.”

Han Daeri joked, and Park Gwajang looked at Ina, who had her head bowed like a sinner.

“Hey, I’m going to have a drink with Seo Daeri, so you four go ahead and have lunch.”

Ina raised her head with startled eyes at Park Gwajang’s words.

“No, it’s okay, Park Gwajang. Please go ahead and eat.”

“No, Seo Daeri, let’s have a cup of coffee together. You all go ahead. Ah! You know to keep your mouths shut even if I don’t say it, right?”

Park Gwajang made a zipping motion across her mouth with her hand as she spoke to the employees.

The employees looked at Ina with worried eyes, then nodded.

“Yes! Of course. Park Gwajang, then we’ll go ahead first.”

After the employees left, Ina, unable to resist Park Gwajang’s urging, went to a nearby coffee shop with her.

Park Gwajang stopped Ina, who tried to pay for the drinks, and ordered two cups of coffee and two sandwiches.

“You probably won’t have much of an appetite, but at times like this, you can’t let your stomach be empty. Let’s eat something simple.”

As Ina sat at the table with her head bowed in embarrassment and guilt, Park Gwajang tapped the table with her finger.

“What, did you commit a crime? Lift your head up, Seo Daeri.”

Ina bit her lower lip and raised her head.

“I’m just so embarrassed and sorry… I don’t know what to say to you.”

“Why are you embarrassed? Because that guy is a crazy bastard?”

Ina lowered her head again as the coffee and sandwiches arrived.

“Let’s eat this first and then talk. Hurry and eat. Here.”

Unable to refuse Park Gwajang’s kindness, even unwrapping the sandwich for her, Ina reluctantly brought the sandwich to her mouth.

But she couldn’t taste anything at all.

It felt like chewing on rocks.

Her heart was still pounding because of the bomb Park Jeonghun had dropped.

She never imagined he would go this far, and it felt like being hit hard on the back of the head.

As she bit her lip, thinking about what to do with this crazy bastard, Park Gwajang took a sip of coffee and spoke.

“You know, as you live life, there are times when shitty situations that have nothing to do with your own will happen. I guess that’s what happened to you earlier, Seo Daeri.”

Ina raised her eyes to look at Park Gwajang at her words.

“But it’s not your fault, Seo Daeri. You didn’t know he was that kind of guy when you dated him, right? I also dated a lot of men before getting married, but when men are trying to pick up a woman, they act like they’ll give you their liver and gall bladder, you know. I was also fooled by that and dated this one guy, but his true nature was really trashy. When I broke up with him, it was really tough for me. We even went to the police station and pressed charges, it was a whole mess.”

When Ina looked at her in surprise, Park Gwajang laughed.

“But you know what’s funny? As soon as we went to the police station and pressed charges, he completely tucked his tail between his legs. He wrote a written pledge himself saying he’d never show up again and begged me to drop the charges. I was so dumbfounded.”

As Ina watched Park Gwajang speak with a laugh, she let out a short sigh.

Somehow, it didn’t feel like someone else’s story.

“When I saw that guy earlier, it reminded me exactly of that trashy ex. You did break up with him, right?”

“Yes… we broke up last week.”

“Good job. But we praised Seo Daeri’s boyfriend as a romanticist without knowing he was that kind of guy, huh?”

Ina replied with an awkward smile and reached for the coffee cup.

“But even though we sent him away like that earlier, that guy might come back and cause trouble, so think about reporting him to the police. Those pathetic guys tend to tremble in front of public authority, so show him what’s what for once. If you need a witness, let me know. I’ll stand as one anytime.”

“Your words alone are truly appreciated… I must be overflowing with luck. To have you believe in me and offer to help me in this situation… I’m so grateful, I don’t know what to say.”

“I’m not just saying it. Really, if you need a witness, tell me. I’ll summon not only myself but also Eun Jeong, Sena, Lee Daeri, and Han Daeri. And it’s me who’s overflowing with luck. Where else can you find a hard-working and great subordinate like Seo Daeri?”

At Park Gwajang’s words, Ina felt touched and her eyes became moist for some reason.

“And don’t worry too much about what happened earlier. People gathered in the moment out of curiosity, but they’ll all forget after today passes. People are surprisingly not that interested in others’ business, you know. So don’t overthink it. Got it?”

“Yes, I’ll try to do that. Thank you so much.”

Park Gwajang smiled and gestured for her to finish the rest of the sandwich.

* * *

– I think I’ll arrive around the same time today too.

A message from Juwon came when it turned 6 PM.

Ina was lost in thought for a moment.

She debated whether she should tell Juwon to come or not, then sent a reply for now.

– Okay, got it. See you later.

– Alright.

As she put down her phone, Ina received a message on the company messenger.

– Seo Daeri, do you want to grab a beer with us after work? Han Daeri from the sales team said he’ll join too.

It was a message from Eun Jeong.

Ina was a little surprised but quickly replied.

– I feel bad about this, but I have a prior engagement today. Shall we drink together next time?

– Oh, is that so? Then we’ll drink by ourselves today. ^^

– I’m really sorry for bailing when you’re holding this gathering for my sake… Instead, next time, I’ll treat this same group to chimaek.

– Wow! Really? Then I’ll go drinking now and quickly share this joyful news. ^^

Ina felt grateful and apologetic to Eun Jeong, who had proposed chimaek to lift her spirits despite probably being quite startled earlier.

After 6:20 PM, as she was getting ready to leave work, another message came.

– Seo Daeri, will you be okay leaving work alone today? I brought my car today, so if it’s alright, I can drop you off at home. I’ll check if that guy is around too. I’m going in that direction anyway, so don’t decline.

It was from Park Gwajang.

Ina felt touched once again.

Feeling thankful for her luck once more, she sent a reply.

– Gwajang, I’m truly grateful for your words alone. Fortunately, a friend said he’ll pick me up this week. Thank you so much for your concern. ^^

– Okay then~! Let’s get off work quickly.

Ina smiled, tidied up her desk, and turned off her computer.

After Kim Bujang left first, employees got up from their seats one by one here and there.

As always, Ina left the office together with Park Gwajang, Eun Jeong, and Sena.

When the elevator arrived on the first floor, Ina said goodbye to Park Gwajang and got off with the two.

As they exited the main gate, Lee Daeri and Han Daeri could be seen standing there.

“Huh? Didn’t you say you had an appointment, Lee Daeri?”

When Eun Jeong asked in puzzlement, Lee Daeri grinned.

“Oh, I just wanted to say hi before leaving.”

Lee Daeri shifted his gaze to Ina and spoke with a smile on his face.

“Seo Daeri, it’s a shame, but let’s definitely have a drink together next time. Alright?”

“Seo Daeri also has an appointment today, so she can’t join us for drinks.”

At Eun Jeong’s words, Lee Daeri’s eyes curved into crescents as he smiled.

“Ah, you have an appointment? Then all the more reason we should definitely have a drink next time. Okay?”

“Ah, yes.”

As Ina answered with an awkward smile, Han Daeri poked Lee Daeri’s side.

“You’re not upset at all about not being able to drink with us, only about not drinking with Seo Daeri. Right?”

Lee Daeri looked at Han Daeri with a startled face, his cheeks turning red.

“Wh-what are you saying, Han Daeri? Why are you saying weird things?”

As Han Daeri giggled at the flustered Lee Daeri, Eun Jeong grabbed Han Daeri’s arm.

“Han Daeri, we need to go quickly. If we’re late, we’ll have to line up.”

“Oh, really? Then let’s hurry. Seo Daeri, we’ll get going first. See you tomorrow too, Lee Daeri.”

As Ina hurriedly bowed her head to say goodbye, Han Daeri took Eun Jeong and Sena and walked off in the other direction.