I didn’t want to see her crying like that. I stormed out of the cafe. I walked to Jiseojun’s officetel from the street.
“I first saw Jiseojun researcher a few years ago.”
It was the first sentence she spoke, shedding a tear.
“When I went on a trip to the United States with my friends, I had a hard time there. At that time, Jiseojun researcher helped me. Jiseojun researcher doesn’t remember at all…”
When she met someone she had encountered in a distant foreign country again at the company, she thought it was fate. However, she said she felt offended when she saw Jiseojun, who not only didn’t remember her but also had an impenetrable wall.
While expressing her apologies to me repeatedly, she said sorry for running away. She apologized.
“It feels empty.”
I received the apology I had been waiting for. However, there was no sense of relief.
Now, unlocking Jiseojun’s doorknob, which I could open even with my eyes closed, I entered, and there, Lieutenant Ddoe came out crying ‘meow’ from the entrance.
“I present Lieutenant Ddoe.”
I personally greeted Lieutenant Ddoe and embraced him. Now, he didn’t resist at all when held. Holding him and sniffing the unique smell of the lieutenant, my confused mind gradually settled.
Looking at the clock, it was approaching 9 o’clock.
“Today, Mom insisted on coming home and sleeping, but…”
Recently, as I often stayed out overnight, my mom scolded me in the morning. Even though she had promised to sleep at home, today, I really wanted to fall asleep in Jiseojun’s arms.
While stroking the soft fur of Lieutenant Ddoe, I recalled what happened a while ago.
“By any chance, did you approach Baek In-ha because of me?”
“What? What are you talking about? Absolutely not. Baek In-ha approached me first, saying she wanted to be friends.”
That’s what Yoon-ah said. Baek In-ha approached her first, wanting to be friends. And one day, she suddenly called and said she would buy her a meal, taking Yoon-ah to a military stew restaurant.
“In-ha is friends with people from the HR team. Our team’s youngest, and I as well, seem to be close to Manager Kim…”
Baek In-ha seemed to be close even to Manager Kim.
“What kind of person is that woman in your team…?”
Suddenly, Jiseojun asked about Baek In-ha. My mind became complicated again with suspicions that kept emerging.
“Lieutenant Ddoe, what should I do in this situation?”
“Meow.”
As if answering, Lieutenant Ddoe, who cried out cutely, was adorable as I hugged him. Lying down on the sofa with Lieutenant Ddoe on my stomach, I caressed him for a while.
“…Hey, Moon Moon, wake up.”
When I was shaken by his touch, I opened my eyes with difficulty, and Jiseojun was looking down at me.
“When did you come?”
“Just now. You said you had to go home today.”
“Yeah. I waited to see you off and ended up falling asleep.”
At Jiseojun’s suggestion that he would take me home, I nodded.
The car was unusually quiet. Although there were probably many things I wanted to ask, I was grateful that Jiseojun was just silently driving.
“At that time… When you asked about Baek In-ha.”
“Yeah.”
“Why did you ask?”
Briefly glancing at me and then focusing ahead again, Jiseojun cautiously opened his mouth.
“Manager Kim mentioned something about Baek In-ha.”
“Manager Kim?”
“He said it was all because of that little girl who used to be next to Moon Dayul…”
My hand holding the bag trembled slightly.
“Today, Yoon-ah said that. In-ha is close to the HR team employees. Originally, she tends to interact widely with other employees…”
“Really?”
“In-ha, really… No, never mind.”
We arrived at the house without me realizing it, and the car stopped. Jiseojun turned off the engine and looked at me.
“Manager Kim seems to have received quite a severe punishment.”
With Jiseojun’s words, the sleep that had been gradually coming over me disappeared in an instant.
After reporting to the grievance handling department, I hadn’t been paying attention. I didn’t want to see Manager Kim, who was going around making fun of me, and I didn’t like people gossiping out of curiosity.
“Actually, there seems to have been a #MeToo incident involving Manager Kim after that incident.”
Not just me, but it happened to other employees as well. It was shocking and unbelievable.
“She might get fired from the company.”
“So?”
“But, as Manager Kim is cornered, it seems like she’s venting to someone… I think it might be Baek In-ha.”
“What does that mean?”
“I heard that from Lee Kyung-hoon. He accidentally overheard Manager Kim talking on the phone, saying, ‘Did you not stick Moon Dayul to yourself? Take responsibility.’ Something like that.”
Jiseojun’s hand on the steering wheel tightened.
“Who did she blame me to?”
“I couldn’t hear exactly who it was. But maybe that person is a coworker who works with you.”
My chest area became tense.
“For now, let’s go inside. Wash up and rest.”
I nodded my head in agreement with difficulty and opened the car door. Jiseojun, who followed me down, pressed the elevator button.
“Don’t think about it. There’s no exact information. Don’t worry and be sad in advance. Got it?”
“Yeah.”
Jiseojun’s worried face gradually disappeared behind the closing elevator door. As the elevator door closed, I sat down on the floor with my legs giving way.
“Good morning!”
How should I face Baek In-ha?
I couldn’t sleep properly last night. Despite the tired body, my mind was tense. I almost stayed up all night, unable to sleep, tossing and turning.
Even as I came to the company, I didn’t realize the tension. However, the tension was relieved momentarily when I saw In-ha’s empty seat, not yet arrived.
“Good morning!”
I absentmindedly stared at the monitor, and In-ha greeted me as she entered the office. She looked displeased for the past few days, but today, it was In-ha’s usual appearance.
“Manager, hello.”
“Oh. Right. Good morning.”
Smiling at me, Baek In-ha sat down after turning on the computer, then approached me, pulling a chair.
“Manager, HR Team’s Manager Kim Hyeong-seok has resigned.”
“Yes?”
“There was a lot of talk about it this time. The punishment was severe. So, it seems like he decided to quit on his own. Even if he quits here, rumors have spread everywhere. Where can he find a proper job now?”
She spoke as if her heart was relieved.
“I’m glad Manager Kim is leaving the company. Aren’t you?”
Baek In-ha asked me innocently.
The thought that her entire face might be a false mask sent a slight chill down my spine.
An Indifferent Woman is the One Men Desire the Most
One-line summary: The female lead is actually cold-hearted and extremely rational. She has stage-by-stage relationships and won’t two-time, but there will always be someone who secretly likes her.
This novel has the following triggers, so if you’re sensitive to these, please don’t read:
1. The female lead has had many relationships, but she treated each one seriously and broke up properly.
It’s just that the men unilaterally pestered her incessantly. For the female lead, when she doesn’t like someone anymore, she simply doesn’t like them.
(This applies to her relationships with Male Lead 1, 2, 3, and 4 as well, but she’s loyal in each 1-on-1 relationship!)
2. In this novel, Male Lead 2 and the female lead kiss in a car, and Male Lead 1 sees it and beats up Male Lead 2.
The female lead calls the police and sends both Male Lead 1 and 2 to the police station! Male Lead 1 begs the female lead not to break up with him.
3. Male Lead 1 has a gentle appearance but an obsessive personality.
Male Lead 2 has a delicate and soft appearance, slightly green tea-like (two-faced).
Male Lead 3 is a youthful college student and a smart person who has secretly liked the female lead for a long time.
Male Lead 4 is the female lead’s father’s special assistant, a business elite with deep, hidden thoughts.
4. At the beginning of this novel, the female lead has already broken up with Male Lead 1 (Chapter 4) and gotten back together with Male Lead 2 (ex-boyfriend).
5. Enter with caution if you have triggers!!!
