Jiwoo

Apprehensive of whatever was coming to her, it was with somewhat of a hesitant step that Jiwoo entered Jinsol's office. The brunette was already behind her bureau, looking progressively exasperated the longer the seconds passed.

The silence was beginning to get really uncomfortable, so much so that Jiwoo didn't know what to do with herself. Was she supposed to say something? Apologize? "I-" Not sooner had she opened her mouth that Jinsol raised a hand to shut her up. 

"You're late on your second day and, moreover, chose to make a smashing entrance in the middle of a very important meeting. Is this job a joke to you?" 

Jiwoo wanted to respond, but the other woman stopped her once again. "I would like to point out that since I met you I've endured nothing but misery. You keep embarrassing me in public. You spilled coffee on me twice, called me an asshole, attacked me when you were at fault, and even broke my phone. You wouldn't even have this job if it weren't for Haneul. Why she seems to like you still eludes me, but I have every intention to have you gone by the end of this trial period. So, just do your best not to fuck up too much in the meantime. Alright?"

Jiwoo bit her tongue and nodded. Deep down, she called the woman every name under the sun. While yes, she did spill a few hot drinks on her, antagonized her, and, as of then, wasn't doing a stellar job, it still felt incredibly unfair. She'd just started the day before and wasn't even given a space to grow. Jinsol despised her and never intended to give her an honest chance. How was she meant to thrive in such a hostile environment? 

After making sure her boss was done with her tirade, Jiwoo bowed and left the office. Once outside, she did some breathing exercises to calm herself but couldn't help but let out a few curses under her breath. With a sudden determination to get that job to spite the brunette, Jiwoo went back to work. 

The rest of her late morning consisted of answering calls, something she still had to get used to, and arranging Jinsol's schedule. She hadn't yet taken a peep at the folder, having forgotten it entirely. By noon, Sooyoung stood by her corner, asking if she wanted to grab lunch together. They hadn't seen each other since the night before, and Jiwoo longed for a second with the older woman, but right when she was going to accept, Jinsol called her phone desk and asked for her lunch to be delivered. 

Shooting an apologetic look at Sooyoung, Jiwoo promised to join her when she finished that little task. She ran into Haneul on her way to the cafeteria, giving the woman a short but polite greeting before continuing her way down. 

Having cooled off from her earlier frustration, Jiwoo decided that perhaps an attempt at a truce was the best thing to do. So, along with her usual, she purchased a delicious-looking small pear pie for Jinsol. She even paid for it with her own money. Feeling good about the whole thing, she brought it with a smile to the brunette. 

Jinsol eyed the dessert with suspicion. She glanced between her and the pie as if it was laced with poison. Jiwoo did her best not to roll her eyes at the woman's reaction. She instead kept smiling and explained it was a token of apology. 

Jinsol then turned to Haneul, seemingly looking for some kind of validation of her suspicion, but the shorter woman sided with Jiwoo. She prodded Jinsol to accept the offer and try the pie. 

Outnumbered, Jinsol had no choice but to relent and accept Jiwoo's gift. In a show of good spirits, Jinsol took the small spoon and ate a piece of the pie. She seemed to enjoy it at first, even going for a second. But her expression soon turned sour. Then the coughing began, and while not so alarming at first, as it became increasingly clear that her boss was starting to struggle to breathe, Haneul sprang into action. She reached for Jinsol's bag all the while asking Jiwoo what was in the pie. 

The redhead earnestly answered, naming the ingredient list off the top of her head. Both Jinsol's and Haneul's widened at the pear bit. By then, Haneul had stopped rummaging inside Jinsol's bag and took out an epiPen. It then downed in Jiwoo, just as Haneul injected the pin into Jinsol's thigh, that her boss was most likely severely allergic to pears. Shit.

Jinsol slowly seemed to recover once the injection was applied. And the better the she got the more furious she seemed. Still wheezing, Jinsol practically shouted at her; Did you just try to kill me!?

"What, no. I swear I didn't. I didn't even know you were allergic to pear." Jiwoo hurriedly defended herself. She didn't like her boss, but to make an attempt at her life was a bit much. But her rebuttal only seemed to anger Jinsol even more.

"IT'S WRITTEN IN THE FUCKING FODEL I GAVE YOU YESTERDAY! DID YOU AT LEAST READ IT? "

A chart of Jinsol's personal info blurred through her mind. "Yes, I did. I mean, not completely, but I swear I wasn't trying to hurt you." Seeing that the situation was slowly getting out of hand, Haneul proposed that Jiwoo leave them alone. Having no better idea, Jiwoo obliged, leaving the office. 

She felt terrible. Guilt was eating at her. No matter how much she disliked Jinsol, she never meant to harm her in any way. Jiwoo kept an eye on the door of her office, waiting patiently. Once she saw Haneul exit it, she sprang upright and met the older woman. "Is she alright? I swear I didn't- I would have never bought it if I- Please tell me she's fine." Her nerves were going a thousand km a minute. She was so worried she could already feel the tears well in her eyes.

Haneul, seeing how upset she was, put her hands on her shoulders in an effort to calm her down. "It's okay, she's okay. Honestly, it was more of a fright than anything." 

Feeling a bit better by her reassurance, Jiwoo let out a wet laugh. "I'm fired, aren't I?" She'd actualy started gathering her stuff when she left Jinsol's office. Even to Jiwoo, triggering your boss's allergy seemed like an obvious fireable offense. 

Haneul gave her a pitying smile, and Jiwoo was ready to walk back to her desk and grab her belongings when the woman stopped her. "You're not fired yet. I convinced her to let you finish your trial period before making her decision, but let's just say that she'll probably be a bit prickly for the next few days, so try to avoid upsetting her too much. 

Jiwoo let out a sigh of relief. However, something was gnawing at her. A question she'd had ever since Haneul chose her. "Don't get me wrong, It's not that I'm not thankful and all. But why are you helping me out so much?"

Haneul turned pensive. "You want me to be honest." The redhead nodded. "I actually like you and think that perhaps Jinsol needs someone like you around." That didn't help Jiwoo understand. Haseul noticed her confusion and elaborated further.

"I know my friend can come off a bit cold, but she's actually a big softie. For example, she always marks her belongings with her initials, something she's done since kindergarten. She cries a lot when watching any mildly emotional scene, especially Disney movies, and used to build those Gundames. She probably spent more money on them than anything in her closet combined. Also, don't tell her I said, but she has a really sweet tooth and can't stand anything bitter. I'm sure she only drinks coffee for appearances. Her cup is typically more milk and sugar than coffee."

That got a laugh out of Jiwoo. She imagined Jinsol crying in front of the Lion King while building a Gundam. "It's just that she has closed in on herself over the past few years. But I think that someone as bright as you might be able to get her to open more."

The brunette's explanation still wasn't much help for Jiwoo. Why Haneul seemed so convinced she would somehow, miraculously get her elusive boss to open up was beyond her. If anything, their current relationship proved the contrary. Jiwoo was convinced Jinsol hated her with a burning passion. Nonetheless, she was ready to use whatever info she could get on Jinsol to her best advantage. 

The two kept talking for a moment before Haneul finally left the place. Looking at the clock, she knew she'd missed her chance to hang out with Sooyoung. Texting her a quick apology, Jiwoo went back to her workspace. She was determined not to make any more blunders. 

Jinsol didn't speak to her the rest of the day. Understandably so. But Jiwoo couldn't help but feel weird at the lack of her. She still took the time to say goodbye. But her boss didn't even offer her a glance. Not even aglare, nothing. Jiwoo thought of a way to make amends all the way home. Her silence even worried Sooyoung, who repeatedly tried to find out what was wrong. But every time, Jiwoo would claim it was nothing.

She was already inside her apartment when she thought back to Haneul's words, and suddenly, a solution hit her. Jiwoo hurried outside, forgetting her coat in her haste. 

Jiwoo arrived the next morning extremely early, not wanting to repeat her mistake from the day before. She was also armed with two things: a disgustingly sweet mess of a coffee and a wrapped gift box, which had cost her a full month's salary from her past barista gig. Who'd thought Gundams were so expensive. She'd spent her night running around Seoul in search of one, and of course, the only one she could put her hands on turned out to be one of the pricier ones. 

Jiwoo entered Jinsol's office and put both presents on her desk with a small apology note. She hoped it was enough to have her boss hate her a bit less. Once happy with her work, she left the room. 

Being at the empty premise felt weird. The whole space was always alive and full of typing sound, but standing there, a bit before seven sharp, the place was plunged into silence. It was slightly nerve-wracking. 

Shaking off the feeling, Jiwoo walked to her desk and grabbed the folder. She might as well finish it before it got more busy. 

Jiwoo was awakened by the sound of a mug hitting the floor. She sprung upright, startled. She heard somewhere in the open space, one of the writers cursed and dropped to pick up the shattered pieces. Rubbing her eyes, Jiwoo realized she'd fallen asleep. She must have been more tired than she thought. By then, Atypical was vibrant, with people furiously typing on their computers or walking from one hallway to the other. 

She was still a bit slow, which explained how long it took her to notice the blanket covering her. After observing the blanket more closely, she noticed initials inscribed on it. Haneul hadn't lied. Jinsol really did mark all her things.

Without realizing it, a smile had spread across Jiwoo's face. Her day had finally started on a positive note.