Chapter 14: The Subway

"Ugh..."

Kim Dokja stretched his arms as he finished his work.

"Is Dokja-ssi tired?"

Kim Dokja gasped because of the sudden voice. He raised his head reflexively. A pair of curious eyes were staring straight at him. They belonged to an employee from the human resources team, Yoo Sangah.

"Oh, Yoo Sangah-ssi! It's you? That scared the hell out of me..."

"Just how much tired are you to get scared like this?"

"Haha, I couldn't rest yesterday, it was a tiring day."

"Don't tell me you even work on weekends..."

"Hmm, I don't. Well, it's just that.... I couldn't sleep well?"

"Is that so?"

"Yep."

Kim Dokja smiled with a tired expression. No matter how much he showed he was fine, in the end he was a lonely person who lived in a different kind of story from others.

"I'll go first then. What about Yoo Sangah-ssi?"

"I was lucky. The manager went on a business trip today. Will Dokja-ssi will take the subway today?"

"I mean... Yeah? I usually take the subway though."

"Then how about we go together? I'm going to take the subway as well."

Kim Dokja raised his eyebrows in curiosity.

"Do you normally take the subway?"

"That..." Yoo Sangah made a dark expression.

'Come to think of it, this was the first time I'd met Yoo Sangah on a subway train.'

Starting with Personnel Manager Kang to Finance Manager Han... There were rumors that Yoo Sangah had men from the company driving her home every workday.

Yet unexpected words came from Yoo Sangah's mouth, "Someone stole my bicycle."

Bicycle.

"You commute by bike?"

"Yes! I have a lot of overtime these days and seem to be lacking exercise. It is a bit annoying, but it is worth doing."

"Aha, I see."

Yoo Sangah smiled. Looking closer at her, Dokja could understand the feelings men held toward her. However, it was none of his business.

Every person had a genre of life, and Yoo Sangah was someone who lived a genre different from him.

*

In a noisy subway, Kim Dokja and Yoo Sangah looked at their phones. Dokja opened up the novel app where he reads webnovels while Yoo Sangah... What was this?

"Por favor dinero."

"Huh?"

"Spanish."

"...I see. What does it mean?"

"Please give me some money," Yoo Sangah replied proudly.

Studying on the subway while going home... She truly had a genre different genre from him. However, what was the use of memorizing words?

"You're working hard."

"By the way, what is Dokja-ssi looking at?"

"Ah, I..."

Yoo Sangah's gaze was fixed on the LCD screen of Dokja's smartphone. "Is it a novel?"

"Yes, well... I am studying Korean."

"Wow, I also like novels. I haven't been able to read lately because I don't have time..."

It was surprising. Yoo Sangah liked reading novels...?

"Murakami Haruki, Raymond Carver, Han Kang..."

Kim Dokja thought so.

"Dokja-ssi, what writers do you like?"

"You won't know even if I say their names."

"I've read a lot of novels. Who are the authors?"

At this time, it was really hard to say that he read web novels as a hobby. Dokja glanced at the title of the novel in the app.

[The World after the Fall]

Author: Han Soongyoon

Dokja couldn't say that he was reading 'The World after the Fall by Han Soongyoon.' Of course, who would know her? Anyone barely knows Soongyoon as a writer, maybe Kim Dokja is only reader of her novels.

"It is just a fantasy novel. That... Well, like the Lord of the Rings..."

Yoo Sangah's eyes widened. "Aha. Lord of the Rings. I've seen the movie."

"The movie is good."

The silence continued for a moment. Yoo Sangah was looking at him like she was waiting for him to say something.

Their conversation was becoming strained. So, Dokja decided to change the topic. "It has been a year since I joined the company. This is my last year. Time moves really fast."

"Yes. At that time, we both knew nothing, right?"

"That's right. It seems like just yesterday, but the contract period is already over." Dokja realized that he'd said something wrong when he saw Yoo Sangah's expression.

"Ah, I..." he had forgotten.

Yoo Sangah received credit for a foreign buyer last month and was already promoted to a full-time employee.

"Ah, right. My congratulations are late. I'm sorry. Haha, I should've worked hard to study a foreign language."

"Ah, no Dokja-ssi! There is still the performance review and..."

He hated to admit it, but the sight of Yoo Sangah talking was wonderful. It was like the world's spotlight was shining down on only one person. If this world was a novel, the protagonist would be such a person.

In fact, it was the inevitable result. Kim Dokja hadn't tried, but Yoo Sangah made an effort. He just read novels on the Internet, while Yoo Sangah studied hard. It was natural that Yoo Sangah would become a full-time employee, and that his contract would be terminated.

"That... Dokja-ssi."

"Yes."

"If you don't mind... Would you like to know the app I use?" Yoo Sangah's voice momentarily became distant.

It felt like the world was far away. Dokja braced his mind and stared straight ahead.

"...Dokja-ssi?"

What if Kim Dokja had a different life from now?

'I mean, what if my life genre was different?'

"Kim Dok..."

If the genre of his life wasn't 'realism' but 'fantasy'... Could Kim Dokja be the protagonist? He didn't know. It would probably be unknown forever. However, there was one thing he knew.

"It is okay, Yoo Sangah-ssi."

"Huh?"

"It won't work even if you tell me the app."

The genre of his life was obviously 'realism.'

"Dokja has a solo life."

"Huh? What..."

"I am just someone like that."

In this genre, Kim Dokja wasn't a protagonist but a 'solo' person.

"The life of a solo..." Yoo Sangah had a serious expression on her face.

However, he waved his hands to show it was really okay.

He didn't know why, but this person was really worried about him. Maybe because she was part of the personnel department... He was already aware of his performance though.

"Dokja-ssi is really good."

"Yes?"

"Then I will live an ivory life."

Yoo Sangah seemed to have decided something as she turned back to studying Spanish. Dokja gazed at her for a while before returning to the novel.

Everything had returned to normal, but strangely, Kim Dokja's scrolling of the novel didn't go well. Maybe it was because he realized the weight of reality that he couldn't scroll down.

And somehow the unfamiliar subway seemed familiar and felt lonely to him, as if he had been stuck there alone for thousand years.