Riding The Wave (1)

Kim Hana sat in a daze for a while before she hurriedly started preparing for work, wincing at every movement she made. As she walked out of the shower, she paused at the sight of her bruised body reflected back in the mirror. She quickly looked away and continued dressing quickly. She had kept her suit outside all night and it needed the heat of an iron to help with the slight dampness. She glanced at the clock and realised she still had some time, so she quickly covered the slight bruise on her face with a full-coverage foundation. She took some painkillers and walked out of the house. Locking up, she noticed her next-door neighbour seemingly returning from throwing away her garbage and nodded to her.

"Hana-shi, right?" her neighbour asked and she nodded.

"I am sorry for assuming that pervert was the boyfriend you were talking about without asking. Don't worry, I'll keep an eye out for him if he ever comes around again. I have informed some neighbours," her neighbour asked. A small smile bloomed on Kim Hana's face at her words as she bowed and thanked her.

"I'm sorry if the police gave you any issues yesterday. Thank you," she recalled this neighbour was called Shin Iseul. For a moment when she put up her small fist in her Hello Kitty hoody while talking about the stalker, she suddenly thought, it was a fitting name.

"No problem," Shin Iseul said before entering her apartment. Kim Hana was pleased she did not make too many enemies after the entire fiasco the night before. Out of habit, she looked around while walking to the nearest bus stop. For some reason, the excitement she had thought she would feel when starting her first day of work was nowhere to be found. Maybe realising that she may find it hard to keep the job with her new situation dulled her spirit. She reported to the marketing department a whole thirty minutes early, yet the office was half full. From the tired bearings of those moving around, she doubted it was because of white-collar zeal. She found her way to the director's office and knocked before being let in.

"Good morning. I am a new hire reporting to her first day of work." she greeted before the woman even turned around. The middle-aged woman glanced back at her slightly, before continuing her conversation. It was only then Kim Hana noticed that she was on the phone. After a while, the woman put down the phone and took a seat before descending her eyes on Kim Hana.

"I thought there were three new hires. Where are the rest?" she asked.

"I have just arrived director, I do not know," Kim Hana answered.

"It's fine," the director said and buzzed for her secretary who rushed in.

"You did not notice someone enter my office?" she asked the secretary and she bowed in apology.

"It's fine. Call over Leader Lee," she instructed. At this point, Kim Hana was a bit apprehensive as she thought she had made a mistake in her few minutes walking in. Soon, the secretary returned with a man who seemed to be in his mid-thirties.

"Director Gu," he greeted.

"One of your new hires is here, and early too. Put her to work," She nodded to Kim Hana who immediately bowed to Leader Lee.

"Sure, Director Gu," he nodded and beckoned Kim Hana to follow him.

"What is your name?" he asked.

"Kim Hana," she answered.

"Miss Kim, You take that desk over there. Take the revised draft files from Miss Shin in red over there and follow me. Can you take minutes?" he asked.

"Yes, sir," she answered.

"Tell Miss Shin to settle the rest of the new hires when they arrive and assign them some work. Take something to take notes and meet me by the elevator," he instructed and left.

"Yes sir," Kim Hana hurried over to Miss Shin and conveyed her instructions after a small greeting and was handed the files. She rushed over to Leader Lee's side just in time for the elevator to open. They stepped into the elevator with others and got off after a while. Kim Hana tried hard to not look around as she followed him closely into a meeting room. Inside, there were already people seated. She bowed slightly to those inside and took a seat behind her boss.

"Miss Kim, pay attention to the numbers by the sales team and the locations if mentioned. Note it all down. Sort the drafts by the ease of filming location and have them in hand just in case I need them." he said and took out his laptop to start working. She responded with a small yes and looked down at the stack of drafts. She was not sure how she was supposed to do this as she had not been trained, but she immediately started flipping through the drafts. Just like herself, everyone was too busy to bother with each other. As she noted the locations suggested for filming in the drafts, she did a small search on the internet about the site, how available it is and other things that crossed her mind. She was not sure what he meant by the ease of filming, but she sorted it to the best of her ability.

"Let's begin," She heard a voice too familiar sound across the meeting room and she looked up sharply. On the large monitor was Kang Seo Joon's face. She noted that the bruise on his jaw and nose looked slightly faded as he uncapped a bottle of water and took a swing.

"PR, if we drop Chae Lily right now what would be a backlash?" Kang Seo Joon asked.

"We would have to explain the Mayflower incident and it is best if we delay that." A lanky man on the other side of the desk said.

"Why?" Kang Seo Joon asked.

"We could use the backlash to our advantage. We may have promised to not talk about the Mayflower incident, but the police report will be out in a while and we are obligated to talk about it. We would be in some heat for a while. The uproar from her fans will raise awareness. When the police reports come out, our product will already be the talk of the net." the man explained. Kim Hana did not know what this Mayflower incident was, but she had heard of the singer, Chae Lily. She felt a slight chill from his suggestion, her hand not pausing as she continued to scribble on her notepad.

"Inform her team we will no longer be working with her," Kang Seo Joon said, his eyes landing on Kim Hana's form on the monitor. The minute continued for a good thirty minutes, Kang Seo Joon's eyes catching her adjust in the chair and stretching her neck slightly in discomfort.

"Marketing, why can't I see Mrs Gu?" Kang Seo Joon asked.

"Director Gu went to the airport to pick up Producer Baek and Director Cha." Leader Lee answered.

"That was today?" Kang Seo Joon commented, "Then you tell me; I heard you wished to change the script completely."

"We figured by the time the news broke, our first script would be conflicting. The script and the entire feel were designed to fit Chae Lily's image and Im Yeosin would not fit." Leader Lee answered.

"Im Yeosin?" Kang Seo Jun asked.

"She and Chae Lily are known to be rivals and even enemies. We think picking her will cause more stir." Leader Lee said and Kim Hana almost raised a brow.

"Will you still be able to keep to schedule? What is the marketing department's idea for the new advert?" he asked, "It took quite a while to decide the last time. You will not be taking that long to send me something acceptable right?"

"We already have several drafts ready. Jang Mi Lake and HM Resorts are particularly good options right now. Im Yeosin's manager has mentioned HM resorts as a condition." he said. As he talked, Kim Hana recalled that her HM resort had just announced that the garden and pond would be closed for a while. She wrote it down on her note and slid it in front of Leader Lee as he spoke. Her action did not escape Kang Seo Joon's eyes as he saw Leader Lee glance down at it and pause a bit before continuing.

"But just this morning, HM Resorts announced that they would be closing Gardens and Pond for a while. We are considering Other sites, but it will come down to the concept chosen at the end." Leader Lee informed him and Kang Seo Joon nodded. Kim Hana looked tiny on the 30-inch monitor before him, but he still caught her slowed action as she returned to scribbling on her notes. He pulled out his phone and messaged her. It read, Did you not take any medication this morning? He listened to other reports as he watched her slowly pull out her phone and glance up slightly before looking back down. Soon, a message came in. It read, I was in a hurry. Kang Seo Joon put down his phone and continued the meeting. The meeting went on another forty minutes before he dismissed them and put off the monitor.

His assistant brought more files into his office and Kang Seo Joon who wanted to work from home through the morning threw himself into work, from one meeting to another. The Mayflower incident had caused him a lot of trouble, making him recall how much trouble it was working with celebrities. He glanced at the time as he put down the files in his hands for Assistant Jang to take away.

"Sir, Madam and Old Madam have been calling all morning, They said you should make time to stop by the family home." Assistant Jang said.

"If they call again, inform them that I am busy these two days, I will make time soon," Kang Seo Joon got up and walked out of his office to the living room.

"Sir, I am still looking for the person you were trying to find yesterday. I have asked a Private detective to..." Assistant Jang started to say.

"Cancel it; I already found her," Kang Seo Joon said, walking into his room to pick a brown coat.

"How long will the inspection take?" he asked as they walked out the door.

"A few hours, why?" Assistant Jang asked, opening the back door for Kang Seo Joon. Not receiving a reply, he closed the door and sat in front with the driver.

"When do the staff at headquarters take a break?" Kang Seo Joon asked.

"Noon, Sir," Assistant Jang answered.

"Stop by a pharmacy." Kang Seo Joon instructed as the car pulled out of the garage.