When Miss Lee opened her eyes, she felt like she was blind at first but when her vision finally returned to her, she was hit by the bright daylight and had to spend a few more minutes trying to adjust to the intense brightness that was burning her eyes.
She sighed in relief - she was alone and back in her apartment, however, those were the only things that seemed good at that time.
'Gosh, my head is about to explode... How much did I drink last night? And what the hell happened to me?'
Apart from an unbearable headache, Joo Yeong's whole body felt extremely heavy, and each movement brought her a great deal of pain. And it got worse - the sorest parts of her body were her lower back and crotch. A sudden unpleasant realization shook her body like an earthquake - did she sleep with Lee Min Hyun last night? She hesitated for a moment, then grabbed her phone to call the intern but froze when she saw a dozen unread messages from him. As her finger tapped a few times on the screen, Miss Lee's body began to tremble again, and she had to make an effort to hold onto her phone.
First message: Good morning, Miss Lee! Did you sleep well? Gosh, I had no idea you get so wild when you're drunk, you really caused quite a lot of trouble, you know.
Second message: I thought you would have a lot of questions about last night but don't worry, instead of a thousand words, how about I show you a rather fascinating video?
The woman swallowed an invisible rock stuck in her throat and tapped on the video file attached to the third message. The quiet room was instantly filled with the loud sounds of her own moans and the smacking of the wet flesh. She could not believe it - it was her, bent over the bed in a messy hotel room, wiggling underneath a man's body, moaning and panting like an animal in heat, it was the first time she was appalled by the sight of her own face. It was disgusting. But it got worse - when the camera finally moved to the man that was pounding her and exposed his face, she screamed and dropped her phone on the bed.
"No... No way... Lim Sang Hyuk?!"
Her shaking hands picked up the phone once again and started tapping frantically on the screen trying to close the video. When the moaning and panting finally stopped, she tapped on the fourth message that read,
"Miss Lee, to be honest, I was disappointed. I mean, you went on a date with me but then you got drunk and started calling Lim Sang Hyuk! And then you even made me film all of that! My phone is literally filled with videos of you having sex with that guy!"
Next message:
"Here's the video of you jumping on top of him."
Next message:
"Here's the video of you sucking him off. Man, you sucked him dry, did not know you enjoyed it so much."
Next message:
"And here's the video of you getting it up your ass. You're such a pervert."
That was enough, she could not take it anymore. Her distress did not seem real. It could not be. It was more like a sick joke, a cruel prank intended to torture her for something she did not do. But why her?
Before she knew it, she was holding her phone against her ear and wincing at every ringing sound that came from the other side of the line, it almost seemed like they would never stop but a sudden crack shuttered that unpleasant illusion and Joo Yeong found herself screaming,
"Lee Min Hyun! What the fuck did you do to me?!"
The guy let out an annoyed sigh and started laughing.
"Geez, Miss Lee, what do you even mean? Have you not seen the videos I sent you?"
"How?! Did you drug me? Did you spike my drink? And Lim Sang Hyuk! Why was he there too?!"
Min Hyun was silent for a few seconds before he spoke again in an obviously angry but low voice,
"Fuck... Lee Joo Yeong. You got shit-faced on wine, then dragged me to a hotel, and when we arrived, Lim Sang Hyuk was already waiting for us there. I wanted to leave you two right away but you locked the door and made me film how the two of you were fucking each other's brains out."
Miss Lee bit her nail and widened her eyes; she did not remember a single thing about last night but it was definitely the two of them in those videos and if someone were to see them, her life would be ruined forever.
"What do you want? Are you going to blackmail me now?"
"You got that right, I will. Leave the company and never approach Miss Yoon again. If you refuse, everyone in the company will receive an email with those videos attached."
Joo Yeong felt her blood run cold but she still could not help laughing.
"What? So all of that because of that whore Yoon Se Ah? So I was right, she's been sleeping with you too? Fuck, you're unbelievable, Lee Min Hyun. Forget it, I'm going to report you to the police!"
Her phone buzzed again and a new message from Min Hyun poped-up on the smudged screen. Although reluctantly, she opened it too and felt her whole body stiffen.
"It's a nice picture. You also look really skilled at this. Have you done drugs before?"
What she received in that message was a picture of her sniffing cocaine right in the car from a compact mirror she's been carrying around in every purse for the past ten years. Even if she would be found dead one day, with her body destroyed beyond recognition, just looking at that compact mirror would be enough to identify her. She was doomed.
"Judging from your silent response, I take it that you understood the message. If you go to the police, they will have to arrest you for doing drugs and raping a drunk man who had just been physically assaulted a day before. I have all the evidence I need. So go on. Try me."
The woman took a long deep breath and tears began to flow down her cheeks leaving visible clear marks on her messed-up face. She wiped her running nose and whispered,
"Lee Min Hyun, who the hell are you? What did I ever do to you?"
"Send the resignation letter via email by the end of the day, block Miss Yoon's number, and never contact anyone from work ever again. If you make even the slightest mistake, I will end you. Understood?"
A quiet "yes" was the only thing that Miss Lee could squeeze out of her mouth but that was enough to end their conversation, and when the phone went silent again, she hugged her knees and started crying like she never cried before, until she finally felt nothing. Nothing but humiliation and despair.