Parking his car in the lot, Do-yun hurried into the airport to meet his in-laws. He was late enough as it was. He had totally forgotten about them until they called In-hye, who had her own mean way of reminding him, namely a flipflop.
He found Mr. and Mrs. An sitting on the waiting benches, looking very snappy.
"Mom, Dad, you're here already?" He asked in greeting, proceeding to bow deeply at both of his in-laws.
"We've been here for thirty minutes, and you are asking if we've landed already? Where were you anyway? Didn't In-hye tell you when the plane would land?"
That was Mrs. An, always complaining.
"Actually, I went to get some drugs for In-hye at the pharmacy, and they were closed, so I had to drive to the hospital"
"Drugs for In-hye? She isn't ill, is she?" Worry etched the woman's features which were very similar to In-hye's features too. It was very obvious that In-hye took after her mother. And they were both very pretty.
"She's alright, actually. It's nothing serious"
Do-yun took their bags and boxes and put them into the trunk of his car, unlocking the doors after. Mr. An took the front passenger's seat while Mrs. An sat at the backseat.
As soon as he turned the key, his phone rang. He answered the call and put it on speaker.
"Hi honey"
"Did you get them already?" In-hye asked.
"Honey, how are you?" That was In-hye's mum. She smiled for the first time since she got off the plane.
"Mum! How was your flight?"
"Very stressful. And waiting for your husband was even worse" she gave Do-yun, whose attention was on the road, an evil eye.
"I'm sorry, mum. I reminded him so many times to go get you. Is Dad there also?"
"Kiddo, how's it going?"
In-hye's soft laughter rang through the car. "I'm good. How are you, Dad?"
"Do-yun said to weren't feeling alright, what's wrong?"
"Ah, it's just a mild stomachache, nothing serious"
There was a clattering sound from the other end, like the sound of ceramic falling to the floor. It was shortly followed by the sound of cursing.
"I have to go, I'll talk to you when you arrive"
"Alright, love you" her mum and dad voiced after her.
...
The only sound in the entire house was from the music box, the soft tunes running through the whole house. The sliding glass doors were opened, allowing the cool autumn breeze to enter into the house. A figure in matching Nike sweatshirt and sweatpants could be seen leaving the kitchen area deeper into the condo. It was Alex. The work table in the second bedroom which he had converted to a study, was cluttered with sheets of paper, cans of beer and piles of books on surgery. His desk was usually not so disarranged, but he'd been having back to back surgeries for some days and hardly had time to do anything but sleep. And last time, he spent his free time with Do-yun who told him he urgently needed to see him.
Turned out it wasn't urgent.
Alex dumped the cans of alcohol into the trash bin, before getting ready to sort through the sheets of paper. They were mostly just mindless jottings from what he'd read. After sorting through for a stretch, he tossed everything into the bin, rearranging the books on the shelf.
He left the dark room for a while to get the vacuum cleaner, and returned a moment later with it. This was how his days usually went, with him busying himself with chores. He could have employed a help with the salary he made, but he didn't like others going through his stuff. Besides, he was perfectly capable of taking care of a two-bedroom condo on his own.
After he was done cleaning, he retrieved his laundry from the washing machine and got out the ironing board to iron them. He laid all his coats and scrubs out, counting each one. He actually had three scrubs and three coats, but as he counted, he realised he only had two coats with him.
Assuming he had miscounted, he counted again, still realising two out of the three.
With a sigh, he remembered giving a coat to the girl he had 'rescued' the previous day-- Ji-eon's sister. He considered the conversation between Lisa and Su-hyeok.
"Lisa, I've missed you"
"I'll just quit"
"Do I still have an effect on you?"
Alex thought Su-hyeok was a lot of things, but he didn't consider him a pedo. _Guess I can add that to the list now._ And it sounded like they had history. Alex wasn't really keen on gossip, but the topic interested him for some reason other than Su-hyeok's preference for minors.
When he was done ironing and putting away his clothes, the doorbell rang.
I thought I told everyone I had work to do today
It wasn't the first time he'd lied about that, and it definitely would not be the last. It helped him avoid human interaction on his off days. He suspected the person was an annoying neighbor, but he had zero interactions with any of them, not for lack of trying on their part. People just bored him, especially those who were trying to suck up to him.
Also, people were too much trouble and drama, two things he was sure he didn't need in his life.
Lazily sauntering to the door, he checked the intercom and saw a familiar dark-haired female.
Did he have the energy to deal with Yu-gyeong that evening?
Definitely not. She may have been the closest thing to a girlfriend to him, but he wasn't into her. Occasionally, they had a few flings, but it was nothing more, at least to him.
He backtracked into the living room, and Yu-gyeong was still at the door. She rang the bell a handful of times more. "I know you're in there! I checked at the hospital and they told me you were off today!"
The door cracked open, revealing a tired silhouette of Alex. He gave Yu-gyeong a once over, taking in her appearance. She had on a red blouse with ruffled sleeves, paired with a black pencil skirt that barely reached her knees and black stilettos. A heavy sigh escaped Alex's lips, his eyes reflecting the weariness of a man who had faced the demands of long days in the operating room.
"Hey...?"
Yu-gyeong's greeting came as a question. She tried to look into the apartment, but he just stood in her way, blocking her view. He nodded, though, in response to her greeting, and she took it as an encouragement.
"Are you alright? You look exhausted"
She touched his face, her warm palm gently caressing the soft skin. Her touch didn't affect him. She should've known, after all, he made it clear that whatever they had was just a fling. But her behaviour these days made him think she was into him.
Worst mistake.
"Because I am. So why are you here?"
Yu-gyeong winced, retracting her hand with a sullen expression. Why was she there anyway? She wanted to see him, that was all. Did she need a reason to?
Yes.
Because Alex warned her. She couldn't fall for him. But by the time he told her, it was already too late. That was by the way, anyway, because he was still waiting for her to explain herself.
"I quit my job as Do-yun's assistant"
"And?"
"My dad offered me a job in his company, and I took it. I offered to find another assistant for him, but I've been so busy these days. Can you recommend anyone?"
Alex raised a disbelieving brow. I've been so busy these days. She made it sound like all he did all day was to lay on the couch watching TV shows in nothing but dirty underwear. He'd been way busier than she had been all week, and she knew that.
"I don't know, I'll call you if I can"
"Also...I'm free for most of the week. Wanna catch up over a drink?" Her eyes were wide and imploring, almost filled with hope. He almost felt sorry for refusing her, but he wasn't.
"I'll pass. Anything else?" When she didn't answer, Alex carried on, "Good. Have a nice day"
He shut the door in her face unceremoniously. He didn't intend to be rude to her, but he'd planned on enjoying his off day, and that meant avoiding as much human contact as humanly possible.
The dull hum of the music box once again filling the quiet house. Leaning against the door, he had the feeling that this encounter would come with its own consequences. The thought of Lisa crossed his mind-- there was no way she would go back to work with Su-hyeok working in the same building.
Should he recommend her to Yu-gyeong?
He wasn't keen on being nice, but he would just suggest it. After all, she'd mentioned that she would quit the job at the hospital.