Minra was going insane.
And it was all because of Reyne.
Ever since that stupid breakroom moment, he had been watching her too closely.
Dropping comments.
Sending her knowing smirks.
And worst of all?
Worst of all—
She could see it in his eyes.
He didn’t believe her denial.
And if he didn’t believe her denial—
That meant she was in trouble.
So.
So, what did she do?
What she always did when she needed to vent.
She texted Shuun.
[Minra]: "I swear to God, my coworkers are driving me insane."
[Shuun]: "What happened?"
Minra paused.
Because.
Because what was she supposed to say?
"Oh, nothing, just that I accidentally slept with my boss and now everyone’s acting weird?"
Yeah, no.
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So instead, she went for the safe option.
[Minra]: "It’s about a friend again."
.
HyunSeong, on the other end, smirked.
Because.
Because of course it was about a ‘friend’ again.
He already knew where this was going.
Still, he played along.
[Shuun]: "Go ahead."
[Minra]: "Let’s say… two people work together. And let’s say… something happened between them. And let’s say… now people around them are starting to notice something is off."
HyunSeong’s smirk widened.
She was really terrible at hiding things.
But instead of calling her out, he answered exactly the way he wanted her to see it.
[Shuun]: "That’s only a problem if there’s actually something to notice."
Minra stiffened.
Because.
Because why did that feel like a challenge?
Why did it feel like he was telling her to calm down and stop acting weird?
Why did it feel like he knew exactly what she was talking about?
Her fingers hovered.
Then, slowly, she typed—
[Minra]: "What if they’re making it a big deal even when it’s nothing?"
[Shuun]: "Then maybe they’re seeing something you don’t want to admit."
Minra froze.
Her stomach flipped.
Because.
Because.
Because.
Was that true?
Was she the one who wasn’t admitting something?
And worse—
Worse—
Did Shuun just push her closer to accepting something she was trying to avoid?
.
Meanwhile, Reyne wasn’t letting this go.
"There’s definitely something going on." he muttered.
Eunhe, sitting across from him, rolled her eyes.
"You’re being dramatic."
"No, I’m being observant!" Reyne insisted.
Eunhe sighed.
"Minra and the boss? Really? You think she’d be reckless enough to—?"
"Let’s test it, then."
Eunhe paused.
Because.
Because that tone.
That specific Reyne tone.
It meant trouble.
"What do you mean, test it?" she asked warily.
Reyne grinned.
"I’ll say something about Minra to Mr. Hwa. If he reacts… we’ll have our answer."
Eunhe shook her head.
"You’re going to get yourself fired."
"Only if I’m wrong." Reyne said, smirking.
And so.
So, they made a bet.
And neither of them were ready for what happened next.
.
It was a simple meeting.
Routine.
Until Reyne, very casually, said—
"Oh, Minra totally screwed up a report last week. Had to redo the entire thing."
Eunhe tensed.
Minra stiffened.
And HyunSeong?
HyunSeong barely even blinked.
"That happens." he said smoothly. "She does good work. One mistake won’t change that."
Reyne’s grin widened.
Because.
Because what?
What was that casual defense?
What was that automatic support?
What was that absolute lack of irritation?
Because everyone knew that Mr. Hwa was strict about reports.
Precise.
Unforgiving.
And yet—
Yet, when it was Minra’s mistake, he didn’t care?
Eunhe, sitting beside Reyne, slowly turned to him.
Her expression said it all.
"You win."
And Reyne?
Reyne was losing his mind.
Because.
Because.
Because.
Holy sh*t, something actually happened!
And now?
Now he was going to find out exactly what.
.
Chapter 36: "The Woman Who Tried to Act Normal"
