I'm starving. Jumin would kill me if he knew I was showing up to lunch with an empty stomach. He's a little too hellbent on making sure I eat. I guess it's a sign that he cares. I threw a granola bar down my throat and gave baby boy a scoop of food. Yoosung did take good care of him while I was gone, but I don't think he's had the privilege of breakfast yet either. Sorry, Apollo. Mama's having lunch with Jumin. You have to stay here. Who's my special boy? Come on. Who's my big, special boy? Apollo flopped over for a vicious belly rub. I know he'd forgive me.
And after our lunch, Jumin took me to an outdoor cafe in the middle of the park for tea. This was nice. A peaceful afternoon in the park with Jumin. I know I was more than skeptical about our relationship, but I'm glad we went through with it. My eternal paradise would be the moment we had in the bathtub last night. I could live that on a loop for all eternity. However, just the two of us like this? And on such a pretty day? That'd be nice, too.
Ring, ring.
"I'm sorry, MC," Jumin stared down his phone, "I have to take this. Do you mind?"
"Go ahead," I allowed, taking a long drink from my cold green tea. Although, I couldn't help but wonder who would put that look of irritation and slight fear on his face. He didn't look like he wanted to stab anyone, so it wasn't his father.
"Yes?" he answered, "Afternoon, Assistant Kang."
Oh, shit. It's Jaehee. Why is Jaehee calling Jumin?
Jumin noticed my rattled nerves and grabbed the inside of my thigh, offering me a little comfort. He did the same thing in the tub last night to soothe my soul, "What is it...? No. Zen wasn't spouting. It's true. Why...? Why would I tell MC? I haven't talked to her since Friday. My love life is none of her business..."
Ouch. A little harsh, Jumin. I know Jaehee is the last person we want finding out about our relationship, but it didn't take the sting out of his words. His hand began kneading my thigh muscle. He's totally bullshitting Jaehee and wants to make sure I knew that. Aww...Jumin...You really do care.
"In fact," Jumin went on, "I'm curious as to why you're so invested, Assistant Kang. You've never cared about any of my relationships before. In fact, I'm almost certain you gave us more distance than anyone else ever did...I understand you're worried, but I think I can handle myself. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have pressing engagement to attend to. I will see you tomorrow."
He hung up his phone and shoved it back in his pocket. I rested my head on Jumin's shoulder, able to breathe again, "Do you think we'll ever tell Jaehee about us? And actually tell her? Not this beating around the bush we're doing now?"
"Maybe one day," he thought it over, "If we still have our arrangement..."
"Relationship, Jumin," I corrected, "We've been over this."
"Relationship," Jumin's grip tightened, "Maybe we could tell her after you graduate. That way, you won't be her intern anymore."
"So, it'll be an easier pill for her to swallow?" I figured.
"So there won't be any red tape to cut through," he clarified, "Just because I said I'd deal with HR for both of us doesn't mean I want to. It'd just be less paperwork for Assistant Kang to take care of."
And here I thought I was the only romantic in the relationship. Arrangement. Not that my time with Jumin has been anything short of wonderful, but it'd be nice if he'd unclench a bit. I wonder what he'd be like completely wasted. The night we had drinks at my place, Jumin was hardly buzzed. The son of a bitch had a superhuman tolerance. I wanted to see him completely loosened up and letting go. I wonder if there's a Christmas party at C&R I should know about that no one speaks of...Color me curious.
Ring, ring.
I looked down at my phone. You've got to be shitting me. Jumin picked up on my sudden mood swing, "What's the matter, MC?"
"Hold on," I excused myself, answering my phone, "Hi, Jaehee. What's up?"
"Where are you right now?" Jaehee asked, sounding more done with the world than usual.
"Having tea in the park," I took Jumin's hand, "Why?"
"I need a drink," she sighed out, "My head's a scrambled mess."
"I'm sorry to hear that, Jaehee," I winced, "But I'm with a friend of mine right now. Do you think it can wait until tomorrow?"
"Oh," I think I caught Jaehee off guard, "I'm so sorry. Please forgive me. And extend my apologies to your friend as well. I'll be going now."
"See you tomorrow," I hung up with her. Christ, Jaehee. How wound are you? As much as I'd love to see Jumin drunk, I think Jaehee could stand the drink and the night off more.
"You two are awfully close," Jumin pointed out.
"I wouldn't say close," I explained, "But Jaehee's been good to me ever since I started."
"Me, too," he smiled, "There are days where I appreciate every bit of help she gives me. I don't know what I'd do without her. Hire a new assistant, I guess. Are you available?"
"Not for that," I giggled a bit, catching his off-color humor. Jumin's kind of cute when he gushes. I wonder if he ever talks about me that way. His friends just found out about me, so I doubt it. And since Jaehee's a part of that inner circle, he can't go into too much detail. But if the restraints were off, I bet he would.
A little while later, Jumin took me how. I'm exhausted. This whole weekend kicked my ass, but I wouldn't change a thing. Except maybe bringing Apollo with me to Jumin's. He did say he'd think about him, but something tells me bringing Apollo to Jumin's penthouse would be letting a bull into a china shop. He gets excited in new places and I wouldn't want to subject Elizabeth III to that. I love you, baby, but you're spastic and you'd end up breaking something. Jumin's knickknacks can't possibly come cheap. I've seen a pen on his desk that's probably worth more than our rent.
I curled up in bed and wrapped up in my blanket. Apollo nuzzled his way into my bed. I say my bed. It's our bed. My boy...I rubbed his belly. Good night, Apollo. Mama loves you. I know I've been gone a lot lately, but I do still love you. That won't change. I shut my eyes for just a minute. But then, I heard a buzzing from my nightstand. The top part, not the drawer. And only one. Who the hell would be texting me this late?
Go to bed, MC.
Good night. x
-JH
I couldn't hold a smile back if I wanted to. You really can be a sweetheart when you want to be, Jumin. Do I text him back or not? If I do, he'll yell at me for still being awake. But it'd be rude if I didn't. What the hell? I'll take the risk. If he does yell at me, then it's his own damn fault for waking me up in the first place. Way to find the loopholes, MC. I'm proud of you.
Good night, Mr. Han.
-MC
We are about to go back on the clock. And who knows? Maybe he'll appreciate my cheekiness. Now that I have that out of the way, I can go to sleep. Good night, Apollo. Good night, Jumin. Good night, MC. Rest well, all.
BEEP, BEEP, BEEP!
Ugh...Have I ever mentioned my deep seeded hatred for my alarm? I never wanted to launch my phone into the sun more than right away in the morning. And one of these days, I really needed to get a new coffee pot. Until then, I guess I got energy drinks to...Shit. No, I don't. Jumin told me no more. Dammit...Persevere, MC. You can do it. Just bring your aspirin bottle along for the withdrawal headaches and you should be just fine.
On the plus side, I got an email from my economics professor saying we got moved to a night class, so I can go straight to work. The last thing Jumin needs is to lose his shit about where I am again. And it's not like he can ask me to go out tonight. We had an agreement. We only do our relationship on the weekends. During the week, it's strictly professional and we hardly know each other. He lets me work. I let him work.
However, my usual morning fuel was non-existent, so my work was suffering a little. Come on, MC. You said you could do this. Bright eyed and bushy tailed. Even though you want nothing more than to crawl back into bed. That wasn't even really it. I just wanted to slam some Red Bull and call it a day. I had too much shit to do today to spend it tired.
"MC!" Jaehee snapped me out of my caffeine-deprived haze.
"What?" I came to again, blinking the stars out of my eyes.
"Are you ok?" she worried, checking me over, "Forgive me for saying this, but you don't look so good."
"I'm just a little tired," I rubbed my eyes, careful not to smudge what little makeup I put on before I left.
"I need you to run some numbers for me," Jaehee took a quarter of her paperwork stack off her desk, "And I can't have you falling asleep on me, ok?"
"Yeah," I shook it off, "No problem. So, what had you so head...scramble-y...screwy yesterday?"
"Oh," she turned skittish, "It's nothing but office gossip. It wouldn't be appropriate to talk about here."
"Jaehee, it's fine," I assured, "Mr. Han's in his office. Everyone else is too busy to pay attention. If you need to vent, go ahead. Besides, it'll keep me awake."
"But I wouldn't want to be a distraction."
"You wouldn't." Again, Jaehee, how wound are you? "Go ahead, Jaehee. I'm listening. I can multitask like a dream. If I couldn't, I wouldn't survive a day here."
"Well," she kept her voice down, "It's Mr. Han."
"What about him?" I wondered. As if I didn't already know.
"Apparently, he's started seeing someone," Jaehee vented, "Mr. Han never goes out. I know for a fact that the thought typically sickens him. He's a very solitary creature due to the nature of his work. And I've seen him every single day this past week. Sometimes, into the later hours, but I've never seen a woman. He didn't even breathe a word about her. It's all just...so very strange. I've seen women go after Mr. Han strictly for his money or for the company, but never have I seen them go after him for him alone. Is it overstepping my boundaries as his assistant to be worried about him?"
"No," I took her shaking hand, "It makes you human, Jaehee. I get that you're worried about Mr. Han, but I think we could trust his judgment. He doesn't strike me as the kind of man to go into things without thinking it through first. It wouldn't surprise me if he brought pen and paper into it. I'm sure you have nothing to worry about. Mr. Han probably has hyper senses for gold diggers. And she may be a nice girl. God knows Mr. Han deserves it. We all do in the end."
"Thank you, MC," she smiled, settling a bit, "I appreciate the support."
"Anytime," I love when my delirious spouting can hold a bit of water.
But for now, I had to get to work. And Jaehee, God bless her, was kind enough to bring me a cup of coffee from the break room. Jumin said he didn't want me drinking energy drinks. Coffee doesn't count. Even though coffee doesn't give me the same jolt as Red Bull, I'd have to make do. It's just simple number crunching. Good, old-fashioned, tedium. I can handle that much.
I'm not sure if it was the mundane nature of the work or the fact that I've become a complete zombie at this point, but I made my way through the stack of work Jaehee had given me. The passage of time didn't even dawn on me. That is, until I hit a metaphorical brick wall. There it is. Two o'clock on the dot. I had ignored the growl in my stomach, but I thought that might have been a few minutes ago, not hours. I'll be fine. And maybe...Shutting my eyes for a few minutes...Won't kill...me...
"MC," a deep voice thundered over me as I felt a hand on my shoulder.
"I'm up!" my eyes popped back open. I looked up and saw Mr. Han towering over me, "Yes, sir?"
"My office," he demanded, sending chills up my spine, "Now."
Oh, shit...Why did I feel the same walk of shame going to Jumin's office as I did going to the principal when I was younger? I looked over my shoulder at Jaehee, hoping she could offer some sort of comfort, but to no avail. Wait...What the hell was I thinking? It's Jumin. I was sitting between his legs in his bathtub two nights ago. He kissed me goodbye yesterday at my apartment door. I shouldn't be worried. The door closed behind us.
"Yes, sir?" So, why was I?
"I believe we had an appointment," he reminded me, "That you neglected to show up for."
"We did?" I've been so scatterbrained since this morning. If it didn't have to do with numbers, it wasn't computing.
"Didn't you say your Red Bull typically quits on you around two o'clock?" Jumin asked.
"Yes," I nodded, not totally sure where he's going with this.
"Well," he cupped my face, running his thumb across the top of my cheekbone, "Why didn't you tell me you were feeling so tired?"
"I..." I blushed immediately. I didn't think we'd be doing this kind of thing at the office. That explains why the curtains were drawn, "I've been so busy."
"I understand," Jumin spoke softer, "Why don't you take the town car to my penthouse and check on Elizabeth III for me? Driver Kim's down there waiting for you."
"Y...Yes, sir." What was happening?
"And while you're there," he ordered, "Maybe you should take advantage of your situation. An hour or so should do it. Energy drinks can make you feel good for a while, but they're no substitute for sleep, MC."
Was he telling me what I think he was telling me? I've only worked one other job while I was in high school and that boss was a prick. He'd never tell me it was ok to go to his house in the middle of the day, let alone play with his cat. Or, in this case, curl up on his bed and take a nap, "Yes, sir. I'll get on it right away."
"MC..." Jumin scolded me lightly, "What's my name?"
"We're at the office..."
"What's my name?" he repeated.
"I'm sorry, Jumin," I bit my lip, "Do forgive me."
"You're forgiven," Jumin gave me a soft, gentle kiss on my lips, "You really shouldn't bite your lips like that. Heaven forbid they start to bleed. Now, go on. Go check on my little girl. And take care of my big one."
"I will..." Was this really happening or was I running a fever? Am I dead? I ran my fingers up my neck. Nope. There's a pulse there. I walked back out to my desk to straighten things out before I left.
"So?" Jaehee listened intently, "How'd it go? What did he want?"
"I got demoted to Elizabeth duty," I threw my bag around my shoulders, "I should be back in an hour or so."
"An hour?" she gasped, "What does he want you to do?"
"Give her an hour of my time," I told her, "I'll be fine. I don't mind. One less thing you have to take care of. Which is ultimately why I'm here in the first place, right?"
"That's right," Jaehee relaxed, "Thank you, MC. Let me know if you need a tetanus shot."
"I'll be fine," I giggled, "She likes me, Jaehee. Elizabeth doesn't bite me."
I will never understand why Elizabeth hates Jaehee or vice versa, but that's not something I'm meant to understand. But I had a date with the alleged little demon. Just as Jumin promised, Driver Kim was waiting for me downstairs with the door already open, "Hello, MC."
"Hi, Mr. Kim," I smiled, "How are you?"
"I'm wonderful," he reciprocated, "How are you?"
"A little tired," I shrugged, "But for the time of day, that's to be expected."
"Coffee break?"
"No, thank you," I shot him down, "Just Mr. Han's penthouse, please."
"Yes, ma'am!" And off we went to Jumin's place. The doorman knew my face by now and was more than happy to let me up. I punched in Jumin's door code and unlocked the door to find Elizabeth trotting toward me. By the look on her face, she was expecting Daddy to come back through those doors. But I would do for the time being.
I stuck my hand out to her, waiting for her to get comfortable with me again. It's only been since yesterday, Elizabeth. You know who I am, don't you? She leaned her head into my hand, rubbing her face on my knuckles. Yep. We're cool. Can I pick you up? I reached down and scooped the little peanut into my arms. Aww...She wants to cuddle. Good. Because that's what I'm here for. Let's go to your daddy's room, yeah? How's that sound?
I carried her royal highness to Jumin's bedroom and put her down on the bed. At first, she seemed offended, but once I got down with her, Elizabeth mellowed out. Alright. We'll set an alarm for one hour from right now. That should be plenty of time for me to get a little nap in. In a perfect world, Apollo would be here to, but I knew better. I kissed the top of Elizabeth's head and threw my phone on the nightstand.
Then, I looked up at the corner of the room where a little, inconspicuous black dot was stuck to the wall. I smiled at it and blew it a kiss, knowing damn well those monitors at C&R were on. I kicked my heels off and curled up with Elizabeth. One hour. That's all I need. Good night, Elizabeth.
"And good night, Mr. Han," I called to the camera.
"Good night, MC," the camera called back. I knew it.
A/N: Holy hell, guys. I didn't expect this to be this long. Nor did I think I'd get it done so quickly. Good for me. Four for you, Lumi. You go, Lumi. It almost makes me wonder how much I can get done in a day…And look…I know I didn't have anything for Jumin's birthday. I'm disappointed, too. And it was the 5th, not the 12th. Oops. And another thing I whoopsie daisy'd on from last week, in exactly…*checks planner* Three weeks and two days from now, I'm going on hiatus for NaNoWriMo season. Just as a heads up. As we get closer and closer to it, I'll start going into more detail of what that'll mean for you guys. If you've been with me since day one when I started posting Black Butler or as late as when I started posting Mistake Messenger, you've already been through this. You know what NaNoWriMo is. You know what that hiatus is like. And I'm trusting you to help the new kids through it. So, as per usual, I'll see you next chapter! xx