Coffee Idol / kim taehyung (#29)

십육

Taehyung

I spotted her making her way in with her head low as she returned back from the short break that I granted her, she needed because someone from her past came to the café today and she was devastated when she saw that person, it was one of TaeEun's colleagues in her girl group and she came by the café today by chance and she met DongMi where she immediately brightens up upon seeing her.

Seeing both of their reactions from an outsider's perspective, it has been a while since they have ever seen each other and they have a lot to catch up with each other. I know that they definitely need to have a few minutes to themselves and especially when they are the people that were with TaeEun before she died, I readily agreed for DongMi to have a break and go somewhere with her ex-colleague to talk to each other in private.

But judging by the facial expression that I am seeing on Yang DongMi's face right now, their conversation didn't go that well as expected. Her eyes were sad and the way that she worked was unsatisfactory, I wonder what they even talked to each other about. I am very sure that it is about TaeEun, only TaeEun makes her look like this and she is deeply affected by TaeEun as she was the last one that she ever got into contact with before she committed suicide.

She came into the break room at around 5 pm, looking even more haggard than before and she looks at me. "Sajangnim, can I have a word with you?"

I nodded slightly and she made her way towards me, shifting from foot to foot. "Boss, I'm sorry that I got away from work for a while due to personal reasons and I make sure that it will not happen, I am quitting after today. I hope that you can understand."

My eyes widened at her words, she was doing well, why would she want to quit? "May I know the reason why?"

She let out a deep sigh. "Well, you see... The reason why I wanted to quit, it is because of you and I lied to you about this once."

What is she even talking about? I don't understand anything from this conversation that we are having right now. "What did you lie to me about? If it is about your older brother, I have already assured him that--" She cut me off. "It is not about that, it is about something else and I have been trying to tell you that from day one."

She paused for a second. "Everything was a lie... The reason why I even applied for a job here is not that I wanted to gain some work experience or anything, it was a lie. I knew who you exactly are and I wanted you to return back to where you were from, you disappeared from the industry because you wanted to hide a deep secret and it involves one of the members from your group."

I blinked, trying to grasp the situation that I am in right now and I realized that she got me, she has a plan to expose me. "You... You..." I find it hard to breathe all of a sudden. "How did you even know about it? Who told you that?"

She wouldn't know, right? "I was curious about your disappearance and I wondered what secret are you even harbouring about and thus I came here to pretend to look for a job, I wanted to get closer to you so that I will get a chance to find out that secret that you are hiding about. What exactly are you trying to even hide, Kim Taehyung?"

She still doesn't know it... I continued to look furious and to force her to leave my café immediately. "Get out of my café right now, that is what you wished right? I never want to see your face ever again, you liar..." I yelled at her. "Just to let you know, I have no intentions to ever go back to work in the industry ever again. Sorry to disappoint you but this is the decision that I had made and it is final, you can't ever convince me."

She looked at me with bloodshot eyes for the last time before she got her stuff and walked out of the break room, it only took her a few weeks and she almost found out about her secret. What is even her intention?

Is she here to seek revenge? From what I know, I have never seen her before until she mentioned that she worked with TaeEun and thus there is nothing that she can snitch upon me for. But why is she doing this for?

DaeYeon came into the break room, looking lost as he pointed his thumb towards the door. "What happened between you and DongMi? Did you fire her?"

I nodded. "Yes, I did. It was time to get rid of her, she wasn't a great worker, to be honest with you. It is just that she is diligent that I got her to stay but I can't stand her anymore."

"But DongMi is kind and she is very hardworking, she has only been here for a few weeks and she has a lot to catch up on my level. I am sure that she will be as good as me if you are willing to let her learn from me."

"She lied her way in from the very beginning, she never wanted to even work here, she was out to get me." Daeyeon didn't believe me just like I had expected. "She wanted me to go back to my group but I told her that I have already retired from it and I want to live the life that I wanted."

"She did that?" I nodded. "She didn't seem like that type at all."

"Apparently she is and I was right by not hiring anyone and I am not hiring anyone from now on and you will be the only employee that I will ever have." I let out a huge sigh. "DaeYeon, can you do me a favour by closing the store early today? We need to have a word with each other."