IQ148 // namjoon ✔️

__JUNE__

June ; 2016

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JungMi has her word-processing program open to a blank document on her computer.

She's been meaning to start writing a new manuscript, but she's been staring at the blinking, vertical text cursor for almost an hour now; it's waiting for her to start typing, anticipating which word she'll spell out first.

Her fingers hover over her keyboard and lightly graze over each computer key, but never applies the needed pressure for the letter to show up on the computer screen.

All around her she hears the sound of typing and her coworkers on phone calls, following the script given to them to make the sale.

The computer screen is burning her eyes, but she can't seem to blink away the glare of the blank word document and the flashing of the text cursor; each blink of the text cursor being a painful reminder that she is starting back at square one. A sight for sore eyes. The artificial light from her desk light and the ceiling lights of the office aren't helping. Her workplace is completely sealed from any natural sunlight.

Even the shadows of the bookstore were healthier for her eyes...

The last manuscript she wrote is still out there somewhere at yet another book publishing company being considered for publication.

For the first ever novel she's ever finished writing, she allowed herself to write everything she's ever wanted to put into words. The feelings she felt throughout the years flowed freely at the tip of her pencil and came to life on paper.

But with how long it's been without a response, it's safe to assume that it'll just be another one to join the rejected pile. JungMi really thought that manuscript would have been the one to turn her life around, because that's what she really needs right now.

With this mindset, JungMi starts to type her first sentence with determination:

Innocence is a fragile thing; it is vulnerable to the world. It is something that everyone must hold safely in their arms and hope that it will not slip from their grasp. |

Unsure of what comes next, JungMi retracts her hands from the keyboard and leans back in her swivel desk chair. She runs her hands through her hair in frustration, knocking her headset off.

She was told to wear this headset the day she landed the opening spot at a telemarketing office. She knows that as a telemarketer, the mic is necessary, but she feels uncomfortable having it so close to her face. She would also always instinctively go to run her fingers through her hair, which she is accustomed to doing, but with the headset in the way, she gets frustrated even further.

She wrestles with the cheap equipment and curses under her breath before finally succeeding at securing the headset back in place. While she's fumbling with the mic, she sees someone moving in the corner of her eye.

She leans further back in her chair to see further down the aisle to see that her boss, Mr. Park, is marching past the aisles of computer desks and is fast approaching her station.

JungMi shrieks and panics, almost knocking her headset off again in a frenzy. She quickly sits forward in her chair, straightens the headset on her head, repositions the mic, and brushes off the dust that has accumulated on her phone; a clear indication that she hasn't been making calls in order to make sales. Her boss is very strict about allegedly wasting time.

JungMi can't handle another lecture from him if he realizes she hasn't been working like she's getting paid to do.

She quickly clicks to a new tab on her computer and lowers her head, hoping that Mr.Park will pass by her desk without a hitch. JungMi holds her breath as she hears the footsteps getting closer.