Chapter Text
Tae-moo was in such a cheery mood. All morning in meetings, walking down the halls, he felt like the world was just all sunshine. His particular brand of sunshine, by the name of Shin Ha-ri.
Sigh.
Sung-hoon fake coughed. Again.
Ahh, there’s the annoying gray cloud on my blue sky day. Moving his lips down a little, Tae-moo attempted to pay attention to his current meeting. Something about HR and attendance of employees.
Does this really need the President's attention? Why is my head of human resources wasting my time with thi- His thoughts cut off as he heard Ha-ri’s name.
“Say that again.” Tae-moo commanded sharply, startling the staff. They thought this would be a quick and fast report back about raising employee morale and preventing absenteeism.
“I was just saying, for example, Shin Ha-ri from the food production labs is never absent without notifying her office, usually well in advance and only for approved vacation times. However, she was noted to be absent today.
This could be a linchpin moment for a great employee to turn into one who uses sick days more often than necessary.
For example, if Ms. Shin were to be invited to this new program we’re proposing, we expect to nip any absenteeism issues in the bud before it even becomes a problem.
Now President Kang, if you could please…”
Tae-moo tunes them out.
Ha-ri we were supposed to go on a real date today. Why aren’t you at work? Is everything okay?
Checking his phone, Tae-moo realizes she didn’t respond to his “Good Morning” text, nor the text asking her if meeting up at 5 pm at the —- plaza works and that he promises he won’t let any last minute meetings or calls get in the way of meeting her there.
Ha-ri, are you okay? We can postpone if you’re not feeling well. Tae-moo texts, hoping to get some kind of response from her.
Nothing.
As the day goes on, his blue sky day full of Ha-ri brand sunshine slowly gets covered with more and more clouds as every time he checks his phone or hears a text ping and sees nothing from Ha-ri.
Checking more and more often the closer it gets to 5 pm, Tae-moo can’t help but become more and more worried.
2:38 pm Has she… changed her mind?
3:05 pm She wouldn’t just ignore me like this. Even when she didn’t like me, she still replied.
3:29 pm Maybe I should get Sung-hoon to ask Young-seo? But no, that seems pathetic, I can’t get both our friends involved in this. How embarrassing if she… did, change her mind.
3:55 pm But maybe I should call her. Just in case, maybe her phone isn’t charged? Maybe I can stop by her place…
Ha-ri’s phone is disconnected.
That’s it, I can’t wait any longer. Tae-moo’s blue sky day has already completed clouded over. As the afternoon wore on, he became shorter and shorter with his staff, barking corrections and orders with less and less patience.
Though Sung-hoon privately thought, those barks seemed more like screeches, the bird screeches of an Archaeopteryx .
“Mr. Cha, clear my last appointments, I’m leaving early today”
“... Sir?” Sung-hoon is bought out of his musings that Ha-ri was right, Tae-moo definitely looks and sounds like an archaeopteryx. Chasing after Tae-moo, Sung-hoon wonders what caused his brother’s mood, he was so, dare he think it, cheerful this morning when he told him to clear everything after 5 pm and that he was in no way to be disturbed. He figured Tae-moo finally convinced Ha-ri to go on a date again.
Entering the parking garage after Tae-moo’s long strides, Sung-hoon sees his since-childhood-brother skid around the corner and out onto the streets, leaving deep black tire marks.