I Absolutely Won't Cheat!
I absolutely! Won't! Cheat! ……………
“Th-this is just……just out of curiosity to check my market value. I wasn't planning to switch jobs or anything!”
Words tumbled out of me in a chaotic mess.
“I-I'm serious! It was just a joke. Developers do this all the time—throw in a resume now and then to gauge their worth, right? That's all it was!”
Seori sunbae said nothing. She just stared at me.
“A-and……I was curious about the developer job market these days……and feeling anxious because my skills seem stagnant……”
My babbling dragged on.
“Busan was……just……just picked at random. No special reason. Well, not random—Seoul's too close, so I worried rumors might spread……”
“And applying to places with lower salaries was……um……on purpose! Since I had no intention of going, I just threw it in half-heartedly……”
Even to my own ears, these excuses sounded illogical and unconvincing. When I finally ran out of words and shut my mouth, an icy silence filled the room. Only the ticking of the clock's second hand rang out clearly.
After a long moment, Seori sunbae finally spoke.
“……A joke? Curiosity?”
Her voice carried a bone-chilling coldness.
“To check your market value, you deliberately sent a resume to a company in Busan, the farthest from headquarters? There are plenty of headhunters in Seoul.”
She demolished my hastily made-up excuses with just a few pointed words. I was left speechless.
“And how do you explain writing in the resume, [My home is far, but if accepted, I plan to relocate to Busan, so that's fine]?”
……She'd seen the entire resume.
Cold sweat trickled down my spine. In truth, no one would buy the market value lie from the start. Not even me. The distance to Busan, the relocation note, accepting a pay cut—it all pointed to one thing.
Han Minseo was trying to run from Choi Seori.
……………
“I……”
Seori sunbae's voice began to tremble uncontrollably.
“It doesn't look like a joke to me.”
Suddenly, her eyes reddened, and a single tear rolled down her cheek. Exactly one drop. The second never came. It felt like a scene from a play. Seeing it twisted something in my chest. Her weakened state hurt more than her face full of anger.
“You've……just gotten sick of me. Fed up.”
But there was something slightly off. Even as tears streamed down her face and her voice cracked, her eyes were still observing me. Not the unfocused gaze of someone lost in sorrow, but like she was gauging my reaction.
Still, this wasn't the time to nitpick her subtle awkwardness.
“So you tried to run from me……right?”
She took a step back, releasing my shoulders but never breaking eye contact.
No, that's not it……!
My chest tightened. She wasn't wrong. I had wanted distance. But not because I hated her. Or was fed up. It was just……too heavy.
The emotions she harbored for me. Her obsession.
What do I even say?
I couldn't tell the truth. If I said, 'Sunbae's obsession is too much, so I wanted space,' no deep thought needed—it would make things explode.
This wasn't what I wanted. I just wanted a healthy distance. Not to hurt her.
But in the end, I'd wounded her deeply. Guilt and helplessness choked me. What words could soothe her? Could anything?
……………
In the end, I chose a middle path. Neither full truth nor complete lie. Surviving this immediate disaster came first.
“No, sunbae.”
I forced my voice to sound as sincere as possible.
“That's not it. I've never once hated you or gotten fed up.”
The moment my words ended, her tears stopped. The stream down her cheek cut off abruptly, her trembling shoulders stilled in an instant. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.
What the……?
Something felt off. The shift in expression and reaction was too sudden.
“Re-really. I just……felt like I wasn't good enough. Not worthy to be by your side.”
Seori sunbae stared straight at me. Her gaze was so terrifying I could barely meet it.
“Then prove it.”
She said softly. A tone unimaginable from someone who'd just been crying.
“Pardon?”
“Prove you won't leave me. That you haven't grown sick of me.”
What kind of proof did she want? But after getting caught trying to bolt today, I couldn't ignore her. Dread rose in my throat.
“H-how?”
She leaned in close to my face. Her breath brushed my ear.
“From now on, consult me first about everything. Wherever you go, whoever you meet, whatever you think. All of it.”
Her hand caressed my cheek. Her cool skin raised goosebumps.
“No secrets from me. Not one. That's your proof. You can do that, right?”
“Uh, um……”
“Answer.”
This……is a bit much, isn't it?
But refusing now, in this place and time, was impossible. Anyone could see I'd been caught mid-escape, and she had that intense obsession. Rejecting her demand would shatter everything. Not just the relationship……something far worse. Like that naked dogeza incident.
“……Yes.”
In the end, I had no choice.
The instant I answered, Seori sunbae smiled in satisfaction. A smile I'd never seen before. The smile of a victor.
“Good. Then I'll forgive you. It starts today. Right now.”
“……”
“Your schedule, the people you meet. What you do, who you see, what you think. Tell me everything.”
She took my hand. Her grip felt inescapable.
“Promise.”
“……I promise.”
Was this forgiveness? Maintaining our relationship by surrendering all my privacy?
The relationship seemed mended on the surface. We'd reconciled, understood each other, agreed to start anew.
But in exchange……it became something entirely different. Like an insect trapped in a transparent cocoon—not a bad metaphor.
……………
About two weeks passed since that day. On the surface, peaceful daily life returned.
But that peace strangled my breath.
Every morning at 7:30, I sent Seori sunbae my wake-up message. Then replies came instantly on the subway commute: which line, estimated arrival time. Every trivial detail reported.
At the office, her personally brewed coffee waited on my desk. Lunch was always with her. Dinner at home, cooked by her.
“Minseo, where'd you go around 3:17 p.m. earlier?”
“Convenience store. Got a zero cola.”
“Alone?”
“Yes.”
“Tell me next time.”
Conversations like this became routine. All my actions laid bare to her. She didn't just take my word—she monitored through various channels.
Is this a relationship or probation?
A sigh escaped me. Things were far worse than before. At least then, the surveillance wasn't this granular.
Still……I'll find a way to improve it someday.
Self-consolation, but without it, I'd go mad.
……………
Thursday afternoon, company cafeteria.
“Oh, sorry!”
Grabbing coffee, I bumped into someone. Their stack of documents scattered across the floor.
“Ah, it's fine. Let me help.”
As we picked them up, our eyes met. A face I didn't know—long straight hair, bright expression, a woman.
“Thank you! I'm Lee Seo-ah, the new hire.”
“Ah, hi. Han Minseo.”
“Wow! Senior Han Minseo! I've been dying to meet you.”
“Pardon?”
She grabbed my hand with both of hers. This enthusiastic newbie's handshake lasted longer than expected.
“I was curious what the person working directly under the CEO was like. Hearing rumors was one thing, but seeing you……”
Lee Seo-ah's gaze slowly scanned my face.
“You're way younger and more handsome than I imagined!”
“You're too kind.”
“No, really. I heard about you on my first day. Top skills, good-looking……and single!”
That last bit screamed danger.
“Well, that's……”
“Oh, too personal? Sorry.”
Lee Seo-ah covered her mouth, laughing. And then.
“Minseo.”
An icy voice came from behind me.