A Holiday I’d Rather Not Take
I was almost scared.
The new employees at DE Investment, a subsidiary of DE Holdings, couldn’t hide their unease.
“When are we supposed to actually start working...?”
“Even the executives don’t seem to know.”
“I heard the chairman’s incredibly young.”
“This isn’t tied to some shady money, is it?”
Most of them had grown sick of the stagnant culture at their old firms and come to this new startup looking for a fresh challenge.
They were motivated, too. They thought they were skilled enough. If they hadn’t been, they never would’ve been able to transfer here in the first place.
For a brand-new company, the hiring standards had been high, and the salary and benefits were just as good.
But then...
Time went by, and all they heard was that they should keep getting ready. No actual work ever came down.
Which only made their worries grow.
The rumor said the chairman was absurdly young... but what if he was a chaebol heir? What if the company was entangled in illegal funds?
Or maybe the capital just wasn’t enough to keep things going.
They had every kind of concern.
Then the call came.
The investment would begin soon.
Everyone’s motivation flared right back up.
“We’ve got to get the first step right.”
“If the chairman gave the order personally...”
“I wonder what kind of work we’ll actually be doing...”
“It’d be nice if, when I mention DE Investment later, people in Yeouido actually know what I’m talking about.”
They swore they’d complete their first assignment without a hitch.
It shouldn’t be difficult. Their previous company had employed hundreds, even thousands of people.
Compared to that, this place only had around ten.
It had to be a small-scale fund.
That was what they thought.
“Huh, how much...?”
“Two hundred billion won...?”
“That’s a lot more capital than I expected...”
“At this level, unless they’ve got a major conglomerate backing them... this is practically top-tier for a new company, isn’t it?”
The scale was far larger than they had imagined.
And then...
“...At this point, this is basically gambling.”
“It’s hard to even wrap my head around it.”
“We’d better follow along for now.”
“Hmm... I had no idea he’d go for something this extreme.”
He’d ordered an investment so extreme it was almost impossible to accept.
And not with a modest amount, either, but with a staggering one hundred billion won — half the funds.
People in Yeouido would probably say this investment was like throwing money into the dirt.
Honestly, even they thought the same.
What else could they do? They had to follow orders.
Still, they were prepared. Our company might end up staggering because of this.
They thought there was a real chance this investment would keep them from seeing the long game.
If there was any comfort to be found, it was this:
“There’s still one hundred billion won left...”
“Well, if it somehow succeeds, the profits would be enormous.”
“This is the textbook definition of high risk, high return.”
“I heard this building itself is the chairman’s property, too... so even if this fails, there’ll still be one hundred billion won, plus a building worth more than that.”
Even if they failed, a huge amount of capital would still remain.
It didn’t make sense for a first task, but they all followed along diligently.
They carried out the extreme investment.
***
I finished giving the investment orders.
I’d heard the DE Investment staff had expressed some concern about the extreme nature of it.
But I just pushed it through.
Every investment I’d ever made had been that way anyway.
If it blew up in my face, then I’d just figure out what went wrong afterward.
The next day, before heading out for the PT session, I stopped by my gym first.
“Welcome, boss.”
“I’m not staying long. Just dropping by.”
“Of course.”
“About the construction you’re handling this time — contact the contractor and coordinate things so they can finish as quickly as possible. Tell them we’ll cover all the night pay and everything else.”
“Understood.”
“Keep hiring staff, too. I think cleanliness and service scale directly with headcount.”
“I’ll make sure that’s taken care of.”
I told him to spend whatever money was necessary, then left the gym.
Next, I arrived at the gym that had now become a competitor.
I ran into that irritating trainer again — the one I’d seen after checking my car last time, and then never crossed paths with again.
Our eyes met.
His reaction was different from before. Back then he’d looked at me with open contempt, but now he flinched and showed surprise.
Then he looked away. I flashed him a grin.
After seeing that, he glared at me.
Looks like the jerk who didn’t even think of me as competition finally recognized me as one.
He still didn’t know his place.
After finishing the PT prep,
my sister arrived right on time.
We did some light stretching and started going over the exercises, and then she asked me a question.
“Um... did something happen between you and that trainer over there?”
“Why?”
“Well... I’m not sure I should even say this, but it looks like he said something to the boss. And since you went to see the boss too...”
“He kept interrupting my lesson and acting like he was looking down on me, so I voiced a little dissatisfaction.”
“I’m on your side, Sihoon. I’m definitely not saying this because I’m on their side. But if you can help it, you should avoid getting tangled up with that trainer and the boss.”
“...”
“I’m saying this because I’m thinking about you, okay? Obviously, you’re the one who signed up for PT, so you’re more important to me. It’s just... he kept putting pressure on me, telling me to just give you a rough lesson and be done with it.”
“He really is awful.”
“Yeah, he is.”
Even the boss had left a bad taste in her mouth, and now he was pressuring my sister too.
As she talked, she kept sneaking glances at me.
I was a perfectly legitimate member receiving PT after paying for it. I nodded for now. Time would take care of the rest. In fact, her attitude now suited me better.
It would give me a reason not to accept any apology they might offer later, even if one came by some miracle.
As we kept talking, she said, “And there’s one more thing. I don’t know whether you were planning to buy more PT sessions, Sihoon, but I probably won’t be able to book lessons next week — Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.”
“Are you taking vacation?”
“The gym trainers are all going on a trip together. Maybe it’s a coincidence, but that trainer who dislikes you jumped into the vacation conversation too, and I think that might have something to do with it...”
Not “might.” It definitely did.
That was a man’s intuition.
Maybe once he started seeing me as competition, he’d gotten impatient.
I asked casually, making sure not to sound suspicious.
“Really? I’m jealous. I want a vacation too. Where are you going? I want to use it as a reference.”
“Where else can you go in Korea? We’re going to Jeju Island.”
“Oh... that sounds like fun.”
“Fun, my foot. If they were going to force us onto a vacation, the least they could do was ease the financial burden, right? Other than the lodging, we’re paying for everything ourselves... sigh. I just don’t want to go.”
“That does sound pretty annoying.”
“Exactly.”
“Have the hotel and everything already been decided?”
“Yeah. We’re leaving next week.”
I’d have to ask about the lodging over chat. Even if she told me now, I might forget later.
Besides, I needed to build the mood first.
For now, I should act focused on training.
If I kept prying too much, I might make myself look suspicious without meaning to.
For now, the good and bad points were obvious.
The good part was that, by forcing this vacation plan, my sister seemed to have developed some dissatisfaction with the boss and that unpleasant trainer.
The bad part was that they were leaving sooner than I’d expected.
After the workout ended, as I was leaving...
“Did you enjoy your training, member? I’m letting you know that we’ve decided to go ahead with the vacation you mentioned last time.”
“Why are you telling me that?”
“You seemed worried about the trainer, so I thought I’d let you know instead.”
“I see.”
“...So I’d appreciate it if you’d be careful.”
“I’ll handle my own business, so you handle yours.”
“...”
That nasty little trainer came at me looking for trouble.
Of course, his attitude was clearly different from before.
I could feel the caution in him this time.
And while doing that, he acted as if he’d already won.
We’d see about that.
I didn’t head back to Signiel Penthouse; instead, I went straight to my own gym.
I absolutely could not just stand there and watch them go on vacation without me.
Not after seeing that disgusting smile.
***
The manager of Uto Gym smiled with satisfaction as he looked around the place.
It was a kind of ease he had never felt before.
Back then, all he’d worried about was what would happen if the gym went under.
He couldn’t have imagined looking forward to how this gym would be transformed.
As he felt endless gratitude toward the new boss who had brought about these changes...
“Welcome!”
The boss from earlier had come by again.
He didn’t feel the slightest bit annoyed or negative about it. If anything, he was just glad that such a wealthy man was taking an interest in the gym.
“How many trainers and staff do we have left now?”
“...A total of eight. Four trainers and four staff members, including me. In case of emergency, the trainers can also take on staff duties, so we were able to keep the number as low as possible.”
“For now, let’s think about expanding later... By the way, would everyone be free next Thursday through Saturday?”
“Well... I’d have to ask. If they are, may I ask why?”
“Since our gym is starting fresh again, I want us to take a trip and really set our intentions.”
“Ah... well. The staff will probably welcome the news. I’ll have to ask my wife for permission too, but... I’d like to attend if at all possible.”
“We’re going to Jeju Island. Give me the list by tomorrow. If your wife won’t allow it, bring her along too. I’ll cover the travel expenses and everything else.”
“...I’ll attend.”
“And your wife’s opinion is...?”
“She wouldn’t refuse, but if she did, I’d drag her along.”
“Good.”
It was exactly what he wanted to say.
Sounds great, boss.
It was starting to scare him that, before long, sounds great might turn into I love you.