* * *

“A-Assistant Manager Yoo! That’s not what I meant…!”

“T-that’s not what we were saying! Honestly!”

Junhee hastily brushed off the hands gripping his arm, then lightly dusted off his clothes.

Next to him, Jiyeon crossed her arms and tilted her chin upward confidently.

“You’ve made the right decision, Assistant Manager Yoo. Let’s ask the CEO directly. This is a good opportunity to confirm that the company’s promotion system isn’t as narrow-minded as they’re claiming.”

As the scale of the situation grew, the two individuals standing in front of them turned pale and seemed completely at a loss.

“N-no, Jiyeon! That’s not what we meant… w-we just meant that Manager Park was upset. That’s all. Let’s step outside and discuss this…”

“You made the first move by being aggressive, and now you’re trembling?”

“Jiyeon, calm down and please listen to me…”

The commotion in the break room grew louder, drawing the attention of people outside.

Curious faces peeked through the open door.

“What’s going on?”

“Isn’t that Team 4 and Team 5 over there? Jiyeon’s there too.”

Some people had apparently been eavesdropping for a while, sensing the tension.

“Shh! Be quiet.”

“Why? What’s happening? Are they fighting?”

“They’re talking about Manager Park or something.”

“Wait, me?”

Amidst the growing noise, the break room door swung open entirely, revealing Manager Park.

“Ju-won. Don’t tell me you were talking about me to Assistant Manager Yoo?”

“W-what? M-Manager Park…”

“Seriously, you people have no sense of boundaries. Just because I let things slide a few times, do you think you can run your mouths like this? Did I ever ask you to gossip about me?”

The break room descended into complete chaos.

---

The incident only settled after members of Team 5 rushed in to break up the heated argument between their own and Team 4 members.

Back in the office, Jiyeon explained the truth of the situation to her team leader.

The atmosphere in Team 4 grew heavy as they listened.

It wasn’t clear if Jiyeon was simply concerned about Junhee, who seemed unwell, or if she was repaying him for a previous favor.

Regardless, she declined coffee and returned to the office earlier than usual.

When she found the office empty, she had gone to the break room to look for Junhee. Approaching him as he stood there quietly led to the entire fiasco.

“I’m sorry, Team Leader. I should have handled it more calmly…”

The team leader, who had been listening with a serious expression, shook his head and said only one thing.

“You did well.”

“…Pardon?”

Expecting a scolding, Jiyeon raised her eyes cautiously to look at him.

“Neither you nor Assistant Manager Yoo did anything wrong, so just keep doing things as you always do. Team 5’s leader is too lenient, which is probably why their team’s discipline is such a mess.”

With that, the team leader dismissed Jiyeon and Junhee back to their desks, leaving no room for further discussion.

The other team members also chimed in, clicking their tongues.

“Well done, Jiyeon. I always knew those guys would cause a big problem sooner or later.”

“They never do their work and spend all day stirring up drama or spreading baseless rumors. I wouldn’t have stayed quiet if I’d heard that nonsense, either.”

“Exactly.”

Even the youngest team member was trembling with rage as she held a takeout coffee cup.

Her expression alone screamed, ‘I won’t let this go!’

Junhee couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

“Assistant Manager Yoo, don’t let this get to you too much. Why should it matter to them if you’re dating someone? It’s none of their business! And for them to jump in and start badmouthing you… it’s just ridiculous.”

“They’re just jealous. Even if they combined their monthly performance, it wouldn’t come close to yours. It’s all insecurity.”

Despite his teammates’ words of support, Junhee felt more bewildered than comforted.

“What’s wrong with Assistant Manager Yoo now? Is he upset again? Did those people do something else?”

“What? They did more? Oh, that’s it—”

“No, no. It’s nothing… I just…”

Junhee felt intimidated by the many eyes fixed on him, even though they were on his side. A creeping fear emerged: ‘What if my own teammates secretly thought the same as those people?’

“…Thank you for standing up for me. I appreciate it, but I also feel bad for causing trouble.”

“What? Do you think we’d take their side? Don’t you know how well we understand your personality after working with you for so long?”

“If Jiyeon hadn’t stepped in, you’d probably have bottled it all up and suffered alone.”

She wasn’t wrong, so Junhee couldn’t argue.

“If they try anything like this again, tell us immediately.”

“Yeah, let them try asking for our help in the future.”

“At least you said something this time. Those people clearly thought you’d let it slide again. They must have been scared out of their minds. Good job, Assistant Manager Yoo.”

Seeing how resolute his teammates were, Junhee felt both reassured and burdened.

To be honest, he had panicked when he mentioned the CEO in a fit of anger.

He’d feared dragging Jiyeon into trouble and making things awkward.

But with his teammates openly taking his side, he felt more at ease, even if the situation wasn’t entirely resolved.

The office remained lively when a phone call interrupted the mood.

“A-Assistant Manager Yoo… It’s the CEO’s office.”

---

Knock, knock.

After hearing permission to enter, Junhee opened the door to the CEO’s office.

“Oh, Assistant Manager Yoo! Come in and have a seat.”

“…Yes, sir.”

Junhee sat stiffly, his back straight, unable to let down his guard.

On the way up in the elevator, countless thoughts had raced through his mind.

Why was he being called up this time?

Was it related to the incident earlier during lunch?

Or was there another reason?

When only one side held the key to the answers, it was always the other who felt the disadvantage.

‘Stay calm. Just explain things as they are.’

Trying to steady his pounding heart, Junhee waited for the CEO to speak.

Moments later, the assistant brought in two cups of coffee.

After the sound of heels faded into the distance, the CEO finally broke the silence.

“Assistant Manager Yoo.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Why are you so tense? Relax a little. Anyone would think I’m about to grill you like a criminal.”

Despite the CEO’s lighthearted tone, Junhee couldn’t shake his rigidity.

“Well, this isn’t about anything bad. You remember Member Moon Doyoung, right?”

“Pardon? Ah… Yes.”

The name was unexpected, catching Junhee off guard.

“As you know, her father was an early investor in our company. We agreed to personally oversee her profile until she’s successfully matched.”

If the CEO was bringing up Moon Doyoung now…

It had to be about the spring event from the weekend.

After the gathering following the “-1%” event, Junhee could have reached out first, but he feared that premature consolation might only do more harm than good.

Besides, the incident with Ki Taeryu that happened right after had left Junhee utterly drained.

“But suddenly, Moon Doyoung announced he’s quitting the group. Assistant Manager Yoo, do you have any idea why? I heard people saying he’s been hysterical ever since attending our company event last weekend.”

Of course, Junhee had more than enough reasons to suspect why.

It might be because he showed Ki Taeryu an unflattering side of himself after the event.

Or maybe he was just completely fed up with Cha Yoonjae and wanted nothing more to do with him.

Or perhaps, he was trying to fulfill the deal he made with Junhee—to withdraw if their connection didn’t develop after three meetings.

Although he hoped it wasn’t the case, it wasn’t entirely out of the question that Doyoung had picked up on something between him and Taeryu, just like Yoonjae had.

In any case, confessing such speculations to the CEO was an entirely different matter.

“…Who knows? Maybe he’s just lost interest in getting married.”

“Well, he does have a reputation for being unpredictable. Anyway, that member abruptly announced their withdrawal, but you know how parents are. They held me up for an hour, venting about how they had to get their child married, so I said I’d hold off the withdrawal and try persuading them.”

This wasn’t good news for Junhee.

As he nodded silently, the CEO pressed him further, as if trying to extract a clear answer.

“They also couldn’t stop singing your praises, Yoo Assistant Manager. Why don’t you try talking to them? Giving up on marriage isn’t as easy as it sounds. If you prod a little, they might come back on their own.”

Junhee was biting back the urge to ask, ‘Can’t we just leave it alone?’

But he knew his available responses were limited.

“…I’ll reach out to them.”

“Oh, by the way, Yoo Assistant Manager.”

Just as he thought the conversation was over, the CEO’s tone became heavier, as if now the real topic was starting.

“We’re planning to set up a new task force, and I was wondering if you’d join as the deputy team leader.”

“Pardon? Me, on a task force all of a sudden?”

It felt like being hit with a splash of cold water, jolting him awake.

“It’s something that came up during a recent executive meeting. We’re looking to create an integrated system.”

“…An integrated system?”

“Honestly, our company’s matching system is pretty outdated. I mean, ‘outdated’ is putting it nicely—it’s downright backward.”

Junhee didn’t nod or shake his head, simply listening as the CEO continued.

“Other competitors are revamping their systems with AI partners. We can’t just sit back and rely on our current performance. Sure, we didn’t have the resources to invest in such areas early on, but now that we’re on stable ground, we should make bold reinvestments.”

Junhee understood the reasoning, to an extent.

He wasn’t familiar with management or development, but as someone on the frontlines, he knew how flawed their matchmaking program was.

“So we’re forming a task force to focus on developing the system. We’ve already recruited a top overseas developer, and we’ll bring in designers and staff to support the project. What do you think?”

The CEO phrased it as though Junhee had a choice, but how much his opinion truly mattered was unclear.

Let’s face it: when the boss gives an order, you follow it.

That’s the reality of being a salary worker.

* * *