As soon as I stepped out of the interview room, I tore off my visitor badge and threw it into the trash can. Watching me from behind, Yun Sola called out cautiously.
“Cha Jiham, please calm down.”
“Yun Sola, you saw it yourself. Those interviewers treated me like dirt. And after that, you’re telling me to calm down?”
“......”
“If they had rejected me at the document screening stage, I wouldn’t have had to suffer such humiliation. I feel awful. Well then, goodbye.”
After a brief farewell to Yun Sola, I headed toward the elevator.
The moment I left Hangang Group’s headquarters, I immediately called Chairman Park Yeongil. The call was answered at once, as if he had been waiting for it.
“Jiham, how did the interview go?”
“I’m very sorry, Chairman, but I failed to live up to your expectations.”
“Why? Did something happen during the interview?”
I decided to tell him everything exactly as it had happened. Only then would Chairman Park Yeongil finally give up on me without regrets.
“The interviewers mocked my résumé and appearance with proverbs. Then they said they didn’t have time, asked me the most ordinary question possible, and ended the interview.”
“I see...”
His voice sounded genuinely disappointed.
“I definitely failed. I’ll come see you soon and return the expensive watch.”
“Still, you never know. Why not return it after the results are announced?”
“I understand. I’ll call you again later.”
***
Click.
As soon as Chairman Park Yeongil hung up, Chief Secretary Kang Inhan carefully asked,
“Chairman, were the interview results bad?”
“He says the interviewers only asked him one question.”
“Then it’s a failure?”
“Haa... judging by the sound of it, yes.”
“Chairman, since Cha Jiham made it all the way to the final stage, perhaps you could intervene?”
“Secretary Kang, you know what ‘give and take’ means, don’t you?”
Chief Secretary Kang Inhan remembered perfectly what had happened at the end of last year.
Chairman Park Yeongil had personally gone to Chairman Yoon Jongu of Hangang Group and asked him to show Cha Jiham some leniency. Chairman Yoon Jongu had agreed, but demanded a favor in return. Chairman Park had been forced to swallow his pride and fulfill the request.
If he now asked Chairman Yoon Jongu once again to take Cha Jiham on as an intern, the man would undoubtedly ask for something else in return. Allowing that would be another blow to his pride.
“Yes, I understand perfectly.”
“It's regrettable, but let's consider our connection with Jiham finished.”
“I understand. But what should be done with your previous instructions?”
“The investigation into the circumstances surrounding Jiham’s father’s death is canceled. Pretend that order never existed.”
“Yes, sir. And what about the case of his younger sister, the hit-and-run victim?”
“Well, for the sake of our brief connection with Jiham, that runaway driver deserves to be caught and taught a proper lesson.”
“It will be done.”
“You’re dismissed. Get back to work.”
Having received the order, Chief Secretary Kang Inhan opened the office door and left.
Chairman Park Yeongil approached the window and gazed at the dying sunset.
“My life is nearing its end, but who would have thought that finding someone capable of inheriting my will would prove so difficult...”
***
Bzzz.
I had already returned to my studio apartment and was changing clothes when my phone vibrated on the table.
Glancing at the screen, I saw the caller was Lee Ujin, my university classmate and army buddy. I knew why he was calling without him needing to say a word.
“What?”
“Don’t tell me you’re pretending not to know?”
“A chicken born on the ground can’t fly. You know that yourself.”
“The fact that you even passed the document screening was already a miracle. I was a fool for expecting success. What are you doing now?”
“Changing clothes. Going to work.”
“You money-crazy bastard.”
“As if money is something you’re lacking.”
“That’s my father’s money, not mine! Anyway, I’m buying drinks to cheer you up, so get over here.”
My mood after the failed interview was already terrible, so his suggestion came at the perfect time.
“All right. I’ll be there in a flash.”
***
As soon as I entered the pork barbecue restaurant, I spotted Lee Ujin sitting by the window.
I quickly approached and sat down.
“Been here long?”
“About ten minutes. You look more energetic than I expected.”
“Shut up.”
Apparently, Ujin had ordered in advance because the waitress immediately brought pork belly, soju, and side dishes.
He picked up the bottle and filled my glass. I took the bottle from him and filled his empty glass in return. Without saying a word, we clinked glasses and emptied them in one gulp.
“Khaa! On an empty stomach, that really hits!”
“That was only the first shot.”
I answered indifferently and filled his glass again. Only after three shots of soju had gone down did I finally reach for the food.
Lee Ujin ordered more soju while I laid the meat on the grill. Watching the pork brown, he suddenly asked,
“So what was your secret for passing the document screening?”
If I answered honestly, the story would become too long. So I decided to use the explanation I had prepared for exactly this kind of situation.
“I think the employee in charge of intern recruitment happened to be a graduate of our university, so he {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} let me through.”
Lee Ujin disagreed. Korea University, which both of them had attended, was famous mainly for its engineering department.
“If that were true, he would’ve let through someone from engineering.”
“Whatever the case, I definitely failed the interview, so let’s drop the subject.”
“Fine. But don’t you think you’re giving up too early?”
“Are you kidding me? I told you. They only asked me one question: ‘With such lousy qualifications, why did you even apply?’”
As I said that, I picked up the scissors with the tongs and cut the grilled meat into bite-sized pieces.
Meanwhile, Lee Ujin refreshed the soju in my glass and poured himself another.
“Don’t you know it’s bad luck to pour yourself a drink while someone’s sitting across from you?”
“I’m making a special exception for you, idiot.”
Ujin snorted, emptied his glass in one shot, and got up to go to the restroom.
I picked up the bottle, poured more into his empty glass, and stuffed a piece of pork into my mouth.
A minute later, Lee Ujin returned and whispered,
“Jiham, look. Those girls at the next table are absolutely incredible, huh?”
I turned my head and was genuinely amazed.
Two foreign women were relaxing there, and their beauty was no less than that of movie stars. One of them looked remarkably like my favorite actress, Dakota Fanning.
“You’re right about that.”
“How about we hit on them?”
“Are you crazy? Neither of us speaks English. How are we supposed to do that?”
“When a man and woman love each other, language doesn’t matter!”
“Oh, just shut up.”
“Listen, if you go over there, our chances are much better, right?”
Physically, I had a considerable advantage over Lee Ujin. So if one of us was going to make a move, my odds were obviously higher.
Still, I had never approached women like that in my life.
But today, for some reason, confidence was bubbling inside me. I blamed it on the sedative I had taken last night, which was probably still affecting my body.
While I was hesitating, Ujin nudged me again.
“Jiham, move before somebody else snatches them away!”
“How am I supposed to approach them when I don’t know English?”
“So close, yet so far?”
“Well, it is a shame, but...”
Just as I turned away regretfully, our eyes met.
Then something happened that I never expected.
The girl who looked like Dakota Fanning rose from her seat and walked straight toward us. Mixing fluent English with broken Korean, she spoke to me.
“You know what ‘Fortune favors the bold’ means, right?”
At that moment, I thought I'd hit the jackpot. There was clearly a hint in the beauty’s words that we should take the initiative.
I desperately wanted to accept right away, but one thing bothered me.
“We know it, but the problem is that our English is terrible.”
“Then we can speak Korean. Is that okay?”
“...Your Korean is much better than I expected. Great. Drinks and food are on us.”
“As far as I know, the one who first invites the others to sit together pays.”
“Haha. Deal. Then we’ll move over to your table.”
“We’ll be waiting, so hurry.”
Having boldly reeled us in, the girl who looked like Dakota Fanning returned to her seat.
Lee Ujin stared blankly.
“Jiham, what the hell just happened?”
“...I’m shocked myself. But let’s just enjoy tonight.”
As we moved over to join the girls, the men around us, who had obviously been waiting for an opportunity, shot us sharp looks.
But we couldn’t have cared less and started chatting.
The girl resembling Dakota Fanning introduced herself as Tracy Bongard, while the one with the mesmerizing blue eyes was Gloria Gomez. They immediately asked us to call them by their first names.
“How did you two end up learning our language?” I asked.
“A few years ago, I became obsessed with K-pop music. It’s so exciting! Then I wanted to learn the language properly, so I came here. Right now, we’re studying at the language institute of Korea University.”
“Wow! I can’t believe beauties like you are studying at my alma mater. That’s really amazing.”
“Oh? So you two also attend Korea University?”
“Haha, no. I graduated three years ago, and Ujin is doing his master’s in law.”
Then Lee Ujin, who had been quietly listening, finally spoke.
“Tracy, what made you approach us?”
“Well... Jiham has such a piercing gaze that I was drawn to him against my will.”
“What? This guy has a piercing gaze?”
“There’s an authority in his strong eyes that’s impossible to resist.”
“Unbelievable...” Lee Ujin muttered, speechless from the absurdity of it.
As the pleasant conversation continued, Tracy suddenly made an unexpected proposal.
“Ujin, how about we split into pairs right now and continue having fun separately?”
“Haha, great idea. I like it. How should we decide?”
“I choose Jiham.”
Her directness made my head spin for a moment, but I quickly regained my composure.
“Tracy, actually, the man is supposed to make the first choice.”
“Really? And you’re going to choose me, right?”
‘Why is she so bold?’
“Show me your charm first, and I’ll think about it.”
“Okay. I can give you such an intoxicating night that you’ll remember it for the rest of your life.”
“Isn’t that a little too straightforward?”
“I thought that was the ultimate goal whenever a man meets a woman. Isn’t it?”
“Ahem, ahem!”
Embarrassed, I coughed awkwardly and turned my attention to Gloria.
“Gloria, what’s your charm?”
“I can give you a much wilder night than Tracy.”
Personally, I preferred Tracy, who looked like Dakota Fanning, but saying that out loud would have been awkward.
Quietly asking Ujin which one he liked, I received the answer: Gloria.
Everything was working out perfectly.
I turned to Tracy.
“Shall we get out of here?”
***
“Why are you calling so early in the morning?” I asked Lee Ujin unkindly.
“I wanted to know how things went last night. Satisfied?”
“You already know the answer, so why ask? What about you?”
“Hehehe.”
The vulgar laugh that escaped Lee Ujin contained all the answer I needed.
“I just got a delivery order, so let’s wrap this up.”
“Hey, why didn’t you get Tracy’s phone number in the end?”
No matter how much I tried to deny it, I had to admit the truth. It was wounded pride.
The clothes and accessories Tracy wore cost an insane amount of money. They were all top-tier luxury brands.
Besides, when your future is uncertain, your heart has no room for idle romances.
But if I told Lee Ujin the truth, he would only laugh at me, so I gave another reason instead.
“You know what ‘one night’ means, right?”
Click.
Throwing out those words, I mercilessly hung up.