Chapter Eight #8
It’s been so many years since his accident.
And yet, any mention of football makes him uncomfortable.
Ah, why did Ms Stephanie have to push this hard?
Of course, she wouldn’t know why Daepyonim is taking this personally.
And she and Rodrigo are acquainted, after all.
Although I wonder how they know each other.
Is it through Chairman Ri? I’m very sure he has used his influence on her to push Rodrigo as our ambassador.
Although, come to think of it, his star power wouldn’t be so bad for us …
Mr Choi continues to muse as the room starts to clear one by one. Across him are Timira and Hanee, packing their things.
I don’t think Timira-ssi realizes that she has an ally in Daepyonim.
Perhaps I should tell her? Or not. It’s pointless, after all.
It’s pretty much a done deal now. But she might be relieved to know that she isn’t alone.
Although I wonder why she is so vehemently against Rodrigo.
They even worked together! Am I missing something here?
I should probably try to find out. Might it be because of something that happened between them?
Timira-ssi doesn’t seem like someone who’d bring an unjustified personal grudge to her workplace!
She’s got way too much experience under her belt to be unprofessional at work.
By the time Mr Choi has arranged his thoughts and decided on what to do next, Timira and Hanee have already left.
‘Timira- ssi ! Timira- ssi !’ he has to call out, his voice a few decibels louder than usual.
Timira is about to ask Hanee who the latter thinks voted against Rodrigo, when Mr Choi catches up with them. He’s a little out of breath, having speed-walked.
‘Yes, Bujangnim. You wanted to say something?’
‘Ah, yes. Yes. If you have a minute, there’s something I’d like to say. Care to step inside my cabin?’
Timira turns with a quizzical look on her face towards Hanee who looks equally nonplussed. Shrugging, she gestures at Timira to follow Mr Choi and find out for herself.
Inside his cabin, Mr Choi loosens his tie and grabs a bottle of water, holding it over his mouth and drinking in large gulps, not realizing that a small trickle is flowing down his chin.
Finishing its contents, he noisily crumples the bottle and trashes it.
Without bothering to wipe his watery chin and throat, he takes off.
‘You must be disappointed, Timira-ssi.’
Timira looks up and waits for Mr Choi to elaborate.
‘It looked like you really did not want us to sign Rodrigo. Would you care to share with me why you’ve been dead against this from the get-go?’
Mr Choi had not intended on being this direct. He had, in all honesty, wanted to do a little digging around. But, at this moment, he feels it’s best to ask straight up.
Timira, a little taken aback by Mr Choi’s sudden salvo, is slow to respond.
‘Well, if you ask me, we had equally celebrated, if not more qualified options. I was only doing what I felt was professionally the right thing to do—looking out for the company I work for.’
‘ Geureomyo . That goes without saying. I’m sure you have the company’s best interests in mind, Daepyonim wouldn’t expect any less from you.’
He recalls Haneul looking uncomfortable at every mention of football and Rodrigo throughout the meeting, and wonders if Timira had noticed it too.
‘It’s just that you have worked with Rodrigo before and we were all under the assumption that you’ll be on good terms with him.’
We? Who ‘we’? He and Haneul? He and Stephanie? He, Haneul and Stephanie? Timira is confused.
‘Who said anything about being on bad terms, Bujangnim?’ Timira’s tone is icy cold, and a cocky smirk is on her usually pleasant face.
It’s now Mr Choi’s turn to wince. He wasn’t prepared for such a retort.
‘Eh, what? No, I mean—’
Timira cuts in restlessly.
‘I believe there’s been some kind of a misunderstanding. Please don’t overthink it, Seongjae-ssi. I have zero issues with Rod. I only opposed his selection because I genuinely felt we had better people to represent the brand. That’s all!’
Timira lies through her teeth.
Yessss! This is my chance to quash all possibilities of any rumour starting about me and Rod. I’m a professional, fair and unbiased.
‘Ah, Dahenida ! To be honest, I was a little concerned. What if he isn’t really a good person to work with? What if he gave you a hard time? I was worried that we might have picked the wrong person.’ Mr Choi’s voice has now lowered, his tone is softer and his words are genuine.
Uh-oh. Should I have told him the truth? Should I tell him? Suna doon apni dukh bhari dastan?
Before Timira can decide if she ought to come clean, Mr Choi launches into a story of his own.
‘You see, this isn’t easy for Daepyonim. He has not been keen on Rodrigo since his name first came up.’
Wow, okay, this is news!
‘Really?’ Timira is curious. Her eyes are now bigger than usual.
‘You see, he carries a trauma from his childhood. I couldn’t give you too many details even if I wanted to because I don’t know much.’
Mr Choi had been quite young himself when the incident occurred.
His father had been a lifelong loyalist working for Haneul’s grandmother, Chairwoman Lee.
They lived on the premises of the family mansion, albeit in a separate enclosure meant for staff.
He was visiting his parents at the time during summer holidays at the college where he had also been sponsored by the Lees.
‘All I know is that he went to Japan for an international football camp—God, he was a gifted ball player—and came back on an airvac needing emergency surgery.’
So Haneul is the one who voted against Rod! Emergency surgery? How badly hurt he must have been … Timira’s heart is starting to melt.
‘He had to stop playing sport and still has to undergo regular check-ups and therapy.’
Poor Haneul. Forget the physical pain; I cannot imagine the mental pain he must’ve had to go through. Oh, my poor, handsome Asian Adonis.
‘He detests any mention of football. I had thought—well, hoped, rather—that after all this time, he might’ve let bygones be bygones. But looking at him today, I realized that he is yet to reconcile his past. It cannot be easy for him to accept a footballer as his brand’s representative!’
Timira can no longer hold back her astonishment.
‘Isn’t the rest of the company … isn’t Stephanie aware of this? Why put him through this agony?’
‘Nobody knows. You are the only person now, apart from me, at SecondSkin who does.’
Wow! Some way of letting me know I’m special. Although I’m not sure why he’s telling me all this.
‘I felt I should share this with you because for some reason, I have a feeling the secret will be safe with you.’
Because for some reason you seem to make Daepyonim happy. This Mr Choi is sure of.
‘So why doesn’t he overturn the voting result and take his own pick from the options? This is his baby, after all!’
‘Ah, here’s where it gets truly complicated. So you know Rodrigo plays for Seoul Stealers FC, right? The owner of the club, Ri Hoejangnim, also happens to be the second-largest shareholder of this company and a very close associate of Daepyonim’s father.’
Hot dang! This seems to be straight out of a drama. Alice will be thrilled to hear of it!
‘Ms Stephanie is his daughter’s best friend and I suspect practically their eyes and ears at SecondSkin. Not that he needs to route it through her, but her words are essentially Chairman Ri’s. Her choice is basically his. And Rodrigo is his choice!’
‘And what about Haneul-ssi’s choice? SecondSkin is HIS company at the end of the day!’
What the hell is this, man? Why is he a sitting duck? Why is this villainous Ri insaan pulling all the strings?
Timira is frustrated, and it is evident from her eyebrows that are knitted together in a frown resembling Arjuna’s bow.
‘The thing is, er, Daepyonim secured seed funding for his company from Chairman Ri. If he decides to pull the plug, Baek Daepyo might lose everything he has worked so hard for.’
Holy smokes! Who would’ve thought rich-boy Korean Adonis would have to rely on papa’s friend’s monies to fuel his dream?
Feeling a little let down by this revelation about Haneul’s reality, Timira’s face loses a little colour.
She had hoped for him to be a self-made man.
The kind her father always prided himself on being and the sort her mother, she knew, would instantly approve of.
As her jamai, Timira had sheepishly fantasized about while cooking one of her numerous khayali pulaos .
‘Are you all right, Ms Marak? You don’t look too well.’
‘ Aniyo, gwenchanayo . [No, no, I’m all right.] It’s just a lot to process. And to be honest, I’m a little sad to know that Haneul-ssi’s hands are thus tied.’
She wants to say she’s a little disappointed in him but chooses her words wisely to garb her disappointment in politeness.
‘Don’t stress over it. It’s just the way it is. Daepyonim is doing the best anyone can in his shoes,’ Mr Choi assures her earnestly.
Yeah, right. CEO–CEO khel raha hai on papa’s fryand’s paise.
She’s about to roll her eyes but checks herself at the last minute.
‘I understand, Bujangnim. Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown.’
‘You can say that again! Poor guy’s father is in politics and hopes to be the party’s candidate in the coming presidential elections. And Chairman Ri is the party’s greatest benefactor. There is literally no way for Baek Daepyo around this situation!’
Is this even real? And I thought my life was a jalebi. Doooood, this is a full-blown, lifesize imarti! Juicy but too many circles, man. Chakkar aa rahe hain mujhe!
‘Can’t Haneul-ssi do something else? Must he be stuck in the midst of all this politicking and manoeuvring?’ steadying herself, she asks.
Timira has wasted absolutely no time in going from tut-tutting Haneul to having her heart broken for him.