I don’t think I’m very good at writing aus but I hope this is ok. I’ve read so many exceptional CEO au stories that I feel this just pales in comparison. Still I gave it a shot. I hope you all like it :D
Jade xo
The chairs outside your boss’s office were extremely uncomfortable like they were designed to keep you unsettled and on the edge. To be sat on one of them was positively frightening. Already your palms were sweating, your heartbeat pounding hard against your chest while your fingers nervously played with the files in your hands. It was never for good reason when you were summoned to the office of Kim Jongdae.
A loud voice emanating from behind the office door made you jump out of your skin. “YOUR FUCK UP COST ME MORE MONEY THAN YOU MAKE IN A YEAR!” the voice roared, your hands shaking like a leaf in your lap. “GET OUT!” There was echoing crash and then moments later, the door swung open and a tall man sprinted out of the room with files overflowing from his arms.
The receptionist got up from her desk opposite you and headed into the office with a dipped head. What followed was perhaps the longest minute of your life. You ran through everything your boss could ask you about the project you were heading up, making sure you had the facts readily on the tip of your tongue. To your knowledge, everything was going well with the project which was why your summoning to his office was even more of a surprise.
“Mr Kim will see you now,” the receptionist said quietly, holding the door open for you.
Mustering up whatever courage you could find, you gathered the files up in your arms and slowly stood up, feeling suddenly unsteady on your heels as you tugged the hem of your skirt down. “Thank you,” you murmured, your voice quivering and exposed your nerves. Focusing on taking one step in front of the other, you kept your eyes glued to the floor until you passed a chair and came up on a broad wooden desk.
The man sat behind it was very handsome, dark hair styled up and pushed back, long dark eyelashes framing clouded caramel eyes. And then his lips, pink and perfectly shaped with the corners curling up a smile. You had heard from others in the office that Kim Jongdae was as attractive as a heavenly angel, with the personality of the devil himself. His reputation in business was just as notorious as his good looks, both of which were making your stomach flip with a million butterflies.
“Please sit,” your boss ordered, pointing to the empty chair on your left with a gentle hand. His voice surprised you, a stark contrast to the thunderous shouting you had heard less than five minutes ago.
You stumbled back slightly, almost tripping over your own heels in an effort to sit down like instructed. With your lips staying firmly shut, you placed your files neatly on your legs and stared at the shiny silver hexagonal shaped ornament that resembled the company logo. Even if you did have the courage to say something and could find your voice in amongst the nerves, you didn’t have a clue what to say. Just being in the same room as Kim Jongdae was intimidating enough.
He cleared his throat and leaned his arms on his desk. “I just called you up here to talk about the school project,” he stated, beginning to unbutton the cuffs of his white shirt and rolling his sleeves up to his elbows.
For a moment, you were stuck for words. Of course, that was what he’d want to talk to you about. “The project is running according to schedule. Building of the new facility should be completed by the end of the month and then the publicity of the launch will begin,” you explained, nervously knotting your hands together. You rallied off some facts about the preparations you had already put in place, plus the deals you were still in the process of finalising.
“And do you have enough people working the project? It sounds like you have a lot on your plate,” he sympathised with a soft smile that rippled you with shock.
The man sat in front of you could not be your boss Kim Jongdae. You found it hard to believe that this was the man that was shouting in this very office not five minutes ago. This couldn’t be the Kim Jongdae that instilled such fear in everyone who worked for him. Your old project manager had been sacked after having a nervous breakdown because of a meeting … with this kind man?
Looking up from your files, you met his warm brown eyes and felt yourself relax a little. “We have everything under control at the moment, although some temporary staff may be necessary as we get closer to the launch,” you explained, hoping you were in a position to assume such things. This was the first time you’d been a project manager since a group assignment at university.
“It sounds like you are running a well-oiled machine,” he joked, leaning back in his tall leather chair. “Are those the plans?” He nodded to the files in your lap with a tilt of his head.
Scrambling back to your feet, you wobbled over to his desk and opened the first file in front of him. “These are the blueprints for the building sir,” you started to explain, arranging the different plans in front of him. “I went to visit the site on Tuesday and everything was ahead of schedule.”
Jongdae frowned at the plans and your heart plummeted to the bottom of your stomach. “Did we manage to scale down the costs in order to build the third level?” he asked, pointing to the plans on the far right that detailed a potential extra level to the build.
You winced, scared to give Jongdae the news he probably didn’t want to hear. “Finance said that even with the scaled down build, there weren’t enough funds to complete the third build sir,” you told him quietly, pinching your lips together out of nervousness. Was this the moment you got to see Kim Jongdae’s devil personality?
He yanked the phone off his desk and dialled one number with a stab of his finger, holding the phone up to his ear. You could instantly tell he was angry, and you were holding your breath in anticipation. Instead it seemed he called his receptionist. “Can you get the Head of Finance up here immediately?” he almost barked down the phone, barely waiting for a reply before he slammed the phone back down.
Standing up straight, you locked your hands behind your back and stared down at the floor, waiting for him to start yelling at you. However, he just let out a long breath and ran his hands through his hair, drawing your attention to the tight muscles that made up his arms.
“I’m sorry to cut this meeting short but I can see there are some things that need my attention immediately,” he began softly, his voice not what you were expecting to be like. It was sweet and melodious as if he was singing his words to you like a serenade. “Can we continue this tonight over dinner?” he asked hopefully, meeting your eyes with beautiful warm orbs that showed you his own nerves.
You tucked your hair behind your ears and smiled shyly, momentarily stunned that someone as handsome as Jongdae was asking you to dinner. “That sounds lovely sir,” you stuttered. As if you were going to say no.
“Perfect,” he exclaimed, practically jumping to his feet. “Leave the files with me for now and I shall meet you in the foyer at six,” Jongdae replied, taking the brown folders out of your hands and escorting you politely to the door of his office.
“I look forward to it sir,” you answered with a nod of your head to hide the smile sneaking up onto your face. Just about to leave the office, you felt a hand grip yours and pull you back.
