“My first setup. What have I done?” Her groan was loud and over-the-top. What a nut.
“Don’t panic. Remember, we have a plan. Now, tell me everything. When and where is this date?”
“Wednesday at Seoulmeats in K-town at seven.”
“Can you even get to K-town from the Westside by seven?”
“Exactly! See? I said the same thing, and he didn’t listen. And I had to bite my tongue because I’m trying to turn a new leaf and be an impress-the-man-who-doesn’t-understand-traffic kind of gal.”
She sounded miserable. Tae was amused.
“Let me look up the restaurant and get back to you. Do you have time this weekend, Sunday maybe, for our practice run?”
“Yeah, I only have brunch in the morning with my girlfriends. But after that I’m free.”
“Okay, but don’t eat too much at brunch. I’m gonna feed you again when we meet up. Anyways, I should go. I’ll call you later with more details. And Jules?”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t worry. We’ve got this.”
“Thanks, Tae.”
Tae’s phone rang again before he could even get down the street to the corner. Honestly, he just wanted to turn on somemusic and zone out. Tempting, but it could be someone needing his help with something.
“Hello?”
“Tae Kim?”
“Yes, this is.”
“Hi, Tae. It’s Rianne Kennedy, the HR manager at Sterling Co.”
Tae’s heart dropped. He hadn’t been in touch with his office in weeks, though he knew his paid and unpaid leave times were drawing to a close. He’d run out of days to be away from work, and a part of him hoped that if he didn’t respond, they’d just consider him terminated and he wouldn’t have to make the decision himself and have the awkward conversation.
No such luck.
“Oh, hey there, Rianne. How can I help you?”
“I’m not sure if you’ve seen the emails we’ve been sending. But as of last Friday, you’ve exhausted your leave time. Will we be expecting you back to work? No one has heard from you...”
This was it. It was Tae’s chance to quit. It was his chance to cut the ties from the miserable job and unfulfilling life in Chicago and make the decision to not go back. Was he ready?
“Rianne, my father is still not completely well enough for me to leave at this time. I know I’ve used up all my options. But is there any possibility...”Quit, Tae. Right now. Just say it. Make the move and never go back. Let the chips fall where they may. Figure your shit out on your own and...
“Hello? Tae? Any possibility for what? Can you hear me?... Can you hear me now?... Hello? Did I lose you?”
“Oh, sorry, no, I’m here, Rianne. Um, I was going to ask if I can have another few weeks of unpaid leave time to figure everything out here before I return.”Coward.
“Tae, we can give you two more weeks, tops. But only because your manager was very explicit in letting us knowthat he enjoys you on his team. Then we’ll need to know what day we can expect you back at work. Good luck with everything.”
He’d bought himself two more weeks. Two more weeks of keeping his options open. Two more weeks of misery and dread, trying to figure out what to do with his life.
Tae wasn’t listening to the rest of what she was saying. He’d review it when she sent it to him in email. For now, he was anxious to hang up, turn on some music, roll down his windows, and enjoy his drive home.
“Don’t do anything you’re gonna regret later, little brother.”
All Tae wanted was to have a beer and watch the Angels game on TV. But with the traffic being bad, he decided to make a pit stop in Huntington Beach at his brother’s house on his way home to do both there. What he didn’t want, what he didn’t need, was a lecture.
