four

"Alright, Nathan. I'll be setting up my office now. Let me know if you need me for something." 

"How old are you Ivy?" He asks curiously. 

"I'm twenty-three years and nine months old." He chuckles a little at the details, nodding.

"I'm twenty-five years and nine months old." She smiles without showing her teeth and nods before turning her back to him, reaching for the door. 

She barges into her office, black heels clicking against the marble floor as she checks out the whole area, making little mental notes to fill up the space with things of her preference but not too much since she'll be spending most of her time editing with the writers. 

"Hey Ivy, we have an assistant for you." Lisa pops her head inside Ivy's office with a smile. 

"I didn't ask for one?" The girl asks with a flat tone.   

"Oh he worked for the last editor and he still has an unfinished contract with our company so you can fire him after a month if you want to." 

"It's a him? Lisa, I'm not comfortable working with men too close to me." 

"I'm gay." Another head pops up from under Lisa's arm but with red hair and round glasses. 

"Oh, that does make it a little better." She mutters under her breath eyeing the boy. 

"Yes, I've never done a heterosexual thing in my life." He says stepping in front of Lisa with a proud smile on his face. 

"Oh really?" Ivy questions amused by the boy's antics and looks both.

"Yes Ma'am!" He dose a princely bow and Ivy immediately approves.

"What's your name?" She asks, for the first time in a while, initiating a handshake. 

"My name is Taeho and I'm twenty four years old. I'm very good at singing and dancing. I'm also very good with art related work and literature. I can also make friends easily." 

"Would like to catch a coffee on the way home?" Nathan asks Ivy as she stacks sheets on paper on each other. The girl inhales deeply, blowing off the strands of hair that fell on her face. 

"Nathan 'home'? Do you even know where I live?" She asks poking her cheek with her tongue.

"Oh yeah, where do you live Ivy?" he asks hopping on top of her office table, long legs swinging off the table as he munches on a pack of chocolate cookies. 

"I'm not telling you that." 

It's been a week since she started work and Nathan has been trying to get a coffee with her since the past two days but she refuses with a new lame excuse every time like 'oh, I don't like coffee as much' or 'oh, I have to walk my turtle so no time for coffee today'. 

'He's not necessarily like them, Ivy.' She thinks to herself as he finishes the last cookie. 'But you never know, what if he is?' With another sigh, she decides to give him a chance, it's just a cup of coffee after all. Just two colleagues having coffee together. Nothing less, nothing more. 

"Oh come on, it'll be my treat. Consider it a date." 

"No thankyou Mr. Kim, I am very much capable of buying myself coffee and for the record, I've also purchased a new shirt." She glares at him and at the very moment when she takes her eyes off him, Taeho comes rushing in, panting heavily. 

"Ivy, I won't be able to take you home today. I just scored myself a date." He throws finger guns at her and she scowls back. 

"Taeho, you can just go after dropping me home, it's not that far any-" 

"Ah, a date! You go enjoy your date Tae, I'll take her home today." Nathan comes up behind Ivy, placing a hand on her exposed shoulder due to the lack of her coat. 

"N-Nathan, remove your hand right now." She whispers softly wrapping her beautiful hands around his wrist and shrugging it back. 

"Oh I'm sorry, I'll take care of her, you can go." She looks back at him with a look he didn't understand but didn't question. He gestures to the door after Taeho leaves and she grabs her bag, walking in front of him with small steps. 

"Are we getting coffee on the way?" She questions looking up at his side profile when he jogs up to her side and he answers with a hum as he clamps his bottop lip between his teeth, making the dimples pop out. 

"Are we going by car?" He shakes his head lost in thought but replying none-the-less. 

"Where are we getting coffee?" She asks again, just wanting him to talk so she's not awkward. 

"Why do you ask so many questions? We'll go wherever you'll want to." He chuckles a little as they walk side by side to the road in front of their building. 

"Taxi?" He asks and she nods, not wanting to ask another question. 

"Where to?" Ivy tell the woman driving the taxi, the address of the coffee shop Han works at or owns perhaps in hopes of catching another glimpse of him. 

The ride is entertained by a few discussions about Ivy's assistant and Nathan's schedule providing to the fact that the two are gonna be together for most of the week and maybe this weekend if Jack asks for the draft by Monday. They talk in english, the concept of her being a foreigner completely forgotten as they talk more. As the two enter the shop, searching an empty table still talking, He notices how she looks more comfortable now but she fails to notice how comfortable she feels after such a long time. Maybe it was the beauty of the word 'comfortable' that you don't say it, you just feel it. 

"Ivy!" Someone calls her name from behind, a brown-headed boy she's grown a little fond of. He'd pass her cute smiles when passing by in the lobby or when their eyes meet in the balcony. 

"Hi Jean, aren't your shifts in the morning?" She asks smiling widely at him as he hops towards their table. 

"It's my shop Ivy, I can come here whenever I want to." He rolls his eyes a little, chuckling. 

"Ah, I see. Are you serving right now?" She asks, looking up at him, her small eyes appearing a little bigger than usual. 

"No, I got myself a date. I'll ask Han to do it." He says, rubbing the back of his head shyly. Her heart jumpes to her throat at the mention of Han which doesn't go unnoticed by Nathan. 

"Well, good luck then." She adds and he turns around when Han appears at another table parallel to hers. Jean says something to him and Han's eyes immediately meet Ivy's. 

"Ahem," Nathan clears his throat trying to catch Ivy's attention which by the way, he failed miserably at, since Han or whatever that dude's name was already making his way to their table dressed in various colours from head to toe and a black snapback on his head. 

"Good evening Ivy", he says extending the greeting adding cuteness to it. If she wasn't already heart eyes before, she definitely was now. 

"Good evening Han, it's good to see you," she adds resting her chin on her palm as her red painted lips stretch into another smile. 

"You too, are you ready to order?" This time the question is directed to Nathan as the latter jumps a little at the sudden question before clearing his throat to speak in a voice deeper than his already was. It was like a silent arguement between the two. The reason of the feud? Completely unknown. Maybe. 

"Yeah, I'd like an Iced Americano. Ivy, what about you?" He looks at her and just as she was about to speak, Han interrupted. 

"Oh I know her order, she's my regular since the past week." Piece said, the smaller man turns around to leave but not without winking at the girl opposite Nathan. 

"So? Regular for one week huh? And I thought you didn't like coffee too much." He comments squinting his eyes at her. She clears her throat looking away before speaking. 

"Look, I have my reasons okay." She exlaims, a useless attempt at covering up. 

"Oh you do? Go ahead, I'm listening." 

"I didn't want to." She speaks, not even bothered that it might come off as rude. He's not even her boss. 

"That was rude but I'll forgive you only because you came today." He points an accusing finger at her shaking it up and down twice before slumping down in his seat again. 

The two sit glaring playfully at each other for a couple of minutes when Han comes and places the tray of drinks on their table. Placing Ivy's drink directly in front of her. 

"Thankyou very much," she bows her head slightly to acknowledge him and he shakes his head dismissively before leaving the two alone without another word. 

"So? I see somebody got heart eyes." He comments sipping on his coffee. 

"Oh shut up," she says frowing at him but he just shrugs. 

"I didn't even say a name," he places an arm behind his head as he speaks. 

"But I know what you're talking about." 

"What?" he questions with a raised eyebrow. 

"You think I have heart eyes for Han." She rolls her eyes, knowing he was right. 

"Well it might be the other way round." he shrugs again.

"What?" Her head tilts to the side in question slightly.

"I think your crush has a crush on you." He explains emphasizing on the word 'crush'. 

"No he doesn't." 

"Atleast you're not denying it."