The most unnecessary argument in office history.

Kang Minjae arrived at work exactly three minutes late… which he considered early.

He ran into the building holding an iced coffee, a laptop bag, and his dignity (barely). The security guard nodded at him with the calm expression of someone who had seen this exact scene every day.

“Good morning!” Minjae said brightly.

“It is 9:03,” the guard replied.

“Yes. Morning-ish.”

Minjae entered the elevator and checked his reflection in the mirror.

Hair: dramatic but acceptable.

Shirt: slightly wrinkled but artistic.

Confidence: strong.

Today was important. He was presenting his first design idea to the team manager.

He pressed the button for the 7th floor.

The elevator doors opened…

…and Minjae immediately walked into a human wall.

Not a real wall. A man. A very tall, very serious man holding a tablet like it was a weapon.

Minjae bounced back slightly.

“Oh! Sorry! I thought you were furniture.”

The man blinked once. Slowly. Like a computer processing an error.

This was Seo Jinhyuk.

Team manager. Perfectionist. Rumored to organize his socks by emotional stability.

“You are late,” Jinhyuk said calmly.

“It’s three minutes,” Minjae replied.

“It is measurable.”

“That sounds like something a robot would say.”

Silence.

The elevator ride to the 7th floor felt like ten years.

The office was bright, modern, and full of people pretending to work while secretly listening to conversations.

Minjae took his seat, opened his laptop, and whispered to the coworker beside him.

“Why does your boss look like he schedules breathing?”

“That is accurate,” she whispered back.

Presentation time arrived.

Minjae stood confidently in front of the screen.

“Today, I present a bold, emotional, vibrant branding concept!”

He clicked the slide.

Bright colors appeared. Playful fonts. Creative layout.

He smiled proudly.

Jinhyuk stared at the screen like it had personally offended him.

“Too chaotic,” Jinhyuk said.

“It’s energetic.”

“Unstructured.”

“It’s expressive.”

“It hurts the eyes.”

“That is because it is powerful.”

Coworkers pretended to type very loudly.

Minjae crossed his arms. “Design should make people feel something.”

“It should communicate clearly,” Jinhyuk replied.

“It does! It communicates joy.”

“It communicates confusion.”

Minjae gasped dramatically. “You wound me.”

Jinhyuk did not look wounded.

Ten minutes later, they were still arguing.

Minjae waved a pen like a sword.

Jinhyuk stood perfectly straight like a statue of discipline.

“You fear color,” Minjae accused.

“You fear order,” Jinhyuk replied.

“You hate creativity!”

“You hate structure!”

Their boss slowly backed out of the room without speaking.

Lunch break arrived like a rescue mission.

Minjae stormed into the break room, opened the fridge, and discovered his lunch missing.

He stared at the empty space.

He turned slowly.

Jinhyuk was heating a neatly packed meal in the microwave.

“Did you take my food?” Minjae demanded.

“I brought my own.”

Minjae leaned closer. “That container looks familiar.”

“It is a standard container.”

“You are suspicious.”

“You are loud.”

Minjae pointed dramatically. “You are the type who eats happiness with a fork and knife.”

Jinhyuk paused.

Then, very calmly, he opened the microwave, removed his food… and placed a neatly wrapped sandwich on the table.

“You forgot this on the meeting room desk,” he said.

Minjae blinked.

“Oh.”

Pause.

“…Thank you.”

Pause.

“…You still hate color.”

Jinhyuk sighed softly — the tiniest crack in his perfect composure.

Later that afternoon, a rumor spread through the office at the speed of light.

Someone had seen them arguing intensely.

Someone else saw them standing very close.

Another person claimed they looked like a couple fighting.

Minjae heard the whispers and almost choked on his coffee.

“Dating? With him??”

Across the office, Jinhyuk heard the same rumor.

He looked up.

Their eyes met.

Both immediately looked away.

At the exact same time, both spoke:

“This is ridiculous.”

And for the first time that day… they agreed on something.

They just didn’t know that this very ridiculous rumor would soon become their biggest problem.

And possibly… their best accident.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***