The morning after that quiet dinner. Minjae got up earlier than he normally did. Sleep hadn't been much. Not tossing and turning or anything, but full of these layers of thoughts that just wouldn't settle.
His mind kept going back to bits of the evening. Not so much the actual words people said. But the looks they gave him. All different from each other. Each one waiting, in their own kind of way.
He went through his usual routine. Coffee starting to percolate on the stove. Shirt buttoned up neat as always. Watch clicked into place on his wrist. Shoes lined up perfectly by the bed.
And yet. When he got to the door, his hand just hung there on the knob. Longer than it should've. That pause carried something he couldn't quite name. Not exactly fear. But not full certainty either.
Then. With a soft breath out. He turned the knob. And stepped outside.
---
The elevator doors slid open, and Seori was there. Not a surprise—she had a way of appearing at the edges of his mornings.
She smiled without demand, her voice calm.
"Morning."
"Morning," he replied.
There was a beat of silence, not heavy but gentle, like a cushion between them. Then she asked, "Heading to the twelfth floor?"
He nodded.
"I'll walk with you."
They didn't speak again until the elevator chimed and the hallway stretched before them. At the junction, before their paths split, Seori paused. Her gaze lingered on him.
"You look better today," she said.
He blinked. "Better?"
"Less like someone carrying a secret war."
Those words hit him unexpected, with that soft precision that he couldn't brush off. He nearly spoke up, almost spilled out how heavy it all felt inside his chest. But then the elevator dinged once more. New folks piled in. And by the time he looked around, she had slipped away.
---
Midday brought Yuri to his desk. She didn't announce herself. Just appeared, placing two paper cups on the table with a measured calm.
"Seori mentioned you seemed quiet."
Minjae sighed faintly, glancing at her. "I didn't realize I was being monitored."
"We care," Yuri said simply. Then, with the faintest smirk, "And we're nosy."
He took the cup. Not because he really needed the caffeine or anything. But her steady gaze made it impossible to say no.
She stayed on her feet, like she always did. Kind of protective. Without making it feel too much.
I mean, "I'm not very good at this," Minjae admitted. The words came out of him slow, like pulling a thread he didn't want to let go.
"You don't have to be." Her voice got softer. But that strength stayed there, didn't waver at all. "Just don't push us out."
She hung there for another beat. Searching his face for whatever wasn't being said. Then she turned. Walked off at her own pace, unhurried.
---
Later that afternoon, Yura found him in the lower lounge, seated near the wide windows where rain traced patterns down the glass.
She didn't waste time with pretense. She dropped into the seat beside him, leaned back, and let the silence stretch.
"You overthink," she said at last.
He gave a quiet chuckle. "That's not a flaw?"
"It is," she said, leaning forward onto her knees, "when you let it stop you from living."
Minjae shook his head, amusement threading through his exhaustion. "Why me?"
Her gaze flicked toward him, sharp but not unkind. "Is that a serious question?"
He didn't answer.
"You treat people like they matter," Yura said, her tone more certain now. "Even when you're trying to disappear."
"That's not romantic," he said, almost defensively.
"It doesn't have to be."
---
The day moved on. He worked. He ate. He answered messages, ignored others. The motions of routine wrapped him, steady and familiar.
And yet, beneath it all, something had shifted.
They weren't waiting for him to choose. They weren't demanding he declare a side or a heart. They were simply walking beside him, in their own ways, without breaking stride.
And the company had noticed.
---
"Are they dating?"
"Which one?"
"No idea. Maybe all?"
"You think he knows?"
"Probably not. He looks like he's trying to solve it like an equation."
The voices drifted in corners, near vending machines, by the copier. Quiet laughter, hidden glances. The weight of their attention pressed lightly at Minjae's back, a pressure he pretended not to feel.
---
That evening Minjae went up to the rooftop once more. Air felt softer. The sharp spring chill had eased up some. But summer warmth, it wasn't there yet. He leaned on the railing. Stared out at the horizon. City lights pulsed faintly down there in the dusky glow.
The door creaked open behind him. He didn't turn. He already knew.
Three steps. Three presences. Seori. Yuri. Yura.
They hung back right behind him. Not saying a word. Just letting that quiet hang there until he decided to speak up.
"I need to draw a line," Minjae said finally. His voice came out low but pretty firm. He turned around to look at them. "I'm not ready. Thing is, maybe I never will be."
Yura's eyebrows went up. Her face stayed hard to read, but it had this sharp edge to it. "You think that'll make us stop."
Yuri folded her arms across her chest. She looked as steady as always. "You're not turning us down."
Seori moved a step closer. Her voice had this gentle way about it. It got to you more than the actual words did. "You're just being straight with us. We're doing the same."
His throat got tight. "I don't want to end up hurting you all."
"You're not," Seori told him.
"You might," Yuri said back. Her tone was all practical, nothing bitter in it. "But we'll risk that anyway."
"Together," Yura put in. That small smile of hers cut through the tension a bit.
Their certainty weighed on him. Not in a bad way, but you couldn't ignore it. He didn't say anything else. They didn't either.
The quiet didn't feel so much like space between them anymore. It was more like they got it.
That night, the company building's lights went off one floor after another. Until just a few windows were still lit up against the dark skyline of the city.
Down a skinny side street, under this awning with paper lanterns glowing, the three women sat sharing a late dinner. Steam came up from their bowls. Laughter bubbled out between bites, not super loud but the real kind.
Yura poked her chopsticks at the table like she was throwing down a challenge, all in fun. "So we're not backing off."
Seori gave a small smile. Her eyes were soft. "Not unless he straight-up asks us to."
Yuri took a sip of her tea. Calm like usual. "Even if he does, we'll still watch out for him."
Rain fell light outside the awning. The lanterns swung a little in the breeze.
They felt worn out. What came next wasn't clear at all.
But none of them had walked away.