Page 10 of Under Construction

"Something wrong, princess?" Chris’s voice is a low taunt. "Didn’t you like that? Need another angle maybe—"

Dennis’s fist swings before he knows it.

It connects with Chris’s jaw with a sharp smack that seems to echo around the room, louder than the collective gasps that immediately follow.

A sharp burst of pain radiates through his knuckles, electric and raw. The impact reverberates up his arm. The pain is sharp, cutting, and so, so satisfying.

The last thing he sees before the crew pulls them apart and security comes running is Chris's surprised face, dimples gone, perfect mouth hanging open.

Good.

At least something went right today.

05Consequences

"You punched him."

"Yes."

"You punched him in front of twenty witnesses."

"Yes."

"Including three managers from partner companies."

"Is there a point to this?" Dennis stretches his legs out under his father's desk in the chilly downtown office, the leather sole of his Oxford scraping against imported marble flooring like nails on a chalkboard.

"The point is that you've embarrassed this company. Again." His father's voice cuts like ice. "First the sustainable nonsense, now this."

Dennis sulks internally, poker face blank as he counts down the seconds to when this meeting will be over. What’s Dad evendoingin this hastily put-together office? Clearly flying back and forth from LA to keep an eye onhim.

Dennis stifles a sigh.

His father notices, of course. That makes him sigh inthatway that means Dennis is about to get lectured in Korean. Sure enough, the familiar sounds of disappointment follow, hittinglike a well-worn belt—strangely comfortable yet hurting like a bitch, all at once.

"This is why I wanted you to start in the office," says his father, switching languages. "Site work doesn’t suit you.”

"Everything doesn’t suit me according to you." Dennis slouches halfway down into the chair, hands stuffed in his pockets, just to spite him.

“Your mother's coddling has made you soft,” his father continues, unfazed. “All thatyou can be anything you want to berubbish seems to have made you think you can indulge these…” Mr. Kim narrows his eyes, “...unusual ideas."

Dennis stares out of the window as his father’s clipped voice turns into an indistinct drone. His knuckles throb.

Good.

Every ache is worth it for the look on Chris's face when Dennis’s fist hit home. The edge of Dennis’s lip twitches up at the memory as he relives it over and over again in his head.Delicious.

“...good mind to shut this whole operation down.” Mr. Kim’s voice comes back into focus at those words, slicing through Dennis’s thoughts and dragging him back into the room.

Dennis slips a hand out of his pocket to point to the window next to him. He tilts his head to peer out of it because something pink and pretty has caught his eye.

Ooh, are thosesakurablooming already? Spring is absolutely gorgeous here.

“Do that and I’m jumping out of this window, right here, right now, right in front of you,” he says flatly without missing abeat. He stuffs his hand back into his pocket and lets his head loll to the side as his eyes roll from dark to white to follow suit.

This issoboring.

"Don't be dramatic." His father pushes a stack of papers across the desk, stonefaced. "Sign these. And youwillapologize to the site manager. Formally. Unless you want him to pursue legal action."

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