After Hours Temptation 6-7
549 Words
Chapter 6: Eyes That Notice
The office felt smaller.
Ha-eun noticed it the moment she stepped inside. Conversations lowered when she passed. Smiles lingered too long. Someone looked away too quickly.
She wasn’t imagining it anymore.
People were watching.
---
During the morning meeting, Min-jae stood at the head of the table, composed as ever. But when his gaze swept across the room, it paused on her for half a second too long.
One mistake.
One that didn’t go unnoticed.
She felt heat creep up her neck.
---
By lunchtime, the tension had turned heavy.
A message appeared on her phone.
Min-jae: We need to be careful.
Her reply came instantly.
Ha-eun: We already should have been.
No answer followed.
---
That evening, she stayed late—not because she was asked to, but because leaving felt worse.
She was shutting down her computer when a shadow fell across her desk.
“Walk with me,” Min-jae said quietly.
They moved through the empty corridor in silence, footsteps echoing.
“You should distance yourself,” he said at last.
“For your sake.”
Her chest tightened. “Is that what you want?”
“No.”
“Then why say it?”
Because I’m losing control, he thought—but didn’t say.
“You deserve better than whispers and looks,” he said instead.
She stopped walking.
“And what do you deserve?”
He turned to face her.
A long moment passed.
“I don’t know anymore.”
That honesty scared them both.
Down the hall, an elevator chimed.
Someone was coming.
Min-jae stepped back first.
The space between them returned.
But it no longer felt safe.
Chapter 7: Lines That Blur
Ha-eun couldn’t shake the tension that lingered in the office the next morning. Every glance felt sharper, every whisper louder. The moment Min-jae entered, her heart skipped, but she forced herself to focus on her work.
Minutes later, her phone vibrated.
Min-jae: Meet me after hours.
Her stomach flipped. After hours? The office was empty then. It was risky. Reckless. But something inside her couldn’t say no.
By six, she found herself standing in the dimly lit conference room. Only the hum of the air conditioner filled the space.
Min-jae appeared from the shadows, his expression unreadable.
“You came,” he said softly.
“I… didn’t have a choice,” she admitted, though her voice barely hid the tremor.
He stepped closer, closing the space between them. “We’re crossing lines we shouldn’t,” he whispered.
“I know,” she said, her voice shaking. “But it doesn’t feel wrong.”
Their eyes locked, and in that moment, the office, the rules, and the world outside ceased to exist. The line between control and desire blurred.
A hand brushed her hair from her face, and Ha-eun’s breath caught.
“Ha-eun…” he murmured, his voice low, trembling with something unspoken.
The tension cracked, just enough for the emotions they’d held back to surge forward. Yet, just as quickly, reality intruded—a distant sound of footsteps in the hallway made them pull back.
Neither spoke. Neither left. They just stood there, hearts racing, aware that everything was changing.
Outside, the night stretched on. Inside, the silence between them was louder than any words.
- Writer
