Work Text:
Normally, Yeosang wasn't like this. He wasn't petty. Or vengeful. Or something alike. He was certifiably nice. It was somewhat annoying to get that label. He didn't assign it to himself and didn't do anything special to earn it in his eyes. He guessed it had something to do with not caring enough to wish anyone ill will. But why should he? They were all just trying their best, just as much as he was.
Well, point was: he wasn't that petty. Usually. But here he was, hours after he could have stopped the disaster and about a day before it could unfold, on his best friend's couch confessing what he'd done and what would happen at their office Christmas party tomorrow.
Wooyoung looked equal parts amused and confused after Yeosang explained the whole thing the first but certainly not last time this evening.
"You are petty, though," said Wooyoung with mirth in his eyes and took a sip from his coffee to give Yeosang time to appropriately react to his words. (At the very sensible time of 9 pm to drink coffee, that maniac. And there was still more left than any normal person could survive in a whole day.)
Yeosang threw him an icy glance and snapped his mouth shut, feeling betrayed. It was enough of a reaction for Wooyoung to elaborate: "Not to strangers, sure. That's why they call you nice. But to people you like. Do you remember the ice tea incident?"
"You totally deserved that one."
"I did, but see: it's been two years and you're still salty about it," Wooyoung grinned.
Ah, Wooyoung was making his best friend claim again. For someone who was that good at making people like him, Wooyoung needed a surprising amount of reassurance. It was no hard feat at all to give it to Wooyoung. Yeosang grinned back.
"So, how did you come to like this Mingi guy?", Wooyoung followed up.
Damn, Yeosang walked right into that one.
Once again, Wooyoung grinned, took a sip of his coffee and bathed in Yeosang's glowering stare, intensely smug about a successful trap.
Yeosang had no idea how serious Wooyoung was about stabs like this but he wouldn't let it go for the foreseeable future, more because of Yeosang's reaction than actually meaning it.
Still, Yeosang had to try: "It's not about liking someone. It's about spending time with them. Mingi has been going on my nerves ever since he started working with us."
They all worked at the same company. Song Mingi had been a new hire in summer. The company had decided to expand their portfolio and found a new head engineer for the new product line in Mingi.
Yeosang had been part of his on-boarding from day one. As the local cyber security expert he preferred to be part of the process such that the newbies don't fall into insecure habits they have to be laboriously trained out of afterwards.
Not that he had any such luck with Song Mingi. There hasn't been a single week without major security breach by the one Song Mingi, minor ones almost daily. It had been accidents in the beginning. As soon as he heard other department heads and management sing praises about his outstanding work, Yeosang stopped believing in accidents. And sure, soon their regular meetings contained a segment of Mingi complaining that the stifling security measures hindered his work.
It was an old argument. Yeosang had fought it countless times and would continue to fight it until he would stop working this job. It was in a way a sign he did his job well. As long as they could complain about the minor inconveniences he put upon them there were no major security incidents to worry about.
Still, he had the right to feel miffed about all the redundancy and thanklessness of defending his job all the time.
Usually, he would vent to Wooyoung about all of this, especially when it felt oddly personal. Problem was: the head of marketing and social media had no need to work with the new engineering team yet and had no security clearance for their work yet. And as a stickler to the rules, Yeosang didn't trust himself to let anything slip out in a wave of rage.
So he just didn't. Today was actually the first time Wooyoung heard about Yeosang's problems with Song Mingi and only because Yeosang's driving emotion was guilt right now and he trusted himself much more with his words than in a fit of anger.
"So, what? You hacked into the Secret Santa list to gift him some garbage as revenge?"
Yeosang did not hold back on rolling his eyes at the word 'hacked' like he would at work. "Seonghwa asks me to write the mapping algorithm every year. Besides, I have admin rights to most of the files at work. Not so much breaking in necessary if you are allowed everywhere."
The annual Secret Santa was Seonghwa's beloved baby. He'd go above and beyond for it every year. Nobody would dare to gift an objectively bad gift to not pull his wrath upon them, but still, there were hits and misses.
And when Yeosang overheard a conversation about Mingi not liking childish things on the day Seonghwa came to him with his wishes for this year's Secret Santa algorithm, an idea was born.
It had been kinda easy. Alongside the other rules - nobody draws themselves, someone from their department or the same person they had last year - Yeosang added another rule: Kang Yeosang draws Song Mingi. He didn't even hide it. Nobody would look for it in the code or understand what they'd see if they found it.
And then he'd just followed the plan until Seonghwa collected the gift today to wrap it neutrally for the gift exchange tomorrow. That was when the guilty conscience hit.
When he reached the end of explanations (and Wooyoung the end of his coffee), Wooyoung was still rather amused about the whole ordeal and Yeosang not as horrified anymore as to call in sick tomorrow.
Wooyoung sent him home with a hug and the words: "No matter what's coming to your way tomorrow, you're going to deserve it. I'll still be your best friend, even if you fuck up. Just try to not be an asshole next time."
It helped.
It helped for about the night and the way to work. Then he couldn't bail anymore. The Christmas party started around noon, was mandatory for all employees who weren't on holiday or sick and was compensated with 4 hours in their working time account. He had to show up now.
Yeosang genuinely tried to do some work in the morning. He had to give up on it after following a thought from the previous evening and checking the Secret Santa list.
Then, getting anything done was off the table.
Karma apparently was working fast. The one Yeosang would get his gift from was no-one else than Song Mingi. Why hadn't Seonghwa asked for a rule agianst that? But no, he found it sweet, so he'd explicitly allowed it.
It brought Yeosang's thoughts spinning in full-speed once again and before he even realized it was time for the Christmas party.
Wooyoung picked him up from his office and escorted him to the place of his trial. Or the cafeteria where they all would gather for some sponsored catering and Seonghwa's beloved gift exchange ceremony. Thankfully, his best friend could easily hold up a conversation on his own because Yeosang was too far in his head to participate. He imagined the face Mingi would make when he'd see the gift. Anger would be okay, Yeosang guessed. He'd deserve that. He didn't know how he would do if he had to see sadness or humiliation on someone's face, knowing he was the cause of it. What the hell had he thought?
Wooyoung found them places at a table somewhere in the center where they had a good view over about everything that could happen today so that he had front seats for every drama unfolding, the gossip that he was. That included Yeosang's personal drama because over there, two tables down and directly in their line of view was Mingi, together with Yunho from HR with whom he'd been friends with even before their job.
Lunch was absolutely heavenly even if Yeosang didn't have the appropriate appetite for it. It just didn't last long enough. Too soon Seonghwa wheeled in a cart full of festively decorated packages, himself fully in style with a reindeer costume including the red nose.
The nose only lasted through a couple of lines in his rhymed speech before falling of and it took three times of falling off until Seonghwa had enough and yeeted it across the room. That drew the speech somewhat short and he just started handing out the gifts.
Of course it took time. There was a reason it was the only program point after lunch for the party. Every employee had to be called to Seonghwa, get their present, return to their seat, open the package and give an initial reaction before they could continue. Luckily the company wasn't that big yet or they would sit here for a whole while longer.
Of course it didn't help Yeosang's anxiety a bit and then he even had to be within the first ten to gather their gifts. His hands were clammy when he went up and felt all eyes on him. He swiftly went to the front and returned to his place, trying and probably failing to make enough eye contact to not come off as weird.
He took the wrapping paper off to bring out a nondescript cardboard box. Opening this one too he found … another box. This one wooden with an intricate pattern. He picked it up. No visible opening mechanism. So it was a puzzle box.
His brain immediately latched onto various strategies to find the opening mechanism. First he had to identify any possibly moving parts. He closed his eyes to feel the surface of the wood for any clues.
"So?"
Yeosang opened his eyes with the vague impression that the word was meant for him. He looked up to see Seonghwa's expectant glance on him.
"What's the verdict?"
Oh. Whoops. He had forgotten where he was for a moment here.
"It's perfect," he answered sheepishly and felt reality wash back into his mind with the cheers that accompanied a successful gift.
The box was from Mingi. It was cute and pretty and thoughtful and Yeosang hadn't even found the mechanism within seconds, so it was probably quality work. It was so perfect for him, it was almost unfair.
And then he saw the letter at the bottom of the gift box.
Yeah, okay, cool. Mingi was trying to be the end of Yeosang. Well, no time like now.
He reached for the letter and unfolded it.
Dear Yeosang,
I guess I should put this inside the puzzle box. It's a box. There should be something in there to find after opening it. The vendor even gave me the solution. Not that I think you'd need it. It's for me to put something in there. But truth is: I don't trust my fine motor skills to keep it intact for you if I'd try.
And I'm ruining enough for you as is. Don't need to add onto it.
Writing a letter in a Secret Santa gift is probably not that sensible but I want to tell you a couple of things that are easier like this.
I think you're doing good work. I know I don't behave accordingly most of the time and for that I'd like to apologize. I know you're just trying to keep my work safe. I struggle with seeing my work as something that's worth all the security measurements, but that's a me problem and I shouldn't let it out on you.
I'm going through some changes right now and the way I treated you as a result was entirely unfair. I can't guarantee it won't happen again, but I'll try to do better.
You handle me so gracefully. I would have lost my temper so many times and you're still patient with me. Thank you so much. And I promise I'm okay with you losing your patience on me. I deserve it.
I guess I should quit this letter while I'm ahead. I got everything across I wanted to say and it doesn't sound that bad in this version.
Merry Christmas
Mingi
PS: I hope you like your gift. I asked around a bit and it looked like a good idea.
Next to the signature he'd scribbled a stylized coupon with the almost unreadable words free pass to be mean to me.
Okay, that one would make Wooyoung cackle from the surprisingly sexual subtext. As is it made Yeosang only more pensive. He didn't want to be mean.
He didn't want to be mean to strangers and even more he didn't want to be mean to people who were this sweet and thoughtful and caring and, even worse, thought it would be deserved.
But he still was in the progress of doing something mean. He had to apologize. He had to make it better with finding the perfect gift for Mingi just as he did for Yeosang.
A hand on his arm pulled him out of his thoughts. With a slight tilt of his head Wooyoung showed him why he called up his attention.
Mingi was getting up to receive his present. He trudged to the front with his big steps, took his gift with a half-smile that told Yeosang he was still somewhat intimidated by the boss' PA, and returned to his seat. Then, Yeosang watched him make short work of the wrapping paper in a quick but careful way that somewhat belied the self-assigned poor fine motor skills from the letter.
Any moment now.
Mingi opened the nondescript box Yeosang, too, put around his actual gift and stilled. Yeosang felt the anticipation in the room. Was it always this silent when someone opened their present?
Nobody could see yet what it was.
Except from Yunho who got a huge grin on his face and burst out: "Oh, that one fits you, princess!"
That broke the spell. Mingi took out the present, lifted it up for everyone to see and loudly declared: "I love her!"
"Her" was the ugliest plush owl Yeosang had ever seen. It's been months since he saw it in a shop and decided to buy it. Many programmers swore on explaining their problems to a plushie to find a solution, so he guessed he could try to let out his grievances to a plush companion when his usual venting partner lacked the necessary security clearances.
Its fabric had been patchy from the beginning, the seam work uneven and the beak crooked in a way Yeosang didn't understand the physics of. And after months of him airing out his struggles to it he decided to give it a makeover before passing it on.
He handed it into the care of his sister and her four year old daughter and gave them full creative reign. His niece - just like Mingi right now - had immediately declared it a her and made a princess out of it. She chose according fabrics and even parted with one of her toy tiaras to sew it on the plushie's head. It had been the most adorable thing and Yeosang had always planned to tell her the gift had been well received.
It had never been a bad gift. The tiny owl might not be conventionally pretty by plushie standards but it was the cutest little thing. Yeosang had just operated on the assumption that Mingi didn't like childish things.
But he did.
He liked it. Her, since she was his now and he got the right to put an identity on her.
He liked Yeosang's gift. That was it. There was no fall-out. It was okay.
Yeosang slumped back in disbelief and watched Mingi pressing the owl to his face and making her flap her tiny wings. There was wonder in his eyes and the cutest grin on his face. It made Yeosang's heart ache.
He was so prepared to see discomfort, he didn't know what to do with himself. He turned to Wooyoung for reassurance.
Who immediately took a picture of him with the disposable camera he just got. (Wait, when had he gone up to receive his Secret Santa?)
"You should see your face right now," Wooyoung laughed. "You wouldn't think I'd let you do something actually mean, do you? I texted Yunho yesterday and he told me it would be good. Also, that owl isn't even ugly. She's adorable. Who would be that heartless to not like her?"
"I never said she wasn't adorable," Yeosang mumbled. He didn't know what else to say or do.
But Wooyoung had an idea for that, too. He packed the letter and the puzzle box back into the cardboard box, pushed it into Yeosang's arms and said: "Go to him."
Well, it was as good an idea as any. He had no idea what to say, but that was no difference to most social situations Yeosang got into, so he got up.
There was no free seat on Mingi's table, but Yunho saw him approaching and waved him closer with an uncannily similar facial expression to Wooyoung's just now. Those two meddlers. And of course Yunho vacated his seat for Yeosang when he was close.
"Umm, hi," he started while Mingi looked at him expectantly. God, his eyes were so round. "I just wanted to say thank you for your gift. I like it. And I liked your words. I don't get that many compliments for my work."
"Oh."
They both looked at their respective hands, not knowing what to say now. But the silence didn't feel oppressive, like they were obligated to fill it with something. It was kinda nice.
Mingi started petting the owl.
"You like yours, too?" It seemed obvious at this point, but Yeosang had to know. Mingi just nodded with a little smile. "I'm glad. I didn't know first."
Mingi perked up at that. He put an inquisitive expression on that seemed to ask You?, so Yeosang nodded with a smile. Clever to get it at the first hint.
After a moment of contemplating, Mingi felt encouraged to start talking: "I like cute things. Everyone gets surprised at that all the time. But I just like it. I don't know why I should stop because I don't look like I do. My ex didn't like when I did or got something childish. So, I missed out on some thing. She really comes at the right time."
It was Yeosang's turn to "Oh." Telling him sorry or something felt insincere and Mingi had refrained from it just a moment earlier, so Yeosang kept it at that. He had the feeling Mingi would get it.
It put some things into perspective. The conversation Yeosang had overheard a month ago, the changes Mingi had talked about in the letter, the increasing fights over time. Yeosang couldn't believe there had been a point when he'd wanted to hurt this man. Now it was painful to see the sadness in his eyes.
From there the conversation flowed. It probably didn't look like that from the outside with their long pauses and stumbling words, but it never felt uncomfortable, so they continued at their own slow pace.
When the official part of the party was over and the tables emptied a bit, Wooyoung and Yunho joined them. It got a bit louder then, a bit more chaotic, but no less comfortable.
At some point, they took the tiara from Wendy – that was the name of the owl after a long discussion of flying Disney princesses – and put it on Mingi's head. He wore it with grace.
Yeosang had to take a picture of it for his niece, Mingi with the tiara, proudly posing with Wendy, making her lift a wing in greeting.
And by the end of the night, he got a phone number to put that picture to in his contacts and a good feeling about it.
(As soon as he was alone, he tried the puzzle box again. It lasted about ten minutes which was a very respectable time for the box considering Yeosang's experience. He put the letter and the napkin with the phone number in there and found a special place for it.)