Gary’s Rant

In the end, unable to look away, Selene had the car stop at the place that was now only concrete debris.
It was a rather impulsive act.
It wasn’t as if Theron Cox was there.
“Here, you mean…?”
The driver even asked to confirm if he had heard Selene correctly.
Although she could have reversed her decision, Selene nodded her head to stop the wheels.
Even if the beginning was impulsive, it could be said that her heart was clear.
‘There’s nothing left now.’
Selene, who had gotten out of the car, stared at the empty lot where a tall building was supposed to have been erected.
Just last time she had come, they were demolishing the unfinished building with a loud noise, but now, as if the demolition work was completely finished, only an empty lot remained, incongruous with the tall buildings around it.
The desolation that emanated from this place infected a corner of her heart.
‘I shouldn’t have gotten out.’
Just as she was about to turn around with a short regret, Selene noticed a man standing nearby.
Although only his back was visible, the man exuded an atmosphere of regret as much as she did.
‘Theron Cox…?’
She thought so for a moment, but soon realized.
He was shorter and had narrower shoulders than that man.
He had the physique of an ordinary person.
Selene momentarily erased the image of Theron that had been lingering in her mind as if something had been written on it.
“Phew, every time I come here, tears well up in my eyes. How did I end up serving that crazy person, Theron Cox, as my boss…”
‘Theron Cox…?’
As an unexpected word popped out from the man who was shorter and had narrower shoulders than Theron, Selene stood there as if she were nailed to the spot.
‘Theron Cox.’
That man had definitely said that name.
Although he had said it in a lamenting tone, since he had said ‘boss’, it meant that man was Theron’s subordinate.
If Selene, who was rarely interested in others, had been her usual self, she would have already passed by.
But perhaps because she felt a gloomy atmosphere, as if a dark cloud were hanging only around the man, Selene could not easily tear her eyes away.
“What’s the use of regretting it like this? I should just hand in my resignation…”
It was then.
The man, who was muttering, suddenly turned around, and his eyes met Selene’s.
“…”
“…”
A moment of silence passed.
The man, whose eyes had widened in bewilderment upon seeing Selene, was the first one to recognize her.
“…Lady Ashcombe?”
Selene neither affirmed nor denied.
Although that man was an acquaintance of Theron’s, she did not know him.
The man, as if sensing that fact, belatedly introduced himself.
“Ah, I’m sorry. You must have been surprised. I’ve been running errands for the lady, so I guess I was feeling a sense of familiarity on my own… My name is Gary. I am President Theron’s secretary.”
As he said that, Gary held out a business card to Selene.
On the business card, it said ‘Cox Corporation’.
Selene understood why the man had been looking at the empty lot with such a wistful expression, as if looking at an old lover.
“You were cursing Theron, weren’t you?”
At Selene’s question, Gary, who had a startled face for a moment, soon answered confidently.
“Yes.”
“For what reason?”
“Lady Ashcombe would know that better than anyone.”
Gary’s eyes were firm.
He had a slightly displeased face.
Selene, however, did not know why Theron’s subordinate was glaring at her.
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“The building that was here, you know that the president demolished it to win back Lady Ashcombe’s heart.”
“But what does that have to do with you cursing Theron and wanting to resign?”
“Because whenever the president is involved with the lady, his business-like composure and judgment are thrown to the dogs. So, of course I want to resign.”
Theron’s secretary had a rough mouth, just like Theron.
Or maybe he had become like that from serving Theron by his side.
“Theron’s pathetic behavior has nothing to do with me.”
Selene did not particularly sympathize with Gary’s point.
She had never forced anything on Theron.
Whatever he decided, it was solely his own judgment.
So, even if a subordinate was being harmed because of Theron, it was not right to blame someone other than Theron.
“After talking to Lady Ashcombe in person, I think I understand a little why the president would sometimes laugh to himself and then be out of his mind.”
“That doesn’t sound like a compliment.”
“Of course not! Our president is a really strange person, but Lady Ashcombe seems to be no less. I now understand that the situation went so ridiculously because two strange people met.”
Theron’s secretary had been blaming her since earlier.
Although Selene was very displeased with him for calling her strange without knowing her well, as she listened, she wanted to know how strangely Theron had been acting for his secretary to say such a thing.
“Explain how strangely Theron has been acting.”
“…Why should I?”
“You’ve already said a certain amount.”
Gary seemed to be belatedly mulling over the words he had poured out.
Then, as if annoyed with himself for worrying that this might reach Theron’s ears, he muttered, “Who cares.”
“I’m not tattling. I’m just saying that the president has been laughing and crying because of Lady Ashcombe to that extent.”
“Alright.”
Hmph.
Gary took a deep breath.
“Honestly, at first, I was a little lukewarm about the lady. But at some point, whenever Lady Ashcombe’s name came up, he would start chuckling like a person with a hole in his lung, and he would ramble on about what Selene did to him without me even asking, and on days when it seemed like they had fought, he would just lie on the sofa like a withered leaf and do nothing.”
Gary, who had glanced at Selene to see if she was listening well, continued.
“The mood swings were so extreme that I really thought at first that the president was on drugs or something. Or that he had suddenly contracted an incurable disease. You have no idea how relieved I was that it was neither… Ah, of course, I said I was relieved, but I didn’t mean it was good.”
Gary, who had been speaking nonstop as if he were in a one-man play, pointed at the empty lot with his hand.
“My heart breaks just looking at this empty lot, so I’d rather wish the president had a temporary incurable disease. But then, on the days he goes to see Lady Ashcombe, he’s so healthy that I know that will never happen.”
It seemed he had a lot pent up.
Selene understood roughly what Gary had testified in a flash.
That Theron Cox had been crying and laughing because of her all this time.
However, there was one thing she was curious about.
“Why do you think he was lying around like a withered leaf because he fought with me?”
“That’s a very good point.”
Gary cleared his throat.
“Honestly, I’m thinking of resigning because our president has been acting like a madman lately, but he’s actually quite good at his job. He’s not the type to show his emotions when it comes to work. But after meeting the lady, he started acting like a person with bipolar disorder, so I couldn’t help but notice that this change was because of the lady.”
“…”
“Especially after a fight with the lady, I could tell right away because he would check the mail that arrived about ten times a day and stare at the phone all day like someone in a staring contest.”
It seemed Theron’s plea that he had been eagerly waiting for her contact was not a lie.
Although it was a thing of the past, the anecdote heard from a close associate was new.
“You had a big fight recently, didn’t you?”
Gary asked suddenly.
Selene thought for a moment.
Should she say they had fought over the matter at the art museum?
“Well, this time, the president doesn’t seem to be able to give in, so he’s trying to hold out without contacting the lady first, but it’s obvious that all his attention is focused on that.”
“…In what way?”
“He looks fine on the outside, but lately he’s developed a new symptom. He buys a single rose from somewhere that doesn’t even suit him and glares at it in a vase on his desk. Muttering something about a bastard named Logan.”
‘A rose…? Come to think of it, Theron had once said he had smelled a rose perfume that she wasn’t even wearing.’
“And yet, in the end, his eyes can’t be more gloomy.”
“…”
“So much so that at that moment, even though I want to resign, I feel like I have to endure it.”
Selene had always been curious.
What Theron Cox was doing these days, now that he was not in contact.
‘Has he really gotten tired of me and is sorting out his feelings on his own, or is he preparing to knock on the ducal estate’s door one day, pretending nothing is wrong, as he had before?’
However, the sight of Theron that she had heard from his secretary by chance, while satisfying her curiosity, did not clear her uneasy heart.
If anything, it was closer to making her even more concerned about Theron.
“If I had my way, I’d like to ask the lady to completely sever this relationship, but then I’m afraid the president will really become a wreck, so I can’t even say it.”
While Selene was lost in thought, Gary bowed politely.
“So, if it was a light fight, I hope it will be resolved quickly. Before I really hand in my resignation.”