How to Have a Baby Secretly - C5

Sunwoo immediately left the building. There was a convenience store inside the company, but he needed to make a call too.

The street was packed with buildings of similar height. Sunwoo walked about two blocks away and looked around. The narrow alley between buildings was deserted. It was perfect for a private phone call.

“Hello, this is Han Sujin.”

The call was answered quickly, almost before the ringtone finished. Han Sujin was the family medicine doctor who had told Sunwoo about his pregnancy yesterday.

Han Sujin had given him her phone number, telling him to call if he needed help. Her gaze and tone were full of sympathy.

It seemed she had seriously misunderstood something, but Sunwoo let it be. It might actually be helpful.

“This is Choi Sunwoo, who was admitted yesterday.”

Sunwoo calmly identified himself. A welcoming voice came through the phone.

“Ah! Mr. Choi Sunwoo. Hello! How are you feeling?”

“Not bad. I had some trouble with nausea when smelling food, though.”

“Hmm… It seems morning sickness has started. It’s a symptom that usually appears around 2 months, but it can come 1-2 weeks earlier, so don’t worry.”

Han Sujin kindly explained, thinking Sunwoo had called about morning sickness.

“That’s not why I called.”

“Oh? Is it about other symptoms then?”

“No, it’s not that. I was wondering if anyone had asked about my condition separately?”

“No, no one has. Is there someone who might ask?”

It seemed Director Kang or Secretary Jo, who had been at the hospital, hadn’t said anything, which was a relief.

“Yes. Please keep the pregnancy a secret from now on too.”

“Don’t worry. Given our department, they won’t be too suspicious anyway.”

Han Sujin replied kindly. It made sense. Who would think someone was pregnant when they were treated in family medicine, not obstetrics?

“Thank you. Oh, if anyone asks about my health, please just say I’m sick. And that you can’t disclose symptoms without the patient’s consent.”

Sunwoo made one more request.

“Of course. Protecting patient privacy is a doctor’s duty. If you have any questions or troubles, feel free to contact me anytime.”

Sunwoo acknowledged and ended the call. He put the phone in his pocket and gently rubbed his stomach. Knowing there was life inside made his hand move unconsciously.

‘I think this might become a habit.’

Sunwoo rubbed his stomach once more and left the alley. Now it was time to feed the fetus inside him.

* * *

Sunwoo immediately left the alley. He came to the front of the company building and looked between a cafe and a convenience store before turning towards the convenience store.

Although the cafe sold various things, the convenience store seemed better with its wider variety.

Entering the convenience store, Sunwoo glanced over the triangle kimbap, hot bars, ramen, and boiled eggs. But unable to stomach the idea of eating any of it, he went to the snack aisle.

He suddenly remembered what a pregnant colleague used to eat.

Sunwoo picked up some plain biscuits and cereals that didn’t have strong smells or flavors. On the way to the counter, he hesitated at the freezer before choosing a soft-serve ice cream.

The cool sensation in his palm felt quite nice in the hot weather.

Leaving the convenience store, Sunwoo went straight up in the elevator.

“Oh? Sunwoo, what’s with all the snacks?”

When Sunwoo entered the secretarial office, Secretary Jo asked with a puzzled expression, seeing him with the convenience store bag.

“I just felt like eating something.”

Sunwoo answered, feeling a bit embarrassed and moving the bag to the side.

“Yeah? Is there something for me too?”

Secretary Jo, who had been cold and distant in the morning, asked warmly.

Is it because she wants to eat?

Thinking this, Sunwoo approached Secretary Jo’s desk without hesitation and opened the bag to show her the contents.

“Take your pick.”

At Sunwoo’s words, Secretary Jo looked inside the bag and quickly showed disappointment. It was full of bland biscuits with almost no taste.

“What’s this, it’s all bland and boring. Are you on a diet or something? Why all these dry biscuits? You know biscuits are actually higher in calories, right? This doesn’t help with weight loss.”

Secretary Jo rummaged through the bag half-heartedly and picked out two of the sweeter snacks and the soft-serve ice cream. Sunwoo’s gaze unconsciously followed the ice cream in Secretary Jo’s hand.

“What? Can’t I have this?”

You’re not going to be petty about food, are you? Secretary Jo asked with her eyes, swinging the ice cream left and right. It clearly seemed like she was trying to irritate him on purpose. He didn’t want to react to such transparent behavior.

“No, go ahead. I bought it to share.”

When Sunwoo nodded readily, Secretary Jo looked skeptical.

“Sunwoo, what’s going on?”

“Pardon?”

“Why are you so different from usual?”

“Ah…”

Sunwoo wore a flustered expression. He belatedly realized he wasn’t acting much like the original Secretary Choi.

So, ‘It’s unlike you to buy things like this?’ Secretary Jo asked with her eyes again, shaking the snacks in her hand.

What should I do in this situation? Should I act more like the pre-possession Secretary Choi now?

But the problem was that Sunwoo had no way of knowing how Secretary Choi had been in the original story. At most, there were only a few lines about him blackmailing Director Kang about carrying his child.

From that, it didn’t seem like he had a completely kind and timid personality…

Well, there’s no need to act exactly like the original Secretary Choi, right? After all, once I submit my resignation and leave the company, I won’t see these people again.

“You came to see me at the hospital when I collapsed. I wanted to thank you.”

So Sunwoo decided to just act as he normally would.

“Oh, well, okay. I’ll enjoy these then.”

Secretary Jo nodded awkwardly, wearing an expression that said she found it strange. She seemed to think he had become odd after fainting and waking up.

Sunwoo turned around with the bag of remaining snacks and noticed the office door was slightly open. He remembered Director Kang receiving a phone call earlier. Naturally, he also recalled the conversation about being sick.

He was briefly curious about what had been said before he possessed this body, but Sunwoo quickly dismissed the thought.

‘It doesn’t matter anyway since I’m quitting.’

There’s no point in worrying about it.

* * *

The afternoon passed more leisurely than the morning. The main reason was that Director Kang was out of the office. His personal secretary, Secretary Kwak, had contacted the secretarial office about a suddenly scheduled appointment.

‘Great! I’ll hand in my resignation to Secretary Jo later and go home.’

Sunwoo focused on work with a lighter heart.

“Sunwoo, where did you decide for the lunch meeting with Mushin Company executives?”

“Huh? Oh, just a moment.”

At Secretary Jo’s question, Sunwoo quickly scanned the screen. He saw only a date under the words “Mushin Company” in the schedule. It seemed the location hadn’t been decided yet.

“It’s not decided yet.”

Secretary Jo frowned at Sunwoo’s answer.

“What? You haven’t contacted them yet? Check it quickly! What have you been doing? I told you we’re supposed to call Manager Jung later!”

“I’m sorry.”

Sunwoo apologized first. Even if it wasn’t his fault, the situation did require resolution.

‘Well, it’s not like this is the first time this has happened.’

Having experienced various situations during his years at the publishing company, Sunwoo calmly opened the schedule. Watching Sunwoo, Secretary Jo tilted her head with a perplexed expression.

He’s really strange. Who is he? Secretary Choi wasn’t like this. Why is he so docile, not even snapping back rudely?

‘Could something have really happened?’

Such questions quickly passed through Secretary Jo’s eyes as she looked at Sunwoo.

“Forget it. I’ll do that, so Sunwoo, go refill the supplies in the pantry. You didn’t do it this morning, right?”

“Ah, understood.”

Sunwoo stood up without protest at Secretary Jo’s sharp words.

Honestly, Sunwoo was in a bit of a difficult situation. He had managed work intuitively in the morning, but there was nothing written about the Mushin Company meeting location.

In the pantry, Sunwoo checked that snacks, drinks, and coffee were empty and opened the storage cabinet. Seeing everything neatly stacked inside, he figured there was no need to buy anything and just took out what was needed to fill the empty spaces.

He wiped down the espresso machine and its surroundings with a damp cloth, filled the empty water tank, picked up scattered trash, and even cleaned the floor. When he came out, Secretary Jo was in the middle of a phone call.

“Yes, he wasn’t quite like usual.”

Just as Sunwoo was about to sit down, Secretary Jo glanced at his back.

“Keep an eye on him and contact me immediately if anything unusual happens. There must be a reason for this behavior.”

But she quickly turned her eyes away at the cold voice coming from the phone.

“Understood.”

Sunwoo sat down, hearing Secretary Jo’s response.

He then found something related to Mushin Company while checking the unfinished schedule.

“When Secretary Jo provides the list of meeting places for Mushin Company, check if they can be booked by phone.”

‘Huh…’

Reading the note, it seemed that initially booking the meeting place for Mushin Company was primarily Secretary Jo’s task.

Sunwoo’s role was to call and check availability once Secretary Jo selected a few options.

But Secretary Jo had spoken as if it had been Sunwoo’s responsibility from the beginning.

Sunwoo’s gaze naturally turned to Secretary Jo. Having ended her call, she was now typing on her keyboard while looking at the monitor.

‘He was bullied.’

Though he had only experienced one day, Sunwoo could tell. Secretary Choi didn’t get along well with other employees. No, it wasn’t just not getting along; he seemed to be thoroughly disliked.

From Secretary Jo’s attitude at the hospital yesterday, to the employees’ conversation in the pantry, to deliberately irritating comments when taking ice cream from the convenience store bag, and even the recent rebuke for work that wasn’t explained to him.

A slight smile appeared on Sunwoo’s face as he organized his thoughts.

‘That’s great! Then they’ll be even happier when I say I’m quitting.’

With an even lighter heart, Sunwoo focused on finishing his work.

Time passed quickly, and it was already past 6 PM. Checking discreetly, he found that the secretaries’ quitting time was 6:30 PM.

So now was the perfect timing to make his move.

Sunwoo took out the resignation letter he had carefully stored in the drawer and walked over to Secretary Jo.

“What is it, Sunwoo?”

Secretary Jo, who had been observing Sunwoo subtly all day, asked with curious eyes.

“This.”

“What’s this?”

Secretary Jo opened the paper Sunwoo handed over with an annoyed expression.

Resignation Letter

“Huh?”

Secretary Jo quickly looked up after reading the title. Her eyes widened as if she had seen something unbelievable.

“What’s this?”

“I’m resigning.”

“What? You?”

Secretary Jo’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Why so suddenly? You didn’t listen when we told you to quit before?”

Sunwoo was momentarily at a loss for words.

‘It wasn’t just bullying.’

To think he was openly told to quit. Yet he stubbornly kept working, caused trouble, and even shouted at Director Kang yesterday about being sick.

In some ways, Secretary Choi was quite remarkable.

‘What were you thinking…’

Sunwoo mentally addressed the original Secretary Choi. No answer came.

“Something came up.”

I don’t need to mention being sick, right?

“What’s going on, Secretary Choi? Did something really happen? What is it? Don’t tell me… did they say you have a terminal illness at the hospital? Are you dying?”

Secretary Jo suddenly burst out with words.

“What? No, it’s not that serious…”

Sunwoo’s bewildered response made Secretary Jo’s eyes widen even more.

“What? So you really are sick? It wasn’t a lie?”

Secretary Jo seemed to ponder something briefly before speaking again.

“Alright. Secretary Choi, just go home for now. I’ll deliver this to the director.”

Secretary Jo waved her hand, urging Sunwoo to leave. She seemed to have lost interest in Sunwoo already.

“Okay, understood.”

Sunwoo tilted his head but turned around. As if waiting for this, Secretary Jo quickly checked Sunwoo’s retreating figure and turned on her phone.

[Director, Secretary Choi has submitted his resignation letter. It seems…]