CHAPTER 01
The improper relationship with Executive Director Yoo began several months ago, on the night of a company dinner.
It had been an ordinary company gathering, nothing particularly unusual—the kind that happened all the time for office workers.
Sahyun had never dreamed that evening would completely change her life.
“Assistant Manager Sahyun, here’s some water.”
“Thanks, Yoonjeong.”
“You like spicy fish stew, right? Should I serve you some?”
As Yoonjeong continued fussing over her, unsure of what to do, Sahyun quickly picked up the ladle and deliberately served herself some of the stew from the pot farther away.
“No, look at me. See? I can serve myself just fine. Don’t worry about it so much.”
“But still. How can I not worry? Everything got messed up because of me. And this is an important company dinner…”
Yoonjeong, who was sitting at the same table, was an employee in the same Overseas Sales Division as Sahyun and her direct junior.
Since they worked closely and often sat together, they normally weren’t formal with each other to this extent. But now, every time Yoonjeong looked at Sahyun, she wore a deeply troubled expression.
“What’s going to happen just because I broke one pair of glasses?”
It was because of Sahyun’s glasses.
Sahyun smiled again to show that she was fine, but when Yoonjeong once more noticed the empty space where the glasses that had always rested on Sahyun’s face like a part of her had been, her voice trailed off.
“It’s not like that, but…”
Yoonjeong had broken Sahyun’s glasses about thirty minutes before the company dinner.
Yoonjeong had something to ask her about a report and had hurried over while pushing an office chair with wheels. Their chairs collided, causing the glasses Sahyun had been cleaning to fall to the floor.
“Oh no! What do I do, Assistant Manager…? I’m so sorry…”
Yoonjeong’s startled voice had trembled.
One of the lenses had popped out of the left frame and was rolling across the floor. The screw that had been loose for several days had finally come out, causing the lens to fall. When Sahyun picked it up, she discovered that it was cracked as well.
After calming Yoonjeong, who had nearly gone into a panic, Sahyun immediately headed to an optical shop. The company dinner was about to begin, so she was in a hurry.
But, as expected, the optician’s answer was discouraging.
“These lenses correct both astigmatism and nearsightedness… and the prescription is fairly strong. Well, as you probably know, we can’t make them right away. It’ll take some time.”
On top of that, because Sahyun had an asymmetrical cornea, even contact lenses would have to be custom-made for her.
There was no immediate solution, whether glasses or contacts. She had only one choice.
She had to attend the company dinner as she was.
And today’s dinner was not something she could easily skip. Senior executives had attended to congratulate the employees of the Overseas Sales Division for all their hard work. It certainly wouldn’t look good for an ordinary assistant manager to be absent.
Sahyun gauged the hazy world before her and deliberately put on a bright smile.
“Ah… I’m sorry. Because of me…”
“I told you, it’s really okay, Yoonjeong. Anyone listening to you would think I can’t see at all. I can still make out the general shapes of things.”
That was what Sahyun said, but in reality, she suffered from both astigmatism and nearsightedness. With her already poor eyesight, taking off her glasses made it difficult for her to read even large signs from a distance.
Naturally, she couldn’t recognize people’s faces either. She could only identify people by their silhouettes, height, or the color of their clothes.
But she couldn’t bring herself to tell Yoonjeong, who was still feeling terrible about it, so she continued calmly.
“It’s only going to be inconvenient for a few hours. I have a spare pair of glasses at home, too. I can wear those until these are repaired.”
“Then take a taxi with me later, Assistant Manager. I’ll take you home. We’re going in the same direction anyway.”
“Okay. Let’s slip out naturally when the executives move to another table.”
Yoonjeong nodded solemnly at Sahyun’s words before craning her neck to look toward the other side of the room.
Beyond the closed sliding door in the adjoining room, department heads and other senior executives, including Manager Jo, were drinking together.
As Yoonjeong thought about who had gone into that room with Manager Jo, she lowered her voice and whispered,
“Executive Director Yoo Ha-joon is there too, so I think we’ll be able to leave pretty easily. I heard from people in other departments that Executive Director Yoo is incredibly considerate toward his employees.”
“Huh?”
Yoonjeong’s eyes sparkled as she spoke in a voice quiet enough for only Sahyun to hear.
Sahyun didn’t know what rumors she had heard or where she’d heard them, but judging by how her eyes continued to shine, there must have been more than one flattering story about Executive Director Yoo Ha-joon.
Yoonjeong’s lively voice naturally caught Sahyun’s attention.
“I’ve never seen Executive Director Yoo this close before… He really is as handsome as everyone says. Especially his face! The closer you look, the more handsome he is.”
“……”
“He looks like an actor, his voice sounds like a voice actor’s, and his manners are like a nobleman’s… I’d have no regrets if I could go on just one date with a man like that.”
Yoonjeong looked as excited as a girl talking about her favorite celebrity, and Sahyun silently agreed with her.
Everyone who had ever seen Executive Director Yoo Ha-joon seemed to have the exact same reaction, regardless of whether they were men or women.
Well, considering he’s Yoo Ha-joon, I suppose that reaction isn’t unreasonable…
He was the unofficial heir to Daehong Group, the company where Sahyun worked.
Nearly 190 centimeters tall, with an appearance that seemed to have stepped straight out of a classical painting, a deep voice, and an unstoppable ability to get things done—
Yoo Ha-joon was a man who seemed to have everything.
Even to Sahyun, who had been an inexperienced newcomer just starting her career, he seemed almost like a unicorn.
And that wasn’t all.
He was also the person she had secretly loved—the target of her first unrequited love.
“Then you’ve never had any personal conversations with Executive Director Yoo?”
At Yoonjeong’s next question, Sahyun casually brushed it off.
“Not really.”
But unlike her calm exterior, Sahyun wasn’t nearly as composed inside. Whenever she thought about Ha-joon, something in her heart seemed to ache.
It had already been several years. She should have grown used to the feeling by now, yet her heart still reacted the same way.
Worried that Yoonjeong might notice something, Sahyun idly moved the side dishes around with the tips of her chopsticks, trying to suppress her feelings.
But Yoonjeong’s questions kept stirring up memories of that time.
The first moment she had desperately tried to push aside—the moment when the difficult and intimidating Executive Director had unknowingly claimed a corner of her heart—seemed unusually vivid tonight.
Sahyun had fallen for Executive Director Yoo Ha-joon when she had just joined Daehong Group as a new employee.
She had gotten into the company she had always dreamed of, but she was still a complete beginner who knew almost nothing. Back then, Sahyun was constantly being reprimanded for small mistakes. Since she hadn’t been given much responsibility yet, she spent most of her days carrying out whatever tasks her seniors assigned her.
She was the youngest member of Strategic Planning Team 1.
That day, too, she had arrived at work feeling tense, lamenting her own uselessness as usual.
On the large screen covering one wall, a live broadcast of an awards ceremony was playing.
<Daehong Group Executive Director Yoo Ha-joon — Business Innovator of the Year.>
Ha-joon stood on the stage in an impeccably tailored designer suit, holding a microphone.
His low, composed voice flowed into her ears.
