CHAPTER 9
The car driven by Kang Do-yoon came to a stop in the underground parking lot of Chaseong Fashion.
“I love going to work together like this.”
Han Ji-yu, sitting in the passenger seat, linked her arm through Do-yoon’s and smiled brightly.
Do-yoon gazed at her affectionately.
“You like it that much?”
“Yeah, I love it so much.”
“I wish we could come to work together like this every day even after we get married.”
“Right?”
“Huh?”
“Yeah, I guess that would be nice.”
At the mention of marriage, Do-yoon’s heart grew heavy.
It was because of what had happened the night before.
After Ji-yu persistently begged him, Do-yoon had no choice but to go and greet her parents.
He had never expected Seo-eun to suddenly barge into such a gathering.
“But why do you look so upset, Oppa?”
“Is it because of what happened yesterday?”
“Ah, no.”
After Seo-eun left, the house had fallen into complete chaos and felt practically like a funeral home.
Since it was more or less because of him, Do-yoon had no choice but to stay the night at the house, just as Ji-yu wanted.
However, he had not been able to sleep a wink.
He wondered whether he had deceived Seo-eun, yet he was also troubled by Ji-yu’s parents, who seemed to want to ask him about it but could not bring themselves to do so because they were watching Ji-yu’s mood.
Smack.
When Ji-yu kissed him on the cheek, Do-yoon’s thoughts came to a halt.
“What should we do?”
“You must be having a hard time today, too.”
“What do you mean, me?”
“You’re the one who must be having a harder time, Ji-yu.”
That’s right.
I have Ji-yu.
Ji-yu was cute when she acted coquettishly.
It was one of the things that made her different from the sometimes overly upright Seo-eun.
“I’m fine.”
“I feel much better thanks to you, Oppa.”
“Really?”
Besides…
“Oppa, are you coming to the break room today?”
Knowing exactly what men liked was Ji-yu’s greatest advantage.
Do-yoon’s expression immediately brightened.
“Won’t you be tired today?”
“What time should we meet?”
Just thinking about secretly making love with Ji-yu in the break room already made him feel as though all his fatigue had vanished.
With work constantly squeezing him from above and below, his dates with Ji-yu in the break room were truly an oasis in the desert.
“How about two in the afternoon?”
“I get sleepy after lunch.”
“Okay.”
“See you then.”
“By the way, I’ll buy the coffee and bring it.”
“Aww, you’re so sweet.”
They had just made their plans and were about to get out of the car when Do-yoon grabbed Ji-yu’s arm just as she reached for the door handle.
“Wait a second.”
“Um… isn’t that someone from your team over there?”
“Oh, you’re right.”
“Should I go out and say hello?”
“Wait, Ji-yu…!”
Do-yoon grabbed Ji-yu’s arm tightly, his manner suddenly becoming tense.
Ji-yu asked with a puzzled expression.
“Why?”
“Let’s get out after they pass by.”
“No one knows we’re dating yet.”
“Geez, how long are you going to keep it a secret?”
“Still.”
“We have to be careful about things like this.”
“It’s not like things with Seo-eun are completely over yet.”
“……”
As Do-yoon continued holding Ji-yu’s arm and carefully watching outside the window, the atmosphere somehow felt strange.
Ji-yu was on the verge of tears.
“Ji-yu, what’s wrong?”
“Weren’t we going to get married soon…?”
“We are.”
“I told you we are.”
“Why are you suddenly acting like this?”
“Then isn’t it okay to tell the employees we’re close with?”
Ji-yu pouted, unable to hide her hurt feelings, leaving Do-yoon at a loss.
“We should tell them eventually.”
“There’s no reason we can’t.”
“But…”
“Let’s give it a little more time.”
“I need to get promoted this time, too, and I want to raise my salary so that I can make you even happier, Ji-yu.”
Only then did the moisture in Ji-yu’s eyes disappear.
“I didn’t know you had such a deep meaning behind it.”
“As expected, you’re amazing, Oppa.”
Only after painstakingly soothing Ji-yu was Do-yoon finally able to enter the office.
“Team Leader, you’re here?”
“Good morning, Team Leader.”
“Good morning.”
He had always arrived thirty minutes early, but today was the first time he had been late.
After exchanging greetings with his team members, Do-yoon sat down, put his briefcase down, and began preparing for work.
That was when he noticed that Han Seo-eun’s seat was completely empty.
What’s going on?
Seo-eun had always arrived early, almost as early as Do-yoon.
“Assistant Manager Kim, Assistant Manager Han isn’t here yet?”
“Uh… no.”
“Today’s a strange day.”
“Both you, Team Leader, and Assistant Manager Han are late.”
Strange.
Something had happened last night, but Seo-eun was the type of person who clearly separated her personal life from her work.
Even so, this was going too far.
Could she really let her personal feelings interfere with work?
That was when it happened.
Click, click, click.
The unfamiliar sound of heels echoed through the office of the Public Relations Planning Team, where employees often had to run around for work.
Do-yoon’s eyebrows shot up when he saw a woman entering the office.
Han Seo-eun?
She was wearing a form-fitting dress that emphasized her curvaceous figure, drawing the eyes of every employee as she walked in.
“Whoa.”
It was the moment he realized that the woman was Han Seo-eun.
The strength drained from Do-yoon’s hand.
The pen he had been holding rolled across the desk and fell underneath it.
“Ah, shit.”
As Do-yoon bent down to pick up the pen, a pair of unusually slender, straight legs came into view before his eyes.
Seo-eun’s desk was directly in front of Do-yoon’s.
When he raised his head again, he was so stunned that it felt as though he had just seen a celebrity.
Do-yoon wasn’t the only one who couldn’t take his eyes off Seo-eun.
Every employee was staring at her as though they were watching a spectacle.
When Seo-eun sat down, the employee beside her quietly asked.
“Assistant Manager Han, do you have an important appointment today?”
“Hm?”
“No, why?”
“You look so beautiful today.”
“You look completely different.”
“Oh, thank you.”
“You’re going on a blind date today, aren’t you?”
Thud!
Do-yoon, who had been eavesdropping on their conversation, stumbled at the words “blind date” and ended up slamming his thigh against the corner of the desk.
“Ow.”
His thigh hurt, but that wasn’t important right now.
Han Seo-eun was going on a blind date.
He had never even imagined her meeting another man besides him.
But now he had no justification to stop Seo-eun.
He was no longer Han Seo-eun’s boyfriend.
Moreover, it seemed that she had completely cut him out of her life, because the couple ring she used to wear on her finger every day was gone.
An unpleasant feeling he did not want to acknowledge washed over him.
Do-yoon stole a brief glance through the glass door at the office of the Research Team, where Ji-yu belonged, before getting up and approaching Seo-eun.
“Excuse me, Assistant Manager Han.”
“Can we talk for a moment?”
Do-yoon had expected a polite response such as, “Yes, Team Leader.”
But his expectations were completely off the mark.
Seo-eun did not even get up.
She merely turned her swivel chair around and looked up at Do-yoon with indifferent eyes.
“I’d rather we discuss personal matters later.”
“You seem to have forgotten that we have a meeting this morning.”
“That’s right.”
“The meeting.”
Do-yoon had forgotten about the meeting.
He had no choice but to return to his seat.
As soon as Seo-eun was out of Do-yoon’s line of sight, she turned on her desktop and checked the time.
There were thirty minutes left until the meeting.
She did not have much time to spare.
Seo-eun moved the mouse and opened a PPT file.
[Hangeul Rebranding Strategy Proposal]
It was the document she had created on her own by carving out time here and there, only for Kang Do-yoon to reject it.
What had his reason been again?
Something about the higher-ups not liking it.
Can I do this?
For the first time today, Seo-eun intended to show everyone her own determination, completely and without compromise.
—
“Hi-mok, why did you suddenly make a decision like this?”
Gijeong shifted his gaze toward Hee-mok while watching his mother Jeong Hye’s irritated expression.
“Because it’s what I want.”
However, Hee-mok’s answer was far too brief and straightforward to persuade Jeong Hye.
“Do you really think it makes sense for you to come here as the head of a TF team?”
“You’re the chairman’s son.”
Jeong Hye simply could not understand why someone who was the chairman’s son would turn down a director position and instead take on the role of TF Team Leader.
“I know, Noona.”
“I know, but…”
“I don’t want to crush the spirit of people who worked hard to rise through the ranks.”
“Hah.”
“Is this really the time for you to worry about other people?”
Jeong Hye stared sharply at Hee-mok.
She had not called Hee-mok back to Korea just to have him work as a mere team leader.
This time, Jeong Hye intended to give Hee-mok a proper position.
However, his stubbornness was as tough as an iron cable, and Hee-mok refused to back down.
Gijeong, who had been carefully watching the situation, cautiously joined the conversation.
“Mom, doesn’t Uncle probably have his own reasons?”
“Gijeong, you stay quiet.”
“Who told you to butt into a conversation between adults?”
Jeong Hye mercilessly crushed Gijeong’s opinion, which she had voiced as the Executive Director of Chaseong Fashion, leaving her speechless.
No matter how much she was an executive director herself, her mother Jeong Hye wielded considerable power both within the company and within the family.
Jeong Hye, the CEO of Chaseong Fashion and Gijeong’s mother.
For a long time, Jeong Hye had trusted and cherished her youngest brother, Hee-mok, very much.
Now that he had returned, Gijeong felt as though there was even less room for her to stand.
“By the way, I have a meeting soon.”
“Uncle, shall we go now?”
Since it was obvious that any further opinions would simply be ignored, Gijeong tried to leave by using the meeting as an excuse.
“Noona, then we’ll be going first.”
“Hoo, I really don’t know what to do with you.”
When Hee-mok stood up, Jeong Hye also reluctantly rose to her feet.
With a deep sigh, Jeong Hye carefully straightened Hee-mok’s clothes.
“How can you come all this way and leave right away?”
“That makes me sad.”
“I told you we should have a meal together.”
“We can do it later.”
“I’m tired today.”
“What could possibly make you tired?”
“Are you still not over the jet lag?”
Hee-mok smiled brightly.
“I overdid it last night.”
“Last night…?”
Jeong Hye’s eyes grew suspicious as she continued touching and smoothing Hee-mok’s already immaculate jacket.
