Chapter 2 (Part 1)

After sending Shin-hye off in a car, Jinwon hurriedly got into his car parked at the hotel. He drove slowly, searching for In-ah with his eyes. He had seen In-ah send off a taxi without getting in while putting Shin-hye in a car.

There was a reason Jinwon didn’t confront Shin Hye about her wrongdoing and left the scene as it was.

During his study abroad in Finland, there was a foreign female student who became close to Jinwon. But Shin Hye claimed that the student hit and harassed her and went around pleading her case to others.

When few people believed her, she spread rumors that the woman was dating a married man. Eventually, the student ended up leaving school. 

Of course, there was no evidence of any of these situations. It was just what the student had told Jinwon. Whether the student was lying or Shin-hye had committed wrongdoing, Jinwon could only guess. 

That’s why he simply didn’t want In-ah to get caught in Shin-hye’s radar. That was all. 

Lost in thought, Jinwon’s car passed by without spotting In-ah. She was sitting tiredly on the stairs of a walking trail, so she went unnoticed. 

Regretting her decision to walk down, In-ah’s sight caught a strange man. 

The man was flailing his entire body wildly. It turned out he was struggling to fend off an approaching insect. 

Having grown up in the countryside, In-ah simply clicked her tongue. 

What kind of man is so scared? He looks old enough to maintain his dignity. Tsk tsk. 

But the man, who should have kept his dignity, suddenly charged toward In-ah. 

“Please! Please!”

The man kept shouting short cries towards In-ah. She smiled bitterly. She could see an insect comfortably perched on the man’s shoulder. 

His face was a sight to behold, filled with desperation as he looked at In-ah. She couldn’t just ignore him. But then. 

“Please get it off! I’ll pay you. Okay?”

What kind of nonsense was this in the 21st century? Was he offering a reward for getting rid of an insect? 

Well, life is full of surprises. In-ah flicked the insect off the man’s shoulder with her finger, maintaining a nonchalant expression. 

Finally, the man’s face regained its color. Then he started pulling out his wallet. 

Should I have checked my horoscope today? Why do I keep meeting such strange people today? 

“No need.”

In-ah waved her hands dismissively and quickly left the man behind. 

***

Yesterday, Jinwon had driven back and forth on the road leading from the hotel to the main street twice, searching for In-ah. But In-ah, who was now sitting in front of him waiting for his decision, had no way of knowing that. 

In-ah glanced at Jinwon’s face as he reviewed the revised plans. Jinwon was staring intently at the plans with his usual expressionless face. 

As expected, he said nothing about yesterday’s incident. She didn’t want to question why he acted that way. She didn’t… didn’t… 

“Don’t worry about yesterday. That’s how she is.”

Jinwon spoke in an indifferent tone without lifting his gaze from the plans. In-ah felt a pang of guilt and quickly composed her expression. 

“Ah, I see. I’m the same way. I can’t stand injustice, despise liars, and also… Why?”

Jinwon was now staring directly at In-ah. 

“Why?”

At In-ah’s repeated question, Jinwon shifted his gaze back to the plans and answered quietly. 

“I know.”

“Know what?”

“I know that’s how you are.”

In-ah couldn’t close her mouth, which had opened without her realizing it. 

Was he trying to provoke me? 

As she was about to lash out, the office door suddenly burst open, and Kang Cheol entered. 

“Oh! I thought you were alone.”

Kang Cheol was the Team Leader of the marketing team and had studied abroad with Jinwon. 

“Proceed as planned.”

In-ah took back the plans from Jinwon and left the office. Kang Cheol stood there, shifting his eyes as he followed her out. 

As soon as the office door closed, Kang Cheol began his usual excited chatter. 

“What are you going to do, Jinwon?”

“What now?”

Words like panic, shock, and overreaction typically symbolized Kang Cheol, so Jinwon rarely got agitated by him. 

But this time, Kang Cheol had a reason for his fuss. And In-ah was the first to encounter that reason.

***

A new Director had appeared before In-ah when she returned to her desk. 

“I’m Lee Seong-jun. I look forward to working with you.”

It was rare for a Director to personally visit the office to meet staff, so the employees were all a bit awkward, but they lined up to shake hands with the new Director.

Among them, one person stood out, with eyes as big as saucers—In-ah. It was as if the beads her mother used to tie in her hair during elementary school were that big.

‘That man who was scared of the insect, no, it’s him!’

The Director left without reaching In-ah, who was in a corner of the office. 

Hye-yoon, with eyes full of curiosity, tried to make sense of it.

“It feels like there’s going to be a big change.”

***

On the way to an outside appointment at a furniture store. In-ah, who was going with Hye-yoon, caught a taxi. 

Hye-yoon seemed to be deep in thought, squinting her eyes. In-ah turned her gaze out the window, pretending not to care. Then Hye-yoon started chattering next to her. 

“There’s a rumor that the new Director is the owner.”

“If he’s the owner, wouldn’t he come as a CEO or President, not a Director?”

“I don’t know.”

In-ah let out a dry laugh. Sometimes Hye-yoon could be naive. 

“There’s also talk about merging departments and reducing staff. Haven’t you heard?”

“Can a Director control all that?”

“You dummy! That’s why he’s said to be the owner!”

This rumor didn’t make sense. But why did it feel so unsettling?

“Ugh, that guy’s not my type.”

Hye-yoon bit her nails in frustration. 

What was she talking about now? 

In-ah let out a small sigh and shook her head. 

***

The next day, the office was in a state of turmoil from the morning. 

It was due to the shocking news on the portal sites today. The new Director, Lee Seong-jun, was the son of ‘Jinseong,’ the number one company in Korea, known as a top-tier conglomerate!

Hye-yoon, who was looking at the article, mumbled. 

“Maybe he’s my type after all.”

It seemed Hye-yoon was fixated on the part of the article that mentioned Lee Seong-jun was single. 

“Well, at that age, with that kind of appearance, he’s quite impressive. Being slim gives him a competitive edge in a suit.

In-ah swallowed the fact that such a handsome chaebol heir was terrified of insects. She didn’t want to take away the joy of imagination. 

That night. Jinwon, who had stayed late at the office, was on his way out after turning off the lights. He noticed a lamp was still on in the corner of the office and approached. 

It was In-ah. She seemed to have fallen asleep while working late. Perhaps due to the chilly air, In-ah was shivering slightly in her sleep. 

Seeing this, Jinwon returned to his office and brought out a blanket. He tiptoed carefully, holding his breath, to avoid waking In-ah as he approached with the blanket. 

He unconsciously held his breath as he got closer, stopping because of In-ah’s soft breathing. 

During their college days, when they spent countless nights together in the lab working on projects, he had heard In-ah’s breathing many times. Jinwon had found it amazing that he loved even In-ah’s breath. Just hearing it filled his heart with happiness. 

For a moment, he felt like he was whisked back seven years. As he slowly moved his gaze to In-ah’s face, Jinwon’s brow relaxed into calmness. 

She was there, just as she had been seven years ago, but now with the grace of a mature woman. 

As if entranced, Jinwon took a step closer to see In-ah more clearly. At that moment, the edge of the blanket he was holding brushed against a pencil on In-ah’s desk. Just as it rolled and was about to fall to the floor, Jinwon caught it with a startled “Hup!” and held his breath. 

Jinwon, who confirmed In-ah was still asleep, let out a small sigh, holding the fallen pencil tightly in his hand. 

He then gently placed the pencil back on the desk. And then he froze again. It was because of the pencil he had just held. 

Once more, Jinwon was whisked back. To the time seven years ago when he and In-ah were in love. 

The pencil was a design pencil Jinwon had bought for In-ah with money he earned from part-time jobs during his student days. In-ah had been moved to tears upon receiving the gift of the modest pencil. Knowing it was the fruit of Jinwon’s hard work, she had given him a tearful, warm hug. 

Even after all this time, the pencil was still in good condition. Thinking that In-ah must have cherished it, something warm welled up in his chest. 

Jinwon carefully reached out and gently stroked In-ah’s long, white fingers. Imagining the designs those fingers would draw with that pencil, Jinwon had been happy even at the moment of buying it. 

At that moment, In-ah flinched slightly and then slowly opened her eyes. Startled, Jinwon took a step back. 

In-ah, even more surprised than Jinwon, shot up, causing the wheeled chair to roll back, and she tumbled forward with a crash. 

The issue was that in that fleeting moment, Jinwon’s body acted before his mind could process the situation. 

When he came to his senses, Jinwon’s arm was wrapped around In-ah’s waist. To be precise, he was holding her side to prevent her from falling forward. 

In-ah gasped, holding her breath. It was an instinctive reaction but why did it have to be the belly area? 

Startled, both In-ah and Jinwon quickly moved away from each other. The brief, suffocating silence was broken by Jinwon. 

“Take it easy. Working late doesn’t mean you’re doing a good job.”

Watching Jinwon’s retreating back, In-ah calmed her racing heart. 

Looking down, she saw the colored pencils scattered messily on the floor from the desk. She didn’t notice the blanket that had fallen behind the chair. 

As she picked up the colored pencils, In-ah pouted.

“How is it that I see you so many times in a single day? I can’t just quit my job.”

It was a lament mixed with complaint, but it was In-ah’s true feelings. It still hurt every time she saw Jinwon. Even though seven years had passed, seeing Jinwon made their breakup feel like it happened just yesterday.

She didn’t know how long she could endure this. She decided that when the moment came when she couldn’t bear it any longer, she would make a decision then.