“It’ll be easier for me if you relax.”

He said it, then shifted her weight with a single adjustment, and suddenly she was pressed against him. With every step he took, her body met his. The warmth that transferred through each point of contact slowly unwound the tension in her. But the more she settled, the more aware she became of every place they touched. Each time she noticed, she instinctively drew back, and her body twisted.

Jisang looked down at her and made a quiet, reproving sound.

“Stay still.”

Even in a situation like this, her heart beat faster at the sight of a face that matched her ideal type so perfectly. Well, in truth, it was meeting this man that had shaped her ideal type in the first place.

A crowd of staff members had gathered and were murmuring at the entrance to the waiting area. Instead of telling them to move, Jisang looked at them, and the weight of his gaze alone was enough to silence them and part the crowd.

The waiting room felt like a house of mourning.

The director was sending rapid messages on his walkie-talkie. The stylist, Yeonji, was crying in a panic, asking what was going to happen to her unnie. Manager Jungwook sat with both eyes bloodshot, staring blankly ahead.

When Jisang walked in carrying Hari, everyone rushed over at once.

“Hari!”

“Hari! Are you alright?”

“Unnie! Unnie!”

Jisang pushed through the crowd and set Hari down on the comfortable sofa, and the director quickly spoke into his walkie-talkie.

“Ms. Yoo Hari has been found.”

By the time they reached the waiting room, Hari had calmed down somewhat. She wiped away the last of her tears with the handkerchief and spoke to the director with forced composure.

“If you give me a little time, I’ll fix my makeup and come back out.”

“No, Hari. We’ve already decided to wrap for today.”

“……I’m sorry.”

“Your safety comes first.”

“I’m really sorry.”

The room fell quiet at the sight of Hari apologizing even now, after everything that had been done to her. Jisang, who had been watching her with barely concealed frustration, snapped.

“What are you sorry for.”

“I was careless……”

“The people who managed security so badly that this could happen are the ones who should be sorry. Why is Ms. Yoo Hari the one apologizing.”

At his words, the director, the assistant director, and the production PD all bowed their heads like people who had committed a crime. Jungwook was even more furious than Jisang.

“You all knew what kind of threat our Hari was facing today. This shoot should have been cancelled from the start. Hari insisted on coming because she didn’t want to let anyone down. If she was willing to do that for you, shouldn’t you have been extra careful? How is your security so lax that someone like that could just wander around undetected? Well?”

“We’re so sorry. Truly, we’re so sorry.”

The PD bowed repeatedly, and Hari was the one who felt uncomfortable. The perpetrator wasn’t even in this room. Why was everyone acting like they were the criminals?

“Oppa, that’s enough.”

Hari stepped in and smoothed things over herself.

“Part of this was my own carelessness, so please don’t blame yourselves too much. Director, since the perpetrator might still be on the premises, it’s not safe to continue today. Let’s reschedule. Next time I’ll make sure not to wander off alone and I’ll be more careful on set.”

The production PD, who bore the greatest share of responsibility for what had happened, felt a sudden rush of emotion at her graciousness, eyes reddening.

He thought he finally understood why there wasn’t a single bad word said about Yoo Hari in this brutal industry, and why the public loved her.

She was the last remaining piece of genuine purity in this world.

* * *

After the chaos, police arrived at the studio, and Hari had to cooperate with several rounds of questioning before she could finally head home late that night.

All she wanted was to get home and rest, but Jungwook tried to talk her out of going back.

“Are you sure you’ll be okay? Don’t go home, just come to our place. Hyunseo said she’s worried about you and to bring you over.”

“No, oppa. I couldn’t sleep last night and I’m exhausted. I want to rest at home.”

“But it’s dangerous. The suspect still hasn’t been caught. And they know where you live.”

“I understand what you’re saying. But, well, won’t it be fine?”

Hari kept glancing sideways at Jisang and added quietly.

“As long as the bodyguard stays with me?”

But her voice was too small, and no one seemed to hear. Jungwook kept talking right over her.

“Honestly, if the bodyguard hadn’t been there today, I shudder to think what might have happened. I’m beside myself. That rotten threatening piece of trash. Just wait until they catch you.”

While Jungwook muttered to himself, Hari kept stealing glances at the quiet bodyguard beside her. They should have made eye contact at least once by now, but he never once looked her way.

‘I wish he could stay with me.’

Should she just ask for round-the-clock close protection? No. If he figured out she had ulterior motives, what then.

She was still deliberating when the car pulled up to her building. Jisang got out with her.

“I’ll see Ms. Yoo Hari safely inside and then head out.”

“I can wait and give you a ride.”

“It’s alright. I’ll make my own way.”

“Alright then. Get some rest!”

Jisang gave Jungwook a brief nod in lieu of a proper goodbye and began making a slow, careful circuit of the building.

He surveyed the run-down neighborhood with an expression that made his displeasure plain, and when he spotted the threat still scrawled on the outer wall, his face tightened.

Hari waved Jungwook off with an enthusiastic, deliberate wave and slipped carefully into the old building. Jisang followed close behind.

With each step, the sensor lights flickered on, but tonight the darkness before each light came on felt unusually thick and heavy.

She had told Jungwook she was fine, but standing at her door now, she was frightened.

She didn’t want to be alone. She wanted to ask Jisang to stay.

‘No. It would make him uncomfortable.’

Hari thought about the space beyond this door. A living room, a bedroom, a bathroom. Barely thirty square meters.

Far too small and shabby a place for someone this tall to spend any time in.

She gave up and turned the doorknob.

“I’ll head in. Thank you for today.”

She smiled awkwardly and was about to step inside when he reached out and held the door open.

“May I take a look around.”

“What? I……”

Jisang moved her gently aside and stepped in first.

He walked through the apartment without any particular hesitation, checking for signs of intrusion. He pushed the living room window wide open and swept his flashlight left and right, up and down the walls, checking with careful thoroughness. His legs were long enough, or the apartment small enough, that it only took a few strides to cross the living room and reach the window.

He finished checking the apartment and came back to the front door, and Hari had stayed exactly where she was the whole time. She felt oddly small in her own home and stood there fidgeting.

“I know it’s not my place to say, but I think you should consider moving.”

“Does it seem that unsafe?”

“Yes. Please think about it.”

“Alright.”

“Would you consider going to a hotel for tonight?”

“Actually, um……”

Hari caught the edge of his sleeve and asked.

“Would you be willing to stay with me?”

“……”

“That’s too much to ask, isn’t it.”

“No.”

Jisang stepped back inside and took off his shoes.

He draped his suit jacket over the back of the sofa and rubbed the back of his neck.

“Will you be alright with that?”

“With what?”

“Having a strange man in your home.”

Whether it was the look he gave her or something in the words themselves, they landed with an oddly suggestive weight.

Hari blinked, caught off guard, then collected herself and offered a calm smile.

“Yes. If it’s you, I’ll be fine.”

At that, Jisang gave a sardonic smile.

“Even though I, with my own mouth, just called myself a strange man?”

“Because I know you’re not.”

“And what exactly do you know about me.”

The corners of his eyes had gone cool and flat, like frost-covered ground in late autumn. Even with his openly cold manner, Hari didn’t soften her warmth.

“I may not know much, but I know you’re a good person.”

“Still hopelessly naive. You trust people far too easily.”

“Am I wrong?”

He couldn’t hold the edge against that bright, open smile, and his expression eased.

“A look like that would make even bad intentions disappear.”

His voice carried a faint, hollow quality, and Hari curved her lips upward.

“Can I make you some tea?”

“No thank you.”

She offered something else instead.

“Then at least let me get you something comfortable to wear. I have my manager’s clothes that I haven’t returned yet.”

“No. One night is fine.”

“You can speak informally if you’d like.”

“I should maintain a proper boundary with my client.”

He refused again, and Hari felt a quiet sting at the distinct line she sensed in him.

But with nothing more to say, she pressed her lips together and gathered a towel and pajamas.

“If you don’t need anything, I’ll go wash up.”