The next morning, as Eun Soo was heading to work, she ran into Joo Han at the cafe across from .

“Sun Eun Soo.”

“I’ll quit drinking.”

As soon as their eyes met, Eun Soo preempted him, leaving Joo Han at a loss for words. So he just handed over the drink carrier he was holding. It contained three cups.

“For you, Lee Jae Rim, and Manager Oh.”

“Thank you, CEO.”

Eun Soo politely took the carrier with both hands. Holding the carrier with his and So Min’s drinks, Joo Han just looked at Eun Soo with disbelieving eyes.

The cafe owner behind the counter spoke.

“I heard you had a company dinner yesterday? The CEO coming to work first and even getting hangover drinks for the employees, that’s a rare welfare benefit.”

“I agree, sir. Our CEO is truly one of a kind.”

Joo Han shook his head and turned around. The owner laughed heartily.

“I can tell Eun Soo made a big mistake yesterday. How drunk did you get to be like this?”

“Alcohol is the devil…no, it’s my hand holding the glass that’s the devil. I’ll enjoy this. Thank you.”

Leaving a nod to the cafe owner, Eun Soo quickly followed Joo Han out. Walking half a step ahead without looking back, Joo Han spoke.

“You saw my text?”

“What text? I barely woke up on time this morning, it was hectic.”

“I changed the code to your apartment.”

“What? Why did you change my apartment code?”

Joo Han stopped walking and turned around.

“You broadcast your apartment code to the whole neighborhood yesterday.”

Hearing that, she vaguely remembered. Yelling about why she couldn’t enter her own home.

“I changed it since it seemed like your next door and across the hall neighbors all heard it, so you can change it again later.”

“You did really well. Thank you so much.”

You troublemaker…

With eyes conveying those words, Joo Han looked down at Eun Soo and started walking again. Eun Soo glared at the tall black back of his head above eye level and followed behind.

“By the way, there was something I meant to ask but forgot.”

Right before entering , Eun Soo lightly grabbed the hem of Joo Han’s shirt.

“Did you tell your family? About appearing on the broadcast.”

Joo Han didn’t say anything. Guessing that he hadn’t, Eun Soo added,

“Shouldn’t we tell your mother the truth? She might…misunderstand something.”

“……”

“It’s not my business, but I just wanted to mention it since it concerns me a bit.”

As if not expecting an answer, Eun Soo took a step ahead and opened the door to enter . Joo Han silently followed behind.

Standing inside the showroom with a hungover zombie-like expression, Jae Rim smirked meaningfully at the two entering together.

“Are you coming to work together now too? Like newlyweds.”

“Lee Jae Rim.”

As soon as her eyes met Joo Han’s, Jae Rim came to her senses.

“I’m sorry. I’ll abstain from alcohol for a month.”

“Sun Eun Soo said she’s quitting drinking altogether. You lack conscience in comparison?”

“No, I’m being more conscientious.”

Jae Rim suddenly pointed at Eun Soo with gleaming eyes.

“Honestly, how can Manager Sun quit drinking? It’s a lie. Lying is worse.”

“I’m really going to keep a close eye on you for a whole month.”

Eun Soo fought back, pointing a finger. Jae Rim responded with a snort.

“Ah, I’ll endure a month somehow. What about you? Can you really quit forever?”

Watching the hungover humans bickering, So Min quietly said to Sun Kyung beside her,

“Manager Oh, want to make a bet with me? I’ll put 50,000 won on both of them drinking again within a month.”

“I was going to bet on that side too, so the bet can’t be established. But So Min, even after losing 70,000 won to Jae Rim yesterday…”

After a round of noisiness, as opening time approached, they scattered. Jae Rim stayed in the 1st floor showroom while Sun Kyung and Eun Soo went up to the 2nd floor office. Joo Han and So Min headed to the basement.

“You’re going to work on this first today, right?”

“Yeah. So Min, check what we need to send out today.”

Joo Han bent one knee and sat down to examine the chair he would be working on. It was a simple dining chair with an oval-shaped solid wood seat and backrest on top of a trapezoidal steel frame, a consistently popular item they purchased whenever available.

Noticing a reddish mark on Joo Han’s slightly bent neck, So Min absentmindedly asked,

“CEO, it looks like you have a wound on your neck. Did you get hurt?”

“Huh?”

With a clueless expression, Joo Han stroked under his ear on his neck and went, ah.

“Last night, Eun Soo…no, Manager Sun.”

“Stop right there.”

So Min cut Joo Han off. Joo Han shut his mouth in surprise, and in that moment, So Min quickly backed away.

“I don’t need to hear such personal matters. Then, excuse me.”

Watching So Min disappear into the back of the warehouse, Joo Han furrowed his brows.

“What is she thinking…”

Joo Han was dumbfounded and somehow felt wronged imagining how far she went with just hearing ‘last night, Manager Sun’.

Because last night, Manager Sun brutishly yanked the string around my neck… This sounds even weirder.

Giving up on further explanation, Joo Han silently put on gloves and picked up his tools. After disassembling the chair, he began removing the rust from the frame with chemicals first.

Mechanically moving his hands, Joo Han suddenly recalled Eun Soo’s words.

I should talk to her.

He couldn’t easily guess how his mother would react. It was clear she wouldn’t be pleased.

Would she get fiercely angry like when he came to Korea for his father’s funeral, declared he was quitting, and said he would take over ? Or would she say this time they should cut ties for good?

If it were just his own issue, it wouldn’t be so difficult, but having Eun Soo involved made it daunting.

There was only one time Eun Soo and his mother had met. It was at Joo Han’s college graduation. They were naturally introduced, greetings were made, and the three had a meal together.

He was relieved seeing his mother treat Eun Soo warmly with a friendly smile and tone she rarely showed even to her son. But in a moment Eun Soo stepped away, his mother said just one thing.

‘You’re not planning to date her long, are you?’

Seeing his mother return with the bland face he was used to since childhood, Joo Han was deeply hurt.

It wasn’t that she liked Eun Soo or was being favorable because her son liked her. It was just the elegant kindness shown to a first-time acquaintance, someone you meet once with no reason to see again, like a department store employee.

He hoped Eun Soo didn’t sense that at all. Even if she did, it must have been difficult and uncomfortable for her in many ways, so it would still weigh on her mind now.

‘…Let’s talk. After I finish this. It’ll be more of a headache if she hears it elsewhere.’

Joo Han began moving his hands again, which had gradually slowed and stopped at some point.

The next afternoon, Joo Han, who had left work a few hours early, drove out of the city. It was where the studio of Hwang Hee Baek, a longtime acquaintance of his father and a ceramic artist, was located.

As a child, Joo Han had lived at Mr. Hwang’s house for a while. It was when he was eight, after his parents divorced and he was living alone with his father.

Back then, Mr. Hwang readily provided a place to live for Joo Han’s father, who was just a poor artist with a child. They both had a deep interest in vintage furniture and were said to have conversations like no one else.

Then, the year Joo Han turned thirteen, his father decided to pursue his dreams and leave for Europe. Joo Han went to his mother, naturally losing touch with Mr. Hwang. But starting from his father’s funeral, he began to occasionally check in and visit again.

“Mr. Hwang.”

Entering through the gate that looked like a cozy pension at a glance, Mr. Hwang greeted him warmly.

“Joo Han, your face seems to have gotten even better?”

“My face is always in S-grade condition. Here, I thought of you while buying overseas and got this. Thought you’d like this too.”

Joo Han set down a bottle of whiskey and a dessert box on the floor. Mr. Hwang smiled broadly and gestured for him to sit.

“If only I had someone to drink with, I’d open it right now. Want to sleep over?”

“I have to go to work tomorrow. Save it and have it next time.”

“You’re no fun.”

The two shared various stories over the tea Mr. Hwang brought out and the dessert Joo Han had packaged. Befitting Mr. Hwang, who had collected enviable vintage furniture over decades, furniture talk was the main topic.

“I feel it’s time to cut back a bit. Come with a big car later and take some. So they can find better owners.”

“I’d be grateful if you sold them to our store, but I doubt there are better owners than you.”

As they were conversing comfortably, there was a stir from the gate. Joo Han’s expression hardened somewhat as he turned to look.

“Hey, what brings you here without notice?”

“I contacted you a little while ago, but it said your phone was off. I was passing by and wondered if you were in…”

Hyun Man Jang, the CEO of , entered with a smile but hesitated upon seeing Joo Han. However, he soon showed an even bigger smile.

“Well, look who it is, CEO Kim Joo Han.”

“Long time no see.”

Mr. Hwang, who had rummaged through his clothes to take out his cell phone, mumbled awkwardly.

“I turned it off this morning to focus for a bit and forgot. Come on in and have a seat.”

CEO Jang also came up to the floor and took a seat. Mr. Hwang went to get one more teacup, saying he’d be right back, leaving CEO Jang and Joo Han alone.

“I didn’t expect to see CEO Kim here. Looks like I got beaten to it again.”

Joo Han smiled brightly.

“It’s a good thing you didn’t know beforehand. Our meeting with Mr. Hwang might have been canceled too.”

CEO Jang let out a hollow laugh. But like Joo Han, his eyes weren’t laughing.

“Anyway, congratulations. On winning the contract.”

“Thank you.”

“I was curious. We had over 90% of the discussion wrapped up on our end, so how did it suddenly get flipped to your side?”

“Who knows. It wasn’t a sudden flip, but something that had been going rather well with our side for quite a while from the beginning.”

Joo Han spoke with a benevolent eye smile that didn’t seem to contain any malice.

“You thinking the discussion with them was finished was perhaps your own misunderstanding or misconception.”

Just as CEO Jang’s expression distorted, Mr. Hwang returned. Placing the teacup he brought in front of CEO Jang and pouring the tea, he said,

“You’re both so busy that it’s not easy to see each other like this. It would be nice if people in the same industry could help each other and get along well.”

“Is there anything I can help CEO Jang with?”

“I don’t really have anything to help with either. The young man is more capable than he looks.”

How do I look to you?

Joo Han swallowed those words that almost spilled out along with the tea. Mr. Hwang laughed heartily and said to CEO Jang,

“He’s Kim Kyung Hoon’s son after all. That blood won’t change. If he had kept living with his father, he would have seen and learned more, but even if he couldn’t, he must have inherited quite a bit.”

CEO Jang didn’t say anything. Joo Han opened his mouth with a smile.