“You said you’re Director Sun Eun Soo, right? I’m pleased to meet someone with such discerning taste.”

“Yes. Personally, I really loved the 30s-40s vibe shown in ‘Wonderful Times’. But is this new movie also set in that era?”

“That’s right. I’m envisioning a cafe where intellectuals of that time would gather…”

Director Kim followed Eun Soo as if entranced, while Eun Soo guided him with a bright smile. PD Park’s camera followed behind them. Ki Woo glanced around furtively and leaned towards Joo Han.

“Wow, Sun Eun Soo’s got skills. That guy’s not usually so easy to impress, but she’s got him hooked already.”

“Hooked? What are you talking about…”

“I didn’t know she was so knowledgeable about films too. Well, I guess even in school she seemed to know about all sorts of things. No matter who she met or what topic came up, she could converse easily. She’d say it was just broad but shallow knowledge, nothing special…”

“How is that nothing special? It’s incredibly impressive.”

Seeing Joo Han’s lips twitch as if he himself had been praised, a flicker of disillusionment crossed Ki Woo’s eyes.

“Anyway, you’re the man, hyung. Aren’t you grateful?”

“For what?”

“Come on, think about how this will look on broadcast. A veteran staff member from Director Choo Jae Young’s new film coming all the way to Bida to discuss sponsorship. How impressive does that seem?”

“Of course I’m grateful, but… it’s not entirely for my sake, is it?”

Joo Han’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“I saw you slip your business card to the PD earlier, asking for a caption saying ‘Yoon Ki Woo, CEO of The Sequence movie PR firm’.”

“That’s just professionalism. As someone in PR, how could I not take advantage of an opportunity like this?”

“And yet when you came chasing me to my house to try and stop me from doing this…”

“Back then I wanted to stop you. But you ended up doing it anyway. So now there’s no point in me saying anything different.”

It was an extremely practical and very Ki Woo-like attitude. He must have come to the simple conclusion that then it was better to dissuade, and now it was better to cooperate.

Additionally, there was something else Joo Han could guess.

“Did your company get the PR contract for that new movie?”

Ki Woo flinched. Then he nudged Joo Han, signaling him to lower his voice.

“We haven’t signed the contract yet, but it’s pretty much a done deal verbally.”

“I see…”

“Why are you looking at me like that? This is what they call killing two birds with one stone.”

“Don’t you mean ‘doing a favor and picking mulberry leaves too’, or ‘eating pheasant and getting the eggs’?”

“Close enough, you brat.”

Anyway, Ki Woo and Director Kim ended up staying at Bida for quite a while, and ultimately a sponsorship deal was reached. Director Kim even waved goodbye to Eun Soo with a completely changed attitude from when he arrived.

“Director Sun! We must go to that bar you mentioned earlier together next time!”

“Yes, Director! Please keep in touch.”

After seeing Director Kim off, PD Park approached Ki Woo.

“You said you’ve been close friends with Joo Han for a long time, right? Could I ask you for an interview?”

“Of course.”

As Ki Woo followed PD Park out, Joo Han looked at Eun Soo with an expression that suggested he had something to say. When Eun Soo gave him a questioning look, he scratched near his eyebrow.

“Never mind. It’s nothing.”

Joo Han turned and went down to the basement. As Eun Soo tilted her head in confusion while climbing the stairs, her phone rang. It was Joo Han.

[Is that true?] [What?] [That you really got inspiration from that old man?]

What’s with the rapper-like rhyming? Eun Soo wondered if she needed to pull out some kind of acceptance necklace from somewhere, when another message came through.

[You don’t even like movies that much. You watch maybe two or three a year? Especially those movie titles you mentioned, I’ve never heard them from your mouth before.]

Eun Soo clicked her tongue slightly.

Joo Han had a tendency to not easily admit when there was something he didn’t know about Eun Soo. In reality, he did know almost everything, so instances like this were rare, but right now she felt a bit annoyed at the “what does it matter whether you know or not” attitude.

What if I suddenly developed a new hobby of film appreciation after breaking up with you?

She wanted to say that, but it didn’t feel right. So she just answered truthfully.

[Remember when senior Ki Woo asked me to help organize materials when he moved offices? I remembered seeing that person’s filmography in the documents then.]

Among the documents related to the movie “Wonderful Times”, there was a proposal suggesting focusing the marketing direction on emphasizing the mise-en-scène, which included the art director’s filmography. It was the first time she’d seen a focus on the art director rather than the director or actors, so she’d read it quite thoroughly out of curiosity.

It was also partly due to a habit from her magazine days of storing any information that seemed even slightly interesting, just in case it might be useful someday.

[You didn’t deliberately look it up, you just happened to see it and still remember?] [I’m good at remembering things like that.] [So did you really watch all those movies?] [No. Just “The End of That Winter”. Yoon Bin oppa was in it. Though it was just a cameo.]

Joo Han’s expression suddenly turned cold. Come to think of it, Eun Soo used to always go to the theater on opening day to watch any movie Yoon Bin appeared in.

Quickly turning off the switch of jealousy that was about to click on, Joo Han redirected his thoughts back to the original point.

The important thing wasn’t that she only watched the movie Yoon Bin was in, but that she actually hadn’t seen any of the other movies. Yet when talking to Director Kim, no, Mr. Kim, she’d seemed like someone who’d watched them two or three times.

Joo Han quietly marveled.

“…Is she a genius?”

Joo Han gently placed a hand on his chest. Even knowing it was something he’d get scolded for, he felt like being cheeky.

See, I told you you’re the best employee. Gold and diamonds aren’t too much… No, that’s not really why I gave them to you.

The hand that had been on Joo Han’s chest slowly lowered. The weight of the ring, which had already become familiar, suddenly felt new again.

30 minutes before closing time at Bida, PD Park handed Joo Han a box with several folded pieces of paper stuck in it.

“What’s this?”

“Please draw one and answer the keyword written inside. You’ll each answer the same question separately.”

Joo Han, who was sitting comfortably on the floor after finishing his work on the chairs, reached out and drew a piece of paper. When he unfolded it, three large characters caught his eye.

‘First meeting’

Joo Han made a strange expression, propped one arm on his leg, and rested his chin on it.

“Should I talk about the day I first met Eun Soo?”

“Yes.”

“We first met when we became classmates in our second year of high school. I heard she had transferred from another school. My first impression was just, she’s really pale, looks cute, and I heard she’s good at studying. Just that much.”

He was going to stop after talking about just the very first meeting, but PD Park wouldn’t let it end there.

“That’s it? Just classmates? Nothing like becoming desk mates or anything?”

“Ah, we did become desk mates. It was June, I think… When I asked her something, Eun Soo would just answer without really smiling.”

Yet he kept talking to her anyway. Actually, he wasn’t the type to pester people, but for some reason, he kept saying silly things only to Eun Soo.

They were really just classmates, but when they became desk mates, he was secretly happy. Without even realizing it himself, he had fallen much deeper.

He couldn’t remember exactly what he fell for or when he started liking her, but the moment he became aware of his feelings was vivid.

“Then one day, Eun Soo came in wearing her summer uniform for the first time. With her hair tied up like this. I saw her come in as usual and sit down next to me, and suddenly, really suddenly, I had that thought.”

The white short-sleeved shirt, her even whiter nape and slender arms. The clear eyes glancing at him and saying “Hi” in greeting. Everything about that moment remained as clear as a photograph.

I like her.

Oh, I’ve been liking her all along.

It was a pure feeling, without any ulterior motives. The kind of feeling where your day begins and ends with that person, where just making eye contact makes you helplessly melt.

Joo Han raised one hand.

“Wait. The keyword is ‘first meeting’, but I think I’ve said too much unnecessary stuff. Please edit it out.”

“No, no. What do you mean, edit it out?”

PD Park quickly shook his head. He even gripped his camera tighter, as if afraid Joo Han might snatch it away.

“I won’t miss a single cut. Thank you for your answer.”

[This is the timeline separator]

“Writer Jang, what are you doing?”

Seated in the editing room, Sol Hee tilted her head back. Her eyes met with those of a senior director who had poked his head through the open door while passing by.

“I’m going through the initial footage.”

“How is it? Does it look good?”

“Half and half. Some teams seem to have quite a bit of usable material, while others don’t have much yet.”

“I’ve done shows with multiple cast members before, so I know it’s not easy to balance the overall tone. Well, keep up the good work.”

“Yes, sir.”

Sol Hee stretched lightly. On the screen, Eun Soo was calmly explaining about the lighting that Director Kim had shown interest in. Despite being friends, they hadn’t had many chances to see each other working, so Sol Hee found it a bit fascinating too.

The scene changed, and Ki Woo’s face appeared, sitting in a chair placed in Bida’s garden. Sol Hee’s eyebrows furrowed sharply.

“That guy, it’s ridiculous enough that he came knowing full well we were filming, but now he’s even doing an interview…”

She felt exasperated, remembering how he had gotten all serious about the show being nonsense. I should have firmly warned him not to try to butt in later after criticizing their broadcast appearance.

Sol Hee glared at the smiling face on the screen.

[Hello. I’m Yoon Ki Woo, who has been closest to Joo Han since college.]

Oh yeah, I know. If you got close twice, you’d hit someone.

On screen, PD Park asked if there were any episodes related to Joo Han and Eun Soo. Ki Woo readily opened his mouth.

[Honestly, I had noticed long before they said they were dating. They kept saying they were just close because they were high school classmates, but their gazes weren’t exactly innocent. But it was also ambiguous because Kim Joo Han’s gaze can be a bit misleading at times. So I was unsure until I became certain at one point…]

He sure talks well.

Apart from her personal feelings, she felt annoyed that it was too good not to use for the broadcast.

It was the same in college. He knew how to lighten the mood endlessly but also how to be serious at the right times. That’s why he always had many people around him, and Sol Hee was also included in the category of close juniors.

Sol Hee was certain that quite a few people must have harbored similar feelings for Ki Woo back then.

The “good” in “Senior Yoon Ki Woo is really good” being confusingly between human and romantic. The kind of jokes that make you scoff when you hear them but pop into your mind before bed, making you wonder if they were meant just for you or not.

In the second semester of her senior year, after successfully getting a job, Sol Hee moved out of the off-campus apartment she shared with Eun Soo and relocated near the broadcasting station. During that hectic and emotional period, somehow she ended up meeting Ki Woo alone frequently, without Eun Soo and Joo Han.

Ki Woo had taken quite a long break from school due to military service and starting a business, and had just returned as a junior. They would usually meet after Sol Hee got off work, having dinner while Ki Woo listened to her complain about her company. Both being heavy drinkers, these meetups naturally led to drinking sessions each time.

And that’s how they ended up causing trouble.

‘I’m sorry. I can’t take responsibility for you, senior.’

‘…What?’