“Ah, Joo Han is currently on a business trip to Denmark, but a repairman is coming to the house, so I’m briefly…”

“He’s in Denmark?”

Ja Kyung clicked her tongue.

“I came in person thinking he was deliberately not answering calls and feeling upset. But he’s on a business trip…”

Ja Kyung muttered as if talking to herself.

“Well, whether in Korea or not, it seems he’s still deliberately not answering.”

An uncomfortable silence fell.

Ja Kyung and Eun Soo’s eyes met. Eun Soo flinched but didn’t avoid her gaze.

Ja Kyung slightly raised the corner of her mouth.

“It feels odd in someone else’s home, so if you have time, shall we have a cup of tea outside?”

“I actually wanted to meet you after hearing about you from Joo Han.”

Sitting across from Ja Kyung at the cafe right in front of , Eun Soo didn’t know how to respond and just gave an awkward smile.

“You two certainly have a connection. Meeting in your foolish youth is one thing, but to still be meeting now…”

What does she mean?

Eun Soo’s already complicated thoughts became even more tangled.

Why are you looking at me as if we’re really dating? Didn’t I mention it’s for filming?

“And to even brazenly broadcast it…”

Though frustrated and indignant, Eun Soo found it difficult to speak up, fearing her words might not match Joo Han’s. She realized she was unintentionally exercising her right to remain silent, further displeasing Ja Kyung, but there was nothing she could do.

“I wonder if it wasn’t a rash decision. I don’t know what Sun Eun Soo plans to do in the future or how she wants to live, but I’m not sure if being known as someone’s girlfriend or a show participant will be helpful in life. Unless you have a frivolous taste for enjoying such attention.”

Eun Soo’s head lowered. Ja Kyung slightly furrowed her brow, swallowing a sigh that was about to escape.

‘Is she timid or cunning? Either way, I don’t like it.’

Just then, Eun Soo placed her neatly clasped hands on the table and looked at Ja Kyung.

“Actually, that’s my biggest concern.”

“What did you say?”

“There were other reasons, but ultimately I decided to appear on the show for promotion. ‘s awareness isn’t high enough yet, and the vintage furniture market itself is rather niche. But…”

Eun Soo hesitated before adding.

“Um, may I… call you CEO?”

“Well, go ahead.”

Ja Kyung nodded with a slightly surprised expression. Eun Soo smiled brightly in gratitude.

“As you said, CEO, I’m starting to think it might have been a rash decision. I should have considered more carefully how to ultimately brand beyond short-term promotional effects. I want customers to perceive as professional and trustworthy, but I worry we might lose something important while only gaining curiosity and familiarity…”

Ja Kyung’s mouth opened slightly.

“Ah… I’m sorry. I was about to receive valuable consulting for free. I’m truly sorry. Thank you so much for your advice on your concerns, and I’ll discuss it more thoroughly with Joo Han and our staff.”

As Eun Soo concluded politely, a faint smile appeared on Ja Kyung’s lips as she stared at her.

“If you were a client, I would have been quite impressed. But today, I came as Joo Han’s mother.”

Eun Soo tensed up. Honestly, this smile was scarier than her earlier expressionless face.

“I’m not good at beating around the bush. Since I don’t know when we’ll meet again, let me say what I want to say.”

“…Yes.”

“I’m a conservative person. I want my son to succeed greatly without failure or hardship, and to live a life others look up to.”

“…”

“Honestly, to my eyes, Joo Han looks like he’s sitting on an old train right now. Well, it might be romantic and fun for a while. But he’ll soon realize. That he had a first-class airplane ticket in his hand from the start. And he’ll want to use it.”

Eun Soo steadily met Ja Kyung’s gaze. But not knowing what expression to make, she couldn’t help her lips trembling slightly.

“People change. Hearts change, and situations change too. So I hope you’ll think carefully about where you need to go, regardless of Joo Han.”

Ja Kyung picked up her handbag that she had set aside.

“It was nice meeting you. I’ll take my leave first.”

Ja Kyung stood up. Eun Soo awkwardly stood up too, but when she opened her mouth, her throat suddenly closed up, preventing her from properly saying goodbye.

After Ja Kyung’s figure receded with clicking heels, Eun Soo sat back down. She stared blankly at the untouched coffee cup, then sniffled and bit her lip.

…It’s okay. I may have lost, but I fought well enough.

The next day, Sun Kyung arrived at work a little later than usual, holding a large paper bag. A warm, savory aroma wafted from inside, filling the showroom.

“Last month? A really delicious bagel shop opened near my house. They call them drug bagels. I see it every time I go to work, but the line is always too long so I gave up. Today, for some reason, there weren’t many people. So I bought some for us to eat together.”

Sun Kyung’s expression and tone seemed brighter than usual, but couldn’t hide her haggard complexion. Eun Soo accepted the bread bag with thanks, but looked at Sun Kyung with worried eyes.

“Did you go to the hospital?”

“Yes. I took the medicine prescribed yesterday and rested well, so I feel much better.”

“Your boyfriend must have been very worried.”

As soon as Eun Soo spoke, Sun Kyung froze. Jae Rim and So Min simultaneously looked at each other and then quickly averted their eyes.

Eun Soo was puzzled by the sudden strange atmosphere after naturally mentioning the long-term boyfriend she knew about. She looked at Jae Rim and So Min with round eyes, but they were both staring into the distance.

Sun Kyung slowly opened her mouth.

“…We broke up.”

The bagel in Eun Soo’s hand dropped with a thud. Letting out a strange cry that was somewhere between a scream and a yelp, Eun Soo bent down at lightning speed to pick up the bagel and vigorously dusted it off with her other hand.

“I, I made a mistake… This precious thing. It should be fine since I picked it up within 3 seconds…”

Not knowing how to salvage the situation, Eun Soo gave up and stuffed the bagel into her mouth to block her blundering words.

“He dumped me. It’s embarrassing.”

Sun Kyung continued awkwardly, fidgeting in the uncomfortable atmosphere.

“I guess we dated for too long. We were together for 8 years. During his medical school, he even did his public service, then clinical rotations, and preparing for the national exam…”

Tears fell from Sun Kyung’s eyes as if by magic. Eun Soo, with one cheek still puffed out from the bagel, sprang up to get tissues, while Jae Rim and So Min hurriedly went to Sun Kyung’s side.

“You broke up well!”

So Min blurted out. Jae Rim quickly chimed in.

“That’s right! 8 years is like what? Almost a lifelong partner, how could another woman catch his eye? He should be punished by heaven!”

Sun Kyung, who was dabbing her tears with the tissue Eun Soo handed her, paused.

“How did you know there was another woman…”

“Ah!”

Jae Rim, whose foot was suddenly stepped on by So Min without anyone noticing, let out a cry. He hurriedly added without even having time to feel the pain.

“Ah, no. I just said that because it seemed likely… Ah, I went through something similar recently, didn’t I? So I just…”

Sun Kyung nodded without a trace of suspicion. So Min cut in.

“I think I said the same thing to Jae Rim back then, but he’s trash. People should be with people, how can a person be with trash? Forget both the trash and the person who took out the trash.”

Sun Kyung smiled brightly with reddened eyes.

“I will. I should. Thank you all. And sorry for bringing this up first thing in the morning.”

“What are you sorry for? Don’t be sorry.”

Jae Rim added.

“I don’t think it’s Manager Oh’s fault, but the problem seems to be this place’s energy.”

“Suddenly?”

Eun Soo asked, bewildered. Jae Rim put on a deliberately serious expression.

“It seems this place’s energy just doesn’t match well with romance. Otherwise, how could half of just four employees have such tumultuous love lives…”

“Why blame the place’s energy? We have the CEO and manager.”

So Min chided him as if telling him not to say such nonsense. Since the goal was just to change the mood anyway, rather than a serious suggestion, Jae Rim responded with whatever came to mind.

“That’s true. Or maybe the CEO and manager couple is so intense that they’re sucking up all the romantic energy from everyone else?”

“Do we have to listen to this nonsense first thing in the morning? You said they were drug bagels, but are they really drugged?”

“I haven’t even eaten one yet.”

“You’re like this in your right mind?”

Jae Rim and So Min started bickering as usual.

Actually, my love life is tumultuous too, could the energy here really be bad?

Eun Soo quickly shook off such thoughts and turned to Sun Kyung.

“Feel free to rest anytime you’re not feeling well, Manager. Don’t push yourself.”

“I can’t do that when the CEO isn’t here.”

Sun Kyung replied firmly, then added with a smile.

“And I prefer being here to being alone at home. is healing for me.”

Eun Soo could only smile in response.

That afternoon, a message arrived from Joo Han.

It was a photo of colorful, toy-like buildings reflected in a canal. The exotic colors and atmosphere drew an involuntary exclamation of admiration.

Joo Han had occasionally sent photos during his business trips before. However, back then it was to the group chat with all the employees, while now he sent it only to Eun Soo.

When photos arrived in the group chat, Jae Rim would always be the first to send emojis and enthusiastically react, saying he’d post them on ‘s social media, so Eun Soo only needed to add a word or two. But now, she felt a bit at a loss for how to respond.

While the photo itself was pure healing, her heart was not, making it even more difficult.

Ja Kyung’s expression and words kept coming to mind, causing her to toss and turn all night. She immediately understood that the advice to think about where she needed to go, regardless of Joo Han, meant not to get entangled with him in the first place since their paths were different.

‘But I feel like I’m already hopelessly entangled…’

The phone Eun Soo was absently holding suddenly vibrated, making her jump. It was a call from Joo Han.

“Why is he making a video call during work hours?”

Despite her grumbling words, her left hand quickly tidied her hair and clothes. When she pressed the answer button, handsome features that pierced through even the not-so-great video quality filled the screen.

“Why are you even calling?”

― I thought you might be busy if you didn’t read it, but you read it right away and didn’t reply, so I got too curious.

“Someone might think three hours had passed…”

― It felt like that long to me. Anyway, have you eaten?

“Of course I ate lunch. What about you?”

― I just woke up a little while ago.

Come to think of it, the atmosphere in the video seemed somewhat languid. Narrowing her eyes to look closely, she realized the background was a bed. He seemed to be sitting, almost lying down, with his head against the headboard.

Only his face was visible now, but she had a feeling it might not be appropriate to go below his neck. She knew Joo Han’s habit of sleeping shirtless.

Feeling suddenly strange, Eun Soo raised her voice abruptly.

“Are you on vacation now? You should be busy from dawn to midnight throughout your business trip, how are you wasting time like this?”

Joo Han on the screen chuckled, then rubbed his eyes with one hand.

― Actually, I’m not feeling well.