“Do we really have to go this far?”

“What do you mean ‘this far’?”

“Are you asking because you don’t know?”

Gyeo Wool shot back sharply.

“Is it because I treated you like a stranger, as my secretary?”

Who wouldn’t know he was deliberately pretending not to recognize her to provoke her?

Gyeo Wool looked at Tae Wook with sharp eyes.

“Why did you come all the way to the company?”

“What do you mean ‘why’? I just came to request interior construction work for ‘The Space’.”

“You expect me to believe that?”

“Whether you believe it or not is up to Secretary Han.”

The corners of Tae Wook’s mouth twisted upwards slyly.

“I intend to entrust the work to Representative Bang without looking into other options. However!”

He paused his words and fixed his ice-cold gaze on Gyeo Wool’s eyes.

She swallowed hard at the penetrating sharpness.

“On the condition that Secretary Han accepts my proposal.”

“So in the end… it was about that.”

Gyeo Wool closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

The moment she heard Tae Wook’s words, an indescribable pressure weighed down on her shoulders.

She felt dizzy, as if her feet were sinking into the ground.

“I clearly expressed my intentions to the representative.”

Though she barely managed to open her eyes, her voice was firm.

“That’s right. You said you wouldn’t come back to me. That you’d refuse to fulfill the remaining contract.”

“If you know that, why are you doing this?”

She barely managed to lower her voice as she asked.

She was careful in case any company employees came out and overheard their conversation.

“‘The Space’s’ financial situation is at its worst. It wouldn’t be strange if it closed down tomorrow.”

It wasn’t an answer to Gyeo Wool’s question.

“You don’t want the company to miss the chance to recover, do you?”

Unlike his calm questioning, her eyes wavered and shook violently.

Like a skilled trainer, he knew exactly what words would provoke her.

“Even so, my decision won’t change.”

“Hah!”

Tae Wook let out a short laugh.

“Representative Bang might be saddened if she heard what you just said. She seemed to trust and think of you as more than just a junior colleague.”

“……”

Gyeo Wool knew she had to say something.

Her lips moved, but the words that came to mind didn’t turn into sound.

The image of Eun Young, who was overjoyed just moments ago, flashed vividly before her eyes and disappeared.

And Eun Young’s worried voice heavily echoed in her ears.

− We might have to take out private loans.

If she refused Tae Wook’s proposal to the end…

It was clear as day that ‘The Space’ would face a crisis of collapse.

But she couldn’t do as he wanted just to save the company.

Gyeo Wool found it hard to even breathe amid the wave of conflict rushing in.

“If you just say one word that you’ll accept my proposal, I can give Representative Bang a big gift.”

Tae Wook was cornering Gyeo Wool.

He calculated that she wouldn’t be able to easily refuse his proposal if she thought about the company and Eun Young.

“Our company won’t easily collapse just because we don’t take on that construction job.”

Is this all she could say?

Gyeo Wool felt so embarrassed after saying it that she wanted to hide in a mouse hole.

“I guess you want to believe that. Even though the reality is clearly visible in front of you.”

Of course, he didn’t believe her words.

“Until Tuesday should be enough time to think, right? Though it would be better if you contacted me before then.”

“I have no intention of contacting you.”

“If I don’t hear from you by then, I’ll take it that you’ve accepted my proposal.”

“How can you……”

Gyeo Wool was so dumbfounded she couldn’t speak.

Where is there such a thing as interpreting both contact and no contact as a positive signal?

“I absolutely cannot accept that proposal.”

“Representative!”

Just as she firmly rejected, Secretary Kim opened the passenger door of the car and came out with anxious eyes.

“We need to leave because of the flight time.”

A lot of time had been delayed waiting for Gyeo Wool who had gone outside.

“I understand.”

Tae Wook turned his gaze back to Gyeo Wool after looking at Secretary Kim.

“Tuesday, don’t forget.”

“Didn’t you hear what I just said?”

“I’ll be expecting your answer.”

Tae Wook acted as if he hadn’t heard Gyeo Wool’s words at all.

Before getting in the car, he even took the leisure to wave goodbye to her who was dumbfounded.

“Haah……”

A sigh escaped through Gyeo Wool’s teeth.

The black luxury car that quickly left the company parking lot completely disappeared from view.

“What should I do now?”

She couldn’t help but waver between Eun Young, the company, and herself.

Her eyes stung as they grew hot.

Don’t cry! Han Gyeo Wool.

She tried to lift her head.

But betraying her will, her head dropped down and her shoulders began to shake slightly.

Plop!

Thick teardrops fell onto her dark brown shoes.

[This is the timeline separator]

The early winter night came early.

Gyeo Wool was left alone in the office where a heavy silence had settled.

It had been a long time since the employees went home.

“What should I do.”

Gyeo Wool’s eyes shook with anxiety as she bit her thumbnail.

Just now, the front digit on the large digital clock on the wall changed to 9.

Her gaze drifting in the air moved to the cell phone on the desk.

− Tuesday, don’t forget.

Tae Wook’s words came to mind.

Why was time passing by so helplessly fast?

The day Tae Wook said he would come again was approaching tomorrow.

If she didn’t give an answer by today.

Tae Wook would firmly believe that Gyeo Wool had accepted his proposal.

And tomorrow he would come down to Jeju Island and visit ‘The Space’.

“No. No.”

I can’t let that happen.

Just close your eyes and make the call.

Gyeo Wool took a deep breath and reached for her cell phone.

With trembling fingers from tension, she pressed the keypad.

The familiar 11 digits indicating Tae Wook’s phone number.

All that was left was to press the call button.

− We bought it, right?

− We might have to take out private loans.

Eun Young’s excited voice and deflated voice as if giving up everything echoed in Gyeo Wool’s ears simultaneously.

“This is driving me crazy.”

Gyeo Wool closed her eyes, pressing her palm to her forehead.

Not only was the overdue construction payment a problem, but the date for the employees’ salaries was approaching.

It was obvious that Eun Young would go around begging here and there to at least take care of the employees’ salaries.

And if that didn’t work, she would turn to the private loan market.

Her hand holding the cell phone fell down limply.

Gyeo Wool couldn’t forget the fact that Eun Young was the one who held her hand when she was going through her hardest times.

But she couldn’t go back to Tae Wook’s world either.

“What should I do.”

Her head felt like it was going to explode from the conflict.

That’s when it happened.

“Why haven’t you gone home yet? What are you doing?”

It was Eun Young.

Eun Young, who had left the company after work, was opening the door and coming in.

“Se, senior.”

Gyeo Wool turned to look at Eun Young, startled as if caught doing something wrong.

The cell phone she had been holding in her hand was already placed on the desk.

“Did you forget something?”

“No. Do you still have work left?”

“I, I was about to leave.”

At Eun Young’s question, Gyeo Wool hurriedly bent down to take out her bag from the bottom drawer of the desk.

“Want to have a drink with me?”

“A drink?”

Usually, alcohol was not a welcome word at all.

Because she had such a weak constitution for alcohol.

But today, for some reason, it felt like she needed to drink.

Who knows?

She might find the courage to call Tae Wook with the help of alcohol.

“Okay.”

.

.

.

A shabby but spacious raw fish restaurant by the coast.

As it was famous as a local taste restaurant, there were almost no tourists to be found.

And Jeju dialect could be heard here and there.

“I can’t understand what they’re saying.”

Gyeo Wool perked up her ears to the sounds of people.

It had been 3 years since she came down to Jeju Island.

Jeju dialect was still a difficult area for her.

“One more bottle of soju here!”

Eun Young raised her hand towards a passing waiter.

The waiter brought the alcohol right away.

“Aren’t you drinking too much today?”

Gyeo Wool worriedly looked at Eun Young who was opening the soju bottle cap as soon as she received it.

Did something bad happen before coming to the company?

It was already the third bottle.

Since Gyeo Wool was sipping on her second glass, it was as if Eun Young was drinking alone.

Moreover, unlike Gyeo Wool who kept eating the sashimi that came out as side dishes, Eun Young was just drinking alcohol continuously.

“At least eat some side dishes. You’ll ruin your stomach like that.”

“What’s the big deal about ruining my stomach.”

It was unclear whether Eun Young’s tone was grumbling or a sad lament.

As Eun Young was about to tilt the soju bottle, Gyeo Wool took it away and poured the alcohol into Eun Young’s glass.

Deliberately filling only half, she spoke with concern.

“I think you’re drinking too quickly, senior.”

“Gyeo Wool.”

Eun Young called Gyeo Wool’s name heavily, with her gaze fixed on the alcohol glass.

“Tell me.”

“About CEO Kang Tae Wook.”

The moment Tae Wook’s name flowed from Eun Young’s lips, Gyeo Wool felt all the nerves in her body tense up and stand on edge.

Her hand placing the soju bottle on the table was full of strength.

“It’s him, right?”

“What? What do you mean… him?”

“The man you said you had a contract marriage with.”

Gyeo Wool was so surprised she stopped breathing.

How did Eun Young figure it out?

She had never said that Tae Wook was her ex-husband.

Eun Young’s gaze, which had been fixed on the soju glass, slowly moved to Gyeo Wool.

Seeing Gyeo Wool’s eyes shaking helplessly in surprise, Eun Young’s expression collapsed heavily.

“I was hoping it wasn’t……”

Eun Young emptied her glass in one gulp.

“How… did you know?”

Gyeo Wool had confided to Eun Young about the fact that she had been married.

That it was a contract marriage with a company CEO, and that she had divorced without fulfilling that contract.

But she had never told Tae Wook’s name, let alone the name of the company she worked for.

She had kept that strictly secret.

So how did Eun Young know about Tae Wook’s existence?

“I had a feeling when I saw you run out with a pale face right after CEO Kang left.”

“Ah!”

Gyeo Wool felt like her head was burning black.

She had made a ridiculous mistake without even realizing it.

“What is he demanding from you?”

“There’s nothing like that.”

“Don’t lie. The CEO of J Chemical personally came to our company just to request construction work?”

Eun Young smiled self-deprecatingly.

“Ha… I was a fool for believing that.”

“Senior, what do you mean fool? How can you say that?”

“I don’t want to be a fool anymore, so tell me. What did that person demand from you?”

Eun Young frowned deeply and urged for an answer.

Reluctantly, Gyeo Wool opened her mouth heavily.

“He says there’s still 1 year left on the marriage contract. He wants me to fulfill that contract.”

“That bastard!”

Harsh words flowed from Eun Young’s mouth.