“Of course! Since you’re treating us to something delicious, we can’t refuse. Besides, Gaeul kept saying she would introduce us sometime, but it never happened, so we kept waiting.”

“Is that so? That’s fortunate.”

While Jua responded cheerfully, Dojin remained silent.

He didn’t block them as before, but he still looked reserved.

Gaeul was impressed by her friend who seemed to have found her way even though she looked crushed. When Gaeul embraced Jua, who responded with a somewhat awkward hug, Jua, unable to help it, responded with a somewhat coy tone.

“Yeah. Thank you, Yoon Gaeul.”

“Our Jua, you’re so cool. No, Teacher Jua.”

“Hey… Don’t call me that; it’s embarrassing.”

“But still, what can I do? Being a teacher is cool!”

“Hmm. Really?”

Seeing Jua shrug her shoulders at Gaeul’s compliments, she subtly expressed her honest feelings.

“In fact, I’ve never thought about being a teacher, but I found that I’m better suited to teaching others rather than drawing my own pictures. It feels good to see the kids following me well.”

Still looking at Gaeul with sparkling eyes, Jua eventually burst into a hearty laugh at Gaeul’s reaction and, with a content smile, said, “Well, what can I do? It feels good.”
It seemed as if Dojin had heard unbelievable news, and he opened his mouth in surprise. Jua glanced at Dojin as if asking why he was reacting like that, then she asked with a shocked expression.

“Oppa, didn’t I tell you? Gaeul is dating the gallery representative.”

Gaeul, who had been asleep, didn’t know about the fight that had occurred between the two men at a previous drinking party. Jua, who was aware of the situation and seemed to be aware of everything, scratched her head in embarrassment for a moment. Come to think of it, she realized that she had never told Dojin about this news. Apparently, judging by his reaction, this was the first time he heard about it.

Meanwhile, feeling sorry for Dojin, who stood there as if his words were stuck, Gaeul, thinking that it was probably disappointing for him not to be informed, spoke first.

“I thought Jua had told you. It wasn’t intentional to tell you late… I’m sorry, Oppa.”

“No, Gaeul. I was just a bit surprised…”

As Gaeul apologized, Dojin, still unable to collect himself, continued to answer incoherently.

At that moment, Kitaek asked Gaeul with a gentle tone and a smile.

“Oh, didn’t you tell your friends?”

“Yeah, I forgot. I think I only told Jua.”

The two of them openly displayed an affectionate atmosphere, unlike before.

Seeing Dojin still looking at them as if he couldn’t believe it, Jua sighed. Then, she whispered softly in his ear.

“Oppa, they’ve been dating for quite a while now. And if you don’t have the courage to confess, it’s time to let go.”

“What…?”

“Oppa, Gaeul likes you. Don’t think about hiding it from me. We all know.”

As if to say, “How did you find out?”, Jua stared at Dojin with wide-open eyes and gave him a playful jab.

“Don’t act like you didn’t notice. Even though Gaeul didn’t know, I’ve sensed it since before we graduated.”

“…”

“Stop giving up. There’s no room for you, Oppa.”

“…”

“However, don’t just sit there with such a defeated expression.”

The gallery representative Gaeul seemed much more energetic than she did at the previous drinking party. In contrast, Jua sighed deeply at the sight of her older coworker who seemed shocked and lifeless.

I can’t stand living because of that older brother.

A few days later, Gaeul, entering a room she had never seen before in a corner of the gallery office corridor, opened her mouth in surprise.

“Wow… Representative, there’s a space like this in the gallery? I’ve never seen it before.”

“It’s a place we didn’t use, but I cleaned it up a bit to use it for interviews.”

As the only place she always visited in the gallery was his office, Gaeul’s eyes were captivated by the unfamiliar space.

There was nothing special, but the clean and spacious area looked quite sophisticated for entertaining guests.

Today was the day to wrap up the exhibition and have the second interview with Kang Young-kyu, the reporter.

Thanks to Kitaek, the interview took place in the gallery. He had arranged the vacant office space for the interview.
Recalling the interview conducted hastily in his office during the first interview, it was evident that much progress had been made.

Gaeul, thinking about recent conversations with journalist Kang Young-kyu, subtly asked, “Did Author Im Eunsuk also have an interview here?”

“Oh.”

“I see.”

Remembering the words he had said to Kang Young-kyu during my first interview, Gaeul realized that it wasn’t just empty words. Gaeul looked around the room, imagining that various artists had been interviewed in this space. However…

‘Why does the representative keep staying here?’

Expecting him to guide her briefly and then return to his office, Gaeul, who was quite surprised, asked, “Representative, aren’t you going to see to your work?”