“No response.”

Ga Eul hurriedly pulled her hand out.

She didn’t want any misunderstandings.

As her hand that was touching him came up and met his sharp gaze, Ga Eul unknowingly tensed her shoulders.

“Mr. Representative…”

Just as Ga Eul was about to call out to him again.

“…?”

He turned around without hesitation.

What is it…? Why…?

These days, whenever they ran into each other, Ga Eul would approach him with a bright smile, and he would greet her back with a faint but rare charming smile.

But he turned away coldly.

As if facing a complete stranger.

* * *

The next day, Ga Eul visited the gallery under the pretext of checking her artwork that would be displayed at her first exhibition. Although it was not in its complete form as there were still a few days left until the exhibition, she could sufficiently examine her own paintings.

Manager Park showed her the selected paintings one by one, as well as the booths they would be displayed in, thinking Ga Eul was just excited and attentive as it was her first exhibition at TS Gallery, smiling at her with a fatherly warmth.

“We decided to display two from the paintings you initially sent, and two from the recently submitted landscapes. So a total of four.”

“…Ah, yes.”

“What about the remaining painting you mentioned? Is it ready?”

“Ah… That one needs some more finishing touches…”

“If it’s good, we plan to display it too, so please send it as soon as possible. There are only a few days left until the exhibition.”

“Yes, Manager.”

She had timed her visit to match when he would usually come to the gallery, but no matter how long she waited, he was nowhere to be seen.

‘Did I do something wrong…? Why is he acting like this?’

Unable to forget his cold treatment, she had trouble sleeping.

Last night, she had pondered countless times whether to contact him.

“Then, take care on your way back, Miss Ga Eul.”

“Yes. …Ah Manager!”

As Ga Eul was about to leave the gallery, she grabbed Manager Park and asked.

“What about the Representative?”

“He said he’s not coming in today.”

“Ah…”

“Do you have a message for him?”

“No, it’s nothing. Then I’ll get going.”

Ga Eul quickly bid farewell and left the gallery. The smile she had forced on her face for Manager Park rapidly darkened the moment she pushed through the glass doors.

Letting out a sigh, Ga Eul unhesitatingly walked away from the gallery.

Behind her, a man naturally followed.

Thanks to Ga Eul who didn’t sense his presence and had no intention of looking back, he was able to easily tail her.

The man, who was wearing a black hat pulled low as usual, stopped walking and alternately glanced at the gallery and Ga Eul. He then smiled widely, revealing a gold tooth.

“She must have really become a painter like her father. I wonder if she’s making some money then?”

Staggering as if half-drunk, he stopped chasing Ga Eul and sat down against the wall, chuckling to himself.

* * *

At that moment, Gi Tae, having finished work at the department store, headed early to the lounge bar, BYN.

With his brow furrowed and unable to relax, he tilted his wine glass. He was alone on the second floor again today. That fact at least allowed his sharp nerves to stop just before reaching their limit.

However, it was short-lived. Hearing footsteps coming up the stairs, Gi Tae’s gaze turned towards them.

Soon, a familiar figure appeared.

“Han Gi Tae. What are you doing?”

Joo Hyuk, who had climbed the spiral staircase, asked Gi Tae who was drinking wine early in the evening.

He could have just wanted a drink, but somehow it felt different today.

The half-empty wine bottle that seemed to have been drunk alone, his crumpled expression, and his dress shirt with one or two buttons roughly undone hinted at that fact.

He already has a unique temper, but this is…

Gi Tae, who had no intention of telling him and just nodded his head towards the empty seat as if telling him to sit, made Joo Hyuk sigh first. Joo Hyuk exclaimed while pretending to throw the wine bottle at Gi Tae.

“What? I came all the way here because I was worried about you being alone.”

“Tsk. Bothersome.”

“What? I came to find you on purpose because I was concerned.”

Finally, a laughter resembling a snort escaped Gi Tae’s mouth at Joo Hyuk who was grumbling.

It was true that he found it bothersome as his plan to drink wine alone was disrupted, but now that his friend had come, it wasn’t so bad either.

Seeing that laughter, Joo Hyuk thought this was his chance and grumbled irritably.

“Not answering my question, trying to pass it off with laughter. Are you really not going to tell me?!”

“Tell you what.”

“Why you’re acting like this.”

“…I don’t know.”

Gosh, this ill-mannered guy.

Joo Hyuk sighed. There were times when he had no idea what Gi Tae was thinking as he absolutely refused to express his inner feelings even if it killed him.

He wanted to console him as he was gloomily drinking, but there was nothing he could do as he didn’t even know the reason.

“Aish, I don’t know either.”

Might as well just drink since I’m here. Joo Hyuk went and sat on the sofa across from Gi Tae and sank into the backrest.

Originally, he had come to keep him company while drinking, but what comfort does a guy need if he won’t even share what’s going on? His intentions had long faded.

Joo Hyuk reached for the canapés that had come out as a snack.

They seemed untouched, just as they originally were.

As he stuffed a canapé into his mouth and was about to pour wine into an empty glass, Gi Tae’s closed mouth suddenly opened.

“I said I don’t know.”

“…What? What do you keep saying you don’t know.”

Thinking it was some nonsensical remark, Joo Hyuk retorted similarly and was about to pour the wine when Gi Tae spoke again, making him pause.

“I said even I don’t know why I’m in a foul mood.”

“…Huh?”

Joo Hyuk’s hand slipped in amazement. As a result, the bottle toppled to the floor.

The bottle didn’t shatter, but the expensive wine that was still half-full spilled out onto the floor. Joo Hyuk made a fuss. At that sight, Gi Tae frowned again.

Joo Hyuk yelled back at Gi Tae who was scowling.

“It’s because you suddenly said something weird. What are you talking about all of a sudden. If you don’t know why you’re upset, who would know?”

“That’s why. I told you I don’t know.”

“…Hah.”

Having roughly cleaned up by calling an employee, Joo Hyuk sat down again.

As Joo Hyuk tried to drink more wine, the floor below suddenly became noisy.

Curious to see who had arrived, Joo Hyuk got up and approached the railing before catching his breath.

“Oh…?”

Joo Hyuk blurted out after recognizing who it was at a glance. It was to draw the attention of Gi Tae who was sitting there gloomily. However, Gi Tae himself had no interest.

In the end, to get his attention, Joo Hyuk had no choice but to ask outright.

“Hey, do you know who just came in?”

Seeing Gi Tae still looking uninterested, Joo Hyuk let out a huge sigh and returned to his seat, mumbling to himself.

“It’s the grandson of Daerim Construction’s president, seems like he came to hang out with a friend. Seeing that face here.”

At that moment, Gi Tae’s eyebrows nimbly rose.

It was someone he knew very well. He wondered why the name that he barely remembered was coming to mind so clearly since yesterday.

Even before Joo Hyuk brought up the name first, Gi Tae muttered.

“Shin Yeon Woo.”

“…Huh? You know him too. Well, I guess anyone in the know would know him these days. You probably know him better than I do.”

Now that he was finally showing interest, Joo Hyuk also started chattering about Yeon Woo with excitement, as if he was pleased.

Thanks to having a father who was a media company president, despite having the unrelated profession of a veterinarian, Joo Hyuk knew much more than others.

“He’s someone our father’s company is keeping an eye on these days. There was a lot of talk about him being a parachute appointment when he suddenly appeared, but he immediately achieved big results and kept getting promoted rapidly. He not only proved his competence to quell the executives’ complaints, but apparently he has great business acumen too.”

Gi Tae looked down irritably at Joo Hyuk who was using his mouth more to ramble on than to drink.

Gi Tae, losing his taste for alcohol, got up from his seat.

Joo Hyuk looked up at Gi Tae in dismay and asked.

“Hey, are you done drinking already?”

“Yeah.”

“But I just got here? I’m just getting started…”

“You stay and drink more.”

“Hey, it’s no fun if you leave!”

As Gi Tae went down the stairs, Joo Hyuk, who was grumbling, eventually grabbed his jacket and followed him. When he tried to get into the elevator, someone stopped him by calling his name.

“Mr. Han Gi Tae?”

When Gi Tae turned around, there was Yeon Woo, smiling brightly at him with a familiar face.

Yeon Woo, who raised the corners of his mouth and gently narrowed his eyes while smiling, naturally extended his hand to Gi Tae.

“Yes?”

When Gi Tae just stared at that hand, Yeon Woo withdrew it as if embarrassed and started talking to him in a friendly manner.

“I heard from Ga Eul that you were busy yesterday and had to leave in a hurry.”

“…Ha.”

Now what is this about?

Gi Tae keenly observed him.

They were the type to just exchange greetings out of courtesy whenever they occasionally ran into each other. Facing this unfamiliar behavior for the first time, Gi Tae turned his body to fully face him. Yeon Woo hesitated slightly as if a bit shy, then said this to him.

“If you’ve known Ga Eul for 10 years, you’re practically like her older brother.”

Letting him continue just to see what he was up to…

He had a good idea what he was trying to do.

Yeon Woo spat out an answer that perfectly matched Gi Tae’s expectation.

“Then, would it be alright if I called you ‘hyung’? I’d like for us to be a bit closer.”

Still smiling brightly as if shy.

* * *

When Gi Tae flatly rejected Yeon Woo’s request, he seemed to shrink back dejectedly for a moment before smiling again.

He politely greeted them the whole way, sticking close by, wanting to see them off to the car, which was clearly an attempt to score points.

Leaving behind Joo Hyuk who was showering him with questions about whether they knew each other and if he was going straight home, Gi Tae got into the car.

Why did this razor-sharp mood refuse to subside?

The clamor was getting on his nerves. Gi Tae, who got into the backseat, raised his arm to cover his face.

The driver, glancing at the representative who seemed especially tired today, carefully opened his mouth.

“I’ll take you to your studio apartment, Representative.”

The sedan that drove quietly without any exhaust noise stopped in front of his studio. When the driver was about to turn his head towards him to inform him of their arrival, thinking he might be asleep as he was silent, Gi Tae instructed.

“Please head to the main house again.”

In the end, the car changed directions back to the main residence, leaving the studio apartment it had just arrived at right in front of it.

Gi Tae, who as usual told them there was no need to inform Chairman Han and his wife, got out of the car and moved his steps to the back of the main building, leaving only a message to wait for a moment.

The workshop with its lights still brightly lit was visible to his eyes that were not yet fully sober from the alcohol.

It was dawn, much later than the time he usually visited.

Gi Tae pushed open the workshop door without bothering to hide his presence.

Inside was Ga Eul, wrapped in a blanket with her body curled up.

He thought she might have been trying to paint, but looking around, there were no signs of her working.

Why does she keep sleeping here in discomfort…?

Gi Tae bent his knees and sat down next to Ga Eul, who was low in his field of vision as she was lying down.

“…Mmm.”

Half-asleep, Ga Eul rolled over. As a result, Ga Eul’s soft face that he could only see from the side was fully revealed.

Gi Tae, who was looking down at Ga Eul with her disheveled hair and slightly furrowed brows, brushed aside a strand of her hair.

He let out a soft laugh.

The mood that had been on edge all day for unknown reasons subsided the moment he saw that soft face, as if asking what had happened.

* * *

The next day, unlike yesterday, Ga Eul left the annex with a smile on her lips.

The person who she thought had been cold to her, the person she couldn’t run into all day yesterday, had contacted her first, telling her to come to the gallery.

‘I must have been mistaken.’

She had been anxious all day yesterday, but it seemed she had worried for nothing. Come to think of it, she had never made any significant mistake with him.

Ga Eul hurriedly hailed a taxi and got off in front of the gallery. She had rushed over here without even knowing why he called, but now that she arrived, she became curious as to why he had summoned her.

Ga Eul first approached near the office. Recognizing her face, the secretary knocked on the door instead and said,

“Representative, Miss Yoon Ga Eul is here.”

From inside came his low voice telling her to come in.

Ga Eul entered the office with a bright smile on her face, her lips curving up on their own.

Her heart was pounding excitedly, but Ga Eul paid attention to her voice to sound calm.

“Representative. Why did you call for me?”

The gaze that met hers was relentless.

Under the gaze that lingered on Ga Eul without a word, tension entered Ga Eul’s shoulders again.

Suddenly getting up from his seat, he put on his jacket and said,

“Let’s have dinner together.”

“Pardon?”

“Why, do you have plans?”

“No, I don’t.”

It’s a sudden suggestion but… what does it matter?

A soft smile graced Ga Eul’s face.

Gi Tae, glancing at Ga Eul, also let out a small laugh.

The two got up with matching smiles on their faces.

Just as Ga Eul followed Gi Tae out of the office and was about to exit the gallery lobby, it happened.

“Gi Tae!”

At the familiar voice, Ga Eul turned to the side.

Hye Su was calling out to Gi Tae as if glad to see him, quickly approaching.