Yeo Reum’s smile widened at his near-affirmative answer.

She tugged at the edge of Gi Tae’s jacket, urging him to go outside.

The two of them got on the elevator. Gi Tae looked down at Yeo Reum and asked, “Where are we going?”

“To the gallery’s storage room first.”

“The storage room? Why there?”

“Well……”

Her smooth face, which had been repeatedly muttering ‘Well…’, was once again veiled with a smile.

“You’ll know when we get there.”

Seeking cooperation while being thoroughly unforthcoming with explanations.

Nonetheless, because Yeo Reum was wearing the happiest smile he had seen from her recently, Gi Tae unknowingly followed her lead.

And so, they arrived at the gallery’s storage room.

Located in the gallery’s basement, the storage room prioritized humidity above all else. It was equipped with a systematic setup to block out any elements that could cause the paintings to deteriorate. For that reason, it was the place where the most money had been invested.

Gi Tae followed behind Yeo Reum, keenly scanning the paintings that caught his eye. It was a habit he had developed while running the gallery business.

From the skills of the artists who had painted those works to the overall feeling and messages within, the most important thing he considered was whether the painting would be worth a lot of money and its potential.

He was a businessman before an art lover. Unlike Yeo Reum, the artist, who warmly appreciated other artists’ works, he had to view them objectively.

Just then, Yeo Reum came to a stop. Gi Tae’s gaze also shifted to her.

Yeo Reum ran her hand down the side of a canvas.

Gi Tae, who had peeked at the painting from behind Yeo Reum, let out a small laugh. Although it wasn’t fully visible as it was wrapped in white cloth, the blue hues faintly showing through made it clear what it was.

It was the painting he had given her.

Upon discovering it, Yeo Reum’s expression looked as excited as a child who had received a surprise gift.

Gi Tae tapped the top of Yeo Reum’s head and asked, “When did you bring this here?”

“The day right after you gave it to me. I asked the director to secretly keep it for me.”

Yeo Reum hugged the cloth-wrapped in her arms.

“Since my studio is located behind the garden, I thought the humidity might be a bit high. What if it deteriorates? It’s a painting that’s extremely precious to me……”

Then, Yeo Reum smiled brightly. Her smile seemed exceptionally radiant today.

“I’ve taken care of the painting, so let’s go now.”

“Where to?”

“To your studio apartment.”

.

.

.

Even heading to the studio apartment, he didn’t hold out hope.

He had known for a while that whatever she wanted would be different from what he wanted.

What Yeo Reum had wanted to do was admire his father’s painting together and share stories about it.

Gi Tae, who had been watching Yeo Reum gaze at the painting from a distance, let out a small laugh. He handed her a warm cup of tea.

Sitting on the sofa, Yeo Reum didn’t even glance at the tea he offered, continuously staring only at .

Yeo Reum was deeply immersed in her father’s painting, which she had taken out again after a long time.

Gi Tae looked down at her sitting next to him, appreciating her father’s painting, and let out another small laugh.

Now that he knew what she had wanted to do with him, it seemed so trivial that it was absurd.

She loved painting even more than he had thought. Enough to leave her one and only lover alone when it was just the two of them.

Her small head, brazenly and adorably settled in his studio apartment, was constantly nodding side to side in a uniform manner, seemingly in a good mood.

Leaning against Gi Tae’s arm, Yeo Reum looked down at the painting a bit more before finally opening her mouth after a long time.

“What do you think of this painting?”

“What do I think?”

“I mean, from your perspective.”

Yeo Reum, who had only been looking at the painting, turned her head and glanced up at Gi Tae. Only then did Gi Tae reach out and pinch her cheek at the gaze directed at him.

“I shouldn’t expect an honest impression from you, should I?”

“Wha?”

Yeo Reum’s pronunciation became muffled due to Gi Tae pinching her cheek. Finding that quite cute, Gi Tae let out a small laugh, looked at the painting again, and answered coldly.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think highly of this painting.”

Even though he knew it was his father’s work, his evaluation was fair and cold as can be.

His expression looking down at her seemed to say, ‘You’ll be hurt.’

Yeo Reum secretly let out a small laugh. His reaction to her question wasn’t far from what she had expected. Like everyone else in the world, he also thought of this painting as one of her father’s works.

Of course, it wasn’t entirely wrong. The background was painted by her father. It was only half right and half wrong.

Yeo Reum held back the corners of her mouth that were trying to rise slightly and urged him for an answer. The playfulness that had been creeping up suddenly reared its head.

“But I’m still curious. Please?”

Gi Tae, who sighed at Yeo Reum’s urging, pointed roughly at the tree and spoke reluctantly.

“The tree is terrible.”

At his additional remark that it didn’t seem like Yoon Dae Ho’s painting, Yeo Reum finally couldn’t hold back her laughter and burst out laughing. His face, looking at her as if puzzled, seemed quite ridiculous and amusing.

After laughing for a while, Yeo Reum wrapped up her laughter and filled her eyes with the tree again. Then, she slowly opened her mouth.

“I painted that, you know.”

“What?”

“I painted it. That tree.”

“……….”

Perhaps surprised, his answer didn’t come right away. Yeo Reum carefully put the painting down on the table and turned her body. Then, she suddenly wrapped her arms around his waist as he sat next to her.

Gi Tae’s body momentarily trembled at the touch that brushed past his waist and settled.

However, due to Yeo Reum seriously stringing together her words, his gaze only shifted back to her smooth face.

“Thank you. I wanted to express my proper gratitude even now, since I couldn’t before. This is the first painting that my father and I painted together. We painted it when I was very young. My father did the background, and I did all the trees.”

At Yeo Reum’s words, Gi Tae’s gaze briefly moved from her to .

Although Yeo Reum couldn’t tell what he was thinking, she continued talking on her own even without his response.

“I don’t know how I forgot about this painting. It’s the most precious painting to me……”

“……”

“I like this painting even more than . Because it holds memories with my father. And I liked it even more because you gave it to me.”

She poured out all the things she had wanted to say for a long time.

Things she couldn’t properly convey back then, confused by her suddenly growing feelings after receiving the painting.

Then, Yeo Reum suddenly thought of Shin Yeon Woo, whom she had met today.

He still hadn’t given her any news about her father’s painting. It seemed like it would take quite a long time. Encountering another one of her father’s paintings was an arduous process.

As she thought about , came to mind again, and she wanted to take it out and look at it again after a long time.

Yeo Reum snuggled into Gi Tae’s arms and let out a small laugh. Only then did Gi Tae open his mouth as usual.

“Yoon Yeo Reum. If you’re so grateful, are you going to express it only with words?”

“Well……”

Gi Tae tapped the tip of Yeo Reum’s nose and asked.

It seemed like a question with a predetermined answer, so Yeo Reum raised her knees, cupped his face with both hands, and briefly pressed her lips against his before pulling away.

Gi Tae spoke as if unsatisfied.

“What are you going to do with just this?”

“……Then?”

“It’s far from enough.”

Gi Tae wrapped his arms around Yeo Reum’s waist and laid her down on the sofa. Straddling her, Gi Tae planted small kisses all over Yeo Reum’s face.

Brushing aside the hair scattered on the sofa, he soon captured her lips.

As Yeo Reum wrapped her arms around Gi Tae’s neck, the kiss gradually deepened.

Their lips parted, and Yeo Reum caught her breath.

Gi Tae traced her glistening lips with his thumb and said with the corners of his mouth lifted.

“Now that I look at it again, well…… it doesn’t seem too bad.”

“What doesn’t?”

“That tree, I mean.”

The painting done by young Yoon Yeo Reum…….

Gi Tae’s gaze briefly shifted from Yeo Reum beneath him to . Yeo Reum looked up at him with wide eyes as if not understanding what he meant. He let out a small laugh, looked down at Yeo Reum again, and spoke.

“What strength could a child have in their hands? Painting that much is already good.”

Yeo Reum burst into laughter at Gi Tae’s brazenness.

Wiping away the tears that had gathered in her eyes from laughing too much with her sleeve, she retorted.

“Isn’t it too easy for you to change your words?”

Yeo Reum, trapped in Gi Tae’s arms, continuously let out laughter. Gi Tae’s eyes, looking down at Yeo Reum, were filled with warmth.

“That was before I knew the artist’s circumstances.”

“I didn’t know you were someone who considered such circumstances……”

As Yeo Reum, nestled in Gi Tae’s arms, started talking more out of joy, Gi Tae pressed his index finger against her lips.

“Shh. Yeo Reum. Let’s save the rest for later.”

Just then, Yeo Reum’s cell phone rang loudly.

Rrrr…… Rrrr……

After a moment’s hesitation, Yeo Reum spoke with an embarrassed smile.

“Oh, it must be my mom. I left without telling her that I’d be staying out tonight.”

“……”

“I didn’t know if I’d be able to see you today.”

Gi Tae let out a deep sigh and ruffled his hair before sitting up.

“Let’s go. I’ll take you home.”

* * *

Clang!

At the Verdi Hotel located in Jamsil.

In a corner of the lounge on the 79th floor with a beautiful view, a shattered teacup was scattered. Hye Su continued to fume without even glancing at the teacup she had thrown.

“Is it even possible to not see his face even once like this?”

Min Ji, who was sitting across from her, tried to stop her, conscious of the staff’s gazes.

“Hye Su. Calm down……”

She glared at Min Ji.

“Ye-yeah. I understand you’re upset……”

Min Ji quickly shut her mouth.

Hye Su kept tapping her high heels, making a clicking sound.

“Ah, it’s really annoying!”

‘I tried to make an appointment when he told me to, but what……?’

A few days ago, Hye Su had directly called Gi Tae’s department store office.

His secretary, who answered the phone, asked for the purpose of the call, whispered briefly over the receiver, and then relayed the answer that she would likely have to wait for over a month. Then, what was the point of calling?

‘Do you know who I am to say that?’

Hye Su thought his secretaries were doing a poor job. So she told them her name.

Even if he was busy, she thought they couldn’t do this if they heard her name and knew who she was. However, the secretary only repeatedly relayed the mechanical answer that they would handle it in order.

What was getting on Hye Su’s nerves like this was none other than his face that she couldn’t see since that day.

If she had seen his face even once since then, she wouldn’t have become this sensitive.

But seeing his face had become as difficult as plucking stars from the sky.

Hye Su, with her eyes raised, couldn’t contain her anger and called someone.

−Hello?

As soon as she heard the kind man’s voice, Hye Su snapped at him.

“Dad. Is Gi Tae really that busy? His secretary is telling me to wait for over a month!”

The voice of her father trying to calm his angry only daughter came from over the receiver.

−Do you think I wouldn’t have checked properly for my daughter’s request? I asked the chairman, and he said Gi Tae would be so busy that he wouldn’t have a moment to spare these days since he’s concurrently running the department store and gallery business.

“Really……?”

−Of course! It’s true that he’s busy.

“Okay. I got it for now.”

Hye Su hung up the phone and stood up from her seat. Then, she handed her card to the staff member and smiled brightly.

“I accidentally dropped the teacup. I’ll pay for it together.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Leaving the staff member who took the card behind, Hye Su made another call to someone.

After a few rings, the other person answered the phone. However, there was no response. So Hye Su greeted first.

“It’s been a while, Reporter Oh Byung Hoon. Have you been well?”

−…… Ah, yes. Ms. Cha Hye Su.

The other person gave a reluctant answer. Just then, the staff member approached Hye Su.

“Ma’am. Your payment has been completed.”

Hye Su, who had briefly paused the conversation at the staff member’s call, took the card and turned around.

Then, she raised the corners of her mouth and continued the call.

“We should meet up and catch up after a long time.”

−I’m busy these days. I don’t really have anything to tell you either.

Despite the man’s refusal, Hye Su didn’t lose her smile and pressed him as if threatening.

−You shouldn’t be able to just wash your hands of it after receiving everything you did, right?

−……

“I don’t intend to keep you for long. As you know, I’m also a busy person.”

−……

“I’ll leave the address, so come there.”

The man let out a sigh and soon agreed.

−Okay, I understand for now.