I meant it was time for us to go our separate ways.

There was a moment when she thought, could this man like me? But she wasn’t a child; one doesn’t torment someone they like. What era is it now?

“Director, can I ask you something?”

“…….”

“Do you dislike me a lot?”

Instead of asking if he liked her, Soeun asked if he disliked her. It was the best question she could ask from her position. Was his emotion involved in assigning work to her? How much?

The question made her suddenly nervous.

She remembered the warm embrace she had impulsively sought yesterday. It was a hug that comforted her, even amidst a faint tremble, with its soothing scent.

She still thinks about it. If this man weren’t her boss, if he weren’t someone who felt so distant even when looked at closely, she might have felt a romantic attraction.

That was the boundary she set for their relationship, but what about him? How did he define her?

Having asked, Soeun waited for his mouth to open again.

In the quiet moment, the ordinarily sexy man, even with just a normal expression, looked at her with slightly narrowed eyes, his eyelids lowered.
Shortly afterward, Taejun, with an impeccably composed face, looked directly at Soeun and spoke.

“I am simply Chief Hansoeun’s supervisor, so if you work hard, I’ll be pleased. Conversely, if you’re not diligent, I’ll dislike it.”

It was a rational and somewhat harsh response.

“Still, I consider Chief Hansoeun to be a diligent person. So, I hope you won’t disappoint me.”

As if to say this is just work, as if to say there are no personal feelings involved.

Soeun’s thoughtfully posed question was rendered foolish by his textbook reply.

Having issued a supervisory directive, Taejun immediately got up from his seat and left the office.

Outside the office, Soeun could hear him offering to drive Director Song Munkyung home.

Though it wasn’t particularly heart-wrenching, her eyes warmed with tears.

Was it because she realized the person who had comforted her so warmly yesterday wasn’t really on her side?

Left alone in the office, Soeun looked at the mountain of documents with blurred vision.

By next Monday? It seemed almost impossible. Yet, receiving such a massive task sparked her determination.

‘If I complete this, it will be a significant milestone in my life.’

Do you think I’ll give up on the blind date?

I’ll pull an all-nighter if necessary. If it’s not possible, I’ll make it possible. I’ll show the resilience of a K[Dash]worker.

Soeun, determined to finish the work before the weekend, wiped the dew from her eyes.

Watch me, Yang Heeuk. Watch me, Kim Taejun.

I won’t fall apart.

I’ll live well, just to show you.

All things wet take shape only when they dry.

I, too, must compose myself once my tears dry.

Having a prior engagement near Director Song Munkyung’s house, Taejun decided to take Munkyung home and they both headed to the first floor.

“You are such a kind person.”

Munkyung cautiously voiced in the elevator.

“But you’re especially cold to Chief Hansoeun.”

“Do you think so?”

“It seems like you’re concerned about her.”

It was the first time Munkyung had shared a personal opinion about him. Director Song Munkyung was someone who knew where to draw the line and had a clear sense of judgment. If Munkyung felt compelled to comment, it meant Taejun had shown too much of his hand.

The previous night, Taejun had a dream. A memory from 20 years ago.

Except for his mom, dad, grandfather, and aunt, the first person to kiss him was engraved in his memory without resistance. Unlocking the ‘Hansoeun’ latch brought back lost memories one by one.

But his memories weren’t extensive. Not long after the incident, seven-year-old Hansoeun disappeared from the mansion. His aunt said she left one night without saying goodbye.

“Are you upset? Our Taejun must have grown fond of that girl.”

“Not at all. That can’t be. I disliked her.”

Taejun inevitably remembers that conversation with his aunt.

Truly, Taejun couldn’t have liked that girl. Candies, caramels, jellies, cookies, ice cream… He had given her so many treats, played with her so much. How could she leave without saying a word? It felt so void, such a profound sense of betrayal.

20 years later, the situation wasn’t much different. Kim Taejun was still nothing to Hansoeun.

Yet, he couldn’t take his eyes off her first.
So, the very Hansoeun who had arranged a blind date right after their farewell, the Hansoeun who had just mildly scolded him and then burst into laughter like someone gone mad, the Hansoeun from yesterday who left suddenly after planting dozens of question marks in his head and smiling sweetly, was truly intriguing, heart-wrenching, and infuriatingly annoying.

“Because I dislike her.”

The thought of that still small and frail girl, who yesterday seemed close and today, like a lie, turned into a stranger, and who might disappear again someday, filled him with an uneasy feeling.

“She’s exactly the type I dislike.”

Taejun crammed countless indescribable emotions into his statement of dislike.

Upon expressing it so conveniently, he felt uneasy.

This self-torment of keeping someone he disliked close by was something that should not be noticed by anyone.

“About aunt….”

“I won’t say anything. That’s my pride as a secretary.”

Before Taejun could finish his sentence, Munkyung confidently smiled.

“I serve Director Kim Taejun, not the far-away Chairman Kim Seokhwa.”

“Thank you.”

“There’s no need to thank me, Director. It’s only natural.”

Munkyung, as the chief, was someone Taejun could trust. However, Taejun was well aware that he shouldn’t stand out more than necessary.