As I Hyun and Ye Rin were about to leave, Pyeong Hun stopped them.

“What were you two doing at this late hour?”

A slight annoyance flashed across I Hyun’s face.

I Hyun quickly erased that expression and turned around.

“I wasn’t feeling well today.”

“Ah.”

“Ye Rin was helping me find some medicine.”

His cold gaze fixed on Pyeong Hun as usual.

“At that moment, Chairman Han came looking for me, so I was called out.”

“Ah, about that…”

“My headache is getting worse.”

I Hyun pressed his forehead with one hand, giving an Oscar-worthy performance as someone truly ill.

Perhaps it wasn’t even an act.

He must have been quite stressed throughout the conversation with Pyeong Hun.

I Hyun displayed a friendly smile as he glanced at Pyeong Hun.

“May I go take my medicine now?”

Though his tone was asking for permission, the answer was already decided.

Not wanting to be so insensitive as to detain someone who claimed to be ill, Pyeong Hun reluctantly nodded.

Without hesitation, I Hyun took Ye Rin’s hand and disappeared into the house.

After the door slammed shut, Pyeong Hun belatedly came to his senses.

“Ah, I was going to give them some pocket money. Damn it.”

But he lacked the courage to open that firmly closed door again.

He didn’t want to face I Hyun again, who could intimidate someone with just a few words.

With no other choice, Pyeong Hun left Ye Rin’s house, promising himself next time.

[This is the timeline separator]

As soon as they entered the house, Ye Rin let go of I Hyun’s hand.

She leaned against the wall and took a deep breath.

Just as Ye Rin was about to open her mouth to question him, I Hyun beat her to it.

“I’m sorry.”

“…”

“Secretary Han told me to stay quietly in this house, but I suddenly went out and intervened. I apologize for that.”

Yes, she was going to ask why he had done that.

But having received an apology before she could even question him, she was at a loss for words.

Of course, there was more that I Hyun had done wrong besides suddenly joining them.

“More than that…”

Just as she was about to bring it up.

“And I also apologize for abruptly introducing myself as your boyfriend in front of Secretary Han’s father.”

“…”

He was as sharp as a fox.

Once again, Ye Rin’s words were taken from her, leaving her lips moving silently.

There was still more.

She had pulled on I Hyun’s sleeve to stop him from speaking, but when she came to her senses, she realized his warmth was being transmitted through her hand.

Just as Ye Rin was about to speak, I Hyun’s low voice was heard.

“I’m also sorry for suddenly taking your hand without asking permission first.”

It was hard to argue when I Hyun seemed to know exactly what he had done wrong.

Ye Rin let out a short sigh.

“If you know all that, why did you do it?”

“It seemed like the conversation outside was getting heated, and I couldn’t just stand by and watch.”

I Hyun continued his defense, his eyes sparkling as if there were reasons for all his actions.

“I thought it would be better to introduce myself as your boyfriend rather than as Secretary Han’s superior.”

“Ah…”

“Should I not have done that?”

“No, that was good.”

Good, she said. Ye Rin quickly corrected herself.

“I mean, it was better than introducing yourself as the director. That only caused my father to leave with even more misunderstandings.”

“Oh my, I see.”

He acted as if he hadn’t known, despite clearly knowing everything.

Ye Rin let out a short sigh as she headed towards the sofa.

I Hyun followed right behind her like an oversized puppy, clearly pleased about something.

When Ye Rin sat on the sofa, he sat down too. Right next to her.

Seeing their thighs touching so closely, Ye Rin quietly scooted away.

“Why did you hold my hand?”

“Because I wanted to.”

“…”

“And I thought that if we were lovers, we would hold hands in that situation.”

That’s true, but we’re not lovers.

“Director, I haven’t decided to go through with this fake relationship yet.”

And whether we’ll become lovers in the future, that’s still unknown.

“Ah, right. That’s true.”

As if he had just realized something he hadn’t known, I Hyun flashed a dazzling smile.

“Oh dear. It seems I’ve introduced myself as your boyfriend to Secretary Han’s father before we’ve even started dating.”

“…”

In other words, this was a situation to go crazy over.

“I absolutely did not have that in mind when I went out there.”

“It seems like you did, though?”

“I simply didn’t want to leave Secretary Han alone in a difficult situation.”

“…”

True, thanks to I Hyun’s intervention, today had ended relatively quietly.

If it hadn’t been for that, she might have been hit, and Pyeong Hun might have stubbornly refused to leave until he gave her pocket money.

In any case, the conclusion was positive for Ye Rin as well.

It was a bit unsettling that Pyeong Hun had misunderstood her relationship with I Hyun and left, but the next time he visited, she could just say they had broken up.

“Thank you.”

At Ye Rin’s thanks, I Hyun slightly raised the corners of his mouth and stood up.

“Are you leaving?”

Now that I Hyun was actually leaving, she felt disappointed.

With Pyeong Hun’s interruption, she hadn’t been able to talk properly with I Hyun, and she also wanted to ask how much he had heard of her conversation with Pyeong Hun.

And truthfully, she wanted to spend more time with I Hyun.

There were many reasons why she wanted to keep I Hyun here, but Ye Rin belatedly regretted blurting out those words.

On the other hand, I Hyun seemed quite pleased.

“Would you like me to stay?”

Hearing his sly voice, Ye Rin quickly stood up.

“No. I was just asking because I wanted to escort you down to the first floor.”

It was an unbelievable excuse, but I Hyun seemed to believe it.

I Hyun took a step closer and pulled up Ye Rin’s cardigan that had slipped down one arm.

In that moment, I Hyun’s warm hand touched Ye Rin’s arm.

When Ye Rin flinched, the corners of I Hyun’s mouth rose simultaneously.

“Even though it’s spring, the nights are still cold. What if you catch a cold?”

“I’m quite robust, you know.”

“If you’re so overconfident and end up catching a cold, how will you face me then?”

Ye Rin bit her lip with an awkward smile.

As if he was really about to leave Ye Rin’s house now, I Hyun headed towards the front door.

“Director, let’s go down to the first floor together.”

“That’s alright.”

“The stairs here are quite dark…”

“Secretary Han.”

“Yes, Director.”

“Relax and go to bed early.”

His voice was so gentle as he said those words that she almost nodded as if entranced.

I Hyun, who had put on his shoes, tilted his head slightly.

“You were tense the whole time you were with me.”

“No, I wasn’t. That never happened.”

Even if denying it wouldn’t erase what had happened, she wanted to deny it anyway.

Pfft-

I Hyun laughed again at Ye Rin’s denial.

“Then, Secretary Han, have sweet dreams.”

With those words, I Hyun closed the door and went outside.

Thump thump-

Only after the sound of him going down the stairs had disappeared did Ye Rin move.

“Haa.”

When she entered the kitchen, the green tea cups they had drunk from were still there.

After finishing the dishes, she was about to go to her room when her eyes lingered on the sofa for a moment.

Although the time he had spent in this house wasn’t that long, traces of his presence remained everywhere.

Especially his unique pleasant scent that had permeated Ye Rin’s house.

Her heart was so.

Unsettled.

[This is the timeline separator]

The weather had become quite warm, perhaps because spring was approaching.

Still, it was a time when one shouldn’t let their guard down due to the large temperature differences between day and night.

Ye Rin entered the director’s secretary office of Jiseok Electronics and greeted everyone.

Secretary Kim and Secretary Shin also greeted Ye Rin with bright smiles.

While she was sitting at her desk organizing I Hyun’s schedule.

He appeared in the office.

As always, his neatly combed hair fully revealed his handsome forehead.

His appearance was radiant from the morning.

It was no exaggeration to say that the office became even brighter when he entered.

“Good morning.”

I Hyun left a brief greeting and went straight into his office.

It was a common greeting, but Secretary Kim and Secretary Shin were shocked.

“Did you hear that?”

“Did the director just greet us?”

Ye Rin squeezed between the two, looking puzzled.

“Why are you so surprised?”

“Han Secretary, you don’t know. Our director is someone who neither greets nor receives greetings.”

“What?”

Secretary Kim still looked dumbfounded.

“I thought I had misheard.”

“I’ve been serving the director for 3 years, and this is the first time I’ve heard him greet anyone.”

While they were chatting, Secretary Choi, who was late, came in.

“Why do you all look like that?”

“Secretary Choi, the director greeted us today.”

“What?”

Secretary Choi dropped the briefcase he was holding.

“You’re not trying to fool me, are you?”

“It’s true.”

“Huh.”

Secretary Choi belatedly picked up his briefcase, surprised.

“I should ask if the director is feeling unwell.”

“It’s really worrying.”

“He used to be as cold as ice, but lately he seems to be smiling more often.”

“Why is he acting like this?”

Secretary Choi quickly put his briefcase on his desk and knocked on the office door.

Ye Rin returned to her seat, mulling over what the other secretaries had said earlier.

She had heard rumors that I Hyun was a man as cold as ice.

However, she hadn’t really seen that side of I Hyun during the time she had spent with him.

‘He’s a good person, but it seems everyone else hasn’t realized his true worth yet.’

Ye Rin made that simple decision.

Soon, the director’s office door opened and Secretary Choi called for Ye Rin.

“Secretary Han, go in and brief him on the schedule.”

“Yes.”

Ye Rin took a deep breath, holding her diary, and went inside.

I Hyun, who had been reviewing documents, slowly raised his head.

“Did you sleep well, Secretary Han?”

Ye Rin quickly slammed the door shut.

She hurried, worried that the secretaries outside might hear what I Hyun had said.

“I’m sorry.”

“I didn’t sleep well.”

“Couldn’t you sleep well last night either?”

I Hyun answered with a bright smile.

“I slept less than an hour.”

“If you’re tired, should I adjust today’s schedule a bit?”

“That’s alright. It’s not like postponing the schedule will make the fatigue go away.”

Ye Rin was about to brief him while handing over the well-organized schedule to I Hyun.

I Hyun, as if not caring about that at all, pushed it aside on the desk and rested his chin on one hand.

“So, have you made a decision about the proposal I made yesterday?”

“Ah, about that…”

Originally, she had planned to go through the schedule briefing as slowly as possible, finish all the work, and then talk about it when leaving work.

“That can wait until later…”

“Later when?”

“Director, you have quite a busy schedule today. After I explain all of that…”

“I’ll take care of this myself.”

This method doesn’t seem like it will work.

Ye Rin straightened her back and spoke.

“Then, may I give you my opinion when we finish work and leave?”

“Why?”

“Pardon?”

“Will your decision change if you think about it longer?”

“No.”

“So then.”

Ye Rin gently bit her lip and carefully spoke.

“I think it would be better for you to hear it when we leave work.”

This was purely out of consideration for I Hyun.