While Hyun was pondering what conversation topic to bring up, something caught his eye.

“Han Ye Rin, here.”

“Yes?”

Hyun tapped his index finger on his own lips.

There was wine stained near Ye Rin’s lips, so he was gesturing for her to wipe it with a tissue.

But perhaps misunderstanding, Ye Rin smiled sweetly, closing her eyes.

“You want me to touch it?”

Ye Rin leaned forward abruptly and pressed where Hyun had just touched with his finger.

When Ye Rin’s finger made contact, Hyun’s eyes widened visibly.

“No, I didn’t mean for you to touch my lips.”

Hyun’s lips burned hotly where Ye Rin was pressing.

Hyun quickly grabbed Ye Rin’s wrist.

Whew.

Exhaling a hot breath, Hyun continued in a low voice.

“I meant there’s wine on your lips, Han Ye Rin.”

“Ah.”

It seemed Ye Rin was indeed quite drunk.

Normally, Ye Rin would have put up walls and been wary of Hyun, but now she was approaching him first like this.

Ye Rin smiled, her eyes curving like crescents, and leaned back again.

“I thought you were bragging that your lips were attractive.”

Ye Rin wiped her lips with a tissue and put it in the trash can under the table.

Watching her, Hyun asked in a low voice.

“Are they attractive?”

“You mean you?”

“Yes.”

For just a moment, there was a pause.

Usually when they were together, Ye Rin was the tense one.

Today was the opposite.

Hyun tried to hide his nervousness as he waited for Ye Rin’s next words.

“Before that, there’s something I want to ask.”

“What is it.”

“Do you have a drinking habit?”

“Drinking habit?”

“Yes.”

He didn’t have a drinking habit.

To begin with, he had a high tolerance and was someone who rarely showed signs no matter how much he drank.

And today, Hyun hadn’t taken even a sip of wine at this gathering, so of course he wouldn’t be drunk.

Ye Rin seemed not to have noticed that, being busy enjoying the wine herself.

“Han Ye Rin, why are you asking about my drinking habit?”

“That’s a secret. If you tell me your habit first, I’ll tell you mine.”

As Ye Rin smiled to herself again, Hyun’s heart trembled finely.

He thought he wanted to be the only one to see this beautiful sight.

Roughly grasping the flow of conversation, it seemed he shouldn’t truthfully say he had no habit.

So Hyun felt pangs of conscience as he made up a non-existent habit.

“The next day, I don’t remember well.”

“Really?”

“Yes. People commonly call it a blackout.”

Ye Rin clapped her hands, saying this was really fortunate.

And she began to reveal the real reason she asked this question.

“You’re very drunk now too, right?”

No, not at all.

But it seemed he should pretend to be drunk.

“Yes. It seems so.”

Ah, actually he was drunk. Completely intoxicated by Ye Rin’s charms before him.

Even if alcohol could be detoxified by the liver over time, there was no antidote for falling for Ye Rin’s charms.

He would never be able to escape.

Ye Rin leaned forward as if about to tell an incredible secret.

The t-shirt Hyun had given her was too big and kept slipping off her shoulder.

Ye Rin pulled up the shirt neatly, then covered her mouth with one hand and whispered in Hyun’s ear.

“I’m telling you this because you said you won’t remember tomorrow.”

“…”

“You’re very attractive.”

“Is that so.”

Though he answered so calmly, Hyun’s heart was beating helplessly.

It was because of what Ye Rin said, but even more because of the hot breath touching his ear.

Just as he was about to stand up.

Ye Rin grabbed Hyun’s wrist and gestured for him to sit down again.

He wondered if he was now receiving everything he had done to Ye Rin until now.

Was she trying to train him like this?

But Ye Rin was just a person happily drunk on alcohol, with no such intention.

Hyun barely calmed his heart that felt about to burst, and nodded as if to say go on.

“Actually, I’m glad I got to serve you.”

This was also something he was hearing for the first time.

“At first I was a bit surprised and flustered…”

“And?”

“As we spent time together, you were so considerate.”

“And.”

“You seem like a good person.”

“You mean I seem like a good man.”

At those words, Ye Rin pondered for a moment.

“Hmm.”

Her contemplation went on for quite a while.

At last, her red lips parted.

“But is it really true that your drinking habit is not remembering?”

Even if it wasn’t, he had to say it was true no matter what.

He was too curious about what Ye Rin would say next.

“Yes. I won’t remember anything tomorrow.”

As if emboldened by those words, Ye Rin slowly stroked Hyun’s large hand and muttered to herself.

“You are a cool man.”

“…”

“Of course I respect you as my boss too.”

His heart was pounding so fiercely, he was afraid Ye Rin beside him might hear it.

“But your hands are really pretty too.”

Ye Rin looked at Hyun’s long fingers, then grabbed his wrist.

And she held Hyun’s hand up in the air, then suddenly placed her own hand against it.

Though it was a small touch, Hyun felt dizzy for a moment.

His whole body had grown hot from Ye Rin’s touches that kept occurring.

“Wow, did you know your fingers are more than two joints longer than mine?”

“I see.”

If someone saw from the side, they would burst out laughing at how stiff Hyun was.

Like a broken robot.

Usually Hyun led their conversations, but tonight the atmosphere had completely shifted to Ye Rin.

All Hyun said were things like “Is that so”, “I see”, “And then?”.

After comparing hands for a while, Ye Rin whispered softly as if she had another secret to tell.

“Actually, earlier in the elevator…”

“Was it unpleasant?”

“What?”

“I’m sorry if you were uncomfortable with me subtly approaching and touching you.”

“No?”

Ye Rin shook her head.

It was a relief she said no, but.

Seeing Ye Rin’s eyes curve like crescents, Hyun suddenly felt afraid.

She was clearly about to do something unexpected.

“I actually felt regretful then.”

“…”

“I wanted to hold it like this.”

And without warning, Ye Rin intertwined her fingers with Hyun’s large ones and grasped them.

Their hands touching without gaps grew hot.

Why was this act of just holding hands making him so nervous, when they had done even more?

“Ah, this is a real secret. Okay?”

“Yes.”

He wasn’t sure who exactly it needed to be kept secret from, but Hyun nodded for now.

“You really won’t remember tomorrow, right?”

“Of course. I won’t remember anything.”

“Whew, that’s a relief.”

It really was a moment when he thought it was good he had come up with that brilliant fake drinking habit on the spot.

Ye Rin leaned back on the sofa again without letting go of Hyun’s hand she was holding.

“Yawn.”

She yawned and tried to lift her now heavier eyelids.

“If you’re sleepy, get some rest.”

“No, I should go home.”

“I’ll take you, so get some sleep first.”

“I’m not going to sleep. And I can go alone.”

Ye Rin’s words grew slower and slower, until only the sound of her quiet breathing could be heard.

Hyun quickly got up and grabbed a blanket.

He covered Ye Rin’s knees with it and lifted her in his arms.

As he grabbed the car keys and went down to the parking lot, his bad thoughts of not wanting to take her home fought fiercely with his last remaining reason.

The bad thoughts saying why bother taking her home raised their voice to let her sleep in the guest room.

The faint thread of reason argued logically that if Ye Rin woke up confused tomorrow morning, would he take responsibility.

Ye Rin must have been very tired, as she slept motionless in Hyun’s arms.

“It seems I’ve become comfortable.”

Which was fortunate, but.

He also worried a lot about whether he had become too unattractive as a man, if that’s why she could fall asleep so comfortably around him.

Hyun opened the passenger door and gently laid Ye Rin down.

He fastened her seatbelt and drove smoothly.

The roads were empty so they could arrive at Ye Rin’s home without getting stuck.

But the real problem started now.

“Han Ye Rin.”

No matter how many times he called her name, there was no response.

He had come this far thinking he should take Ye Rin home, but.

It was a big problem that Ye Rin wouldn’t wake up.

After about ten minutes like that.

As Hyun was wondering what to do.

Ye Rin, who had been tossing and turning, slowly lifted her eyelids.

“Huh?”

“Are you awake?”

“Yes.”

Ye Rin looked around and realized she was in front of her house.

“Did I sleep for long?”

“No. We just arrived.”

“Thank you for bringing me when you must be tired.”

Ye Rin hurriedly unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door.

Hyun quickly got out of the driver’s seat and came to her side.

Ye Rin stumbled as she put her foot outside the car, perhaps not fully sober yet.

“Ah…”

Hyun swiftly grabbed her waist and held her in his arms.

“Thank you.”

Ye Rin hurriedly pulled away from him and straightened her waist.

“Then take care on your way back.”

“Let’s go together.”

Hyun walked in step with Ye Rin, adding as if there was no other meaning:

“In case you slip on the stairs.”

Ye Rin didn’t refuse and went up to her house with him.

She still felt dazed, unable to tell if it was from sleep or alcohol.

Reaching the rooftop floor, Ye Rin unlocked the door and turned to face Hyun.

“Take care, Director.”

“Huh.”

In that time, her way of addressing him had changed to Director.

Until just now she had come so close and pressed his lips as she pleased before running away.

As Hyun was about to say something.

Ye Rin smiled brightly and quickly went inside.

“By the way, I didn’t ask what Han secretary’s drinking habit is.”

She seemed quite drunk, but he wondered if she would remember today.

Seeing how she just ran away into her house avoiding him like that, it seemed she might remember everything.

He stood on that ambiguous boundary.

He looked forward to tomorrow so much.