The place Ji Han chose for their meeting was the wisteria bench on the hill behind the Humanities building, a spot he hadn’t visited since their relationship soured.

Yoo In wasn’t particularly fond of the location, but accepted without complaint.

As she climbed the quiet hill path, her heart fluttered anxiously. While his contact was both welcome and surprising, she was uncertain what kind of sharp reaction might pass between them.

As she composed her tumultuous feelings, she drew closer to the bench and soon spotted Ji Han, who had arrived first and was sitting there. It felt like she was facing him for the first time in months, as if they hadn’t seen each other in ages.

“Hello.”

His calm greeting as their eyes met felt oddly irritating. Yoo In sat down beside him without replying, leaving a slight distance between them.

“…”

“…”

There was certainly a time when the quietly continuing silence wouldn’t have been uncomfortable. If she said she missed those days, how would Ji Han respond?

Though somewhat curious, Yoo In chose not to ask anything and waited for him instead.

Despite the broad daylight campus view before them being nothing particularly novel, the two continued their silence with their gazes fixed on some distant point.

Around the time it felt like several dozen minutes had subjectively passed, Ji Han broke the silence first.

“I’m sorry.”

At this unexpected apology, Yoo In, who had been intently watching tree branches swaying gently in the light breeze far away, slowly turned her head.

Ji Han continued speaking while gazing somewhere on the campus grounds, with an expression that seemed empty yet relieved.

“I’ve been holding onto a really misguided misconception. You know how important and… precious the time I’ve spent with you and Han Jae Hee is to me too.”

“…”

“I think I just couldn’t accept that you, who I thought I knew best and would always be by my side, were getting closer to someone else and becoming their precious person. It felt like I was losing you. Even though it shouldn’t have been like that.”

“…”

“You’re not an object. And I’m not a child. I… I was like that, Yoo In.”

His pale eyes turned towards Yoo In.

The faintly upturned corners of his mouth looked wistful yet genuine and gentle.

“I’m sorry, Nam Yoo In. I did a lot of reflecting and got scolded plenty by Han Jae Hee before coming to my senses.”

“…”

“Won’t you accept my apology?”

Yoo In quietly gazed at him without adding any words.

The afternoon sunlight, broken into small pieces, settled on his thin pale cheeks and sparkled finely. The clear, gentle light gathered at his slightly creased eyes and beautifully curved lips was exactly as Yoo In remembered Ji Han, yet he somehow looked subtly different.

Was it because of his light-colored hair that had grown long enough to cover his forehead? Or was it due to his more deeply set eyes?

He had transformed from a fresh and vibrant boy into a man exuding a more mature ripeness.

“…You.”

“Yes?”

“…”

“If you want to curse at me, go ahead. If you want to hit me, do it.”

Yoo In burst out laughing at Ji Han’s ridiculous suggestion, mistaking her hesitation for anger.

Hit him? She had never even cursed at him. From the start, Ji Han had never caused any trouble in front of Yoo In. Except for this incident.

“Why are you just laughing without saying anything? It’s making me more nervous.”

“You think a verbal apology alone will be enough? Think about what you did. I was hit by a bolt from the blue from my best friend.”

“What should I do? What can I do for you? What do you want me to do? Tell me anything. Just don’t cut ties with me.”

“Why exclude that?”

“…Ah, Yoo In. Should I get on my knees right now?”

Ji Han abruptly stood up and hitched up his jeans, as if truly about to bend his knees to the dirt ground.

Yoo In frowned in alarm.

“Ah, stop it. Stop. That’s enough!”

“If it’ll make you feel better, I don’t mind doing it. It’s no big deal to me.”

“I said that’s enough! Stop and sit properly in the chair, please.”

“You’ll forgive me if I don’t kneel? Say you will and I’ll sit.”

This was no longer just an apology, but more like cute blackmail. Yet a smile kept escaping despite herself.

His playfully squinting one eye as if the sun was too bright after emerging from the shade, his efforts to lighten the mood with silly antics, that familiar and comforting smile as he looked at her.

It felt like her crumpled heart was smoothing out, comforted by the ease and comfort of things that had lingered by her side for so long.

Yoo In held out her right hand to Ji Han. The thin chain clinked clearly as it bumped against the lock-shaped charm.

“I absolve you of your sins.”

Her cheeks rose in a bright smile, mismatched with her voice imitating sternness.

Clear, moist eyes gazed at Ji Han honestly without a trace of self-interest. Ji Han added a faint smile as he looked at Yoo In’s familiar yet more sorrowful gaze.

Ignoring the faint warmth spreading from their clasped hands.

“You can’t say anything else now. You said you forgive me, right?”

“You stop it too. I was really hurt, you know.”

“Were you?”

“Yeah. I felt so frustrated, but neither you nor Jae Hee would tell me anything, and you didn’t even want to see me. I had no idea what was going on-”

“Ah ah. Let’s stop talking about what’s passed! Let’s go eat something delicious. What do you want to eat? Your elder brother will treat you to anything. As a gesture of reconciliation.”

When Ji Han tugged on the hand he was gripping tightly, Yoo In’s body rose easily.

Ji Han caught her shoulders as she stumbled at the sudden movement, then put his arm around her and asked. Yoo In wrinkled her nose in displeasure before smiling.

“You’re treating? Then let’s go for fine dining. Something really expensive.”

“Uh, that’s a bit…”

“Why? You said you’d pay for anything.”

“Yoo In, I haven’t signed a contract yet.”

“But you have contracts to sign?”

“Nam Yoo In, you don’t know much. I have mountains of contracts. Do you know how many companies are begging me to join them?”

In Ji Han’s loosely enveloping warmth, all the emotional struggles of the past seemed to wash away as if they had never existed, and her unsettled heart was finally put at ease.

The path she had climbed with her heart tightly clenched was no longer lonely or painful.

The ordinary daily life she had regained after so long was, as Ji Han said, incredibly precious.

****

-So in the end we couldn’t go where we wanted and just made a reservation. But do you know when the earliest available date was? Three months from now. It’s not like we’re booking an overseas trip or something.

“You must have been disappointed not being able to eat what you wanted.”

-But eating comfortably near school wasn’t bad either. Oh! And Ji Han said he’s received tons of contract offers.

“Is that so?”

Unlike his sensitive voice agreeing, Ki Yeon opened the clear file folder on the desk with an annoyed, perfunctory gesture.

After briefly skimming the profile photo captivating enough to catch any casting director’s eye and the briefly written career history, he irritably pushed it away to the far side of the desk.

-Yes. There are even some famous companies among them, but he says he’s still thinking it over.

“It’s good to be careful with the first contract, I suppose.”

-It seems Yu Jin unnie wants him to come to Ilrang. She said she’s there, and… that the director would take good care of him.

Hearing nonsense that would never come from his own mouth, Ki Yeon pressed his temples forcefully with two fingers, his elbow resting on the leather armchair.

Anyway, this is really not helpful. Neither this nor that. He sharply chewed the surging temper in his mouth.

Separately from that, his tone towards Yoo In remained consistently gentle.

“Hmm, did she say that?”

Just then, a disruptive voice clearly cut through Yoo In’s bright tone, calling “Nam Yoo In, let’s go!” Ki Yeon’s closed eyes snapped open and one eyebrow raised irritably just as Yoo In quickly relayed:

-Oh, Director. I’ll call you back later!

Whatever the rush was, Yoo In had already disappeared from the phone. Seeing the screen turn black as the call ended, annoyance and anger welled up to his chin.

The unpleasant feeling of being suddenly pushed down Nam Yoo In’s priority list was hard to bear.

With not much time left until the next meeting, Ki Yeon leaned back in his chair, his expression severely furrowed.

“Hoo…”

Until just yesterday, he had anticipated that the constantly irritating person would fall away more easily than expected, so he hadn’t considered exceptional situations like today.

It was largely his own fault for recently floundering in the fullness of being the only one in Nam Yoo In’s world, living with the self-consciousness of becoming her one and only person.

But why did this bastard suddenly change his mind? When did he act so coldly as if he’d never look back, making things difficult for Yoo In?

Knock knock.

At the crisp knocking sound, Ki Yeon ignored it with his forehead buried in his palm.

A few seconds later, along with the sound of the heavy door opening, a man approached Ki Yeon’s side with neat movements.

“Director. Team Leader Han would like to see you for a moment.”

“…”

“I told him you have a meeting, but he said it would only take a moment-”

“Tell him to come in. I’ll leave in time for the meeting, so have everything ready on schedule.”

Ki Yeon sharply instructed without even making eye contact.

Jin Seok, deciding he should notify the meeting attendees that the boss’s mood, which had seemed fine until this morning, was now very low for some unknown reason, gave a slight bow.

“Understood.”

Only after Jin Seok left did Ki Yeon remove his hand, revealing eyes tinged with bleakness. The man’s index finger impatiently tapped the pitch-black desk as he lifted his sharp chin slightly, lost in thought.

He was quite displeased that things weren’t going according to his wishes. And that Nam Yoo In was involved in it. Just as the icy daggers engraved in his eyes were about to melt in the blazing heat, another knock sounded.

“Yes.”

This time he answered the visitor rather politely.

Then, through the wide open door entered Team Leader Han, who oversees the actor business team, smiling amiably.

“Director Do! I’m sorry to bother you when you’re busy. I have something urgent to discuss with you.”

“Have a seat.”

Ki Yeon, dressed in a formal vest, checked his wristwatch as he took the main seat. It was to let Team Leader Han know he didn’t have much time to spare.

Understanding his intention, Team Leader Han got straight to the point without delay.

“Did you by any chance check the profile I submitted a few weeks ago?”

“Yes, I did.”

“How did you find it, Director?”

The face armed with a perfect poker face tilted slightly sideways as he rested his chin on his hand. It was an expression of dissatisfaction.

Team Leader Han had just realized that his timing for this visit wasn’t very good.

When Ki Yeon showed such a gesture, it was difficult to see positive signals. Still, thinking he had nothing to lose, he delivered his prepared message.

“In my opinion, it would be a shame to lose him to another agency. His acting is quite stable and his looks are quite good. Even if things don’t work out with acting, he could do quite well just as an advertising model.”

“…”

“I met him once and he’s very motivated. Ah, above all, he’s completed his military service.”

At this, Ki Yeon sneered lightly. Reminded of someone who had acted impudently in front of him.

“So what you’re saying, Team Leader Han, is that he’ll make money no matter how we use him. Is that it?”

“Yes. To summarize… that’s right.”

Humming thoughtfully, Ki Yeon furrowed his brow as if in deep contemplation.

Team Leader Han kept checking his expression anxiously, but in reality, Ki Yeon had made up his mind from the moment Team Leader Han brought this up.

If you can’t control it, you have no choice but to take it in your hand and shake it until it can’t come to its senses.

The smooth lips hidden behind long fingers smiled coldly for a moment.