Knock knock knock.

“Vice Chairman, Mr. Lee Han is here.”

As soon as Lee Han opened the office door and appeared, the atmosphere in the room instantly became heavy. The only sound that could be heard was the ticking of the second hand on the wall clock.

Tae Un, who had been working, stood up from his seat and politely greeted him upon his entrance. Despite the courteous gesture of welcoming Lee Han, Tae Un’s face showed no expression whatsoever.

Neither pleasure nor displeasure.

Nothing at all could be seen.

“Sit down. Is this the first time we’ve met since that day?”

“…Yes. That’s right.”

“Haha. So why have you come all the way here?”

A face that showed so obviously that it would be stranger not to know.

“…I think you know.”

He seemed to have a vague idea of what the other was talking about. Tae Un smiled faintly at his words.

What should he say?

Perhaps your excuse will be about the advertisement.

Would you really have come here on your own just for an advertisement? Would you have come all the way here alone, without even bringing a manager, enduring people’s stares, just because one advertisement was blocked?

What nonsense. He was showing his hand too obviously.

To the point where it wasn’t even interesting.

Tae Un pretended not to know even that obvious reason and looked at him with a coldly hardened face.

“Did you come because of the advertisement? And personally at that?”

“I don’t understand. I thought it wasn’t a losing business for Daehan, so why are you insisting on putting me on hold? I’m sure it was conveyed that I would accept only as much as Daehan offered for the modeling fee.”

For now, as they exchanged words without revealing their true feelings, only formal excuses and polite manners existed in their speech, and only their gazes towards each other spoke of their emotions.

They were hostile to each other, and their eyes were waiting for one to reveal their true intentions first.

“I absolutely hate anything that makes me uneasy.”

Tae Un took a sip of the coffee in front of him and continued speaking in a low voice with emphasis.

“I think there must be many companies sending you love calls besides Daehan, so why are you insisting only on our company and coming all the way here? I think if you just said a word to Ms. Cha Hi Ra, you could shoot all the advertisements you want. Am I wrong?”

“…”

“But you say you’ll lower it. It should be raised. That price tag of yours.”

As Tae Un sneered while raising one corner of his mouth, Lee Han narrowed his brow and said nothing.

“Isn’t it that the higher the price tag, the higher your position in that world? Then it should be raised. Why are you insisting on Daehan while lowering it even more?”

“…”

“Hah… Am I the strange one? I don’t really understand either.”

Nothing was more draining than fighting an opponent with no will to fight. Tae Un let out a deep sigh as he looked at the other who said nothing, feeling increasingly drained.

“Do you really not understand?”

Here it comes.

Tae Un had been hoping Lee Han would quickly show his true feelings.

That would make the fight worth it.

At Lee Han’s question, Tae Un’s expression quickly changed to one of composure as he set down the coffee cup he was holding.

“Is it because of Han Ba Ha?”

“…”

“Now of all times?”

As soon as he heard the name ‘Ba Ha’, Lee Han avoided Tae Un’s gaze and lowered his head, and as soon as he heard Tae Un’s seemingly mocking question of ‘Now of all times?’, he raised his head in indignation, furrowing his brow as he looked back at Tae Un.

“You don’t know. With what feelings I left Ba Ha. You don’t know anything. So… don’t speak carelessly.”

Lee Han spoke each word with emotion, without avoiding the other’s eyes, with a contorted face and trembling eyes.

“Do I need to know your circumstances?”

He didn’t want to know, and there was no need to know.

Would anything change if he knew the other’s circumstances?

No.

He didn’t want to sympathize with the other’s situation, and he had never had such kind thoughts as to nod and willingly let go of Ba Ha. He didn’t want to do such a thing.

The words exchanged between the two in the office, which was like thin ice, were becoming increasingly sharp, and they were facing each other without avoiding each other’s eyes, sharpening their blades towards each other.

“Have you thought about what you did to Han Ba Ha?”

“…”

“She was in a lot of pain every time you pushed her away so coldly. If you knew that, you couldn’t do this. So stop shaking her.”

She was a woman who cried every time he saw her.

When Tae Un saw Ba Ha crying, he felt somehow twisted inside, and when she smiled at him, his heart fluttered.

But he didn’t want to give up on her hand, which he hadn’t even been able to hold yet, by pushing ‘Lee Han’ in front of Ba Ha again.

“I… was in pain too. I regret it. So I’m going to turn it back. I’m going to turn it back and be by Ba Ha’s side.”

Lee Han muttered softly with clenched fists.

He regrets it.

All of these foolish choices.

“Turn it back, you say.”

Tae Un frowned at Lee Han’s words, repeating them in a mutter, and then continued speaking.

“Then what about Cha Hi Ra? Does that woman know that you’re here in front of me like this? What are you talking about Cha Hi Ra for? Did you come all the way here for an advertisement because old habits die hard?”

“That, that’s…!”

“It seems like you’re already shooting the advertisement.”

It was absurd, and anger was rising more and more from within. Tae Un struggled to hold onto his fading reason against the rising excitement as he continued speaking.

“How can you be so selfish? You say you’ll turn it back without giving up anything. Is one person not enough? Is that why you’re so carefully spouting such nonsense now?”

He was the person who had just stood by Cha Hi Ra’s side, doing nothing but watching her cry out on that day.

But now, seeing Lee Han trembling like a child who had just had a delicious candy snatched away from right in front of him, anger welled up, and seeing Lee Han refusing to give up anything, someone flashed through his mind, making his stomach churn and anger rise again.

“Han Ba Ha will not return.”

She won’t return. Even if she did return as he said, he couldn’t just stand by and watch Ba Ha fall back into the abyss by herself, and he wouldn’t let that happen.

He was confident.

So Tae Un uttered the words that she wouldn’t return.

“You’re too confident. If you’re so confident, why are you even blocking the advertisement? Don’t you think your words and actions are too different?”

Of course words and actions had to be different.

Tae Un didn’t want Ba Ha’s heart to be troubled. So he wanted to remove him from her sight. This was the reason he had to push forward with this choice, even if everyone questioned and opposed it.

“Hah… Listen well, Lee Han.”

Tae Un stared intently into Lee Han’s eyes. Tae Un’s gaze towards him grew colder with each word he continued.

“I have no intention of letting go of Han Ba Ha, no matter what circumstances you had.”

“What… did you say?”

“I’ve become more certain now, at this moment. You are selfish. Now you say you broke up because of circumstances, and now you’re hiding your current profession because of this and that.”

Tae Un continued speaking, struggling to suppress the rising anger with clenched fists.

“Don’t you think that love you’re doing is actually too selfish? It seems like the desperation is only your own thought.”

Tae Un felt sorry for Ba Ha who cried and suffered every day, saying even this was love.

“…”

“Can’t a knife once thrust be thrust twice?”

A love where only one person sacrificed.

A love where only one person had to bear everything.

He felt to his bones through their conversation that this was the love between Lee Han and Ba Ha. He was truly sick of it. He didn’t know how grand Lee Han’s circumstances were, but one thing remained unchanged.

Whatever it was, his choice was not for Ba Ha.

It was a choice for himself.

“I understand well that you didn’t come because of the advertisement. Please leave now.”

Irritation welled up.

After Lee Han left, Tae Un was in a bad mood. He couldn’t forget that annoying look in his eyes as he said he would be by Ba Ha’s side again.

What was there to be so confident about?

Leaving when he wanted to leave, returning when he wanted to return.

When he heard those nonsensical words, he was dumbfounded. Tae Un was even more irritated by the fact that he had to endure the rising anger the whole time he was looking at Lee Han like that.

Knock knock knock.

“Um… Vice Chairman?”

“Didn’t you hear me say not to disturb me, Manager Jang?”

“I’m sorry. You said not to disturb you, but… Han Ba Ha is here to see you. Should I tell her to leave?”

Tae Un jumped up from his seat in surprise at the mention of Ba Ha’s name from Woo Jun’s mouth.

Since they were supposed to be strangers to each other within this company, he hadn’t thought Ba Ha would come to his office. Just the fact that Ba Ha had come seemed to cool the feelings that had been boiling inside him ever since Lee Han left.

“I’m here.”