The Young Boss (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 3

Mid-March—though it was spring, the mornings and evenings were still chilly. Shivering as the cold wind seeped through her light spring jacket, Si Hyeon sent a message to Woo Jin.

– Hey, I drank a lot. Could you come pick me up?

A reply came quickly.

– Sorry, I have to work late again tonight.

Of course, as expected. Si Hyeon gave a wry chuckle and slipped her phone into her pocket.

At the beginning of their relationship, even when she told him not to come, he’d stubbornly insist and show up anyway. Now, even when she said she’d had too much to drink, he responded like this.

Sitting alone on a bench at the bus stop, her phone rang. Thinking it might be Woo Jin, she answered quickly—but the voice on the other end was her Aunt’s.

– It’s me.

Her Aunt skipped pleasantries entirely and immediately asked,

– How’s things going with that man? Have you met his parents yet?

Startled by the debt-collector-like urgency, Si Hyeon sighed in relief—thankfully, she’d already set a date.

“I’m meeting them next week to pay my respects and greet them properly.”

– Dress neatly, bring thoughtful gifts, and don’t give them any reason to criticize you.

“Yes, Aunt.”

– Good. When will you come greet our family?

“I’ll set a date soon and let you know right after I meet them.”

– Hurry up as much as you can. We need to hold the formal meeting soon and get you married off this year, right?

Her cousin A Hyeon was twenty-eight this year. Ever since A Hyeon was in college, her Aunt had been lining up matches—one doctor, one lawyer, one entrepreneur after another—but A Hyeon still hadn’t married.

Si Hyeon’s Uncle, who ran a business, was excessively concerned with what others thought.

That’s why he insisted Si Hyeon, as the older cousin, must marry first. He feared people would point fingers if he married off his own daughter before his orphaned niece.

Because of this, when Si Hyeon visited for New Year’s greetings earlier this year, her Aunt scolded her harshly.

[That man—doesn’t he intend to marry you at all?] [No, Aunt. We promised we’d definitely get married this year.] [Get serious, child. If you lose him, that’s it. At thirty-three, you’re barely even considered in the matchmaking market!]

Her Aunt stomped her foot in frustration.

[Just how long are you going to keep burdening our family? Because of you, even A Hyeon is just getting older!]

She was treated like a piece of luggage they wanted to get rid of as soon as possible.

That was Kang Si Hyeon—at thirty-three years old.

“Yes, Aunt. I’ll call you soon.”

After hanging up, she boarded the arriving bus and sank into a seat, letting out an involuntary sigh.

She lightly rubbed away the foggy breath clouding the bus window—and spotted someone standing alone near the bus stop.

The tall figure and broad shoulders looked familiar, but Si Hyeon just chuckled and shook her head. Nah, someone as important as Director Tae Ha wouldn’t be standing around at a bus stop for no reason.

Remembering Tae Ha’s appearance from earlier that day left a bitter taste in her mouth.

While I’ve grown so pitiful, you’re shining so brightly.

Feeling ashamed of her own self-pity, Si Hyeon closed her eyes and sighed again.

No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t believe Tae Ha was deliberately ignoring her just because of money. So Si Hyeon combed the internet meticulously.

Memory loss could be categorized as either global or partial—and in the latter case, memories of specific people or particular events might be selectively erased.

Her eyes lit up.

‘Right! Maybe he only lost his memory of me. That’s why he doesn’t even realize he has amnesia!’

At the end of her thoughts, Si Hyeon prepared her secret weapon. Surely this would instantly restore his lost memories.

Determined, she headed toward the Director’s office—when someone called out to her.

“Associate Manager Kang!”

Turning around, she felt as if the whole world brightened.

Slender figure, long wavy hair, wearing a cheerful blouse that perfectly matched the spring mood and a flared skirt—a stunning beauty ran toward Si Hyeon with obvious delight.

It was Lee Bo Ra, her junior from the development team, famously nicknamed the “Credit Goddess” of Mirae Bank.

“Bo Ra.”

Bo Ra also worked in UX design, just like Si Hyeon. Before Bo Ra joined two years ago, Si Hyeon had been the company’s sole UX designer—meaning Bo Ra was essentially her protégée.

From day one, Bo Ra had followed Si Hyeon around like a puppy, and Si Hyeon, in turn, had doted on her like a younger sister. The only regret since transferring to the OneApp team was that they rarely saw each other now.

“Where are you off to?”

“Oh, just popping into the Director’s office for a moment.”

Si Hyeon subtly hid what she was holding behind her back as she replied.

“Oh, okay. Have a good meeting.”

Si Hyeon quickly noticed the slightly forlorn look on Bo Ra’s face.

“What’s wrong? Did the Director say something that upset you?”

“Yesterday, I ran into him briefly and greeted him, but he didn’t seem to recognize me.”

Si Hyeon’s ears perked up.

“Why? Did you two know each other before?”

Bo Ra hesitated, avoiding a direct answer.

“We just happened to run into each other a few times somewhere before.”

Si Hyeon nearly shouted out loud. Yes! It really is amnesia!

“Well… if you only exchanged greetings once or twice, he might not remember.”

But Si Hyeon was certain. There was no way Tae Ha could forget someone as beautiful as Lee Bo Ra after even a single meeting. This clearly meant he had memory issues.

Her step grew more confident as she walked toward Tae Ha’s office.

Though his position as Director was only a one-year contract, everyone kept summoning him—yesterday the CEO, today yet another executive, keeping him in long discussions.

[Since it’s just the two of us, be honest. How on earth did someone like CEO Yoon Tae Ha end up at Mirae Bank?]

Unable to tell the truth, Tae Ha merely smiled faintly and evaded the question.

After enduring nearly an hour of pointless conversation, he finally returned to his office—where his secretary greeted him respectfully.

“Welcome back, Director.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

As he stepped inside, the secretary added,

“Associate Manager Kang Si Hyeon from the OneApp team has been waiting for you.”

“Oh?”

“She’s been here about ten minutes. Since your talk seemed to be taking a while, I couldn’t keep her standing outside, so I let her wait in your office.”

The secretary belatedly checked Tae Ha’s expression.

“If she came, why didn’t you notify me immediately?”

“But you were in a meeting with the Executive Vice President, so how could I…”

“From now on, if Kang Si Hyeon ever comes, inform me right away—no matter who I’m with.”

He took a deep breath and composed his expression—careful not to look too pleased or reveal his feelings.

On the sofa in the center of the office sat a woman with narrow shoulders, her head tilted to the side, fast asleep.

The very reason he’d come to this company.

“…”

Tae Ha quietly approached and sat beside her, holding his breath so as not to wake her, gazing at her sleeping face.

Her monolids, petite nose, plump lips—

Not a single feature was anything less than beautiful. She’d been lovely back then too, but now she was so breathtakingly beautiful it brought tears to his eyes.

He marveled at how people in the same office could work beside Si Hyeon all day without faltering. If it were him, he doubted he’d even breathe properly.

His eyes suddenly fell on her hands—small, yet roughened beyond belief for a woman in her thirties.

More than half of that was his fault.

Suppressing the urge to take her hand and kiss it, Tae Ha gently traced her fingers with his eyes alone.

Lost in watching her, he only noticed the lunchbox on the table after a long while. Opening it, he found kimbap inside.

Thin rolls filled only with cucumber, tuna, and mayonnaise.

The very same kimbap Si Hyeon, then a high schooler, had packed for him on his second-grade field trip.

It had tasted so incredible that even as an adult, he’d occasionally pester her to make it again. Whenever she offered to add more ingredients, he’d stubbornly refuse—and Si Hyeon, calling him odd, would still make it exactly as he liked.

Realizing she’d made this to jog his memory, he felt both amused and touched—his heart ached with tenderness.

‘How could I ever forget you.’

He murmured inwardly.

[Do you even know how much I searched for you? How could you just disappear without a single word…!]

The moment she’d clung to him in the elevator, bursting into tears, he’d nearly confessed everything—how much he’d missed her, how madly he’d longed to see her again.

It was a crisis. To stop his true feelings from spilling out, he had to say something—anything.

So without thinking, he pretended not to know her.

[If I’m to your liking, you could just say so.]

Si Hyeon had been flustered. He’d loved how she’d follow him around, calling “Tae Ha! Tae Ha!”—and how desperately she’d reacted to his cold, stranger-like gaze sent electric thrills through him.

Then a thought struck him—what if he played along completely, approaching her not as the little brother Yoon Tae Ha she knew, but as Director Yoon Tae Ha?

Win or lose, Tae Ha decided to make one final gamble.

Seeing her head drooping sleepily, he gently rested it against his shoulder. The quiet weight against him felt so precious it stung his eyes.

“Director…”

The secretary, just entering, froze at the sight of Tae Ha.

‘Shh.’

Tae Ha raised a finger to his lips, silencing him. With a gesture, he sent the secretary away and lowered his body as much as possible—so the sleeping woman could rest comfortably on his shoulder.

Her ambitious plan ended in utter failure.

After he took just one bite of the kimbap, the Director looked toward Si Hyeon—who watched him anxiously—and spoke.

[In this day and age, bringing a lunchbox? Truly a classic approach.]

Without even tasting more, he pushed the lunchbox aside and gestured dismissively.

[Next time, try something a bit more original, please.]

Dejected, Si Hyeon trudged back to her office—completely unaware that the Director was silently smiling behind her.

‘How on earth can I make his memories return?’

She’d only meant to drop off the kimbap and leave—but accidentally fell asleep, wasting twenty whole minutes.

Rushing back to her office, Si Hyeon clutched her head in frustration. She needed something stronger—a real shock therapy. But how…?

“Si Hyeon, look at this.”

Just then, Mi Ju shoved her phone in Si Hyeon’s face with a grin.

“My sister and I went to the amusement park last week—I borrowed her uniform and took this. Isn’t it hilarious?”

Looking at the photo of Mi Ju in a school uniform, Si Hyeon silently cried out inside.

This is it!

The next day, after work. As Tae Ha descended into the underground parking lot, he let out a quiet sigh. Tonight was the OneApp team’s first dinner together—a welcome party for him, essentially.

The thought of sitting with Si Hyeon for hours made his vision go dark. Could he really stop his eyes from drifting toward her? Could he hold back the urge to speak to her?

Could he really hide his feelings?

He resolved to drink as little as possible. If his composure slipped even slightly, he might end up embracing her in front of everyone and confessing his love—despite knowing exactly how it would end.

As he opened his car door to get in, someone called out from behind.

“Tae Ha!”

Startled, he turned—and couldn’t believe his eyes.

Staring at him with sparkling eyes was Si Hyeon… from seventeen years ago.

Slender frame, neat school uniform, bare face, hair tied back tightly, black book bag slung over her shoulder.

To eight-year-old Tae Ha back then, the high school girl seven years his senior had seemed like a literal goddess from a storybook.

A sight he’d never forget, even on his deathbed.

“You recognize me? Huh?”

At the sight of her, exactly as she’d been all those years ago, every vow he’d made vanished in an instant.

“Tae Ha?”

Pulling the stunned woman tightly into his arms, Tae Ha closed his eyes.