It seemed the news that the CEO was gone had spread. People kept coming by. Following Jung Mi Ho, Ga Eul’s aunt came.

Shortly after, Hong Su Jin arrived. They all had one purpose in coming: to persuade CEO Ki Dae Un to withdraw the lawsuit.

“For something like that, you should talk to the CEO directly. What power do I have?”

“Ki Dae Un… he’s too intimidating… I can’t even approach him. How do you work under someone like that?”

Ga Eul’s aunt waved her hand as if Ga Eul was saying nonsense.

“Please talk to CEO Ki Dae Un for us. Tell him we’re truly sorry. Ga Eul, please ask him to at least withdraw the lawsuit against Sung Mok, for Sung Mok’s sake. It’s all my fault. I was greedy. Please tell CEO Ki Dae Un that we’re sincerely reflecting on our actions.”

Hong Su Jin also pleaded with Ga Eul. The imposing mother of Yoo Sung Mok from Gyeo Ul’s school principal’s office was nowhere to be seen.

At that time, Ga Eul had wanted to appeal to ‘old feelings’ but couldn’t. Now, watching Hong Su Jin do exactly that, she felt no sense of victory.

How could she make another request to the CEO when she was so embarrassed she wanted to die for coming onto an engaged man! That was her only thought.

“Where is our CEO intimidating? He’s as sloppy as can be. You just haven’t seen him shuffling around the office in his slippers.”

Indeed, that’s the kind of person the CEO is. A man who lounges on the sofa all day, never intending to get up.

A man who, in that state, orders her around all day – bring coffee, read the latest articles, buy hangover medicine – requiring as much attention as raising a child. And yet, a man who has a fiancée!

Ga Eul fought the urge to reveal the CEO’s true nature. Not for the CEO’s sake, but for her own. She was embarrassed to let it be known she worked under such a person.

“Besides, if I ask, it’ll have the opposite effect. Our CEO is the type to oppose anything I say on principle. He’s never willingly listened to anything I’ve said.”

No matter what Ga Eul said, the two women seemed to think she was just making excuses to avoid helping them. So Ga Eul’s explanations kept getting longer.

“Don’t you think I’ve tried asking him to withdraw the lawsuit? But it didn’t work at all. I just got scolded, asking if I didn’t care that my CEO would be rumored to be someone who messes with his employees.”

“They say you saved Young Min’s father from almost being sued. That you stopped your CEO when he was furious about suing, and even prevented him from paying hospital bills. If you did that for others, are you going to ignore your uncle? Even if your uncle hasn’t been good to you, he’s still your uncle.”

Her aunt’s voice gradually grew louder, reaching its peak at “Are you going to ignore your uncle?” Her aunt finally shed tears.

This is why rumors are scary. In reality, Ga Eul had done nothing for Young Min’s father as she had fainted and been taken to the hospital. But now Ga Eul had become someone coldheartedly ignoring her uncle for something she hadn’t even done.

“Your uncle may have expressed himself harshly, but it’s true that you and your CEO are not just ordinary colleagues, right? The whole neighborhood is talking. They say when you collapsed, your CEO’s eyes were wild as he carried you out running.”

See, rumors are scary. Ga Eul broke into a cold sweat. If this rumor reached the ears of the engaged CEO, how could she face him?

Then she felt indignant. If such rumors were spreading, why hadn’t they reached Woo Jin’s mother’s ears? If they had, she wouldn’t have had to pathetically cling to the CEO asking him to date her.

“Even the hospital nurses were saying it. The two of you must be dating. They said the way your CEO looked at you was indescribably tender.”

Hong Su Jin chimed in heatedly.

“That’s nonsense.”

A sigh escaped Ga Eul’s lips. Hearing such absurd things, she was at a loss for words.

“Our CEO has a fiancée.”

Ga Eul cried out almost like a scream.

“Really?”

Despite saying this, both women seemed not to believe it at all. They appeared to be hiding the thought, ‘Would a man with a fiancée have that kind of relationship with you?’

“If such rumors reach our CEO’s ears, it’s really over. Don’t even dream about withdrawing the lawsuit then.”

This was Ga Eul’s own way of threatening them to keep quiet.

“And I won’t be able to help you either.”

“Alright, alright. If you say it’s not true, then it’s not. We believe you.”

“I guess when people are determined to see things a certain way, it might have looked like your CEO had special feelings for you. The nurses must have misunderstood.”

This is why people use threats. Her aunt and Hong Su Jin completely changed their attitude.

“Please go back for now. When the CEO is in a good mood, I’ll try to talk to him carefully. And please spread a rumor in the neighborhood. That I’m dating someone.”

“You’re dating someone? Your mother hasn’t said anything about it.”

Her aunt asked with wide eyes. She seemed unwilling to give up on the ‘Han Ga Eul-Ki Dae Un couple theory’ yet.

“Grandmother doesn’t know yet. We haven’t been dating long. He’s a friend of our CEO.”

“Could it be Attorney Jung Se Hyun?”

Hong Su Jin asked, looking as if she might grab Ga Eul’s hand.

“Yes.”

“I see. That’s great. Attorney Jung is so handsome. Not to mention smart. He must have good taste to be dating you.”

“???”

“Ga Eul, please put in a good word with Attorney Jung. Tell him our Sung Mok isn’t the type to harm others.”

Of course. Ga Eul swallowed bitterly, having momentarily thought the storm of compliments was genuine. She had thought the old Hong Su Jin had briefly returned.

“I should tell Ji Seon unnie too. That would put her mind at ease as well.”

Ji Seon unnie must be Woo Jin’s mother. Ga Eul’s ears perked up.

“Please make sure to tell her. That I’m dating someone now. That I have absolutely no lingering feelings for Woo Jin, so she doesn’t need to worry.”

“I’ll tell her, but I’m not sure if she’ll believe it. She didn’t even believe the rumors about you and your CEO. That unnie seems almost possessed. Even after hearing you’re the granddaughter of the Pyeong An Group chairman, she keeps repeating that you and Woo Jin won’t work out.”

Where did it go wrong, and what exactly went wrong? No matter how much she thought about it, Ga Eul couldn’t figure out why Woo Jin’s mother disliked her so much.

Ga Eul promised to try asking the CEO to withdraw the lawsuit, and sent her aunt and Hong Su Jin away.

Her head felt like it was about to explode.

The CEO she had begged to date her had a fiancée, she had agreed to date Jung Se Hyun, but rumors were spreading that she was dating the CEO. Woo Jin’s mother said even the Pyeong An Group chairman’s granddaughter wasn’t good enough for Woo Jin.

“What am I supposed to do?”

Standing in the middle of the office, Ga Eul tore at her hair.

The saying “There’s no food at a feast that’s all talk” really fits. Rumors are the problem.

* * *

The source of all problems, the CEO, returned. Ki Dae Un collapsed onto the sofa as soon as he entered, looking exhausted as if he had done something tremendous.

“CEO, are you tired?”

Ga Eul spoke sweetly as she held out an energy drink to Ki Dae Un. Before the CEO arrived, Ga Eul had reformatted her mind.

To survive. She thought it was better than having her complicated mind explode and die. With an empty mind, she felt she could face the CEO.

Unable to empty his past memories, Ki Dae Un didn’t readily accept the energy drink. He alternated looking at the energy drink and Ga Eul as if it were a suspicious object.

“Are you worried I might have poisoned it? Even in a world where you shouldn’t accept energy drinks from strangers.”

As Ga Eul was withdrawing her hand, Dae Un quickly snatched the energy drink. Dae Un glanced around the office as he opened the energy drink, as if he still couldn’t believe Han Ga Eul had provided a free energy drink.

“What’s that?”

The CEO pointed with his chin at the fruit basket on the desk. Ga Eul took a deep breath before answering.

“Did you accept a bribe behind my back?”

Gasp. The inhaled breath caught in her chest. He’s like a ghost.

“CEO~nim.”

Ga Eul called out to Ki Dae Un as sweetly as she could.

“You remember how I helped you when Jung Mi O came, right?”

“Just get to the point. Han Myeong Ho or Yoo Sung Mok?”

“Both. The energy drink is from Han Myeong Ho, the fruit basket from Yoo Sung Mok.”

Ga Eul’s tone became stiff. She’d give such ineffective sweetness to the dogs.

“They’re asking you to withdraw the lawsuit. Can’t you withdraw it? We have to keep seeing their faces in the neighborhood…”

Ga Eul trailed off. Before she could even properly start, the CEO was already making a huffing sound through his nose.

“Why don’t you peel some fruit?”

The CEO suddenly stood up and threw off his jacket. The jacket somehow landed next to the fruit basket.

Ga Eul saw hope there. Wasn’t drinking the energy drink and eating the fruit a sign that he would listen to the requests of those who sent them?

“After you eat that fruit, you have to withdraw the lawsuit. You can’t go back on your word later. Don’t wash your mouth after eating, okay?”

Ga Eul’s voice brightened.

“When are you going to peel the fruit?”

The CEO urged impatiently. Just you wait and see if you try to pretend you don’t know after eating. Ga Eul muttered as she took the fruit basket to the pantry.

As Ga Eul was washing and peeling the fruit, the CEO shouted from outside the partition.

“You messed with my computer again, didn’t you? Why did you delete the CCTV footage?”

He’s quick. Ga Eul flinched. Wasn’t he just sprawled out on the sofa? When did he check the computer?

“Who came?”

Startled by the CEO’s sharp voice suddenly behind her, Ga Eul jumped. The CEO was glaring at her with his arms crossed. When did he get here without making a sound…

“Who pays your salary? If you get your salary from me, you should think of me first. Does it make sense to hide things from me to protect others?”

He was right. To the point where there was nothing to refute.

“I heard you’re dating Jung Se Hyun, now you’ve decided to take his side. Even deleting Jung Mi O’s video.”

“Eek, how did you know?”

Ga Eul asked with a dumbfounded expression.

“I’m curious what’s in that head of yours that made you think I wouldn’t know. I sent Se Hyun, but there’s no video of Se Hyun coming. There’s no reason to delete a video of Se Hyun coming, so the person who deleted it must be someone Se Hyun needs to protect.”

“Ah, I see.”

While listening to Dae Un’s words, Ga Eul thought of a way to avoid the crisis and quickly shoved a grape into the CEO’s mouth.

“CEO, it’s a Shine Muscat grape. Isn’t it sweet?”

Ki Dae Un couldn’t answer. Not because the Shine Muscat in his mouth was interfering, nor because it wasn’t as sweet as Ga Eul thought. It was because Ga Eul’s finger, which had pushed the grape into his mouth, had brushed his lips.

Would it feel like this if you put an electric shock device to your lips? For a moment, Dae Un felt like he had been electrocuted.

Ga Eul wasn’t indifferent either. After all, Ga Eul had senses too. Unable to process the sensation of the soft object her finger had brushed, Ga Eul stared intently at her own finger.

Ga Eul had fed things to Gyeo Ul, her grandmother, and even Woo Jin before. But then, her finger hadn’t felt anything. Surely her finger must have brushed their lips then too.

Ga Eul realized what she had done. Her face started to burn. Ga Eul tore her eyes away from her finger and glanced at the CEO’s face. She thought she’d feel relieved if she saw the CEO’s indifferent face, as if he hadn’t felt anything.

But the CEO’s expression was unusual. His face was stiff, with dark clouds hanging over it. It looked like thunder and lightning might strike at any moment.

Was he so displeased that she had deleted Jung Mi O’s video? Ga Eul didn’t have time to properly interpret the CEO’s expression.

Dealing with the finger that had come to know the softness of an engaged man’s lips, and the face burning because of it, was the priority. So Ga Eul shouted and then ran out of the office.

“Stop confusing me!”

Ever since hearing that the CEO had a fiancée, Ga Eul had been inexplicably unsettled, and she blamed it all on the CEO.

Her unsettled feelings were because her relationship with the CEO was confusing. She couldn’t have been confused on her own, so the CEO must have been confusing her. Even though she knew it was terribly unfair to the CEO.

“What’s confusing? Just withdraw the lawsuit, that’s all! I said I’ll withdraw the lawsuit!”

As Ga Eul ran out, the numbness from the electric shock on Dae Un’s lips wore off, and he shouted, sounding wronged.