It was the point where he felt his limit in rejecting Yeonjoo, who was pushing like a bulldozer. That’s why he tried to avoid and not pick up the phone.

But just three times. He thought he could hold onto his sanity and endure it three times.

Suddenly, as the doorknob was pulled down, Jia kicked her chair and stood up. She looked like a very loyal secretary to her boss.

“Is he here?”
Jia, who walked around the desk, followed Kang Hyun, hugging her precious tablet like a treasure.

“Did you have breakfast?”
“No.”
A gloomy mood exerted itself beneath the pitchblack hair that covered his forehead.

He looked perfectly fine recently, but ever since his fiancée Kim Soye came by, he has been in that state.

The number of times she was summoned to the office had significantly reduced since that day.

“Did you drink yesterday? Or ramen? Or, did you cry by any chance?”
“If I did cry.”
“…I’m sorry.”
Jian lowered her head deeply at the unnecessarily honest response.

When she saw Seo Yoon persistently smiling while gossiping on the side, the words she threw turned into a dagger.

“It was a joke.”
Why do you make such an expression while joking?

Jian, who quickly straightened her back, had eyebrows that twitched freely.

Kang Hyun, whose crumpled nostrils were cute, had a slightly loosened mouth.

Jian breathed a great sigh of relief while seeing her face brighten minutely, despite feeling strange that she would get prickles in her mouth if she did not make him laugh even for a moment.

“Do you have an important schedule?”
“No, there’s nothing special, but interview requests keep coming. From all known places.”
The reporters who had been quiet since the press release from the PR team soon regained momentum.

Holding the phone all day and wrestling with words was not an ordinary thing.

“Get rid of the external phone.”
“Are you serious? There may be important calls.”
“I’m tired of saying the same thing every time.”
“I’m not tired, it’s just because my feelings are hurt.”
Jian, remembering the reporter’s call that came early in the morning, stuck out her lips in pain.

“Why.”
“Is Executive Kang Hyun okay? Is he in a state to return to work? There are rumors that he was admitted to the closed ward, is it true? Was drug addiction the problem? There’s no shortage of tips that he was taking drugs. Ha!”
Jian, with wide eyes, put the tablet on Kang Hyun’s desk and let out a big snort.

“Is the reporter’s brain composed of a single cell? I’ve said no dozens of times, but you forget as soon as you turn around, you really seem like an amoeba.”
Jian frowned as if hearing the echoing voice of the reporter and flipped her free palms into the air in mockery.

” I wanted to say that but I held back. The answer is also nice if the question is nice. Why do you slander people and make it unbearable.”
Jian, who was feisty enough to kick the reporter if he was in front of her, subtly closed her lips.

The corner of Kang Hyun’s slightly lowered eyelids formed a deeper curve than before.

“Let’s make one of the two walking together not remember.”
He smiles just like then.

But this time, it was closer to winter.

It seemed like the warm spring was gradually disappearing from him.

Was it because of the heart pounding like swallowing a fistful of caffeine capsules, the area near her jaw was tightening.

Is this what it feels like when the heart controls the head. Suddenly, incomprehensible emotions exerted their presence.

Unable to defeat the minute, Kang Hyun casually provided an answer while observing Ji An’s expression, which quickly turned serious as she anxiously moved her feet.

“Next time, say it like that.”
“Then they’ll write another malicious article about the president. They might even say the secretary isn’t in her right mind.”
“The media usually sides with the strong.”
“Excuse me?”
“A simple traffic accident creates hundreds of rumors that insult me. It’s partly because I didn’t show up, but it also means that someone is consistently trying to bring me down.”
“Who would do such a thing?”
“Quite a few. Starting from the president here who can’t stay still for fear of losing his bowl, to the executives and shareholders who have lined up on my opposite side. And finally, to Chairman Seo Won. A major shareholder who might cause a management dispute will not be pleased.”
If there was a crime committed, all the more so.

“I’m not sure, but is it a problem that there are greedy people?”
“That’s right. If you are greedy, you get punished, like me.”
Without revealing her amusement at Kang Hyun who chuckled as he spoke, Ji An relayed his schedule that she had checked in advance on her tablet.

“You have about 2 hours left until the morning meeting, take a break.”
Did he even sleep properly? The deep shadows under his eyes and his increasingly prominent jawline nagged at her.

“President.”
“Yes.”
“About the company dinner you mentioned before, shall we do it today?”
“Do you have something you want to eat?”
There was a blush near his dry eyes. Kang Hyun asked, while unnecessarily flipping through some documents to hide his excitement.

“I’m okay with beef for the dinner, actually, pork belly would be fine too.”
“I’ll tell Director Do to make a reservation.”
“Yes, then I’ll go…”
As she thought about contacting her mother to prepare dinner with her favorite side dishes and was about to return to her secretary’s office, Ji An stopped at the sound of a loudly ringing telephone.

It was extremely rare for an internal call to come directly to Kang Hyun without going through the secretary’s office.

“Yes, this is Kang Hyun.”
—Hello, President. This is Director Jo Hyung Oh. I plan to visit with the chairman, is that okay?
“I see.”
—I’ll be up soon.
Kang Hyun, who put down the phone, moved to the sofa while pressing his aching back of his head.

“Miss Ji An.”
“Yes.”
“Could you lend me a hand?”
“A hand?”
Kang Hyun, who sat on the right sofa instead of his seat, tapped the seat next to him and held out his hand.

“Do you mean to hold it?”
Ji An, who had quietly sat next to him, rolled her eyes blankly.

“Yes, it will only be for a moment. It’s okay if you just sit if it’s too uncomfortable.”
“I’m not uncomfortable, I’ll lend you a hand.”
As soon as her small and pale hand was placed, power flowed into Kang Hyun’s hand.

As the familiar sensation of holding, touching, and stroking me touched, a hot heat scratched down my spine.

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