Episode 3
The seemingly endless company retreat… finally came to an end.
Jae-yi sat quietly in the corner, nibbling at her food.
Cha Geonhak—the man who had shown her nothing but warmth earlier—was nowhere to be seen.
She’d been secretly in love with him for two years now.
It was the first time in her life she’d ever had feelings like this for someone.
And it wasn’t just because he was good-looking.
Back when she was still new to the company, she’d been asked to give a presentation at a workshop.
It was her first time standing in front of such a large crowd.
Knowing this could be her one chance to make a strong first impression, she spent the whole night preparing.
But… no one appreciated her effort.
People misunderstood her proposal, twisted her intentions, and looked at her like she was some oddball.
The barrage of criticism from the executives left her frozen, unable to respond.
Then came one voice that silenced the room.
Cha Geonhak, seated among the executives, had flipped through her proposal and calmly said:
> “I actually like it. She’s thinking differently from everyone else.
> She’s offering a perspective no one considered—I’d like to give it a try.”
Just like that, the tone in the room shifted.
> “Looking at it again, it might work well this way.”
> “Yeah. It cuts costs too. Seems like a solid proposal.”
Geonhak smiled faintly and stepped up to her.
She was trembling slightly as he leaned in, glancing between her ID badge and her face.
> “So your name is… Han Jae-yi?”
Still visibly nervous, she didn’t move.
He extended a hand toward her.
When she just stared at it in shock, he gently took her hand in his and smiled with his eyes.
> “Well done, Han Jae-yi. That was an excellent proposal.”
When everyone else had dismissed her, he was the only one who saw her.
And now, even here—
He had noticed her sitting alone and, just like before, reached out his hand.
“Jae-yi! What are you doing over here all by yourself?”
The sudden voice of Park Min-joo snapped her out of her thoughts.
Min-joo’s cheeks were flushed, her body swaying slightly—clearly drunk.
“You should be drinking with us. When you keep acting like this, it makes our team look bad. You get that, right?”
Her slurred speech was proof enough she’d had too much.
“C’mon, let’s go drink together. We’re rooming together, aren’t we?”
“I’m sorry, Assistant Manager. I don’t really drink.”
“Ugh, you’re doing that again. You know you’re the kind of person who drives others crazy, right?”
Is that why she hates me for no reason?
“Seriously, come on. Just for a bit, okay?”
Just as Jae-yi opened her mouth to respond—
“Han Jae-yi.”
A voice called her name.
She turned her head and saw Cha Geonhak walking straight toward her.
Park Min-joo immediately bowed her head.
“Hello, Executive Director!”
Geonhak ignored the greeting and looked straight at Jae-yi.
What’s going on? Did I do something wrong?
Is this about earlier… the elevator?
“Han Jae-yi. Did you lose something?”
“Lose something…?”
She tilted her head, puzzled. Then he pulled something from his pocket—a handkerchief.
“You dropped this in the elevator earlier.”
“Oh… thank you, sir.”
He nodded and looked to the seat beside her.
“Since I’m here already, mind if I sit next to you?”
“Uh, s-sure?”
“Then excuse me.”
He sat down beside her like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Seeing this, Min-joo awkwardly chuckled and quickly claimed a seat across from him.
“Well then, I guess I’ll join you two here!”
She added a nasal tone to her voice and giggled, scooting closer with a sweet smile.
Before long, others began to rearrange their seats to sit near Geonhak.
Once again, Jae-yi found herself sitting beside him, surrounded by people.
It always happened when he was around.
—
As time passed, the awkward atmosphere faded.
People drank more, laughed more.
Even after drinking quite a bit, Geonhak remained composed.
While chatting with department heads, he turned and noticed Jae-yi hadn’t touched her drink—just kept fidgeting with the glass.
The moment his languid gaze settled on her, her heart fluttered again.
“Do you dislike alcohol?”
His voice had softened. Jae-yi slowly nodded.
“Not exactly, I’m just not good at drinking.”
“Want to try a little?”
She gave a small nod, and he poured her a small amount.
She lifted the glass, and the sharp burn made her eyes pinch shut.
“Have it with this. It’ll help.”
He handed her a shine muscat grape. She quickly swallowed, the sweet taste instantly washing away the bitterness in her mouth.
“Executive Director, let me pour you a drink too! Please, accept mine.”
Min-joo rose slightly to pour his drink—but Geonhak stopped her.
“I’m good.”
“Eh?”
She froze awkwardly, face coloring as she quickly sat back down and glanced at Jae-yi.
“Then you take it instead, Jae-yi.”
She began pouring forcefully into Jae-yi’s glass—so much it nearly overflowed.
“Drink up, Jae-yi.”
Jae-yi just stared at her instead of drinking.
Min-joo slammed the bottle down and glared.
“What? Are you refusing my drink? Picking and choosing who you accept from now?”
“Huh? That’s not what I meant…”
“You took the Director’s drink but won’t take mine? What, am I beneath you now?”
“I just… really can’t drink. I’ll have a little.”
As she lifted the overfilled glass, the liquor spilled down her wrist.
“Oh, what a waste. Whatever. Don’t bother.”
She wiped her wrist with a handkerchief. Geonhak noticed the small embroidered letter **“i”** on it.
“By the way, I saw that your handkerchief says ‘i.’
Is that short for something? I meant to ask earlier—”
Crash!
Min-joo knocked over a bottle right in front of them. The conversation died.
“Oh no! Sorry, my hand slipped.”
She dabbed at the spilled liquor with tissues, lips pouting in frustration.
Geonhak gave her a blank look.
“You know… I don’t think I poured you a drink earlier. Here.”
He picked up the bottle and filled Min-joo’s glass.
Though his tone was sharp, she didn’t seem to notice.
“Ah! Thank you so much, Executive Director!”
Beaming, she downed it in one gulp and giggled, covering her mouth with her palm like she was in a drama.
“So, how was the retreat? No complaints, I hope?”
“None at all! I think everyone was more motivated because you joined us.
Even Han Jae-yi seemed more lively than usual. She’s not normally like that, you know.”
She turned toward Jae-yi, dragging her into the conversation.
“Usually, she just looks tired all the time and shrugs off any group ideas.”
Geonhak looked at Jae-yi. Her face was visibly uncomfortable.
Why is this making me so irritated?
“Jae-yi, you’re not upset or anything, right?
I’m just being honest.”
She smiled brightly, like she’d said something kind.
Smiling like that, huh?
Geonhak was speechless.
What annoyed him more was Jae-yi’s silence.
Even now, she wasn’t defending herself.
He glanced sharply at Min-joo.
“When someone insults another person right to their face, even a bystander would get angry.”
Min-joo blinked, flustered.
The mood in the room instantly turned cold.
Though no one dared look directly, all eyes were on them.
Min-joo’s cheeks reddened.
“Aren’t you going to apologize?”
Her mouth opened quickly.
“S-sorry… Han Jae-yi. I drank too much…”
“It’s okay, Assistant Manager.”
“I really am sorry, Jae-yi. Really…”
Before the apology could even finish, Geonhak suddenly stood.
He glanced at Jae-yi once, then left.
His face clearly showed he was furious.
—
Jae-yi returned to her room and finally let out the breath she’d been holding.
“Phew…”
She already knew she wouldn’t be able to relax.
The thought of going back to the room she shared with Min-joo made her heart sink.
“Han Jae-yi.”
She looked up to see Secretary Kim waiting.
“Hello, Secretary Kim.”
She glanced around, but Geonhak was nowhere in sight.
“I’ve moved your luggage to a different room.”
“What?”
“I was instructed to do so. The Executive Director didn’t think it was appropriate for you to share a room with Assistant Manager Park, so I had no choice but to move it. My apologies for doing so without informing you first.”
“Oh, no, that’s fine.”
Honestly… I was hoping for this.
Secretary Kim handed her a card key.
It was much fancier than the one she’d received earlier.
“You’re now in a room on the 18th floor. I’ll inform the others separately.”
“Thank you so much, Secretary Kim.”
As he turned to leave, Jae-yi called out to him.
“Wait—
Could you please tell the Executive Director… thank you?”
“I will.”
She bowed again.
Staring at the gold card in her hand, she whispered to herself,
“Thank you again, sir… for helping me.”
—
Geonhak stood leaning on the terrace railing when Secretary Kim returned.
“I moved her.”
“Good work.”
“She asked me to thank you.”
“You’re dismissed.”
“Yes, sir.”
With a rough sweep of his hand through his hair, Geonhak sighed.
Why was he so worked up?
Why did it bother him so much—seeing her always take it quietly, always staying calm?
Bzz, bzz. His phone buzzed in his pocket.
The call was from Soo-ah.
His fingers tensed as he remembered how startled Jae-yi had been earlier, when he touched the mole on her neck.
> “A heart-shaped mole…?”
Ugh. Why am I thinking of her now?
The phone kept ringing, but he didn’t answer.
Instead, he looked down.
There she was—sitting on a bench alone outside.
Her shoulders were slumped. She covered her face with her hands.
For once, her calm composure broke.
Her shoulders were shaking.
She was crying.
“Why… is she crying?”
Has she always cried like this, quietly behind everyone’s back?
He rejected Soo-ah’s call and moved.
He didn’t even understand why.
But at that moment, watching her fall apart for once—
He couldn’t just stand there and do nothing.
Episode End
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