The office of LJ Group's PR division was alive with the usual morning chaos. Phones rang nonstop, keyboards clicked in frantic rhythm, and assistants darted from desk to desk with stacks of files.
Kang Hye-rin sank into her seat, trying to steady herself with a sip of bitter coffee. Her first week here had already been exhausting enough. Every time she walked past that executive elevator—the one that led directly to his office—her stomach twisted.
She hated that it still got to her.
"Morning, Hye-rin!" Park Se-hee, her best friend and lifeline in this shark tank of an office, slid into the chair beside her, grinning. "You look like you didn't sleep at all."
"I didn't," Hye-rin muttered. "My boss is a Vampire."
Se-hee chuckled, tossing her long hair back. "Vampire's are handsome though. If I were you, I'd—"
"Don't. Finish. That sentence," Hye-rin cut her off, glaring.
But Se-hee only smirked. "Fine, fine. But admit it. He looks even better in person now than in high school."
Hye-rin almost choked on her coffee. Better? He was infuriating. Perfectly pressed suits, that infuriating calmness, the way people moved out of his way without him even noticing. He was the same Lee Joon-hyuk she remembered—untouchable, arrogant, and too polished to be real.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a sudden voice that sliced through the office noise.
"Kang Hye-rin."
Her head snapped up. He was standing there, in her department, scanning her with that cool, detached gaze that made her want to throw something at his perfect face.
"Y-yes, sir?" she stammered, rising from her seat.
"I need you in the conference room," Joon-hyuk said simply. His tone was flat, but the weight of it silenced the entire office. Heads turned, whispers followed.
Hye-rin followed him reluctantly, heels clicking against the polished floor.
The conference room was empty, save for the two of them. He stood by the window, Seoul's skyline sprawling behind him, as if he owned every building in sight.
"Do you always walk that slowly?" he asked without turning, his hands in his pockets.
Her jaw tightened. "Do you always summon employees without explanation?"
That made him turn. His eyes locked on hers, cool and unreadable. "You're here to work. Not to question me."
Something in her snapped. "I am working. But maybe if you stopped treating people like they're disposable, your employees wouldn't look like they're walking into a death sentence every time you call them."
Silence. The words hung heavy in the air.
For the first time, Joon-hyuk's expression shifted—just slightly. His lips pressed into a line, his gaze sharpening, as though no one had dared to speak to him like that in years.
But then, just as quickly, his mask returned. "You've gotten bold, Kang Hye-rin," he said quietly. "Let's see how long that lasts."
And with that, he brushed past her, leaving the faint scent of cologne and the echo of her own racing heartbeat behind.
Hye-rin sank into a chair, exhaling shakily.
She had just declared war on her narcissist boss, and she wasn't going to back down.