Chapter 15 - An Acquaintance

Han Group Building Top Floor...

A soft ding chimed from the corner of Lee Yoon-ah's monitor, a gentle sound swallowed by the quiet hum of the executive floor.

Her fingers paused over the keyboard. A notification from her messaging app. She clicked it, and a small window bloomed on the side of her screen.

From: 💖Minhyuk💖

Hey. Wrapped up early. I'm free tonight. Let's go out. I'm waiting.

A slow, tentative smile touched her lips.

It had been weeks of 'Swamped, sorry' and 'Don't wait up.' 

This was… different. Good different.

A little flicker of warmth, a reminder of how things used to be, sparked in her chest. 

'Maybe he's trying,' she thought, the hope fragile but persistent.

She finished typing her final sentence, saved the document, and methodically closed down her workstation.

The tidy, empty desk was a testament to her efficiency.

Standing, she smoothed her skirt and took a steadying breath before walking the short distance to the imposing door of the CEO's office.

Knock. Knock.

"Come in."

She entered. Han Eun-woo was at his monolithic desk, head bent over a contract, his pen moving with quick, decisive strokes. He didn't look up.

"Sir."

"What is it?" he asked, his voice the usual flat baritone of focused work.

"I… was wondering if I might take the rest of the day off. I have to be somewhere else."

The scratching of his pen stopped.

He looked up, his cool grey eyes meeting hers. "Oh. Is there a family emergency?"

"No," she said, and she couldn't help the way her smile softened her features, just a little. The hopeful glow from the text still lingered. "Just… an important meeting."

For a fraction of a second, something flickered across his face.

A micro-expression, there and gone—a tightening at the corner of his mouth, a slight hardening of his gaze. It wasn't anger, not quite.

It was something colder, sharper. A silent disappointment.

He looked back down at his document, his posture stiffening almost imperceptibly. "Are all the documents for today finalized?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Then sure," he said, the word clipped. "You should go."

"Thank you, Sir." She bowed and turned, the door clicking shut behind her with a soft, final sound.

In the silence of his office, Han Eun-Woo's hand stilled completely. He stared at the point on the door where she had just stood.

He felt… something. A hollow, buzzing irritation in his chest that had no logical place in a professional setting. An 'important meeting' that brought that light to her face. 

He knew who it was about and why she was like that, yet he didn't think that smile was meant to be for that man. 'It's not my place,' he thought.

With a slow, controlled breath that did nothing to settle the strange disquiet, he forced his attention back to the dense legalese in front of him.

The words blurred, then sharpened again as he wrestled his world back into its proper, orderly lines.

Work. There was always more work to take you off things.

* * *

The heavy door to the CEO's office clicked shut behind Lee Yoon-ah, sealing away the sterile quiet. The moment she was alone in the plush hallway, a real, unguarded smile broke across her face.

'He's trying. He actually is.'

The tight, anxious knot that had lived in her chest for weeks loosened, just a fraction. Maybe the distance was just a phase.

Maybe things could go back to how they were. Buoyed by the fragile hope, she practically glided to the private executive elevator.

Inside the mirrored box, she watched her own reflection as the numbers began their smooth descent.

The woman looking back seemed lighter, the usual professional mask softened by genuine anticipation. 'It's been so long since we had a proper date.'

The elevator chimed, pausing on the 38th floor.

The doors slid open, and a woman stepped in.

She was sharply dressed in a fashionable blouse and pencil skirt, her hair in a perfect, sleek bob. An office worker from one of the mid-level departments.

"Hello," Yoon-ah greeted politely, offering a small bow.

"Hello," the woman returned, her voice smooth. She moved to the opposite side of the elevator, and they lapsed into the standard, silent commute.

The silence stretched for a few floors before the other woman spoke, her eyes fixed on the descending numbers.

"You seem… happy."

Yoon-ah blinked, pulled from her thoughts. "Oh, do I?" She gave a shy, almost girlish laugh. "Just… hoping to meet someone. You know how it is."

There was a beat of silence, a second too long. Then the woman's lips curved into a smile that didn't quite warm her cool, assessing eyes. "Oh," she said, the word soft and layered with something Yoon-ah couldn't place. "That's nice."

Ding.

The ground floor. The doors opened to the bustling, marble-clad lobby.

"Excuse me," Yoon-ah said, suddenly remembering the time. She hurried out, but in her haste, the small case for her reading glasses slipped from her folder and clattered to the floor.

"Ah, you dropped something," the woman's voice called out from behind her.

Flustered, Yoon-ah turned back.

The woman had already scooped up the case and was holding it out.

As she took it, Yoon-ah's eyes flicked to the badge clipped to the woman's blouse.

JUNG SO-HEE

Marketing Team

Han Department Stores

"Sorry, I'm just in a bit of a hurry. Thank you so much," Yoon-ah said, tucking the case away. A thought occurred to her. "Oh, Ms. Jung from the Marketing Team? You work in Han Departments?"

"Yes," Jung So-hee said, her head tilting slightly. "Why?"

"My boyfriend works there! He's a Team Leader in Marketing. Ri Minhyuk? Maybe you know him?"

For a heartbeat, Jung So-hee's perfectly composed expression didn't change. Then, her smile returned, wider, more deliberate. "Oh," she breathed, the sound almost a sigh. "Ri Minhyuk. Really."

The way she said his name—familiar, lingering—sent an odd, cold trickle down Yoon-ah's spine. It was gone before she could identify it.

"It was nice meeting you!" Yoon-ah said, pushing the strange feeling aside. Her phone buzzed in her pocket—likely Minhyuk. "I should really go. We'll catch up later!"

"Of course," Jung So-hee said, her voice sweet as syrup. "Don't let me keep you."

Yoon-ah offered one last grateful nod before turning and weaving into the flow of people heading for the main exits, her step quick with renewed purpose.

Back at the elevator bank, Jung So-hee didn't move. She stood perfectly still, her hands clasped demurely in front of her, watching the slender figure of the secretary disappear through the revolving doors.

A slow, curling smirk finally broke through her professional mask, a smile that held no warmth, only a sharp, private amusement. Her eyes, glittering with a secret, followed Yoon-ah until she was completely out of sight.

Then, with a final, soft chuckle that was swallowed by the lobby's noise, she turned and walked briskly toward the building's interior, her heels clicking a precise, satisfied rhythm on the polished stone.

* * *

CEO Han's Office...

The door to the CEO's office opened without the usual secretary's preamble.

Kang Minjae leaned against the frame, a faint, knowing smile on his lips.

"Got a minute?"

Han Eun-woo didn't look up from the distribution report he was annotating. "Why ask when you already know the answer."

Minjae chuckled, the sound low and easy in the cavernous room.

He strode in, letting the door sigh shut behind him.

Instead of taking the visitor's chair, he walked past it and sank onto the plush sofa against the far wall, stretching an arm along its back.

The picture of casual ownership.

"The usual briefing with the new director went well enough," Minjae started, his gaze fixed on the rigid line of Eun-woo's shoulders. "But that's not what I'm here for."

He paused, letting the silence stretch for a beat. "So. What happened in the last hour that's gotten you radiating 'disturbance in the force' from three floors down?"

Eun-woo's pen stilled. A tiny, almost imperceptible halt. He set it down with a precise click on the polished wood.

"I don't think," he said, his voice deliberately even, "we should discuss operational personnel matters here."

Minjae's smile deepened. He recognized the code. Operational personnel matters. 

That was Eun-woo-speak for 'something is bothering me and it's personal, and I need to talk but won't admit it.'

"Ah," Minjae said, pushing himself to his feet with a sigh of mock exasperation. "The usual, then. You're asking for a drink."

"I am stating a change of venue for a strategic discussion," Eun-woo corrected flatly, already rising and retrieving his suit jacket from the back of his chair.

"Semantics," Minjae waved a hand, heading for the door. "And remember, you're paying. My consultation fees have gone up. I had to spend my morning babysitting a heiress who stared at a desk like it was a holy relic. Emotional labor, Eun-woo. It's taxing."

A flicker of something—curiosity, perhaps—crossed Eun-Woo's stony face before he schooled it back to neutrality. "Noted. The usual place in twenty minutes."

Without another word, the two most powerful men in the building walked out, leaving the weight of unsaid things hanging in the empty office.

It wasn't a retreat. It was a tactical relocation. And for Han Eun-woo, that was the closest thing to an admission of turmoil he would ever make.

* * *

Down In front Of Han Building...

Lee Yoon-ah spotted Ri Minhyuk from half a block away, standing under the awning of a trendy cafe.

Ri Minhyuk was staring intently at his phone, his thumb scrolling rapidly, a faint frown creasing his brow.

A familiar, cold little stone settled in her stomach. 'Is he at it again?' 

The hopeful glow from his text dimmed for a second. She took a steadying breath, pushing the doubt down. 'He's here. He made time. I shouldn't bring that up today.'

She pasted on a bright smile and closed the distance.

Just as she reached him, he seemed to sense her presence, his head snapping up.

The frown vanished, replaced by a practiced, charming smile as he slipped his phone into his pocket.

"Yoon-ah! You made it." He opened his arms, and she stepped into the brief, familiar hug. It felt a little stiff, a routine more than a reunion.

He then slung an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close as they began to walk. The weight of it felt possessive, not protective.

"So, you finally got a day off?" she asked, keeping her tone light.

"Yeah," he said, squeezing her shoulder. "Sorry I haven't been there for you lately, my Yoon-ah. It's just… work. You know how it is."

"I understand," she said, and she did.

She lived it. But the understanding was starting to taste bitter.

He chuckled, a sound meant to be warm. "I'm surprised, though. Your boss really let you go? That hard, cold, work-focused CEO? What, did his spreadsheet finally tell him it was 'Human Resource Appreciation Hour'?"

She nudged him gently with her elbow. "He's not so bad. Just… strict."

A flicker of defensiveness for the man who, despite his cold exterior, had never made her feel like an afterthought.

Minhyuk made an exaggerated pout, pulling a teasing, jealous face. "Hey, now. I'm the one who should be making you smile, not some icy suit. I'm gonna get jealous!"

She forced a laugh, the sound thin. The conversation needed a pivot.

"Oh, speaking of work," she said, seizing on the earlier coincidence. "I actually ran into someone from your department in the elevator today."

"Oh, is that so?" he said, his gaze fixed on the path ahead. "Who was it?"

"Hmm, what was her name… Ja-Jung… Jung So-hee, I think?"

The effect was instantaneous.

Minhyuk's foot caught on a perfectly flat seam in the pavement.

He stumbled hard, his arm wrenching from her shoulders as he flung his hands out to break his fall.

He managed to catch himself against a lamppost with a sharp, graceless thud.

"Minhyuk-Oppa!" Yoon-ah cried out, rushing to his side, her worry immediate and genuine. "Are you okay? What happened?"

He was breathing a little too hard for a simple trip.

He waved her off, straightening his jacket with sharp, jerky motions.

"I'm fine. Fine. Just… clumsy." He cleared his throat, not meeting her eyes. "Who did you say you met again?"

The cold stone in her stomach turned to ice. She studied his profile—the tense jaw, the way he faked his smile when he looked at her.

"Ms. Jung So-hee," she repeated slowly, her voice carefully neutral. "From Marketing."

The silence between them was no longer comfortable. It was a gaping hole, and his reaction was the only thing echoing inside it.