Lunch hour.
Top floor.
Lower floor of Hanryeon Tech.
Not the glamorous executive level.
This was the practical one.
Slightly noisier.
Slightly warmer.
Much better for gossip.
Ji-Ah and Soo-Min sat at a small round table near the vending machines, trays abandoned for conversation instead of consumption.
Soo-Min leaned forward like she was about to present a thesis.
Soo-Min leaned in immediately. "So."
Ji-Ah unwrapped her food. "So."
"Tell me everything."
Ji-Ah blinked. "About what?"
Soo-Min gasped. "About him."
Ji-Ah choked slightly on air. "We are at work."
"And?"
Ji-Ah lowered her voice anyway. "He's been… different."
"Different how?" Soo-Min's eyes gleamed like someone about to uncover state secrets.
Ji-Ah poked at her food. "He didn't shout today."
"That's growth."
"He left Pip's key out."
Soo-Min froze. "On purpose?"
"Yes."
Soo-Min grabbed Ji-Ah's arm. "That's not a small thing. That's a cinematic thing."
Ji-Ah tried to look calm. Failed slightly. "Also… he said 'as you wish.'"
Soo-Min slapped her own forehead. "He's evolving."
Ji-Ah leaned closer. "And Do-Yoon said he's been weird lately."
Soo-Min gasped again. "Define weird."
Ji-Ah counted on her fingers. "He stares at nothing. Sighs. Adjusts his cufflinks dramatically. Asked for decaf."
"DECAF?" Soo-Min whispered, scandalized. "That's emotional instability."
Ji-Ah nodded seriously. "He even reorganized files twice. That man only reorganizes when he's thinking too much."
Soo-Min placed a hand over her heart. "He's in deep."
Ji-Ah tried not to smile. "In deep what?"
Soo-Min leaned in dramatically. "In feelings."
Ji-Ah rolled her eyes. "Please."
Soo-Min leaned forward like she was about to present a thesis.
"You know there are three brothers in that house, right?"
Ji-Ah blinked. "I live there."
"Exactly. Statistical blessing."
Ji-Ah narrowed her eyes. "Where is this going?"
Soo-Min began counting dramatically on her fingers.
"First. Do-Hyun. Taken. Off the market. Almost Married. Sweet. Stable. Not available. So we respectfully eliminate him."
Ji-Ah nodded cautiously.
"Second. Min-Hyuk. Sunshine in human form. Polite. Brings sweets. Smiles like he apologizes to chairs when he bumps into them."
Ji-Ah snorted despite herself.
"And third…" Soo-Min lowered her voice. "…Him."
Ji-Ah immediately looked down at her tray.
Soo-Min smacked the table lightly. "If I had to choose—strictly hypothetically—I would choose Ha-Joon."
Ji-Ah's head snapped up. "Why?!"
Soo-Min's eyes gleamed.
"Reason one. Presence."
"That's not a reason."
"It is. When he walks into a room, the room behaves."
Ji-Ah tried not to smile.
"Reason two," Soo-Min continued, "he pretends to be cold, but he's not. He's just controlled. That's worse. Controlled men feel deeply. They just file it properly."
Ji-Ah blinked. "File it?"
"Yes. Emotional spreadsheets."
Ji-Ah pressed her lips together.
"Reason three," Soo-Min said dramatically, "he listens. Not loudly. Not obviously. But he listens. Remember when you said you hated shouting? He hasn't raised his voice since."
Ji-Ah's fingers tightened slightly around her chopsticks.
Soo-Min leaned even closer.
"And reason four. He looks at you like he's trying not to."
Ji-Ah's ears turned pink.
"That is not true."
Soo-Min tilted her head. "You really think I don't notice? When you enter a room, he straightens. When you leave, he watches."
Ji-Ah stared at her food like it had betrayed her.
"And don't get me started on Pip's key."
Ji-Ah muttered, "That was just convenience."
Soo-Min gasped. "Convenience does not whisper 'as you wish.'"
Ji-Ah nearly choked.
Soo-Min folded her arms triumphantly. "Min-Hyuk is adorable. Do-Hyun is dependable. But Ha-Joon?"
She paused for effect.
"He's the kind that chooses once."
The words lingered.
Ji-Ah swallowed.
"You're imagining things," she said weakly.
Soo-Min leaned back in her chair. "Maybe. But if I had to choose among the three brothers?"
She tapped the table once.
"Ha-Joon."
Silence stretched between them.
Then—
A shadow fell across the table.
A very familiar one.
Ji-Ah's heart dropped to her shoes.
Slowly, carefully, she lifted her head.
Ha-Joon stood there.
Expression calm.
Eyes unreadable.
"Interesting," he said smoothly.
Soo-Min froze mid-breath.
"The lower floor seems… lively today."
Ji-Ah wished the vending machine would swallow her whole.
Ha-Joon's gaze settled on her.
"Miss Park."
Her voice came out smaller than intended. "Yes, sir?"
"Follow me."
Soo-Min stared at Ji-Ah like a soldier watching a comrade march to war.
Ji-Ah stood, smoothed her skirt, and walked after him toward the elevator.
They reached the elevator.
He pressed the button.
Silence.
The doors opened with a soft ding.
They stepped inside.
Doors slid shut.
Ji-Ah stared at the floor numbers like they held answers.
Ha-Joon glanced at her sideways.
"Decaf?" he asked mildly.
She swallowed.
"…It's good for your heart."
One corner of his mouth twitched.
"And my cufflinks?"
She hesitated.
"…Dramatic."
The elevator descended.
Slowly.
Painfully slowly.
He looked at her fully now.
"Next time you analyze my behavior," he said calmly, "be quieter."
Ji-Ah's ears turned pink.
"…Yes, sir."
A pause.
Then—
"For the record," he added, voice lower, "I do not practice speeches in mirrors."
She nodded quickly.
"Of course not."
Another pause.
"…But," he continued, eyes forward, "if I were to apologize, it would not be in a 'controlled masculine manner.'"
Her head snapped toward him.
The elevator dinged.
Doors opened.
He stepped out first.
Ji-Ah stood frozen for half a second before scrambling after him.
Behind them, on the top floor, Soo-Min collapsed dramatically onto the floor whispering,
"He heard everything."
--
His office door closed with a soft click.
No audience.
No witnesses.
Just polished wood, glass walls, and the faint hum of the air conditioner pretending nothing dramatic ever happened inside.
Ha-Joon gestured to the chair across from his desk.
"Sit."
Ji-Ah sat.
Back straight. Hands on her lap. The posture of someone awaiting sentencing.
He didn't sit immediately.
He walked around his desk first, adjusted a file that didn't need adjusting, then finally took his seat.
"My mother is coming in two weeks."
Ji-Ah blinked. "Oh."
"Do-Hyun plans to introduce Nisa to my mom, as his Fiancée."
Ji-Ah's brows lifted. "That sounds dangerous."
"It is strategic," he replied calmly.
She crossed her arms slightly. "And this involves me because…?"
"You will organize the arrangements."
She exhaled sharply. "Of course I will."
He ignored the tone.
"Dinner venue. Seating. Accommodation. Briefings. You will coordinate."
She leaned back in the chair, staring at the ceiling. "Sir, this is a family matter. I cannot just insert myself into your family drama like an event planner in a soap opera."
He was silent for a moment.
Then he sighed.
Not irritated.
Just… measured.
"It would be good if you came."
She looked at him. "To the dinner?"
"Yes."
She blinked. "Why?"
He held her gaze.
"Because when you're there," he said evenly, "I don't have to perform."
The air shifted.
Just slightly.
Her heart flipped like it had missed a step on the stairs.
He continued, calm as ever. "My mother evaluates everything. Everyone. When you are in the room, I am less… tense."
That did not help her pulse.
"I work better," he added quietly.
Ji-Ah swallowed. "That is a very manipulative thing to say."
"It is a truthful thing to say."
Silence.
She looked down quickly. "Still. It's family."
"You are part of this household," he replied without hesitation.
That one landed somewhere deeper.
She didn't know where to put her hands anymore.
To escape the heat crawling up her neck, she blurted, "Anyway, Min-Hyuk is definitely getting married before you."
Ha-Joon raised a brow.
"He's too soft," she continued. "He'll fall in love and propose within six business days."
Ha-Joon's lips twitched faintly. "Possibly."
"And Seo-Yeon's wedding will come soon too," she added quickly. "I'm going to dance my heart out. Don't get excited, okay."
"I am not excited."
She narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
He leaned back in his chair. "Go and continue working."
His voice was softer now.
Not CEO sharp.
Just… quiet.
She nodded slowly.
Stood up.
Walked to the door.
Paused.
Did he just talk like that?
She glanced back.
He was already looking at his documents, expression composed.
But his ears—
Just slightly red.
Ji-Ah opened the door and stepped out.
Her heart was still doing acrobatics.
Inside the office, Ha-Joon stared at the same page for a full thirty seconds without reading a single word.
Two weeks.
This was going to be interesting.