PA 4

“Hey… No way. So you’re telling me a man with money, honor, and power stays away from sex?”

“Wow, if I were in his position, I would have seduced several women by now… I can’t believe it.”

Cha Sanghyeon, the chairman of Saeil Group, was famous for having a clean record with women despite frequently appearing in questionable places. With a meaningful smile at the consistent evaluation of Chairman Cha Sanghyeon, CEO Song left the smoking area.

“Manager Jeonghun.”

— Yes, CEO.

“I’m taking Yejun to the Saeil Department Store VIP dinner show today. Clear Yejun’s schedule.”

— Ah… what about Sehee?

“Fuck… Jeonghun.”

— Yes.

“What happens if you load your gun without knowing the enemy’s weakness?”

— Ah… you’ll lose the battle.

“So just shut up and get Yejun ready.”

— Ah… yes.

Having smoked too many cigarettes, CEO Song made a phlegmy sound and spat on the street. He got into his car, turned up Serious’s music loudly, and entered Saeil Department Store’s main branch into the navigation. CEO Song began to whistle as he gently pressed the accelerator.

A short while later, after arriving at Saeil Department Store, CEO Song saw the car carrying Yejun entering in the distance and waved.

“Yejun.”

“CEO, good day to you.”

As soon as Yejun got out of the car with Jeonghun, he greeted CEO Song politely. CEO Song approached Yejun with a pleased expression. The sudden waft of cigarette smoke made Yejun unconsciously take a step back, but he was soon led by CEO Song’s hand to a secluded area.

“Yejun.”

“Ye-Yes?”

Yejun was often very flustered by CEO Song’s unpredictable behavior, but he tried his best not to show it.

“You know that there’s a dinner show for VIP customers at Saeil Department Store today… right?”

“That’s what I understood when I came here.”

Yejun looked at CEO Song with clear eyes and answered earnestly.

“I’ll give you just one mission for today.”

“Yes… please tell me.”

Yejun gazed intently at Jeonghun, who was pacing around anxiously.

“Do you know Chairman Cha Sanghyeon?”

“You mean the head of Saeil Group?”

“That’s right. Let’s just go and say hello right in front of Chairman Cha Sanghyeon.”

“I’ll greet him if I run into him.”

“Promise me.”

“Ye-Yes…”

CEO Song looked at Yejun with a pleased gaze, then patted his shoulder a bit roughly. After repeating several times that he must greet Chairman Cha Sanghyeon, CEO Song bowed his waist about forty-five degrees and then blended into the crowd of VIP customers.

Puzzled by CEO Song’s hidden intentions, Yejun hurried his steps to attend the dinner show. Jeonghun, who had been watching CEO Song and Yejun from a distance, quickly followed Yejun.

“Yejun.”

“Yes?”

“Did the CEO ask you to do something?”

“He told me to be sure to greet Chairman Cha Sanghyeon.”

Jeonghun fell silent for a moment at Yejun’s answer. Yejun subtly observed Jeonghun’s expression, who for some reason didn’t look happy.

“Should we just sit around for a bit today and then head back to the dorm?”

“Is that okay?”

“Do you know how high up Chairman Cha Sanghyeon is, for him to tell you to greet him one-on-one? If he wants to make that kind of impression, he should do it himself.”

“Hyung, I don’t even know if we’ll be able to get anywhere near Chairman Cha.”

As Yejun rode the VIP-only elevator, he felt his throat tightening with each floor they ascended. As Yejun got off the elevator, which had stopped at the VIP zone, Jeonghun quickly spoke to him.

“Yejun, I’ll be in the waiting room downstairs, so just sit around for about thirty minutes and then come down.”

“I’ll try to greet the Chairman at least once during those thirty minutes.”

“……”

“Hyung, hyung?”

“Ri-Right… don’t overdo it.”

“Okay.”

For some reason, Yejun couldn’t forget Jeonghun’s expression as he looked at him with worry. Yejun walked slowly and set foot into the VIP zone, a place he was not at all keen on. Arriving in the VIP area, Yejun cautiously looked around. Yejun thought this place, with the cheerful yet elegant piano melody of a waltz flowing through it, felt like a completely different world.

“Oh my! Chairman Cha Sanghyeon!”

People who spotted Chairman Cha Sanghyeon entering the VIP area entrance began to surround him. Yejun couldn’t even think of entering that glamorous crowd. Watching them, he felt as if he alone was in a different world. He had no choice but to sit in a suitably secluded corner and sip champagne.

Feeling a little tipsy, Yejun went up another floor to get some fresh air. There was a rooftop garden where employees could rest. The department store employees would have gone home by now, and the rooftop garden would surely be empty.

“Phew… just ten minutes left.”

[Hyung, I’ll be down in about ten more minutes.]

[Okay, I’ll wait, so take your time coming down.]

After exchanging text messages with Jeonghun, Yejun leaned against the railing and admired the city’s splendid night view. Even so, he felt that time was passing especially slowly today. Yejun began to count the seconds, following the movement of the second hand.

“One second, two seconds, three seconds…”

“What are you doing?”

“Ah… ah.”

Sanghyeon, who thought Yejun’s posture leaning against the railing looked somehow very nervous, approached him and spoke. Still not sober, Yejun saw Sanghyeon as a blur.

“Ah… ten minutes is up.”

“What did you say?”

Sanghyeon’s brow furrowed at the unintelligible words.

“Ah, hello. My name is Lee Yejun. I will be on my way now.”

Yejun bowed his waist ninety degrees and then trudged down the stairs. With an indifferent expression, Sanghyeon gazed at Yejun descending the stairs as if he were about to fall. He only started to smoke after Yejun was completely out of sight.

☂︎

With a sullen expression, Sanghyeon dropped the document he was holding onto the desk as if tossing it, and at the same time, a few sheets of paper fluttered to the floor. The document, which had several profile photos clipped together, listed information on pretty male celebrities.

“Is there perhaps no one you like, sir?”

“There’s no one that particularly catches my eye. Are these guys definitely inclined that way?”

“That is correct.”

Like someone doing a difficult homework assignment, Sanghyeon took off his glasses and pressed his temples.

“By the way, Secretary Song, where is Junhyuk?”

“I have told you that he has to have dinner at the main house today.”

Sanghyeon, still looking listless, stood up from his seat, turned on the TV with the remote, and continued.

“Was it the third daughter of Hangang Construction?”

“I have received a call from Ms. Han Jiyun that she will arrive in thirty minutes.”

“It would be good if she finished her undergraduate studies in Korea and went to study abroad with Junhyuk.”

It was then. A clear, resonant, and beautiful voice flowed from the TV. At the sound, Sanghyeon’s gaze instinctively moved and fixed on the TV screen.

[I can taste the sweetness in your kiss.]

Yejun’s cool face, as if indifferent to the world, gradually filled the screen in a close-up. He seemed to be gazing at a distant universe with a somewhat wistful look in his eyes. For a moment, Sanghyeon tilted his head.

[Ah, hello. My name is Lee Yejun. I will be on my way now.]

Sanghyeon recalled a boy who had been utterly absurd. He let out an unconscious chuckle and fixed his gaze on the TV screen.

A girl handed Yejun a chocolate and passed by. Yejun held a piece of dark chocolate in his mouth, and at the same time, a shy smile spread brightly across Yejun’s transparently pale face. Yejun, who had not yet shed his boyishness, created a refreshing feeling with just that smile.

In that moment, Sanghyeon’s gaze was utterly captivated by that shy smile. Imagining the clean, blank-canvas-like Yejun pinned beneath him, crying sorrowfully, made endorphins rush through his entire body.

“Shall I look into him?”

Secretary Song, noticing Sanghyeon’s lingering gaze, cautiously tested the waters. Sanghyeon tapped the armrest of the chair with his index finger. Secretary Song, understanding Sanghyeon’s intention, quickly began to speak.

“I will look into everything from his agency’s CEO to that child’s family situation.”

Sanghyeon gave a barely perceptible nod. It was then. A knocking sound came from outside the study.

“The young master and Ms. Han Jiyun have arrived.”

“Let’s go out.”

As Sanghyeon went down to the first floor, the sight of Junhyuk, who wasn’t hiding his displeasure, came into view. Next to him, Jiyun was seen forcing a smile.

“Jiyun, you’re here?”

“Mister, have you been well?”

As if to blame Junhyuk for not welcoming the precious guest, Sanghyeon intentionally ignored him. At the same time, he gave Jiyun an exceptionally kind smile. A surge of annoyance rose in Junhyuk, and instead of following them, he stood still in his spot.

“Aren’t you coming?”

“What is the reason I had to come to this house today?”

“A father wants to have a meal with his son. What reason is needed for that? Don’t act like a child and come in.”

Junhyuk only glared at the two people entering the dining room and didn’t move for a long while. He had no choice but to walk toward where they were at Secretary Song’s pleading.

“Haha, so what happened, Mister?”

“I won handsomely on the next putt.”

“Really? Isn’t our Chairman Cha living too much like he’s in a movie?”

Junhyuk let out a scoff at the sight of the two. He found Jiyun, who was only twenty, acting fake with a strategic marriage in mind, to be utterly ridiculous.

“Jiyun.”

“What?”

Jiyun, who was sitting up straight, turned her head toward Junhyuk. As she did, her sharp gaze was directed at him.

“Don’t you have any pride? I’m so blatantly ignoring you, yet how can you be all haha hoho with my father?”