“Mom, something came up, so I’ll be a few hours late. Please soothe Ye-Na for me. I’m sorry.”
After sending the text to Guk-Sun, Jeong-o Lee hugged her newly issued laptop and headed to the conference room.
Ji-Heon was already there, chin resting on his hand, his laptop open before him. When Jeong-o Lee entered, he gestured toward the empty seat beside him with a tilt of his eyes.
As she set her laptop down and plugged in the power cord, Ji-Heon spoke in a leisurely tone.
“We have an agreed-upon deadline, and that deadline is tomorrow. In an ad agency, clearing one’s personal schedule the day before a project deadline is the absolute basic requirement.”
“Yes.”
She had already accepted that she wouldn’t be leaving on time, so she didn’t want to hear any more of his nagging. She brushed off his lecture coldly, but he continued, his voice calm.
“If Assistant Manager Lee doesn’t finish her work, I can’t leave either. Once you write the script, I have to carefully review it and provide instructions for revisions.”
“…….”
“Let’s aim to finish by nine o’clock. When we’re done, I’ll drive you home.”
The pretense of hitting her and then coddling her felt completely insincere. Jeong-o Lee didn’t answer and placed her hands on the keyboard.
She knew his point about taking responsibility for her assigned work was valid, but the cruel reality of the situation made her feel as if tears were about to spill over.
There was a time when he was the one who would listen to her every word.
Now, he had become a man who wouldn’t even blink at her desperate requests.
*Let’s admit it, Jeong-o Lee. Stop harboring useless feelings.*
He was no longer the Jeong Ji-Heon from seven years ago. He was a completely different person.
Jeong-o Lee gritted her teeth and held back her tears. As she fought them, her nose began to itch and sting. She sniffled.
He turned his head and stared fixedly at her. Not wanting him to see her face, she turned away, but Ji-Heon’s gaze only became more persistent.
“Are you crying?”
“No.”
“For a professional copywriter to cry over a little overtime….”
“I am not crying.”
At Ji-Heon’s teasing, Jeong-o Lee’s hands began striking the keyboard with renewed, combative force.
Ji-Heon watched her leisurely as she focused on her work, refusing to even glance his way.
He had received a call from Team Leader Miran Seong earlier. She had asked him to be understanding of Jeong-o Lee’s situation, so he had replied that he would have her finish and leave as early as possible.
But thanks to an unexpected problem, he had managed to keep her by his side. Even if the laptop virus hadn’t occurred, he would have found a way to make her stay.
That morning, he had heard her talking with Gihun Song. Gihun had been trying to get on her good side by handing her a small gift.
*“Just leave the hard work to me. I’ll make sure you can leave on time today.”*
The sight of the two of them relying on each other had been grating to Ji-Heon’s eyes.
Then, at exactly 6:00 PM, he had gone to the conference room to receive a report and overheard Jeong-o Lee’s phone call.
*“I have a lot of work. But I’ll finish soon and come over. I’ll call you when I’m leaving work. You know that. I’ll be there soon.”*
Her tone had been bright, filled with a laughter that sounded as if something exciting were waiting for her.
It was vexing that a person who had caused a serious problem was making plans to leave work while sounding so cheerful. And then, after whispering as if they were having an affair, she used household chores as an excuse when he told her to redo the proposal.
Did she think he would naively fall for such a ploy?
Ji-Heon covered his mouth, chuckling at the absurdity of her excuse. Since she had mentioned she would be away for two or three hours, he decided he wouldn’t let her go during that time.
She remained emotionless, focusing only on her work. The way she struggled to avoid looking at him was actually quite cute.
Ji-Heon’s fingertips tingled. Sitting right next to her, the body heat she radiated tormented him. He wanted to push her hair aside and see her profile more clearly; he wanted to catch her scent and press his lips to her flushed cheeks.
Ji-Heon was consumed by such base desires that it was hard to believe he had managed to live this long while maintaining his composure.
*
Eun-Bi eventually stood up from her seat.
With Jeong Ji-Heon and Jeong-o Lee all alone in the conference room… if she had known it would turn out this way, she would have granted Jeong-o Lee’s request. She should have just offered to finish the proposal herself.
Her heart ached at the thought that, because she had refused, the two were now stuck together. She walked carefully toward the conference room. She felt she had to see for herself what they were doing.
The door was closed, but all the conference rooms had small glass windows. There were five rooms lined up in a row. Two were empty, and two were in the middle of competitive meetings.
Finally, Eun-Bi reached the last, smallest conference room. She approached with trembling legs, her footsteps as soft as possible.
*Why am I so nervous?* she thought. Peeking through a window wasn’t such a terrible thing. But as she brought her eyes to the glass, she finally confirmed the reality she hadn’t wanted to know.
The two of them were sitting side by side.
And the look in Jeong Ji-Heon’s eyes as he stared at Jeong-o Lee…
Eun-Bi raised a hand to cover her mouth.
*How can a person’s gaze change like that?*
It was an overt, hungry gaze, as if nothing else in the world needed to exist except for her. Even with a gentle smile on his lips, it gave her goosebumps—he looked like a man starving.
Even though she was just sneaking a peek through a pane of glass, she felt as if she couldn’t breathe. Her heart raced, as if she had stumbled upon something deeply intimate.
She felt a wave of embarrassing defeat, and tears welled up. Jeong Ji-Heon had never looked at her like that.
Not even once.
*
8:50 PM.
Usually, she worked past midnight, so three hours of overtime didn’t mean much, but tonight, the situation was different.
*If I take a taxi… would it take about 20 minutes?*
Jeong-o Lee checked the time and sighed. Her goal was to arrive home by 9:30 PM. It was late for a child who went to bed early, but the birthday wasn’t over yet.
*Ye-Na, wait for me. Mommy is coming.*
“I guarantee there won’t be a better copy than this. This is the best I can do.”
She handed the revised proposal to Ji-Heon. He read it carefully and nodded.
“Alright. You’ve worked hard.”
“Yes.”
As soon as she received the confirmation, she hurriedly packed her things. Ji-Heon stood up and walked toward the door.
“Pack your bag and come downstairs. I’ll drive you home.”
Jeong-o Lee glared at the back of his head.
Ji-Heon returned to his office to grab his jacket. He placed the proposal he’d received on his desk, but then picked it back up and put it in his bag. He had offered to drive her, but he had a feeling she would hesitate. Thinking he should intercept her, he hurried outside and stood guard in front of the elevator.
Ten minutes passed. She didn’t appear.
He walked by her desk, but when he didn’t see her, he called her. After a long wait, she finally picked up.
[Hello.]
“Where are you?”
[I’m outside.]
His brow furrowed. “I’m in front of the elevator, and you’re outside?”
[I took the stairs.]
Ji-Heon gritted his teeth. “I told you I would drive you home.”
[I don’t want you to.]
“…….”
[Do I have to be by the Director’s side until I get home? It’s not even part of my duties, is it?]
“…….”
[I will see you tomorrow.]
The call cut off abruptly.
*
*Goal! 9:30 PM!*
At the sound of the front door opening, Ye-Na came running.
“Mom!”
“My little princess!”
Jin-Seo lifted Ye-Na into her arms and hugged her tight. The child, who had greeted her so joyfully, suddenly let her expression crumble.
“Mom, why are you so late!”
*Waaaaaah!*
An explosion of resentment.
“Ye-Na, I’m sorry. Mommy is so, so sorry.” Jin-Seo held her close, soothing her.
“I was waiting for you at the restaurant the whole time!”
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Let’s have a party right now. A real party!”
“We already had the party at the restaurant!” Guk-Sun said, walking over. “Do-Bin, Do-Yun, and Do-Bin’s mom came over. We sang songs and ate cake at the restaurant.”
At Guk-Sun’s explanation, Ye-Na cried even harder. “I wanted to do it with Mom!”
“Then let’s do it again with Mom! Doesn’t that sound good?”
Jin-Seo quickly ran out to buy a cake. Since there was a bakery right in front, it wasn’t difficult. Ye-Na ended up having two birthday parties in one day.
“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday to our lovely Ye-Na.”
With tears still in her eyes, Ye-Na smiled at Jin-Seo’s singing. Although Jin-Seo hadn’t made it early, Ye-Na had essentially gotten what she wanted. After unwrapping a gift from Gihun and one she had saved for a special occasion, she returned to being her bright, cheerful self.
“Mom, I also got a present from Do-Bin. Isn’t this pretty?”
She held out her hand, sparkling, to show off the gift from Do-Bin. On her left index finger sat a ring with a red, heart-shaped cubic zirconia.
“Did Do-Bin give you this?”
“Yes. And he showed me magic tricks and a crab dance.”
“Heh, sounds like you had a fun time.”
“Yeah. He said he had three-line poems and a letter prepared too, but he’d give those to me next year.”
It turned out that when Ye-Na had burst into tears because her mother didn’t arrive, Do-Bin had performed three magic tricks and a crab dance to cheer her up. By the end, Do-Bin had allegedly looked like he was about to cry himself, leaving behind the strange remark that he had nothing left to do for the next four years.
Soon, Ye-Na began to blink sleepily. It was well past 10 o’clock.
“Mom, I’m sleepy. Let’s sleep.”
“Yes, alright. Let’s sleep. Mommy will hold you.”
Soon, the bedding was spread out. Perhaps because she was exhausted, Ye-Na fell asleep immediately. Jin-Seo patted her gently, watching her for a long time, then planted soft kisses all over her baby-soft skin.
*
At the end of a long day, Guk-Sun opened the bedroom door to check on her daughter, only to laugh at the sight. She was showering kisses on a child who was already sound asleep.
“Can’t you even let go when she’s sleeping?”
“Yes.”
“Is she that pretty, even when you see her every day?”
“Of course. Obviously.”
Guk-Sun looked at her daughter with affection. *I think you are just as beautiful. The most beautiful thing I have ever made.*
Even though I gave birth to you, you are more precious to me than I am to myself. Just as you love your daughter, I love you. To me, whether you are thirty or forty, you are still a child—my princess, whom I must protect.
She was a child Guk-Sun would risk her life to protect, but lately, it weighed on her heart to see her struggling in places where her mother’s hands couldn’t reach. She could tell just by reading that one urgent text message she had sent. Even today, she must have pushed herself while already extremely busy just to keep her promise to her daughter.
The dark expression she caught glimpses of on Jin-Seo’s face during the birthday celebration had made her mother’s heart heavy.
“Jeong-o Lee.”
“Yes?”
“If it’s too hard, just quit. Do you think I can’t even feed you?”
“It’s not just me. We have Ye-Na, too,” Jin-Seo replied lightly, as if joking.
*My thirty-year-old child, who is still like a child even after becoming a mother.*
*I pray that your world may be warm and safe. I pray that you are not hurt by the harsh winds and waves of life.*
A mother could only pray earnestly in her heart.
*
After showering, Ji-Heon grabbed a can of beer and sat on the sofa. In front of him lay the proposal he had brought from the office. He was in a foul mood because Assistant Manager Jeong-o Lee had stood him up.
He glared at the proposal for no reason, then sighed and picked it up.
Beneath the main script draft, a phrase Jin-Seo had written as a copy candidate caught his eye:
*- A rainbow-like boss.*
Right next to it, she had helpfully pasted a drawing of a rainbow, but Ji-Heon understood the subtext perfectly.
He let out a snort at that sassy act of defiance. *She keeps acting like this, making me want to keep her by my side.*
He took a sip of beer and flipped through a few more pages. Then, his hand stopped when he reached another sentence she had added.
Without knowing why, he stared at it, then moved his hand to trace the letters. The smile had completely dried up from his face. The neatly printed letters felt dizzying for some reason.
Ji-Heon stood up, leaving both the beer and the proposal where they were. It felt as if nothing could fill the void in his hollow chest.
Night air drifted in through the half-open window, making the top page of the spread-out proposal flutter like the wings of a dragonfly.
*- You, who have forgotten me.*
*You will weep for longing for what you have forgotten.*
*There is more meaning in the things that have not been put into words.*