After hanging up the phone, Yeonwoo paced the suite, waiting for Seongheon. As soon as she heard footsteps approaching, she hurried to the door.
When she cracked it open and met Seongheon’s gaze, her ears burned and her face flushed a deep, stinging crimson.
“Um, Managing Director, this is…”
She gripped the doorframe, her knuckles white, unsure of what to do. As she stood there with only her face visible in the sliver of space, Seongheon nudged the door open and stepped inside.
Yeonwoo instinctively backed away, and Seongheon’s lips parted slightly.
*Thud.* The door clicked shut behind him.
“I—I did put it on, but no matter how I look at it, it’s just too flashy. It stands out so much. When I saw it inside Domyeongjae, it didn’t seem like this much, but now…”
As she stumbled through her frantic excuses, Seongheon scanned her from head to toe. His expression suggested he was struggling to process the reality of what he was seeing.
The vibrant, electric-blue dress clung to her body with a tightness that was almost comical. The hem, which flared out below the knees like a cheap mermaid’s tail, emitted a harsh, rustling sound with every microscopic shift she made.
The frantic mess of cheap, glittering beads was dizzying. Standing frozen, unable to move forward or back, she blushed until her skin felt as though it might burst.
Witnessing such an absurd sight, Seongheon slowly blinked. When he remained silent, Yeonwoo, overcome by mortification, twisted her fingers together, offering more stammered apologies.
“I’m sorry, I don’t think this is right…”
“……”
“I should have asked sooner; my judgment was poor. I’m truly sorry.”
“Manager Moon. Hah…”
A long, ragged sigh escaped him. Yeonwoo bit her lip and stared at the floor, while Seongheon rubbed his forehead, letting out a dry, incredulous laugh.
He had overlooked too many things. He had never requested clothing for a woman before, so he had simply assumed “evening wear” meant a standard gown. He’d envisioned the sort of sophisticated banquet attire that usually accompanied him on business.
But this? This was the kind of outfit one might buy for a low-budget tour—and even then, it was questionable.
*This is driving me insane.*
“Ah… I’m sorry…”
When he let out that stifled laugh, Yeonwoo looked as if she were on the verge of tears. She clearly felt she had ruined everything before the night had even begun.
*Sigh.* Seongheon squeezed his eyes shut for a heartbeat, then looked at her again. Now that he allowed himself a slower, more deliberate assessment, it was almost impressive that she managed to carry the gaudy thing at all.
“It’s certainly shocking, but looking at you now, it’s not entirely bad.”
“Pardon?”
Yeonwoo jumped, eyes wide. She looked so genuinely bewildered—wondering if he was mocking her—that a hairline smile tugged at the corner of Seongheon’s mouth.
She had a rather charming side to her.
“You say it’s not bad?”
“Isn’t it enough that the person wearing it carries it off?”
“Ah… about that.”
“Turn around.”
“Yes.”
Flustered, Yeonwoo slowly spun. The dress, which left her back mercilessly exposed, revealed the entire line of her spine. Only then did Seongheon’s brow furrow in genuine distaste.
Against her paper-white skin, her shoulder blades and the dip of her spine were too prominent.
“What is this? This is hideous.”
A moment ago he had said it wasn’t bad, but upon seeing the exposed back and the way the fabric clung to her hips, his reaction turned visceral. Yeonwoo hung her head, the back of her neck burning red.
The front had been manageable, but the exposed back made Seongheon’s vision swim with irritation. The thought of other men seeing her like this was entirely unacceptable.
“To think you’d wear something like this…”
His sharp criticism hit her hard. Yeonwoo’s eyes welled with tears; she felt as though the entire evening had gone catastrophically wrong.
“I’m sorry…” *It’s ruined.* “I think I made a big mistake. I’m sorry. I should just stay in my room today…”
“Hello. It’s me.”
Before she could finish, Seongheon pulled out his phone. Yeonwoo fell silent.
“Something has come up. Manager Hwang, I need your help.”
He was calling someone to take over. Yeonwoo looked down at the carpet.
“I’ll send you the address. Contact a nearby boutique and get some proper banquet attire. It’s for a dinner setting. A woman will be wearing it.”
…Ah. Yeonwoo closed her eyes, his voice vibrating through the room.
“Size?”
She could feel Seongheon’s gaze searing into her. The sensation of his eyes scanning her, head to toe, sent a dizzying heat crawling up from her feet. Her mind was in total chaos.
“She’s about my shoulder height.”
*Is my heart dropping? Or is it leaping?*
“Thin.”
“Pretty.”
Her blood felt as though it were thickening in her veins. Afraid that her legs might buckle, she forced herself to keep her eyes open.
“Pick something appropriate. There’s no time—even if you’re rushed, be here within an hour and a half.”
With that, he hung up. A heavy silence filled the room, and Yeonwoo pressed her lips together, terrified her heart might jump right out of her mouth.
Tucking his phone away, Seongheon looked at her, watching her with a quiet, lingering intensity. He lifted his chin.
“You heard him. Let’s wait.”
“Yes. Understood.”
Seongheon turned toward the door, then paused, glancing back over his shoulder.
“Is your health… alright?”
Yeonwoo looked up, blank. Her mind was so cluttered she couldn’t conjure a coherent thought, so she simply nodded, as if possessed.
Seongheon offered a faint, unreadable smirk and stepped out.
*Thud.* Once the door closed, Yeonwoo sank to the floor, the cheap dress rustling around her. She had no way of knowing the true intent of the man who had come all the way to her suite just to ask that one question—whether her body was doing well.
*
“Oh my? Who is this?”
It was well past noon on Saturday. Ms. Shin, lying in her rehabilitation hospital bed, opened her eyes wide.
Manager Moon was walking through the sliding door.
Carrying a box of orange juice in one hand and soy milk in the other, she walked in with slow, measured steps. Ms. Shin looked at her as if she were seeing a ghost.
“What’s going on? You, showing up without a word?”
“What ‘notice,’ you old bat? Since when have I ever needed your permission to go anywhere?”
Manager Moon set the boxes under the bed and sat on a small folding chair. Ms. Shin stacked her pillows to support her waist and pulled herself upright.
“What’d you go and buy those for? Who’s gonna drink them?”
“Leave ‘em. Let ‘em rot, or feed ‘em to the dog.”
If the words sent aren’t sweet, the words returned won’t be either. Ms. Shin just pursed her lips and combed her tangled hair with her fingers.
Manager Moon clicked her tongue.
“If I squeezed you, a whole barrel of oil would come out. Are you living without even washing your hair?”
“Try lying here sick. You think washing your own body is that easy?”
“That’s why you need to keep your wits about you. No one pushed you, no one tripped you. You were eating and working fine, so why in the world did you go and fall?”
Even as a visitor, the old woman was full of sharp-tongued nagging. Ms. Shin turned her head away, her expression cold.
Ja-Young, a younger neighbor, had been stopping by to help after her shifts at Domyeongjae, and she’d been providing news about Yeonwoo. She had relayed how the staff at the main building were working her daughter to the bone. Manager Moon was surely at the top of that list, and Eun-ja was likely running wild.
“Why are your lips stuck out like that? Did you hurt your mouth when you fell, too?”
It wasn’t likely Ms. Shin would find this a welcome visit. She radiated resentment, her face full of deep-seated grievance.
“Tell me, why is everyone so hell-bent on devouring someone else’s precious daughter?”
“What are you talking about? Who’s devouring who? You mean Ja-Young?”
“It doesn’t matter. Tell me why they’re grinding our Yeonwoo down like that.”
“When a new person starts, it’s the same for everyone. Didn’t you go through it? Didn’t Ja-Young? Should I give her extra points just because she’s your daughter?”
“You could be a little kinder. Yes or no.”
“No.”
As Ms. Shin grilled her, Manager Moon opened a bottle of juice and thrust it toward her. Ms. Shin accepted it, though her expression remained sullen.
“And why is a young girl out in the countryside? If you couldn’t find a replacement, what kind of fool sends their daughter to Domyeongjae?”
“……”
“In the city, people are crying because they can’t find jobs. Tell her to go to Seoul as soon as possible. Age is everything—what time does she have to be rotting away here?”
Ms. Shin tilted her head back, eyes wide, as if trying to decipher the woman’s intent.
“I haven’t the slightest clue what you’re talking about.”
“Did you hurt your head, too? Did your brain leak out?”
“No, it’s not that—our Yeonwoo is on company leave, you see?”
At those words, Manager Moon raised an eyebrow.