Episode 3. Just hit it with your body
“Thank you for your hard work!”
Sejeong left the studio, rubbing her shoulders, which were stiff and heavy from fatigue. The commercial shoot ended at 2 AM because the continuity had changed in the middle.
Although the advertiser’s marketing team leader appeared in the middle and the mood was not good, fortunately the filming results were not bad.
“Manager Ahn, I’m going out for a bit. Would you like to eat something before you go? I’m going to go eat some seolleongtang nearby.”
One of the team members looked at her and asked, but Sejeong shook her head.
“No. I’m tired. I’ll go home first.”
She knew very well that eating with a boss was a nerve-racking experience. Her subordinates also tried not to hold back Sejeong, who naturally tried to avoid the table.
“Okay, I’ll call you a taxi, Maam.”
“Hope you wouldn’t mind. Thank you.”
The moment Manager Kim was about to call a taxi for Sejeong, a black sedan approached silently from the end of the road and stopped.
Ji hoon.
The driver’s seat window rolled down freely, and Sejeong’s expression hardened on her face that suddenly appeared inside. Jihoon, whose hair, as if he had just showered, hung down his forehead, smiled with his teeth exposed and waved at her.
“Hi?”
The employees’ eyes widened.
“Hello, sir.”
When one person recognized him and nodded, the others also nodded without knowing what was going on.
“Are you all done now? I thought this commercial shoot started at 4pm.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“It took a long time for a 10-second shoot?”
“Ah… that’s….”
“In most cases like this, one of two things happens: the results are either bad, or the results are garbage.”
The employees were flustered and speechless at the sudden appearance of the new director.
“I guess instead of sending the team leader, an executive should have gone in person. If a 10-second outdoor advertisement costs this much, does a 30-second TV advertisement take a week to film?”
She was the only one who could calm the situation down. Sejeong took a step forward with her high heeled foot. The dizzying heel of her shoe shook.
“… The filming went well. It was just a bit delayed because the storyboard was changed in the middle. As you can see from the results, there will be no problems.”
“I’m not satisfied with not having any problems.”
Ji-hoon’s words, spoken leisurely, were soft, but there was a sense of urgency in them. The employees blinked without even having time to get used to how to deal with him. Se-jeong suppressed her anxiety and continued to speak calmly.
“Once it is displayed, people won’t be able to take their eyes off the screen. That’s how good it is.”
“Then that’s good.”
Ji-hoon finally looked at her and smiled softly.
“You look very tired.”
“…I am okay.”
“Did you eat dinner or just kept working?”
When he frowned slightly with a worried expression on his face, Sejeong’s heart beat faster in response without her knowing it. It was because the whispering tone and expression overlapped with Jihoon’s old appearance. Sejeong nodded, trying hard to hide her embarrassed expression.
“Yes. Now then If you don’t have anything to check on the filming progress, we will be going now.”
Her heart was racing. Sejeong wanted to leave this place quickly. She was anxious about being shaken by Jihoon who suddenly appeared. She was afraid that the more time she spent with him, the more she would waver, and she wanted to run away.
“Goodbye.”
Sejeong tried to respond as naturally as possible, but she couldn’t help but feel the sharp edges of her words tremble.
“Miss Ahn.”
Ji-hoon called out to her as she turned around to run away. Se-jeong turned around very slowly and glanced at him with a pleading look.
Please. Just let me go.
He smiled brightly as he watched her speak with her eyes.
“Come a little closer.”
He beckoned her to come near him. Sejeong took a trembling step towards him.
“I think there was something I didn’t receive as a report from Manager Ahn earlier.”
“… If there are any insufficient reports, I will report them to you when I come to work on Monday…”
Ji-hoon cut her off mid-sentence, ignoring Se-jeong’s efforts to get her off as normally as possible.
“I’m in a bit of a hurry. Let’s get in first and talk.”
Now the staff began to look at her slowly. Sejeong didn’t know how to avoid this situation. Jihoon, who saw her hesitating, completely leaned his upper body out of the car through the open window. A smile appeared on his perfect face, illuminated by the streetlight.
Please.
It was when Sejeong was once again overcome by an unidentifiable sense of anxiety.
“Sejeong-ah.”
“… Director… .”
She tried to interrupt him, but it was of no use.
“Don’t we have a lot to talk about?”
Sejeong’s eyes opened wide. It seemed as if she could feel the nervous gazes of the staff around her. Jihoon added in a gentle voice, watching Sejeong gasp for breath.
“Or, should we just talk here?”
A heavy silence flowed for a moment on the street. It was Sejeong who broke the suffocating silence. She forced a smile on her face and laughed out loud.
“You all know that the director and I went to college together, right?”
Although the tone was awkward, the nervous employees nodded their heads while watching the advertiser’s expression.
“Oh, yes.”
“We are partners at work, but outside of work, we are classmates. So we have a lot to talk about.”
“Ah. Yes… Of course.”
The staff looked at her and Ji-hoon’s expressions and smiled awkwardly like robots. It wasn’t bad that the advertising executive and their boss were related by school ties. The atmosphere between the two was strange, but judging from Ji-hoon’s expression, it didn’t seem like they were enemies.
“Everyone worked hard. I’ll go in first. I’ll report the results today and then go in, so let’s meet at the company on Monday.”
A silent smile crossed Ji-hoon’s face as he looked at her with his arms up on the car window and his face leaning against it. The image of Se-jeong struggling overlapped with the image of her past.
Sejeong had always been hard-working. Her efforts were beautiful, and seeing her joy at the results without hiding it made everyone happy. He was confident that he knew all of her expressions.
Even though she has such a cool and calm face now, how red the nape of her neck turns when she gets angry, how crazy it is when she bites her lips tightly out of frustration, and how lovely her face is when she slightly squints her eyes and smiles bashfully.
Now that he was actually seeing the girl he had wanted to see so much, Ji-hoon felt so excited that he couldn’t concentrate on anything. But Se-jeong was fidgeting in front of the staff, unaware of his feelings.
Because he knew that Sejeong always tried her best, he wanted to protect what she had achieved even more. If not for the staff, he would have pulled her into his arms right away.
Ji-hoon tried to maintain his composure by taking deep breaths without making a sound. He couldn’t just blow away the long hours of effort he had put into showing a different side of himself because of a spur-of-the-moment decision.
“Yes? Oh, yes. Then let’s go in first.”
The staff bowed their heads towards Sejeong and Jihoon in the car and started walking quickly. Sejeong felt the eyes glancing back at her every now and then and tightly shut her eyes. In order not to look strange here, she had to act as naturally as possible.
Sejeong smiled leisurely and got into his car. As soon as the door closed, Jihoon’s scent swept in. It was refreshing yet thick at the same time. Jihoon had always known very well what scent suited him.
“Put your belt on.”
Ji-hoon’s smiling voice was heard nearby. Se-jeong, who was familiar with his driving habits, fastened her seatbelt without saying a word.
As soon as she heard the click, the car started off with a soft engine noise. Ji-hoon drove the car quietly, contrary to her expectations. Se-jeong felt a little strange at the different behavior from before, when he would speed up just by getting in the car.
Looking back, he had seemed a bit relaxed in front of the staff earlier. He still couldn’t hide his sharpness, but if it had been the previous Ji-hoon, he would have been completely oblivious to other people’s gaze and would have embarrassed her even more.
One of his hands was stroking her hair. His driving habits had changed, but the habit of his hands touching her as soon as she got into the car had not changed. As if it had been a long time ago, Sejeong pressed her lips together, which were beginning to tremble slightly.
“Aren’t you tired? The team leader said that the storyboard suddenly changed in the middle and the main model was in chaos. Did you have a hard time?”
Sejeong held back her words because of the gentle but sharp tone in his voice. He glanced at her, who remained silent, and asked again.
“Do you want me to speed up a bit so that you can feel better? I’m confident I can do well.”
“I just hope you continue to drive safely.”
As Sejeong quickly answered, Jihoon smiled lightly and muttered.
“You are always safe when you are by my side. You just don’t know it.”
Ji-hoon’s response made her shut her mouth again. The lights in downtown Seoul didn’t go out even at dawn. There was silence for a moment. He drove silently, playing with the ends of Se-jeong’s hair that hung on her shoulders. Feeling like he was driving without a destination, Se-jeong finally opened her mouth.
“Where are you going now?”
“I haven’t decided yet.”
“Don’t joke around.”
At Sejeong’s harsh tone, Jihoon lightly turned the steering wheel from the intersection into a narrow alley.
“Hotel – number 1, my house – number 2, your house – number 3. Which one do you like better? You choose.”
Sejeong called him with a praying heart.
“Ji-hoon.”
“Have you decided?”
His lips were smiling, but there was no smile in his gaze as he stared at her intently.
“Ji-hoon, let’s talk.”
Sejeong turned her body completely and looked at him. She wouldn’t be able to sleep even if she went home now anyway. She had to tie up her past with Jihoon for the sake of her future work life.
“Why are you acting so impatient? You can talk slowly. There’s plenty of time ahead.”
“Because I don’t want to drag it out.”
As Sejeong answered, Jihoon received the signal and stopped the car. The blue light was blinking on the empty crosswalk. He rested his elbow on the car window and supported his head, staring at her intently.
“I want to live a normal life.”
It was something Ji-hoon had already heard a long time ago. Se-jeong continued speaking heavily to Ji-hoon, who was staring at her intently.
“I will work hard. Doing my best will not be enough, so I will show you the best results.”
Ji-hoon’s eyes narrowed gently as he watched her explain diligently. He knew that Se-jeong was not just talking, but speaking her heart, and that made her look even more special and lovable.
Just imagining those tiny lips calling his name and whispering that they had missed him for so long made his body shiver. Sejeong hesitated as she watched him smiling at her, then added.
“So, I hope that at the company, you will treat me without any personal feelings.”
A long breath escaped Ji-hoon’s lips.
“Do you know that I still have personal feelings for you?”
“If you want an apology from me, I’ll make it official. I’m sorry if I hurt your pride. I was young back then.”
Ji-hoon looked at Se-jeong quietly at her words. Se-jeong added in a trembling voice.
“…I hope you understand what I mean.”
Sejeong knew best that it was impossible to treat him as if nothing had happened, as if she were just dealing with a business partner. Jihoon blew away all the efforts she had made to forget him in half a day.
Just being in that confined space with him made my heart race, and there was no way I could get anything done for the next six months.
But Sejeong was no longer young enough to fall in love with him again. Thinking back to the painful breakup in the past, she knew she shouldn’t fall in love with him again.
And Ji-hoon was also right not to know why she had to leave him. It was Se-jeong’s last pride and a courtesy to the past times when they loved each other as if they were the only two people in the world.
“Yes. Your sincerity has been fully conveyed to me. I accept your apology.”
At his words, Sejeong’s large eyes unconsciously blurred a little with relief. If Jihoon didn’t come closer to her anymore, she was confident that she would hide behind the wall with all her might.
“Thank you for understanding.”
Ji-hoon smiled brightly as he looked at her.
“Choose now.”
“…What?”
“Number 1, 2, or 3. Which one do you like better?”
Sejeong’s tearful face crumpled all at once. She couldn’t communicate at all. While she was blinking with her distorted face, he unbuckled her seatbelt.
As Ji-hoon leaned his upper body towards her, his scent grew stronger. He swept the stray hairs sticking out of Se-jeong’s forehead with his large hand. Se-jeong’s heart beat like crazy as his hand caressed the edge of her eyebrow.
“I gave you a choice like a gentleman.”
“… Don’t do that.”
Her voice trembled thinly. Strangely, the feeling of Ji-hoon’s hand slowly touching her face filled her whole body with a strange tension.
“But since you don’t answer, I can’t help it.”
Click.
Even the seat belt that had been wrapped around her body was released. Ji-hoon’s sharp nose came close to her cheek and bumped into it. His hot breath and tightly shut voice were stuck in her ear.
“Number 4. Let’s do it in car. Let’s have sex again.”
* * *
