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Chapter 7
“Let’s go.”
She held out her hand for her bag with a polite smile, but Dohyun walked straight out of the restaurant with it in hand, pretending not to notice.
“Mr. Nam Dohyun, my bag…”
“I already called a chauffeur service. Where do you live?”
Ignoring Yeon-ha’s voice as she followed behind, he simply asked the questions he wanted.
“You’re not going to the after-party and heading straight home?”
“You’re not going either, Team Leader.”
As he walked toward the parking lot, he glanced back at her.
“Our situations are different. You’re the guest of honor tonight.”
“From what I saw earlier, everyone was too drunk to care about me.”
“Still, it’s your welcome party. Attending would help with your future at the company…”
He suddenly stopped and turned around. Yeon-ha, who had been following absentmindedly, almost bumped into him. She steadied her breathing to calm her startled heart. Then Dohyun spoke quietly.
“If you’re worried… would you come with me?”
“What?”
“If you go, I’ll go too.”
He held her gaze as he added those words.
What kind of man looks at someone like that…? His eyes sparkled, as if sprinkled with starlight…
Gasp.
Startled by her own thoughts, Yeon-ha quickly took a step back.
She had even washed her face, but the alcohol clearly hadn’t worn off yet. Otherwise, she would never have such ridiculous thoughts.
RRRRR. RRRRR. RRRRR.
As she wallowed in self-reproach, a phone rang.
Dohyun, who had been looking at her, pulled his phone out of his pocket.
“Hello? Yes, please come inside the restaurant.”
After the brief call, he said matter-of-factly, “Looks like the chauffeur arrived. Let’s go.”
“No, I—”
“Over here, sir.”
Before she could finish, Dohyun raised his hand toward a man entering through the restaurant doors.
Handing over the car key to the chauffeur who approached quickly, Dohyun then opened the backseat door and turned to her.
“Please, get in.”
“I’m fine. I can just take a taxi.”
“It’s hard to catch a taxi at this hour.”
How long has he even been in Korea, to know things like that?
“Who told you that?”
Yeon-ha instinctively asked.
“Assistant Manager Kwon.”
When had he even had that conversation with Jin-young? They weren’t sitting together.
“Ahem.”
At that moment, the chauffeur cleared his throat from the driver’s seat.
Feeling guilty for delaying the departure, Yeon-ha couldn’t insist any further.
Reluctantly, she got into the backseat, expecting Dohyun to take the passenger seat. But when he casually sat beside her, she was caught off guard.
“Where to, ma’am?”
The chauffeur asked, and Dohyun looked at her.
“Team Leader, your address, please.”
Flustered, unsure whether to step out or give up her seat, Yeon-ha blurted out her address.
The chauffeur entered it into the navigation and started driving immediately, leaving her no chance to move.
In the end, she sat side by side with Dohyun in the backseat.
“Are you feeling okay?”
Staring out the window to avoid the awkward silence, she turned at his question.
Dohyun met her eyes instantly, as though he had been waiting.
Her heart throbbed. Before she could answer, he continued,
“You didn’t look well earlier.”
“I’m fine.”
She had felt a little dizzy from drinking faster than usual under Chief Jung’s urging, but her stomach wasn’t particularly upset.
“How much can you drink?”
“I’m not that weak, but I don’t drink often. I hate hangovers the next day.”
“Then next time, I’ll prepare a hangover cure beforehand.”
He spoke as if there would naturally be a “next time.” Yeon-ha bristled.
“Why would you?”
“You looked like you were struggling.”
“So why do you care?”
“Am I not allowed to?”
His gaze pierced deeply into her.
Instead of flustering at her question, he had the audacity to respond firmly. She was momentarily at a loss for words but quickly composed herself.
“No. Don’t concern yourself with me.”
“Why not?”
“It’s burdensome.”
“But I haven’t even done anything yet.”
“Don’t do anything in the future either.”
Her firm boundary caused a subtle shift in his once-calm eyes. A cold gleam appeared.
“You know what? Saying things like that… even someone with no interest suddenly feels challenged.”
“…”
Afraid of provoking him further, Yeon-ha kept silent.
In the dark, their eyes locked.
His gaze lingered on her eyes, then slid slowly down the bridge of her nose, and finally stopped on her lips. Her mouth felt parched, as if her lips were burning.
She fought the urge to moisten them with her tongue when—
RRRRR. RRRRR. RRRRR.
Her phone rang, breaking the tense silence.
The charged air between them shattered instantly.
Collecting herself, Yeon-ha glanced at the caller ID. It was Jin-young.
“Hello?”
[Team Leader, I just saw your text! Did you grab your bag?]
“Yeah, I did.”
[Oh, thank goodness. Chief Jung dragged us to karaoke, it’s been chaotic.]
“Don’t worry about me. Just leave at a decent time.”
[Yes, that’s my plan.]
Noisy music and voices came through the background.
As Yeon-ha was about to hang up, Jin-young spoke again.
[By the way, Team Leader… have you seen Nam Dohyun?]
“What?”
Startled by his sudden name, she instinctively glanced at Dohyun sitting right beside her.
He was still looking at her, their eyes locking perfectly.
[Team Leader Kim has been looking for him for a while, but no one can find him. Did you see him?]
“Uh, well…”
Flustered, she stammered. Dohyun silently shook his head. She decided not to reveal that they were together.
“I didn’t see him. Maybe he already left.”
[Really? Okay! You be safe on your way home too, Team Leader!]
“Yeah, see you tomorrow.”
When the call ended, Yeon-ha let out a quiet breath.
Dohyun, watching her, frowned slightly.
“Why so nervous? It’s not like we’re committing a crime.”
“You might be used to this kind of thing, but I’m not.”
Unlike his calm demeanor, she felt like the only one unsettled, which made her defensive.
His eyes darkened at her words.
“Team Leader… what kind of person do you think I am?”
Someone skilled at handling women.
That’s what she wanted to say, but she couldn’t bring herself to. Instead, she chose her words carefully.
“I… I’m not good at lying.”
Dohyun gave a wry smile.
“That feels unfair. Believe it or not… I hate lying too.”
His bitter tone stung her.
Realizing she had practically branded him a liar out of irritation, Yeon-ha felt a pang of regret.
“I didn’t mean it like that…”
She tried to explain cautiously, but he cut in.
“I understand how you see me. But I’m not as shallow as you think.”
With that, he turned to the window, signaling he didn’t want to continue.
The air in the car grew colder.
She wanted to apologize, but the invisible wall between them kept her lips sealed.
Neither spoke another word until—
“We’re here.”
The chauffeur parked in front of her place.
Yeon-ha, feeling like she had been sitting on pins and needles, hurried to grab her bag.
“Thanks for the ride.”
“Get home safe.”
They exchanged only brief, businesslike words before parting.
The moment she stepped out, his car drove off quickly. Staring blankly at the receding vehicle, she was suddenly overcome with an odd sense of being abandoned.
Pulling her jacket tighter, she felt a cold breeze stir inside her chest.
