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Chapter: 12
The plan she had made to pretend she didn’t know the answer completely fell apart. Muhyeok smiled faintly and, in the end, gave her a hint.
Her heart trembled violently because she had already understood exactly what he meant.
Her tension reached its peak, and she swallowed the saliva that had pooled in her mouth.
Gulp.
Embarrassingly, perhaps because the surroundings were so quiet, the sound of her swallowing echoed loudly. Her face immediately flushed red.
Unlike her, who had become flustered, the smile on Muhyeok’s lips deepened. He stared fixedly at the line of her neck before pulling back the hand that had been resting against the wall. With his thumb, he slowly stroked down the center of her throat.
The dizzying touch made Haeru unconsciously squint one eye.
“Why are you so nervous? You’re getting my hopes up.”
Bent over, gazing intently at her neck, he finally looked into her eyes.
At that moment, Haeru shoved both hands firmly against his chest.
“I’m not nervous.”
Perhaps because he had been so focused on her neck, Muhyeok lost his balance much more easily than before and stumbled backward onto the floor.
Even after falling, he found her panicked expression adorable. Wearing a smile full of amusement, he soon stood back up.
“Sure you’re not…”
Dusting off his pants with his palm, he crossed his arms and stared at her thoughtfully for a moment.
Then, without warning, he grabbed her slender right hand.
Her eyes widened in surprise.
Calmly meeting her gaze, he gently played with her hand. It seemed ready to tremble as if she had a nervous tic, so she clenched it tightly.
“It’s this warm, and you’re saying you weren’t nervous?”
Feeling overwhelmed by the sensation, she quickly pulled her hand away and hid it behind her back.
“Didn’t I ask you, President? Please respect my boundaries.”
“Boundaries? You really want to keep those boundaries that badly?”
“Yes! Please keep your distance. It’s my wish.”
“…I’m sorry, but I can’t grant that wish.”
“It’s not even that difficult!”
“Even so, I can’t. So even if you want to draw a line between us, give up on that idea.”
“Why? We just need to stay within the relationship of boss and secretary.”
Dissatisfaction filled her face. She puffed out her lips slightly, creating three wrinkles between her brows.
Narrowing his eyes, he lowered his voice as though sharing a secret.
“Far from keeping that line, I’d rather use it to tie Secretary Yoon tightly to me.”
“What does that even—”
“I’m telling you to stop provoking me. You know what I’m like. I’ve always been contrary.”
It was true.
Ever since he was little, if adults told him to study, he refused. If they told him not to study, he would do it.
If they told him to eat, he stubbornly refused. If they told him not to eat, he happily did.
He hated being ordered around and instinctively did the opposite of whatever people told him.
The only exception was Haeru. He usually did what she asked, which was why the two of them had been closer than anyone else as children.
“…Sigh. You’re an adult now. Shouldn’t you have outgrown such a strange personality?”
“Even as an adult, it’s hard to change your personality.”
“…Seriously? You’re really going to be like this? An adult should naturally…”
She felt the urge bubbling inside her to punch him on the head with her fist, just like she used to when they were children.
Before she could finish scolding him, Muhyeok, unwilling to hear any more, turned around and headed toward the staircase leading to the second floor.
After taking a few steps, he spoke.
“You should head home for today. Tomorrow’s going to be tiring.”
Pouting, she turned toward him and glared at his back.
But glaring was all she could do. She couldn’t hit him like she used to.
He was her boss now.
She had no choice but to endure it.
When she continued standing in the living room, glaring at him without any intention of leaving, Muhyeok, already a few steps up the staircase, seemed to feel her gaze on his back and suddenly turned around.
Caught still pouting and glaring at him, she quickly looked away.
No matter what, he was still her boss.
Amused by her reaction, he grinned and tilted his head slightly.
“Not leaving? If you’re planning to stay, then come upstairs to my bedroom.”
Wanting to tease her, he wiggled his eyebrows and bit his lower lip seductively.
She flinched, her body stiffening in surprise before she hurried toward the front door.
“N-No! Have a good rest! I’ll see you tomorrow, President.”
She rushed to the shoe cabinet, hastily slipped on her shoes, and hurried outside.
Once outside, she noticed her feet felt strange.
Looking down, she realized she had put her shoes on the wrong feet.
Stepping out of her high heels, she switched them with both hands before slipping her feet back in.
“…Ha… Yoon Haeru, what’s wrong with you?”
Lately, she had been acting as though a screw had come loose.
Never in her life had she been this disappointed in herself.
As a perfectionist, alcohol was like an ugly ink blot from a leaking pen—something that ruined everything.
Kim Taejun was another one of those ink blots.
She had tried so hard to clean up those stains, only to end up facing an even bigger mess.
Letting out a deep sigh, Haeru trudged toward Muyeon’s detached house with slumped shoulders.
After opening the front door and taking off her shoes, she found Muyeon busily getting ready to go somewhere despite the late hour.
Stepping inside, Haeru looked up and asked,
“Where are you going?”
She looked incredibly busy.
With hastily done makeup and casually thrown-on clothes, Muyeon was rushing back and forth between the living room, kitchen, and second floor.
Something had clearly happened.
“I have to go to the gallery.”
“At this hour?”
It was already quite late.
Work should have ended long ago.
Why was she going back now?
“…Sigh… I think one of the artworks got damaged.”
Muyeon pouted as her eyes drooped.
“An artwork? Right now?”
“No… After I got off work, it looked like one of the staff accidentally damaged it… But I guess they agonized over it until now before finally calling me. Ugh, this is driving me crazy.”
Normally, Muyeon never panicked this much over damaged artwork.
Although everything belonged to her and she naturally hated seeing it ruined, she always remained calm.
But today she looked unusually desperate.
“Was it that expensive?”
“…There’s no way to put a price on it.”
Haeru sat down on the sofa, turned toward Cha Muyeon as she bustled around, rested her chin on the backrest, and leaned forward.
“What?! That expensive?”
“The artist refused to sell it, so I borrowed it…”
“Seriously?”
The situation really did seem serious.
“…Sigh… This is such a disaster. What if they refuse to work with us ever again…”
Muyeon suddenly stopped in her tracks and lowered her head.
Haeru stood up, walked over to her, and gently patted her back.
“I’m sorry I can’t be of any help.”
Muyeon let out another long sigh that seemed deep enough to sink into the ground.
Then, as if something had suddenly occurred to her, she lifted her head.
Holding up one finger, she exclaimed,
“Ah! Help? You… actually might be able to help.”
“Me?”
Haeru, who had never known much about paintings, placed a hand on her chest and leaned forward in confusion.
Muyeon lightly patted her back and, looking much brighter than before, hurriedly replied,
“Never mind. I’ll go first. If there’s something you can help with, you have to help me, okay?”
Not understanding what she meant, Haeru blankly nodded.
“Sure.”
She wasn’t rich.
She didn’t know any famous artists.
She couldn’t imagine how she could possibly be useful.
So she answered casually and waved goodbye as Muyeon left the house.
After Muyeon left, Haeru washed up and lay down on her bed, closing her eyes.
But no matter what she did, Muhyeok’s words and actions kept replaying vividly in her mind.
She waved her hand through the empty air as if trying to chase the thoughts away, turned from side to side in bed, yet his image continued to tempt her.
She shook her head.
“No. Get a grip, Yoon Haeru! He’s your friend’s younger brother! He’s practically your own little brother! And a relationship that’s changed isn’t your real destined relationship. That’s what I’ll believe.”
She kept shaking her head until exhaustion finally overtook her, and she fell asleep.
Early the next morning, she stood before the mirror by the entrance wearing an ivory-colored semi-formal suit, checking her appearance.
Her neatly cut bob hairstyle.
Her spotless clothes.
Overall, she looked clean and polished.
Satisfied, she opened the front door and stepped outside.
Since she had to stop by Muhyeok’s house today, she had gotten up earlier than usual.
Perhaps because of that, the sun had not fully risen yet.
She had tossed and turned all night after yesterday’s events, so a huge yawn escaped her first thing in the morning.
“Yaaawn…”
Covering her mouth with her hand, she crossed the stone path through the garden and arrived in front of Muhyeok’s detached house.
She took a deep breath.
For some reason, every time she was about to enter his house, her heart began pounding, forcing her to calm herself first.
Once she had steadied her emotions, she tightened her lips into a faint smile, flung open the door, and stepped inside.
Thinking Muhyeok might be startled by her sudden appearance, she deliberately made plenty of noise as she walked from the entrance all the way to the bedroom on the second floor.
“President! Are you awake?!”
Like a talking alarm clock, she repeatedly shouted the same words over and over until her throat grew hoarse.
Finally, she reached the gray bedroom door.
She stuck out her middle finger and lightly knocked.
Knock, knock, knock.
The cheerful knocking echoed through the room.
No response came from inside.
Tilting her head, she knocked again with her middle finger.
Knock, knock, knock.
This time she knocked so hard that the middle of her finger turned red.
Still no answer.
Feeling something was odd, she slowly grasped the doorknob and carefully cracked the door open, peeking through the gap.
The bed was empty.
“Huh? Did he leave already?”
After confirming no one was in bed, she opened the door fully and stepped inside.
She even checked the bathroom.
Muhyeok wasn’t there either.
Crossing her arms, she stared at the neatly made white bed.
Then she bit her lower lip.
“You asked me to pick out your clothes before… Did you leave first?”
The thought that he had done this just to mess with her irritated her.
She took out her phone from the black handbag hanging on her arm.
Then she pressed the contact saved as [President] and made the call.
But the moment the call started…
