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Chapter 03
Able Entertainment.
I’d only ever passed by it, so this was my first time actually coming inside.
As expected of one of Korea’s top three entertainment agencies, the company occupied an entire building.
Unlike Management 123, there was a huge wall-mounted sign with the company logo on the exterior.
Bom strode confidently up to the front desk.
The security guard standing beside it watched her closely.
She didn’t know how Able planned to corner her, but rather than being dragged along by them, she decided it would be better to step forward first and minimize the damage as much as possible.
She’d already been cursed at plenty before, called a bad woman—going through it twice wouldn’t kill her.
“I’m here to see the CEO.”
“May I have your name?”
“Lee Bom. I don’t have an appointment, but if you contact him, he’ll see me.”
The smile on the receptionist’s face deepened.
If her expression had voice support, it would probably be saying, You’re not the first person like this.
“If you don’t have an appointment with the CEO, we can’t let you meet him.”
“Then please contact him now. Tell him Lee Bom—the one involved in the scandal with actor Go Geon, the son of that family—has come to see him.”
The receptionist’s eyes widened. She exchanged a glance with the colleague next to her.
At least this time, Bom wasn’t being treated like a random nobody.
Because of the scandal involving Go Geon, Able Entertainment’s representative actor, the mood among the CEO and board members had been bad.
There were even rumors that the CEO had been chewed out by the chairman of the Daehyun Group.
You bastard! How the hell did you handle things so badly that Daehyun’s name is being dragged into a scandal? If you don’t clean this up properly, entertainment will be cut off from the Daehyun name—do whatever it takes!
The employee next to her quickly searched online, comparing photos from Bom’s Pink Pop trainee days with her face now.
After nodding to confirm it was indeed her, she said,
“I’ll contact the person in charge, so please wait a moment.”
“No. Please contact the CEO. Able wants to put out this scandal too. If I just leave like this, your side won’t hear anything good either.”
She felt sorry for the flustered receptionist, but this was Bom’s life on the line.
Just as she worried the argument might drag on, the employees’ eyes suddenly widened.
They weren’t looking at Bom anymore—they were looking behind her.
As if to shift the atmosphere, a hand reached out from behind and lightly tapped the desk.
“Give this person a visitor’s pass.”
A calm, heavy scent washed over her.
It was a voice no one in Korea could fail to recognize.
The reception staff, who must have seen company celebrities plenty of times, still had their cheeks puff up with excitement.
“Actor Go Geon has arrived.”
“Thank you for your hard work.”
As he said that, Go Geon’s gaze lingered on Bom.
She bit her lip.
She hadn’t expected to run into him here.
She tried to avert her eyes, but her gaze was drawn to him anyway.
Calling someone “sculpted” was cliché, but he truly fit the word.
There wasn’t a single flaw.
It was as if, in the hour God spent creating humans, He hastily made most people in one minute, then devoted the remaining fifty-nine minutes to crafting this man—pure perfection.
When their eyes met, Bom quickly looked away.
He was the root cause of everything happening right now, yet her ears burned hot without warning.
“Contact the CEO. I’ll go up with her.”
“But we need the CEO’s permission—”
“It’s fine. I said it’s fine.”
At Go Geon’s firm words, the hesitant employee straightened her back.
Bom quickly filled in her basic information in the visitor’s log the employee handed over.
She could feel Go Geon looking down at her.
Hey, move away already.
What if someone takes pictures? Why are you standing so close?
“So we meet again.”
Just his voice made her heart drop.
It felt like he was whispering right into her ear, sending chills down her spine.
As she turned her head, her eyes met those of the receptionist sitting across from her.
“Nothing happened!”
The words burst out instinctively.
Bom’s face flushed red—she felt guilty for no reason and overreacted.
Go Geon, on the other hand, remained calm. Annoyingly so.
“I’m sorry, but please refrain from saying things that could be misunderstood, Actor Go Geon. Nice to meet you.”
He looked down at Bom as she bowed.
The corner of his lips lifted even higher, his smile deepening.
Mischief sparkled in his eyes.
“This isn’t our first meeting.”
If humans had pheromones, was this what it felt like?
It didn’t come across pleasantly to Bom.
“You should say it’s been a while. We used to date, remember?”
“…Yes. It’s been a while.”
She could see the staff exchanging looks, pretending not to notice.
Technically, he wasn’t wrong—they’d dated back when they were trainees, then broken up.
She’d overreacted because she felt oddly cornered.
Before anything else could be said, Bom quickly handed back the logbook and received her visitor’s pass.
Go Geon strode toward the access gate.
A man who looked like his manager bowed slightly to her before following him.
Bom felt like she was being dragged along by him, even without a leash.
Inside the elevator, Go Geon blocked his manager from entering.
“Go back to the office. I’ll call you after I’m done talking with the CEO.”
“Yes, hyung.”
Go Geon jerked his chin at Bom, signaling her to get on.
Several people had been waiting ahead of them, but no one dared enter, intimidated by his presence.
Good. The fewer people, the better.
As soon as Bom stepped inside, the elevator doors closed, cutting them off from the outside.
For a brief moment when there was still a gap, she wanted to shove her foot in and run out.
But her pride wouldn’t allow it.
There was no reason to avoid him.
She hadn’t done anything wrong.
It was an accident—just an accident.
Even so, she didn’t have the courage to turn around and look at Go Geon standing behind her.
Though she tried not to, his reflection appeared in the closed doors.
He was looking at her.
Her heart felt like it was shrinking in on itself.
“You’ve got guts. Coming all the way here.”
“You’re the one who made me come.”
As if this were someone else’s problem.
His calm tone made flames flare up inside her.
“Why isn’t Able cleaning up the situation? You should make a firm statement that we’re nothing to each other!”
“The public won’t believe it. They even dug up our old photos and found out we used to date. I didn’t think they’d go as far as spinning a novel and linking it to the group, though.”
The elevator doors opened on the third floor.
The people about to get on took one look at Go Geon and Bom, then stepped back, pretending to check their phones.
The doors closed and the elevator resumed its ascent.
“They’re even saying we have a kid together. Why do they assume it’s a son? I’d be fine with either a son or a daughter.”
“You find that funny?”
“What else am I supposed to do? They’re saying an unmarried, perfectly normal man has a child.”
“…You’ve done enough in the past to invite misunderstandings like that.”
“I’m the cleanest and purest man in Korea.”
The elevator stopped again, doors opening—but no one boarded, cowed by the tense atmosphere.
The doors closed, and the conversation continued.
“Clean and pure? Who would believe that?”
“You should. You’re the one who said it yourself—that nothing happened between us. Isn’t that right?”
She had no comeback.
Tensing her twitching cheek, Bom looked away.
As they argued, she’d somehow ended up standing close to him.
She stepped back, pressing herself against the opposite wall.
“Didn’t you miss me?”
Her heart, already reacting to his every word, felt like it stopped altogether.
She pressed her lips together.
Don’t engage.
Don’t waste your energy before meeting the CEO.
“Well, I guess if you just look around, I’m everywhere, so it’s not like you’d miss my face. I shoot so many commercials, after all.”
Her fist clenched on its own.
Myeongjo’s casting got canceled, and this guy—!
Bom turned and glared at him.
“Because of Able, my actor got dropped from a drama! Filming starts next week—and it happened today! And on top of that, Able’s planning to pin everything on me and escape the scandal! You think I don’t know? This isn’t the time for casual small talk!”
As she spoke, frustration and anger burned behind her eyes.
Her nose stung.
She’d been fine in front of Ilju, but seeing him made her emotions surge.
“Do I look relaxed to you? I’m desperate.”
“Is that what desperate people do—say things like that?”
Just then, the elevator stopped.
The doors opened, and an oblivious employee tried to get on.
In that instant, Go Geon slammed his fist down next to the close button.
The employee and Bom both flinched.
Stepping forward, Go Geon smiled at the frozen employee—a truly fierce smile.
“Sorry. This elevator keeps stopping. It’s irritating.”
