Chapter 43: Chapter 43

Suin calmly closed the company magazine and set it aside.

"Now that we've finished this game of hide-and-seek, please continue your meal, Director."

"Alright," Jaehee replied obediently.

As he reached for the magazine, Suin held onto it, resisting his attempt to take it. Jaehee, however, pulled back firmly as if it rightfully belonged to him.

His dark pupils flashed with an intense, possessive glint—an obsession flaring up once more.

“….”

Suin relented and released her grip.

Jaehee grinned triumphantly and placed the magazine under his arm, as if to ensure it wouldn’t be taken away again, before finally starting his meal.

"Director, how were you able to spot Chief Lee so quickly?"

"I don't know. She just stood out," Jaehee replied, clearly uninterested in making a big deal of it.

Although Suin was equally uninterested in the topic, Jongin's innocent curiosity pressed on.

"Director, it seems like you could find Chief Lee no matter where she is."@@novelbin@@

"Of course. I could recognize her at a glance," Jaehee replied without hesitation.

"What about others, though? Like the woman earlier? It seems like you've met her a few times, but you couldn’t recognize her."

"Other women’s faces all look similar—eyes, nose, mouth—they’re indistinct," Jaehee said nonchalantly.

"Indistinct? But Chief Lee looks different to you?"

"Yes. She’s very clear to me."

While Suin maintained her silence and appeared to focus on eating, her lips involuntarily twitched at the exchange.

"Wow, that’s fascinating. I’d like to test it out!"

"There’s no need for an experiment," Suin shot Jongin a sharp look, embarrassed by his playful chatter.

Jongin, realizing he might’ve crossed a line, quickly excused himself to get more side dishes, leaving Suin and Jaehee alone.

Jaehee, who had been eating awkwardly under Suin’s watchful gaze, accidentally dropped a side dish from his chopsticks onto his tray.

Without a word, Suin picked it up with her chopsticks and placed it neatly atop his rice.

“….”

Jaehee blinked in surprise, his expression briefly softening.

Then his lips curled into a sly smile, and he picked up the side dish she had placed on his rice with his spoon. His gaze, suddenly glowing with mischievous intensity, locked onto her.

"Thank you. I’ll enjoy it."

Caught off guard by his tone, Suin instinctively glanced at the food in his spoon.

Why, of all things, had she picked the eel?

***

“Don’t run away from me tomorrow,” Jaehee had said.

Yet Suin, despite his request, had done just that.

The way he had interpreted her gesture with the eel as something suggestive had triggered her instincts to evade him.

She had deliberately rearranged the intern training schedule, skipping her usual external duties to ensure a safe commute home.

"Chief Lee, will you be picking up the Chairwoman when she returns from her trip?"

After the training session ended, Hyun Jiye asked while waiting for Suin to wrap up the presentation.

"Yes, I’ll be going to meet her," Suin replied, gathering her materials.

"You must’ve missed her. It’s not like you to skip accompanying her on a business trip."

"I did miss her. I guess I’ve just grown used to it," Suin admitted, chuckling softly.

"No, it’s not habit—it’s attachment," Jiye teased.

"Attachment?"

Jiye’s playful remark made Suin laugh quietly, and Jiye scrunched her nose in a show of mock affection.

"You two are special. Sometimes, the way you and the Chairwoman are together, you seem like mother and daughter. You even look alike."

"Me? Look like the Chairwoman?"

"Yes, haven’t you noticed?"

"Not at all," Suin replied, frowning in disbelief.

"How could you not see it?" Jiye exclaimed, as if Suin’s ignorance was unthinkable. She quickly pulled out her phone, scrolling through her gallery.

"Look at this."

The photo she showed was from last year’s Women in Business event. Suin was standing beside Chairwoman Woo Ilhwa, looking poised and professional.

"When did you take this? Isn’t it against the rules to snap pictures without consent?"

"Relax, Chief Lee. It’s just for me to keep because you two looked so cool together," Jiye protested when Suin scolded her.

"Delete it."

Suin’s tone left no room for argument as she exited the training room. Jiye, pouting like a child, hurried to follow.

"Don’t you think you look alike?"

"No."

"Chief Lee, look closer! I’m telling you, my eyes don’t lie."

Annoyed by Jiye’s persistence, Suin waved her off as they entered the elevator.

Ding

As they each pressed their respective floors—39 and 40—Suin’s phone vibrated.

Jiye, sensing the shift in atmosphere, wisely stayed silent as Suin checked the caller ID.

The name surprised her, but she answered.

"Hello, Professor."

[Suin… no, Chief Lee.]

The voice of Professor Seo Sungyeok wavered with an unusual unease.

Ding Dong

The elevator doors opened on the 39th floor.

As Jiye stepped out of the elevator, she mouthed, “I’m heading home.” Suin responded with a subtle nod and came to a stop in the hallway.

“Please speak freely, Professor,” Suin said as she steadied herself for what was coming.

[Is it true Jaehee was injured? How badly? Is that why he’s staying outside the house for work? Where is he hospitalized?]

The questions poured out in rapid succession.

It seemed the news of the accident had reached Professor Seo Sungyeok, exaggerated and distorted as it passed through multiple people.

“Professor…”

[Don’t tell me it’s so serious that the Chairwoman and I weren’t informed?]

“Professor.”

[He’s not even answering his phone. Is he too disoriented? Is he in the ICU? Or worse… in a coma?]

“Professor! Please calm down!”

The flood of questions forced Suin to raise her voice.

After a tense pause, Suin spoke calmly to the professor, who had finally gone quiet.

“The Director is perfectly fine mentally. It was a minor accident, and he only injured his hand. He’s not hospitalized; he’s staying at a hotel.”

[Then why isn’t he at home?]

“Because he knew you and the Chairwoman would react like this.”

[Ah…]

“Please don’t worry. He’s even scheduled to have his stitches removed tomorrow.”

[Even so, I’d feel better if I saw him myself. Could you tell me which hotel he’s at? Or perhaps you could take me there? I’ve had a drink, so I can’t drive…]

Understanding the professor’s deep concern for his son, Suin relented.

“I’ll come pick you up. Where are you now?”

Her voice was gentle as she asked, walking into the executive office to grab her car keys from the desk.

***

[The person you are calling is unavailable…]

Suin entered the hotel lobby, phone pressed to her ear, but Jaehee wasn’t answering.

As she lowered the phone, Professor Seo Sungyeok, walking beside her, asked, “Still no answer? Which room did you say?”

“Room 2304.”

She guided him into the elevator, noting the worry etched around his eyes as he glanced at the floor indicator.

“Perhaps the Director went to bed early or left his phone behind while stepping out,” Suin offered to ease his concern.

“Maybe,” he replied with a nod, though his tone suggested he wasn’t convinced.

“I understand why you’re worried. Sending him alone to the U.S. for so long must’ve been difficult. Hearing that he’s injured would naturally shake you.”

“It did. My heart dropped as soon as I heard.”

“That’s perfectly normal.”

“I can’t believe even his friends knew about this before I did,” he muttered, his voice tinged with regret.

“Once you see his injury, you’ll realize it’s nothing serious. Please don’t worry,” Suin reassured him gently.

“Thanks, Suin. Your words are comforting,” the professor said, offering her a look of gratitude.

“Have I ever told you this?”

“Told me what?”

“I feel reassured knowing you’re by Jaehee’s side. I’m sure his mother feels the same.”

“…Thank you.”

“You’ll continue to look after him, won’t you?”

Look after.

The word echoed in Suin’s mind. It was, of course, a reference to her professional role as Chief Secretary to Director Seo Jaehee.

Still, the unexpected sharpness of the phrase pricked her heart.

“Of course,” Suin replied with composure.

“Thank you.”

The professor smiled warmly and patted her shoulder in a gesture of appreciation.

Suin responded with a polite nod as they exited the elevator on the 23rd floor. She tried calling Jaehee again, and this time, he finally picked up.

[You’ve got some nerve calling me.]

His voice carried a hint of teasing lethargy.

“Director, where are you?”

[I’m at the hotel, of course. Waiting for you, Suin.]

As the professor, tall and long-legged like his son, strode quickly down the hallway, they soon reached Room 2304.

[Are you coming up?]

“Director, I’m here with the professor—”

Ding-dong.

[You’re here?]

Jaehee’s tone brightened at the sound of the doorbell overlapping Suin’s words.

“I’m with the professor. Hello? Director?”

“….”

“Hello? Are you there?”

Before she could finish, the line disconnected abruptly. Impatient as ever, Jaehee had likely tossed his phone aside.

Moments later, the door swung open, and Seo Jaehee appeared.

“Suin.”

His damp hair clung to his forehead, and his eyes crinkled into a radiant smile as he stood there, completely at ease.

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