By Zephyria 
“Seung-jae, about tomorrow’s lunch.”
Han Seung-jae, who had been savoring his tea, gazed at him intently. Seo Yi-kyung, holding a similar teacup, carefully set it down on the saucer and continued.
“Together, outside.”
Instead of interrupting, Han Seung-jae took another sip of his tea. Seo Yi-kyung opened his lips, which were flushed as if color might rub off. He realized that Han Seung-jae was acting as if he were waiting for something. After all, wasn’t he a man who disliked waiting for anything? Despite this, the expressionless Han Seung-jae leisurely set down his cup. Seo Yi-kyung hurried to murmur.
“I’m planning to eat with Seon-yu.”
The cup Han Seung-jae was setting down hit the saucer with a clatter. Seo Yi-kyung’s inquisitive gaze landed on the crookedly placed teacup before drifting upward. It was likely not an illusion that Han Seung-jae’s eyebrows were slightly arched, unlike a moment ago.
Seo Yi-kyung knew well enough that Han Seung-jae did not like him meeting Jin Seon-yu.
—Why don’t you keep some distance from Jin Seon-yu?
Han Seung-jae had said such things before. That was why Seo Yi-kyung had intended to tell him in advance, before Han Seung-jae found out through someone else tomorrow. But perhaps it would have been better not to.
“Your cup is empty…”
Seeing Han Seung-jae’s cup nearly empty, Seo Yi-kyung reached for the teapot. However, Han Seung-jae’s hand was faster.
“Is that all?”
He poured tea into his own cup and then filled Seo Yi-kyung’s half-empty cup as well.
“What comes next?”
Han Seung-jae seemed to be prompting him to say more. Suddenly, the meaning of his words flashed through Seo Yi-kyung’s mind. Was he asking if he was supposed to have lunch with him next? Seo Yi-kyung suppressed his runaway assumptions and spoke.
“Ah, did you think I was asking to have lunch with you tomorrow…”
The words ‘did you think’ crumbled on Seo Yi-kyung’s tongue, and something else leaked out.
“I must have been mistaken.”
There was no way. Han Seung-jae wasn’t such a leisurely person. He spent most of his time in the office meeting many people. Thus, Seo Yi-kyung felt embarrassed by his own conjecture. Just as Seo Yi-kyung lifted his teacup—
“I thought that’s what you were asking.”
When Seo Yi-kyung lifted his eyes from the cup, Han Seung-jae was calmly drinking his tea. Seo Yi-kyung blinked. He stared at Han Seung-jae as if doubting his own ears.
If they hadn’t been alone in the room, he might have believed that Han Seung-jae would never have said such a thing.
* * *
Swoosh—
In the morning, Seo Yi-kyung entered the bathroom and stepped into the shower booth. With his casted left hand stretched out to the side, he washed his hair and finished his shower. He donned a robe and, without fastening the front properly, approached the sink and wiped his wet cheeks with a towel. Around his chest, where the robe hung open with the ties dangling, long lacerations and bite marks still remained evenly distributed. However, he no longer felt the intense pain as before.
Seo Yi-kyung stepped forward with a towel draped over his hair. He then picked up his phone and called Butler Do.
A short while later, a knock sounded. When Seo Yi-kyung opened the door, Butler Do entered. Butler Do moved without making eye contact with Seo Yi-kyung. It was even more so because Seo Yi-kyung had his entire head covered with the towel.
Butler Do placed the clothes he had brought on the nightstand and turned around.
“I will have breakfast prepared downstairs. Please change your clothes and come down.”
Seo Yi-kyung had woken up late. He had fallen asleep while waiting for Han Seung-jae, who had gone to the study the previous night. By the time he woke up late, Han Seung-jae had already left for work.
As he replied that he understood, Seo Yi-kyung added as if suddenly remembering.
“I’m having lunch with Seon-yu, so you don’t need to prepare anything.”
Butler Do, who was about to leave the room, looked back and nodded.
“I understand. I will do so.”
Once Butler Do closed the door and left, Seo Yi-kyung pulled down the towel covering his head and let out a long sigh. The tips of his ears were slightly flushed. Although Butler Do hadn’t said anything, it didn’t make Seo Yi-kyung’s embarrassment fade.
He changed his clothes, went down to the first floor for a simple breakfast, and then spent time on the second floor. He ate fruit while watching a mobile hanging from the ceiling spin in the breeze flowing through the open window. Then, Seo Yi-kyung’s gaze drifted to the empty chair where Han Seung-jae used to sit. Then, Han Seung-jae’s voice brushed past his ears.
—I thought that’s what you were asking.
Seo Yi-kyung scratched his forehead with the fingertips of the hand holding the fork. He wondered if he should have asked when he would be free back then. Han Seung-jae hadn’t said anything after that. He came to the thought that perhaps Han Seung-jae had been waiting for his response.
Buzz— a vibration sounded from the phone on the table. His reverie broken, Seo Yi-kyung put down the fork and fiddled with the phone screen.
He looked at the hotel map sent by Jin Seon-yu.
[Let’s meet here at 12.]
[Okay.]
After sending the reply, Seo Yi-kyung’s fingertips paused in mid-air. He looked at the contact list where Han Seung-jae’s name appeared and hesitated for a moment.
To send the words he couldn’t say yesterday via message felt like the moment had passed. Besides, he and Han Seung-jae weren’t the kind of relationship where they exchanged friendly text messages. Given Han Seung-jae’s temperament, there was a high probability he wouldn’t even reply.
After hesitating for a long time, Seo Yi-kyung stood up. He closed the open window and left the room.
* * *
Myungjun Financial Group, Director’s Office.
Knock, knock. Secretary Park knocked and entered.
“Director Han.”
He approached Han Seung-jae, who was seated at the desk, and reported that Seo Yi-kyung had left the house. Han Seung-jae tapped his pen against the approval documents.
“I know.”
Hadn’t Seo Yi-kyung explicitly said he would have lunch with Jin Seon-yu? Han Seung-jae hadn’t commented one way or the other. He hadn’t told Seo Yi-kyung not to go, nor had he told him not to meet Jin Seon-yu.
Secretary Park attempted to put the phone back into his inner pocket. Han Seung-jae reached out with the hand holding the pen.
The phone was handed over to the large palm. Han Seung-jae indifferently scrolled through the photos of Seo Yi-kyung. There was a photo of Butler Do seeing off Seo Yi-kyung, who was wearing a navy jacket.
In the photo, Seo Yi-kyung seemed to have a healthy glow across his face. He almost looked excited about the fact that he was meeting Jin Seon-yu.
Looking at the next photo of him getting into a car, Han Seung-jae spoke coldly.
“I didn’t hear anything about him going to a hotel.”
Secretary Park did not answer. Han Seung-jae was murmuring as if talking to himself. He wasn’t asking Secretary Park.
Clack. Han Seung-jae placed the phone he had been looking at in front of Secretary Park. The image of Seo Yi-kyung’s back as he entered the hotel flickered and disappeared from the screen. Secretary Park took it and put it in his inner pocket. Han Seung-jae turned a page of the documents and spoke.
“I already know who he’s meeting, so tell them not to follow him inside and interfere.”
Seo Yi-kyung seemed to be in a good mood for once. Whether it was because he went outside or because he was meeting Jin Seon-yu, he couldn’t tell. Perhaps it was both.
Regardless of which it was, it was unpleasant that it had nothing to do with him, but Han Seung-jae turned his gaze away while marking a decision of ‘disapproved’ on the approval document.
* * *
“I thought about going to the Ivory Pavilion, but Gi-jun said this place was good, so I made a reservation.”
Jin Seon-yu smiled as he flipped through the menu decorated with gold thread. Seo Yi-kyung looked at the same menu, pondering what would be good to eat.
However, Jin Seon-yu said there was a menu recommended by Kwon Gwi-jun and ordered wine to go with it, just as he had suggested. Seo Yi-kyung simply kept the glass filled with red wine by his side.
“Give it to me. I’ll cut it for you.”
Jin Seon-yu looked at the cast on Seo Yi-kyung’s arm and took the plate. Holding the fork and knife, he continuously cut the meat into thin slices with both hands and passed them back to Seo Yi-kyung. Seo Yi-kyung thanked him and picked up his fork.
“How long do you have to wear the cast?”
“They said they’d take it off this week.”
Seo Yi-kyung lifted his left hand and moved it around. Watching this, Jin Seon-yu asked again.
“Does it hurt?”
“No. Nothing like that.”
It seemed the attending physician was being particularly cautious and preventing him from using it because of the fracture. Seo Yi-kyung soon lowered his arm and looked out the window. Perhaps because the city landscape stretched far and was visible at a single glance, his cluttered mind and heart seemed to simplify and become peaceful.
If I meet Han Seung-jae this evening and tell him the food here was delicious and ask him to come along… would he come?