NFS 3.3

However, he seemed to be the only one thinking this way. The two PR team representatives who came for the report and meeting were looking at Seo Ahn-jae like a prince, their faces flushed out of admiration for the man. While it was understandable since one of them was female, it was more ridiculous that the other one was male.

“You say the program I’ll appear on has been confirmed?”

When Seo Ahn-jae spoke first to the three frozen people and sat down, both PR team employees quickly sat opposite him and nodded their heads. Only Secretary Choi still hadn’t withdrawn his gaze that questioned his superior’s mental health.

“Yes. It’s a program called ‘Step by Step’ that airs on Wednesday evenings. You know it, right? It’s an interview show for ordinary people hosted by a famous national MC.”

“Yes, I know about it.” When Seo Ahn-jae nodded, the reporting employee quickly explained the program and added.

“The program side is very welcoming of your appearance. The main writer even said they’d come personally for a preliminary interview. But the theme is finding talent, and because your looks are so excellent, they seem to want to focus on that aspect. Like, someone with outstanding looks who found success doing what they love, that kind of thing.”

To the cautious questioning look asking if that was okay, Seo Ahn-jae nodded lightly.

“That’s fine.”

Indeed, truly outstanding people didn’t care at all about comments about their looks. Such admiration spread in the employee’s eyes. Then, about to give the next report, they hesitated as if remembering something and spoke with difficulty.

“Um, but…”

“Go ahead.”

“Due to the program’s nature, there are many questions about the interviewee’s private life. Um, especially in your case, there’s something everyone is curious about…”

“I don’t have a lover.”

When Seo Ahn-jae answered preemptively, all three in the conference room looked at him simultaneously. Then what was that “I miss you” that filled this room with sweet honey? Seo Ahn-jae defused their curiosity once more.

“But there is someone I like.”

―Moving. Having a work-related dinner meeting. Already bored.

It was Seo Ahn-jae’s fifth message today. All were rather unimportant content. “Ate lunch.” “Working.” “Checking plans.” “Went to the smoking room for a cigarette but the employees avoided me.” The other man ignored the first three, but the last message was so ridiculous he had to reply.

—Don’t bother employees. Quit smoking.

—Should I?

Joo Seung-ha hesitated and couldn’t reply with “You should.” Because it seemed like he would really quit smoking at just one casual word from him. Perhaps his burden was conveyed to Seo Ahn-jae through his silence. A short message from Seo Ahn-jae appeared on the phone.

—Can’t give an easy answer?

He could somehow imagine him typing this out with a twisted smile on his face. It was very like Seo Ahn-jae to not hide his mockery even toward someone he liked. If anything, it was fortunate for Joo Seung-ha as it reduced the burden of this relationship. This aspect was a hundred times better than tenderness. But the problem was that even without tenderness, such trivial small talk through messages was annoying.

“Team Leader Joo, is something wrong?”

Joo Seung-ha lifted his head from his phone at the voice in front of him. Kim, the junior employee in charge of online companies, had just brought Joo Seung-ha to a small conference room saying he had work matters to discuss.

“No. It’s just…the messages I’ve been receiving contain such trivial content.”

When Joo Seung-ha muttered unconsciously, Kim blinked in confusion.

“If it’s trivial, isn’t that fine?”

“Well yes, but. I don’t understand why they keep sending such trivial messages to me.”

As Joo Seung-ha, who had never dated in his life, was completely unable to understand, Kim asked seriously.

“It’s not a cult or MLM scheme?”

Kim was also a lifelong single. Joo Seung-ha shook his head.

“No, it’s not that.”

“Ah, then it might be that.”

Kim’s eyes lit up as he hit his palm with his fist. 

“What is it?” When Joo Seung-ha asked that, Kim lowered his voice.

“It’s a technique I use well. When you have something to say but it’s awkward to bring it up directly. For example, when you’ve lent money to a friend but it’s hard to ask when they’ll pay back, you keep throwing out random comments first. Have you lent them anything?”

A lot. Seven hundred million won. Joo Seung-ha understood immediately. Of course, given Seo Ahn-jae’s personality, the idea that he’d find it difficult to speak directly was absurd, but even for him, constantly pressing about when they would sleep together again might be a matter of pride. I was the one being dense. Joo Seung-ha nodded as he realized it.

“That’s it. Thank you. Thanks to you, Mr. Kim, I feel better now.”

“It’s nothing,” Kim said sheepishly as he carefully brought up work matters.

“Then, um, could you come with me to Company N? I’ve put in a lot of effort trying to get into their premium sales section this time. But the MD is quite strict. Um, Team Leader Joo, you’re, um…”

To Kim, who kept repeating “um” and couldn’t speak properly, Joo Seung-ha nodded as if repaying a favor.

“N Company is the domestic sales leader, so getting in would be good. I’ll help.”

“Thank you, Team Leader!”

And so, the healthy singles’ meeting ended cleanly without any misunderstanding.

***

“Didn’t CEO Seo say something similar to me before?”

Though he surely knew someone was speaking to him, Seo Ahn-jae kept staring at his phone without looking up. Finally, someone else nearby called him softly.

“CEO Seo.”

Only then did Seo Ahn-jae glance up.

“Yes, that’s right.”

After answering halfheartedly, he lowered his gaze back to his phone.

―When does your dinner appointment end today?

He stared at the message from Joo Seung-ha until the screen went dark, then quickly tapped it to see the words again.

“CEO Seo, is something wrong?”

When the person beside him who had called earlier asked this, Seo Ahn-jae nodded and pushed back his chair to stand.

“I’m sorry. Something urgent came up.”

Though this gathering of hard-to-meet people hadn’t even lasted 30 minutes, Seo Ahn-jae left almost running out of the room. Hearing murmurs of “What’s going on?” and “What happened?” behind him, he quickly sent a reply.

―Just finished.

***

Joo Seung-ha didn’t want to be late for the appointment he had set. But before going to the hotel, a sudden call from a company made him stop and pause for a moment, causing him to arrive 30 minutes late. Though he had texted about being late, it felt uncomfortable being tardy on the first day while owing a debt. He definitely didn’t want to imitate how Seo Ahn-jae had acted superior while taking money from him before.

Ding-dong.

Room 1302. When he rang the doorbell of the hotel room Seo Ahn-jae had specified, after a moment, Seo Ahn-jae opened the door while on a call.

“Don’t give it to them. They’re probably trying to divert funds before they’re frozen, but we need to follow procedures strictly. One mistake and we could get investigated too.”

Seo Ahn-jae held the wide-open door, waiting for Joo Seung-ha to enter while continuing his call.

“Their compensation offer isn’t the issue. Losing investors’ trust for that little money would be a bigger loss. Follow protocol.”

Seo Ahn-jae gestured with his eyes for Joo Seung-ha, who was hesitating to enter, to come in. Since it seemed he would hold the door forever until Joo Seung-ha entered, Joo Seung-ha went in. He felt the door close behind him and Seo Ahn-jae following behind him. Looking around, Joo Seung-ha immediately noticed the layout had two bedrooms and a living room.

Did he deliberately choose the same layout as seven years ago? No, what does it matter? Things would be different from then. Joo Seung-ha tried not to compare as he sat on the sofa. He didn’t need to try—things were definitely different now. Seo Ahn-jae suddenly said “Just a moment” to his call partner and looked down at Joo Seung-ha.

“Dinner?”

Joo Seung-ha, who was about to sit more comfortably, froze and looked up. Are you asking me?

“What about dinner?”

When he asked in confusion, Seo Ahn-jae let out a short laugh.

“Did you eat dinner?”

Joo Seung-ha looked back and forth between the phone where the caller was presumably waiting and Seo Ahn-jae, trying to swallow his confusion. It was clearly a serious conversation, yet interrupting it to ask if he’d eaten made Joo Seung-ha uncomfortable.

“Look at the time. Of course, I ate.”

When he urged with his eyes to focus on the call, Seo Ahn-jae spoke coldly again to the person on the other line.

“If you’re so determined to withdraw the money, set conditions. …Hello? Why are you so quiet?”

Then swearing from the phone was loud enough for even Joo Seung-ha to hear. Along with curse words, he clearly heard “Are you crazy?” Feeling awkward about overhearing someone else’s conversation over the phone, Joo Seung-ha tried to stand up again, but Seo Ahn-jae’s hand quickly pressed down on his shoulder. As his upper body came closer, a rich fragrance suddenly enveloped Joo Seung-ha.

It was the first time he’d smelled this scent while being with him. It was stronger than lotion but pleasant enough to make you want to smell more. Maybe because the fragrance suited Seo Ahn-jae so well. Joo Seung-ha looked up at Seo Ahn-jae as he pulled away, puzzled. He’s wearing perfume? Was the dinner appointment an important occasion?

“Ah, stop talking nonsense. If you’re going to whine like that, first tell me what you can offer us….Money? I told you we don’t need it. How many times do I have to say it?”

Seo Ahn-jae continued speaking slowly to the caller while fixing his gaze on Joo Seung-ha.

“Money isn’t my first priority. I don’t care if I lose everything and go bankrupt for what I want.”

If not for his tone, Joo Seung-ha would have dismissed this as cheesy flirting. But his tone was light and casual. As if he often said such things to others. Fortunately, when Seo Ahn-jae turned his gaze away and soon after ended the call, Joo Seung-ha’s discomfort about overhearing the conversation disappeared.

“What did you eat?”

As soon as he hung up, he sat at the table opposite Joo Seung-ha and asked. Due to the close distance, their knees touched and Joo Seung-ha instinctively shifted his legs away.

“Just something. Why are you sitting there when there’s a chair over there?”

Seo Ahn-jae dismissed his words with a smile and leaned his upper body even closer to Joo Seung-ha.

“What was the menu?”

It was a smile handsome enough to seduce the devil, but Joo Seung-ha looked at him impassively and pointed to the chair.

“Senior, sit in the chair.”

“After you tell me what you ate.”

Why is he so obsessed with what I just ate? Joo Seung-ha still couldn’t understand. Is this similar to why he kept sending messages? Rushing to have sex now that I’m here? But if so, Seo Ahn-jae’s eyes looking at Joo Seung-ha were overwhelmingly gentle. At least there was no lustful desire in them. Thinking he might as well answer quickly, he revealed his dinner menu.

“Udon.”

“Ah, that’s right, you like noodles.”

He was crazy about noodles. Joo Seung-ha hesitated before responding casually.

“Is there anyone who doesn’t like noodles?”

“Seo Jihae.”

“Who’s that?”

“My sister.”

“…Oh.”

As Joo Seung-ha turned his gaze away awkwardly, he heard Seo Ahn-jae’s irritated muttering.

“Her taste in food is really something else.”

“Well, there could be people in this world who dislike noodles.”

“Don’t take her side. What’s there to brag about being picky with food when you’re not even a kid any longer?”

Still, Joo Seung-ha wanted to defend her since she was taking care of Cookie.

“I’m picky about some foods too.”

“What?”

Because Seo Ahn-jae looked at him with eyes full of curiosity, Joo Seung-ha, who ate almost everything, racked his brain and barely found one food he didn’t eat.

“Um, lamb.”

“Ah, lamb. Got it.”

Seo Ahn-jae nodded as if making a mental note. His serious demeanor made Joo Seung-ha feel like he’d just told a lie, so he ran his hand through his hair and said gruffly,”Now sit properly in the chair.”

Though Seo Ahn-jae sat in the chair without resistance this time, he leaned his upper body forward toward Joo Seung-ha. This was as uncomfortable as when he’d sat at the table. Especially when he brought up useless information like his messages, with that kind of gaze and gentle voice.

“I like Korean food.”

“I know.” 

Despite having a build like someone from Northern Europe and a face like a runway model, his taste in food had been like an old man’s since college. There were even rumors that you could find him at the seolleongtang restaurant in front of the university. 

Joo Seung-ha deliberately didn’t acknowledge knowing this and responded halfheartedly with “Ah, yes,” when Seo Ahn-jae muttered as if remembering something.

“But in college, there was a time I deliberately went to eat spaghetti even though I didn’t like it.”

Though Seo Ahn-jae didn’t specify the exact time, Joo Seung-ha automatically recalled meeting him at that pasta restaurant. Joo Seung-ha pretended not to remember and asked, “Really?”

“What do you mean ‘really’? You saw me there. The Italian restaurant in front of school. Don’t you remember?”

“…Do I have to remember?”

It was one of the things he’d rather not remember. Meeting Seo Ahn-jae while eating wasn’t a big deal, but what happened afterward at the hotel was one of those thorny memories that could prick if touched. But Seo Ahn-jae muttered as if to himself, “I can’t forget that day.”

“Why can’t you forget it?”

Seo Ahn-jae looked at him quietly before giving a vague answer, “Because it was when I missed the signals I was sending myself.”

Joo Seung-ha didn’t want to interpret his words in relation to himself.

“It’s the past. Don’t worry about it since it’s not important.”

“Right. It’s not important. Because I can change everything in the present.”

Seo Ahn-jae grinned and tried to grab Joo Seung-ha’s hand. When Joo Seung-ha raised his hand like having a seizure, Seo Ahn-jae asked with cold eyes, “We’ll be naked and rolling around together soon, but you’re afraid of holding hands?”

“Since we’ll be rolling around soon, there’s no reason to hold hands now.”

“There is a reason. Because I want to.”

Seo Ahn-jae’s gaze lowered to Joo Seung-ha’s clenched fist. Joo Seung-ha felt his hand tingle the moment that gaze touched it.

“I want to touch your fingers. Want to put them in my hand and grasp them.”

Seo Ahn-jae lifted his eyes.

“Can’t I?”

“No.”