Jin Gicheol answered as professionally as possible.
“That thought remains unchanged.”
“That’s why Director Jin Gicheol is still unmarried. Being so insensitive to romantic feelings, where would you find someone to marry?”
Chairwoman Moon spoke jokingly and clicked her tongue, and this time his tightly clenched fist became damp. Chairwoman Moon tossed Jin Gicheol’s report onto her office desk with a thud and said cheerfully.
“Tell Bae Yiyoung-ssi that I’d like to see him soon.”
It matched exactly with the tone Chahyun had used when he said he wanted to meet Ki Taeseong. The only difference was that Chairwoman Moon was still much more high-handed and knew how to speak threateningly.
“Yes, Chairwoman.”
Jin Gicheol bowed toward Chairwoman Moon as he answered and thought.
‘Executive Director Moon Chahyun, couldn’t you recover your memories a bit faster?’
Jin Gicheol felt like crying because he was on the verge of losing his head from being loyal to Chahyun. If only he would regain his memories, being disliked by Chairwoman Moon wouldn’t be a problem.
Like this, on the morning after the night Director Jin Gicheol spent in prayer, Chahyun was wandering through a dream.
***
Chahyun in the dream was at a party venue he’d never seen before.
Looking down at his hand holding a champagne glass, Chahyun noticed that he was wearing evening attire. Despite the dress code and atmosphere being quite different from his twentieth birthday party, perhaps because it was a dream, it didn’t feel unfamiliar. Chahyun sipped the champagne without a hint of dissonance.
While the sensation of refreshing carbonation lingering in his mouth was vivid, a familiar melody suddenly caught his ear. Chahyun asked one of the people in his group.
‘What’s this music playing right now?’
French came out naturally even though he hadn’t been conscious of it. Then suddenly the fact that he was majoring in business administration in Switzerland came to mind. Just as the content of the lecture he’d heard that day was about to be recalled, the blue-eyed man who’d been asked the question by Chahyun listened to the music and then shrugged his shoulders.
‘I don’t know. I’ve never heard it before.’
The blue-eyed man, Tom Harrington. The eldest son of Duke Harrington, owner of a British global investment group.
And despite being royal blood with a title himself, he had an unpretentious side and had the most amicable relationships among Chahyun’s group. He was also the friend Chahyun had been closest with recently.
When Tom began to concentrate on the sound of music sweetly filling the party venue, Susan, whose hair had a reddish tint, said.
‘I think I’ve heard it somewhere. Just a moment.’
Susan, whose father became a billionaire with artificial intelligence technology in Silicon Valley, had a personality where she had to find out the answer immediately when any question was asked. Because of this, even Chahyun couldn’t beat her grades.
Susan held up her phone and made a gesture of recognizing the music, then soon shared the search results.
‘It’s a song called “The Day You Come to Love Me.” It’s a song that makes you fall in love when you listen to it, apparently it’s hot in Korea these days.’
‘Wow, Korea! That’s your country, isn’t it?’
Tom tapped Chahyun’s shoulder with his fist, pleased for no reason. In fact, Chahyun didn’t react to him, his attention drawn to Angela’s following question.
‘Is it a famous composer?’
Angela was the only one among the friends Chahyun comfortably hung out with who majored in fashion rather than business administration. Befitting a child from a prestigious Italian family recognized in the art world, Angela always had an exceptional interest in new artists.
However, she was excessively haughty and arrogant, so despite having surprisingly similar interests, she and Chahyun were close to being rivals. Angela had even slapped Chahyun when he refused to be her party partner. Of course, it was because he’d refused with words that deserved a slap.
Angela raised her nose, which already reached the sky, even higher and asked Susan.
‘Look up if there are any other songs we’d know.’
‘Unfortunately, there’s nothing uploaded besides this one.’
Susan showed the phone screen to Chahyun, who’d started the topic in the first place, and added.
‘Look, this is the artist’s account.’
The account ‘tinyB’ came into Chahyun’s view.
Tiny Bae Yiyoung. The moment he thought that, Chahyun’s eyes snapped open.
When he blinked his eyes, bright spring sunlight illuminated his vision.
Just as he woke up from sleep and his consciousness was on the boundary between dream and reality, Yiyoung’s voice was heard.
“Chahyun-ssi, wake up for a moment.”
Chahyun turned his head with a half-asleep gaze. Through his eyelids loosely relaxed from still being drunk with sleep, he could see Bae Yiyoung smiling brightly at him. It was exactly the same expression as in the photo on the phone Chahyun had used before.
Only then did Chahyun, remembering that he’d fallen asleep with Yiyoung in the penthouse-style officetel last night, sit up and scratched his disheveled hair. He yawned languidly, and for some reason Yiyoung, who was sitting on the edge of the bed, grinned. Somehow it seemed like he found him cute.
Chahyun looked at Yiyoung wearing the white t-shirt and cotton pants he’d come from home in the day before and asked in a sleep-laden voice.
“When did you wake up?”
“A while ago. I’m about to leave now.”
Chahyun reflexively turned his head to look at the wall clock. Surprisingly, it was close to 1 PM. Since today was Monday, Yiyoung had to go to work at the whiskey bar by 4 o’clock.
Chahyun frowned at Yiyoung and grumbled.
“You should eat with me before you go, why didn’t you wake me?”
“You were sleeping so soundly. That’s why I wanted to leave quietly without waking you.”
Yiyoung said as he rummaged through his pants pocket. Chahyun stared with a dazed gaze at the small gift box he took out from his pocket. Yiyoung handed over the box with a shy yet expectant expression.
“I wanted to give you this before I left.”
Chahyun unconsciously opened his eyes wide and pointed at himself with his index finger. When Yiyoung nodded, he received the gift with a bewildered feeling and asked.
“What is this?”
“A tie pin and cufflinks.”
When he carefully tore off the wrapping paper, a box engraved with the logo of the boutique store on the first floor of the department store they’d visited yesterday was revealed. After confirming that accessories that perfectly matched his taste were inside, Chahyun looked at Yiyoung with a somewhat stiff expression.
Yiyoung also stiffened his face and asked worriedly.
“You don’t like it? I bought it because I thought it would suit you well as soon as I saw it.”
“No. I like it.”
That’s why he felt even more uncomfortable. It was obviously a high-end brand for Yiyoung. Chahyun looked down at Yiyoung’s gift with a very worried gaze and spoke honestly.
“Now I understand what it feels like to be burdened. A flea tearing out its liver to give it really makes me not know where to put myself.”
“……Couldn’t you just say thank you?”
Yiyoung grumbled in a tone similar to when Chahyun had asked him, “Couldn’t you just pretend not to know and accept it?” Yiyoung immediately grimaced and reached out his hand.
“If it’s really that burdensome, give it back. I’ll use it.”
“No!”
Chahyun was shocked and raised the gift high to avoid Yiyoung’s hand, which was trying to take back what he’d given him. He said hurriedly to Yiyoung, who was glaring at him sullenly.
“Thank you. I’ll use it well.”
Then Yiyoung gave a somewhat mischievous smile as if he’d just been playing around. Only then did Chahyun let out a sigh of relief and examined the tie pin and cufflinks frantically.
He really liked them. So much so that he thought he should only pick out clothes that matched these from now on.
As he couldn’t suppress a grinning smile, Yiyoung said something regretful.
“I’m really going to go now. I waited because I wanted to see your face receiving the gift.”
“Are you going straight to work? I’ll take you.”
“No. I want to rest at home before I go.”
As if Yiyoung had anticipated that Chahyun would beg him to stay longer, he shrewdly answered while pecking a kiss on his cheek. When he did this, Chahyun couldn’t help but comply with Yiyoung’s words.
Still, feeling regretful, he gently grasped his wrist and deliberately made a sulky expression, but Yiyoung stood up from the bed and said.
“Don’t get up because of me, sleep more.”
Seeing him say this much, he really seemed to want to go alone. Chahyun nodded while smacking his lips with a displeased expression.
Yiyoung didn’t shake off Chahyun’s hand and slowly walked backward toward the bedroom door. As the slender wrist slowly slipped out of his grasp, a fairly large hand for Yiyoung’s build was caught. Only when their clasped hands rose horizontally in the air did Yiyoung gently twist his wrist and shake off Chahyun.
Having completely let go of his hand, Yiyoung said “bye” one last time from the bedroom doorway and disappeared.
Soon all traces of Yiyoung completely disappeared from outside the bedroom as well.
Only then did Chahyun stretch vigorously and got up from the bed with a start. He roughly covered his body by draping a thin blanket over his shoulders, left the bedroom, and made coffee first.
Chahyun held his coffee and stared intently beyond the living room’s floor-to-ceiling windows, recalling the dream he’d had earlier.
‘Are my memories coming back?’
