Chapter 27
Pork Soup Over Sushi
When Hana pushed back, Seo Wangu was caught off guard.
[Th-thank you? No, that’s not what I meant. I just thought… maybe the Director might be using his authority to pressure you—]
“If you keep talking like that, I’ll file a formal complaint with the Ethics Office. That the secretary’s office is investigating an employee for purely personal reasons.”
As she spoke, emotion welled up, and her voice rose in pitch. Seo Wangu, flustered, tried to calm her down.
[I apologize if I made you uncomfortable. I was only worried that—]
Hana took a deep breath and spoke firmly.
“Enough. The Director is not that kind of person. And neither am I.”
She wasn’t the kind of Siwan who would forcibly snatch someone’s lunch.
And she wasn’t the kind of Hana who would try to curry favor with her boss by bringing him lunch.
In the end, Seo Wangu apologized politely.
[I’m truly sorry. I apologize for making you uncomfortable. Please enjoy your lunch.]
Hana wasn’t the type to keep being angry when the other person had already apologized.
“I’m sorry, too, for getting worked up. Have a good lunch, Secretary Seo.”
After ending the call, she checked the time.
11:55 a.m.
Originally, she had planned to leave at exactly 12:00 sharp, but she wondered if it was worth going back into the office now, only to come out again in five minutes. It wasn’t like she was skipping work or anything.
Has the Director already gone down?
Siwan had said he’d go down to the lobby around 11:55. If she moved awkwardly now and ended up in the same elevator with him, wouldn’t it be painfully awkward? That kind of atmosphere where you haven’t done anything wrong, but you feel like you need to keep quiet and tread carefully.
“Let’s just get in and go before he gets here.”
Having decided that, Hana headed toward the elevator—only to run right into Siwan.
“Ah?”
“Oh?”
Neither had expected to bump into the other, so both just blurted out odd little sounds and froze.
They were going to eat together, but it felt weird to make a big deal out of it, so they decided to just pretend not to know each other for now. Without having to agree on it, both of them stood there looking straight ahead without exchanging greetings.
Perfectly like strangers.
At least, that’s what they thought. But to others, it looked quite different.
Assistant Manager Kim Daeon and Assistant Manager Cheon Sowoon, who had left the office a little early, spotted them and jumped back in surprise.
They quickly ducked behind a wall, peeking out just enough to watch Hana and Siwan.
The plump, bob-haired Daeon whispered, “What’s this? Why is there an icy wind between those two?”
Standing right next to each other but refusing to make eye contact, staring at the unopened elevator doors—it looked strange to anyone else.
The thin, bob-haired Sowoon, wearing square glasses, narrowed her eyes and made a serious guess.
“Did they fight?”
“Come on, what would the Director and Hana have to fight about?”
“You never know. Maybe clumsy Ju Hana spilled something on his clothes.”
“Well… yeah, that sounds like something Ju Hana would do.”
Just then, the “ding-dong” chime sounded and the elevator doors opened. Hana and Siwan both stepped inside at the exact same time, without waiting for the other.
Sowoon pushed her glasses up like a certain famous detective character.
“They’re definitely going to fight.”
“No way!”
“Didn’t you see their eyes? And they got in the same elevator even while practically radiating hostility. One hundred percent sure.”
Unfortunately, these two were responsible for about 80% of the gossip created and spread in the company.
Both immediately pulled out their phones to share this “huge news.”
[Keep this between us, but I just saw something unbelievable.]
As always, birds of a feather flock together. Without coordinating, they both sent the exact same message to their contacts, diligently spreading the rumor.
Meanwhile, inside the elevator.
He felt like he was sitting on pins and needles. That was exactly how Siwan felt.
I should apologize, right?
He took a slow, quiet breath. Looking her in the face felt strangely awkward and embarrassing, so he kept his eyes on the front as he spoke.
“Um… Ms. Ju, I’m sorry. Secretary Seo contacting you out of nowhere must have been a surprise.”
Hana also kept her eyes fixed on the door but gave a small nod.
“Ah… it was surprising. But really, you don’t need to apologize for that, Director. It’s fine.”
Instinctively about to tuck her hair behind her ear, Hana quickly dropped her hand.
Ugh, that would have looked like I was trying to act coy.
Saying “I’m fine” while tucking hair behind the ear and smiling sweetly—that was textbook coy behavior!
The problem was that the elevator doors were reflective like a mirror, so even while looking straight ahead, their eyes kept meeting.
Hana clasped her hands in front of her and looked up at the floor display.
10, 9, 8…
Maybe it was just the awkwardness, but the elevator felt slower than usual today.
Then Siwan spoke first.
“Oh, Ms. Ju. Thank you for the lunch. It was really delicious. Honestly, it was the best flounder seaweed soup I’ve ever had. You sautéed the flounder in a pan before boiling it, didn’t you? Truly moving flavor.”
If anyone else had said it, she would have thought they were exaggerating. But coming from Siwan, it somehow felt nice.
Hana found herself smiling broadly without realizing it.
“I’m glad you enjoyed it.”
Her innocent smile made Siwan’s heart skip a beat. If he’d been in his 40s, he might have suspected heart arrhythmia from the unfamiliar flutter.
He cleared his throat lightly and then asked carefully,
“Do you happen to like sushi?”
“Ah… I’m not really a big fan of raw fish. Sorry.”
She could eat it out of politeness if she had to, but why force herself to eat something she didn’t like, especially when someone was treating her?
Hana was the kind of woman who said “No” when she meant it, even if everyone else was saying “Yes.”
Her “No” made Siwan’s heart drop.
A woman who didn’t like sushi—such a thing existed?!
Siwan silently cursed the portal site that had given him advice.
[I have to have a meal (less than 1 hour) with a woman. What should we eat? It’s our first time eating together. I’m serious. No jokes, please. High bounty.]
Perhaps his sincerity had gotten through, because self-proclaimed dating experts had flocked to leave comments:
Sushi. There is no woman who hates sushi.
How about sushi? You don’t have to open your mouth wide, so it’s comfortable for women.
Search for a good sushi place nearby. Tip the chef a little and they’ll take extra care.
It had all sounded convincing.
Siwan himself found that when eating raw food rather than cooked, his “eating disorder” symptoms were less severe, so he thought he’d asked the right question.
But clearly, exceptions existed. Just because most women liked sushi didn’t mean this woman—oh, not his woman—Ms. Ju Hana—would like it.
He berated himself for being stupid. He could have just asked her directly from the start.
Still, he decided to think positively. Better to find out now than after arriving at a sushi restaurant.
The more he thought about it, the more attractive she seemed. If she hadn’t said anything, she would have ended up forcing down food she didn’t even like. And he would’ve been forcing himself, too, since he wasn’t particularly fond of food in general.
The mental image of them both choking down sushi they didn’t like made him break out in a cold sweat.
It wasn’t too late to change plans.
“Then, Ms. Ju, is there anything you’d prefer?”
“Um… is anything okay?” Hana asked shyly, tapping her toes together.
“Of course. Anything at all.”
“…Pork soup.”
Siwan thought he’d misheard. Who would choose soup, of all things, when the Director was buying lunch?
“Sorry, I didn’t catch that. What was it?”
Her face flushed bright red and she lowered her head.
“Pork soup…”
“Ah, soup.”
So he hadn’t misheard.
Inside, Siwan was secretly delighted. Why? Because soup—something you could just slurp down—was the easiest thing for him to eat.
For some reason, pork soup gave him the least trouble with his eating disorder.
He had excluded soup from the start because this was their first meal together and he was treating her out of gratitude, but now that she had chosen it herself, there was no reason not to go along.
When he didn’t answer right away, Hana interpreted it differently.
Does the Director not like soup?
From the way he’d praised her kimchi fried rice and flounder seaweed soup, she’d thought he wasn’t picky.
Just then, the elevator arrived at the first floor.
The moment the doors opened, Siwan frowned.
In the middle of the lobby, sitting on a bench in a flashy outfit that drew every eye—
Was Chae Suhwa.
