Chapter 25
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At Lukin, employee attire generally falls into two categories.
Developers and engineers, who usually spend long hours at the office, prefer comfortable, casual clothing.
Meanwhile, employees in planning or marketing, who frequently meet with outside contacts, wear the same kind of office wear as workers in other companies.
Naturally, as the company’s CEO, Seung-eon belonged to the latter category. And seeing the former type of employee never stirred much emotion in her.
As long as they do their job well, that’s all that matters.
What she required from her employees was their ability to develop Lukin further—never their outward appearance.
But then—
Huh?
The person who had just stepped out of Unit 1704 was one of the more famous members of the “casual camp” among her employees.
Even in the heat of midsummer, he didn’t bother pushing back his thick, shaggy hair. He wore black-rimmed glasses.
Today’s outfit wasn’t his usual black-and-green combination, but a yellow-and-blue plaid shirt. Standing there, looking down at her, he was a familiar face.
“Team Leader Seo Yi-soo, what are you doing here?”
Seung-eon had come to the 17th floor of this apartment building to find Woo-jin, but ended up running into an unexpected person.
And so, what she had been thinking must have slipped out loud.
Her brow slightly furrowed as she spoke, making Yi-soo flinch. He seemed about to answer, lips pressed together before moving slightly.
“That’s…”
“Noona!”
At that moment, just as Seung-eon was still suspicious of Yi-soo, a familiar, cheerful voice rang in her ears.
A boy came running with light footsteps, wrapping his arms around Yi-soo’s waist, then peeked out from behind his broad back toward her.
“You’re here?”
Ten-year-old Kang Woo-jin smiled brightly, making Seung-eon’s eyes narrow.
“Kang Woo-jin.”
“Yeah!”
“Just now, you…”
Didn’t you say you were sick?
Only a few dozen minutes ago, he’d been sounding weak over the phone—
saying things like, When are you coming, Noona? Aren’t you coming to get me? Noona, I miss you—
and yet now he was grinning as if nothing had happened.
“I’m fine now!”
While she was still dumbfounded, Woo-jin stepped out from behind Yi-soo and grinned even wider.
The fact that Seung-eon’s eyes were now reduced to thin slits seemed suspiciously amusing to him.
Woo-jin, still smiling, declared,
“Yi-soo hyung took me to the hospital! So I got better! I’m totally fine now! Right, Yi-soo hyung?”
Somehow, he’d grabbed Yi-soo’s hand, looking up at him with shining eyes.
Yi-soo hyung?
Woo-jin wasn’t someone who trusted others easily.
He had been born after losing his parents, and a few years ago, he had also lost the grandmother who doted on him.
So it was no exaggeration to say that in his small world, his “Noona” Seung-eon was everything.
Seung-eon had been raising Lukin and increasing her stake in HG Group for one reason—to make sure Woo-jin grew up without worry, and could enjoy everything he deserved in the future.
But six months ago, she’d been in an accident, and lost a portion of her memories.
“Noona. You can’t leave me alone anymore. I was so… so scared.”
When he’d been able to throw himself into the arms of the sister who still remembered him clearly, Woo-jin had teared up and said it again and again.
She had promised him, over and over, never to leave him alone again.
“Yi-soo hyung, the thing we did earlier—can we show Noona, too…?”
“Excuse us a moment.”
Seung-eon suddenly grabbed Woo-jin’s wrist, pulling him away from Yi-soo, who was still holding the door, and drew him into the hallway outside Unit 1704.
“Kang Woo-jin.”
Once they were a good distance from 1704, she fixed her gaze on him.
“How do you know Seo Yi-soo?”
“Huh?”
“Why aren’t you at home? Why are you in his house? I told you, didn’t I? Don’t follow strangers. You’re not eight anymore, you’re ten. You can’t just—”
“Noona, what’s with you all of a sudden?”
She still didn’t know why Yi-soo had been coming out of that unit, or why Woo-jin was with him, but she was certain she needed to warn him.
Even if there was some reason Woo-jin liked and trusted Yi-soo, she couldn’t help feeling uneasy.
But before she could finish her warning, Woo-jin gave her a puzzled look.
Instead, he cut off her half-spoken Because I’m worried about you with a casual remark.
“Yi-soo hyung is Ji-won’s uncle!”
“Ji-won?”
“Yeah! Don’t you remember Ji-won? My friend Ji-won!”
Noona! This is my friend Ji-won. Ji-won, see? My Noona’s super pretty, just like I said, right?
When Woo-jin had just started elementary school, for some reason he’d cried every day for months, saying he didn’t want to go.
Seung-eon had worked hard to coax and comfort him.
So when one day he suddenly brought home a friend, she’d been shocked.
The pretty little girl nodded silently, but she looked familiar.
Seung-eon remembered seeing her with Woo-jin a few times back in kindergarten.
Ji-won, sit here.
She’d watched Woo-jin happily seat the polite little girl on the sofa, then go to the housekeeper and ask her to make something tasty for their guest.
For a while after that, she’d even heard that he often played at home with the girl.
Noona, can’t I go to America too?
America? Why all of a sudden?
…Just. Grandma’s there, and Ji-won… Ji-won’s going to America soon.
Your friend Ji-won? She’s emigrating?
Not exactly, but… sigh. Noona, I want to go to America! Please!
Woo-jin was more mature than most children his age, but when he heard Ji-won was leaving for the U.S., he’d been unusually clingy.
Naturally, he couldn’t go with her.
On the day Ji-won’s family left, Seung-eon had taken his hand and personally gone to see her off at the airport—that was two years ago.
Team Leader Seo is that Ji-won’s uncle?
Seung-eon looked down at Woo-jin, who was calling him Yi-soo hyung without a shred of wariness—if anything, showing clear fondness.
Woo-jin, noticing her doubtful gaze, sighed.
“Noona, you really don’t remember, huh?”
His small face filled with worry.
“You don’t even remember going to the airport with me to see Ji-won off?”
“Huh?”
“If you’ve forgotten everything like this… Secretary Chu said the memories you lost will come back someday, but if you can’t even remember what we did together… won’t it be useless later too?”
“Woo-jin, that’s—”
She didn’t even have time to stop him before he let the words slip, lips pouting, sigh heavy enough to sink the floor.
“What do you mean by that?”
They both turned.
At some point, Seo Yi-soo—who had been watching them talk from a little distance—had stepped closer.
Seung-eon, startled, met his gaze. His expression was visibly shaken.
“Representative,” Yi-soo said, voice tight, “you’ve… lost your memory?”
***
“Here.”
As if the situation weren’t uncomfortable enough, he was even offering her water.
Seung-eon looked up at him, taking in the man holding out the cup.
The moment their eyes met in the air, Yi-soo jerked his gaze away. Clearly, he was just as uncomfortable as she was.
“Thank you.”
“Yes.”
“….”
“….”
Stifling.
The air felt heavy, like something was lodged in her throat. She wanted to speak first, but had no idea what to say.
‘The fact that the CEO’s memory isn’t intact must be known only to me.’
Secretary Chu’s sharp-eyed warning echoed in her head—because she understood perfectly well how dangerous this situation was.
Of all people…
Of all people, it had to be Team Leader Seo who found out.
‘Right, Yi-soo hyung! Noona losing her memory is a secret, okay? No one can— mmmph!’
‘Let’s just go inside and talk. Come on. It’s fine… right?’
Normally so cautious and clever, why had Woo-jin been so open with Yi-soo?
Panicking that he was talking about something dangerous where anyone in the hall could hear, she had clamped her hand over his mouth and hurried him back into Unit 1704.
And now—
Woo-jin was nowhere to be seen, and Seung-eon was staring at the man in front of her.
