Chapter 10
“Finally done!”
Having finished sending off the translated subtitles, Haru stretched, feeling refreshed.
But as her arms rose high, so did the corners of her lips—only to fall limp in the next moment.
Cha Seung-jae.
It was because that man’s face suddenly came to mind.
The thought of never having to see him again was a relief, but the vague sense of regret rising in a corner of her heart was impossible to put into words.
There had been a certain thrill in coming face-to-face with that movie-star-perfect face in real life.
“What do you say we keep seeing each other?”
Had she turned him down too bluntly?
“I don’t see how this benefits me in any way.”
How could there be no benefit?
Just having a boyfriend like that—even if it was fake—was a blessing.
A boyfriend like him…
As Haru imagined going on dates with him, her lips began to twitch upward again.
By now, letting her imagination wander to him was something that happened unconsciously.
“Oh my gosh, I must be crazy!”
She shook her head violently to come back to her senses.
Why was she acting like a woman full of regrets after rejecting him so decisively?
“I should delete his number.”
There was nothing as effective as deleting a phone number when you wanted to forget someone.
Determined, she pulled up his contact to erase it—when suddenly, her phone buzzed.
[Creepy Taein Senior]
Seeing the caller ID, Haru immediately answered.
“Yes, Taein sunbae.”
— Haru, looks like there were quite a few candidates for the FLEX translation contract interview.
His words felt ominous.
Did that mean she hadn’t made it? She had really pinned her hopes on this one.
— The results aren’t out yet, but luckily, you seem to have made the final shortlist.
“Really?”
Haru silently cheered.
She knew it—this time her gut feeling had been right.
— But they want to test you on another genre. Could you come in today?
“Of course! I’ll definitely go. But if I leave now, it’ll already be evening—will that be okay?”
— It’s fine. I’ll let them know.
If she had made the final cut, then there was still hope. She had no reason to refuse.
“Yes. I’ll head over right away, sunbae.”
Haru, change of plans. Not GN, come to Silas Hotel, 20th floor bar.
She was almost at her destination when that message came in.
Before she could even ask why, another message arrived.
Meeting the recruiter here instead.
It was odd, but she went to the location he sent.
It wasn’t far from her original destination, so getting there wasn’t hard.
Still, of all places, why this hotel?
With no other choice, she entered the bar. Taein, seated in a corner, raised his hand in greeting.
Haru sat opposite him and asked,
“What about the test?”
“They said you could just take it online.”
So then, had she come here for nothing?
He could’ve told her earlier if plans had changed.
“The recruiter’s coming here. Making an appearance could give you a bit of an edge, you know?”
To Haru, it sounded like he was telling her to rely on connections.
She wanted to succeed on her skills alone, so it left her uncomfortable.
But it was also awkward to flatly reject his “help.”
She decided that once the recruiter came, she’d just exchange a few pleasantries and leave.
“For now, have a drink.”
“Sorry?”
Before she could even react, a glass of whiskey was already set in front of her.
“Just to relax a little.”
“Oh, okay.”
That one glass didn’t stay at one.
Taein kept refilling her glass, and though she accepted a few more, eventually she raised her hand.
“I’ll stop here. By the way, when is the recruiter coming?”
“They’re probably busy. They’ll show up eventually.”
Even though she’d clearly said she was done drinking, Taein poured her another and asked,
“Haru, are you still single? Back in college you were famous for being a lifelong single.”
His gaze, heavy with alcohol, fixed on her.
“Plenty of guys, real catches, confessed to you, but you turned them all down. Guys even made bets about who could get you to date them.”
The personal nature of the talk made her uncomfortable, so she tried to shut him down.
“Sunbae, I think you’re drunk. Let’s postpone this meeting and head out, okay?”
She couldn’t just sit around waiting forever for some recruiter who might never show.
Besides, Taein hadn’t once tried contacting them since she’d arrived.
Better to call it a night.
“We’re just getting started. Where do you think you’re going?”
He swayed, eyes glassy, and asked,
“Haru, what do you say you go out with me?”
“What?”
“I like girls like you—innocent, unspoiled. Not the kind who’ve been around. You’re like a natural treasure.”
Haru had to bite back the urge to throw her drink in his face.
Even drunk, he had crossed the line.
“Do you realize that’s sexual harassment, sunbae?”
“Think carefully. Whether you get that contract depends on how I put in a word.”
His true colors were showing. He was holding her job prospects hostage.
He slurred on, claiming that the recruiter was someone important in the OTT team and that one word from them would guarantee her spot.
Then—
“You still haven’t built a proper career, have you? What, you want to spend your life juggling part-time gigs?”
He dragged out all her insecurities, pouring salt into wounds already raw.
She wanted nothing more than to curse him out—but she couldn’t.
He was her senior, and a man with connections in the industry.
One wrong move, and she stood to lose too much.
Taein downed another drink, then leaned closer, voice dripping with sleaze.
“Let’s be real. You wouldn’t have been sitting here drinking with me this long if you didn’t have feelings for me too.”
His arm snaked around her waist.
Shuddering, Haru pushed him off and snapped,
“That’s only because you tricked me into coming here!”
“Come on, enough playing hard to get. It’s only cute to a point.”
His hand brushed her cheek.
She recoiled in disgust and tried to stand, but he grabbed her.
She had no strength to overpower him.
Fear crept up her spine as she stammered,
“If my boyfriend finds out about this, he won’t let it slide.”
“Boyfriend? Please. You don’t have one.”
Damn it. Why did no one ever believe her when she said she had a boyfriend?
How had her life ended up like this?
“Call him then. If you’ve got a boyfriend, prove it.”
His twisted grin spread.
Haru scrambled through her mind for names in her phone.
There was only Dan Bong-gil—her dad. Saved under a nickname, but anyone could tell it was an old-fashioned name with a rare surname. That’d blow her cover instantly.
Her younger brother, Dan Haneul, was no better.
Haru, seriously, couldn’t you have made at least one male friend?
Then suddenly—Cha Seung-jae’s name flashed in her mind.
Damn it. She shouldn’t have deleted his number.
She regretted it bitterly, cursing herself for erasing it just hours earlier.
“What’s your boyfriend’s name?”
Taein pressed again.
Cornered, Haru finally blurted out the name spinning in her head.
“Cha Seung-jae.”
“Cha Seung-jae? Sounds like you just made it up. Call him.”
Crap. Now she was really trapped.
His grip still locked her in place.
She looked around desperately for help—just as two men entered the bar.
In that instant, her eyes lit up.
Cha Seung-jae!
It really was him, walking in with another man.
Haru tore herself free from Taein’s grasp and ran toward him.
Taein quickly followed on her heels.
“Seung-jae oppa!”
Both men halted in surprise.
The one beside Lee Han—Seung-jae—muttered,
“Who’s that? I’ve never seen her before. She just called out to me, right?”
He pointed at Haru’s face.
Lee Han pushed his hand down and said lowly,
“Shut up. She’s not calling you—she’s calling me.”
Seung-jae turned to him in shock.
At that moment, a sweet-looking woman dashed up and clung to Lee Han’s arm.
Her face was flushed as she pulled up a trembling smile.
“You’re here, oppa?”
