Chapter 27
As the meal was nearly over, Eugene pulled out a shopping bag she had placed beside her and pushed it toward Lee Yeon.
“What’s this?”
“Some side dishes I made this time.”
“Again?”
“Yeah. You’ve been busy lately too, so you’re not eating properly, are you?”
“Well, that’s true, but…”
“So take this. At least don’t refuse the side dishes.”
Lee Yeon peeked inside the shopping bag.
Several transparent glass containers were neatly packed inside.
On each neatly attached lid was a small note with tiny, scribbled writing.
Eugene was always like this.
Worried that Lee Yeon, living alone, might skip meals or eat poorly, she would quietly make side dishes like this and give them to her whenever she had the time.
Every time she received them, Lee Yeon felt grateful, but also inexplicably sorry.
Lee Yeon carefully lifted the shopping bag and smiled.
“This is too much.”
“What do you mean, too much? If you’re eating alone, you’ll finish it in three days.”
“Still.”
“Speaking of which, I heard someone moved in next door. You can share it with them.”
At Eugene’s mischievous words, Lee Yeon’s chopsticks halted mid-air.
“No, thanks.”
Eugene playfully raised an eyebrow.
“No, really, it’s fine. You can use the side dishes as an excuse to knock on their door naturally.”
“That won’t be happening.”
“I thought it wouldn’t. But it seems there is a reason?”
“Since when did even you, Eugene, become so sly?”
“Learned it from my husband.”
The two burst into laughter simultaneously.
***
Once outside, the night air was cooler than expected.
Lee Yeon hugged the shopping bag and walked slowly.
At the end of the alley, the familiar exterior of a building came into view.
The building where her home was, and right next to it, Cha Woo-kyung’s home.
‘Share it with the neighbor.’
Eugene’s words lingered in her mind.
“Should I really… give it to him?”
A mutter escaped her lips without her realizing.
As she climbed the stairs, looking down at the shopping bag, Lee Yeon arrived at her door and placed her hand on the handle.
Then, her gaze naturally drifted toward the next door.
“Ah, whatever.”
Lee Yeon carefully rang the neighbor’s doorbell.
*Click.* A sound echoed, but there was no response for a while.
Not home?
She rang it again.
Then, footsteps sounded from inside.
The door opened, and a faint light spilled into the hallway.
“What’s up?”
But the problem was Woo-kyung’s attire.
His hair was damp, as if he had just showered.
A drop of water fell from his forehead and slowly trailed down his neckline.
Through the open door, warm steam and a faint scent of soap spread out.
Having rushed out, his upper body was completely bare, exposing his torso. The clean lines of his body were naturally revealed under the light.
Even though she had seen his body several times before, Lee Yeon’s gaze instinctively moved up and down before she lifted her head as if scolding herself.
“Ah, well… This.”
She held out the shopping bag to Woo-kyung.
“It was a bit too much for me to eat alone.”
Woo-kyung rolled his dark eyes busily and tilted his head.
“Yeah?”
As he reached out with a smile, the tips of his fingers brushed lightly against the back of her hand the moment he grabbed the shopping bag handle.
Instantly, Lee Yeon’s heart raced unnecessarily.
Just then, the sound of dress shoes came from the floor below.
Hearing someone coming up the stairs, Woo-kyung spoke in a low voice, his face unreadable.
“Come in for a bit.”
Simultaneously with his words, he gently pulled her by the wrist.
Caught off guard by the unexpected force, Lee Yeon lost her balance and leaned toward him.
In that split second, without even a chance to resist, Lee Yeon found herself inside his apartment.
As the door closed, the warm indoor air seeped in, replacing the chilly air of the hallway.
Lee Yeon stood just inside, not having crossed the entrance threshold fully.
She maintained an awkward distance, neither fully in nor fully out.
Woo-kyung looked at her for a moment, then lifted the shopping bag, his broad shoulders shifting.
“Where’d you get this?”
“A friend gave it to me, but it’s too much.”
“Yeah?”
He smiled slowly.
“It would have been better if you’d just asked to eat together.”
“Huh?”
“Anyway, both you and I are living alone, what’s the big deal about sharing a meal? Don’t you think?”
At his words, Lee Yeon averted her gaze momentarily.
Fidgeting with her fingertips, she couldn’t find a response.
Just then, Woo-kyung ran his hand through his wet hair.
As a drop of water trailed down his neckline, the air grew strangely heated.
“…Did you just shower?”
“Yeah.”
His sturdy muscles, sharply defined, still filled her view, forcing her eyes to dart around busily.
Finally finding a place to rest her eyes, Lee Yeon looked past the living room and asked,
“Haven’t you bought all your furniture yet?”
“Yeah, planning to take it slow.”
“Must be inconvenient.”
“Not really. Anyway, come in for now.”
“No, it’s fine!”
Lee Yeon waved her hands and spoke quickly.
Her voice had risen without her realizing it.
“Lee Yeon-ah.”
Woo-kyung’s gaze narrowed slightly before softening.
“If you run away too much, I might really get the wrong idea.”
Lee Yeon’s eyes widened.
“Run away? What are you talking about?”
“Then?”
“It’s just… it’s late.”
Lee Yeon bowed her head slightly and pointed toward the shopping bag.
“Please enjoy the side dishes.”
Leaving those words, Lee Yeon slipped out of the entryway.
Until the moment the door closed, she could feel his gaze fixed on her back.
As she walked down the hallway, her heart pounded noisily.
‘Why am I so nervous over this?’
Lee Yeon almost fled into her own apartment.
As soon as the door closed, she leaned against it, catching her breath, and closed her eyes.
“What on earth…”
The tips of her white cheeks flushed instantly.
The glimpse of Woo-kyung through the doorframe came vividly to mind.
His wet hair, the firm line of his shoulders under the light.
His shoulders, broader than before, the shadow of muscles tightening with every movement.
Lee Yeon covered her face with both hands and bowed her head.
“What am I doing right now…”
It was just sharing side dishes from a friend, so why did she feel like this?
Her heart was still beating wildly of its own accord.
She remained standing there, leaning against the closed door, for a long time.
***
Lee Yeon’s mind was a mess all day.
That one sentence she heard in the elevator yesterday kept echoing in her ears.
It was the first she’d heard about Cha Woo-kyung handling the Shin Yu Group case.
Because the name was familiar, it piqued her interest even more.
Why, of all cases, did he have to take that one?
Until just yesterday, she had intended to ask him.
But in the end, she just ended up delivering the side dishes.
As the awkwardness from that time resurfaced, Lee Yeon shook her head slightly.
She wanted to talk to him, even briefly, but Woo-kyung was tied up in meetings all morning and had an external meeting scheduled for the afternoon.
His office light remained off the entire day.
‘I wonder when he plans on coming back….’
As she neatly straightened the edges of a document file with her fingertips, Lee Yeon eventually closed it.
No matter how much she tried to focus, she couldn’t concentrate any longer.
Just then, a colleague cautiously approached.
“Manager Lee Yeon.”
Lifting her head, the employee was holding a small memo.
“Ah, about the client you were supposed to meet today?”
“Yes, I remember.”
“They called urgently. Said their schedule changed.”
“Suddenly?”
A subtle tremor passed through Lee Yeon’s expression.
“Yes. They left a note. Said they wanted to meet in person.”
“Do you know what it’s about…?”
“I’m not sure about that. But they sounded quite rushed.”
After a moment of contemplation, Lee Yeon accepted the memo.
“Then, I’ll be going.”
“Huh?”
“I should head out now. If I come back late, I might leave straight for the day, so please let the office manager know.”
“Ah, yes. Understood.”
Lee Yeon rose from her seat, picked up her notebook, and slung her bag over her shoulder.
Her movements were calm, but a corner of her heart felt unsettled, shaking uneasily.
Before stepping out the door, Lee Yeon glanced back unconsciously.
At the end of the hallway, the door to Cha Woo-kyung’s office was firmly shut.
Inside the dark room, only an empty chair remained.
‘It seems… I won’t get to see him today.’
She briefly took out her phone, her finger hovering over the call button.
She considered contacting him, but ultimately turned off the screen.
“…I’ll just go and see, for now.”
Recalling the client’s urgent tone, Lee Yeon stepped into the elevator.
The doors closed, and the elevator began its descent.
Until that moment, she thought it would be nothing.
Just meeting a client whose schedule had changed.
She had no idea how that single small memo would pull her in such a dangerous direction.
She would find out barely an hour later.
