Chapter 10
Seminar – 3
A look of injustice appeared on the staff member’s face.
I checked the laptop bag he was holding up and said.
“No. The pattern is different. And it’s new.”
Unlike Jun-seo’s, which had signs of use, this one looked brand new, as if it had just been bought.
Wait a minute.
I suddenly remembered the laptop bag I had found earlier in front of the restroom.
“Then, is the presentation difficult?” the staff member asked.
Yikes.
Afraid Jun-seo might get angry at him, I quickly grabbed Jun-seo’s arm.
Hold back, you hold back.
Fortunately, the staff member, seeing Jun-seo’s expression, closed his mouth.
“Just a moment.”
I told him to wait and went outside the seminar room. Luckily, the staff member I had entrusted the bag to earlier was still outside.
“The laptop bag I gave you earlier, you still have it, right?”
“Yes.”
It seemed he had been putting up a notice about which floor the post-seminar dinner would be on. The staff member put down the paper he was holding and brought over the laptop bag he had set aside.
“Did the owner find it?”
“It’s not confirmed yet, but I think it’s the owner.”
I said that and checked the bag. It looked similar to the one Jun-seo had handed to the staff member earlier. Even down to the wear on the handle.
“Is this it?”
When I returned with the laptop bag, Jun-seo, who had been doing something with the laptop, looked up. Seeing his eyes widen and then narrow again made me feel a bit strange.
“Where did you find it?”
“In front of the restroom. Actually…”
I, who had been about to explain in detail, stopped talking when I realized the previous presenter was almost finished.
“I’ll explain later. Check if anything’s missing.”
Jun-seo opened the bag and checked inside. I subtly leaned my head to try and see what he was looking at. The inside of the bag was unchanged from when I had found and checked it earlier. But it seemed something was different from when he had given it to the staff member. He rummaged through it as if looking for something, then took out the laptop with a blank expression and checked it. Then he nodded at me as if to say everything was fine.
“Can we proceed with the next segment?” the staff member asked again.
When Jun-seo looked at him, the staff member once again closed his mouth and stepped back.
“Yeah.”
Thank goodness.
I patted my chest in relief and quickly returned to my seat. Since that area was slightly obscured, the people sitting in the middle probably didn’t see what happened. But those sitting on the edges, like me, probably did.
“Hello, I’m Lee Jun-seo.”
When his turn came, Jun-seo presented calmly, as if the incident of his laptop disappearing and being found had never happened. I could see people here and there raising their phones to take pictures.
So that’s why they said no photography at the start of the seminar.
The moderator immediately cut in, telling people not to take photos. I quietly lowered the phone I had raised.
“As mentioned earlier…”
Lee Jun-seo’s presentation was excellent. He stuck to the key points and even summarized everything once more at the end. The fact that it wasn’t boring was a bonus, though that was probably due more to his face and voice than the content.
“You were amazing, weren’t you?”
I quickly complimented him as Jun-seo returned to his seat after his presentation. Now I understand why they put him in charge of the presentation. His English pronunciation was even great.
Is there anything this guy can’t do?
I could feel people around us looking our way. As I subtly moved my body away, Jun-seo leaned towards me and whispered.
“So, where did you say you found my bag?”
The next presenter was speaking, but he didn’t seem interested at all. Conscious of the people’s gazes, I explained quickly in a low voice.
“The restroom? The women’s restroom?”
He asked so seriously that I momentarily wondered whether the restroom I had entered was for women or men.
“Uh, the restroom on the left when you go out. I’ll check again on my way out.”
At my uncertain answer, one of Jun-seo’s eyebrows went up.
Hey, I thought I was entering the women’s restroom when I went in? But now that I think your laptop bag was in front of the women’s restroom, it does seem a bit weird.
“This concludes the seminar.”
Just then, the moderator announced the end of the seminar. As they explained that dinner was prepared upstairs, people got up from their seats in a rush. We deliberately stayed seated a bit longer before getting up. It was partly because the buffet would likely be crowded, but also because many people wanted to greet Jun-seo.
“Let’s go quickly.”
“I enjoyed your presentation.”
The people who approached Jun-seo, regardless of who they were, wanted to talk to him or have dinner with him. Some of them were curious about who I was, but when he simply said I was a colleague, their interest in me vanished completely.
“Ah, Lee Jun-seo!”
“Over here, come this way.”
The interest and hospitality towards Jun-seo grew even more intense once we entered the dining area. He’s like an idol.
Seeing most people in the dining room trying to get close to Jun-seo, I subtly stepped back from him. Then Jun-seo grabbed my arm and asked.
“Where are you going?”
“I’m allergic to drunk uncles.”
Jun-seo’s eyebrow went up, and then he burst out laughing. He bent his head towards me and whispered.
“Seems we have the same condition.”
Wow, far from feeling a sense of kinship, I’m just speechless. That was my excuse, you know?
Taking advantage of the slight loosening of Jun-seo’s grip on my arm, I quickly took a step back. In that gap, men trying to talk to Jun-seo intervened.
Now I can eat in peace.
Since I had lunch surrounded by men interested in Jun-seo, I at least wanted to eat dinner comfortably.
“Where are you from?”
When I sat down at an empty seat with a reasonable amount of food, the women sitting a seat away asked. When I said SJ, they all wondered if I knew Lee Jun-seo. But that was it. Soon, the conversation shifted to the business connected with this program.
“I heard a foreign company invested in this.”
“That’s why I heard SJ was interested too.”
I didn’t know that far. But given that Jun-seo did the demo and I came along to the seminar, it was reasonable to think so, wasn’t it?
We talked about how far this business could expand, exchanged business cards, and then got up from our seats.
As the women who had eaten with me left, Jun-seo approached me with a tired expression. He sat across from me and said.
“Traitor.”
“I told you I’m allergic to drunk uncles.”
“I’m allergic to all humans.”
“Aren’t you human?”
“That’s why my life is in danger, didn’t you hear?”
“Try holding your breath.”
Jun-seo’s eyes narrowed. He made a displeased face, let out a sigh, and said.
“Let’s go. I’ll give you a ride.”
All the way to my place? I stared at him for a moment before asking.
“You didn’t drink?”
When I saw him surrounded by those uncles earlier, people were really pushing drinks on him.
Jun-seo shrugged and said.
“I don’t like alcohol.”
“Ah, so you’re allergic not just to drunk uncles, but to both alcohol and uncles separately?”
“But since the two are a sufficient condition for each other, they’re practically the same thing.”
I don’t know what he’s talking about, but it’s funny.
I giggled and got up from my seat.
As we were leaving the buffet, I saw coffee and ice cream at the entrance.
Ah, now that I think about it, the only coffee I had today was one cup in the morning.
After going outside the building, I asked Jun-seo.
“Do you want to get coffee before we go? Or ice cream?”
Personally, I’d like ice cream.
At my question, Jun-seo raised an eyebrow and said.
“Sure.”
I headed into the alley next to the building to look for a cafe. Or an ice cream shop.
Is it too late for coffee?
When meeting friends, we drank coffee even at this hour, but sometimes in other gatherings, people said it was too late.
Well, it is better not to drink coffee after six PM.
I turned to Jun-seo to ask for his opinion.
“By any chance…”
Something landed on top of my head.
