Chapter 14
. Am I Supposed to Say Hello First?
Unlike usual, his hair was simply brushed down in front, but Hana recognized Siwan at a glance.
‘Ah, so the director has curly hair too?’
Curly-haired people feel a strange camaraderie with each other. Misery loves company, as they say.
At first glance, it looked like a perm, but a look at the nape of his neck confirmed it—definitely natural curls.
‘That’s such naturally curly hair.’
Maybe because of the hairstyle, his eyes still looked sharp, but compared to when he slicked his hair back, his expression appeared much softer.
‘Ah! Now’s not the time to be thinking about this!’
This wasn’t the time to be leisurely debating whether the director had a perm or if it was his natural hair.
She had a much bigger, more serious dilemma.
Should she acknowledge him or not?
Should I pretend I don’t know him since we’re not close?
It was such a minor thing, yet Hana found herself seriously troubled.
‘Ugh, why is someone as high up as the director even riding the subway?!’
That was prejudice. Even people higher up than a director sometimes took the subway. Even when packed, the subway runs on schedule—unlike personal cars, which get stuck in traffic.
She was only saying that because she hadn’t experienced the frustration of being trapped in rush hour, crawling along slower than a turtle.
She thought, “Well, he’s my boss, so maybe I should be polite and greet him first,” but quickly shook her head.
She suddenly remembered the “rude” incident her dad had caused with Siwan in the company lobby a few days ago.
Fortunately, over the past few days, Hana hadn’t run into Siwan at all, neither outside the office nor inside. You could almost believe they didn’t even work in the same building.
Not that she was avoiding him. They didn’t have any meetings together, his office was separate, and they didn’t share the same commute times.
She had thought that since they hadn’t crossed paths, maybe “that incident” would just fade from memory—but the moment she saw Siwan’s face, it all came rushing back like it happened yesterday.
Hana subtly bowed her head and glanced at Siwan from the corner of her eye, then silently prayed to a god she only called upon once a month.
‘God, please let him sit on the opposite side…’
Wait, wouldn’t that mean he’d be facing her? That might be just as awkward…
Actually, that might be better. If he sat in front, he probably wouldn’t talk to her. But if he sat beside her and struck up a conversation, it would be way worse.
Meanwhile, the woman in a suit seated across from Hana had been blushing ever since she saw Siwan enter the subway.
Her name was Jung Jangmi. A talented woman working at a major conglomerate, she was also quite confident in her looks.
She’d never had much interest in men, but when she saw Siwan—who looked like he’d just stepped out of a web novel cover illustration—her heart stirred.
‘Hehe, if he wants to sit next to me, I’ll allow it.’
Pretending to be uninterested, she subtly scooted her hips to the side.
People always prefer more space. She leaned as far over as she could toward the armrest, trying to widen the empty spot next to her.
Siwan hadn’t noticed her efforts yet, still focused on his phone screen.
But then Jangmi noticed the girl across from her—Hana—sneaking glances at the handsome man.
Jangmi began to feel anxious.
‘Is that girl after him too?!’
She looked unemployed, but had a cute face. Coincidentally, the seat next to her was also empty.
If this handsome man checked that seat and walked past, it would be a huge loss! So, Jangmi used her secret weapon—a cute little cough.
“Khem, khem.”
Others might think it sounded weird, but to her, it was totally adorable.
Maybe it worked—Siwan’s eyes turned toward her.
The moment their eyes met, Jangmi’s heart nearly exploded.
Thump thump.
His eyes looked like those of a bad boy, but his gaze was gentle. The contrast was incredibly attractive.
What would he smell like?
Jangmi, filled with borderline creepy curiosity, eagerly waited for him to come closer.
Without looking away from his phone, Siwan slowly sat down next to her. Internally, she cheered.
‘Kyaah! What’s with this guy? He smells amazing!’
Was it cologne? Or skin lotion?
A sweet scent gently wafted from Siwan.
Pink fantasies began to blossom in Jangmi’s mind.
—
“Excuse me, could I get your number before you get off?”
“I’m sorry. You’re just so my type, I couldn’t help but follow you off the train.”
—
Even if it were written into a web novel, this kind of fantasy would be too cringe. Yet the corners of Jangmi’s mouth curled up with glee.
Meanwhile, Hana sighed in relief as she watched Siwan take the seat across from her.
‘The woman next to him looks… uncomfortable somehow…’
At first, the woman seemed fine, but as time passed, her behavior became increasingly odd—her gaze darting around, body twitching here and there.
‘She’s not about to have a seizure or something, is she?’
Anyway, now wasn’t the time to worry about other people.
Hana quickly flipped up her hoodie.
‘Oh right, glasses!’
She immediately took off her glasses and slipped them into her pocket.
Without glasses, the odds of him recognizing her would drop dramatically!
Even if they were only a step apart, sitting across from each other, their eyes might meet if she wasn’t careful.
Making eye contact with Director Do Siwan?
Just the thought made her feel uncomfortable.
Sure, she could say hello—but what about after that? It would be so awkward until the next stop…
‘Wait, why am I acting like this?’
You could run into your boss anywhere—on the subway, in a restaurant.
She’d run into coworkers at cafes dozens of times. She’d even sat next to or across from supervisors while drinking coffee.
So why was she freaking out now?
Also—another question.
Would Siwan even recognize her?
‘Hmm…’
She had only directly interacted with him twice.
Once in the break room, once in the lobby.
All the other times were just passing glances—barely enough to register.
Sure, she gave him a kimchi fried rice lunch box, but it’s not like she handed it over face-to-face.
Plus, unlike at the office, she wasn’t wearing her glasses now.
Why had she assumed someone as high up as the director would remember her after just a couple of encounters?
She chuckled dryly to herself.
‘Geez, I’m so self-conscious sometimes.’
While Hana was having this introspective moment, Siwan was deeply focused on a puzzle game on his phone.
His screen was filled with cute round animal faces. It was a puzzle game called “Zoopangpang,” where lining up three or more of the same animal would clear them.
With a serious expression, Siwan hovered his finger over a panda’s face. After a long moment of thought, he finally made a move.
[Pop!]
A cute sound came through his earbuds.
[2 COMBO!]
[4, 5, 6 COMBO!]
The current mission was to reach a 7-combo.
If he failed, he wouldn’t be able to move on to the next stage.
Siwan’s face turned pale. His eyes sharpened even more.
‘No… please no.’
On the screen, a cute white puppy character had tears falling down its face. Below it, in huge letters: Mission Failed.
Whoever made this game must be a demon!
He wanted to see their face—how could they make something so impossible to beat?
He’d been trying to beat this stage since last night. Finally broke the 6-combo wall, but this was his limit.
His expression was so intense that other subway passengers couldn’t possibly guess he was reacting to a game.
Hana was no different.
‘He doesn’t look good… Is he sick again?’
She still believed Siwan was suffering from a serious illness.
After all, she’d seen him popping a fistful of pills. It was a reasonable misunderstanding.
She looked at him with sympathy, a strange heaviness in her heart.
So young—though she was younger—yet he seemed to be struggling so much.
She remembered a saying:
“God is fair. He doesn’t give everything to one person.”
Good-looking, competent, with a prestigious background—but cursed with bad health.
Just as Hana’s heart was overflowing with pity, Siwan suddenly turned his head—and their eyes met.
Totally unexpected.
Hana froze.
For a brief moment, their eyes locked in mid-air.
It only lasted an instant—but Siwan recognized her immediately.
He had first really seen her face the day she returned the lunchbox bag.
To be honest, in the break room, the overpowering smell and visuals of the kimchi fried rice had been so strong that her face hadn’t even registered.
Anyway, that day he thought:
‘She looks just like Puing.’
Puing was Siwan’s favorite puppy character in Zoopangpang.
The same white puppy that had just cried on his screen after the failed mission.
And the girl in the hoodie sitting across from him?
Looked exactly like Puing.
There couldn’t be many people who looked like that.
So there was no doubt—that girl was Assistant Manager Joo Hana.
