A child who looks like me

Dreams provoke desire.

But Ji-heon couldn’t move an inch.

Yesterday, she seemed quite lively, but today she appeared somewhat deflated.

As Jeong-o regained her balance, she slipped away from Ji-heon.

Her avoidance was sluggish, prompting Ji-heon to ask, “Are you in pain?”

“I’m fine.”

“Did you drink too much?”

“I have a cold.”

Jeong-o snapped back at his question, tossing out her answer before heading into the office first.

Hmph.

Is he giving me poison and then medicine?

Yesterday he scolded her so rudely, and today, why is he asking about her well-being?

It felt odd, as if he had been waiting for her since the lobby.

It was a situation she couldn’t avoid, but being in his embrace felt awkward.

Even the sound of his heartbeat in that fleeting moment was startling.

Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump, thump.

His chest was armored, yet what did that sound mean…?

It felt like a locomotive passing by.

“Manager, you’re here.”

Before she could even reflect on what had happened, she exchanged greetings with Gi-hoon.

“Yeah. Hi, Gi-hoon.”

Gi-hoon stood up and handed Jeong-o her bag and umbrella, which he had kept from the pub at her request the previous day.

“You really had a tough time yesterday. I can’t believe you even threw your bag away.”

“Phew. Thank you so much.”

Remembering what had happened last night, a sigh escaped her before she could greet him.

The day’s work began.

Jeong-o showed no signs of recovery.

Even the cool air from the air conditioner felt taxing. She regretted not bringing a coat on such a day.

Seeing her in such a state, Gi-hoon set a hangover remedy drink down at her desk, thinking she was struggling with a hangover.

“Thank you, Gi-hoon.”

Jeong-o managed a weak smile.

But she couldn’t bring herself to drink it. Even the lukewarm energy from the drink felt cold to her. She huddled herself up and continued with her work.

Dring, dring.

In the midst of this, her phone vibrated. Jeong-o laboriously moved her hand to pick up the phone.

– Let’s meet in the office for a moment.

Director Jeong Ji-heon.

The name she saved yesterday troubled her eyes.

He could have just called; why send a text? It put her in a strange mood.

Jeong-o glared quietly at her phone.

‘What on earth is he calling me to the office for again?’

Her body felt heavy enough as it was.

Now that she thought about it, he had been a bit odd since this morning.

Then again, he had done something quite wrong last night.

‘Could he be trying to apologize?’

She felt a flicker of hope.

Well, if he apologizes for last night, she would accept it.

Jeong-o slowly rose and made her way to the office.

Knock, knock.

“Yes.”

Ji-heon’s voice came from inside the office. Before she could grab the doorknob, the door opened from the inside.

Ji-heon swung the door wide open and ushered Jeong-o inside.

Though her body ached, she didn’t want to exude heat. Jeong-o responded as coldly as she could.

“I came because you called.”

“Did you get home okay yesterday?”

“Yes.”

“Take some medicine.”

“Pardon?”

“It’s just a cold,”

She looked up at Ji-heon with a flustered expression, her gaze dropping as it moved downward.

On the table he pointed to, there was a bundle of medicine.

Have you become a medicine vendor? Why is there so much medicine?

But Jeong-o refused. This was not what she wanted.

“I’m fine.”

“Take it. I specifically bought it for you, Jeong-o.”

“Why?”

“……”

“Why go through the trouble?”

With her tired body, she forced her eyes wide open and glared at him. A few steps forward, Ji-heon approached and picked up the bundle of medicine from the table.

“Take the medicine and don’t get sick.”

She had come expecting an apology, but instead…

“Recover and work properly.”

It was a carrot that a superior dangles in front of a subordinate.

Are you giving me poison and then medicine?

After teasing her so much yesterday, she was infuriated by this man’s fickleness, who today handed her a bundle of medicine.

Even so, she couldn’t voice her complaints, and she felt resentment toward her own lack of strength.

If only I had more strength, I could just stomp my foot! Just give him a piece of my mind!

She ground her teeth in frustration while silently glaring at him, but he too seemed dissatisfied with something. He squinted and returned to her, bringing something dark and heavy with him.

“Someone who is sick should wear something warm.”

His cardigan was draped over her shoulders.

Taken aback, she tried to push it off, but he quickly fastened one button of the cardigan.

Wearing the oversized cardigan felt like being wrapped in a blanket.

“……I’m fine.”

“Right. You look fine.”

His calm voice was gentle, like reading a fairy tale.

He seemed to be playing around. She felt awkward and, at the same time, overwhelmed.

It reminded her of seven years ago.

Our last day.

The day I checked the pregnancy test and then went to meet you. The day you took off your coat and put it on me.

That day, which I have reflected on countless times, you probably haven’t even thought about it.

“……I have style, you know.”

“You look good in it.”

He smiled subtly, clearly pleased with how she looked in his clothes, just like on that day seven years ago.

Seeing Jeong-o’s expression, which seemed a bit off, Ji-heon added a comment.

“Since I’ve never worn it, don’t say I gave it to you.”

“Then how about letting me leave early?”

“Well, do as you wish.”

“…….”

“Should I walk you out?”

Jeong-o felt even more awkward as Ji-heon readily agreed to walk her out without mentioning yesterday’s conversation or offering an apology, but only focusing on trivial matters.

“……No, I’ll work.”

“……”

“I’ll just take one of the medicines.”

Jeong-o set down the bundle of medicine Ji-heon had given her and picked out a familiar-looking box from it.

Nod.

Ji-heon watched disapprovingly as Jeong-o nodded her head in farewell and hurriedly left.

She had bought all the over-the-counter medicine from the pharmacy, even glancing at the pharmacist, yet she still only took one more.

At least she quietly wore the cardigan, so maybe that’s something to be thankful for?

It was the first time someone’s cold had bothered him so much.

.*. *. *. *. *. *.

Lunchtime arrived.

After taking the medicine Ji-heon gave her, Jeong-o gradually began to feel better. While she couldn’t run around energetically, her fever seemed to have dropped somewhat.

She should rest during lunchtime.

I won’t go outside the office; I’ll just lie down and take a little nap.

Jeong-o sighed as she massaged her weary fingers over the keyboard. At that moment, Team Leader Seong Mi-ran approached and called out to her.

“Jeong-o, are you able to eat?”

“Team Leader, I’ll stay in the office today.”

“Is it because you feel unwell? Can you at least eat some porridge?”

“I guess I could eat…”

“I ordered porridge for myself too. Let’s eat together.”

“I’m fine, really.”

“I ordered two servings, including yours. Come to the conference room.”

Though her body still felt heavy, Jeong-o couldn’t refuse when Mi-ran was being this considerate.

Yeah. Eating porridge will surely help me regain my strength.

Jeong-o followed Mi-ran out.

The menu Mi-ran chose was ‘Special Abalone Porridge’, which contained three times the amount of abalone found in regular abalone porridge.

It was precious food that couldn’t be wasted.

With a grateful heart, Jeong-o picked up her spoon. The smooth texture made it easy to swallow, and the taste was savory, prompting her to eat quickly.

It was truly fortunate that her appetite remained intact despite her heavy body. Perhaps the medicine had helped her feel a bit better. She started to feel a little grateful toward Ji-heon.

“How’s working at the company after moving?”

“It’s much more convenient since it’s closer than my previous company.”

“I’m really sorry about yesterday. I was so out of it that I only heard later how hard it was for you to drink.”

“It’s okay. I’m just glad it helped.”

“You’ve been through a lot. You don’t need to leave early today, right?”

“Yes, of course not.”

“Good. Let’s leave early today.”

Even if she didn’t care much for the headquarters or the head of the department, she was grateful for her team members. Especially Team Leader Seong Mi-ran, who was a great support. She was always there to back up Jeong-o’s opinions, which she appreciated.

However, Mi-ran seemed to have a slightly heavy expression today. It felt like she had something to say to Jeong-o.

As expected, when Jeong-o had nearly finished her bowl, Mi-ran cautiously called out her name.

“By the way, Jeong-o.”

“Yes, Team Leader.”

“I don’t know if I should ask this, but… I’m worried…”

“Yes, go ahead.”

“Um, Jeong-o…”

“……”

“What’s your relationship with Director Jeong Ji-heon?”

Jeong-o’s lips stiffened, determined to answer Mi-ran’s questions sincerely.

A chill ran down her spine.

“Did you two know each other from before?”

“……”

“Or perhaps, seven years ago? Was that when you met, when the director said he had lost his memory?”

It seemed Mi-ran knew more than expected.

–

Yesterday, since everyone in Production Team 1 had been drinking, today’s lunch menu was hangover soup.

After enjoying a hearty meal to recover, the members of Production Team 1 encountered Ji-heon in the lobby on the first floor.

The team leader, Ahn Chan-seob, was the first to greet him.

“Director, have you had lunch?”

“Yes.”

Si-nae, feeling a nudge from Chan-seob to acknowledge Ji-heon, pushed Eun-bi to move closer to him. Since Ji-heon was seated next to Eun-bi, she had to stand by him.

Eun-bi slightly shrank her shoulders and approached him.

However, for some reason, Ji-heon’s expression was colder than usual.

Ji-heon spoke to Chan-seob.

“About yesterday…”

“Yes? What about…?”

“Did Team 1 delegate the entertaining of the Team 2 staff to someone?”

At Ji-heon’s question, the members of Team 1 exchanged glances, blinking in confusion. Only Assistant Manager Jo Si-nae’s face turned bright red.

Eun-bi felt discouraged from getting any closer to Ji-heon.

“It seems our Jo Si-nae was too busy, so she entrusted it to Team 2’s Jeong Jeong-o. Of course, it was only for a moment until the other team members finished their work…”

“You entrusted the entertaining of a long-time advertiser to someone who has only been with the company for just over a week?”

“……”

“Did the team leader give this directive?”

His polite inquiry felt oddly chilling.

It felt as though he knew everything already.

Si-nae trembled all over, sensing Ji-heon’s gaze fixed on her.

The atmosphere in the first-floor lobby felt as if cold water had been thrown over it, leaving an eerie silence.

“No, I…”

As Chan-seob hesitated, Si-nae quickly stepped forward.

“Director, it was my request. The team leader found out later. But we were really too busy, and it couldn’t be helped. Jeong-o was just sitting idly.”

“Understood. You were busy. We just need to ensure this doesn’t happen again.”

“Yes, I will be more careful.”

At least Ji-heon quickly understood the situation, which was a relief.

Si-nae let out a sigh of relief inwardly.

However.

“Then let’s take a look at yesterday’s results.”

Si-nae slowly lifted her pale face to look at Ji-heon.

The workload from yesterday had been rejected this morning…

“……What?”

“The result of the reason you were so busy yesterday. Let’s review what Assistant Manager Jo Si-nae worked on.”

That handsome face, once the object of admiration for all employees, now appeared chillingly menacing.