Real Man

Chapter 63

It was then.

Jin Sunmi, who approached the table, sat down in an empty seat and greeted Yoo-hyun with a poke.

“Hello. Long time no see, oppa.”

“Huh.”

Everyone’s eyes were drawn to Yoo-hyun when Jin Sunmi, who always added ‘Mr.’ after his name, suddenly called him oppa.

It was enough to surprise the others, especially since she was the haughty and arrogant Jin Sunmi.

Gong Hyunjun, who was too surprised, blinked his eyes and looked at Yoo-hyun and Jin Sunmi alternately.

Yoo-hyun, who had no intention of getting involved in other people’s love affairs, drew a line right away.

“Why are you doing that, Sunmi?”

“Yoo-hyun oppa, don’t be so formal. I’m going to call you oppa comfortably like the other classmates.”

“Oh, really? Why all of a sudden?”

“We’re colleagues, so we should be close.”

Jin Sunmi smiled brightly at the other colleagues.

She looked completely different from before, when she kept her distance.

Yoo-hyun soon laughed at Gong Hyunjun’s sparkling eyes.

He felt the cute feeling of fresh love.

The atmosphere of the drinking party became more lively when the only female colleague among the classmates appeared.

“Come on, we’re all connected by fate, so let’s have a drink together.”

Especially Gong Hyunjun, who had been silent, led the mood and raised it.

But Jin Sunmi’s eyes were always on Yoo-hyun.

“Yoo-hyun oppa, by any chance…”

Jin Sunmi’s words made Seo Changwoo ask in surprise.

“Huh? The one who beat up those bastards was Yoo-hyun?”

“That’s right. Right, Yoo-hyun oppa?”

“It’s just a rumor.”

“That’s not all. There was something else…”

Jin Sunmi pretended to hear Yoo-hyun’s answer and continued to spill out stories.

The story of helping the cleaning lady, the story of gaining the trust of Jo Chanyoung, the executive director, the story of making Go Jaeyoon, the team leader, eat shit, and various stories that happened in the Innovation Center.

He wondered where she had heard such things.

More than that, why was she suddenly telling these stories?

He tried to cut it off politely, but Jin Sunmi didn’t stop.

“Also…”

“Really? That happened too?”

The stories were mixed with various seasonings, and even Kwon Sejung, who often talked with Yoo-hyun, was curious.

How much more would the other new employees be?

It was as if Yoo-hyun was the protagonist of this meeting.

Everyone’s attention was focused on him.

“Come on, this time…”

Yoo-hyun tried to sort out the mood at this point.

Jin Sunmi, who was watching Yoo-hyun’s mood, suddenly jumped in.

“But do you really not have a girlfriend?”

“No. And I don’t plan to meet anyone else for a while.”

“Why? Do you have a preference…”

Jin Sunmi made an awkward expression and blinked her eyes.

Yoo-hyun was absurd.

He needed to end this clearly.

“It’s not that. I have someone I like. Of course, she’s a ‘woman’.”

“Then why don’t you meet her?”

“It’s not the right time. Let’s stop talking about love.”

Yoo-hyun stretched out his palm in front of Jin Sunmi and looked at Seo Changwoo.

He knew better than anyone else that he had to correct the conversation that was too one-sided as the leader of this meeting.

But Seo Changwoo went one step further instead.

“Why hesitate? If you feel that way, you should try it as soon as possible.”

“That’s right. A brave man wins a beauty.”

They were not people who had never experienced love before?

Yoo-hyun was absurd.

Jin Sunmi added another spoonful and stopped Yoo-hyun.

“No. There might be someone better around you.”

She even showed anxiety on her face.

She seemed determined to find out no matter what.

‘Why is she doing this?’

Jin Sunmi did not back down even when she received Yoo-hyun’s puzzled look.

The reason why she attended the colleagues meeting?

It was to find out more about Yoo-hyun.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t have wanted to hang out with them.

-Sunmi, you said it was a colleagues meeting? Is Yoo-hyun coming there too? You’re so lucky.

Jin Sunmi recalled the words of Lee Aerin, who was in charge of the female employee meeting.

The female employee meeting looked easy on the outside, but it was not.

It was a place where only people with status could survive.

If you survive, you will be connected to a huge network.

Every quarter, the female executives of the company gathered for the meeting.

Moreover, the president and the business director did not spare their support for the female employee meeting.

The recent hot issue of the female employee meeting was Yoo-hyun’s story.

Jin Sunmi needed Yoo-hyun’s information to establish her position.

The kind of information that only close people could know.

That’s why Yoo-hyun was on her radar.

“Do you want me to introduce you to someone?”

“No. I’ll meet her later.”

“When? Just be brave now.”

He was cornered more and more.

“I can’t meet her right now.”

“No, why?”

“Why?”

“…”

Everyone was determined to interrogate Yoo-hyun.

‘What is this?’

Yoo-hyun smiled bitterly in front of everyone’s eyes.

It was a rare embarrassment for Yoo-hyun, who had always been relaxed even when negotiating with the CEOs of the world’s best companies.

Ssssssssssss.

Kwon Sejung, who was next to the bathroom sink, burst into laughter.

“Puhaha, Yoo-hyun, I’ve never seen you flustered before.”

“Haa, why is Sunmi like that?”

“She seems to be interested in you, isn’t she?”

“No way.”

Yoo-hyun drew a line, but Kwon Sejung was persistent.

“But why don’t you have a girlfriend at your level? Because of work?”

“No.”

He came back to avoid that.

Kwon Sejung, who didn’t know Yoo-hyun’s mind, tilted his head.

“Well, you don’t seem like the type to cling to work. What is it then? Everyone is curious because of that.”

“I told you. I have someone I like.”

“The one you saw during the new employee training? Jeong Dabin? There was a rumor that she liked you.”

Kwon Sejung went too far and Yoo-hyun frowned.

“No, man.”

“Then who?”

“There’s a reason for that. You’ll find out soon.”

It was a situation he couldn’t answer.

He would be lucky if he didn’t get treated like a crazy person if he said it.

Yoo-hyun, who finished the colleagues meeting, sat on a bench in front of his house park.

The faint drunkenness felt good at night.

He could see the stars in the sky as well.

“It’s hard to see stars these days…”

-You look lonely when you chase stars that you can’t even see, sir.

He suddenly remembered the words he heard 10 years ago.

She was the woman who made him feel love for the first time.

She was also an attractive woman who made Yoo-hyun stop for a moment, who only looked at success and ran forward.

He liked her boldness.

He also liked her devotion.

Even now, looking back, he had never loved anyone more than her.

-You can’t cancel your trip now. You won’t be able to book again. Do you know how hard it was to match the schedule…

-Let’s go next time. It’s a very important project right now.

-It’s your mother’s anniversary. Don’t you have to go down?

-You know I have an important business trip. Let’s go next time.

-I think it’s time for us to have a baby. I…

-The boss called. I’m busy right now, let’s talk later.

Next time, next time, next time…

His wife was always second to his work.

But she never complained or grumbled.

She rather encouraged him and waited for him.

Yoo-hyun always took from her.

At some point, he thought it was okay to do so.

-Can we talk? She’s not only my mother, but also your mother-in-law. This might be the last time.

-Don’t you know how crazy I am right now? Just handle it yourself.

He spat out cruel and cold words to his wife who was suffering and in pain.

He saw his wife’s cold eyes for the first time and they came back to him in the evening breeze.

His heart ached.

Why couldn’t he understand her then?

Why couldn’t he treat her well when he said he loved her?

There were many reasons, but in the end, the responsibility was on Yoo-hyun.

It was a fact that he became sure of as he saw the changes around him due to his own change.

-I’ll make you happy when we get married.

It was a promise that wouldn’t have broken if Yoo-hyun had done well, or at least kept the minimum decency.

But there was no way he could see around him when he was drunk with success.

“I think I can really do it now.”

He muttered into the air and it spread out.

In the near future, he would naturally meet her.

Then?

He wanted to keep the promise he couldn’t keep.

No, he wanted to treat her better than that.

That’s what gave meaning to his life again.

Gulp.

He must have been quite drunk.

He spent a rather sentimental time sitting on a bench alone.

Ding.

The elevator door opened and people came in.

The man who was riding in front of Yoo-hyun hit the shoulder of another man who came in and said.

“Kim, how are you doing these days?”

It was a greeting of pleasure that he asked.

It was also part of the greeting that he spat out habitually.

Yoo-hyun smiled as he watched them.

The next answer was predictable.

The question ‘Are you okay? You’re doing great.’ would not be answered by most employees.

“Ouch, sir. I’m dying.”

As expected, the man made a miserable face and answered.

This was also part of the greeting that he spat out habitually.

I’m so busy I’m dying. I’m so tired I’m dying. I’m so exhausted I’m dying, etc.

There were many reasons to die, but the feeling was similar.

Was it only these people?

It was when Yoo-hyun arrived at his seat.

He saw a man who looked much more miserable than the one he met in the elevator.

It was Park Seungwoo, the assistant manager who sat next to him.

“Yes. Yes. Ha… Again? This time it’s a circuit issue? Yes. Yes. I’ll go. I’ll check and get back to you.”

Park Seungwoo, who hung up the phone frantically, sighed deeply.

His face turned pale yellow as if he was stressed out to the extreme.

It was because of the continuous PDA panel development issue.

He wasn’t an engineer who made it himself.

But as a product planner who bridged development and sales, he had no choice but to be stressed out.

If he didn’t respond quickly, he could really miss the PDA launch deadline because of Hansung Electronics.

The pressure from the parts company was no joke.

But what could he do about it right now?

Taking a break is also a way to deal with it.

Yoo-hyun made a gesture of drinking coffee with his hand and Park Seungwoo nodded weakly.

“Yeah. Let’s go get some fresh air.”

“I’ll buy this time.”

Yoo-hyun shouted cheerfully.