Chapter 08….
A few days later.
By the time the client meeting was over and they returned to the office, lunchtime was nearly over.
Yeonha and Jinyoung stepped into the elevator, each carrying paper bags filled with samples.
“Aigo, my shoulder…”
The moment she got inside, Jinyoung dropped the large paper bag from her shoulder with a thud.
It was stuffed with four wool coats with fur trim and two sheepskin jackets—it was no light weight.
“Pretty heavy, huh.”
“Couldn’t we just have had these sent by courier?”
“You know how the manager is. She hates it when we spend extra on delivery fees.”
Jinyoung grumbled, rubbing her shoulder.
Seeing Jinyoung’s lips pout like a goldfish, Yeonha laughed and comforted her.
“Our manager is fine in every way, except she worries too much about the director’s mood.”
“Probably because sales dropped last month. Let’s just try to understand her.”
“Ugh. Sometimes I think being high up isn’t that great after all. If sales drop, they blame the designers, and if sales rise, the sales team takes all the credit.”
“Still, I think it’s impressive. To be responsible for an entire brand.”
At first, Yeonha had majored in design simply because she liked clothes.
But the day she saw someone actually wearing clothes she had designed, she felt a joy far beyond that.
From then on, Yeonha dreamed of launching her own brand one day.
“Team leader, I think you’d really do well.”
“Don’t flatter me.”
“I mean it! Honestly, the top-selling styles in our design team are all yours.”
Seeing Jinyoung look so proud, as if it were her own achievement, Yeonha replied calmly,
“I was just lucky.”
“How can you call that luck? That’s skill. Even the director rarely interferes with your styles.”
Jin Myunghee, their notoriously difficult manager, had worked at several well-known domestic brands before moving to LS Fashion. She personally scouted Yeonha to launch a new brand called Muse.
Yeonha’s simple yet sophisticated designs quickly caught the attention of celebrities, with items selling out repeatedly and creating a sensation.
In no time, Muse shot up to become the company’s No. 3 brand, greatly boosting Yeonha’s standing.
But every upward trend has its limits.
Manager Jin Myunghee couldn’t escape the impact of the economic downturn, and recently she had been noticeably more irritable.
Though Yeonha rarely clashed with her directly, Jinyoung—still the youngest since Miju had quit—often had to endure sharp looks even for small mistakes.
“How about grilled intestines tonight? My treat—for flattering me.”
“Really? I’d love that!”
Jinyoung instantly lit up with a bright smile.
Her sudden mood swings were so cute and amusing that Yeonha laughed too.
At that moment, the elevator dinged and arrived at the 23rd floor.
Jinyoung picked up her paper bag first and stepped out.
Yeonha was about to follow when Jinyoung suddenly froze in place, making her stumble back.
“Team leader, we have a problem.”
“What is it?”
“Kim Suji has started moving.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Puzzled, Yeonha looked at her. Jinyoung shifted aside slightly, opening a gap in which Yeonha’s eyes fell on Kim Suji from the marketing team—standing in the hallway with Nam Dohyun.
The two were chatting for quite some time, and Suji even giggled, lightly slapping Dohyun’s arm playfully.
What could possibly be so funny?
Yeonha quietly drew in a breath.
Since when did those two get so close?
Her eyes lingered on them, refusing to look away.
“It hasn’t even been that long since she broke up with Manager Park from Sales, and now she’s flirting with Dohyun… She’s shameless.”
Jinyoung spat the words bitterly, but Yeonha, still watching the pair, answered nonchalantly,
“They’ve already broken up. Nothing to feel guilty about.”
Jinyoung lowered her voice and added carefully,
“My friend in HR told me Manager Park was actually engaged to a clerk from General Affairs. But Suji knew that and seduced him anyway, breaking them up.”
“…”
“And then, less than six months later, she dumped him cold. And now she’s chasing after Dohyun—unbelievable.”
Yeonha pressed her lips together silently while Jinyoung continued, getting more worked up.
“Well, Manager Park got what he deserved. He dumped the woman he’d been dating for five years because he wanted the Executive Director’s daughter—Suji—and now he’s been left high and dry. Still, it’s so annoying. She goes around messing with every guy in the company just because she has a pretty face.”
Yeonha half-listened to Jinyoung’s rant, but her gaze remained fixed on Dohyun and Suji.
Dohyun, tall with model-like legs and a strikingly handsome face, and Suji, slender yet cute—they did look good together.
Jinyoung seemed to think so too, though she hated to admit it. She pouted and muttered,
“They suit each other… which makes it even more annoying.”
Yes, it made sense for people of the same age to date each other.
Yeonha repeated it to herself like a mantra, forcing her eyes away from the two of them.
“Let’s go.”
She spoke quietly and turned her steps toward the design office.
Jinyoung followed right behind.
The moment Yeonha turned away, Dohyun—who had been waiting for just that—turned his head.
His gaze clung to her retreating figure until it disappeared completely.
Ever since that awkward farewell at the welcome party, she had been avoiding him outright.
It felt like whatever closeness they had built was reset back to the beginning, and Dohyun tasted bitterness in his mouth.
That night, maybe he should have held back.
He hadn’t said much only because he didn’t want them to fight—he had been upset that she thought of him as some frivolous man.
But she probably believed he was angry. How could he fix this?
Uneasy, Dohyun bit the inside of his cheek.
After all, she was the reason he had joined this company. He couldn’t let the distance between them grow again.
After returning to Korea, Dohyun’s headhunter had arranged three interviews. The first was at LS Fashion.
The vice president, impressed with his resume, immediately offered him the job during the interview. But Dohyun, mindful of the two remaining interviews, asked for more time before deciding.
Barely adjusted to the time difference, he desperately needed coffee to clear his foggy head before his next interview—scheduled in just two hours at Korea Trading.
When the elevator doors opened, instead of heading to the parking lot, he pressed the button for the lobby, where the café was located.
As the numbers ticked down, the elevator stopped on the 20th floor.
The doors opened, and a woman in a white long dress with pleated details stepped in, phone pressed to her ear.
Standing near the doors, she noticed the lobby button lit up and continued her call in a soft voice.
“Sir, that color looked too dull in person. Ivory looks much more luxurious than beige. Yes, that’s why I resent the fabric samples. And instead of the draft I sent yesterday, please check the revised sketch I updated this morning.”
Dohyun’s eyes naturally drifted to her.
Her refined style, along with the content of her call, made it obvious—she was a designer at this company.
The elevator started moving again as she continued speaking.
“Oh, and please switch the gold buttons to the pearl ones I enclosed. Don’t forget to shorten the dress by an inch.”
As she spoke, she casually tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
At that moment, her long, waist-length hair shimmered like a soft wave of silk.
Dohyun suddenly found himself wondering if her hair was truly as silky as it looked.
“Yes, please have it done by next Wednesday. Thank you.”
Ending her call, she gazed straight ahead.
Just once, I wish she’d turn her head.
Because she’d been on the phone when she stepped inside, he hadn’t gotten a clear look at her face.
Still, even from that brief glimpse, he could tell she was remarkably beautiful.
Perhaps sensing his gaze, the woman slightly turned her head.
Just then, the ceiling lights flickered—and with a loud bang, the lights went out. The elevator came to a halt.
In an instant, the elevator was plunged into total darkness.
