After the Rain
Han Bom arrived back at her hotel and immediately took a shower before starting to pack her things. As she squinted at the sunlight stretching across the bed, she let out a quiet sigh.
Maybe… she should’ve said goodbye.
She shook her head, dispelling the absurd thought. Waking someone up just to say goodbye? That was weird. Especially right after spending the entire night tangled up like animals. Even seeing his face now felt awkward. She’d just have to be content with leaving behind a note.
Still…
“Haa. What was I thinking last night…”
She wasn’t the strongest drinker, true, but losing consciousness after only three cans of beer? That wasn’t normal. It must’ve been the fatigue from all the business trip preparations. She’d gotten drunk quickly.
But worse than the drinking—she’d lost her self-control. Her rationality.
With a heavy sigh, Bom collapsed onto the floor mid-way through packing. She was overwhelmed with shame.
It still felt like a dream—spending the night with Jung-hoo.
She’d been stunned when she woke up. Seeing his sleeping face brought back every vivid moment of how desperately she’d clung to him through the night.
She’d felt desperate. Thinking she might never see him again, her feelings had surged out of control. Still, she shouldn’t have crossed that line…
“And to make it worse, I left my wallet behind.”
In her rush to leave, she’d forgotten it on the table. It only had a bit of her personal, exchanged cash—thankfully, the company’s travel expenses were in her usual card wallet, which she had. Those funds needed to be returned to the company anyway.
Bzzz. Bzzz. Bzzz.
The vibration snapped her out of her daze. Pushing her thoughts aside, Bom stood up and glanced over at her phone on the bed.
Team Leader Kim’s name flashed on the screen. Bom remembered texting him an hour ago asking if he was awake. Apparently, he’d just woken up.
“Yes, Team Leader.”
— “Han. You’re up early. I must’ve been really exhausted yesterday—I just woke up.”
Bom glanced at her wristwatch with a puzzled expression.
“Breakfast service is about to end. Do you want to go down now?”
Team Leader Kim was notorious for taking breakfast seriously. According to her seniors—Deputy Manager Yoon So-hee and Assistant Manager Lee Chae-won—he was the type to call at the crack of dawn to make sure no one missed hotel breakfast. As they warned, he hadn’t missed a single breakfast since arriving in New York.
— “Let’s skip breakfast today and just eat something simple at the airport. I walked around so much shopping for my son’s gift yesterday that I just don’t feel like moving.”
She could hear a sleepy yawn from the other end of the line. Bom pressed her lips together, a flicker of disappointment crossing her face. She had rushed back to the hotel without even sleeping, waiting for his schedule—only for this.
“Okay. I’ll look up places to eat near the airport.”
— “Yeah, that sounds good.”
He replied quickly, as if relieved.
“Well then—”
— “Oh, did you see the rain yesterday? I almost didn’t make it back to the hotel. It was pouring like crazy.”
His long-winded story cut her off.
— “You were at the hotel last night, right?”
Bom hesitated, then responded calmly.
“Yes. It was raining hard, so I stayed in my room.”
No need to go into detail about her personal affairs.
She had made it back on time, and her schedule wouldn’t be affected.
— “Alright. Let’s meet in the lobby at noon.”
“Yes, Team Leader.”
After ending the call, Bom let out another sigh. She pushed her lingering thoughts aside and went back to packing.
***
The airport was chaotic.
Even though it was a weekday, the crowd was overwhelming.
“Team Leader, I’ll take the airport bus from here.”
“Okay, Han. See you Monday.”
Bom bowed slightly as he turned toward the parking lot.
“Yes. Thank you for your hard work.”
Watching him disappear, she turned the other way. The breeze outside was unexpectedly chilly.
The airport bus arrived quickly. After joining the line and boarding, her phone buzzed in her crossbody bag. She took it out as soon as she sat down.
[Deputy Manager Yoon So-hee]
Her mentor’s name lit up the screen. She raised the phone to her ear.
“Deputy Manager, it’s me.”
— “Han! You picked up quick. You back in Korea already?”
“Yes, I just got to the airport. I’m on the bus home. Is something wrong?”
— “Ah, well HQ just asked us to submit sales reports for the past two years. So, the manager and I already sorted it by clients. It’s due Monday. Do you have time?”
“Monday?”
Bom sighed quietly. She’d barely set foot back in Korea, and here came the news. It was late Friday, after all.
— “Apparently, the new Division Head is starting next week, and they want to review everything first thing. So all the teams are on high alert.”
That explained the urgency.
“I’ll come into the office over the weekend and finish it.”
— “You must be exhausted from the trip…”
Yoon’s voice softened with concern. Bom’s weekend plans to rest vanished in an instant—but what could she do?
“It’s okay. Thanks for letting me know.”
— “Alright. See you Monday. Sorry you won’t get to rest properly.”
“See you then, Deputy Manager.”
After ending the call, Bom leaned her head against the window with a sigh. Knowing the entire weekend would be sacrificed to work, exhaustion washed over her again.
***
The next day.
Bom stepped off the bus and walked toward the office. If it weren’t for the urgent deadline, she wouldn’t have left her bed for anything.
She looked half-asleep as she entered the office building. A voice called out to her.
“Han. Weren’t you on a business trip until yesterday?”
It was Assistant Manager Kim Sun-jae from Overseas Business Team 2. Bom nodded politely and set her bag down at her desk.
“Yes, but I have something due by Monday.”
“Is it about the new Division Head who’s joining next week?”
She nodded again.
“I figured I wouldn’t have time unless I came in over the weekend.”
Kim gave her a sympathetic look. He pressed down on the corners of his lips to stop them from rising.
He already knew Bom would be working this weekend—Deputy Manager Yoon had told him. That’s why he’d postponed his own work yesterday to come in early today.
“Writing that report’ll take a while, right?”
“Yeah, I think I’ll have to come in again tomorrow.”
“You must be tired. Here, have this.”
He handed her a can of coffee. He wanted to suggest going down to the café in the lobby, but she wasn’t the type to accept easily. Bom was kind and polite—but never let people get too close. So, instead, he brought something low-pressure from the convenience store.
“You should drink it, Assistant Manager. I’m okay…”
“I’ve got mine. Don’t worry—just take it.”
He placed it on her desk. Feeling it would be more awkward to keep refusing, Bom opened it and took a sip.
“Thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”
Finally, Kim’s stiff expression softened into a smile.
“I heard the new Division Head is the Chairman’s grandson. Rumor has it he’s super strict.”
Leaning on the partition, Kim shifted the topic. Bom’s eyes widened slightly as she sipped her coffee.
She’d overheard rumors once. Seong-ho Group’s Chairman Seo Guk-han had a son and a daughter, but the son and his wife had died long ago. That left just one grandson—who the Chairman was said to dote on fiercely.
“They say he made quite a name for himself at Paramount Hotel’s Paris branch. Apparently, he’s the one who planned and launched the ‘Paramount Biz-It’ concept.”
“Isn’t Paramount Biz-It that European-focused hotel line?”
‘Paramount Biz-It’ was a concept designed around European lifestyle patterns. Hotels had opened in cities like Paris, New York, and Singapore. It had grown in popularity and expanded into Asia too.
“You’re really up to speed on our subsidiaries.”
“I only heard it from others, really.”
Her modest answer made Kim smile. Her humility only made her more endearing in his eyes.
“Sorry for talking your ear off when you’re here working on the weekend. If you need help, just let me know.”
“Thank you. I appreciate it.”
After Kim returned to his seat, Bom finally got to work. The workload seemed daunting, but if she hurried, it was doable.
Just then, sensing a presence nearby, she turned her head.
