Chapter Text
Ji Hyeok shuffles through papers and reports, frantically trying to get a hold of something that would keep her here with him. Away from Seon U. He casts an awkward glance toward the door, pinning Da Rim with desperation barely restrained behind his pleading eyes.
Da Rim’s phone rings and she momentarily takes a look at the responsible choice waiting for her downstairs. Truth be told, she’d always known, if peripherally, that Seon U had caught feelings. Way back in high school she’d seen him staring at her. She’d smelled him on the jam-packed bus when he’d leaned in unbearably close and sheltered her from the throng of bodies. She’d never admit it to him, but she’d known, even when he married Jun’s mom. It would be a lie to say that she’d never felt anything for Seon U, but it had died the moment he walked down that aisle. The moment he laid his lips on his ex-wife.
Ji Hyeok’s gaze catches hers. There is panic. There is fear. There is no reason for panic or fear unless there were other feelings involved.
Da Rim takes a deep breath. There was no time for this kind of cat and mouse game. Not when she was eyeballs deep in debt and her mother’s deteriorating health rest on her shoulders.
“Um, I’m sorry. I think I should go.” She turns around and walks toward the door.
Ji Hyeok grasps her wrist, firm and warm. “Da Rim,” he says. “Don’t.”
It’s a mercy she’s turned around because Da Rim is sure that she would have crumbled if she’d made eye contact. But she must consider her place in life. Her station. It certainly wasn’t elevated enough to stand equal to Yu Ha Yeong.
“Mr. Gong, I’m really sorry but I have plans already.”
“I know,” he says, “but you should stay.” He pulls her towards him. “Please?”
She looks away immediately, casting her gaze downwards.
Ji Hyeok pulls her close, cupping her chin in his palm. “Da Rim, stay with me?”
“I’m… I’m n..not feeling well,” she says haltingly. “I’m sorry, I want to go home.”
“I’ll drive you.”
“That’s okay.”
He cocks his head, trying to catch her eyes.
She pushes him off instead.
Why won’t he listen?
“I’ve to go,” she insists. She turns around and bolts through the door.
Ji Hyeok watches her make a dash for the door and his first impulse is to chase her. Good sense prevails and he watches her retreat into the corridor instead. Irrational fear tells him that he will never see her again. Anxiety rises like dark seawater, choking the life out of his lungs. An ambulance rings somewhere in the distance.
“Get your shit together, Ji Hyeok.” He mumbles to himself.
At the hospital, Da Rim watches her mother sleep peacefully. It has been a long while since she’s seen her mother look so at peace.
The first years after her father passed, her mother had wasted away, despite pasting a smile on her way to work every day. She ate less and less, worked more and more. Da Rim’s lackluster academic background had already been a hurdle, but now with the breadwinner of the house being her mother, had brought reality into sharp relief. There was no time to chase vague dreams, Da Rim had to support her mother. Then Jeong Won broke up with her and told her she had no prospects.
“Da Rim?” Her mother mumbles, opening a sleepy eye.
“Un. It’s me. Go back to sleep.”
“Isn’t it late? Why don’t you go home?”
“I just… I just needed to see you.”
“Hard day at work?”
“You could say that.”
“Do you want to stop?”
Da Rim lets out a dry laugh. “I can’t. We have bills to pay.”
“Don’t worry about me, love.”
“I should say the same to you,” she chides her mother. “You need to get better first.”
“I’ve a strong heart, you know.”
“I know, eomma. I get it from you.”
Her mother sits up and takes her hand into her own. “I know, love. You’re just like me. That’s why I’m telling you that you can stop if you want to.”
Da Rim rests her forehead against her mother’s. She would die for her mother. A potentially nasty love triangle was a walk in the park.
The interview was a hassle, but Da Rim had looked so excited all morning, Ji Hyeok didn’t have the heart to rain on her parade. The interview was a critical part of marketing the park project. She buzzed here and there, like a little worker bee.
Seon U catches Ji Hyeok gazing at Da Rim and throws him a sour look. He smirks. At the very least, Da Rim hadn’t run into Seon U’s arms last night. Wasn’t much, but Ji Hyeok was willing to take small wins for now.
The interviewer peppers them with questions about the project but drifts back to his engagement with Ha Yeong every time she has a question for Ji Hyeok. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees both Da Rim and Seon U watching with immense interest as he answers genially, irritation lacing behind the brown of his eyes.
“Mr. Gong, will you and Ms. Yu be taking over your mother’s work with the park?”
“I’m sorry, why is that relevant to this interview?”
This time, Seon U smirks. The rat.
Da Rim fiddles with her fingers in her lap. Ji Hyeok doesn’t miss her small ticks.
“Well,” the interviewer continues, “the park is critical to this project after all. And since your mother spearheaded the park project in the past, it would be good to know if you plan to continue to foster its growth on a personal level?”
She had a good point. It was actually a pretty good question. Why had he assumed she was trying to trip him up in front of Da Rim?
Get your shit together, Ji Hyeok. Stop thinking about her for a moment and get your shit together.
“Um, yes. That’s true. Well, of course, we would run the project together. Ms. Yu Ha Yeong has excellent taste and she is deeply interested in environmental causes.”
“Great! You two do make an amazing pair,” the interviewer gushes.
He lies through his teeth but he feels Da Rim stiffen and turn away.
This interview is a hassle. These lies are a hassle.
He watches Da Rim from the corner of his eye as she answers questions with an erect back and stiff smile pasted on. He wants to hold her. He just wants to kiss her.