First Reunion in Years

“Director will arrive in 10 minutes.”

Upon Secretary Oh’s call, Jaekyung closed the book she had been reading and stood up abruptly.

A brief silence followed, and the ticking of the clock echoed loudly through the spacious living room.

Had it always sounded this loud?

“Haa…”

Fortunately, the housekeeper came daily to clean the house, so the home itself was tidy.

When she first entered the house, it was so vast that she had wanted to run away.

Although all necessary furniture was provided and it was even better than her family home, Jaekyung felt like she was in a prison.

The chilly air added to the loneliness, and she thought she might go insane if she spent even a day here.

She stepped back at first, but eventually, she could not retreat any further and entered the house.

Luckily, humans are creatures of adaptation.

The first day was strange, but by the second, she grew accustomed and began exploring.

The mansion had a basement and three above-ground floors.

The third floor had exercise equipment, various rooms for physical care, a sauna, and a hot spring room.

The second floor had a library-like study, a dressing room, and guest rooms comparable to a five-star hotel.

The first floor had a master bedroom, a small dressing room, a kitchen, and a spacious living room.

The basement contained a theater room.

Though large, the interior was far more modern and tidy than the outdated style of the Rewang Group headquarters.

Modern furniture and electronics showed that some care had been taken with this house.

But that was all.

Jaekyung did not touch anything else.

It didn’t feel like hers, and she found it strange to handle.

The only exception was books in the study.

Cooking was done by the housekeeper, so she had no reason to use the kitchen.

She didn’t watch TV, so she rarely turned it on.

Even the theater room was unusable, as no one could teach her how to operate it.

As a result, she spent seven days indoors, reading.

During that time, she received only one call from her mother.

There had been no contact from the NI family, except once, which had been creepy.

Feeling restless, she went to inspect the garden, only to receive a call from the security team.

They told her to return to the house immediately.

It wasn’t like there was an assassination threat, but being ordered inside by the security team startled her.

Back in the house, she realized she was being monitored.

Whether there were cameras inside, she didn’t know, but CCTV in the garden and nearby areas were both for safety and surveillance.

That night, Director Ji called to scold her again.

It was truly a dreadful time.

“Ah, the director is finally here.”

The housekeeper approached Jaekyung, drying her hands.

She was her only companion while alone all day.

As the housekeeper had said, the sound of a car came from afar, followed by the doorbell.

The housekeeper hurried to press the door open button.

Jaekyung stood at the entrance.

The footsteps grew louder.

How should she greet him?

“Welcome?” “You’re back?” “Hello?”

What was the proper thing to say?

The doorknob clicked, and the door opened.

A man in a long coat stepped in.

Her partner, whom she hadn’t seen in seven days.

Their eyes met.

Her mouth… wouldn’t move.

No.

She had to greet him.

It was their first greeting.

If she missed it now—

“Y-You… come…?”

Of all possible ways, she said the stiffest and weirdest one.

It sounded more like a subordinate speaking to a superior than a spouse greeting a partner.

She regretted it inwardly but appeared composed outwardly.

Han Taeseok nodded, removed his shoes, and walked inside, brushing past her.

Secretary Oh and other aides followed closely behind.

They kept talking non-stop, apparently reporting on work matters.

“Jaekyung, what should I prepare?”

The housekeeper asked.

“Do we have pear ginger tea?”

The air seemed to fill as he passed.

“Yes, we do.”

“Then, prepare that… no. I’ll do it.”

Jaekyung went to the kitchen, poured pear and ginger syrup into a transparent glass, and waited for the water to boil.

When the water boiled, she poured it into the glass and stirred with a spoon.

She placed it on the tray with the medicines and went to serve him.

But just then, he came out of the room after changing clothes and left for the entrance with Secretary Oh.

Jaekyung watched in surprise, but he said nothing and went out.

“Ah, he seems really busy.”

The housekeeper murmured sympathetically.

Jaekyung released the tray handle and nodded.

“Yes, he seems very busy.”

That was all she could say at the moment.

◆

After a long time, she did laundry and cleaned the house on her day off.

It was a small officetel, so cleaning and laundry weren’t much.

Yet, doing it herself made her realize both the joy and tedium it brought.

Even such small laundry was exhausting, she thought about how hard it must have been for the housekeeper to wash the bedding every week.

Of course, clothes went to dry cleaning, and the house had a washing machine and dryer for bedding, so the housekeeper didn’t have to move much.

Still…

“Ugh, done.”

She swept and wiped the floor.

She shook out and hung the laundry, then sat on the bed, tapping her back and looking outside.

The sky was blue.

What a nice day.

She should go out.

Without hesitation, she stood up.

She wanted to read.

There were probably many new books out, and she also wanted to buy a laptop at the department store.

She didn’t watch TV, but she needed a laptop to check the stock market.

She couldn’t touch her Rewang Group shares, but she was curious about the small company stocks she had bought as a small investment.

Now that life seemed more manageable, she thought of what she wanted to do.

Being in that house, just thinking of what she wanted had been a luxury.

“Hmm?”

While preparing to go out, the phone rang.

Seeing the caller, she happily answered without hesitation.

“Hello?”

[Ah! Team Leader Park! Hello!]

Hearing a teammate’s voice after five years, Jaekyung smiled broadly.

Her legs went weak, and she felt tears coming.

So this is what it feels like to be happy…

She collapsed back onto the bed.

[It’s Yeongeun! Do you remember me?]

“Of course. Yeongeun, how have you been?”

[We’re all doing well!]

“I’m glad. Sorry I couldn’t contact you all this time.”

[No! Luckily you didn’t change your number, Team Leader. You’re doing well, right? Healthy?]

“Yes, I’m well. Healthy. Ah, instead of talking like this, shall we meet?”

[Really?! Is that okay?]

“Haha, of course.”

[Then, when shall we meet?]

“Is today possible?”

[Today! Absolutely!! Where shall we meet? You tell us the time and place, and we’ll come!]

“We?”

[Ah! All our team members will be together. Is that okay?]

Jaekyung was thrilled.

She could see them again.

In her 33 short years, the time with them had been the best, though they probably wouldn’t believe it.

She had no reason to refuse.

Even if it were a workday, she would have made time to meet them.

She reserved a sushi restaurant near Gangnam Station.

The meeting was at 6 PM, but Jaekyung arrived at 5:30, rented a private room, and waited.

At around 5:50, several footsteps approached, and her heart pounded.

Could a heart beat this fast? She hadn’t realized her heart was moving.

As the sliding door opened, Jaekyung jumped up.

Two women, two men—familiar, longed-for, and missed—made eye contact and smiled warmly.

“Team Leader!”

It looked like a reunion of a separated family.

Everyone hugged and cheered.

Five years.

Five years since she had met people who accepted her for who she was.

“Okay, enough greetings. Let’s sit and talk.”

“Yes!”

Jaekyung quickly had them sit and ordered the most expensive course at the sushi restaurant.

They looked pale at the prices, but she told them not to worry.

She wanted them to have the best, most delicious food.

After placing the order, everyone wiped their hands with wet towels and looked at her together.

“Why? Showing your age now?”

Jaekyung joked, smiling, and everyone shook their heads.

“You still look great. Still impressive.”

“Thank you for saying that. You all look the same too. Yeongeun, Haseong, Minji, Haeshin.”

When her eyes met Gwak Haeshin’s, he looked slightly surprised and quickly looked away.

She remembered him crying on his last day at the company.

By chance, through another colleague, she had known his feelings but couldn’t respond.

It was still the same.

Of course, now it might have become his embarrassing past.