A child who looks like me

When one problem was solved, Ji-heon felt a little lighter.

Tuesday afternoon. After completing a task, Ji-heon was on his way to his office when he glanced toward the production team.

The seats of Production Team 2 were all empty.

With a little spare time, Ji-heon decided to find the meeting room where the liquor advertisement production meeting was being held.

From outside the room, he could hear the voices of two people.

“Team Leader, I’ve noticed you never put down your notebook. Do you record everything in your daily life?”

“No, there’s not much worth writing. I just keep thinking about things.”

“Team Leader, you’re the best copywriter I’ve met. I admit it, I admit it.”

“Ki-hoon, you always say that every time I do something.”

“You really deserve all the praise.”

It was the voices of Song Ki-hoon and Lee Jeong-o.

When he opened the door and entered, he saw the two of them sitting side by side at the back of the meeting room.

Ki-hoon, who had stopped talking, greeted him energetically.

“Good afternoon, Director.”

Jeong-o only nodded in return.

“When does the meeting start?”

“In 10 minutes.”

“Ki-hoon, please print the meeting notes from last week.”

“Yes.”

Ki-hoon stood up and left the room.

Now, only Ji-heon and Jeong-o were left in the meeting room. An uncomfortable silence fell.

The woman who had been so lively and chatting with Ki-hoon was now sitting in front of Ji-heon, keeping her lips tightly shut, making Ji-heon feel uneasy.

Her name was Ye-na, wasn’t it?

The way she lowered her gaze reminded him of the smart child from yesterday.

She had said her father was gone.

For the first time, Ji-heon thought deeply about a situation he couldn’t empathize with.

He wanted to do something for her, but he wasn’t sure what.

But if there was even a slight issue, he might as well take advantage of it.

He didn’t want to be her father, but if that was the only connection, what did it matter?

Ji-heon spoke quietly.

“If you miss your father, you can come.”

“Pardon?”

“You said I resemble your father. If I’m okay with it, you can come and see me.”

“Director, you?”

Jeong-o narrowed her eyebrows sharply and asked again.

“Director’s face?”

Is he crazy?

This situation is awkward enough already, why would I go see you?

“Don’t you like it? I said it out of concern for you.”

But this man was serious. He seemed fixated on the word “father.”

Anyway, he had to figure out his inner circle, so perhaps his suggestion would help.

“Thank you for saying that.”

With a lukewarm thank you, Ji-heon’s lips stretched into a barely visible smile.

After that, he left the meeting room.

A little while later, Ki-hoon returned to the meeting room and noticed that Jeong-o was alone. He asked.

“Where’s the Director?”

“He left.”

“He asked for the meeting notes to be printed, though?”

“Yes.”

Ki-hoon sat back down with a disappointed expression.

Soon, the rest of the team gathered in the meeting room. Somehow, Jeong-o ended up sitting across from Eun-bi. When their eyes met, Eun-bi flashed a formal smile.

The meeting started with an overview from AE.

“The client has set the target audience and concept, so we were able to place the production request right away last week. Did you all review the additional product specs and competitor analysis materials? Today, I’d like us to share ideas, and once we agree, we’ll have the planning team work on the proposal.”

As is often the case, starting was the hardest part. None of the team members wanted to be the first to speak, so they all looked around nervously.

At that moment, the door opened, and Ji-heon re-entered the meeting room.

Although the room was spacious with plenty of empty seats, Ji-heon didn’t sit at the front. Instead, he chose a seat in the back, next to Jeong-o, directly in front of Eun-bi.

Jeong-o tensed, shrinking her shoulders, but Eun-bi smiled softly when she faced Ji-heon.

“Shall I go first?”

Eun-bi, feeling energized, raised her hand to speak first.

“People in their 20s and 30s are physically at their peak, but mentally they are very worn out.”

Ji-heon seemed oddly distracted. As he listened to Eun-bi’s presentation, he fidgeted, moving his legs and accidentally brushing his knee against Jeong-o’s. When Jeong-o moved her chair slightly, he bumped his pen.

His distracted behavior was almost magical. None of the other team members seemed to notice; only Jeong-o kept being bothered by it.

“There are many things I want to do, but I have to do what others tell me first. I get crushed at work, and even on my way home on the subway, I get pushed around. I see couples in the park, and they look so happy, I envy them…”

Thunk.

Finally, Ji-heon dropped the pen he had been holding.

Eun-bi’s gaze briefly lingered on Ji-heon.

The pen rolled under the table, close to Jeong-o’s seat.

The man who had been so fidgety grew quiet after dropping the pen. Jeong-o was stunned.

This guy… He dropped it on purpose, hoping I would pick it up.

“…So, this is the kind of youth that comes home exhausted and reaches for the beer in the fridge before food. After taking a sip, they think, ‘Ah, this is why I work.’ That’s the feeling we want to evoke.”

Resigned, Jeong-o leaned down and reached for the pen.

But at that moment, a large shadow loomed and covered her hand.

“Ah!”

It seemed like they both reached for the same thing, but the heat from the hand that covered hers startled Jeong-o, and she quickly pulled her hand back.

Ji-heon, with a neutral expression, looked at her and picked up the pen from the floor.

Jeong-o returned to her seat.

‘He probably didn’t do that on purpose.’

Eun-bi was sitting right there.

Thump-thump-thump-thump…

Her heart was racing. She was nervous, afraid someone might hear it.

It wasn’t excitement.

She didn’t want this to happen, but it felt like she had done something wrong.

Meanwhile, the man who had caused all this commotion sat shamelessly without a change in his expression.

Jeong-o also struggled to focus on the meeting again.

“I thought of two main copy ideas: ‘Solo needs beer’ and ‘This is the taste of youth.’ The key theme is healing. That’s all.”

Several members from Production Team 1 clapped at Eun-bi’s suggestion. Eun-bi smiled satisfactorily.

Miran was the first to give her feedback.

“Good, but it feels a bit cliché. The idea that youth is tough has been overdone in a lot of content already. Also, since Manager Choi’s direction is healing, it feels a little too tranquil.”

Eun-bi’s smile faded slightly at Miran’s comment. Yeong-hwa also added her opinion.

“Actually, there’s a visual problem. Most beer commercials feature young people in crowded, lively pubs, with models enjoying beer and shouting ‘Ah!’ Is it really a good idea to break this mold? Isn’t it risky?”

Next, Jeong-o raised her hand. It was her turn to speak.

“**I’ll never let you go**”

With one problem solved, Jiheon felt a little lighter.

It was Tuesday afternoon. After wrapping up an event, Jiheon was on his way to his office and casually glanced over at the production team.

The seats in Production Team 2 were all empty.

With a bit of free time, he decided to find the meeting room where the liquor ad production meeting was being held.

Voices could be heard from outside the door.

“Is it true that you never put your notebook down? Do you write everything down?”

“No, not everything. There’s just not much worth writing. I just keep thinking about it.”

“You’re the best copywriter I’ve ever met. I mean it, I really do.”

“You always say that whenever I do something.”

“You’re full of things to praise.”

It was the voices of Song Gihoon, a junior, and Lee Jeongoh.

When he opened the door and entered, he saw the two of them sitting next to each other at the far end of the room.

Gihoon stopped talking and greeted Jiheon energetically.

“Good afternoon, sir.”

Jeongoh simply nodded her head.

“When does the meeting start?”

“It’s in 10 minutes.”

“Gihoon, could you print out last week’s meeting minutes for me?”

“Sure.”

Gihoon stood up and left the room to print out the documents.

With only Jiheon and Jeongoh left in the meeting room, a tense silence fell.

While Jiheon had a lively conversation with Gihoon, Jeongoh remained silent, her lips tightly pressed together in front of him.

He thought about Yeona, was it? The image of her looking down reminded him of the smart girl from yesterday.

She had said she didn’t have a father.

For the first time, Jiheon thought long and hard about something he couldn’t quite empathize with.

He wanted to do something for her, but he didn’t know what that would be.

However, if there was even the slightest opportunity to use something, he thought he should make use of it.

He didn’t want to become Jeongoh’s father, but if that was the only connection they had, he figured it didn’t matter.

Jiheon spoke quietly.

“If you miss your dad, you can come see me.”

“What?”

“You said I looked like your father. If you’re okay with it, you can come and see me.”

“You mean, you?”

Jeongoh narrowed her eyes, asking again.

“Me? My face?”

Am I out of my mind?

Why would I want to see you?

“It’s just a suggestion. I was speaking with good intentions, you know.”

But Jiheon was serious. It seemed like the word “father” had caught her attention.

Either way, he thought it might be helpful to get a sense of her connections.

She gave a lukewarm thank-you.

A smile barely crept onto his lips before he left the meeting room.

Soon after, Gihoon came back to the room and noticed that Jeongoh was alone.

“Where’s the boss?”

“He left.”

“Didn’t he ask you to print the meeting minutes?”

“Yeah.”

Gihoon made a disappointed expression and returned to his seat.

Before long, the rest of the team gathered for the meeting. By chance, Jeongoh ended up sitting across from Eunbi. When their eyes met, Eunbi gave her a formal smile.

The meeting started with a general explanation from the AE.

“The client has already set the target and concept for the ad, so we requested production last week. Have you all reviewed the additional product specs and competitor analysis materials I sent? Today, we hope to share ideas, and once we agree on some, we’ll have the planning team finalize the proposal.”

As is often the case, the beginning of everything was hard. No one wanted to speak first, and everyone was watching each other carefully.

Then, the door opened, and Jiheon re-entered the room.

Despite the spacious room, with plenty of empty seats, Jiheon chose not to sit in the front but instead walked to the back, sitting right next to Jeongoh, which also happened to be in front of Eunbi.

Jeongoh looked tense, her shoulders slumped, while Eunbi smiled softly as she met Jiheon’s gaze.

“Shall I start?”

Feeling energized, Eunbi raised her hand first.

“People in their 20s and 30s, their bodies are strong, but mentally, they’re exhausted. They have so much to do, yet they feel drained.”

Jiheon seemed unusually distracted. While listening to Eunbi’s presentation, he fidgeted, moving his legs and accidentally nudging Jeongoh’s knee. When Jeongoh moved her chair slightly, his pen rattled on the table.

This distracted demeanor had a strange charm to it. No one seemed to notice except Jeongoh, who kept looking at him.

“People want to do a lot, but they’re forced to do what others tell them to. They get crushed at work, and on the subway ride home, they’re pushed and shoved. They see couples at the park and feel envious because they seem so perfect…”

Thud.

Finally, Jiheon dropped the pen he had been holding.

Eunbi briefly glanced toward Jiheon.

The pen had rolled to the floor, near Jeongoh’s seat.

The man who had been so distracted suddenly became eerily still after dropping the pen. Jeongoh, utterly frustrated, thought, *He did that on purpose. He wants me to pick it up.*

“…And so, after a long day, they come home and the first thing they reach for isn’t food, but a beer from the fridge. They take a sip and think, ‘Ah, this is why I work,’ feeling that sense of relief.”

Thud.

Giving up, Jeongoh reached down to pick up the pen.

At that moment, a large shadow loomed over her, covering her hand.

*Gasp!*

They had both reached for the pen at the same time, but Jeongoh was startled by the warmth of Jiheon’s hand as it covered hers.

Jiheon picked up the pen without a change in his expression and silently returned to his seat.

Jeongoh, too, returned to hers.

*I hope that wasn’t on purpose.*

Her heart was pounding.

She couldn’t quite decide whether this was excitement or just a strange feeling.

Jiheon, on the other hand, remained unaffected, casually sitting down, while Jeongoh struggled to focus again on the meeting.

“Here are two ideas I’ve been thinking about: ‘Solos need beer’ and ‘This taste is youth.’ The keyword is healing. That’s all.”

Some members of Production Team 1 clapped. Eunbi smiled with satisfaction.

Miran was the first to speak up.

“Sounds good, but I think it’s a bit too common. The idea that youth is struggling has been done in so many ads. Also, healing as a keyword seems a bit too calm for a beer ad.”

Eunbi’s smile wavered slightly at Miran’s critique. Yeonghwa added his thoughts.

“Visually, there’s an issue too. Most beer ads show crowded, noisy pubs with people drinking and models loudly enjoying their drinks. Should we really break that mold? Isn’t that a risky move?”

Next, Jeongoh raised her hand. It was her turn.

**Phew.**

“What’s going on? You can tell me. Just between us.”

“Haa…”

“It’s okay. Go ahead, tell me.”

Eunbi reluctantly started speaking.

“…But you have to keep it a secret. This is confidential, understand?”

“Of course! I won’t tell anyone.”

Assistant Manager Jo eagerly agreed to be involved.

Eunbi lowered her voice.

“It’s about Assistant Manager Lee Jeongoh from Team 2.”

“The new copywriter? Why? What happened?”

“She’s actually my high school classmate.”

“Oh, really? But you two use formal language with each other.”

“She told me not to acknowledge her at work. I guess it makes her uncomfortable. But I don’t feel good about it either.”

“Aha, that’s what the vibe was! I noticed Jeongoh was surprisingly tough, especially with you. I could feel it too.”

“Exactly. It’s hard for others not to notice.”

“…”

“Actually, I know Jeongoh’s mom.”

“Really? Are you close with her family?”

“No, not really. But her mom used to work at our high school cafeteria. There was some incident back then, and she quit after that.”

“What happened?”

“I think she was caught stealing food from the school.”

“Oh my gosh!”

Jo made a loud exclamation, and Eunbi couldn’t help but smile inside.

“She comes from a pretty tough background. That’s why I tried to help her out. But as we got closer…”

“What happened?”

“You know the type, right? The kind of people who always want what others have and try to imitate them?”

“Yeah, I know! I had a classmate in my prep school who was always copying me, and it drove me crazy. I heard recently that she got fired for an affair at work.”

Eunbi knew exactly what Jo was talking about. She had heard this story before, as Jo often brought it up. Jo seemed to talk so much that she didn’t even remember saying it every time.

“People’s true nature shows early on, you know? She had it in her from the start.”

“That story makes me uneasy. Actually, Jeongoh visits our Jiheon oppa quite often.”

“Why does she go see him?”

“Who knows? She probably has a lot of things to talk about. But it feels a bit awkward.”

Eunbi let out another deep sigh, and Jo placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“Don’t worry, though. Jiheon oppa is different.”

Of course, Jo didn’t really know what Jiheon was like. All she knew was what Eunbi had told her.

“Our manager is the only one he seems to treat differently, right? He’s always cold to the other women. Isn’t that right? Did you hear what he said today? ‘I’ll keep her close. I’ll never let her go.’ I almost shouted. I’ve never seen him act like that before.”

When Jo brought up what happened in the meeting, Eunbi felt a little uncomfortable.

At that moment, Jiheon wasn’t looking at her. He was looking at Jeongoh.

But she couldn’t tell Jo that.

“…Well, yes. Jiheon oppa is different, but…”

“Don’t worry. I’ll be keeping an eye on things, Manager. If I see anything suspicious, that assistant manager will be finished in this industry.”

Jo clenched her fist, fired up with determination.

“Jiheon is totally yours, Manager Cha Eunbi.”

Thanks to Jo’s words, Eunbi felt her spirits lift again, and she managed a smile.

Now, there was one more person keeping an eye on Jeongoh.

The two women finished their conversation and left the bathroom to return to their seats.

A little while later, Jo ran over to Eunbi and whispered in her ear.

“Manager, I think Manager Seong Miran was in the bathroom earlier. What should we do?”

Eunbi saw Miran coming out of the bathroom and heading back to her seat.

“Assistant Manager Jeongoh is going to be in trouble. Manager Seong’s husband had an affair with a colleague, and they got divorced.”

“Yeah, what should we do…”

Eunbi trailed off, her voice tinged with concern, though it didn’t reflect her true feelings.

She was well aware of Seong Miran’s past through rumors.

It felt like she had killed two birds with one stone.

Of course, that stone could end up killing the frog too.