The world outside the rain-streaked windows of the LX tower remained unchanged. The city pulsed with its indifferent rhythm, the board awaited its reports, the markets digested their data. But for Ha-ru and Jin-woo, everything was different. They had crossed a threshold into a hidden, parallel universe that existed in glances held a second too long, in fingers brushing as they exchanged tablets, in the silent, electric space between their bodies in a crowded elevator.
They were cautious, paranoid even. The power imbalance hadn't vanished; it had simply been vaulted over by mutual consent. But its shadow loomed, a reminder of the potential cost. Their relationship became a secret garden they tended in stolen moments.
