Dongha's car idled quietly near Yoojin's apartment.
He rested his cheek on the hand gripping the steering wheel, eyes fixed on Yoojin, who was fast asleep, curled deeply into the leather seat.
She slept so defenselessly it almost felt unfair. And yet, the sight of her—utterly unguarded in front of him—was enough to drive him insane.
His gaze traced her face slowly.
The corner of her eyes where his lips had touched.Her lips—soft and warm under his mouth.Her hair, smelling faintly of vanilla… no, more like sweet, warm milk.
Damn it, Yoojin. This is dangerous.
The heat he had been suppressing all day flickered back to life.
Ever since last night's kiss, every idle moment was a losing battle against the memory of her mouth beneath his.
With someone this lovely, of course she'd end up sitting on top of his whole world.
But the thought hit him suddenly—he wasn't the only one who could feel this way.
The system team that jumped at her name.
The coworkers who lingered at cafés hoping to catch a glimpse of her.
Anyone could stare at her like this—sleeping, helpless, irresistible.
The warmth that had been simmering inside him suddenly roared into flames.
A sharp, twisting ache ran through his body as darkness bled into his eyes.
He pressed both hands over his eyelids, almost as if punishing himself.
He couldn't let Yoojin see him like this.
Yet she always dragged him to the edge.
He forced his voice low and gentle.
"Yoojin."
"…Mm?"
Her eyelashes fluttered heavily.
The clock read 1:15 a.m. She had fallen into a deep sleep without meaning to.
Her body trembled faintly—the backlash of taking only shallow naps when she should've been asleep hours ago.
There was a time she could pull all-nighters during exam season without blinking.
Not anymore. The work had been wearing her down.
Shadows pooled under her eyes.
"Sorry… I must've dozed off. When did we get here? Why didn't you wake me?"
She spoke as if scolding him when she was the one who felt guilty.
"It's fine. You've been working late every day. You barely rest. Why wouldn't you be exhausted? Are you hurting anywhere?"
Her throat tightened.
His gentle concern was sweet… and uncomfortable.
She didn't deserve it. That was the problem.
"No, I'm fine. And… I'm sorry. Because of me, you're suffering."
A faint smile tugged at Dongha's lips.
"What suffering?"
"Even giving up ballet… And joining Samho Apparel. You wouldn't have done either if it weren't for me. I feel like I'm dragging you into a hard internship too."
"It's not hard. I like being with you."
He said it lightly, but guilt gnawed at her even more.
"It's already too late today. You don't have to drive me home every night."
"I don't want to stop. Does that make me terrible? Why does it feel so good when you're sorry about me?"
The teasing tone made her finally look at him.
His dimple—the one she'd barely noticed earlier—had deepened, catching the faint streetlight.
She stared without meaning to.
"So move closer to the office. Or I'll move near you."
Her mind snapped back to reality at his playful suggestion.
He was stepping closer—too close.
"No. I already feel like I'm clinging to you. If you move for me… that would be too much."
"Why is that too much? I just want to be near you."
His voice dropped, warm and low.
His hand rose to cup her cheek, and the heat of his palm melted into her skin.
Her breath caught.
Last night, she had been emotionally raw, vulnerable.
Tonight, she knew she shouldn't cross that line again.
She pulled away gently, turning her face into the seat instead.
The warmth beneath his hand vanished.
Dongha's eyes cooled instantly.
He lowered his hand and instead held her fingers lightly.
Yoojin didn't take his hand back.
The stillness terrified him.
What if she left him again?
But if he didn't say it now, he might never get the chance.
"I'll stay by your side—just like this. When you're ready… take me then. I really don't mind waiting."
Her eyes trembled violently.
Silence tangled between them, heavy and thin like thread ready to snap.
A moment later, Yoojin gently slipped her hand from his.
The car door opened.
She stepped out quickly, almost fleeing.
Dongha remained seated long after her silhouette disappeared from view.
*
Wednesday Morning
Yoojin and Dongha sat with Assistant Manager Oh to handle—no, sort out—the order issues.
Misaligned data, missing updates, conflicting numbers—problems surfaced one after another.
They had to rebuild everything from a proper baseline.
"The final shipped yardage is what the orders were based on."
"We adjusted quantities according to the shipped amounts too. You should've told us your numbers came from shipment data."
It turned out Oh had revised the orders by referencing excess shipments, while Yoojin had issued purchase orders excluding that excess.
If they hadn't compared notes today, the final shipment would have fallen drastically short.
Yoojin scolded him sharply.
Dongha sat beside her, jaw locked, eyes cold.
They had thought the meeting would take only a few hours.
But more missing data surfaced.
Assistant Manager Oh left with the整理 sheet they created, only to disappear for an entire day.
Yoojin grew increasingly anxious.
Time was ticking.
Was she really supposed to just sit and wait?Was this how corporate work usually went?Was she supposed to get used to this?
Her thoughts spun endlessly.
Everything felt suffocating—her desk, the office walls, the people watching her, even Dongha sitting behind her.
She felt useless.Trapped.Crushed by expectations she couldn't meet.
*
Wednesday, 9 p.m.
Yoojin stared at the monitor, typing another email to the fabric mill.
Dongha had already handled the color confirmations, so the workflow was smooth—for now.
Her face had lost every trace of life.
"Yoojin."
Assistant Manager Oh approached.
She stopped typing quickly.
His complexion had darkened—stress etched into every line of his face.
Across from her, Sunyoung and Jinhook exchanged mocking smirks, lifting one corner of their mouths.
Yoojin was tired too… but seeing his exhausted expression stirred unexpected sympathy.
After two days working closely with him, the hostility she'd held earlier had faded.
He was just trapped in a bad-margin buyer account—a miserable fate she and Dongha had accidentally fallen into with him.
"Yes, sir."
He held out a stack of papers proudly.
"I brought the revised purchase orders."
Fifteen sheets were laid out again.
He had canceled everything they issued last week the moment their
Tuesday meeting ended.
The vendors were furious, of course, but there was no choice.
It was the only way to prevent a bigger collapse later.