Jaehyun drank his cold tea as he watched the girl eat her fish sticks with gusto.
"How about you make some room for the actual meal, huh?" He asked as he picked up after his 'Boss', taking the now empty sticks from her hand and chucking them into a nearby trash can.
She smiled at him as she paid the lady vendor for her pre-meal. "I was hungry," she said simply.
He let out a laugh. Years ago, he had been surprised by the amount of food this girl could ingest in one sitting, but after a few years of knowing each other, he kind of grew used to it. Missed her habit at times too.
"You promised me beef, Jaehyun," she reminded him lightheartedly. "I want to drink a little too if you don't mind."
"Yes, I know," he said. "I didn't forget."
He allowed her to cling to his sleeve as she dragged him along the bustling food market in Main City. From time to time, she would stop and buy drinks, food sticks, and other stuff she thought looked tasty enough to eat. Ji-Eun knew her companion didn't like eating ahead of a meal, so she didn't waste her energy asking him if he wanted anything. If he liked something, he would tell her. So, she went along the street happily, minding her own business.
If it was any other situation, he would not allow her employer to go about this way. But taking her situation into consideration, he allowed her to do everything she wanted because he knew that come tomorrow, she would have to go back to being the aloof and collected Boss of her father's business empire.
In that regard, he felt a tinge of sympathy for her. Being rich and all wasn't really a good thing after all, he thought to himself as he watched her stop in front of another food cart. Of course, because the Chung Family had money, she and her father wouldn't have had to worry about what food to eat the next day, where to sleep that night, what the state of their home was, and how they were supposed to pay their bills. But in exchange for all of those, being actual public figures and business people, they had given up their right to privacy. Being the leaders of an empire, both father and daughter had to take on the challenge of taking care of a lot of people, including their employees and their employees' families.
He nodded at her gently when she turned to hand over a small plate of spicy rice cakes. She knew he liked them, so he just accepted her offer gratefully.
"I ordered the not-so-spicy one," she quipped.
He patiently waited for her to finish before he started to walk in the direction of the barbecue place she wanted to visit.
He sighed as he thought to himself that all he could do for his friend was to let her run freely for a few hours on his watch.
"We're here!" He heard an excited cry as they reached their destination.
"Miss!" The old proprietress greeted her warmly as Ji-Eun went over excitedly and clasped her hands. "You came today. This is great!"
A few seconds later, the old lady noticed Jaehyun's presence behind her most precious customer.
"And I see you've brought Secretary Oh too!" She gushed as she ushered them both inside. "Come inside, come inside! It's very cold right now..."
There was a time when the old lady thought that these two were a couple. But when she heard the handsome man speaking to the young girl in a polite and formal way, it had been a work day that day, she deduced she had thought wrong. Soon, she found out from the young man himself that he was but the girl's personal secretary.
"You came at such a good time," the proprietress said as she placed their drinks on the table. "I just made some bone soup. I'll bring it out right now."
Ji-Eun expressed her thanks and picked up the aprons at the side of their table. She raised her arms towards Jaehyun, "Bow down a little. I'm going to put this on you."
Jaehyun saw her gesturing to lower his head a little and he could not help but laugh. The top of her head didn't even reach his shoulders. Could she be more adorable at this moment?
"Still a pint-sized fairy, I see."
She could only click her tongue and wait until he leaned forward so she could secure his apron.
"Well, this pint-sized fairy is going to make sure you pay a lot for dinner tonight," she declared.
"Wait, what?" He did a double take as she took a seat on the floor and began tidying up their utensils.
Soon, their food arrived and they began to eat and drink. Being the older of the two, Jaehyun always made sure that she didn't drink too much as he was sure that she'd end up one in about a dozen different ways. He had seen a number of her drunken alter egos and he wasn't sure he'd be able to do much to help her out tonight because he was tired too.
So, in order to create much distraction over drinking, he began to regale her with stories about his trip overseas. He had been away for three whole weeks, working on her behalf, meeting with investors and contractors in the US, in Hong Kong, and in Japan. He had spent a considerable amount of time meeting each company she had been in contact with over the web. While he was attending preliminary meetings abroad, she had been closing deals and contracts with other international investors. One could say that when Secretary Oh meets with an investor and leaves with a favorable impression, it's already a done deal between them and the Chung Group.
In other words, he was also her right-hand man. That's how much she valued Oh Jaehyun's capability. Ji-Eun had always trusted his work and she had mentioned during a shareholder's meeting once that her 'Secretary's' words are her words. And that to insult him or his work is to insult her as well. She had always been this cool in his eyes.
But right now, looking at her semi-excited pose, he wondered where his cool 'Boss' went off to. He smirked at some of her comments, keeping the conversation light. He knew he just had to keep her from drinking a bit too much, so he left out the important and boring details for tomorrow's report.
"Ji-Eun," he started, clearing his throat and looking at her intently.
"What? You're looking at me weirdly."
He placed a cooked piece of beef on her plate and said casually, "The President called me earlier before I boarded my flight home. He said he thinks you found a match?"
A match? Her brows furrowed as she tried to recall some unknown memory. Oh... that's right. She had her arranged marriage meeting earlier.
"Well..." She said as she prepped her meat. "I did meet with the son of the Song Family."
He thought about it for a moment. The Song Family? The guy who's been appearing in the newspapers recently? "Song Hyun-Shik? The future CEO of Song Corp?" he asked her, passing her the sauce.
"Yeah..."
He waited as she gobbled up her food.
"Remember when I made Song Corp a model for my business plan last time? When I presented the idea to Father, he actually said he liked it and that he knew the former CEO of the company. A week before today, I was made aware that the elders had talked about marriage along with the business proposal." She sighed. "That's how it came about."
"Hmm.." he refilled her glass. "How did it go?"
"If I remember correctly," she started to say. "I asked him earlier if he's willing to marry me."
His eyes grew wide in surprise and the bottle of alcohol slipped from his hands. It hit the table, the fragrant liquid spilling all over their table.
"Oh, for Christ's sake..." he muttered under his breath and Ji-Eun laughed at him. He quickly pulled at his apron, removed it, and placed it over the spill, so it wouldn't get close to their clothes.
"I never knew that the men in my life were all Mother Hens..." she grinned lazily at him. "I mean, you and Father actually gossiped about it. How very out of character, you two!" She laughed again.
"That was not funny," he said. "Wait... Were you being serious?"
"We agreed never to lie to each other," she answered him as she downed her drink.
He was silent as he watched the girl in front of him carefully. His mind was in chaos and he did not understand how he should be feeling at the moment. At this time, he gestured for the proprietress to bring them another bottle of alcohol. He suddenly felt a strong urge to drink.
"Jaehyun?" He heard her call him.
He turned his attention back to the girl. She had said his name so familiarly that he couldn't help but lower his guard.
"Do you think I made the right call?" She asked him, her eyes a bit glazed over as she looked away from him and towards the view outside. "I mean, Father trusted the Song Family and he talked me into the idea too. But... Can I trust a person like him? Would he really help me? Protect me even?"
His heart ached a little as he continued his silence. He wanted so much to tell her that not every person is like her Mother, but he just kept his mouth shut. That's a rabbit hole he didn't want to jump into right now, so he silently pleaded with her to stop asking him.
When he didn't answer, she looked back at him. "I guess... Even you think it's not a good idea."
She took the bottle that was offered by the old lady and poured herself a drink.
"It's really not," he said as he took the bottle away from her. "But you have your Father and I don't think he'll ever sell you out."
She smiled at him ruefully. "But I'm scared."
"I'm right here," he reached over and ruffled her hair. "I will never let anything happen to you. In the same way, your Father will not let anything happen to you. If the President really trusts these people, we'll have to give them the benefit of the doubt."
She sighed and nodded.
"Ji-Eun, if you really are just making a business exchange with your potential husband, then he's bound to understand that he has to do something for you too... Even if it's just for a while, he has to protect you."
"You really are... the most sensible person I've met." She slurred on her words. "If Hyun-Shik can be half as loyal and reliable as you..."
She had been drinking a while, so he calmly understood when she lowered her head on the table. He noticed that her eyes were closed.
So, it's the sleepy drunk alter-ego... He thought as he stood up and moved to her side. He removed his suit jacket and placed it over her head and shoulders, shielding her face from onlookers. As he sat beside her, he could only deduce how much stress she had endured during the time he went abroad.
At the very least, when he was beside her, she always had someone she could show her true self to.
"It must have been terrifying, right?" He rubbed her head. "But I'm proud of you, you know."
At the time, she might have been indifferent and cool, as everyone had been looking at her, expecting something great out of her. It was only at these rare moments that she would say how she really felt. Thinking about his workload tomorrow, Jaehyun decided that he should add looking into this Song Hyun-Shik character. If not to keep her safe... to satisfy his damnable curiosity.