"How are you feeling?" Those were the first words that greeted Ji-Eun the following morning.
"Like death," she answered as she slowly stood up to receive her coffee from her smirking secretary. "What happened last night? I didn't do anything to embarrass you, did I?"
"Uh, no. You were pretty tired, I guess," Jaehyun said. "You mostly slept. So, I brought you back here at The Regal after dinner."
She nodded as she gratefully accepted the canned coffee he offered.
She had woken up that morning to find herself neatly tucked in her bed at The Regal Hotel. On the table beside her bed, there had been a glass of water and a packet of hangover medicine. The stomach-friendly kind too.
She thanked the heavens for Jaehyun's consideration.
After showering, she quickly dressed and checked her work emails for the updates she asked for from her team yesterday. And that's how her overly caring secretary found her, working with a slight headache and a curable hangover.
"I have a call this afternoon with our partners at the Outer Islands," she recalled. "We might have to start discussing the possibility of working with Song Construction soon, so let's put that on today's agenda too."
She spoke as she moved around the room, collecting her laptop, her phone, her pile of reports, and her car keys. She turned to find him rustling around the coat closet, picking one out for her, and handing it over.
"This should look okay," he said as he took her documents and her laptop bag and waited until she put on the black over-the-shoulder coat he had handed over. "It's still cold outside."
"Okay."
Jaehyun also took the car keys from her hand and said, "I'm here, so I'll drive."
Soon enough, after some morning pleasantries with the hotel staff, the two proceeded to where her next meeting was going to happen. As the ever-busy secretary cited important details for the upcoming event while driving, she found herself staring blankly at the report on her hand.
"The meeting today..." She cut him off. "I'm thinking of leaning towards financing rather than a takeover. To say I don't have much experience in this field is a rather curious thing for me to point out."
Jaehyun glanced at her from the rearview mirror.
"The group had expressed they would be following your decision," Jaehyun said.
She smiled. "Of course, they would say that." She looked at Jaehyun. "How is The Little City faring in the market share here and abroad?"
"Well, their revenues and operating income have been dropping slightly over the past year. Their share price has declined at around 38% year to date." He started rattling off. "They took to re-branding after the owner-actress decided to buy most of her partners' shares to save what's left of their finances."
She nodded.
"I guess she wanted to keep everything within her grasp, huh?" She voiced out, her eyes shining in interest. Nevertheless, I will listen to what she wants to say. Ji-Eun thought to herself.
After all, Song Min-Ji was the one who asked for her help. Not President Chung, not the group. The owner-actress had asked for Chung Ji-Eun, the youngest shareholder and the Merger and Acquisitions expert of the Chung Group.
Ji-Eun never considered herself to be an expert in the beauty and cosmetics industry, which is why she felt excited and just a bit apprehensive about this whole meeting. She understood that this business goes hand in hand with the entertainment industry what with all the models, endorsers, and the influencers she would have to face later on. She would never admit it, but she felt like a transfer student about to enter her new high school.
Soon, the two arrived at the company's location. They were given a VIP pass to park their vehicle within the premises, so they had no problems at all.
Ji-Eun let out a breath as she got out of the vehicle and watched as her secretary busied himself with the documents and other things he needed to bring in with them. After making sure they had everything they needed, the two rather impressive-looking people began to walk towards the reception, with Jaehyun naturally falling two steps behind her.
As they were walking through the lobby of the building, they were met with a lot of stares and whispers.
"Whoa... Who are they? Is the Madam hiring new models?"
"Maybe? Who knows... The guy looks so good, right?"
"Is he a model? He looks like an idol or something."
"That girl's eye-catching too, you know. Maybe they're here for the go-see?"
"She's more like an artist than a model. Those clothes looked expensive too."
"Definitely models."
"What new models? Didn't Ms. Bae secure the endorser position already?"
"Yeah... But looked at them though."
Ji-Eun was fighting the urge to laugh at her secretary's sudden sullenness. She could practically feel the wave of energy radiating off of him.
"Secretary Oh," she whispered to him as they stopped in front of the reception desk. "They were just admiring you. No need to be so prickly."
Jaehyun ignored her quip and went up to the desk.
"We have an appointment with Ms. Song Min-Ji," he spoke gently to the receptionist. "Please let her know that Ms. Chung Ji-Eun is here."
"Under what name...?" The girl manning the reception desk stood gawking at her secretary for a good, full minute before finally regaining her senses.
"It should have been made under the Chung Group's name," Jaehyun said patiently. "Ms. Chung Ji-Eun came to answer Ms. Song's invitation."
Lady Chung? The receptionist moved her eyes away from the man's handsome face to the graceful-looking, young girl standing behind him. These people were not applicants for the go-see? Not models or actors? Before her mind could register that these people were the VIPs that the Madam had been waiting for, there was a flurry of action behind her.
"Madam Song!" The receptionist bowed towards the heavily made-up woman hurrying up toward the guests. "It seems like-"
"Lady Chung!" The woman's twinkling notes reached everybody's hungry ears. "You finally came!"
The woman made a perfect 90-degree bow to the young woman in front of everyone, bringing to light the kind of status she holds over The Little City's owner.