When work hours were over Ha Eun groaned. She was tired from the day before and the day before that one. All she wanted was to go to sleep, but she remembered she promised Chang Wook to get some drinks with his secretary. What man ever does that?
She picked up her stuff and headed for the door. When she opened it, she saw a girl about to knock on the door. The first thing Ha Eun thought was "pretty."
"Can I help you?" Ha Eun asked her. The girl seemed to panic a little, and her face has become slightly red. What Ha Eun thought when she saw this girl panic was "cute."
The girl suddenly bowed and said, "My name is Hong Joo; I am here to accompany you for a drink."
Ha Eun was surprised at how pretty Chang Wook's secretary was. "Why are secretaries always pretty?" Ha Eun wondered. She noticed how the girl was shaking "Do I make you nervous?" Ha Eun asked her.
Hong Joo looked back up at her, and she had a massive smile on her face "No, ma'am, I'm just really excited to meet you finally. I'm…I'm a big fan."
What Hong Joo said made Ha Eun chuckle. She isn't a celebrity; she's just the CEO of a big corporation.
"I just might like you," Ha Eun told her. Hong Joo's eyes widened, and she gave her a wide smile.
"Thank you!" Hong Joo said.
"What are some good bars around here?" Ha Eun asked her. Hong Joo recommended one quickly, and that's where the two decided to go.
The atmosphere around the two of them was awkward. They just met a few minutes ago, and one of them was the boss while the other was an employee who is a fan of her boss.
"So, tell me your story," Ha Eun told Hong Joo.
"I started working at the company a few months ago as an intern..." Hong Joo started, but Ha Eun raised her hand, stopping her.
"I don't mean your work history," Ha Eun said, "I want to know Hong Joo the person, not the employee."
"Well, I'm not a very interesting person," Hong Joo said, forcing a chuckle. Right now, the conversation with Ha Eun wasn't going well, and she worried that Ha Eun wouldn't want to talk to her again "Why wasn't I born more interesting?" she asked herself.
"Now, I don't believe that. If you managed to grab my little brother's attention, you are interesting." Ha Eun said. Hong Joo's cheeks flushed red. She almost forgot that Ji Seok was Ha Eun's brother.
"How did you meet my brother, anyway?" Ha Eun asked her.
Hong Joo went on to explain how she met him, when he came to Chang Wok's office and then later that day he helped her get a purse snatcher and how the spent most of the night in the police station.
Ha Eun laughed. She never imagined Ji Seok running after a purse snatcher and him spending the night with a girl without doing anything perverted.
"Although I don't like the idea of Ji Seok going out with my employees, I do understand why he finds you interesting," Ha Eun said.
Hong Joo looked down as she thought of Ji Seok and her dating. They aren't compatible, and Ha Eun already said that she didn't like the idea. Hong Joo forced a smile and said, "I don't think we'll be seeing each other again, though."
Ha Eun squinted her eyes "What did he do?" she asked Hong Joo.
"It's like you said. Ji Seok and I, it's not a good idea," Hong Joo said. Ha Eun widened her eyes.
"Whoa…wait. Listen. I did say that, but I didn't mean it like that" Ha Eun said "If you're interested in Ji Seok, I won't stop you. We're not living in a drama. I'm just saying that he's an idiot."
Hong Joo laughed, which made Ha Eun laugh as well. They then asked for more beer.
Ha Eun didn't want to bring up her brother again, seeing as she is no expert in relationships. She married a man before dating him after all, and the first guy she ever liked ended up being a psychopath.
They continued to talk, and the awkward atmosphere turned into one of comfort. Maybe it was because they enjoyed each other's company or perhaps it was because they were getting more and more drunk by the minute.
Ha Eun learned that Hong Joo has an older brother and her parents owned a ramen shop. Her family was better off before she was born, but because her father trusted some bad people, they lost everything they had and now lived like regular people.
Ha Eun thought Hong Joo shared a sad event from her family history and wondered whether to share her sad history about not knowing her birth parents and being adopted by Mr. Oh.
"Here's to your family's perseverance in the face of adversity," Ha Eun said, and the two clinked their glasses together.
"Cheers!" Hong Joo said, and they asked for more drinks.
After a while, the two of them had their heads on the table and were munching on fried chicken.
"Have you ever seen a chicken lay an egg?" Ha Eun asked Hong Joo.
"No, but I've seen a chicken lay on top of her eggs" Hong Joo answered, "Hey, what do you think came first, the chicken or the egg?" Hong Joo asked.
"I think that to answer this question; you need to analyze it from a philosophical viewpoint."
"How so?" Hong Joo asked.
"That specific question is the same as asking what the meaning of life is."
"So, what is the meaning of life?"
"I think…" before Ha Eun could answer, she saw the torso of a man standing in front of the two.
"I've never seen two people drink so much that they end up talking about the meaning of life," the person said.
"Hello, stranger," Ha Eun said.
"Wow, you're so drunk you don't even know who your brother is," Ha Eun looked up and saw it was Ji Seok.
"Wow! It's Ji Seok!" Hong Joo said happily, "Look Ha Eun, it's Ji Seok!" Hong Joo reached out to him and squished his face with her hands "He's so cute!"
"What are you doing here?" Ha Eun asked him.
"You called me asking me 'do aliens have the same numerical system we do?' You also went on to explain that 2+2= 4 so it must be the same in an alien planet. Then I asked where you were, and now I'm here. I called Chang Wook so he should be here any minute."
"Really? I don't remember asking you that" Ha Eun said, "But, do you know the answer?"
"I don't, but I stayed in bed a while just thinking about it, and I came to the conclusion that I don't care," Ji Seok said sarcastically. He looked angry and worried.
"You're no fun Ji Seok," Hong Joo said.
"Oh, I am the definition of fun. It's just that right now is not the time to be fun. Do you know how worried I was? Two women being this drunk. Who knows what creepers might take advantage of that?"
"I told you to have a few drinks, not get wasted." Suddenly there was another voice.
"Hong Joo, is that guy looking at me?" Ha Eun asked. Hong Joo looked at Chang Wook and gasped.
"I think he is," Hong Joo answered.
Ji Seok looked at Chang Wook, "Don't worry, she didn't know who I was either."
"He's really handsome, isn't he?" Ha Eun said. Hong Joo nodded. Chang Wook chuckled. She wouldn't dare call him attractive while sober.
"But I find that guy more attractive," Hong Joo said as she pointed at Ji Seok. Ji Seok's cheeks flushed red. He had tried to talk with her earlier, but it didn't end well, he thought she didn't like him at all, but it came as a relief to him that she at least found me visually pleasing.
Ha Eun smiled at Chang Wook and waved, "I'm Ha Eun, what's your name?"
Ji Seok hit Ha Eun on the arm "He's your husband! Chang Wook!"
Ha Eun gasped, and she grabbed Hong Joo's hands, "I have a husband, and he's so attractive!"
"Congratulations!" Hong Joo said, "Bar-man, bring more drinks. My friend just got married!"
Hong Joo yelled so loudly that all the people at the bar heard and started clapping. Ji Seok and Chang Wook felt embarrassed. Chang Wook bowed and apologized; he then grabbed Ha Eun while Ji Seok grabbed Hong Joo.
"I don't want to leave. We have to celebrate my marriage," Ha Eun said. Chang Wook couldn't make her walk, so he grabbed her like a princess, and they walked out the door. The people's clapping got louder, and someone even whistled.
Ji Seok tried to pick Hong Joo up like a princess as well, but the moment he tried to pick her up, but he quickly gave up. He wasn't the strong type. So, he placed her left arm around his shoulders and tried to help her walk.
Outside the bar, Ji Seok was surprised by how Chang Wook wasn't struggling to keep Ha Eun in his arms. It was like he was holding a bag of feathers while Ji Seok was having trouble even keeping Hong Joo on her feet.
"Need a ride?" Chang Wook asked Ji Seok.
"I can take her home," Ji Seok said, "Hong Joo, where do you live?" he asked her.
"In my house," she answered.
"Should I just take her to my place?" Ji Seok asked Chang Wook.
"As long as you don't do anything to her, sure," Chang Wook said.
Ji Seok gasped "What kind of man do you take me for? he asked dramatically.
Ha Eun wrapped her arms around Chang Wook. She looked like she was about to kiss him when she suddenly burped and then barfed on herself, some of the throw up ending up on the side of his face "Excuse me" Ha Eun said, then she closed her eyes. The smell made Chang Wook gag, and he almost dropped her. Ji Seok started to laugh.
"That was so gross!" Ji Seok said. Then just like clockwork Hong Joo barfed as well, ruining Ji Seok's favorite shoes.
Chang Wook laughed, "What were you saying about gross?" Chang Wook said.
Ji Seok mocked Chang Wook's laugh "At least I don't have barf on my face," he said.
Chang Wook smiled "Goodnight," he said, and the two men left to their cars with their female companions.