Mi Rae's Home, early morning.
Mi Rae's alarm clock rang but Mi Rae's eyes already open. She did not sleep the whole night because she lost her notebook. She did not stop the alarm clock but stared blankly in front of her. After the alarm stopped and rang again for three more times, she moved her hands and switched it off. She got out of her bed, took a shower, wore her work clothes and sat at the sofa in the living room. She looked at the clock but it is not time yet to go to work. She just sat there silently. Usually at this time, she will be at the kitchen preparing her breakfast but she was not doing that as she was not in the mood.
'Ting~' a message came to her phone. Mi Rae ignored the message. 'Ting~' 'Ting~' 'Ting~' her phone rang for another three times indicating of incoming new message. Mi Rae found it weird, so she decided to look at the message. She looked at the notifications and saw an unknown phone number send her an image. She clicked on it and it was the image of her notebook. Her eye wide opened.
"T-T-T-T-This! My Notebook!" said Mi Rae while she stood up from the sofa. She reads another three messages she received from the same unknown number.
The messages read as, "Recognize this?" "If you want this notebook back, come see me at this location, now," and an address.
"My notebook! This address… it's a cafe nearby here," said Mi Rae. She immediately reached her car key and went out of her small apartment. She ran down the stairs and towards her car. Mi Rae starts her car engine and quickly drove towards the café. After driving about 10 minutes, she arrived at the café. She went inside but there were only the café employee and no one else inside as it was still quite early.
"How may I help you?" asked one of the café employees.
"I am looking for someone. That person promises to meet me here," said Mi Rae.
"Maybe he is not here yet. Why don't you sit first?" said the café employee while smiling.
"Ah, thank you and can I order an americano?" said Mi Rae.
"Sure, your americano will be ready in a few minutes," said the café employee.
Mi Rae went to a table beside the glass wall and sat there while waiting for that unknown number person nervously.
Across the street in front of the café, a car parked there. It was Shi Hoon's car and he was watching Mi Rae since she arrived at the café. 'Ting~' a message came to Shi Hoon's phone.
"Where are you? I'm already at the café," the message read. Shi Hoon read that and did not reply. He called Jong Min.
"Yes, boss, is there anything you need?" asked Jong Min through the phone.
"I will go to the company a few hours late. Cancel today's morning meeting and move it to tomorrow," said Shi Hoon.
"Understand but boss, why are you coming late?" asked Jong Min but there was no answered from Shi Hoon as he already ended the call. "He can at least tell me if he wants end the call," mumbled Jong Min.
30 minutes passed but Shi Hoon was still waiting in his car. Mi Rae on the other hand became more restless. She tried to message Shi Hoon but he never replied. She even tried calling Shi Hoon but he was not answering his phone.
Shi Hoon looked at his phone and another called came from Mi Rae. "This notebook must be really important to you that you are so restless. You rushed here immediately. I wonder how long you will wait," said Shi Hoon. Shi Hoon decided to leave the area and driving his car around the city for few hours. 3 hours later, he arrived back across the café and Mi Rae was still inside the café.
"… I thought you will give up. This notebook must have some other meaning to you," said Shi Hoon while holding Mi Rae's notebook.
Inside the café.
"Unni, do you see that woman," said the café employee that greeted Mi Rae earlier.
"Huh? Yeah, why?" said another café employee.
"She sits there since we just open the café this morning and she never touch her coffee. She has been looking at her phone a lot."
"Hmm… I'll go see her," the café employee wanted to walk to Mi Rae but a man reached her first and that man was Shi Hoon.
"This notebook must be really important to you since you even skip work," said Shi Hoon from behind Mi Rae. Mi Rae heard Shi Hoon and immediately looked at Shi Hoon. Her face was pale with tears swimming in her eyes and Shi Hoon was taken aback by that. Mi Rae who saw Shi Hoon also shocked to see that her company's CEO was the one who took her notebook but she immediately regained her composure and stood up from her chair. She tried to stand up but Shi Hoon grabbed her shoulder and stopped her from standing up.
"No need to stand up," said Shi Hoon. He let her shoulder go and walked towards the chair in front of Mi Rae and sat there. The unni café employee earlier came to them to check on Mi Rae but she decided to just keep an eye on them.
"May I take your order," asked the unni café employee.
"I want black coffee and strawberry cake for this lady," said Shi Hoon while looking straight at Mi Rae. The café employee took his order and leave them.
"Why do you have my notebook?" Mi Rae started the conversation first.
"Because I took it myself," said Shi Hoon without any care.
"Then, give me back," said Mi Rae while she looked at the table. This time, she talked to Shi Hoon not with her energetic cheerful girl act but as her real self. Mi Rae was not only shy but she was timid too. She was too scared to look at Shi Hoon so she looked at the table.
Shi Hoon just stared at how Mi Rae act, "Your face is a bit pale. I ordered the cake. Eat that first and we will talk," said Shi Hoon. Mi Rae still did not lift her head and stared at the table. The black coffee and strawberry cake that Shi Hoon ordered earlier arrived. Shi Hoon pushed the cake towards Mi Rae, "Eat this first," said Shi Hoon.
"I… don't have any appetite," said Mi Rae with a soft voice and she continued, "Can I get my notebook now."
Shi Hoon did not answer her but instead he reached the fork, forked the cake a bit and pointed it at Mi Rae, "Eat first. I have something else to talk to you, not just to give your notebook back. I don't like to talk to someone with pale face like you right now," said Shi Hoon.
Mi Rae lifted her head. She timidly looked at Shi Hoon and grabbed the fork that Shi Hoon held in front of her and she started to eat the strawberry cake slowly. She ate the cake without looking at Shi Hoon even once. After about ten minutes, Mi Rae finished the strawberry cake. She really did not have any appetite but forced herself to eat.
"I finish the cake. I want my notebook back," said Mi Rae just like before while looking at the table.
"Before I give your notebook back, I need to ask you a few things first," said Shi Hoon.
"What is it? Just ask anything. If I can answer it, I will say it," said Mi Rae.
"Why are you working at my company?" asked Shi Hoon.
"Huh?... because I want to work there," said Mi Rae.
"I check your background and found out that you work at many other companies for short while and quit even if they offered you a permanent position. You did this too many times so I got a bit suspicious," said Shi Hoon with serious face.
"That is becau-"
"Look at me when you are talking," said Shi Hoon cutting Mi Rae words while raising his voice a bit.
Mi Rae was stunned by that and lifted her head slowly to look at Shi Hoon and started answering him again, "Th-That is because I-I-I don't think I can learn anything n-n-new," said Mi Rae while stuttering.
"Then, why are you pretending to be those annoying energetic girls inside the elevator last week?" asked Shi Hoon with a scary face.
"I-I-I am sorry about what h-ha-happen last week. I just want to-to try being that kind of girls since they are r-re-received well by people," said Mi Rae.
"You think I will believe that? Look at you now. Scared like a little kitten and that time in the elevator you confidently act like you are used to that," said Shi Hoon while glaring at Mi Rae.
"That is because I don't want people to know how I used to act most of the time," said Mi Rae.
"You, are a corporate spy, right?" said Shi Hoon while glaring at Mi Rae.
"I-I-I-I-I'm not! Please believe me!" Mi Rae panicked.