Min-Jun, on the other hand, ignored his sister's snappish attitude and instead replied calmly.
"There's no need to be so dramatic, sis. An elegant clear of the throat would suffice."
Then, Min-Jun nudged Su-Jin with his shoulder, gesturing for her to sit down at the table. When she saw that, Su-Jin simply shook her head.
It wasn't often that she was up that early, so she wanted to repay him for all the meals he had prepared alone. So, despite all her previous grumblings, Su-Jin ended up helping her brother prepare breakfast.
Just when they were about to sit down and eat, Su-Jin glanced over at the stairs.
"How come Mi-Suk isn't up yet? It's almost six. She never sleeps until this late in the morning."
"She stayed up late last night, so she will probably sleep in today." Min-Jun replied calmly.
After giving his reply, he stopped talking. He simply sat down and began to eat his soup.
While slowly taking a seat herself, Su-Jin raised an eyebrow at her brother. She felt that something was off about his answer.
"And how do you know that she stayed up late?" Su-Jin eventually asked, a small tint of suspicion lacing in her voice.
"When I went down to get some water, I saw light coming from underneath her door. It was two or three in the morning, so I would call that staying up late." Min-Jun replied evenly.
As he spoke, Min-Jun didn't even look his sister in the eye, appearing completely unabashed by her scrutinizing look.
Even though she still felt that something was strange, Su-Jin couldn't figure out what it was. Soon, her mind turned towards other things.
With a jolt of excitement, Su-Jin realized that it was Friday. That meant she would finally be a part of a corporate event.
In order to feel as comfortable as possible, Su-Jin smartly decided to wear an attire that was fit for outdoor activities. Hence, she chose a pair of jeans, together with a simple white t-shirt. On her feet, she went for the pair of Sketchers she had bought sometime around the beginning of summer.
In order to finish her outdoorsy appearance, Su-Jin tied her hair in a high bun, making sure no strands escaped from it by wrapping a white ribbon around the bun.
After appraising herself in the mirror for a long time, turning around left and right, looking up and down several times, Su-Jin finally declared herself satisfied with the result.
A few minutes later, she left the house with an elated heart.
With each step she took, Su-Jin felt excitement and anticipation taking hold of her. Under this unbearable feeling, she almost broke into a run.
In truth, Su-Jin's impatience to reach the company wasn't solely due to the corporate event. She might not have realized it herself, but her heart harbored a different kind of feeling, something more personal and slightly more selfish.
Besides the fact that she was going to do a good deed by helping at an orphanage, Su-Jin was also aware that this was a company event. From what she could find out about it during these past couple of days, that involved the attendance of most of their colleagues.
Therefore, Su-Jin wondered if there was a chance she could meet some of the other Kanji Tourism employees. A small voice inside her head was wondering about someone more specific, someone with beautiful brown eyes and a handsome, youthful face.
'Since he is also an employee, there is a big chance he will be there as well, isn't it?'
As she thought about this, Su-Jin felt the corners of her lips curving upward in a Cheshire smile. There was also a slight bounce in her steps as she hurried towards the bus station.
~~~
While Su-Jin was looking forward to the corporate event, another person felt only dread at the thought of it.
Kang Ji-Won woke up that morning feeling his entire body sore, whilst his mind was buzzing with thoughts. Due to his heroic actions from the other day, he had bruises on his arms and one or two scratches on his back. He felt tired and wished he could just stay at home and rest.
Nevertheless, he couldn't miss the event. After all, he was the Director of Planning Team 1. That, and another matter, made it impossible for him to skip the event.
In fact, it was his mother's charity foundation that supported the orphanage they were about to visit that day. The foundation would regularly send food, clothes, toys, as well as other useful things for the children. It would also organize special events during important holidays such as Children's Day and Christmas.
Despite all of this though, there was another reason why Ji-Won wasn't looking forward to the event. Going there meant he would have to see her again. He knew that since they were colleagues, they had to see each other daily at work. Even so, he still wished to have the weekend at least, until he would have to interact with her again.
After taking a refreshing shower, Ji-Won's tiresome thoughts finally subsided. His exhaustion was also considerably reduced and he felt energetic once again. After all, it wasn't like him to get upset or emotional over something so insignificant.
While getting dressed, he tried to steer his mind towards the more important aspects of the day.
Since he would be required to stay outdoors for a long time, Ji-Won changed into a pair of casual pants. As for the top, he went for a simple white shirt that could be worn without a tie and jacket.
Thinking he might look too ostentatious at an orphanage wearing expensive accessories, Ji-Won also took off his wristwatch, leaving it at home.
Ji-Won wanted to look different from how he usually appeared at work, so he decided not to slick back his hair. Instead, he gave it a rather natural windswept appearance. This style brightened his face, thus highlighting his dark eyes in contrast with the paleness of his skin. It also sharpened his jawline, enhancing his handsomely chiseled features.
Thus, instead of looking smart and serious like a boss, Ji-Won went for a more youthful appearance. His handsomeness was more refreshing due to the simple style of clothes and, once outside, he could easily be mistaken for a college student.