Start-Up

Dinner

"Good morning!" Ji-pyeong greeted his team as he entered the office.

Park Dong-Chun turned to him in surprise, "Mr. Han, are you feeling better?"

He smiled and nodded as he settled in at his desk. He was in an incredibly good mood, after the great morning he had.

He turned on his computer, then reached for his phone.

"Thank you for breakfast," he typed, smiling as he remembered the sight of In-jae cooking in his kitchen.

"Don't forget to drink your medicine," her reply came instantly, and his smile widened. He swiveled his chair to face the window as he felt the curious eyes of his team on him. It was so like her to reply in this no-nonsense manner.

"Let me repay you by cooking dinner for you tonight," he crossed his fingers, hoping she would agree. Even after all these years, he still hated owing anyone anything. She took care of him well; it was just right that he repay her kindness.

"Okay. See you at eight?" 

He pumped his fist silently as he quickly replied, "Yes, see you at eight."

He took a deep breath and did his best to wipe the smile from his face, then turned to his computer to get the work day started. It took all of his willpower to stay focused all day; the only thing keeping him going was the thought that In-jae was at her desk too, hard at work.

It was only when the day finally came to an end and his team had gone that Ji-pyeong allowed himself to sit back and remember how he had woken up in the middle of the night to see In-jae asleep beside him, her hand in his. The sight of her comforted him, and he had no problems drifting back to a peaceful, dreamless sleep.

He packed up quickly and realized he had never been this excited to go home.

The hours flew by quickly and at exactly eight o'clock, his doorbell rang.

He opened the door and In-jae stepped in, "I brought wine."

"You're right on time, dinner's ready," he said, pulling out a chair for her then going into the kitchen to bring out the dishes he prepared.

In-jae sat down and surveyed the dishes in front of her as Ji-pyeong took a seat across her. "Here, try this," he said, putting food on her plate. She hid a small smile; it had been a while since someone took care of her like this.

"Are you better now?" she asked as she took a bite, and he nodded.

"Much better, thank you," he replied, "Although Dal-mi kept me at my computer for most of the day, it gave me a migraine!"

In-jae stayed quiet. She didn't like hearing her sister's name.

"She sent me 400 questions in an email! Would you believe?" Ji-pyeong laughed. In-jae resisted the urge to roll her eyes. What was so funny about 400 questions? It was a nuisance, that's what it was. That's what Dal-mi was.

"But the questions were quite intelligent and insightful, so I found myself answering them one by one," Ji-pyeong shook his head as he chewed thoughtfully. "Dal-mi's doing better than I thought she would with Samsan Tech."

In-jae stood up abruptly, "I need to go."

She walked to the living room to grab her bag, and she felt Ji-pyeong stand up, "What--"

"I get it, okay?!" she spun around to face him, "Dal-mi is sooo great! Everyone just LOVES Dal-mi! Dad loved her, Mom loves her, Grandma loves her, now you--"

"I don't!" Ji-pyeong exclaimed as he stepped towards her. "Dal-mi doesn't make me worry about her when I'm not with her. I don't wish I could spend more time with her. I don't see her walking around in my apartment, wearing my clothes. I don't wake up in the middle of the night wishing she was asleep beside me. That's all you, In-jae! That's YOU!"

In-jae stood frozen in front of him. What was he saying?

Ji-pyeong heaved an exasperated sigh as he ran his fingers through his hair. "In-jae. I look out my window and wish I could share the view with you. I sit in this apartment and think of how empty it feels without you. I lie in bed and wish I could fall asleep to the sound of your voice. On bad days, I read your letters and emails to feel better. On good days, I want to call you and tell you all about it. I never expected to feel this way, but I do."

She stared at him, struck dumb by what he had just said. All of a sudden, it felt like fear seized her heart and the room was closing in on her. She could hardly breathe.

So without saying a word, she spun on her heel and walked out of Ji-pyeong's apartment.