Start-Up

Chilling at Home

In-jae punched in the code to the door's digital lock and let herself in.

"Ji-pyeong?" she called out as she kicked off her heels in the entryway.

"In here," he called from the kitchen.

She shrugged off her suit jacket and draped it over a chair, then saw him in the kitchen standing over the stove. He was still dressed in his work clothes and had just rolled up the sleeves of his black button-down shirt.

She went up to him and wrapped her arms around him from behind, pressing her cheek against his back. "I missed you," she said, hugging him tight.

"I missed you too," he said with a smile, loving that In-jae was becoming more comfortable about expressing herself around him.

"Here, taste this," he said, so In-jae released him and stood by his side.

He held out the wooden spoon to her and cautioned, "Careful, it's hot."

She blew on the sauce before taking a sip, "A bit more salt."

He took a sip and nodded, adding more salt then mixing the sauce.

"Here," he said, holding out the spoon to her again. She took a sip and nodded, then gave a yelp of surprise when Ji-pyeong suddenly captured her lips in a kiss. She kissed him back and was about to wind her arms around his neck, when he pulled away. "Sauce," he winked at her, and she pushed his shoulder. "You jerk," she pouted at him, and he laughed, leaning in to give her a quick peck on the lips.

She rolled her eyes at him then pulled away, turning to open his cabinets and drawers to bring out bowls and silverware. She smiled inwardly as she realized how comfortable she had become in his home, enough to know where he kept things. She went about setting the table, and soon Ji-pyeong brought in the dishes that he made and they sat down to eat.

"Mm, by the way," In-jae said in between bites, "Ms. Yoon said the strangest thing to me during our meeting. She said I seemed inspired."

Ji-pyeong practically choked on his food and reached for his glass to take a gulp of water. "Aahh, well, I think she might have an idea about us," he admitted sheepishly, and told her about that day when he brought her a cup of coffee.

In-jae flushed and buried her face in her hands. "Ugh, how mortifying," she groaned, and Ji-pyeong took her wrist and pulled her hand away from her face.

"Don't worry about it," he comforted her, "I think she likes us together. Besides, we're not doing anything wrong. I'm not your mentor. We don't work together directly."

She took a deep breath and looked at him, "Okay. But I still want us to be discreet."

He smiled at her reassuringly, "Yes. Even if it's sooo hard sometimes to keep from smiling when I think of you. My team probably thinks I'm crazy since I smile randomly throughout the day."

At that, In-jae laughed, "Me too, I've seen my team exchanging bewildered looks when they catch me smiling."

He took her hand and squeezed it. "Are we really that much of a terror to our teams that it's strange to them when we smile?" 

She laughed again and nodded. "But I like being tough on them. Having a tough boss teaches you things," she pointed out, and his smile widened.

"See, this is why we work. We agree on these things," he said, squeezing her hand again before releasing it as they resumed eating.

Afterwards, they cleared the table and did the dishes together, then sat in his living room to watch the news. As they sat on the sofa, Ji-pyeong reached out and put his hands on In-jae's shoulders. He kneaded them slowly and she let out an appreciative moan. "That feels so good," she said, feeling her body relax as his hands worked their magic.

"Are you guys ready for Demo Day?" he asked as he tried to release the tension in her shoulders.

She nodded, "Yeah, I feel good about it. I think we're in a good place."

Then she turned to face him, forcing Ji-pyeong to drop his hands from her shoulders.

She narrowed her eyes at him, crossed her arms over her chest, and asked, "Whose side will you be on, mine or Dal-mi's?"

He pretended to think about it, and laughed when In-jae stood up indignantly. "Hey," he grabbed her hand and pulled her down to his lap. In-jae suddenly felt a warmth coursing through her body as he wrapped his arms around her and she felt how close they were.

"I will always want any team I mentor to do well. Because if they do well, it means I've done my job," he pointed out, and she glared at him and tried to wriggle out of his embrace. 

"BUT, that's Mr. Han," he said, putting his hand behind her head and pulling her closer. "Ji-pyeong wants his girlfriend to win."

With that, he kissed her slowly, keeping one hand behind her head and the other holding her close to him. In-jae kissed him back, wrapping her arms around his neck. They kept on kissing as the rest of the world seemed to fall away. The sound of the TV was distant as In-jae drank in Ji-pyeong's kisses, and he deepened the kiss as she squirmed in his lap.

"Stay?" he whispered in between kisses. "I don't want this to end yet."

He felt her lips curve into a small smile as she kissed him back. "Okay," she whispered, and felt his smile against her lips. He tightened his hold around her and she cuddled closer to him, feeling so happy that her heart was about to burst with joy.

And so In-jae and Ji-pyeong kept on kissing, deep into the night.