♪ Ta-ra-ra—ta-dan~ ♪
The office remodeling was finally finished. A familiar TV show BGM echoed in my head—the kind that played when a house renovation was revealed.
The Love House completion theme.
…Wait. This wasn't a house—it was an office.
Does that make it a Love Office?
That sounded strange. Like we were about to do something inappropriate in a sacred workplace.
…Though, to be fair, we'd already done something like that before the remodeling was even finished.
"Wow. This is nice."
"It's even better than I imagined."
"That's thanks to Deputy Director Yoo helping out."
Deputy Director Yoo Eunha and Manager Hwang Juyeon both showed up on opening day. Since they were on freelance contracts, they didn't have to come in every day—but they came anyway after hearing the remodeling was done.
"Can I use this as my desk?"
"Do whatever's comfortable."
"Then I'll take this one."
In the workspace—which used to be a dance practice room—there were five desks. Mine was at the very front, with two desks on each side behind it.
There was still plenty of space left, but I decided to leave it empty for now. If we needed more people later, we could add desks then.
Yoo Eunha and Hwang Juyeon took the desks closest to me on either side. With two elite office workers seated at their desks, the place finally felt like a real office.
"Aren't we having an opening party?"
"We already did one a few days ago. It doubled as your resignation party."
"But that didn't really count. You ran away halfway through, Director."
Remembering that night made me break out in a cold sweat.
"Cut me some slack. I was too drunk—if I'd gone for a second round, I would've completely lost it."
"That's the best part."
Deputy Director Yoo muttered quietly.
Did we turn the AC up too high? I suddenly felt a chill down my spine.
"Juyeon."
"Yes?"
"I know it's late to ask, but… what were you two planning back then?"
I walked over to Manager Hwang Juyeon and asked in a low voice.
I figured she'd be more likely to answer honestly than Deputy Director Yoo.
As expected, Hwang Juyeon smiled brightly and spoke freely.
"Well, both of us kept getting taken advantage of by you, Director. It felt unfair, so next time we were planning to team up—with Deputy Director Yoo—and really get you back—"
She didn't get to finish.
"Manager Hwang? We agreed not to talk about that."
"Oh—right."
Deputy Director Yoo was suddenly standing behind us. Hwang Juyeon quickly shut her mouth and pretended to continue unpacking.
…Wow.
I might've teased them a bit in bed, but I never imagined the two of them had been plotting something that terrifying.
If I'd gone to a second round that night… what exactly would've happened to me?
That was honestly frightening.
Sure, it might've been a delightful punishment from a man's perspective—but I didn't think I'd reached the stage of life where I could be that decadent yet.
Those kinds of parties could wait until everything was settled.
"…Ahem. I don't think it's time to pop champagne just yet. Let's save the real celebration for after we pull off something big. Deal?"
"You'll remember you said that, right?"
Deputy Director Yoo looked at me like a lioness eyeing her prey.
…Yeah. When the time came, I'd better brace myself.
"So, Director—what do we start with?"
It was finally time to get to work.
I returned to my desk and sent a file to Deputy Director Yoo.
"Sorry to spring this on you, but Eunha—could you review this?"
"…A one-pager? When did you make this?"
"I prepared it during breaks. Check if anything's missing or unnecessary. And Manager Hwang, I need you to handle communications with IntelliOn."
"With CEO Cha Yoonjung?"
"Probably someone from their tech team will be on weekly duty. I'll send over the draft for the detailed distribution materials—fill it in as they send the requested info. I told them yesterday, so it should already be in the work email. If anything's missing, request it from the tech team anytime. I've already coordinated with them."
"Yes!"
Now this finally felt like work.
Working alone at home always felt like doing college assignments—there was no real sense of being on the job. People really do need to leave the house to work. Renting an office was the right call.
"Director. The one-pager is basically perfect."
She'd already finished checking it.
I went behind Deputy Director Yoo's desk to take a look.
"Really? You don't need to praise it just to boost my ego."
"I wouldn't do that. From my perspective, there's nothing to add or remove. From here on, it's up to luck—the result will depend entirely on the reader's mood."
"Coming from you, I expected you to nitpick every single word."
"What do you take me for? There's no way I'd criticize a report where you clearly put your heart into it."
If Deputy Director Yoo approved it, then the one-pager was good enough.
"Here's the distribution list. Please categorize it by industry. I'm thinking of customizing the one-pager by sector too—could you adjust that?"
"Got it. But how did you choose the distribution list?"
"Oh—mostly my university seniors and juniors. A lot of them landed good jobs, so this is a good time to ask for help."
"Hmm. Should we split the industries into e-commerce, finance, retail, and lump the rest into 'others'?"
"That's exactly why I like working with you—you get it right away."
Things progressed far more smoothly than expected. The two of them had already worked together at their previous company, and their individual skills were outstanding. There was nothing more I could ask for.
Preparation was perfect. Now all that remained was results.
If we failed at this point, there'd be no excuse. I'd have to admit it was purely my lack of ability.
Late at night.
Both of them had already gone home. I was alone in the empty office.
Tap, tap—tap tap.
In the eerily quiet office, the sound of the keyboard echoed. I glanced at the clock—it was past 11 p.m.
"Whew…"
I stretched.
My head felt hot. I'd been concentrating for longer than I realized.
I was out of coffee too. Maybe it was time to head home.
But leaving now, only to come back again in the morning, felt like a waste.
Come to think of it, this place had a shower room and a nap room.
Maybe they were made for times like this?
Just as I was seriously considering staying overnight at the office—
Knock, knock, knock.
A soft knocking sound came from the door.
Who would come at this hour?
Puzzled, I stepped outside—and saw a familiar face.
"CEO Cha Yoonjung?"
"Hehe."
She smiled mischievously, like a guest who'd come to surprise me.
"You didn't even contact me first."
"I'm sorry for coming so suddenly. It looked like you were still working, so… I brought some coffee and a light late-night snack."
"Oh—thank you."
I accepted the bag reflexively. It was surprisingly heavy—she'd brought a lot.
"I'm sorry for dropping by without notice. If you'd already left, I was just going to pass by—but the lights were on."
"No, your timing is perfect. I actually had some things I wanted to discuss too."
"Discuss?"
"Yes. Come in for a moment."
We could've talked over messenger, but since she was already here, this worked out perfectly.
As CEO Cha sat on the meeting room sofa, I sensed tension in her expression.
"This is about the upcoming POC—Proof of Concept."
"Ah, yes."
When I brought it up, she visibly relaxed—apparently, she'd been nervous about something else.
"Given IntelliOn's current size, I don't think we can handle POCs with too many companies at once. So I'm thinking of offering quick POCs to about five companies we seriously approach. Then we'll do full POCs only for the companies that clearly show intent to sign."
A POC was the stage where a company tested our technology in real operations for a short period to verify its effectiveness.
We'd done the same at Hwangsan—the results were clear, which led to the contract. Other companies would need the same verification.
But at our current scale, we couldn't handle a flood of requests. So I planned a "limited edition" strategy.
Slow response or lukewarm interest meant no POC opportunity at all.
"Um… do you think we'll really get that many POC requests?"
CEO Cha asked hesitantly.
I gave a vague smile.
"We'll have to wait and see."
Even I couldn't speak with absolute confidence anymore. As the moment of truth approached, nerves were setting in.
I'd pushed forward boldly—but what if my judgment was wrong? What if I failed to execute properly? What if this technology was already commercialized elsewhere?
Worst-case scenarios kept creeping into my mind.
"Director."
Her hand gently covered the back of my cold one.
"I believe in you. No matter what the result is, if it's the outcome of everyone doing their best, I can accept it."
It felt like our roles had reversed. Not long ago, I'd been the one comforting a discouraged CEO Cha. Now she was the one giving me courage.
"I was at rock bottom on my own. Getting this far was only possible because of you."
"CEO Cha…"
That was true.
From the beginning, I hadn't started this to chase some massive jackpot. I just wanted to see the end of an unfinished project.
If we failed, it only meant the project wasn't that good—and I'd simply return to life before winning the lottery.
"…Thank you."
And even if I went back to that life, not everything would return to how it was.
I'd gained more than money. CEO Cha Yoonjung, Deputy Director Yoo Eunha, Manager Hwang Juyeon—new connections I could never buy with money.
…Though it was a little embarrassing that they were all women.
Still, it was undeniably a priceless experience.
"Uh, Director…"
CEO Cha looked away shyly.
Only then did I realize I was holding her hand tightly—and staring at her with intense seriousness. No wonder she felt pressured.
"I—I should get going. For the POC, let's proceed as you suggested."
"CEO."
She stood up hurriedly, and I gently stopped her.
"Since you're already here, why don't you take a look around the new office?"
"Ah—are you sure? I don't want to disturb your work…"
"Not at all. I was about to take a break anyway."
She'd come all this way late at night—it wouldn't be polite to send her off immediately.
I guided CEO Cha around the office myself.
"This is the workspace where I usually work. And over here is the shower room."
"A shower room in an office? That's unusual."
"It used to be an idol practice room. A leftover from the choreography studio."
"Oh, I see."
"And this is the nap room."
"The… nap room?"
This was today's main attraction.
Inside the small room was a single bed. Aside from that, there was a clothes rack, a simple dresser, and some suggestive daily necessities.
"It's a bit small, but no light gets in, and the soundproofing is perfect. It used to be a vocal practice room. You could do anything in here and no one would know."
"…Anything…?"
CEO Cha turned to look at me.
Her eyes were filled with a subtle expectation.
Without words, we confirmed that we were thinking the same thing.
That night—
Once again, the nap room's soundproofing proved flawless.