* * *

At lunchtime, Director Sun arrived as promised.

Wonbeom, who had just come out, joined them as well.

Jingyeom felt quite at ease while descending in the elevator.

He had been a bit worried after the packed ride up in the morning, but this time, the employees who saw Director Tak and Director Sun simply greeted them and didn’t attempt to ride with them.

When they arrived at the cafeteria and lined up, many employees stepped aside, allowing them to receive their meals without much delay.

Everything was new to Jingyeom, so he was too busy looking around in wonder to notice the attention he was drawing.

As he tried to sit at an empty table with his tray, an unspoken battle of wills began.

There were four of them, so they could have easily paired off, but Jinwoo and Soohyuk insisted on sitting beside Jingyeom.

Wonbeom, who had taken a step back to observe, sighed lightly and sat across from Jingyeom.

“Director Sun, I think we’re drawing too much attention. How about you move to the front? Doesn’t the seating arrangement feel a bit off?” Jinwoo said with a forced smile. Soohyuk merely shrugged and picked up his chopsticks.

Even though Jingyeom was caught in the middle, he paid no mind to their conversation.

“Enjoy your meal, Director,” Jingyeom said with a smile to Wonbeom before picking up his spoon.

As he was about to take a spoonful of soup, he heard someone beside him say, “What about me?”

Jingyeom closed his open mouth and told Soohyuk to enjoy his meal too.

Meanwhile, the silent standoff between Jinwoo and Soohyuk continued.

Jinwoo was the first to break eye contact, turning his attention to see how well Jingyeom was eating.

Jingyeom, who had purposely taken a smaller portion, ate slowly while glancing around.

As he kept making eye contact with others, he tilted his head in confusion.

He began to turn his head sharply to look around, noticing that even those in line were sneaking glances in their direction.

‘Is it because they’re all so striking that they’re drawing attention?’

Jingyeom thought people were staring because the other three were so impressive, rather than considering that it might be because of him.

‘I guess they still look fresh, no matter how often you see them.’

Satisfied with his reasoning, Jingyeom swayed his legs happily.

As his body moved along with his legs, Soohyuk leaned back and glanced under the table.

Jingyeom had his toes planted on the floor while his heels were lifted, rubbing the ground.

He was even swaying his body rhythmically, as if to music.

‘He’s been in a good mood all day. What’s making him so happy?’

Maybe it was because it was his first day at work. Or perhaps it was just because he was enjoying his meal.

His cheeks puffed up with food made him look like a chipmunk storing nuts.

Soohyuk resisted the urge to poke him, quietly watching with a small smile.

Sensing Soohyuk’s gaze, Jingyeom blinked.

“Sitting here feels like we’re having a school lunch. School was like this too.”

“Do you remember going to school?”

Jinwoo flinched at Soohyuk’s question, tightening his grip on his spoon.

His thumb pressed down, slightly bending the spoon.

But Jinwoo didn’t even notice, his trembling eyes fixed on Jingyeom.

Soohyuk, seeing this, and Wonbeom, who was sitting across, also noticed.

“No, I saw it on YouTube. School had a similar vibe. You use a tray, get your food, and eat.”

Upon hearing Jingyeom’s response, Jinwoo visibly relaxed, which Soohyuk found peculiar.

‘Interesting…’

When Jingyeom lost his memory, Jinwoo acted as if his world had collapsed, but now he seemed on edge at the thought of Jingyeom regaining his memory.

Soohyuk raised an eyebrow.

He sensed that another interesting development might be on the horizon.

“That’s true. But maybe you should cut back on the YouTube. Have you been watching a lot of it?”

“I even watched a tutorial on how to use the copier earlier.”

“They have those?”

“There’s a lot more. Like how to make a bomb shot that’ll make you the star of the company dinner.”

Jingyeom kept chatting as he ate, barely pausing.

If Soohyuk hadn’t been by his side, encouraging him with responses like, “Really?” or “Oh! What else?”

Jingyeom might not have been able to stop talking.

Jinwoo, meanwhile, stared at his tray, mechanically moving his spoon.

‘Get a grip, Baek Jinwoo. …Pull yourself together.’

While remembering is good, he couldn’t help but hope that Jingyeom wouldn’t regain his memory. He knew he shouldn’t think that way, but he couldn’t help it.

He liked the current Jingyeom so much that his selfish desires were starting to show.

When Jingyeom asked for any albums or photos after he was discharged and returned home, Jinwoo’s immediate response surprised even himself.

[I lost them when we moved.]

Jingyeom had been genuinely disappointed, but he had accepted it, realizing there was no way to recover the lost albums.

The truth was that before losing his memory, Baek Jingyeom had asked Jinwoo to throw them away because he didn’t want to see them.

Jinwoo couldn’t bring himself to do it and had hidden them away in a box in a corner. He looked in that direction but pretended not to notice.

It was a moment when his selfish desire for Jingyeom to stay this way for just a little longer was laid bare.

While Jinwoo was lost in thought, the conversation between Jingyeom and Soohyuk continued.

Occasionally, Jingyeom would direct a question at Jinwoo or Wonbeom, seeking their agreement, to which they would give half-hearted replies.

At some point, Jingyeom looked down at his empty tray and patted his belly.

He had figured out how much to take to feel full without wasting any food.

In contrast, Soohyuk’s tray was still full.

“Aren’t you eating?”

“I’m eating.”

“…But you haven’t touched anything.”

After picking up his chopsticks earlier, Soohyuk hadn’t moved them since.

Given that they’d been chatting, there was no way he could’ve missed that.

“If you don’t eat now, you’ll be hungry later… And once lunch is over, you won’t be able to eat. What will you do if you get hungry? Hurry up and eat.”

“Why? Are you worried about me? Afraid I’ll starve?”

“It’s more like… it’d be a waste if you leave it.”

Though Jingyeom was genuinely concerned, the people around them were interpreting his words differently.

“Did he just scold Director Sun for leaving food?”

“Yeah. Is he really not the chairman’s son?”

“At that age, he’d be a grandson, not a son!”

Although Jingyeom couldn’t hear their whispers clearly due to the noise around them, he could sense they weren’t saying anything nice.

Everyone except Jingyeom knew this.

“This cafeteria food is really good. Jinwoo, let’s eat here every day.”

“There are also a lot of good restaurants around the company. We should check them out too.”

“Oh… really? A restaurant tour sounds fun.”

Since Jinwoo, who had always refused to eat out, was the one suggesting it, he made sure to promise not to change his mind later, even hooking pinkies for good measure.

“What about with me?”

“Will you keep joining us, Director?”

“Yes. Why? Don’t you want to eat with me?”

“No! I didn’t say that!”

As if pleading not to be misunderstood, Jingyeom cried out, making Soohyuk smile even more. His reaction was so immediate.

Just as Soohyuk was about to tease him more, Wonbeom spoke up.

“If you’re done eating, let’s go.”

Except for Soohyuk’s, everyone’s trays were already empty.

Without waiting for a response, Wonbeom got up. As the chair scraped against the floor, the chatting employees fell silent as if on cue.

It seemed no one was comfortable eating near their bosses, as the area around the four of them was left empty.

“You said you wanted to go to a café, right? Let’s go.”

Jinwoo got up and took Jingyeom’s tray as well.

Although Jingyeom said he’d carry it himself, Jinwoo walked ahead, leaving Jingyeom to follow him.

Soohyuk, who was the last to rise, glanced around.

Director Sun was known in the company for having a good reputation.

He always greeted the employees warmly and often initiated conversation.

Although there were rumors that he was only coasting at the company, his secretary firmly denied it.

Whether it was to protect his boss or not, the rumors quickly faded because his work was impeccable.

Moreover, it was unusual to see Director Sun and Director Tak, who rarely came to the cafeteria, together, and appearing alongside the person who was the talk of the day only drew more attention.

Soohyuk smiled at the employees who made eye contact with him and then followed the other three.

As the four left, the cafeteria buzzed like a market during a sale, the noise overwhelming.

Upstairs, Jinwoo pulled Jingyeom closer by the wrist.

“We’ll stop by the café and head back up. If you want anything, let us know, and we’ll bring it.”

“There’s no need to go to such lengths. We can just go together.”

As Soohyuk spoke, he gently wrapped his arm around Jingyeom’s shoulder.

“…”

“Don’t glare at me like that. We’re at work.”

Laughing, Soohyuk removed his hand from Jingyeom’s shoulder and patted Wonbeom on the back.

Though it was Jinwoo who had glared, Soohyuk addressed Wonbeom.

“Sigh…”

“I’ll buy the coffee!”

“Out of the blue?”

“I wanted to do something to thank both of you… I haven’t been able to do anything, so I’d like to at least buy coffee… Is that okay? Is coffee too small a gesture?”

Feeling that even this was too little, Jingyeom hurriedly added:

“Oh, no. No, it’s fine. I’ll treat you to something better next time!”

“It’s okay. We can’t expect much from a secretary’s assistant. I’ll have an Americano. Buy that for me.”

“…Are you sure?”

Jingyeom smiled sweetly, his eyes crinkling as he walked ahead to open the glass door.

The cool air from the air conditioner in the lobby met the hot breeze from outside.

The summer sun shone so brightly through the glass doors that everything about Jingyeom, who was walking towards it, appeared to be swallowed by the light.

His entire being seemed so faint that it felt as if he might disappear at any moment.

Suddenly, Jinwoo’s eyes widened, and he rushed forward to grab Jingyeom’s wrist.

“…Hyung?”

“Yeah?”

He thought he was going to vanish.

Jinwoo’s heart raced, making him breathless. As he exhaled, he saw Jingyeom’s face, completely unaware of what had just happened.

‘Did I imagine it? I mean… Hyung disappearing doesn’t even make sense.’

Jinwoo let out a small laugh, shaking his head as if to dismiss the thought.

* * *