If she got rejected in this contest as well, she wouldn’t even be able to make the excuse of her lack of notable background.

Hesitation was clear on Su Ah’s face.

“Hey! Don’t be scared. I’ll help you.”
Being cheered on and gently patted on the shoulder by Da Eun, Su Ah made up her mind.

‘Alright. If I get rejected this time, let’s give up on the dream of working for a big company without any more excuses.’
The given time was a mere 2 weeks.

She had to prepare a lot in a short amount of time.

As with any contest, there were moments when she wondered what she was doing, if she really needed to go this far, and if this was what life was about.

Nevertheless, she was able to prepare until the end without giving up, thanks to Da Eun and Ha Joon.

Da Eun helped shorten the time by researching the company and market trends with her,

While Ha Joon, despite being busy with his company work, frequently sent text messages to cheer Su Ah on.

[Have you eaten?] [The weather is nice, work while also getting some sunlight.] [Cheer up. You can do it, Su Ah.] His texts were a great strength to Su Ah.

“Ah. Another day burnt to a crisp. If I studied like this, I would have easily made it into Harvard.”
Su Ah flopped down over the scattered papers.

“Let’s call it a day. If you push yourself too hard, you may not be able to finish and might fail. I’m going first, you should also stop cleaning up and rest.”
Da Eun headed towards the entrance, bag in hand.

“Right, let’s do that. Be careful on your way home, see you tomorrow.”
Su Ah struggled to get up and leaned on the sofa to say goodbye.

“Haah…….”

After Da Eun left, Su Ah, looking at the papers and books that filled the living room, sighed.

‘No matter how much they say it’s blind recruitment, there must be so many people more talented than me.’
‘No! What am I lacking? I’m perfect at this point.’
‘Will such an opportunity come to someone like me?’
She was in despair, then inflamed with passion. She was up, then down.

At the point where her emotions, changing from moment to moment as if she were on a roller coaster, were almost unbearable, her phone rang.

Upon checking the screen, a smile spread across Su Ah’s face.

“Mr. Ha Joon!”
Her voice calling out was full of excitement.

[Did I call at a bad time?] “No, not at all. I just finished and was about to rest.”
[That’s a relief. Have you had dinner?] “Of course I have. Look at the time. Haven’t you eaten yet, Mr. Ha Joon?”
[No, I’ve eaten too.] “Are you still at work?”
[No, I’m leaving work now.] Small talks about whether they had eaten or if they had left work went back and forth.

Then suddenly, his image popped into her mind.

I miss him……

The words swirling at the tip of her tongue couldn’t pass her lips.

She couldn’t keep him, who said he was just leaving work, on the line just to see his face once.

As she was about to swallow the words that were hanging on her lips,

Honk honk!

“Hey! Are you going to drive like that?”
From outside the window, she could hear loud car horns and rough voices.

“Oh my. There seems to be a fight nearby. I can hear it as if they are talking right next to me…….”
But why does it sound like I’m hearing it twice?

Su Ah noticed that the sound coming from outside the window was being heard through her phone once more.

No way. Su Ah quickly got up from where she had been leaning against the sofa and approached the window to open it.

“Ah……”
Under the streetlight, Su Ah’s mouth opened in surprise when she found Ha Joon standing there, casting a long shadow.

Had their hearts communicated with each other?

Thump.

She must be out of her mind.

Seeing that her heart was racing just by looking at his shadow.

“Mr. Ha Joon!”
Su Ah waved her hand and called Ha Joon’s name.

Lifting his head and confirming it was Su Ah, Ha Joon also waved back.

“Wait a moment. I’ll be right down.”
An excited voice came over the still connected mobile phone.

“You can take your time. I’ll wait.”
Tap tap tap tap.

It was as if she had forgotten to hang up the phone, and Su Ah’s movements were clearly conveyed through the phone.

“Mr. Ha Joon!”
Running with a bright face, Su Ah suddenly halted and stopped in her tracks. Then, she silently opened her mouth.

“Are you on a call?”
Huh? A call. What’s that?

Confused by her words, Ha Joon then realized that he hadn’t taken his phone away from his ear.

Su Ah’s eyes, bathed in the light of the streetlamp, twinkled as she waited for Ha Joon’s response.

“Yes.”
At Ha Joon’s reply, Su Ah nodded, closed her lips, and directed her gaze toward the night sky.

It meant she wouldn’t look at him, so he shouldn’t feel pressured and continue his call.

It meant that she would wait until his call was over.

“I’m on a call with a lady.”
Huh? A woman?

Su Ah’s gaze quickly met Ha Joon’s.

Ha Joon spread a smile across his lips and continued to speak.

“With a very beautiful lady.”
Why would he say something she hadn’t asked?

Looking at Ha Joon with round eyes full of curiosity, she noticed his index finger pointing at his own hand.

More precisely, at the mobile phone in his hand.

As Su Ah raised her hand, the black screen of the mobile phone lit up, revealing that she was still connected to a call with Ha Joon.

Su Ah’s eyes narrowed.

Ah, seriously. She had been tricked again.

Tap tap tap.

With angry fingers, she tapped on the screen as if she would shatter it, and pressed the end call button.

Only then did Ha Joon remove the phone from his ear.

“What is this? I really thought you were on a call.”
“I really was on a call. With a very beautiful woman.”
She was about to frown deeply in anger.

‘With a very beautiful woman.’
At his words, her ears turned red and her frown straightened.

“I heard you coming down live. I told you could take your time, why did you run? What if you fell?”
“Just……”
Because she wanted to see him.

“But why are you here? If you were going to come, you should’ve told me.”
Su Ah quickly changed the subject.

“I came to give you this.”
Ha Joon extended a small box he had been holding.

“What’s this?”
“It’s something good. Open it.”
Su Ah quickly untied the ribbon binding the box.

“Huh? This.”
Looking into the box, Su Ah’s eyes widened.

It was the chocolate that Ho Young had brought from the convenience store last time.

“Didn’t I promise you? That I would buy you a new one. I should’ve remembered the name then. It took me a long time to find it.”
“You should’ve asked me.”
“Then it wouldn’t be a surprise, would it?”
Ah, seriously. He’s bad for her heart.

Su Ah, who had been staring intently at Ha Joon’s face, took an awkward step towards him.

Then, she spread her arms and wrapped them around his waist.

“……!”
Caught off guard by Su Ah’s unexpected action, Ha Joon lost his motion, his eyes wide in surprise.

Was it because she was exhausted due to the competition?

Or was it because he remembered and didn’t forget about the trivial promise with her?

Suddenly, she wanted to hug him.

“Thank you for keeping your promise. I will enjoy eating it.”
Ha Joon’s hand, which had been awkwardly suspended in the air, slowly wrapped around Su Ah.

“I am more grateful.”
For coming to me first. For expressing it first.