TWENTYTHREE

Kyungsoo ripped out the fresh ticket that was tucked under his windshield wiper in irritation. He had only been in the cafe for three minutes. Of course Seoul cops had to be so diligent. His hand was still holding Seorin's tightly as he bit his lip awkwardly. Her face was still red from the kiss, which had lasted long enough for Seungsoo, Qian, and curious onlookers to see.
He gave his brother one last glare before opening the door and somewhat forcefully guiding Seorin in the passenger seat.

"W-Well... That was unexpected," she breathed, breaking the silence as Kyungsoo put on his seatbelt. "You go MIA for days and then appear out of nowhere and... attack me with your lips." She didn't want to use the word 'kiss' - it sounded too intimate. As giddy and worked up as she was about it, she couldn't just let him pass on ignoring her for so long.

"I was busy!" He blurted out in protest as he turned the key in the ignition. "You know I was busy. I'm still busy!" He was already frazzled and exhasuted enough as it was over the fact that he had left his post. All of his undone work was waiting for him back at the office, and it was consistently nagging him at the back of his mind. He didn't want to have this discussion now. Frankly, he just didn't have time for it.

"So busy you can't spare a call? A text? A lunch?" 

He sighed, keeping his eyes planted on the road, partially for safety, and partially because he didn't want to meet her gaze. "I wanted to, I swear. But I always knock out after work once I get home - if I get home..." He ran his fingers through his hair in exasperation. "And I didn't want to send you one text and not be able to follow up on it. That would be worse."
He wanted to explain everything to her: the deadlines the Jackal reps wanted him to meet, the projects the marketing director had asked him to lead, the extra meetings and presentations his father wanted him to handle... It was a lot to take on, but he wanted to prove he could do it. That's the least it took to be the CEO, no?

But rather, his explanation came out rather simple. "I'm just ridiculously busy. They're wearing me thin at Kangdo. You get it, right?"
He pulled up in front of her home and finally faced Seorin. Her face was not a happy one. Her lips were pressed into a thin line. 

"You... understand, don't you?" He asked again uncertainly. He instinctively reached for her hand, but she immediately pulled it back with a slight scowl.

"Why didn't you ask for help? I'd be more than happy to. Especially if they're overworking you like that..."

"I need to prove that I can handle this - that I'm CEO material. I can't start slacking off when I just finally given the opportunity to show them what I can do."

So let me get this straight, Do Kyungsoo," she began. He winced at her usage of his full name. "You tell me you like me. You kiss me. And then you tell me you have no time for me at all whatsoever. And then you refuse my help. Am I understanding this correctly?" Her tone was bitter and sarcastic, and rightfully so. Her arms were now crossed, hands inaccessible.

Kyungsoo couldn't quite understand why she was being so unsupportive when she had had his back for so long. He knew it wasn't fair that he couldn't make time for her at the moment, but she knew how important this position was to him. He bit his lip as he saw her hand move to the door handle. As much as he wanted to tell her not to go, it was precisely what he needed her to do at the moment. Getting back to work in the fastest