Seungyeon quickly discovered that climbing to the top of the food chain at their family business was easier said than done. Since the other staff had all started several weeks agao, they'd already settled into a hierarchy, and the slot remaining was at the very bottom.

Furthermore, they all clearly viewed her as the unqualified beneficiary of her father's nepotism. Seungyeon soon realized that she'd have to work twice as hard as everyone else just to be taken seriously, let alone admired.

So she did exactly that. After she'd finished her own job duties, she volunteered for more, and she did everything without a word of complaint- only an occasional deep gush of breath when no one was looking. It was tedious work- lots of chopping, slicing, sorting, organizing- but it gave her more of a sense of accomplishment than she'd felt in months.

But by Friday morning, the pointed looks and snide comments from the other staff were definitely starting to wear on her. It was a relief to escape for an hour to have lunch with Soojung.

"I just wished they'd give me a chane," Seungyeon complained, staring down at her half-eaten salad. "I feel like... instead of trying to help me, they're just waiting for me to screw up."

"I'm sure it'll get better," Soojung assureed her."They just need some time that you're not just some actress or daughter of a restaurant owner but that you're really serious about this, that's all."

"I hope so," Seungyeon sighed, prodding aside a chunk of chicken with her fork to spear a slice of tomato.

"Oh, but Mister Junse-shi-- h-e's my supervisor-- asked to help out with food menu shoot this Saturday," she added in a more upbeat tone. "Which sound amazing- I mean, food photography? Sounds fun, right?"

"Yeah, it does!" Soojung replied with a wistful little smile.

"So how have you been doing? How's Minhyuk?" 

"Oh, I'm doing great and Hyukie too." She said through a mouthful of bread, her expression brightening. "I just got back from the Paris Fashion Week with my sister, Sooyeon. It's been a long time since the two of us been to an event together and I've missed her so much. Do lookout for her upcoming album, it's going to be amazing!"

She took another bite, looking thoughtful as she chewed.

"I feel the happiest because of my sister. For a long time, she's finally doing something she's really excited about, you know?" she explained.

"That's great!" Seungyeon said with an encouraging smile. "I know how it feels to be with your sister after a long time of not seeing each other." she added, before takign a sip of her iced tea. "Just the other week, Jungyeon and I filmed a reality show together and now that I'm