“You look miserable.”

The off-hand comment was nothing unusual from Park Chaeyoung who had been waiting at a café near the gallery.  

Eyes downcast, Lisa sat in front of her best friend and a long, dismal sigh escaped her lips. Chaeyoung noticed the way the other’s usually prominent shoulders slumped as she sank down the seat.  

The blonde pushed a glass of strawberry frappe towards the sullen one.  

“Did that guy you’re seeing do something bad to you?” 

Lisa’s voice was almost a whisper when she replied, “It’s not about Dony.”  

“Lisa-yah…” Chaeyoung crossed her arms. “The last time I saw that look on your face was when your ex-boyfriend broke up with you two years ago.”  

A pause. 

“It’s about a boy, isn’t it?” 

Lisa’s mouth pulled down as she felt both grateful and annoyed at how her friend could read her so easily.  

“Well… he’s not a boy.” 

Chaeyoung's brows went up as she leaned her elbows on the table—a curious glint in her almond-shaped eyes. They had known each other for years and knew each other best. And this was the exact reason why Lisa called her best friend that day. Everything had been piling up—drowning her thoughts and almost making her mad when she didn’t have anyone to confide to. There was no other option for her at that moment. 

After one sip of the sweet pale pink drink, Lisa divulged everything. 

“So you think he remembers?”  

The small gasp was almost comical and Lisa glanced at her friend’s eyes which were wide as saucers.  

Lunch break was almost over and the two of them were walking towards the gallery. The conversation hadn’t lulled since Lisa began disclosing every single thing that happened since Bangkok... well... except for that one thing that made her squeal in embarrassment whenever she thought of it. 

“Yes!” A hesitant pause. “No… I’m not really sure.” 

Chaeyoung stopped walking just as when they were a stone’s throw away from the gallery. “Maybe he knew all along but pretends not to… so both of you can save face.”  

“That’s what I also thought in the beginning.” Lisa groaned—still feeling stressed but a little better now that she had confessed to someone she trusted. “But the other night… when I saw him looking at me with the exact same expression as the one in Bangkok, I just had this feeling.”  

Chaeyoung’s eyes narrowed as slim arms went around her shoulders.  

“Whether he remembers or not, you should just be yourself and don’t be too conscious about him. It will only make you more anxious, don’t you think so?” She gently patted Lisa's arm.

“It was already in the past so just move on and look at him as your boss.” 

That was a sound advice. But hadn’t Lisa thought that countless times before? But she couldn’t say it outright... the low possibility of that happening when Choi Seunghyun was an incredibly fine-looking man. And that whenever she looked at him, she could always remember the way he had touched— 

A tall figure walked past them and Lisa’s heart suddenly pounded against her ribcage at the sight of his familiar backside. Her reaction wasn’t gone unnoticed by Chaeyoung and the latter eyed the person they were talking about for the past 40 minutes. 

“Is that him?” Her friend whispered just as when Director Choi’s profile came into view when he entered the gallery’s building.  

Lisa’s stunned silence was an answer itself that her friend only nudged her.

“You forgot to tell me one important thing.” 

Did Chaeyoung realize? Lisa glanced at her friend and gulped— feeling like she was busted for not telling her best friend that the man had drunkenly gone to third base with her... and she allowed it to happen.

“What is it?” 

“Your boss you made out with is that handsome.” Chaeyoung snickered and Lisa quickly covered the former’s mouth in disbelief. 

“Yah!” 

“What?” Chaeyoung laughingly pried the hand away from . “I’m only speaking the truth. And I can’t blame you for actually doing what you did.” 

Lisa frowned but an awkward and embarrassed chuckle escaped her lips. Sighing, Chaeyoung rubbed Lisa’s arm comfortingly. 

“You’re still very much attracted to him, aren’t you? But he’s your boss and you can’t do anything about it.”

The way Chaeyoung stated those words made Lisa feel like she was punched in the gut with that revelation. 

It's true.

She had been trying to repress that thought for the sake of self-preservation. But she wouldn’t feel so anxious if it weren’t for the fact that memories of that night were always at the back of her mind—stirring so many thoughts and feelings that made her stomach tingle and her heart race. No matter how much she tried to deny it, she was without a doubt incredibly physically attracted to him. 

And that made her feel even worse. 

“You’re gonna be late.” Chaeyoung brought her out of her inner crisis with a gentle push towards the gallery.  

With a wistful look, her best friend walked backwards and waved—spoken words ringing in Lisa’s ears even when she found herself seated at her desk minutes later.  

“Don’t overthink and just let things happen...” 

 
The hour-long meeting among the staff passed by quickly. Maybe it was because Lisa wasn’t entirely paying attention to what was being discussed. Most of it was beyond her knowledge and she was only there because Jaejin wanted her to know what it was like to be in a meeting. Plans were presented, a list was checked, points were raised, etc. It was when they were talking about a Thai artist that Lisa perked up and all her focus was on the curator’s words. 

“His recent artworks were exhibited in New York two years ago and he is quite famous among European and American collectors.” The female curator, Ms. Jung, showed photos on the screen and Lisa was awed at the stunning portraits of men and women in various palettes. “If we do want a South East Asian representation in the next exhibition, I think he would be a great candidate. His works also fit the theme.” 

Director Choi was quietly appraising the photos on his own iPad and with a deliberate nod asked a question. "Have you already been in contact with him?"

"His agent responded to my email this morning and said that it takes a lot of persuasion for the artist to join any exhibition. He doesn't speak English and mostly stays somewhere remote in Chiang Mai." Ms. Jung said in a clipped yet professional tone and Director Choi's lower lip slightly jutted out in contemplation.

"It would be a missed opportunity if we don't get to include his works in the exhibition." Director Choi said without taking his eyes off his iPad. The serious way he was analyzing the paintings made him look intimidating yet very attractive. "Mr. Lee and Ms. Jung already have their hands full with the other artists and individual tasks, I'll personally handle this one."

Lisa saw Jaejin sigh in relief while the pregnant Ms. Jung pursed her lips as if trying to hide a satisfied smile. 

"Ms. Jung, please set up an appointment with the artist this week." His voice still sounded polite even though he was giving an order. "Once he agreed to a meeting, I will go visit him myself." 

"Yes, Director." 

The boss stood up and with a slight bow of his head in front the staff present, adjourned the meeting and left the glass-encased conference room.

The gym was almost empty when Lisa finished her training. With her muscles stretched and worked, her body felt lighter as she also used the workout to keep her mind off things. Junhoe, as usual, was her sparring partner and the tall guy was laughing at his phone—clearly enamored by the person he was speaking with... Chaeyoung. The two had been dating for almost a year and it was Lisa who introduced the two of them. They really didn't get along in the beginning... with Chaeyoung being quite reserved with new people and Junhoe was just a loud goof. But one trip to a noraebang and the two hit it off when they got to know they both loved singing. 

"Go sleep!" Junhoe bellowed teasingly on his phone as they were walking towards the exit. "Hmm... yeah. Lisa's going to help me with my scale model and I'll treat her with chimaek."

Lisa could hear her best friend laugh from the other line. It was because Junhoe had literally begged Lisa for a week now to help him with his project. The guy was trying to finish his architecture degree but kept on getting sidetracked because of his need to work part-time. He was taking a summer class to catch up with his units. And being the softie Lisa was (and with Junhoe's persistent begging), she finally relented.

"You're so lucky you have an understanding girlfriend and a very k