Shownu scratched the back of his neck as he followed his mother towards Galleria Department Store’s entrance.

“I cannot believe this.” He heard the lady mumbled under her breath as she pulled her son by the arm towards the escalator, the young male turned to his mother’s secretary helplessly.

“I cannot help you, young master.” She solemnly said, Mrs. Son hissed at them both. The three reached the men’s department and the lady immediately walked towards different boutiques that sold suits.

“Jeans! Jeans! How could you wear denim jeans to a meeting? Were you raised by animals?”

“Eomma, it was just a short meeting, and I had to~”

“I don’t care where you had to be, but how could you dress so carelessly at the office? Even Minhyuk knows better.”

Shownu grimaced as his mother tossed more dress shirts and ties at him. Two sales attendants rushed to their sides.

“I had a coat on.” He mumbled as he followed her, Mrs. Son turned her narrowed gaze at him.

“You are a director there, you have a seat at the board, son. How could you~ Young lady?” Her eyes went to someone behind her son, Shownu followed her gaze.

“Young lady? Yes, you.” Mrs. Son waved her over without a care, the girl looked up from her iPad. Shownu’s brows went up, Chaeyeon was staring right back at his mother.

“Y—Yes?”

“Look at what my son is wearing. Do you think that is suitable for work?” She demanded, Chaeyeon’s eyes finally went to him.

“Hi.” Shownu smiled at her, the girl blinked at him.

“Well, what do you think? Clearly you’ve been working here for quite some time now.” Mrs. Son continued, Chaeyeon’s hand immediately went to the ID she had on. It was a card needed by some store owners when they were visiting their shops inside the establishment.

“Eomma, she’s~” Shownu grimaced and tried to explain.

“Well, for corporate environments, I would…go against denim jeans. But, it actually depends, ma’am.” Chaeyeon said with a measured smile.

“See? See? Look at my son, he’s wearing denim pants and a shirt to a meeting with the board of directors.” Mrs. Son complained, Chaeyeon looked around them, unsure of what else to say.

“Actually, in this floor, we have a lot suits on display. I’m sure your son can choose things he’d like.” Chaeyeon continued, Mrs. Son was about to speak when she noticed something about the girl. Her eyes went to the pair of diamond stud earrings on her ear, then at the stack of Cartier bangles on her arm.

“Eomma, this is Chaeyeon. Minhyuk’s Chaeyeon.” Shownu hurriedly said, Mrs. Son’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Not like that. I’m just Minhyuk’s friend.” She eyed Shownu warily as the male put away the shirts he was holding.

“Chaeyeon? Right, I always hear your name. Oh my, I’m sorry for disturbing you, dear.” Mrs. Son was flustered, but the girl laughed it off.

“It’s okay, ma’am. If you need help, I can show you around. I used to work here.”

“You worked here?” Shownu turned to her, Chaeyeon nodded back at him.

“Really? Then, can you help my caveman of a son? He needs a new wardrobe for work. And, don’t call me ma’am. Auntie will do.”

Chaeyeon glanced at her secretary, Shownu was about to reason with his mother but the girl nodded for the female to move along.

“I wouldn’t call him a caveman. But, I can help.”

“That’s perfect, Chaeyeon-ah. My mother-in-law is right,” Mrs. Son said as she hooked arms with the girl and pushed her son away.

“Yes?” Chaeyeon glanced at the male briefly, Shownu grinned at her.

“You are too good for either her grandsons. Tell me, do you have a store here too? I’d like to see your new collection.”

“Eomma, she’s supposed to come with me. You brought me here to get clothes.” Shownu said as he kept pace with the two women.

“Well, I hope to see you again, Chaeyeon-ah. I’ll leave Son Hyunwoo in your hands.” Mrs. Son said jokingly before moving away, the girl gave the lady a small wave before facing him.

“Really? Minhyuk’s Chaeyeon?”

“I didn’t know how else to describe you.” Shownu mused as they walked together, Chaeyeon her lips. She called over one of the Galleria staff.

“I need everything, from pants, shirts, vests, ties~” She paused, she looked at Shownu again, her forehead creasing.

“No, no vests and ties. Preferably Armani, or Zegna. Yes, Zegna. And, anything that’s streamlined for the shoulder and the arms. Nothing Gucci or Dolce.” She continued, she raised her palm and paused.

“Can I?” She spoke, Shownu nodded at her, even with her heels, Chaeyeon had to tiptoe a bit just to see that size of the shirt he was wearing.

“He’s an XL in Balenciaga, base it on that.” Chaeyeon said, the staff nodded back and left them. Chaeyeon puffed her cheeks and faced him again, only to find Shownu staring back at her.

“Wow, you are good with this.” He said as he gestured for her to walk with him.

“Actually, I just recently started getting into men’s wear. I have my launch next week, and,” Chaeyeon halted when Shownu suddenly reached for her arm and gently pulled her.

“They were polishing this area earlier. It could get slippery.” He said, Chaeyeon nodded back.

“You were saying?”

“Oh, right, my launch is next week. And, you know what, you and Wonho oppa should come.”

“Do I need clothes for that too?” Shownu asked dryly, Chaeyeon rolled her eyes at him but she was smiling.

“You can roam go ahead and roam around, I’ll wait in the dressing room upstairs. I know this place is boring to you.”

Shownu pursed his lips and looked around.

“How do you take your coffee?”

“Huh?”

“Coffee. What are your preferences?” Shownu said, his forehead creased slightly as he noticed how some male customers were staring at the girl’s legs.

“Starbucks?”

“If you want, sure.”

“Coffee jelly, but have the jelly separated. Hey, you asked.” She said defensively, Shownu chuckled and nodded.

“I’m not going to judge. I’ll walk you to the dressing room.”

“You don’t have to.”

“I want to. Come on.” He gently pulled her by the strap of her purse, and they got on the escalator, Shownu made sure to stand behind the girl as they went up.

Minhyuk stretched his arms before opening his laptop, he had just received an email from Chaeyeon’s office regarding her launch next week.

“Sir,”

He looked up as his secretary walked in with the day’s papers.

“I wasn’t able to check them earlier; I didn’t know we would be having a meeting that early.” He spoke as the male set it before him.

“Yes, and director Son told me to inform you that he had to step out.”

“Hyung did? Why?” Minhyuk paused, he picked up one of the newspapers and skimmed through it.

“His mother came by and, the madam wasn’t pleased with director Son’s….choice of clothes today.”

Minhyuk let out a laugh, remembering how uppity and proper his aunt was.

“Hyung is needed at the shop today, probably why he opted to dress down. Don’t worry about it, I’ll be at the GeumHo conference in his stead. Is there anything else I need to know?” Minhyuk halted as he saw an article with a photo of a young man below it, his forehead creased.

“T—This.”

“That would be all, sir. Will you be stepping out for lunch?”

Minhyuk looked up, his jaw grew taut.

“No, but if Chaeyeon ever calls put it straight to me.”
“As always, sir.” The male said before leaving the room, Minhyuk pored over the article again before crumpling the page in his hand.

“Is that what he calls himself now? Philanthropist?” He scoffed as he tossed it away, he leaned back on his seat and looked at his phone.

“She can’t know. She can’t see him.”

The male stood up and walked towards the windows, he chewed on the insides of his cheeks.

“Tell me, tell me what really happened!”

“You have to promise me. N—No..No one can find out!”

“Stop protecting him!”

“I love him!”

Minhyuk let out a shaky breath and left his office.

Shownu puffed his cheeks as he buttoned the shirt, he quickly tucked it in and grabbed the tie. He grimaced. He could hear Chaeyeon speaking from the other side of the curtain.

“I know, I know. I already discussed it with manager Shin. I might need to meet some new people for this then.” She was murmuring, Shownu could hear the doubt in her tone.

“Now? I can’t go now. I’m out. Can you send them over at the house?”

Shownu sighed as he put the tie around his neck.

“Stop sighing.” Chaeyeon’s voice made him pause, then he stepped out from the dressing room, the girl looked up.

“Well,” Chaeyeon’s brows went up fractionally, the male was wearing the Armani suit she had picked out for him. It was a classic look, the black pants fitted him well, Shownu had opted to leave the two top buttons open. The coat had framed his upper body so well that even Chaeyeon, someone who was so picky about how clothes fit on men, was impressed.

“I knew it.” She cleared as she walked to him, her eyes were on the poor necktie that Shownu wrapped around his fist.

“Huh?”

The girl climbed onto the platform before him and took the tie.

“I’ve been doing this for months now that I’m used to it.” She murmured as she put the tie around him and quickly buttoned his shirt.

“It’s uncomfortable, Chaeyeon-ah.” Shownu mumbled as the girl fixed the necktie around his collar.

“That’s why I only had a few sent here, you still need this for formal events. If you ever attend one.” She said without looking at him, Shownu paused briefly, a little stunned at her sudden proximity.

“But, this really looks good on you.” Chaeyeon said as a matter of factly, she looked up, scanning the entire outfit before gently tapping down the lapels of his coat.

“This.” Shownu pointed towards the tie again, she smiled and shook his head.

“Alright, we can get rid of this.” She murmured as she took it off him again, they heard the doors open and the two mall staff who were assisting them paused and started to stare.

“Can you try this coat I asked for? It’s Givenchy, and I was worried they run small but,” Chaeyeon gestured for the male to take off his coat.

The girl turned, expecting the staff to hand the coat to her, but they were simply staring at them.

“Yes?” Chaeyeon blinked at them.

“S—Sorry, ma’am. It’s just that you two look really good together.” One of them said good-naturedly as she handed the coat to the girl.

“No, I’m Minhyuk’s Chaeyeon. You two can go.” She dismissed them, Shownu let out a chuckle.

“Try this on.” Chaeyeon spoke, she helped him with the coat and Shownu looked at the mirror.

“This is good too.” She commented, Shownu scrunched his nose and walked to the table, he picked up his drink and took a sip.

“I hope I’m not taking too much of your time.” He commented, Chaeyeon shook her head and plopped down beside him.

“I needed the distraction.”

“Bad day?”

“I might need to meet this new investor; they’ve been trying to get into the company for weeks now.” She trailed off, Shownu had picked up the cup of the separated coffee jelly from her drink and was already eating it.

“Are you meeting them today? I can drop you off.”

“It’s on next Wednesday. Your mom’s nice.”

“Nice.” Shownu repeated and glanced at her, Chaeyeon laughed and straightened her skirt.

“It’s your fault for not changing before going to work, not hers.” She pointed out as she started arranging the piles of clothing before them. Shownu looked at the girl, his brows went up.

“But, in all honesty, you look really nice in suits. How about actually wearing them after buying them?” She said to him, Shownu grinned and took another sip of his drink.

“I mean it.” She continued, Shownu stood up and nodded back at her.

“I’ll pay for all this then and come back for you, young miss.” He said teasingly.

“Do not call me that!” She hissed as she padded after him, Shownu laughed to himself. Chaeyeon walked next to him and pursed her lips.

“How’s your other work so far? Fun?”

“It’s alright. It can get a little hectic.” Shownu trailed off as they reached the counter, the items were already being boxed up.

“Do you like what you’re doing? Your other job.” Chaeyeon continued as he took out his card and handed it to the lady behind the counter.

“It’s fine.”

“You see, I don’t understand fine. Do you like it? Does Son Hyunwoo not liking being back or, is it not interesting?” She prattled on, Shownu looked at her, amused.

“You’re chatty today.” He commented as he mindlessly reached out to pat down her hair, Chaeyeon rolled her eyes, not bothered by his actions.

“I’m used to Minhyuk, he’s the one doing all the talking. You’re quiet, I feel weird.” She pointed out as she peeked at the counter.

“Well, my work is okay. I find it interesting and it doesn’t bother me.” Shownu said as he got his card back.

“We’ll have your purchases delivered downstairs, sir.”

The two stepped away from the counter, Shownu was about to ask the girl what she wanted to do when her phone started to ring. His eyes went to the screen.

“Huh.” Chaeyeon said, he looked at her.

“Is that your impressive boyfriend?” Shownu asked with a grin, Chaeyeon exhaled and tossed the phone back in her purse.

“I’m meeting my cousins later; they probably want to ask about him.” She made a face as they went down the escalator.

“Anyway, this is where I leave you. I have a car waiting outside, so, I hope you had fun, young master.” She mused as they reached the ground floor. Shownu’s brows went up again.

“What?” Chaeyeon asked as she fixed the strap of her purse, Shownu was smiling as he reached for something in his coat pocket.

“This is for you.” Shownu stated as he placed the packet of mini cookies on her palm.

“Is..this my payment?” She said as she examined the baked goodies, Shownu nodded back at her before reaching out to put it in her purse instead.

“I have a feeling that going out with your cousins might stress you out, so, the sweets will keep your temper away.”

“Hah.” She said with a dry laugh before turning away from him, Shownu watched as they walked through the doors and got inside the waiting Land Rover. He shook his head to himself as he headed for the basement parking.

“It’s not always like this.” Minhyuk as he grabbed a pair of chopsticks, Shownu sat down and took off his coat. The two cousins had ended up ordering dinner and had it delivered at the younger male’s office. Their grandfather had come by earlier and requested to meet every department heads in the building and had a meeting for about three hours. And that exhausted the two young heirs, Shownu glanced at the company’s logo on the wall before digging in.

“Haraboji was really going at it. Was it really bad last year?” Shownu asked as he shoved a dumpling into his mouth, Minhyuk shook his head before replying.

“So bad that I actually thought of resigning and have myself disowned, hyung. I didn’t know what to do, but I had some help, so, I managed.”

“Help? Did you ask for an audit?” Shownu asked between bites, Minhyuk started to dig in. He glanced at his desk as his phone started to vibrate, he sighed, deciding to take it later.

“No, Chaeyeon is really good with this kind of stuff. I asked for her help, and in return I ran her company for her for a bit.” Minhyuk smiled to himself, Shownu glanced at him.

“I ran into her today.”

“Really? At the mall?”

“Yes.” Shownu nodded and picked up another dumpling, Minhyuk finally stood up to get their sodas from his table, he was about to check his phone when the doors suddenly burst open.

“Secretary~” Minhyuk stopped when a pair of arms suddenly wrapped around his neck, his forehead creased.

“Chaeyeon-ah,” He was stunned, Chaeyeon didn’t speak but she tightened her arms around him, and then Minhyuk felt it. The front of his shirt was getting damp and the girl remained silent.

Shownu was looking at the two, his brows went up.

“Hey, what’s wrong, babe?” He said softly as he put one arm around her waist. He heard Chaeyeon let out a shaky breath, the girl shook her head. 

“Chaeyeon-ah, you’re making me worry. What’s wrong?” Minhyuk murmured, Shownu chewed on his lower lip, unsure of what to do.

“Where were you? I’ve been trying to reach you the whole afternoon.” He hummed as he rubbed small circles on her back. Minhyuk grew genuinely concerned, Chaeyeon almost never acted like this. Something must have really frustrated her, it could be work or other stuff.

“Chaeyeon-ah,”

The girl let out another shaky breath and she slowly pulled away from him, Minhyuk frowned, seeing her tear-streaked face.

“I….I…just felt….It felt suffocating. I’m sorry, did I disturb you?” She murmured as she rubbed her cheeks, she paused, realizing that they weren’t alone.

“Oh my god, I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were eating. I was calling you but you wouldn’t pick up. And I just..I just~”

“It’s fine, have you eaten?” Minhyuk said soothingly, Chaeyeon’s forehead creased.

“I was…I met with Joori and the others today, Minhyuk-ah. She said…She said it was going to be just us cousins, the young ones.” She fumbled with the strap of her watch as she spoke. Shownu discreetly stood up, he paused, forgetting to bring his rice bowl with him.

“But it was all a trap….She brought everyone there, Minhyuk-ah. Our aunts were all there, they..the started asking me all these questions…they even spoke about how I was just lying and making things up…and…it frustrated me.”

Shownu paused, he put his food down and looked at the girl.

“Chaeyeon, I’m sorry. I…I only did that because I wanted them to stop.” Minhyuk replied as he pulled the girl to his chest again.

“It’s not that, that doesn’t bother me. But, is that all I really am to them? Is that all my worth? Am I worth nothing in their eyes because I don’t…I don’t…Is that all they want to ask to me? Don’t they ever want to know how I’m doing?”

Minhyuk’s frown deepened and he just kissed the side of her head.

“I’m sorry, Yeon. They don’t deserve you. Even your impressive boyfriend doesn’t.” He said softly, Shownu exhaled and quietly left the room.

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