Yes, it has been a long while.

And no, Jongdae didn’t send any sort of news or clue that he was coming back.

No mail, no letter, no text, no phone call, just nothing.

You’re completely used to the fact that 50% of your head is filled with entirely waiting for him to come back to the country and for you to see him at last.

You wonder when that lump is going to disappear completely from your head.  Which can only happen when he’s near you.  Thinking alone quietly helps you to calm your mind, every night before you go to sleep.

Just when you were settling down your thoughts, Lena raps on your door.

“Tsk,” You click your tongue irritatedly and open the door.  “What is it?”

“Agasshi, I’m sorry, but the director needs you in his work room,” She bows.

You slip your feet into your house slippers and put on your olive cardigan, collecting your hair to one side of your head as you close the door.

Striding towards the end of the 2nd floor’s corridor, you knock on the door and wait until your father says “Come in,” before entering the room.

He faces you from behind his desk and gestures for you to sit down, across from your mother who is already sitting down on one of the couches in the room.

Taking your seat, you ask, “Is there anything wrong?”

Your father sighs before he starts, “We haven’t been planning to tell you this but in the recent 6 months, our company’s business has been deteriorating rapidly,”

You frown.  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because your business is going so well, dear.  We wouldn’t want to disturb your thoughts with this,” Your mother answers you.  “But now, we’ve come to a decision to tell you about, well, this,”

You’re still confused.  Was that really the reason? This is weird.  “Really?”

Your father glances at your mother and an understanding passes between them.  Whatever they were hiding, they decided not to anymore.  “39% of the partnership we’ve established with other companies were ended,”

Gaping, you take the paper your mother hands you.  “39%? What happened?” You flip through the data and see that the partnership were cut off month by month, for several causes that were unable to be reasoned with. 

“Those companies found a better company to partner with; the Noeseong Company,” Your father quietly adds.

“Noeseong?”

“A 1-and-a-half-year-old newcomer.  A highly threatening one,” Your mother dangerously says, shaking her head in frustration.  “Started exactly one and a half year back, and now, it’s on the same level as the Park is,”

“What?” You exclaim.  “S-same level?” In disbelief, shock and a tinge of fear, you clutch your head.  “This is crazy,”

The Park company boomed at first, but the position it’s on right now took 5 whole years to accomplish.  This newcomer, this, Noeseong company is either started by a complete genius or a brilliant cheat.

You’re sent back to your room after a long discussion of what to do.  You’ll be absent from Eunbok tomorrow and you’ve left everything to Eun for that.  You try to sleep, still frowning with confusion.  Who the heck—?

***

The next day, you drive your car towards the Park company’s building and your entrance is greeted by all of the employees inside, lining up before the entrance and bowing at you as you pass.  You put on the best and most encouraging smile you have and greet everyone before entering the lift and shooting up towards your office.  Your smile turns into a stony mask, as your thoughts are already hectic in the morning.  You have a lot of things on your list.  A board meeting with the directors and managers, a cycle-through for the company’s activity in the last 3 months, the income and outcome of the company, and finally having to find a way to at least retrieve half of the 39% partnership you lost by the end of next month.

“Hyun-sajangnim, long time no see,” You greet her as you pass by her table on your way to your office.

“Ah, agasshi,” She slips out from behind her desk and falls in stride with you with effort of keeping up.  “Here’s the data for the company’s activities you asked for last night,” She hands you a clear folder and you accept it, without breaking stride entering your office and leaving her outside.

“Thank you, sajangnim,” You call after her and see her silhouette retreat away from your office door.

Then, your work begins.

For the whole day, not one second of rest did you get.  When you return to your office, it’s only to take a document you left behind for another meeting outside.  You rush around continuously, telling the employees on your floor to fetch you this and that from the company’s database, for them to organize the data according to month and amount, to collect phone numbers for various companies.  You sit on your chair and listen to the phone, the dial tone ringing until the other side picks up.  You converse with the person and get connected to the CEO easily, telling them that you’re the Park company’s daughter. 

From the 26 phone calls you made, 19 of them asked for further discussion and meeting, which meant that it was a success.  The other 7 were mostly the bigger companies, the one you lost the partnership with.  3 were giving in to you, giving an indication towards returning to partnering with Park, but the other 4, the serious big-guys, were firm with their decision of letting Park go and bonding with Noeseong. 

You stumble into the lift at the last minute and walk without energy across the lobby and towards the exit.  A crowd was gathered at the company’s big screen, a TV placed just above the entrance.  The crowd was increasing in density and you frown to focus on the TV.

The headline read;

“Noeseong’s Founder Returns To Korea”

A live feed flashes on the screen, displaying the amount of paparazzi gathered at the airport, waiting for the founder’s arrival.  The reporter in the background announces;

“.......has returned from his respectful study in Europe.  The media is gathered to figure out his flawless success in establishing the N company, already a level with the P company; Korea’s top notch business, after only one and a half year.  It seems that he came in with his own private jet, and will be in the airport within a few minutes,”

Your focus was blurry from fatigue but you frown at the words.  Study in Europe?

The crowd’s murmurs heightens as the TV’s volume was increased, the reporter’s voice blaring through the speakers. 

“........he is! Director! Cameraman are you getting this?! Director!”

The camera rushes towards a heavily guarded perimeter around a person, the people with tuxedos strongly pushing the media away from the person they’re guarding.

The cameraman of this TV channel must be excellent, because without fail, he caught a second’s glimpse of the CEO.

A second was enough.

Jongdae; he’s back.