Chapter 07: Habits

Na Eun sat back on her chair and she swivels around in her rotating chair. Then she stops the chair

'At least this has its uses' she mutters to herself

She is in complicated mood right now. Today is a weird day for her. She had managed to calm down but that did not help at all.

Because the matter is still not resolved

'Jin Ho' and she sighed again. 

'A kiss should not have shaken me so much' she thought but then when she thinks of who is the one who kisses her, she blushed again like she was back in high school.

It is because it is Jin Ho. After they break up with each other and even when they became friends, it is not like Na Eun did not try dating again. 

But, no one could compare. 

'It is not like he is Mr. Perfect' Na Eun thought to herself. But she could not help comparing. And she knew that was wrong. 

Maybe, it is because that she did not love all those men than she found fault in them. After a few more of such thing, she did not date anyone.

There is no need to become someone that breaks people heart when the problem is her. 

And her work with the startup keeps her busy. Before she founded her own company, she works at a big tech firm 

Then when she met Seung Ah and things happens, they established the Circle company. They are a startup and the initial money was provided by Hyun Seung. 

Of course, in the end, it is revealed that the money belongs to Jin Ho. They both had a fight about it in the past.

To Jin Ho it is nothing. But she could not accept it…. not from him. So, she mortgages most of her properties and pay Jin Ho back. 

That is when it started where she would go to his house a few days in a week and even after she got her own place, the habit stuck

But in those years, nothing happened. 

There was no accident between them. They were a few times where the mood turns romantic but it did not escalate to anything

This was not the first time that she is drunk in Jin Ho house. But there was something about last night that was different

Was it the mood? Did she say something? Or is it he that said something? Or is it because it was Valentine Day?

She tries to remember what happened but it is not like it is easy for her to remember it. And even now she is still a bit hungover.

Let alone remembering something, it takes her a lot of will not to get mad at the slightest noise. Usually, Jin Ho would order some hangover soup for her 

But this morning is not exactly like the same morning like usual

She sighed. 

She didn't remember what she and Jin Ho did to lead to such event but she is quite sure that it must have been something passionate or they would not have ended up the way they did. 

She looks at the clock on top of her table and then mutters to herself

'Where is she? It is not like her to be late' she thought to herself. She shakes her head and tries to focus on work. 

And for a while it works. 

Hours passes by as she went to the several departments and check things. Some things did not even need her checking but for some reason she still goes and checks it out.

And then she was back again where she started in her office, thinking about last night. 

Then she tries to think of something else

She has a happy news today.

She got an investor that is interested in her app. An angel investor. Of course, she first makes sure that this person is not someone who is related to Jaeil Group.

 Jaeil group does not belong to Jin Ho but Jin Ho had a lot of friends in high places

Well, it is not really accurate to say that there are Jin Ho friends. They were more like his subordinate. 

The angel investor is really someone who sees the potential of the app and not some convoluted way for Jin Ho to invest in her company

'I'm a bit petty' she thought to herself. It is not like Jin Ho could not see that her app could be big

But because there is something that she wanted to prove. She does not want handouts. And certainly not from him

She would never let him see her fall deep bottom

Then she shakes her head

'I guess that is the excuse I come up with' and she smiles bitterly. 

She sighed. That is why she is feeling very conflicted right now

On one side, she is happy that she finally gets a way out of her problems. On the other hands she is thinking of Jin Ho.

She is now in her thirties. 

She is not like a teenage girl.

 She hardly felt butterflies anymore. 

But…. if there is a man in her life that could make her felt like she was back in the past, it would be Jin Ho

All it needed was a kiss. Even she does not know that. It is like she marks her soul with his kiss. Butterflies flying again

It is a cliché words but it was like magic

She is not one to romanticize things.

But she guesses it is different when it is love. She thought that she could forget about it. Even yesterday, she was ready to end it.

To end this feeling that she has been bottling up all of these years. She fears that whatever they have, whatever they share…. would be broken if she became honest.

But that kiss is like a kiss that shatters all her plans and calculations. 

And she did not know what to do with this feeling. Of course, it is always good to be honest with each other. 

But there are certain things that they did not share with each other

Since they became friends, they spend every anniversary together.

They even have some weird rituals like meeting each other in Valentine, eating at hotels in the anniversary of their first meeting and many other things.

They even find reason to meet each other and before long, even when they not dating anyone, they don't feel anything is lacking

Before she realizes it, he became an irreplaceable person in her life. She has spent her teenage years, her twenties with him. 

She could not stand a life without him in her life. Of course, it is not like she is going to die if he is not in her life. But it would feel like there is a gaping hole in her life.

An emptiness that no one could fill.

And she could not stand the thought of that. She thought protecting the friendship would be the way. But now, she doesn't know anymore.

She is in her office thinking about this instead of the problems of her company. Is it unprofessional? Maybe.

But who would know her thoughts? She is thinking of how to solve this. After all, it is not like she could avoid seeing him forever

She takes a deep breath.

She is still waiting for Seung Ah to come to work. If she is here, it is easier for her to share this with Seung Ah

Of course, she could not share all the details. 

Knowing how Seung Ah and Hyun Seung view her relationship with Jin Ho, if she tells Seung Ah that she seems to spend the night together with Jin Ho, she would treat it as an interesting story and said that she had said it all before.

Seung Ah herself had never dated but she sure does seem like someone that had dated many men before.

Maybe it is because the way she carried herself. Or maybe it is the fact that she is just the observer and it is easy for her to see things objectively instead of the one involved.

Na Eun shakes her head. 

Outside, her workers are busy at work. 

She looks at the clock and seems to think that time today move abnormally slow. 

Not before long, it was evening and she send everyone home before she also went out of the building. 

As she is walking to the outside of the building, she could feel the phone in her pocket vibrates and she look at the screen and her expression is complicated

'Jin Ho' It is Jin Ho that is calling her. But she did not know what to do now. Should she answer it? Should she ignore it?

She looks at it and for a few second, she is thinking what to do. She usually picks up her phone after three rings. It is like occupational habits.

But the fourth ring sounded and she still did not answer the phone but then after the fifth ring she answers the phone

She did not say anything and on the other side of the line, Jin Ho also did not say anything.

For a moment there is only silence between them. She walks outside the building while holding her phone to her ear and stop in front of the building. 

Then Jin Ho speaks

'Hey'

'Hey' she said back

'We need to talk' Jin Ho said. 

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