When Last Night Didn't End

Episode 8: 이것들은 너무 눈이 먼 눈들입니다

The building was bustling with activity the moment Hye-jin burst through the rotating doors. Men in suits with their soles clacking away against the gleaming white tiles passed her by, each engaged in their paths. Women in tight skirts and stark blazers breezed through the floor, seemingly on their way to lunch. No one bothered to give Hye-jin as much as a sideways glance, but the feeling of not belonging in this place wormed its way into her gut.

She shook her head, steeling her nerves. Just find Rin's floor. He still had to eat, right? Knowing him, he wouldn't even step out of the building if he's buried in work as he made it to be.

"Excuse me," she approached the first group of men in suits that looked the least hostile. They looked young and were most probably interns or just starting out. "Do you know which floor this company was on?"

She showed them a logo of Rin's company from her phone. The employees' eyes lit up in recognition. "It's on the thirteenth floor," one of them, a kid with gelled-back hair said, matching his directions with gestures of his hands. "Take that elevator there. There are signs that'll tell you where to go on that floor."

"Ah, I see," Hye-jin ducked her head at them in thanks. They looked at each other in confusion about what she did. No time to clear the air. She tore through the floor, heading towards the line of elevators glinting silver against the harsh burst of the afternoon sun.

When the elevator doors parted after the ding, she stepped out and walked with wide steps. She glanced around to confirm what the guy from the ground floor said. Muttering under her breath, she followed the bright yellow signs with arrows pointing to what part of the building Rin's company rented.

She got to some kind of a wide opening with workers streaming in and out. Nailed on the lintel was the glass plaque bearing the name and the logo of what she's looking for. She stood on her tiptoes in an attempt to see which one of them would be Rin. When the stream thinned but still no Rin, she intercepted a guy with pale skin and hair showing premature balding. He looked young, though. "If you don't mind," she said. "Is Rin inside?"

The man blinked before blowing an uncharacteristic heavy breath, trudging back from where he came from. Then, after a few seconds, Rin was running towards her. "Hye-jin?" he said as the man who fetched him passed by them like they're invisible. "What are you doing here?"

If Hye-jin was supposed to be hurt by how pointed Rin's question was, she didn't have the heart to show it. Instead, she shoved a bag into his arms. "You forgot your lunch," she said, meeting her husband's eyes. She had never seen them so heavy-lidded. Were those dark circles under them? "You should at least eat something."

Rin opened his mouth to speak but someone hollered from the inside, "Nagara! The client's asking for another meeting! Could you set it up?"

He turned to her and flashed her an apologetic smile. "I'll get back to you later, okay?" he gave her a light squeeze on the arm before rushing back to the office. Within seconds, he was pacing around with his phone in his ear. His words were being drowned out by the droll of clacking keys and employees similarly engaged with calls.