Joo-hyuk swung the door from his bathroom wide open before he padded out to his walk-in closet as he dried off his hair with a towel. He sighed as he tossed his towel onto the glass-top closet island filled with luxury watches and neckties. Joo-hyuk reached for the remote, turning on the TV in his bedroom before he strode back to his closet to change. The hum of the news relaxed his nerves as he finished putting on his navy-blue suit pants, and a white button-up shirt. He was putting on his watch when the news anchor mentioned the name ‘Lee Jae-kyung’. Shocked, Joo-hyuk paused before he whipped his head to his bedroom, staring at the TV screen. The CEO watched and listened as the news anchor reported that the cold murder case of Lee Jae-kyung finally had a prime suspect after finding compelling evidence pointing to GK Group’s Chairman, Cha Min-woo. Joo-hyuk slowly walked towards the TV, in disbelief. He stood there staring at the screen as he scoffed, repulsed by the news. It was the Chairman all along, then?
“Was my mother right to assume Chairman Cha had been involved with the murder of Soo-hyun’s mother…? Then what about Soo—…” he trailed off, not wanting to finish his train of thought. It was disgusting and cruel.
How could a husband and father do such a thing to his own family? Joo-hyuk shook his head as he trudged to his bed and plopped down, turning off the TV as he sighed. The heir to HANSUNG rested his head in his hands as thoughts of the young, playful child filled his mind. He had been six years old when he had met the four-year-old Cha Soo-hyun. She had found him crying by himself in the corner of the garden, leaning against a big willow tree. Soo-hyun had handed him a flower, smiling up at him sweetly, trying to comfort him. It had been the first time someone had ever approached him without any ulterior motives.
Joo-hyuk brought his hands down as he shook his head, trying to forget that memory. What good was it to remember someone who was dead? She was never going to come back anyway. With yet another sigh, he stood up and put on his navy suit jacket as he walked down the stairs and out of the front entrance of his family home.
Waiting outside the gates of his Hannamdong* home, were his personal driver and his new Chief Secretary, Jung Kang-san. Joo-hyuk smiled as he patted Kang-san’s shoulder, who smiled widely at him before opening the door for Joo-hyuk. Joo-hyuk was taken aback—his friend had never done that before. He looked over at the new secretary in bewilderment, but the young man just chuckled, ushering his boss into the car. Joo-hyuk sighed as he stared out the window deep in thought, when Kang-san’s cellphone rang. After checking who was calling, Kang-san quickly answered it, glancing behind him towards Joo-hyuk, who was looking back at him with an eyebrow raised.
“Yes, yes sir. I understand…CEO Kim, it’s the Chairman.” Kang-san said as he handed the phone over to Joo-hyuk.
Joo-hyuk rolled his eyes before he took the phone from his friend, answering with a half-hearted ‘hello’. He listened for a bit, before he talked to his father in a low, calm, but rigid voice.
“Father, I understand, however, I will not do what you suggest.”
“What are you saying?! Are you not going to marry Jung-hyun?! We had an agreement between families, what’s this about a girlfriend?!”
“Father, do you really think we should even be siding with GK Group right now? Their Chairman is embroiled in a murder case! And not just any murder case, but a first-degree murder case of his own dead wife!” his voice getting a bit louder, as Joo-hyuk tried to control his frustration.
“… We have been their business partner since our fathers’ time. We cannot just abandon them because of this scandal. Joo-hyuk—” his father tried to reason with him, exasperated with his son’s stubbornness.
“No. I will not marry her. Besides, this ‘agreement’ you mentioned was only for when Soo-hyun was alive—the legitimate heiress to the company. We are no longer bound to such agreements as she is already dead. Father, I know you and mother have been wanting to keep a distance ever since Chairman Cha’s former wife had passed and Soo-hyun went ‘missing’. Don’t you think this is a great opportunity to do just that?” Joo-hyuk asked as he massaged his temple with his left hand. Why was his father so adamant of keeping ties with that repulsive man?
His father paused. Joo-hyuk titled his head in confusion at his father’s lack of response. There was a moment of silence before his father spoke.
“… She is not dead, she’ll turn up. We cannot… ha... We cannot end ties with that company, for Soo-hyun’s sake! Break up with that woman you have been parading to be your girlfriend this instant!” his father said, angrily.
“… I’m afraid I can’t do that. Also, it’s been 20 years since that child disappeared! Seeing as how she never came back… She’s probably dead.” Joo-hyuk responded with a frustrated sigh. Did his father really think Soo-hyun was alive? How ridiculous.
“She is NOT! Don’t you dare utter such a thing!!! And you dare defy me?! Do you not want to be the next Chairman of HANSUNG?!!!” his father threatened, his voice growing louder and louder.
“You have no one else to give the company to. Father, please, consider my words… Siding with GK Group is not ideal.” Joo-hyuk rubbed his temples, his head splintering in pain.
“Well, pray tell what you have in mind then. How are you going to go about distancing our corporation from GK?” his father asked with resignation.
“… I may have a way of procuring a contract with Elizabeth Tan, the Singaporean investor… My source has been able to procure a meeting with her.”
“Is it from a reliable source? Are you absolutely sure you’ll be able to obtain that contract?”
“Yes, I’m 100% sure that it is reliable. I asked Chief Secretary Jung and Kang-san to look into it, and it matched exactly with what my source had told me. I’m sure we will win this contract, please trust me, father.” the CEO replied with a sigh.
“… Hmph! Well, we’ll see if you’ll even be able to obtain that contract. I’m hanging up now.” Joo-hyuk’s father grunted as he hung up the phone, not waiting for his son to say his goodbyes.
Joo-hyuk handed Kang-san’s phone back to him with a groan. How was he supposed to obtain that contract without accepting Clara’s conditions?! Joo-hyuk had gotten a full report from Kang-san– who received the information from his father– that everything Clara had told him two days ago was all real. She really hadn’t been lying when she said GK Group was planning on scouting her. He groaned in anger and frustration as he tsked, thinking about how shallow his competitor was to try and snatch his person away. Kang-san glanced at Joo-hyuk in the rearview mirror as they made their way to the entrance of the company. The car came to a stop and Kang-san quickly got out from his seat, opening the backseat. Joo-hyuk sighed as he got out of the car with his suitcase as the board of directors bowed to him in respect. He waved them off with a stoic face, annoyed that they were wasting their time just to say hello to him.
Joo-hyuk and his secretary got into one of the elevators, as all the employees just stood outside of it, averting their gaze from him. He frowned and told everyone to get in before they were late to work. With nervous laughter, his employees quickly piled into the elevator, each hoping to hurry out of the enclosed space and away from their scary new employer. In the span of two days, Joo-hyuk had managed to gain the nickname, ‘The Handsome Devil’, as he had immediately started grilling the executives of the company for their lack of innovation and disregard of the company. By the second day at his new position, the CEO had managed to fire three executive directors of the company.
The heir sighed as he watched yet another employee scramble out of the elevator, practically running for his life. He glanced over at his Chief Secretary and whispered to him to have Clara come by his office for a chat. Kang-san nodded as he got off the 14th floor and to the Marketing Department. Before Clara came up to his office, he had to think of something, anything that would be on par with marriage.
SIDE NOTE:
*Hannamdong: an affluent neighborhood in Seoul. Many CEOs and celebrities live there
**NOTE: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.**
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