Joo-hyuk waited awkwardly at his table in The Lounge, an upscale restaurant in the JW Marriot Hotel, that had a panoramic view of the city. He nervously wrung his hands, taking in a deep breath. He had no idea why he was so antsy, but the thought that this dinner was a date, was freaking him out. He had only dated once back in high school—which was already twelve years ago. The CEO groaned as he tapped his index finger on the tablecloth, wanting to just leave from this situation. He glanced behind his shoulder and was about to stand up when he met Kang-san’s glare from a corner table, eying his boss with a look of disapproval. Joo-hyuk reluctantly sat back down, avoiding the general direction of his friend.

“Why the hell is he insisting on staying?!” he muttered when he felt a tap on his shoulders.

Joo-hyuk jumped in surprise as he looked behind him. It was Clara. She giggled at his reaction as he hastily got up and helped her to her seat. The lawyer smiled as she sat down. It was the first time she had seen Joo-hyuk look so flustered. His usual cool, commanding demeanor was gone—instead, it was replaced with one of worry and anxiety. How cute, Clara thought as she tried to hide her amusement. She had not expected him to actually show up to the dinner date, as he still seemed reluctant with the idea; nonetheless, she was grateful that he was giving this dating experience a chance.

“You don’t have to be so anxious, just think of this as a business dinner. Besides, we still have to discuss my first duty as Legal Director, right?” Clara asked with a reassuring smile.

“… Right. Well, should we order our dinner first before we get started?” Joo-hyuk responded robotically, as he handed Clara one of the menus that were placed on the table.

Clara smirked and nodded as she took the menu from him, before they both ordered their meal. Joo-hyuk still looked uncomfortable as he refused to maintain eye contact with Clara. Clara smiled to herself as she tried to make small talk with him about the upcoming meeting, she had with Mrs. Tan.

“I have scheduled the meeting with Mrs. Tan for tomorrow at 10am, since she’s leaving on Sunday. Here’s the presentation that I made while I referred to your project proposal and PowerPoint.” Clara handed him her tablet for him to see.

“As you can see, I emphasized on the idea of educating culture and being family-oriented, as the new hotel will be built in Brunei, which is well-known for its rich history. I think it would be nice if you also explained why you specifically chose Bandar Seri Begawan, as that would further convince Mrs. Tan of your outlook for this project.” Clara said as she finished her explanation of her slides.

“…Wait, I’m going with you for this meeting?” Joo-hyuk asked, surprised. He had been under the impression that Clara would be going on her own.

“I thought that would be better than just me going. After all, you are the one who is responsible for this project… Isn’t it a given that you should be present at the meeting as well?”

“You’re right, but you did say that you would obtain this contract for me. I didn’t know I had to pitch in the effort as well.” Joo-hyuk commented with an amused grin.

“Well, I’m certainly capable of obtaining the contract, but this relationship with Mrs. Tan is to build trust as the representative of the company.” Clara frowned. Did she make a mistake in assuming he would want to be present at the meeting?

“Haha, don’t worry. I’m not complaining, I’d love to be at the meeting. I also have to praise you for your hard work on this presentation. It’s very clean-cut and clear on the objective at hand, I really like it.”

“No problem, I’m glad you like it. By the way… Are you friends with GK Group's heir?” Clara asked hesitantly, as she thanked the waiter who brought their meal over.

“… Why do you ask?”, Joo-hyuk's face hardening into a scowl. Why was she asking about Soo-ho?

“Ah, I was just thinking how I almost had entered that company after he offered me a position… I’m just happy you accepted my offer—now I don’t have to move companies.” Clara answered as she sliced her sea bass fillet. If Joo-hyuk hadn’t accepted her offer, she had been more than willing to enter her father’s company, as it would have been easier to gain more information about the conglomerate.

“… Were you really planning on leaving SONGHWA Hotel if I had refused to take your proposal...?” he paused as he stopped cutting his steak.

“Yes, I was, why?” looking at him with a puzzled expression.

“You have no loyalty whatsoever.” Joo-hyuk grunted with a huff, annoyed that she had been planning on leaving his company.

“Hmm… Are you jealous?” Clara teased as Joo-hyuk looked away guiltily.

“What! No! Why would I be jealous???”

“Ohh~? But you’re acting…”

The two bantered back and forth as they finished their dinner. Joo-hyuk loosened up a bit, as he laughed along with Clara’s jokes. For some odd reason, Clara reminded him of someone, but he couldn’t quite figure out who she resembled. The CEO brushed it off, opting to focus on his time with Clara instead. Surprisingly, the two had much in common. They both enjoyed going to museums, hiking, and had the same taste in music. He smiled, even if he had no intention of marrying her, he was glad to have made a new friend.

Joo-hyuk found himself having fun with Clara as they took a walk around the Dongdaemun Design Plaza, which was only a 7-minute walk from the restaurant. They both marveled at the dazzling structure of the building while the lights danced against the aluminum panels. Joo-hyuk smiled as she dragged him towards the crowds that were listening to two pianists playing a rendition of the soundtracks of the hit Korean drama, Goblin. Clara smiled as she swayed to the music, still holding onto Joo-hyuk’s hand. Joo-hyuk looked down at Clara, his heart thumping, as the music from the piano and the loud chattering of the people around them dimmed into the background. He felt breathless, as he watched Clara’s bright smile radiate even more with the illuminating LED roses in the background. Was she always that charming and beautiful?

Joo-hyuk flinched as he let go of Clara’s hand, flustered. What the hell, was that?, he thought as he shook his head, befuddled. Clara looked up at him, startled that he suddenly let go of her hand. She tapped on his shoulder and motioned to him if he wanted to leave, which he nodded to, quickly making his way out of the crowd. She noticed that his face was red. She titled her head to the side as she watched him dart his way out of the area. Maybe he didn’t like to be in large crowds?

“CEO Kim, are you okay? I’m sorry, I thought you might enjoy the music… I didn’t think you would be uncomfortable in a tight-knit crowd.” 

“Ah… it’s all right. Um… Should we go now? We do have to wake up early for our meeting tomorrow with Mrs. Tan.” Joo-hyuk massaged the back of his neck, avoiding Clara’s careful glance.

“Okay! Since you left your car back at the hotel parking lot, let’s walk back together. Also, I really enjoyed our time together tonight… I wasn’t feeling great in the morning, but… now I feel a lot better, so thank you.” Clara smiled as she led the way back to the hotel.

The CEO looked after her, stunned. He hadn’t thought she would be thanking him for coming out tonight. Joo-hyuk felt his cheeks flush as he trailed behind her, back to the hotel. He couldn’t possibly have fallen for her—right? He shook his head. It was impossible, he had never fallen for anyone, not even for his girlfriend back in high school. No, no way!!!, Joo-hyuk thought as he silently gazed at the woman in front of him, denying that he had fallen head over heels for Clara Astley.

Once they reached the hotel parking lot, Clara waved goodbye and was heading off to the main street when Joo-hyuk called after her. She turned around, wondering why he was calling out to her, as the CEO jogged towards her. He massaged his neck awkwardly as he asked if she had not brought a car to the hotel. She shook her head, questioning why he was asking her such a thing. Joo-hyuk sighed as he grabbed Clara’s hand and dragged her to his car.

Opening the passenger seat, Joo-hyuk tilted his head, gesturing to Clara to get in. She stood there for a minute, contemplating if she should until he pushed her inside, closing the door. Clara watched as Joo-hyuk made his way to the driver’s side as he too got inside the car.

“Um… I could have just taken the subway.” Clara insisted meekly, as she glanced at Joo-hyuk who looked over at her and sighed.

“Aren’t you the one that said this was our ‘first date’ as a ‘couple’? Besides, it’s already 10pm, so I’ll just take you home. Here, put your address in.” he handed her his phone.

“It’s not that late…” she retorted as she quickly inputted her address. Joo-hyuk smirked, she could never let him have the last word. They drove in silence for a while until the CEO spoke up, feeling uncomfortable in the silent car.

“Do you not own a car?”

“No, not yet. I didn’t feel the need to get one.” Clara replied as she stared out the window, taking in the bright lights of the city, as Joo-hyuk drove to her apartment.

“I’ll have Kang-san give you one of the company cars. You’re the Legal Director now, you need to have a car.”

“Wow, that’s generous of you. I’ll gladly accept it, thank you.”

“…Let’s schedule our dates from now on.” Joo-hyuk suggested, hesitantly, glancing over at Clara, who shot him a perplexed look. He wanted to do what now??

“Er… what… do you mean by ‘scheduling’ our dates?” puzzled at his choice of words. He didn’t actually mean to plan all of their meetings ahead of time, right?

“I mean what exactly the word means. I want to plan our ‘dates’ ahead of time so I can add them to my schedule.” Joo-hyuk responded not taking his eyes off the road.

“… Have you never dated before??? How can we schedule our dates ahead of—”

“If we’re going to have a go at ‘dating’ we need to meet outside of work, yes? I have my schedule packed full of meetings for the whole year, so I need to squeeze in some time for you. I will try to meet you at least once or twice a week.” he reasoned as they arrived at Clara’s place. He looked over at Clara and gestured for her to get out of his car.

Clara just stared at Joo-hyuk dumbfounded. He was totally serious about this. Even if he was busy, did they really need to schedule their dates ahead of time? With a sigh, Clara was about to get off the car, when she turned and kissed him lightly on the lips. Joo-hyuk stared at her, with eyes wide and lips slightly parted. Clara laughed and quickly got out of the car and poked her head inside.

“Don’t get too comfortable with your schedules now~”, she said, with a slight smile as she closed the door and ran away into her apartment complex.

“… Goddamnit…! That woman will be the death of me, I swear!”, Joo-hyuk said as he covered his mouth, feeling the warmth of a blush crawl up his cheeks.

**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.**