Yo-han arrived at the office twelve minutes early, carrying a coffee he had no intention of drinking. His headache had eased after the shower and two painkillers, but every movement still reminded him how much whiskey he had consumed the day before.

Team B was already gathering around the conference table. The copywriter sitting closest to him looked up when he entered, then lowered her voice. "Are you feeling okay, Team Leader Lee?"

"I'm fine." Yo-han placed the untouched coffee beside his laptop and took off his coat. "Where are we with the Sakura House follow-up?"

"We received the meeting notes from the client this morning. They also sent a list of revisions for the Tokyo presentation."

"Send everything to me and schedule a team review for eleven."

She studied him for another moment before returning to her chair. Yo-han knew what the entire team had seen the day before. They had covered for him because they always did, but that did not make what he had done acceptable.

He sat down and opened his email. The first message was from Sakura House, thanking Team B for the revised concept and confirming that Yo-han would lead the next presentation in Tokyo. Tae-joo and several senior directors had been copied.

Yo-han had barely finished reading it when Tae-joo appeared beside his desk. "Come with me."

Yo-han closed the email and followed him into the nearest empty meeting room. Tae-joo shut the glass door behind them before placing his phone on the table. "Why did you leave the office at twelve forty-seven yesterday?"

"The meeting was over."

Tae-joo folded his arms. "You embarrassed yourself in front of me, ran out of the building, and left your staff to clean up after you."

"Yes, I shouldn't have left. I know that."

The admission seemed to disappoint Tae-joo, who had probably expected an argument he could use against him. "You think admitting it makes you responsible?"

"No. Coming back and doing the work makes me responsible."

Tae-joo looked at him for several seconds. "Sakura House asked for you because you corrected an interpreter. Don't mistake that for trust."

"They asked for me because my team created the campaign they wanted."

"Under company direction."

"Aissh... You can keep saying that, but it won't..."

Tae-joo's hand swept the laptop off the table so fast that Yo-han was still talking when it cracked against the wall and dropped to the floor.

"...become true."

"Don't you fucking dare..."

"I'm just asking for the Tokyo materials."

Tae-joo knew the whole office had fallen silent and was listening. He could have ended the argument by saying, "Because I want it that way," and walking off. Instead, he had tried to wear Yo-han down, forgetting that the man never did anything he did not want to do simply because someone tried to force him, and that anyone who argued with him long enough eventually gave up first. "I haven't decided whether you're going," Tae-joo said, staring at Yo-han with wide eyes.

"The client has," Yo-han said, his hands shaking.

"I am the director here..."

"Then act like the director and send me the work."

Tae-joo walked closer, stopping on the other side of the table. "You were drunk before two in the afternoon. Is that how you plan to represent this company in Tokyo?"

Yo-han did not answer immediately. The previous afternoon returned in fragments. The bar, the unfinished whiskey, the parking garage, Joo-won's hand pulling him away from the driver's seat. 

As Tae-joo kept pressing him, his inability to remember Joo-won only made him angrier. "I made a serious mistake yesterday," he said. "It won't happen again." Yo-han continued before he could interrupt. "If you wanna remove me from the project, send that decision to Sakura House in writing and explain why the person they requested won't be attending. Otherwise, forward the Tokyo file to my team."

Tae-joo picked up his phone. "Don't make me regret protecting you."

"Cut the bullshit, you don't protect me."

Yo-han opened the door and returned to Team B without waiting for Tae-joo to say anything else. His staff looked up as he walked across the office floor, but he gave them no explanation. He sat at his desk, opened the Sakura House email again, and began assigning sections of the Tokyo presentation.

Seven minutes later, the complete project file arrived from Tae-joo's office, and Yo-han forwarded it to his team before returning to work. Shortly before ten, his phone vibrated beside the laptop.

The message from Joo-won was still open from that morning.

This is Kim Joo-won.
You owe me. You can buy me dinner.

Yo-han smiled for the first time that morning.

Does tonight work?

Joo-won's answer came less than a minute later.

Eight.
I'll send you the address.

How did you get my number?

You gave it to me when you were drunk.

That was apparently the end of the conversation.

Yo-han placed the phone facedown and returned to the Tokyo file, though he caught himself checking the time more often than necessary for the rest of the day.