Chapter 3

Seo Kang’s sharp words tore into Jihee’s heart like knives.

What good could possibly come from a marketer going out of her way to burn bridges with the lead actor? She didn’t know why she had pushed things this far. This was a first for her.

Seo Kang’s attitude weirdly provoked her competitiveness. Perhaps it was curiosity. It felt like an itch she couldn’t help but scratch. She just had to scratch this lottery ticket down with a coin to know if she had won or lost.

What was she supposed to say now? Sure, they might never run into each other again, but this was an actor who worked constantly. If unlucky, they could be running into each other on many future occasions.

Do I just end things on a good note to try and avoid any uncomfortable or embarrassing situations, or do I just continue to ride this, show him who the real bitch is in this town?

Jihee eventually came to her own compromise. She couldn’t give up on either her job or her pride.

“I’m not... being feisty. Let’s just say I have strong opinions and I’m not afraid to express them. You celebrities do that all the time, right? Even though you said you don’t.”

There was a twinkle in those dazzling eyes of his. Seo Kang shifted in his seat, moving his body from being deeply buried in the back of his chair to leaning forward on the table, as if to get a closer look at her.

Who exactly was this woman? Why did she make him so curious? Usually women would try to charm him with their quirkiness every now and then to get his attention.

Was she one of those?

But there was one thing he had absolutely had to acknowledge.

“You’re good at... keeping eye contact.”

This guy was just as odd as she was, wasn’t he now? His seemingly arbitrary words made it even more difficult to break away from his gaze. In all honesty, the energy from his eyes was so intense that it wasn’t easy looking into them for long.

But still, Seo Kang’s eyes had a sensuality and a charm capable of captivating anyone, and so she didn’t want to look away.

She now understood all those stories of how actresses who looked into this man’s eyes while filming couldn’t help but to fall for him.

“Because your eyes are... pretty.”

How simple and matter-of-fact. She wasn’t paying him lip service. It was a sincere compliment. It would be harder to fake a compliment with a man like Seo Kang.

“Your eyes are pretty, too, Miss Yoo Jihee.”

That was unexpected. Now that was what you call paying lip service. That was a typical pick-up line used by men. But - and maybe because it was coming from an actor - those words shook her heart hard in every direction, up and down and left and right.

He has quite the history with women. Is he in his element right now? Just like the tabloids say? Am I being... lassoed in?

Masking her doubtful thoughts, Jihee smiled at him. She turned on the same flirtatious eyes she had been using all day.

Offense was the best defense. If she didn’t want to get caught in the net, she would have to break it.

“I hear that pretty often, though I’m sure it’s nothing compared to you.”

“Isn’t there a saying? ‘Men line up for women with pretty eyes.’”

Excuse me...?

The tides had clearly turned on this conversation. It went from being a conversation between a PR rep and an actor to being a conversation between a man and a woman.

But Seo Kang’s words were misleading. The person with women lining up for them was none other than Seo Kang, himself, wasn’t it? And people of this particular breed were most often referred to as ‘players.’

“Aren’t you the player here...?”

You’re notorious. Everyone knows, and the tabloids are legit, Jihee added in her head. She couldn’t say yet another thing that she would regret.

Draaaag.

Seo Kang pushed his chair back and stood up. With his stature, he was able to walk over to her in just two steps. He perched himself on the table.

The distance between the two became uncomfortably close for a professional setting.

Seo Kang was much taller than the average Korean man, while Jihee was considerably more petite than the average Korean woman. Him sitting on the table while she sat in a chair put quite the distance between their eyes.

Seo Kang slid his hands into the pockets of his black pants and looked straight down at Jihee.

A smile slowly lit up across his face.

“Sort of?”

“Sort of...?”

What is that supposed to mean... that he’s ‘sort of’ a player? It seemed too strange a confession, yet on the other hand, Jihee knew she couldn’t have gotten a more honest answer.

“I’m not a player, but others say I am. So, I guess that puts me somewhere in between. And you?”

Me? He’s asking me if I’m a player?

If she were an interrogator and he the suspect, he had just testified the cold hard truth. How could she give him any less in return?

“... A little?”

Seo Kang repeated her words with his low, dreamy voice.

“A little...”

“I don’t know what other people think of me. I’m not even sure of myself. But... I like men, and I like dating men. So maybe a little.”

And there it was. She had opened up her insides and laid it all out for him. No frills, no bullshit. Being coy or making lame jokes wouldn’t work on a man who had just told her he was ‘sort of’ a player.

She wasn’t about to sweet talk the guy either.

If it were just a guy she was flirting with or casually seeing, she would have avoided answering the question entirely.

‘I’m the loyal type’ ‘I go all in on one person’ ‘I tend to be the one giving a lot of love’ - she would’ve entertained the guy with phony niceties that were neither joke, neither truth, and they would have gone along with it.

But it wouldn’t work on this man. His eyes could already see through to her soul. He definitely had superpowers.

His eyes twinkled like the stars. Jihee had to lower her gaze to look away so as not to be seduced. Even though his eyes were far away, it wasn’t easy to keep eye contact. His gaze was both as cold as the stars in the night sky and as searing as the hot sun.

But lowering her gaze ended up bringing Jihee’s eyes level with the exact place she had planted her face not too long ago.

Jihee had never been one to be easily shaken. But in front of this man, she felt like a helpless ferry boat about to be swallowed by the monstrous sea.

Since we’re here I might as well apologize. Or else that incident will keep me restless for who knows how long.

“I’m sorry about... before.”

Was this the same woman who, just moments before, declared ‘I like men’? She had wanted to pretend that nothing happened, move on quietly in case he would feel uncomfortable. Yet here she was, apologizing.

Jihee lifted her head up and looked at him with a fierce gaze. No way was she running away from this.

Women who could maintain eye contact with Seo Kang were few and far between, with the exception of those he acted with or dated.

That’s not to say there weren’t instances where the director had to yell cut because his co-star couldn’t help but to shy away from him, or the mood would be ruined on a date because his girlfriend would curl up in embarrassment.

But this particular woman showed no sign of being either of those. And perhaps that was the reason why he had approached her so closely.

It would normally take the sky falling for Seo Kang to lose his cool, but this particular incident really threw him off.

It gave him a weird feeling. He even felt excited. All because of this woman.

And that position they were in? ... Everyone was familiar with where that usually lead.

After finishing an interview Seo Kang had made his way to the 2^nd floor for some fresh air. He didn’t have to open his eyes to know that the person coming out of the bathroom was the very woman who had excited him moments ago. He had seen her heading upstairs.

She had pretended to not see him even though she had. As if he were invisible. It was the first time any human being on this earth treated him like he was invisible.

Not one person had been able to dismiss his presence. It didn’t take much for their gaze and bodies to be pulled in.

But this woman was a puzzle. She was like a Russian doll with infinite layers.

And speaking with her was even more amusing. He didn’t know if he’d ever be able to get to the bottom of this Russian doll.

In the midst of all this, one thing he knew for sure was that she gave him a special and peculiar feeling. It felt like she was poking at him with well-sharpened pick, seeing if he would pop.

Maybe she wasn’t a Russian doll. Maybe she was a roulette game. It was all very intriguing to Seo Kang.

“If you’re sorry, how are you going make up for it?”

Seo Kang had just thrown the bait. This was a textbook move guys used to try and pick up girls.

Acting like the woman owed them something when actually they were trying to gauge her interest. It was a wicked move to try and get what they wanted.

Whatever it was, he had just thrown the bait ... or was he just playing around?

Jihee had strong feeling in her gut. And a gut feeling from the self-proclaimed ‘dating master’, or ‘dating god’ according to others, was not one to be dismissed.

So, she decided to bite the bait. She would get herself caught in Seo Kang’s fishing net.

But if this guy was fishing, then a relationship wasn’t what he was looking for. He was probably just curious. But curious in what way? That was the real question.

OK, let’s be real. A man’s “curiosity” is nothing new. What lies underneath that curiosity is always...

‘Sex.’

No matter how brazen and gutsy a woman Jihee was, or how savvy an expert- or master, even- in love, this particular scenario was something she really needed to muster up the courage for.

The moment she made her next move, the lukewarm breeze that blew between them was sure to get either unbearably frigid or fervidly hot.

No need to mention how the tables would turn on their professional relationship.

In addition, it was odd for a mere PR rep to be making this kind of move on a superstar. The other way around would be less unusual.

Which was why Jihee needed a boost in confidence. She just needed a little yeast to make the dough rise.

And if one were to ask, ‘Is this necessary?’

To let a man as attractive and delicious as Seo Kang pass you by would be a waste of life itself. My dating life, no, my life as a whole, deserves an adventure like this.

I’m going to bite the bait and rattle him up so much that I destroy his net. No. From this moment on, I will be the one throwing the bait from inside the net.

Jihee let out a few short breaths then asked him the question- a simple question- in a voice just loud enough for him to hear. Clear and to the point.

“Wanna sleep with me?”

‘Wanna do it with me?’ ‘Wanna spend the night with me?’ ‘Wanna have sex?’ She had contemplated a few options, but decided to go with the simplest, and most standard of proposals.

‘Wanna sleep with me?’

This was big. Jihee was an ordinary girl with not much to offer. She wasn’t a girl with heaps of money lying around to spend, she wasn’t a superstar like he was, she didn’t have any special talents.

Jihee was just your average girl who worked a job she enjoyed. Maybe some might even think she was slightly on the pretty side.

Which was why it was so extraordinary.

And she needed him to know that.

But there wasn’t so much as the faintest glimmer, an ant’s toenail’s worth of panic in his face.

She expected at least a little bit of a shock, but all she got was... that smirk.

That same smirk. He smirked!

This really sucks. Not even a tiny surprise, fluster, drop of embarrassment, or even a welcome! A smirk?!

Did I overreact or get his signals mixed up? Was I imagining the bait and the net? I’m so confused.

“I thought... that’s where this was headed. But I guess not.”

Have I just made a big fool of myself? I was getting a strong vibe from you... or not.