I Think I've Poked a Sleeping Bear
Chapter 10
Chapter 10
The President Was My First Love…… Or So It Went……
He heard it.
‘It’s the President! That’s who I like!’
And not just that she liked him.
‘If I ever actually get married, I want to marry the President! Because I like him so much!’
He heard the whole thing, crystal clear. That massive, ridiculous lie.
Aaargh.
Just thinking about him overhearing all that made her face burn red hot. Even while she couldn’t bring herself to lift her head, she stole a glance at the President—and his expression was dead serious.
“I was curious. I’ve never shown you my true self, yet you said you liked me that much. I wondered what it was about me you fell for.”
“……”
“Though I never would have guessed it was because of a scent.”
“Uh……”
How did her answer lead to this……?
“Uh…… Mr. President, I……”
“Ah, I should apologize first. If I was being rude so suddenly, I’m sorry. I didn’t eavesdrop on your confession on purpose, so please don’t take it the wrong way. I simply happened to be walking by.”
No, I mean, I practically screamed it for the whole world to hear, so why is he being so polite……
Honestly, it would’ve been stranger if he hadn’t heard it when she’d yelled that loud.
Wait, did he really start lingering around her just because he heard she liked him?
Why?
Why……
No matter how hard she thought about it, no answer came to mind. Why go that far?
‘Are you all right?’
‘You like me, don’t you.’
‘You said you wanted to marry me.’
Ah. That’s it.
Because he knew she liked him, he wanted to apologize for getting married.
A pang struck her chest.
The President really is a wonderful person……
From his perspective, how passionately that confession must have sounded! She’d basically screamed at the top of her lungs that she was crazy about him.
He must have felt a heavier sense of guilt than from any confession he’d ever received before.
So, worried that an employee who had feelings for him might get hurt, he was trying to soften the blow and gently turn her down by creating an opportunity to talk.
He looks like that, and his character is this good, too?
While cruising around in a Maybach?
Insane. He truly has it all.
“Lee Dan-a-ssi, I……”
“P-Please don’t worry about it!”
In front of such a good man.
How could she possibly tell him it was all a lie?
Especially in front of the President, the most intimidating person on earth.
Her vision blurred at the thought of admitting her confession wasn’t real.
Yet she couldn’t keep dodging it forever.
Clenching both fists, she squeezed her eyes shut and blurted out:
“Actually, that c-confession was a, a lie.”
“……What did you say?”
“Uh, I mean. The thing is, well…… it’s not true.”
“Not true? That you like me?”
“Yes! I do, not, l-like you, Mr. President. So please, really, r-really don’t worry about what I said! I’m t-truly okay!”
Shiver.
After struggling through that confession of her own, a terrifying realization finally dawned on her.
They were still in this restaurant.
And the bill hadn’t been paid yet.
Fessing up before the check arrived at a fine-dining restaurant……
Her hands started to shake.
Wasn’t there a more discreet, sensible way to handle this?
She hated herself for worrying about something like this in the middle of all of it, but what could she do? She was just an ordinary, broke citizen.
What if the President got furious and just walked out without paying?
Are you playing games with me?
Instead of working at the company, you spread ridiculous lies like that?
Mr. President, please, just pay half at least……
In an atmosphere so chilling it felt like such a confrontation was imminent, Dan-a cautiously rolled her eyes to read his expression.
He was staring at her in silence. His unreadable face was utterly terrifying.
“U-Uh, M-M-Mr. President……”
“I understand.”
Even after saying that, he remained still for a moment.
If she’d truly liked him, she wouldn’t have felt this guilty.
Guilty of becoming a sinner without having committed a real crime, she fidgeted like a puppy that urgently needed to pee.
How much time passed like that? Lee Heon finally rose from his seat.
“Shall we head out?”
“Ah, yes!”
.
.
.
And that was the last time she saw the President.
(Fortunately, he paid the bill. He truly was a gracious man.)
For an entire week, there was no sign of him.
Was he in shock?
It wasn’t as if someone like the President would be heartbroken just because her crush turned out to be fake.
Still, after going out of his way to buy her an expensive meal to console her, finding out she never actually liked him in the first place might have left a bad taste in his mouth……
Even so, she couldn’t hide her relief.
If the President had cast aside his work to come see her just because of her confession, nothing could be more burdensome than that.
Especially when it was all made up.
This is why people shouldn’t live deceitful lives.
“If I ever pull something like that again, I swear I’ll marry the President.”
Having somehow resolved the unexpected crisis, Dan-a went about her daily routine with a refreshed mind.
Not seeing the President around did make things feel a little empty, but her peace of mind was so overwhelming that she quickly forgot about it.
“Do you want to go on a blind date?”
In the hallway on the way to lunch, Yunseo asked in a serious tone. Dan-a stopped in her tracks.
“A blind date? Why all of a sudden?”
“You’ve been having such a hard time lately.”
“Huh? I’m totally fine.”
Thanks to the President, she’d already gotten over her heartbreak regarding Ji-hoon, and the fake confession situation had been wrapped up cleanly.
For the foreseeable future, she planned to stay a million miles away from dating, flings, or crushes.
“I have zero desire to go on a blind date, so don’t worry about it.”
“How can I not worry? Look at your face! You’ve looked miserable ever since you heard from me that the President set a wedding date.”
Well, that’s because I confessed to lying to him, and I was terrified something bad would happen!
“Let’s go on a blind date, Dan-a. This unnie will find you a guy so great you’ll completely forget about the President. Sure, a face like the President’s isn’t easy to forget, but just think of it like stanning a celebrity and leaving the fandom. Let’s both put in the effort. Okay?”
“……”
“What? You don’t think you can? Is he that hard to forget?”
“Why do I even need to put in effort to forget the President?”
She had never thought about him enough for him to require “forgetting.”
“Dan-a, you……”
Looking at her with deep sympathy, Yunseo suddenly grabbed her hand.
“Do you love him so much that you don’t even want to forget him?”
Huh?
How on earth did she leap to that conclusion?
“Your feelings for the President were really that serious, weren’t they?”
“Uh, well, that’s……”
Dammit. She never imagined that after settling things with the President himself, she wouldn’t be able to settle them with her friend.
On top of that, she couldn’t tell her friend the truth—that the confession had been fake.
Because if Yunseo asked whom she actually liked, Dan-a would have nothing to say.
Swallowing her tears, Dan-a forced out:
“R-Right. If you love someone, do you really need to force yourself to forget them? That’s what love is, isn’t it? If that person is happy, then I’m happy too. Wishing for their happiness and watching them live well from afar is a form of love. After loving someone that much, why bother trying to erase it and deny the love you felt? That was all love, too.”
What in the world am I babbling about?
Stop. Please, just stop talking.
“So you’re saying even if the President gets married, you won’t forget him and will just keep loving him?”
“I suppose……? You know how the saying goes. You never forget your first love. I won’t remember forever, of course. But as time passes, slowly……”
“First love?”
Yunseo’s eyes widened like saucers.
“The President is even your first love? That President Ra Iheon?”
“Uh, I guess? President Ra Iheon is my first love……”
My foot!
Han Jihoon wasn’t even her first love, so how could the President be?
Her first love was some little boy she met at the playground as a kid, whose face and name she couldn’t even remember now!
“This won’t do. We definitely have to set up that blind date! As your friend, I can’t just leave you like this. Hold on. Let me go make a few calls.”
“No, wait, I just want to keep the President in my heart……”
Dan-a reached out toward Yunseo’s retreating back, but her friend was already out of grasp.
Watching Yunseo shrink into the distance, she let out a low sigh—when a crisp, refreshing scent brushed against the tip of her nose.
Rich musk, layered with a subtle trace of vanilla.
This scent……?
She turned around slowly, only to find something massive and unyielding, like a baobab tree, standing right in front of her.
Why was there a pillar in the middle of the company hallway?
Long legs, sleeves rolled up to the forearms.
A silhouette so sharp even his shadow looked handsome.
Ah. It’s the…… President?
Wait. Just now. What did she just say?
‘You know how the saying goes. You never forget your first love.’
‘I guess. President Ra Iheon is my first love.’
Don’t tell me he overheard her confession again?
Another fake confession?!
What was the word for this situation again……?
“Busted……”
“Lee Dan-a-ssi.”
“Yes, Mr. President!”
“Could we talk for a moment?”
Oh my god.
Dan-a clutched her head.
