Our Empire

Chapter 2

She is sitting on a bench in her garden right after she finishes her work for the day. She isn't sure how, but he has managed to find her. When she sees him crossing the bridge, she grins.

"Cha Jae Wan. You shouldn't be here with me right now.”

“No. I should be with you now” he sits down next to her. “I am dead tired, Mo Ne-ya...” he trails off, then he puts his head on her shoulder. Mo Ne circles his back with her arm and rests it on his leg. Then with her other hand, she starts caressing his face.

“Shh. Shh. Don't talk. You need to save your voice for later. Soon you will be able to sleep until seven and recover the hours you couldn't rest.”

“Is it really okay?” he asks, his voice is just a murmur.

Mo Ne keeps on caressing him. “Yes, of course it is.”

Jae Wan seems to relax. “I don't know what I am paranoid about” he confesses. “I should just be happy. There are a lot of happy things to be thankful for, like what today...”

“We'll talk about that later... for the moment just rest. Time is almost up.”

He doesn't reply anymore after she asks him to forget about his duties for one hour. He isn't able to doze off for five minutes, though he is tired and he could sleep for a month or even a year. Those last months... ah, he put the best of him into that project so that it would come out like they had imagined it. Things look easy on paper, but in reality they take time to come to life and the same was for what they planned.

“Thank you for always being here, Mo Ne-ya.” He says with eyes closed. “Thank you for everything you've given me these last five years.”

She grins. “Shh. Don't think about it now. Free your mind.”

He does what she suggests and tries to turn off his worries just for a while... it doesn't seem to last long because Cha Soo Ahn comes to tell them it's time for the celebration to start.

“You go. I need to retrieve something from my office” Mo Ne says. “It will take ten minutes.”

“Don't be too late” he recommends and holds her hand.

“Go. You need to be there before me.”

Jae Wan nods and then smiles one last time before heading to the building opposite the hotel. Mo Ne and Soo Ahn remain alone. She watches as he walks away and tears fill her eyes. Soo Ahn puts a hand on her arm.

“Vice chairwoman, are you alright?” she looks alarmed but Mo Ne shakes her head.

“Aish, this isn't good for my make up... I am crying too much. I am so proud of him.”

“Yeah, I am proud as well” Soo Ahn agrees. “He's come a long way. But it wouldn't have been possible without his family's help.”

Mo Ne is cheerful. “Yeah.” She grabs a hankie from her bag to wipe off her tears, then she starts walking away. “I'll see you inside, Soo Ahn. Fighting!”

Cha Soo Ahn watches Mo Ne arrive safely to the hotel, then she goes to Jae Wan and the others in the building of the celebration.

Mo Ne didn't want to tell him, but she had the urge to pee. She is peeing too much lately. She sighs when she finally arrives to the empty bathroom in the lobby. The guys at the front desk and other staff are still there. Well, there is still one hour until the event begins. They can't leave their spots vacant for a long time after all.

“Ah, I needed it!” she almost shouts. She is alone in the bathroom after all... or so she thinks. “Omo! I think I saw a ghost.” She says when she realizes the person in front of her.