Eun-soo retreated to her private study within the top-floor suite, the ambient glow of the chandeliers reflecting off the polished surfaces as she opened the finalized VVIP files.
As she scrolled through the list of international investors and dignitaries, her finger paused abruptly when Seo Jin-woo's name appeared on the screen.
She leaned back in her chair, her thoughts immediately drifting to the conversation she had earlier with Hajun.
The boy had told her, with a mix of pride and worry, that "Jin-woo was at Saebyeol Oreum working in the night."
Knowing he was out there in the cold volcanic wind made her memory wander back to their shared moments in Seoul.
In her mind's eye, Jin-woo was always a silhouette of focused intensity, his face illuminated by the blue light of a phone or tablet.
He was a man who lived in the space between data points, constantly refining models or replying to urgent emails with a stoic, silent efficiency.
As her thoughts deepened, a surge of concern replaced her curiosity; she realized that in his rush to the mountain, he hadn't taken any proper food with him.
She picked up her phone, her thumb hovering over his contact name as she debated the propriety of calling him at such an hour.
"He is one of our VVIPs," she whispered to herself, justifying the impulse with her professional title. "He hasn't eaten properly for a day, and it is my duty to ensure his comfort."
Satisfied with this logical shield, she dialed his number, the rhythmic ringing echoing in the quiet luxury of her study.
On the dark slopes of the mountain, Jin-woo's high-tech watch vibrated against his wrist, displaying Eun-soo's name in glowing white text.
He looked at the time it was already 11:00 PM and a flicker of concern crossed his tired features as he accepted the call.
"Hello, Teacher Eun-soo? Is there a problem with Hajun or my parents?" he asked, his voice calm but laced with a subtle urgency.
"No, no, absolutely not," Eun-soo replied quickly, her voice softening. "The staff is taking care of them perfectly; I was actually with them at the pool and dinner just a short while ago."
Jin-woo exhaled, the tension leaving his shoulders as he looked back at the LiDAR monitors. "I see. Then... what is the reason for the call?"
"I asked because your mother mentioned during dinner that you haven't eaten anything yet," she said, her professional mask slipping just a fraction.
"I can ask the hotel chefs to prepare something delicious for you and have it sent to the site immediately."
Nearby, Lee Dong-hyun and the other A2 engineers overheard the soft, feminine voice through the speaker and began to nudge each other.
"Boss, who is that on the call?" Dong-hyun teased with a grin. "Is that your girlfriend checking up on you?"
Eun-soo heard the muffled teasing on the other end, and despite her best efforts to remain neutral, her heart skipped a beat with a strange, fluttering happiness.
Jin-woo ignored his team's antics and cleared his throat. "Thank you for your care, Teacher Eun-soo, but it isn't necessary."
"We have already eaten from the local stalls here. Since so many people are working overnight for the festival, there are plenty of food and drink options nearby."
"I see," Eun-soo replied, a hint of disappointment hidden in her tone. "Well, you are our VVIP guest, so I wanted to be sure. I won't disturb your work further. Bye."
"Bye," Jin-woo said simply, before turning back to the glowing blue wireframes of the mountain scan.
Eun-soo set her phone down on the desk and prepared for bed, but as she closed her eyes, sleep remained elusive.
Instead of the hotel's VVIP protocols, her mind was flooded with the memory of resting her head on Jin-woo's arm during their quietest moments.
It wasn't just the warmth of his shoulder or the steady, protective way he had stayed still for her.
It was something much smaller, something almost ridiculous that had anchored itself in her subconscious.
His scent.
Her fingers paused as she pulled the silk sheets up, a soft, disbelieving laugh escaping her lips in the darkness.
"Seriously… is this really what I'm remembering right now?" she muttered to the empty room.
But the memory returned with overwhelming clarity; it hadn't been a sharp, demanding cologne designed to impress.
It was subtle, clean, and deeply comforting—the kind of scent that suggested a quiet morning or freshly washed hair.
When she had shifted closer to him in her half-asleep state, she had breathed in that faint, honest scent of his shampoo.
It felt so quintessentially him—not something artificial or extravagant, but something warm that simply fit his presence perfectly.
Her cheeks flushed a faint pink as she buried her face in her hands, her heart racing.
"Why am I even thinking about the way his shampoo smells…?" she wondered, though the answer was already clear.
In that moment on the mountain trail of her memory, she hadn't just been physically close to him; she had been acutely aware of him.
She remembered the steady rhythm of his breathing and the way that clean scent had made the entire world feel safer.
Did he always smell like that, or was it just a detail she had magnified because of how she felt?
The thought lingered, weaving itself into the fabric of the night as she looked out through the floor-to-ceiling windows of her suite.
The view of the Jeju coastline was vast and dark, but Eun-soo wasn't really seeing the sea anymore.
She was in a daze, the ghost of a smile lingering on her lips as she admitted to the silence, "...it was nice."
Slowly, the weight of the day finally won, and she drifted into a deep sleep, still wrapped in the memory of a scent she couldn't quite forget.