What In The Kdrama

“Are you sure you are fine to work?” Han Deji asked, “We are going over to meet with set directors, will you be able to?”

“Sure. It is nothing serious,” she answered. Only then did Han Deji continue on her task. She hurriedly finished her task at hand. She focused greatly on completing her tasks efficiently and taking on more than usual, as she knew she would have to leave work on time. She figured no one would be able to complain that she was being disrespectful if she did more work than others and did not make many mistakes. After an hour, she joined Han Deji and Cho Young-Soo in Mrs Kim’s car to the director's meeting. All the way there, Mrs Kim continued to ask if Kim Hana was okay with working and she reassured her she was fine just as many times as she was asked. It was only when they had gotten there and started working did Kim Hana understand why she kept asking. They had to walk miles of gulf course and gardens with the two set directors. By the time they went to inspect the second location, Kim Hana was grateful for the pair of shoes Kang Seo Jon had insisted she wear. After a while, she realised that she had not taken her medication when she left that morning. Her body was starting to protest the long walk. As the day progressed, the sun became generous with its rays and with it, heat.

They had yet to inspect the third site, but they had gotten a lot of work done. It was becoming clear why the director did not favour these two locations and sent his two assistants, the set directors to walk them through while he waited at the third location for them. By that action, it was clear which one he leaned towards.

Her phone rang at exactly lunch break; It was Kang Seo Joon.

“Where are you?” he asked.

“I am with my team heading to Jang Mi Lake,” she answered. Even though she spoke softly, the small space inside the car made it easy for everyone to hear her.

“Have you eaten?” he asked.

“Not yet, I will eat there,”

“Have you taken your medication?” he asked and she went silent.

“Do you have your mask on you?” he asked and she almost swore at her scattered brain, but dared not answer.

“I am coming,” he said after a while of waiting for her reply and ended the call.

“Your family seems very protective,” Mrs Kim commented from behind the wheel, “I heard you had an accident, what kind?”

“I fell and tumbled many times running from a stalker on Sunday,” she answered.

“Stalker? Did they catch him?” Han Deji asked, her voice filled with worry and shock. Even the quiet Cho Young-Soo was looking at her from the rearview mirror with worried eyes.

“Yes, They caught him, but let him go since he personally did no harm and I basically fell on my own,” she answered.

“Isn’t there anything they can do? My friend had to move because of a stalker. But they said as long as he did not touch her, they can only warn him,” Han Deji said heatedly.

“There is nothing I can do but be more careful,” Kim Hana answered.

“I can see why your family is so worried,” Mrs Kim said. The topic of her stalker caused discussions about other similar incidents and company gossip to be brought up. She got the opportunity to hear about the gossip she felt she had missed out on when she ate out the day before. They arrived at Jang Mi Gardens and decided to eat somewhere first before meeting up with the director after their break. Mrs Kim used that opportunity to lecture them about never missing breaks.

“The company can say you should work longer, but they have to stop talking when you are eating. Eating is sacred, time to eat is holy,” she lectured and Cho Young-Soo agreed with this truth vehemently.

As they agreed on where to eat, she used that opportunity to excuse herself, stating that she had an appointment to meet up with someone nearby, before slipping away. She paused by the road and took out her phone to call Kang Seo Joon when a car rolled to a stop in front of her. Her confusion only lasted till Assistant Jang got out of the car to open the door for her. She hurriedly greeted him politely and got in the car. As she got in, she noticed Kang Seo Joon scrolling through a tablet. When she settled inside the car, she noticed it to be documents on the screen.

“Seo Joon-ssi, You better not let anyone know you are the one always calling me out or else, you will bear the crime of an abuser,” she said as the car drove forward slowly. He handed her a large box. She opened it to find food. Thanking him lightly with bright eyes, she quickly dug in. She did not notice where they were going as she carelessly started eating.

“Why? Have you been spreading rumours about me?” he asked as she took a bite of meat.

“Yesterday, my legs were covered so I did not notice I had some bruises there to cover up. Today, I was in such a hurry because I had overslept, I forgot to cover it with some concealer. I walked into the office and people were staring. It took a while to notice why,” she explained.

“What does this have to do with me?” he asked. At this point, she noticed that they were no longer moving and glanced through the window for a second at rows of cars. It seemed they were parked in a garage. Assistant Jang and Driver Shin stepped out of the car, leaving them alone.

“Think about it, You called yesterday and scolded so loud the entire office heard, I left work before my seniors because of it, and then I came into work the next day covered in bruises,” she explained.

“So What?” he returned to scrolling through his tablet.

“Think about it; they obviously think I have a controlling and abusive man at home,” she insisted.

“You are really good at imagining things,” he responded, slight amusement danced in his eyes.

“Well, even if I explained that I was in an accident on Sunday, you better not get associated with me, or else, you will never be able to wash yourself clean even if you jump into the Han River,” she said.

“Sign here,” he passed his tablet to her and she looked at him in confusion and back at the tablet. As she read through the document, the more she continuously glanced at him in greater confusion.

“Citizenship? I thought you had said you were going to create a fake ID. A fake ID can be easily found to be fake. A real ID though; if we ever need to hand out any of this information. Isn’t it better if it’s real? There are many Kim Hana’s in South Korea,” he asked.

“But citizenship in Singapore,” she said.

“That is for creating a money trail, I have already gotten you an ID there.”

“It's legal?” she asked.

“Depends on who you ask. If they ever look into you, it is real and we can always know if someone looked into you,” he said.

“How did you get it one day?” she asked and looked up to meet his blank stare.

“I don’t mean to question the depth of your pocket, but one day?”

“It will be legal, is all you need to know,” he said and she nodded, letting it go. She hoped it would not come back to bite one day.

“So, I can keep using my name?” she asked.

“If it ever comes up, it is better to never give out your name. I kept the name the same for several reasons. You may make a mistake,” he started to explain.

“Or you may,” she corrected.

“There are a few Kim Hanas connected to Kang Seo Joon. The best way to find us is if they find people with our names who are connected to each other. So it is best to create two people who really are that way if needed you can use that information. Sign,” he instructed. She felt his explanation made sense, but she was greatly uncomfortable with how much power he had at this moment. She could only take him for his word, after all, there was no way for her to prepare for what was going to happen tomorrow. Hopefully, they imagined the entire matter and it would be resolved by the next day.

“Don’t think about it too much,” he said and she looked up from the tablet.

“You seem to assume you know what I am thinking,” she commented.

“I have handed a lot of people things to sign,” he said and she swallowed and used the stylus to sign where necessary.

“You are right to be weary,” he said as he took back the tablet, “Don’t ever sign any document carelessly unless I gave it to you,” he said and her eyes followed his hands as he retrieved a bag and handed it to her. Inside were her medication and a box containing three rings, a pair earrings and a bracelet. She did not need telling that these were very expensive brands.

“What in the K-drama are these?” she asked and could not control the laughter that broke from his throat. It was a deep and soft laugh. She was so taken aback by it that she paused and stared for a moment. She was busy with all that was happening around them all this while, but now that she thought about it, he was really good-looking.