Assistant Manager Gong So-hyun sits through another boozy work dinner, quietly enduring the drunken ramblings of her superiors. Her manager corners her. He loudly demands to know her marriage plans, insisting she has hit the perfect age. Then come the crude comments. They claim time is brutal to women over thirty, and her male colleagues laugh right along. They completely agree that women peak at twenty-five.
Unfazed by the gross conversation, So-hyun just flashes a polite smile. Picking up a bottle to pour a drink, she coolly points out that the only thing declining in this room is something else entirely, flashing a smirk as she delivers that savage comeback. Total silence. She strongly implies their own manhood is the thing fading away here. That leaves her colleagues stunned for a second, but their drunken brains pivot fast, and one slurs out a pity party about her single status.
Knowing they have crossed the line, So-hyun decides to handle this her own way. She starts expertly mixing up some drinks. These are seriously potent concoctions. The completely clueless men cheer her on, and her manager eagerly raises his glass. He toasts to her supposed future wedding. Everyone downs their drinks, totally oblivious to her little revenge plan. The guys go wild over her amazing mixing skills.
A very flushed Manager Kim excitedly declares this party would absolutely suck without her, so So-hyun just laughs along with them. But her mind is miles away, quietly wondering why she even puts herself through this grind. She certainly does not enjoy it. But in her line of work, crucial conversations always happen at these loud gatherings. To avoid being left out just for being a woman, she attended every dinner.
More than that, she learned to master them entirely. She mingles with the old-timers, playing their own game way better than they ever could. So-hyun realizes she became the ultimate secret weapon. It is a twisted sign that her abilities get recognized at these dinners. But even a master has her limits. When she finally tries slipping away at midnight, Manager Kim begs her to stay.
The drunk boss whines that the party is just getting good. Playing it perfectly cool, So-hyun drops a slick excuse about needing to empty her glass before the next round. She steps outside onto a quiet balcony, escaping the noise at last. She shrugs on her jacket and lights up. She exhales slowly, a rare moment of peace, taking a long drag, and really feels the heavy weight of her job.
She has to play nice with these clients, even when they spout absolute nonsense. All this built-up stress desperately needs an outlet. Whipping out her phone, she scrolls through her contacts. She needs someone to help her blow off some serious steam. But as she thumbs through the list, no one really fits the bill. Her old habit of using intense physical exertion to de-stress is just hard to break.
It is exactly what got her through Harvard and a crazy New York job. For So-hyun it operates just like a sport, just a workout that leaves her feeling totally refreshed. She scoffs at the whole concept of marriage. To her, it is an absolute joke. She remembers dumping a perfectly good guy just last month. Why? Because he dared to bring it up.
Since then, her life has just been a blur of non-stop overtime. The daily stress keeps piling up on her shoulders relentlessly. Completely sick of this grind, she decides it is time to take action. Taking purposeful steps, she tells herself to finally get a grip. A sly smile forms on her face as she struts forward, ready to take control tonight. Brimming with confidence, So-hyun marches straight to her destination.
But the sight waiting behind that door makes her entire world screech to a halt. Her jaw drops as she wonders if she found the wrong place. Inside, the powerful elite Jung Ji-hun is caught completely off guard. He is in a deeply compromising situation with another woman. Startled by the sudden intrusion, he immediately shoves his companion aside. Visibly annoyed and blindsided, his gaze snaps to So-hyun.
He firmly demands to know what she is doing there. Stunned by that sudden accusation, So-hyun is left completely speechless. He is the one caught red-handed, yet he has the nerve to question her. Fed up with this whole situation, she actually lunges forward. She yanks him by the collar, pulling his handsome face right down to hers. Her heart hammers wildly against her ribs.
Totally unfazed by this bold move, Ji-hun coolly asks if she is attracted to him. To his surprise, and probably her own, she breathes out a confirmation. She openly admits she finds him highly attractive. That shifts the power dynamic completely, but reality snaps back. A shocked So-hyun merely watches Ji-hun getting cozy with that other woman. She immediately backpedals, stammering a quick apology about having the wrong room.
She turns and quickly leaves. But even after she heavily shuts that door, she cannot shake his intense gaze. It felt like it was touching her. Standing alone in the quiet hall, completely flustered, she realizes her own deep frustration. While she was stuck entertaining old men, he was clearly occupied. A deep blush spreads across her face. She shakes it off, composure regained.
Then she marches away with renewed purpose. So-hyun tries to shake off her lingering frustration, feeling totally silly for getting so worked up earlier. She steps back into the loud karaoke party. Her rowdy colleagues immediately swarm her, annoyingly teasing her about some imaginary secret boyfriend. Her earlier excitement is completely gone now, replaced by tired annoyance. She finally decides she has had enough for now.
In one go, she downs her drink, totally ready to bail. But as she lowers her glass, a figure in the doorway stops her cold. It is Jung Ji-hun, leaning against the frame with a smug look. So-hyun is just utterly speechless. Her bold confession still hangs heavy in the air. Ji-hun wastes zero time. He follows her out and slams the door, trapping her right against it.
While her colleagues party on inside, So-hyun is completely cornered. She quickly tells him he has the wrong room, but he just smirks, saying he is exactly where he wants to be. She tries making him back off, but he leans in closer. Blowing a puff of smoke, he completely flips the script. He asks if she actually followed him here.
Ji-hun scoffs, asking if So-hyun is into older men, totally mocking her choice of company. Annoyed, So-hyun snaps back that it was strictly for work. He casually prepares to light up indoors and she calls him out on it. In a flash, she snatches the cigarette straight from his mouth before he can even blink. She crushes it under her heel.
She dismisses him as some rookie who might trigger the fire alarm. With zero time for games, she tells him not to keep his lover waiting and turns to leave. As So-hyun tries walking away, Ji-hun makes it very clear the person inside is not his lover. Before she can bolt, he grabs her arm. He tells her to finish her business and come outside.
She insists she is working. He just scoffs, clearly not buying a word of it. Totally fed up, So-hyun apologizes for the mix-up and reaches for the door, but in a flash, Ji-hun slams his hand against the wood, blocking her escape entirely. He warns her that if she touches that door again, he will not hesitate to break it.
Ji-hun leans in, the threat hanging heavy as he warns her about her fingers. But So-hyun is absolutely no damsel in distress. With one swift motion, she yanks her hand back and disappears down the hallway, leaving him completely stunned. A brief silence, then a slow smirk plays on his lips. He seems pretty amused by the strange woman.