She decides to show him exactly how a real adult handles things. Meanwhile, Ji-hun checks his phone. He had transferred a hundred thousand won, demanding her location. Her only reply was a single, totally infuriating word. Wait. Completely stunned and more than a little annoyed, Ji-hun just stares at the message, totally sidelined by her bold move.
The very next morning, the meeting room is a scene of pure misery. Team leader Han Seong-jun and his coworker look like they are on their last legs, completely hungover from the previous company dinner. But suddenly, So-hyun breezes in looking perfectly fine, with a fresh coffee in hand. Seong-jun groans loudly, asking how she looks so refreshed while they feel awful. He jokingly accuses her of secretly dumping out all her expensive drinks.
Flashing a smug grin, So-hyun tells them they really need to learn how to properly handle a hangover if they want to be considered true drinkers. Getting to business, So-hyun tries kickstarting the meeting. She lays out the tight deadline for the Jang design draft. Honestly, her team looks completely crushed, giving off absolute funeral vibes. She tries pumping them up, telling them they will survive this together, but the brainstorming session is a complete dud.
The clock keeps ticking down. They just run in circles, shooting down every single pitch for being unoriginal or copying a competitor. Right as the despair really kicks in, a light bulb goes off for So-hyun. She tells them to toss the old playbook. They are trying something totally new. Team leader Seong-jun asks with total skepticism if she actually has a plan.
She flashes back to that terrible dinner. Their client kept throwing out those gross, outdated comments, talking about how women peak at twenty-five. Her team cringes, remembering it. But for So-hyun, that right there is a massive clue. She points out how his weird fixation actually hides real panic. He is finally noticing women gaining real social and economic power.
Her brilliant new strategy is incredibly simple. This company has only ever cast male leads. Now it is time to shoot a commercial speaking directly to women, something completely irresistible. So-hyun challenges her totally baffled team. She asks them straight up, "Why spend a massive fortune on a simple pedicure?" The guys toss out absolutely clueless answers, saying it is for attention or showing off.
So-hyun slaps a note onto the board, shutting them down. She tells them they are completely wrong. For women, it is entirely about style. Then she paints a vivid picture for this new ad. A stunning lady in a sleek, diamond-covered dress glides up a massive grand staircase. It looks so perfect and rich. It is designed to make anyone watching instantly crave the amazing 8K TV being advertised.
So-hyun keeps pitching, her voice dripping with total confidence. The TV quality is so incredibly sharp, it literally makes your eyes pop. In her commercial concept, this elegant woman turns around. The camera zooms straight into her eyes, and there is the big reveal, reflected right there. It is the viewer herself, watching it from her own sofa. The viewer's eyes are completely mesmerized by that luxurious on-screen scene.
Then So-hyun drops the absolute killer tagline for the whole campaign. Adorning the pinnacle of style. Her entire team is officially blown away by this brilliant idea. With the meeting wrapped, So-hyun confidently tells them to regroup tomorrow. As she strides out, her co-workers are completely split on her. The guys call her a tyrant, admitting she is brutal and drags you along, but her results are always undeniable.
Meanwhile, the junior women just watch her with pure admiration, totally inspired by how fiercely she dominates her job. But the second So-hyun steps into the empty breakroom, that powerful facade completely crumbles. She leans back against the door and downs a vitamin packet. The crushing exhaustion from all that pressure is finally showing, but she does not get a single second to breathe.
She slams the supplement back, a fresh jolt of energy hitting her instantly. That exhausted look vanishes, replaced by pure, razor-sharp focus. Fired up again, she decides it is time to hunt down her next target. Later that night, she navigates the busy city streets, already locked in a phone call. She asks the guy on the other end where he is and what time it is.
A voice replies back, "Eight thirty p.m." For So-hyun, the grind is far from over. The voice casually tells her he is at some nearby cafe. Getting annoyed, she snaps back that there are dozens of cafes around here. She demands an actual name, but the guy feels like being cheeky today. He claims he does not know the name, tells her to just come find him herself, and then he just hangs up.
So-hyun stands there completely floored, a very visible vein pulsing right on her forehead. She wonders if this is his petty payback for her being late. She almost turns around to go home, until her phone buzzes. With a wildly sarcastic smile, So-hyun steps into yet another cafe, her patience hanging by a thread.
This makes eight spots she has checked tonight. She silently vows that if he is missing again, she is going home for good. But then she stops dead in her tracks. There he is, Ji-hun, completely passed out on a cozy corner sofa. A literal mountain of empty coffee mugs sits right in front of him. The sharp, angry clicking of her heels fills the air.
She marches straight over, stopping inches from his face. Ji-hun flutters his eyes open instantly, greeted by So-hyun aggressively looming over him. A brilliantly toxic smile stretches across her face. She sweetly thanks him for making her suffer so much, but instead of apologizing, her words actually hit him like a sudden lightning bolt. His heart starts hammering wildly in his chest.
He seriously wonders if it is just because he was looking at her. So-hyun stands there totally baffled by his weird, dazed reaction. Then she stares at that mountain of mugs and a wild thought hits her. Is he just buzzing on caffeine? So-hyun widens her eyes, taking in the full scene. She realizes he is not merely wired. He is about to crash, and hard.
The guy looks completely wrecked. She wonders if he has been sitting in this spot since sunrise. Deciding he is in zero condition to talk, she spots one last half-full cup. Without a single word, she grabs the mug and downs it instantly. Ji-hun just watches in pure silent shock. She slams her cup down hard, cutting straight to the chase.
No need for any small talk, she announces. First up, they are going straight to his parents. Ji-hun is absolutely floored by this demand. The caffeine seems to hit him all at once, and he snaps totally upright. So-hyun figures he is just being difficult and gets even more annoyed. If he is actually a minor, then they have absolutely nothing to discuss.
She will just go straight to the adults. But that condescending tone completely flips a switch in him. Ji-hun's dazed look vanishes instantly, replaced by a sudden, super intense glare. He tells her in a low whisper that she is going to talk to him and only him. So-hyun is totally caught off guard. He leans in with a smug grin, asking if she actually enjoys breaking the law, and adds that she really should have borrowed some clothes.
Exasperated, So-hyun sighs loudly, calling his assumptions ridiculous. She admits his arrival made the risk totally worthwhile. She is simply relieved. She will not be seeing the inside of a jail cell today. Getting right down to business, she demands to know what he actually wants. She will listen, but only if he promises to never show up at her workplace again.