The rain hadn't stopped that morning.Seoul's sky held its breath — soft gray, muted — while dew traced the glass of the AUREX penthouse window.Han Serin stood in the kitchen, wearing a gray sweater and loose pants, watching raindrops slide down the pane as if reading the secrets of the world.
She didn't realize Kang Jaehyun was standing behind her.
"You're always up this early?"His voice was quiet, but it broke the kind of silence that felt sacred.
Serin turned slightly, startled, then smiled faintly."Hard to sleep when your mind won't quiet down."
Jaehyun walked to the coffee machine, hesitating for a moment."And those voices… are they from outside, or from within?"
The question lingered like steam rising from his cup.Serin looked at him, then back at the window.
"Both," she said softly. "I'm still learning which ones are worth listening to."
Silence settled again. Only the sound of rain tapping the glass,and the faint whisper of wind brushing against the curtains.Jaehyun placed a cup before her, wordlessly.Black coffee — no sugar. Somehow, he knew.Serin looked up, curious."You remember how I take my coffee?"
Without looking at her, Jaehyun replied,"I pay attention."
It was simple. Yet somehow, it resonated deep inside her chest.She took a slow sip — the bitterness calm, like truth that needed no apology.
Outside, the light broke through the clouds — hesitant, fragile.Serin leaned on the counter, eyes distant.
"Have you ever regretted anything, Jaehyun?"
"Often," he said quietly. "But I never let the world see it. The world doesn't care."
She turned to him. "And me?"
He paused — long enough to make the moment real — before replying,
"You're the only reason I still think about what regret means."
Silence again — not the cold kind, but the kind that allows two fractured souls to breathe.Serin let out a small laugh. "You sound like someone who's almost learning how to feel."
"And you sound like someone who's stopped hiding her pain," Jaehyun replied.
Their eyes met — just for a heartbeat, but enough to alter something that couldn't be undone.Rain traced thin lines on the glass, like unfinished fates written in water.
Outside, the world still buzzed with stories and speculation.But inside, time stood still.There were no CEOs, no contracts, no expectations.Only two people — sharing the same quiet, beneath the same rain.