“Ah, never mind. I didn’t come to drink tea right now. Is there, by any chance, a guy named Lee Jeong here? An omega, I mean.”
At the words that came from President Jeong’s mouth, the manager and Lee Jeong looked at each other simultaneously. Looking at Lee Jeong with surprised eyes, the manager couldn’t easily open her mouth.
“Ah, President-nim… Lee Jeong, for what matter…”
“Is that him?”
“……”
At President Jeong suddenly turning the arrow of the question toward him, Lee Jeong just opened his eyes wide without giving any answer. His heart pounded as if it would explode. Feeling cold sweat seeping damply from his chilled palms, he clenched his small fists tight. His fists trembled like a lab mouse right before being experimented on.
What do I do?
What is this situation right now? Why is someone who’s the president of Yeodan looking for me?
‘Could it be, that man…’
No matter how much he thought about it, it seemed to be that man’s doing after all. Otherwise, there was no reason for the upper echelon of the organization, who hadn’t looked for him even once in three years since being dragged to Yeodan, to suddenly look for him now.
Looking at Lee Jeong staring up at him blankly with a dazed face during intercourse, that Beta man with glasses had pressed him frighteningly. Asking if he was going to keep acting like this. That he didn’t know what he would do if he continued like this.
Certainly recently, the man clearly seemed to be deeply infatuated with his body. Otherwise, he wouldn’t look for him so frequently. He also remembered the manager grumbling that the man was looking for Lee Jeong-ssi like crazy.
Lee Jeong knew well how terrifying men’s physical attachment could be. Even for Lee Jeong, who had always been popular at establishments, it wasn’t that there were no obsessive men. And the cases of prostitutes working together that he’d seen around were the same as well.
Rich men infatuated with prostitutes’ bodies endlessly made material advances. Whether cars or houses, men tried to buy anything for the ones they were deeply into. However, the ending was never good. There was no kindness without a price, and what men provided always had a price. Having seen such cases too many times, Lee Jeong had consciously avoided those favors that weren’t favors but implicit transactions.
Was it a mistake to dismiss the man’s threats as just whining for more devotion? But even if he had taken the man’s threats seriously, what could he have done? Should he have run away? But where could he, an omega belonging to an organization, and his child go?
The man standing next to President Jeong pressed Lee Jeong, who was just moving his lips, frighteningly.
“What are you doing, you bastard? Not answering the President!”
Standing behind the manager, who gently held his hand and hid him behind her, Lee Jeong couldn’t control his trembling lips. Fear seemed to cover his mind like dark clouds. In extreme tension, only sounds like “um, uh” came from his throat like an idiot.
“Ah, President-nim, well, this child can’t… speak.”
The manager, unable to watch anymore, stepped forward. However, the manager’s answer trying to protect Lee Jeong seemed to become the answer instead. President Jeong smiled with a grin and took one step toward Lee Jeong.
“Is that so?”
At the same time, the men standing beside him approached and grabbed Lee Jeong’s arms. Lee Jeong’s body, infinitely frail compared to the large men, was seized by them too powerlessly.
“President-nim!”
The manager let out a scream-like sound. President Jeong winked at the manager soothingly.
“Ah, why are you so surprised? Let me borrow him, okay? A very important person personally asked me to bring this mute omega. So I came to see what kind of guy he is, just to see his face.”
“President-nim. Then, Lee Jeong, how…”
“I’m just borrowing him for a bit. Just for a few days. Then I’ll return him nicely, so don’t overreact, okay?”
President Jeong laughed loudly and placed his hand on the manager’s shoulder in a friendly manner.
“Anyway, because it’s our Manager Kim, I can trust and leave Yeodanhwa to you. So thorough in managing the kids. Trying to take your kid away, there’s no president or anything. Right?”
At the wedge driven in like a joke, the manager couldn’t answer. Lee Jeong and the manager’s gazes tangled painfully in midair. In the manager’s eyes was plainly contained the apology for not being able to protect Lee Jeong.
However, Lee Jeong tried to meet that gaze and shook his head. It meant not to cover for him anymore. If he clung to the manager now begging to be saved, the manager might also suffer disadvantages from President Jeong.
“Then, good work? I’ll come with a customer soon, so prepare some good kids.”
“…Yes, I under…stand.”
President Jeong smiled slyly and left the Yeodanhwa building, leading the organization members. Lee Jeong looked back as he was dragged away with his forearms grabbed by the men. The manager had come out of the building to see them off and was bowing at the waist. However, the manager’s gaze when she raised her head was chasing only Lee Jeong.
Lee Jeong lowered his head, trying not to lift his trembling gaze. His staggering steps were dragged powerlessly as the men led him. His heart was beating as if it would explode.
Why on earth are they dragging me, and where?
He was suddenly frightened. However, if there was one hope even in this situation, it was President Jeong’s words that he would put him back at Yeodanhwa. Seeing that he said “for a few days,” it didn’t seem like they were sending him somewhere permanently. But Lee Jeong chewed his lips at the anxiety that immediately arose.
Even if it’s only for a few days, I need to contact Yoonkyung-ssi in advance… If I suddenly disappear without a word, what will Yoonkyung-ssi think? And how anxious will our Dokyung be? I’m his only father, so if even I disappear without any warning…
He felt like he’d go crazy from frustration at not being able to speak. He wanted to open his mouth and scream and plead. Please, just let me make one phone call. There’s a child waiting. He tried to open his mouth and make a sound in his burning frustration, but only “uh uh uh” sounds like an animal came out. Since it was originally mutism due to stress, in this extreme situation, there was no way words would come out.
However, perhaps Jeong’s appearance seemed like an intention to resist, as the men dragging him only gripped his arms tighter.
“Get in.”
His build looked like it would collapse with a single push from the men anyway. He thought about running away for a moment, but he knew better than anyone that it would be foolish. The men who had roughly dragged him to the front of the sedan pushed Jeong into the car. Jeong was pushed inside the car obediently.
“Hey, blindfold him. That family’s son doesn’t want his house revealed.”
“Yes, boss.”
Soon his eyes were covered and his hands were tied behind his back. When his hands were tied, he twisted his body while resisting with “uh uh uh” sounds, but it was useless. He was only bound even more tightly. With his hands tied behind his back, Jeong breathed roughly.
Large tears fell from fear and soaked the cloth covering his eyes. Since his hearing was alive, he eavesdropped on the men’s intermittent conversation without missing anything, but it was all content Jeong couldn’t understand.
Dokyung-ah. Dokyung-ah…
Thank goodness I left our Dokyung at daycare.
Still, thank goodness Yoonkyung-ssi is there…
Even in the midst of this, thinking such thoughts, Jeong cried making “uh huh uh” sounds. His heart, completely filled with sorrow and fear, was naturally still continuously drawing one man he hadn’t been able to see and had run away from. He resented and blamed his heart that was desperately relying only on a person who had no loyalty and wouldn’t come to help him even in this situation.
‘…Team Leader-nim…’
The title like an ember that had been buried in the soil for a long time kept popping out and flying around inside his chest like sparks, tearing it up.
‘Team Leader-nim, Team Leader-nim… I miss you. Please help me, save me…’
The shoulders and back that were wide like a giant tree, the arms so thick they couldn’t be fully wrapped even with both hands together, the fists that became very large and firm when clenched, the reliable voice that smiled saying not to worry about anything… all of those things about Wookyung were desperately longed for in this moment to the point of suffocation.
Even knowing it couldn’t be, he hoped he would appear like magic. But at the same time, knowing too well that it couldn’t be, Jeong kept sinking down, down into bottomless pitch-black despair.
6.
“…That’s really strange.”
“What is?”
“No, I mean Dokyung’s father.”
Yoonkyung tilted her head as she put down her phone.
“He’s not usually like this… He was a bit strange today.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Dokyung-ah, baby. Come here. Let’s eat breakfast first!”
Yoonkyung moved diligently to prepare breakfast. This morning’s breakfast was simple cereal and fruit, and scrambled eggs. Even while eating cereal, Wookyung couldn’t take his eyes off Dokyung who was holding a neatly cut apple with both hands and munching on it earnestly like a rabbit.
“I was going to introduce oppa and the baby’s father today.”
“…Right.”
Wookyung replied as he picked up a glass of milk and took a sip. At the front door where he’d belatedly gone out holding Dokyung, there was only that characteristic bitter, crushed grass-like unique pheromone smell.
Since it seemed like it would be uncomfortable for both of them if they met at Yeodanhwa after exchanging names, he’d tried not to meet him as much as possible. However, when he finished preparing for work early and tried to leave before meeting him, he was in a bind because it was hard to refuse Yoonkyung’s words to eat breakfast together. He couldn’t outright say ‘I don’t want to because it would be uncomfortable to meet at the establishment.’
