Gu Jongyeol had shown his face at Hwangseo Hospital no fewer than three times already this week alone. The distinctive smell of the place made his head throb, and whenever it did, he was reminded of the moment he’d heard those words — you’ve become an omega — making the headache worse. On top of that, Yeo Mujin was right in front of him, which made his stomach churn for reasons he couldn’t quite name.
Leaving Yeo Mujin to his flustered state, Gu Jongyeol turned sharply on his heel and walked out of VIP Room 2.
“Hyung!”
He cleanly ignored whatever Yeo Mujin said as the man hurried after him, and the moment Gu Jongyeol stepped out into the corridor and came to a stop in front of the elevator —
“Oh? Gu Jongyeol!”
The doors slid open, and through the gap, Gu Jongyeol spotted Kim Juwon spotting him right back.
What the hell is this bastard doing here?
“What brings you here? Oh, don’t tell me — you came to see me?”
Kim Juwon said it like it was the most natural thing in the world. The elevator had been empty save for him, and he’d clearly assumed the corridor outside would be the same.
“Perfect timing, actually. I’ve been meaning to talk to you. I don’t think I explained the heat cycle of a trait-converted omega properly yesterday, and it’s been bothering me ever since.”
“Hold on a second—”
“No. You’re about to walk away without listening again, aren’t you? Not this time. You really need to hear this.”
Oh, for fuck’s sake.
“Anyway — trait-converted omegas can vary quite a bit when it comes to their first heat. Some take a while, others don’t. But in your case, I think you’ve got time to spare. Given how low your pheromone levels are, you’ll probably have up to a full year to prepare yourself for life as an omega.”
This bastard.
Why does he talk so fast?!
“Kim Juwon…… Doctor.”
Gu Jongyeol felt cold sweat prickling at his skin as he shot Kim Juwon a look. But Kim Juwon had absolutely zero social awareness. He just let out a big laugh and waved his hand dismissively.
“Ha, alright, alright. Come on, let’s head to my office so I can explain properly — want to get in the elevator? I actually put together some materials for you. You’ve had such a rough road becoming an omega, so I figured……hck.”
A hand appeared from somewhere and stopped the elevator doors from closing.
“Hello.”
Kim Juwon noticed the large man who had materialized behind Gu Jongyeol and startled, instinctively stepping back. Hey, he’s an alpha just like you. Why are you flinching? Gu Jongyeol wanted to shout.
“I think I just heard something rather interesting.”
Yeo Mujin, who had been trailing after Gu Jongyeol this whole time and had consequently caught every word Kim Juwon had said, smiled — bright and radiant as the sun.
“Jongyeol hyung became an omega?”
* * *
Kim Juwon, truth be told, wanted to run.
Damn it.
Cold sweat was streaming down his back.
In over thirty years of living as an alpha, Kim Juwon had never once felt his life was genuinely in danger — until today.
He should have known. The very moment Gu Jongyeol had pushed open the door to his office and walked in as his new patient, he should have sensed it.
Senior! This patient right here — did you know he’s a really unusual case? Trait conversions usually happen in the early-to-mid twenties, but this patient is in his mid-thirties and went from beta to omega. Fascinating, right?
Kim Juwon had taken Gu Jongyeol on as his patient after hearing those words from his junior colleague — who had been practically buzzing with excitement, chart in hand, showing it off like a prize. A trait-conversion patient in his mid-thirties.
Kim Juwon, who poured his heart and soul into his work as an omega specialist, had fixed his junior with an alpha’s stare until the reluctant man handed the patient over. Kim Juwon had been genuinely curious.
What kind of person could this be?
Most people who converted from beta to omega tended to be small in build — individuals who, in all likelihood, should have presented as omegas from the start. Naturally, this patient called “Gu Jongyeol” would be the same, wouldn’t he? Brimming with anticipation, Kim Juwon had waited for Gu Jongyeol, who had contacted him saying he’d come in to receive his examination results. But then……
Fucking hell, Doctor. If you want to keep breathing, you’ll say that again.
His new patient — who had, by all accounts, just become an omega — had been nothing short of menacing.
Tall, with broad shoulders that filled a room. Eyes sharp enough to flay a man where he stood. He was even taller than Kim Juwon himself, looking down at him with that lethal gaze, and Kim Juwon had stood there for a long moment, completely unable to collect himself. Is this really an omega? Not an alpha?
It was only after that — after he’d somehow managed to extract a firm promise from Gu Jongyeol that his throat would not, in fact, be slit — that he’d been able to treat the man with any degree of ease.
I must have lost my mind!
Kim Juwon was known to be quite the talker for an alpha, but running into Gu Jongyeol unexpectedly at the hospital and being so genuinely glad to see him that the words just spilled out — well, that was his mistake, and his alone.
To offer some defense: Gu Jongyeol was a patient who flatly refused to listen to a word his doctor said. He was perpetually dissatisfied, and on both of his previous visits to the office, he had stood up and left before Kim Juwon could finish speaking.
Kim Juwon knew omegas like Gu Jongyeol well. Those who couldn’t accept an overnight change in reality — if left to face the world unprepared — were all too easily targeted by hungry alphas. He had watched more than a few such omegas go on to live broken lives.
And so he wanted, by any means necessary, to persuade Gu Jongyeol to walk the right path as an omega. He had never wanted to make things difficult for him.
“I see. So Jongyeol hyung…… was affected by environmental hormones.”
While Kim Juwon was growing anxious watching Gu Jongyeol — who hadn’t opened his mouth once since entering the office — a young man who had been staring at Gu Jongyeol murmured quietly.
Only then did Kim Juwon notice the dark-haired young man sitting right beside Gu Jongyeol.
His entire attention had been so fixed on Gu Jongyeol that he’d only just registered this young man’s presence. Curiosity sparked in Kim Juwon — a habit of his — and he peered intently at the dark-haired young man, who caught his gaze and smiled pleasantly back.
Who on earth is this?
He had worked at Hwangseo Hospital long enough to have come face-to-face with countless people, but he had never encountered anyone quite like this young man in his hospital gown — someone who gave off such an inexplicable, unreadable air.
He’s a colleague from Jongyeol hyung’s company.
The young man had introduced himself with a bright smile, and insisting he wanted to hear the full story of Gu Jongyeol becoming an omega, had followed them all the way to Kim Juwon’s office. It struck Kim Juwon as strange — this dark-haired young man, listening in on everything: Gu Jongyeol’s pheromone levels, the rest of his examination results.
He’s definitely not a beta or an omega. Kim Juwon thought, watching the young man smile cheerfully.
But well — he didn’t need to know the details of his patient’s personal life.
What was clear was that Kim Juwon had made a mistake with Gu Jongyeol, and he felt he owed him. He glanced carefully at Gu Jongyeol, whose reactions seemed vaguely off — like something in him had come loose — and cautiously opened his mouth.
“In any case…… Gu Jongyeol. Becoming an omega doesn’t mean everything changes. Please don’t worry too much. You still have time to prepare, don’t you? I’m going to do everything I can to help you through this. Don’t be too anxious!”
Kim Juwon truly did want to help this patient.
* * *
God damn it. I should’ve smashed that doctor bastard’s skull in.
Slamming the door of the office marked “Specialist Kim Juwon” shut behind him, Gu Jongyeol ground his teeth.
All of this — every single bit of it — was the fault of Kim Juwon’s loose, careless mouth.
A doctor, of all people — someone who was supposed to protect his patient’s personal information — had instead blabbed everything freely, like a magpie with no filter. If Gu Jongyeol had been holding a knife, he wouldn’t have hesitated for even a second before driving it into Kim Juwon’s side.
Damn it!!
But the damage was done.
Every word Kim Juwon had let slip had been heard — of all people — by Yeo Mujin, who had been tailing Gu Jongyeol the whole time.
Now that Yeo Mujin knew, Kang Yeonkyu would find out too. And with that feather-light mouth of Kang Yeonkyu’s, there wasn’t a doubt in his mind that every single employee at KK Corporation would know within the hour. Which meant……
“What? Jongyeol became an omega? Seono, is that true? Is it really, Jongyeol?”
“Jongyeol, you bastard, holy shit, I love you! So does that mean you’re everyone’s omega now?”
