I knew I should respond appropriately, but my lips wouldn’t move. Only after swallowing a couple of times could I squeeze out a voice.
“You…”
Baek Sahyun slowly rubbed my forehead, telling me to speak slowly.
“Are you out of your mind?”
I slapped away his white hand with all my strength and yelled. Whack! The friction sound echoed louder than I expected.
I was a bit worried I’d gone too far, but once you’ve drawn the sword, you need to cut something. After being hit, I wanted to lash out from the injustice. Getting flicked on the forehead by a guy who probably hadn’t even served in the military.
“If you enjoy hitting people so much, go become a boxing champion or something. It’s because you act like that that Chae Eunwoo ran away while pregnant. What’s the point of having a handsome face? You’re garbage on the inside!”
“Oh. So my face is handsome?”
Unlike my boiling emotions, Baek Sahyun slightly raised the corner of his mouth and asked. I didn’t intend to compliment him, damn it. Dumbfounded by his response, I chose silence.
To be honest, there was one more reason I kept quiet.
“It’s interesting to see so many new sides of you, Heejae.”
Because Baek Sahyun was now unfastening the watch he had been wearing around his wrist. I felt like I would faint from fear. His low voice calling me “Heejae” repeatedly was especially terrifying.
His humming made him look like a psychopathic killer from some third-rate horror novel. With his ominous eyes, Baek Sahyun continued.
“It’s not fun, not fun at all. This can’t be explained unless you’re drunk.”
At the same time, he also looked innocent like a clueless child. Enjoying himself as if anticipating a game, he was truly blood-curdling. This bizarre contradiction amplified my fear exponentially.
‘This bastard… Is he taking off his watch to beat me?’
An unwelcome thought crossed my mind. Panic surged wildly.
‘Does he mean he’ll handle me directly without changing locations?’
Maybe it was an indication that he would deal with me swiftly. If so, my choice was also clear.
‘Run!’
It was a low-level solution, but I had no other option. Let’s quickly escape Baek Sahyun’s radius.
How many seconds would it take to run to the entrance? Since he would chase me as soon as I turned around, I needed to sprint as if it was the last run of my life. But despite my determination, I couldn’t move swiftly.
“Hey. W-wait. Just listen…!”
Before I could take a step, Baek Sahyun grabbed me by the nape of my neck.
“Baek Sahyun!”
Restrained by his rough grip, I was dragged somewhere. His grip on my clothes was so powerful that I was embarrassed by my body’s inability to offer even a meager resistance.
I struggled by flailing my arms, but it was like performing for a lion. I swallowed tears of blood internally at the serious difference in strength.
Damn it. Why is the stat distribution like this? Why is Baek Sahyun monstrous strong while I’m not even a drop in the bucket? Is Baek Sahyun the only protagonist here?
What kind of unfair novel is this! Still, Nam Heejae is Chae Eunwoo’s crush, isn’t he? Shouldn’t he have been given comparable abilities?
“You’ll get in trouble if you go out, Nam Heejae. You need to sober up.”
Baek Sahyun, who had stridden into the shower room, suddenly released my nape. As I awkwardly tried to regain my balance, I instinctively felt danger when he firmly pushed the door closed.
Baek Sahyun grabbed the showerhead and spoke as if singing.
“I’ll help you, while cooling your head…”
No way…!
“Think carefully and then answer. Got it?”
It was just as I was hurriedly taking a breath. Cold water sprayed onto my face.
“Urgh…! You crazy bastard, hrrk!”
As I shook my head and waved my hands frantically, Baek Sahyun pushed the showerhead closer. When I turned my body following my survival instinct as my breathing was being blocked, he delivered a cold warning.
“Would you prefer to be dunked in the toilet?”
There was no room to protest. Thinking about the briny water penetrating from my nose and mouth all the way to my uvula, I figured it was better to take a full shower.
When I instinctively arched my back, Baek Sahyun inhaled sharply and grabbed the back of my head, holding it in place.
“Huurk, ju-just, w-wait… mmph…!”
The water stream hitting me in the face was fierce. My eyes and nose stung as if bleach had been poured on them.
Struggling to breathe, I opened my mouth wide to fill the lack of air. As a result, I ended up swallowing a bunch of water and my uvula constricted. It felt as if my esophagus was being pierced by several fish bones—a painful sensation.
“Haurrk!”
But psycho Baek Sahyun just stared at me as I hovered near death. He suddenly muttered to himself.
“This reminds me of the old days…”
Old days? Before I could express my confusion, Baek Sahyun finally turned off the shower and asked.
“Is Chae Eunwoo a Beta or an Omega?”
This question came as my eyes were growing dim from the repeated water torture. Would I be able to escape this predicament by choosing the correct answer? While the probability might be high, I couldn’t fathom his intentions at all.
Should I pretend not to know and say he’s a Beta? But I had consistently been claiming that a pregnant Chae Eunwoo had escaped from Baek Sahyun’s arms. With his ankle broken, the poor thing had run away.
“Obviously an Omega…”
I chose an answer that seemed logical, fearing that inconsistency would anger him more, but it seemed completely wrong. Baek Sahyun grabbed my collar and dragged me to the toilet.
“He’s not an Omega! He’s not an Omega!”
Thud, forcibly kneeling, I pleaded desperately. Baek Sahyun remained silent until then. Changing his position to grip the back of my head, he applied pressure, causing me to involuntarily scream.
“Chae Eunwoo is a Beta. He’s such a fucking Beta of all Betas that it’s impossible not to know. Anyone can see he’s a Beta. Is there someone who says he’s not a Beta? If so, fuck, I’ll hunt them all down and get them LASIK surgery.”
After repeating it several times, Baek Sahyun finally seemed satisfied and smiled. His firm hand relaxed as if it was a lie. He nodded as if in agreement.
“Right. Eunwoo is a Beta.”
Watching him roll down his sleeves that he had previously rolled up gave me some sense of relief.
“You were just confused, right Heejae?”
“…Yeah. I’m drunk. My head isn’t working well. I’m just an idiot.”
As I spat out fragmented sentences with a clumsy excuse, Baek Sahyun responded cunningly.
“Right. So don’t drink anymore. It worries me when you mistake a Beta who can’t get pregnant for an Omega.”
With my brain dulled from prolonged suffering, I couldn’t even understand what nonsense he was spouting. I could only weakly stand up and stumble out of the bathroom.
Fortunately, Baek Sahyun didn’t grab me as I struggled to escape. He threw a towel at me as he was flapping his wet shirt dry.
‘That bastard…’
Glancing at the towel that had fallen at my feet, I barely suppressed the urge to shout that he was giving me medicine after making me sick. I didn’t have the energy to argue anyway.
Right. Let’s go along with him for now. Whether I like it or not, Baek Sahyun is the one in power right now.
With half my will lost, I picked up the towel and casually dried myself. Watching me closely, he asked with an innocent face.
“Have you been in contact with Eunwoo?”
“……”
“I’m curious since you said he injured his leg.”
As if he was genuinely concerned about Chae Eunwoo’s well-being. But I knew it was a blatant lie.
“…No. I haven’t.”
I answered with a flinch. The original Nam Heejae might have been in cahoots with Chae Eunwoo, but my own safety came first. Even if they had been in contact, I would have firmly denied it.
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Then what’s this?”
“……”
“Heejae. If you keep doing this, I’ll be really hurt.”
But when Baek Sahyun pulled out my phone from his pants pocket, I truly felt like everything went black before my eyes. Like I was about to faint.
Hyung! You didn’t forget our promise, right? I’m waiting for you there! At the place where we first met ㅎㅎ
I’ll buy dinner today, so leave your wallet at home!
I’m nervous thinking about meeting you
Hyung, don’t look too handsome when you come, okay?
But I still have to look handsome ღ’ᴗ’ღ
Damn these guys… Are they trying to drown me together? What’s with that emoticon? Is that his face?
I held my forehead as I looked at the cheerful messages that seemed to be from Chae Eunwoo.
‘…Is he like this because he’s a baby? He’s cute though.’
While I was unconsciously evaluating him, another message arrived with a ding.
This is a secret from Sahyun hyung. Okay?
Shit! Startled, I had no choice but to check Baek Sahyun’s reaction. I’m sorry, but that secret—with Baek Sahyun watching with wide, cold eyes right beside me—only left me feeling conflicted.
