His noona threw down the chopsticks she’d been using to lovingly pick up grilled deodeok,
“Who gets married before thirty these days? Young may be big in body, but he’s still a child!”
His eldest hyung treated the fully grown twenty-eight-year-old adult as a child,
“Father, what have you always told us? That we may lack honor but not money! What are you lacking that you’d sell off Young!”
His younger hyung practically breathed fire from his mouth.
The arrows aimed at their father changed direction toward Joomyeong, continuing with blatant criticism like “Those shameless Joomyeong bastards,” “Those crazy bastards, they call this a proposal?” Meanwhile, Young rolled his eyes around busily with wide-open eyes.
The increasingly heated atmosphere was settled by a clear ting-ting-ting sound. Their father had tapped his water glass with his chopsticks. Without being swayed by his children, he spoke in a solemn tone.
“Chan, you brought up a good point. Right, what did we pledge when you three each took on a position? We said we’d create a respectable background for Young at least. Do you think that goal is being achieved well?”
To this predetermined question, his noona, who ran a loan business, bristled.
“The savings bank acquisition is right around the corner! Once we get to secondary finance…!”
“I acknowledge your efforts, but secondary finance is secondary finance—in people’s perception, if it’s not primary finance, it’s all the same.”
“Father!”
“A life of being looked down upon despite having everything is enough. Before it’s too late, we need to let Young rightfully wield power.”
To the bitter yet calm retort, his eldest hyung suddenly interjected.
“So you’re saying you’ve already decided to send Young to that house? Does that make sense?”
His younger hyung also chimed in.
“This isn’t right, really! Why is someone who cares more about Young than us acting like this!”
The atmosphere that had barely been calmed by tapping the glass began to flare up again.
And then, Young, who had been silent despite it being about him, stepped forward himself. No grand gesture was needed. Simply putting down his spoon with a clack was all. At the presence of Young, the youngest they cherished and the party in question of this chaos, everyone’s voices instantly subsided.
Eventually, a heavy silence descended, so quiet you could hear even an ant passing by. Only then did Young curl up the corners of his mouth into a smile.
“I’ll do it, the marriage!”
It was an extremely light tone, despite his noona and hyungs being dead serious.
“What? Young-ah!”
“Lee Young! What are you saying right now!”
“Are you crazy?”
“I’m doing it. I want to do that marriage! I’ll do it!”
At the firmly repeated answer, no further objection followed. Not only the siblings who had been crying out in opposition, but even their father, who had been in favor of the marriage, simply stared at Young with surprised faces.
***
At the bold decision, their father wiped away tears, his noona and eldest hyung clutched their necks, and his younger hyung stormed out like a pubescent boy.
But that was all. There was no one who could go against the will of Lee Young, the precious youngest and flower-like omega of the Lee household. If the youngest they’d raised like gold and jade said he would do it, then he would do it.
Unlike his pure appearance that was a spitting image of his mother, Lee Young inherited his father’s fiery temperament, making fickleness impossible. Once he firmly set his mind on something, he had to push through with it to feel at ease.
Naturally, this marriage was no exception. When Young actively stepped forward, things progressed quickly. After the higher-ups adjusted conditions a few times, a meeting between the parties involved was soon arranged.
The appointment was at a restaurant located inside a hotel. Young entered the private room guided by staff.
The other party had arrived first and was waiting. As the door opened, their eyes met with the man who leisurely turned to look this way. Young unconsciously parted his lips in a daze.
‘He’s handsome.’
An intense admiration flashed through his mind.
Originally, the Joomyeong family was famous for their looks. Not simply because the president had a favorable face, but the entire family was so handsome they could rival celebrities—it was well-known.
However, since the one currently active publicly was President Joo, all attention was focused on him. His children, who were still relatively building their careers, hadn’t been exposed to the public.
So he hadn’t known well, but as rumored, he was incredibly handsome. His features with bold lines were very distinct, yet rather than being purely flashy, they gave a clean impression.
“Ah… You’ve arrived.”
As he stood up from his seat to greet Young, even his tall, impressive physique became noticeable. Broad shoulders and tall height. Even the suit that fit his body perfectly was cool enough to put male models to shame.
He had rushed here with only the purpose of marriage, yet the other person was someone who had both face and body. Somehow it felt like he’d hit the jackpot. Young tried to smile broadly but hastily bit his lower lip to hold back.
He could only offer a greeting after calming his heart, surprised by the unexpected appearance.
“Hello. I’m Lee Young.”
“I’m Joo Kyung-heon.”
As he approached the table, Kyung-heon extended his hand for a handshake first. Young readily grasped the hand that approached him neatly.
‘Ah…’
And as he felt the firm strength wrapping around his hand, he recalled forgotten information.
‘Beta.’
Bold lines and a large, solid physique. In an appearance that anyone would see as alpha-like, he’d momentarily forgotten.
The fact that Joo Kyung-heon was a beta.
‘I’m doing it. I want to do that marriage! I’ll do it!’
It was the fact that had turned the household atmosphere upside down once again after Young had suddenly accepted the political marriage.
‘So. Who is it, the other person?’
At Young’s firm intention, in the moment when everyone was at a loss for words, either his eldest hyung or younger hyung had asked.
‘Their second son.’
After their father’s answer came, it had truly become a pandemonium.
If it’s their second son, isn’t he a beta? Why would they pair a beta with the household’s only omega? Moreover, isn’t he younger than Young? Does it make sense to send Young to a discarded card? This is an insult to our family…
His noona and hyungs had been indescribably outraged. It had been such an unforgettable story, yet he’d completely killed that memory. Truly, it was an appearance that couldn’t not be remarkable.
He’d never thought there was a particular appearance that matched a person’s trait—traits were just traits. But with that face and that body being a beta, it really seemed mismatched.
Still, he showed nothing. Young released the hand from which he couldn’t feel even a trace of pheromones.
“……”
“……”
After brief greetings and taking their seats, a suffocating silence flowed. Even though Young, who had grown up confidently receiving his entire family’s love, wasn’t the type to easily lose his words anywhere, it was like that.
“The weather’s nice today.”
“Ah, yes.”
“That’s why everyone must have gone out for drives—the traffic was terrible. Was it okay when you came, Kyung-heon ssi?”
“…Yes.”
To the idle words offered as ice-breaking, sharp rejections returned. It takes two hands to clap. At this rate, he was just hitting empty air alone.
“Do you come here often? Since it’s an affiliate, it must be more comfortable than other places.”
“Ah… Yes.”
No matter what topic he brought up, the conversation wouldn’t continue, so even his motivation hit rock bottom. Still, he’d tried bringing up this and that story wanting to get along well with the person he’d have to live with. In the end, Young followed Kyung-heon’s lead and closed his mouth.
“……”
“……”
Thanks to that, a meal in silence began. In the private room with just the two of them, only sounds like cutting steak and occasionally lifting and putting down water glasses echoed.
‘Does he not want to even mix words with a gangster family or what?’
Young’s thoughts naturally turned in a negative direction.
It was a victim mentality accumulated over 28 years. Since childhood, he’d tried everything money could buy—private schools, wealthy hobbies—but that was all. While wealth could get him inside the frame, it was difficult to integrate beyond that.
Of course, aside from a few really bad guys, everyone had been kind. They were precious children from good families who received solid early education, after all.
However, the outside and inside weren’t always the same, and in his youthful immaturity, he’d occasionally caught glimpses of their true feelings.
It wasn’t only when he was young either. Even after becoming an adult, there had been frequent cases where people would show kindness as needed while looking down on Young’s origins. So it wasn’t particularly strange that in an unpleasant situation, sharp thoughts would come first.
