The problem was how to call back Baek Sahyun, with whom the relationship seemed to have completely ended. Even after agonizing over it alone, I couldn’t come up with any good plan, so as soon as the next day dawned, I asked Chae Eunwoo for help.
“Hey, Eunwoo-ya. I was wondering what you were doing on the weekend, so I called. Are you home by any chance?”
[Yes. I’m home. What’s the occasion for calling?]
“It’s nothing major…, I have a few things I’d like to get your advice on. If you’re okay with it, could you spare some time?”
[Hmm. As long as it’s not relationship advice, I’m good.]
“……”
[What. Don’t tell me you’re calling me out to talk about Baek Sahyun again?]
When I closed my mouth after being hit right on the mark, Chae Eunwoo let out a series of chuckles. I thought I heard a deep sigh coming from beyond the receiver, and then permission was granted.
[Hyung, come to where I am. I’ll send you the address by text.]
The call ended before I could even thank him, but after sending my thanks by text, I hurried to Chae Eunwoo. I say I hurried, but in reality, I could only arrive at Eunwoo’s neighborhood after transferring subway lines four times.
“Ah, motion sickness….”
Having become completely exhausted, I ended up trudging along like a zombie after arriving. I became even more drained since I had to climb a steep slope. It was closer to a mental problem than a physical one.
“I’m here, hyung!”
Chae Eunwoo, who had been sitting in the pavilion, waved his hand widely as if to announce his location. When I limped over and perched on the pavilion, Chae Eunwoo giggled.
“The altitude is pretty high, right? It’s a neighborhood made by cutting into a mountain.”
“It’s good exercise, what.”
When I answered appropriately, Chae Eunwoo laughed cheerfully again. When that fair and cute-looking guy smiled so brightly with his eyes crinkling, it felt like the whole area brightened. If our Haesu were to date a boyfriend, I really wish she’d meet a guy like Eunwoo.
“I have to study for exams, so let’s consult quickly and finish.”
Chae Eunwoo stood up with a “heave-ho” and grabbed my arm to pull me along.
“If we walk for about 5 more minutes, we’ll get to my house.”
I wondered why he was making me stand up when he said to consult quickly, but it seemed he was planning to take me to his house.
“No, we can just talk here.”
“You want to leave my house and chat in the pavilion? No way. There are a lot of flies flying around too, which is annoying.”
A few damn flies buzzing around making unpleasant sounds were getting on my nerves too, so I followed without further complaint.
When we arrived in front of a four-story villa that seemed to resemble the house Haesu and I lived in, Chae Eunwoo scratched the back of his head as if embarrassed.
“The building itself is shabby, right? I’m living in the semi-basement here…, but I’ve managed it well so there’s no mold. It’s a bit humid, but it should be enough for a quick chat before you go.”
I ruffled Chae Eunwoo’s hair and answered.
“So what if it’s shabby, so what if it’s a semi-basement? The person living there is this upright and dignified, and even sharp-minded. You know, there’s even a saying that a person should become a luxury item first before carrying luxury goods. That’s exactly how you look to me. A person who’s like a luxury item even without luxury goods.”
“……”
“I’d want to introduce you to my younger sister if I had one, seriously.”
In fact, Chae Eunwoo was also the undisputed number one person I wanted to introduce to Haesu. Perhaps surprised by the sudden praise, Chae Eunwoo just moved his lips slightly before pushing me away and entering the building. His adorably flushed cheeks and ears were so cute that I followed him with a beaming smile without realizing it.
But unfortunately, the warm atmosphere didn’t last long.
❖ ❖ ❖
“Hyung, is there really something wrong with your head? What on earth were you thinking when you stamped this contract!”
After hearing the whole story, Chae Eunwoo transformed into a demon, putting away his cute face. Chae Eunwoo, who had gulped down in one shot the grape juice he had offered me as a guest, got angry again.
“Hyung, be honest. You’re not the Nam Heejae I knew, right? Are you possessed by a ghost or something? Otherwise, there’s no way you could act this stupidly!”
“……”
“Hah, sorry for getting angry. I’m just that heated up. Sorry.”
As if judging me as I turned pale from the shock, Chae Eunwoo said while pressing his own forehead as if cooling down his anger. Thanks to him, I could realize just how idiotic my actions had been.
“There’s no penalty clause, no penalty clause.”
“Isn’t it good if there isn’t one…? It means I can break the contract without any losses.”
“What are you even saying, really…. Hyung, you should have set a penalty at a level you could handle. Even without a penalty clause, if it’s proven that you suffered losses from the other party’s breach of contract, you can claim damages.”
“……”
“Does Haseon Group’s legal team look like a joke to you? Aren’t you scared of those total thugs in the legal team who have never lost a case? Since there’s no specified amount, they’ll use every trick to corner you. Do you think Intol could protect you from Haseon?”
I tried to calm my trembling fingers and urgently sent a text to Chairwoman Baek Seonghee. When I asked if we couldn’t add a penalty clause even now, this reply arrived.
Why. If you’re going to keep the contract anyway, there’s no need for a penalty clause, right?
Chae Eunwoo, who snatched my phone and checked the reply, struck my back sharply.
“Ah….”
“You idiot. If you ask someone who’s already got you firmly on a leash to let you off, do you think they’ll actually do it?”
At first, Chae Eunwoo had pressured me to break that damn contract immediately, but it seemed his mind had changed as he sat cross-legged and muttered.
“I can’t tell you not to give birth. That would make hyung’s life sink deeper into the mire.”
“Is that so? Still, thanks for worrying, Eunwoo-ya.”
“Where’s Baek Sahyun?”
I couldn’t help but be reluctant to answer this question. Then Chae Eunwoo tilted his head and repeated.
“I’m asking where the person who’s going to be the baby’s father is.”
“……”
“Hyung?”
“…Well, you see.”
“Don’t tell me you don’t know where he is?”
That was correct. Chae Eunwoo roared as if his chest would burst with frustration.
“They’ve even got a plan to capture a beta and turn them into an omega, so where did they take that bastard!”
To be precise, it wasn’t Baek Sahyun but Chairwoman Baek Seonghee who made the plan, but I didn’t have the energy to correct it. I was too busy being surprised by the word “beta” that came out of Chae Eunwoo’s mouth.
“…B-beta, you say. I’m an alpha, Eunwoo-ya.”
When I stammered a protest, Chae Eunwoo also made a dismayed expression and answered.
“There’s no need to hide it. I’ve been noticing since last month.”
“What are you talking about? Noticing what?”
But there was a limit to denying it.
“I’m a dominant omega. I’m not the type to be dull enough not to know that an alpha who doesn’t react to a dominant omega’s heat cycle isn’t an alpha.”
“…Oh my.”
“The day my heat cycle hit earlier than usual, I ran into you before rushing to the campus infirmary to get medicine. But even then, you just said thoughtless things like asking to go to the library together.”
“…I’m going crazy.”
“After that, I deliberately rubbed my pheromones on you just in case, but it was the same. Instead of getting aroused by smelling my pheromones, you just used me like a menu board asking what today’s cafeteria menu was.”
So that’s why Baek Sahyun had pestered me asking why I was going around covered in Chae Eunwoo’s pheromones. It was overwhelming enough just to follow the clues that were now fitting together.
“Living as an omega won’t be easy.”
Chae Eunwoo continued carefully.
“But the fortunate thing is…, if it’s Haseon Group, they can protect you from the world’s storms. Well. So, for now, let’s call the bastard who’s going to plant the seed.”
Then he picked up my phone and suddenly started taking selfies with both of us in them. I wondered why he was taking selfies when he said he’d try calling Baek Sahyun, but I shouted “Eureka” when I saw him access Nam Heejae’s SNS account, which barely existed, and upload the photo.
「Day 1 from today」
Nam Heejae’s followers were only two people: Baek Sahyun and Nam Heedo. Not long after uploading the photo, a message saying “Really?” arrived from Nam Heedo, and from Baek Sahyun….
“He saw it, right?”
Chae Eunwoo, grinning mischievously, tossed me the phone that began ringing incessantly with buzzing sounds. Just as I was startled by the name “Baek Sahyun” appearing, I looked at Chae Eunwoo wondering whether I should answer it right away or not, and he advised.
“Tell him to meet at school. There’s a festival going on right now, so it’s decorated plausibly, which would be good for a date.”
“What date?”
“You’re going to have a baby together, so you should at least have a proper date. Fuck, were you really planning to just give birth easily and leave without any emotional exchange, like you’re a baby-making machine?”
Chae Eunwoo, thumping his own chest as if frustrated, took my phone again and started typing a text message himself. Then he muttered in a much heavier voice.
“I don’t know how my circumstances became like this…, but just know this. I’m always on hyung’s side.”
“……”
“I liked you a lot, Heejae-hyung.”
Before I could respond to the confession made without warning, Chae Eunwoo hurriedly kicked me out. Even outside where I was pushed out, the scent of fabric softener I had smelled in Chae Eunwoo’s house seemed to linger, so I stayed there for a moment before taking my steps.
…I was feeling strange emotions myself at the fact that I was gradually coming to see the people I met in this place as people rather than characters.
