00.
Do Beomwook had a wedding scheduled for three o’clock that afternoon.
His partner was Seo Ihyeon, Executive Director of Seosung Group — a fellow alumnus from their school days, and the man who had been tasked with serving as the key figure in BS Corporation’s entry into the construction industry.
“Secretary Choi. I’ve arrived in front of the café.”
“Yes, Executive Director. I’ll pass the message along right away.”
And there was one important fact: Do Beomwook had absolutely no intention of letting this wedding go smoothly.
*
Beomwook was standing in front of a small café near Seosung Hotel, where the wedding was scheduled to take place. It was a privately owned café, not particularly crowded, and had been chosen because it was within walking distance of the hotel. The moment Beomwook ended his call, a text message arrived for his secretary, Choi Myeongjin.
[Photo]
[Name: Kim Oman
Age: 30
Trait: Beta
Occupation: Unknown theater actor]
An actor, they said. The polished profile photo caught Beomwook’s eye. He checked the watch on his wrist. The hour hand was moving toward 12:55. The agreed meeting time was one o’clock. Beomwook slowly scanned his surroundings. But there was no sign of anyone matching the face in the photo.
“……”
Before he knew it, time was quickly ticking toward one. The craving for a cigarette he’d quit long ago came rushing back, and Beomwook curled his hand into a loose fist. Surely not. It can’t be. He gave his head a light shake, trying to chase away the hypothesis that kept surfacing in his mind.
…Do Beomwook had planned to break off the engagement on the day of the wedding itself.
As the only unmarried member of BS Group, he had always assumed an arranged marriage would come eventually — but he’d never imagined it would involve Seosung, with whom they already had close ties. From the moment the marriage was announced up until now, Beomwook had gone to every possible length to break it off.
But his older brother, President Do Beomryeol, who had pushed for the arranged marriage, and the chairman of Seosung Group, maintained an unyielding stance. To say nothing of Seo Ihyeon, who had agreed to this absurd marriage from the start and flown back to Korea from the United States.
In the end, this scheme was the last option Beomwook had chosen.
Ruining the wedding wouldn’t dissolve the engagement immediately, but it could at least buy him time to delay things. Even at the cost of damaging the company’s image and inviting ridicule from the press, it was the perfect means of buying himself time.
The conditions for the person needed in this scheme were: roughly the same age as Beomwook, a completely unremarkable appearance, and a trait that couldn’t be pinned down — Beta. His capable secretary, Choi Myeongjin, had recruited an unknown actor who met every condition, and that man was supposed to meet Beomwook today, at one in the afternoon, and head together with him to Seosung Hotel.
Beomwook raised his phone again. His instincts felt off. He dialed the familiar number right away.
“Yes, Executive Director. Have you met him?”
“No. He hasn’t shown up.”
“What? Ah — just a moment. Let me, let me check on that. Executive Director, I’ll contact you right away!”
The flustered voice of Choi Myeongjin came through the line. Even as the call was cut off in a rush, Beomwook couldn’t pull the phone away from his ear. If this man doesn’t show up — what am I supposed to do? Beomwook lowered his head and slowly let out a breath.
Just then, a call came back in from Choi Myeongjin. Beomwook held his breath for a moment, then released it.
“Executive Director. I don’t know how this happened…. Ha — Kim Oman’s number has been suspended. I’m sorry. I’ll look into it again.”
“No. …It seems Seo Ihyeon caught on. It looks like he moved first.”
Beomwook answered in a voice that sounded wrung dry. Up until just before the agreed meeting time, the number had been in perfectly normal contact with Choi Myeongjin. The answer was clear. Seo Ihyeon had caught wind of this scheme.
“I’m mortified. Executive Director, let me somehow find someone else — !”
“No. There’s no need. I’m the one who started this, so I’ll be the one to sort it out.”
“What? Executive Director — what does that mean? What are you planning to do?”
Beomwook looked around at the quiet surroundings. The area near the café tucked at the end of the alleyway was so still it didn’t look like even an ant would wander through. Beomwook adjusted his grip on his phone, turned his body slightly, and spoke.
“I’ll find someone else and bring them along. Secretary Choi, please proceed with the original plan.”
“Executive Director! No — hey. Beomwook. What are you planning to do? Hm?”
“…I’ll hang up now. Just in case, please keep looking into the slush fund and stock price manipulation issues on Seosung’s side.”
The moment he finished speaking, Beomwook ended the call. Then, through the glass window of the café, he slowly swept his gaze over the people inside.
By the window, one man was sitting alone.
There weren’t many people inside the café, but most were seated at tables in pairs or more. There was no time for second thoughts or deliberation. Beomwook turned on his heel and his feet moved swiftly toward the door.
Jingle —
“Welcome —”
With a cheerful chime, the crisp sound of dress shoes echoed through the interior of the café. Beomwook shifted his gaze toward the window area. As though sensing someone’s presence, the man who had been looking out the window lifted his head.
At first glance, his stride might have looked angry — sharp and purposeful. Beomwook stopped directly in front of the table where the man was sitting.
“…Who are you?”
The man, who carried a faintly youthful air, looked up with a gaze flickering between curiosity and suspicion as he asked.
“Hello.”
Beomwook needed someone — anyone — to ruin the wedding.
And so, right now, he had to sink his teeth into this man in front of him.
01.
The blind date Yeonjun had been waiting on for over thirty minutes with no word had yet to arrive, when a man came to a stop squarely in front of him. Tap. Tap. It was just as he’d been idly knocking on his glass, its surface slick with condensation from melting ice.
The man’s imposing manner made Yeonjun ask first who he was — but no answer came. As Yeonjun tilted his head up slightly, the man standing before him wore an expression that was visibly, unmistakably rigid, his steady gaze fixed on him.
Dark. That was the first thought that came to mind the moment he saw the man up close. His dress shirt was black, too — that said it all, really.
“……”
But without a word, the man held Yeonjun’s gaze, and with a short exhale, dipped his head again.
No, seriously — what’s this about? Yeonjun finally dropped the hand propping up his chin and sat up. Do I know this man? No. Absolutely not. The man before him, dressed in black from head to toe, was someone you could never forget once you’d seen him. On top of that, he didn’t look like a university student the same age as Yeonjun — and even imagining that rigid face softened, this was not the kind of person Yeonjun had any desire to get tangled up with.
His face wasn’t intimidating, nor were his features in any kind of discord. If anything, he was closer to a clean-cut, no-frills handsome man. But Yeonjun’s alpha instincts kicked in first. Stay away from him. An alarm was blaring.
“Do you happen to know me?”
And yet — he decided to ask once more. Because the man’s face clearly looked like he had something to say. As if paying the price for ignoring the alarm, Yeonjun’s heart was already beating faster.
The man lifted his head again. There was no particular reason to be cold toward a stranger whose nervousness was so plainly written on their face as they approached.
He seemed like a man far removed from the act of asking for favors. The perfectly tailored suit, impeccable from head to toe, carried a certain weight that made it seem like he could handle anything on his own without a single misstep.
So then — why had a man like that spoken to him? It wasn’t so much discomfort as it was curiosity. The blind date arranged rather haphazardly after his senior in the department strong-armed him into eating meat together was completely unreachable, his iced coffee — most of the ice now melted — was no longer something he felt like drinking, and he was slowly getting bored of sitting there watching people pass by.
“Hello.”
“No, but — who are you to just say hello like that….”
“I apologize, but I have something I’d like to say to you — considering we’ve only just met.”
The neat, monolid eyes dropped downward as his voice came through.
The voice of the man who had bowed his head ever so slightly neither trembled nor rose and fell dramatically. It was a voice impossible to believe belonged to someone who was about to do something they needed to apologize for meeting a stranger. Yeonjun’s brow furrowed slightly, then smoothed out again. The perfectly pressed suit without a single crease, the short hair that looked as though it had never been grown out, the solid build that gave nothing away — whether Beta or Omega — caught Yeonjun’s eye once more. The man, who had been hesitating as though waiting for an answer, met Yeonjun’s eyes and quickly opened his mouth.
