By Zephyria When Ryu Jeong opened his eyes, a day and a half had already passed. As soon as he came to his senses, Ryu Jeong checked on Lee Do-hyeon’s condition and was greatly relieved that the abnormally rampant pheromones had stabilized. It was true that knotting ended the rut relatively quickly.
However, Ryu Jeong’s physical condition was at its worst. His inner walls kept collapsing, and because they were constantly drawing out moisture, he wondered if his heat had returned due to Lee Do-hyeon’s pheromones, but he was mistaken. His senses were simply heightened by the pheromones of an Alpha in rut, and since his heat, which usually recovered quickly, hadn’t come, Ryu Jeong had to stay in the hospital.
Kim Geon-yeong, the professor from the Trait Management Center whom he had briefly encountered during his heat, gave him a follow-up examination. So they weren’t lovers. The professor, seeing Ryu Jeong plastered with more pheromones than before, was shocked and stared at Lee Do-hyeon. He didn’t say it out loud, but the message ‘What kind of beast is this?’ was clearly embedded in his gaze.
In any case, it wasn’t that he was in heat, but merely that he had suffered as the partner of an Alpha in rut, so drug treatments like suppressants were meaningless. All he could do was receive basic wound care, such as disinfecting the bite marks or applying ointment to the bruised areas, and the best he could do was recover his precarious condition by getting an IV drip.
And the opinion on pregnancy…
“If you feel anything strange, even a little bit, tell me.”
“Yes…”
Even though he knew that a baby couldn’t be conceived in a day, Lee Do-hyeon treated Professor Kim Geon-yeong, who said ‘it’s still too early to tell,’ as if he were a quack. Ryu Jeong had to secretly stifle a laugh at Lee Do-hyeon, who was as impatient as a less-educated teenager.
Some sensitive mothers could tell they were pregnant even before a month had passed. He was afraid that he, who considered himself dull, might not notice and just pass it by.
Of course, it was true that the chances of pregnancy were significantly low because he was an extreme heat Omega. Nevertheless, he began to hope for even the slightest possibility. It was a miraculous and frightening thing for a person to grow in his belly, but when he thought about doing it with Lee Do-hyeon, the fear disappeared and only anticipation remained.
After that day, Ryu Jeong developed a habit. It was to carefully caress his flat stomach. He rubbed his belly blankly, taking advantage of the times when Lee Do-hyeon wasn’t watching, and even after his body had recovered to some extent, he still stroked his belly habitually, using the excuse that ‘he might get a stomachache.’ Every time his warm fingertips passed over his belly, covered by his clothes, a corner of his heart tingled.
“Jeong, you don’t have to go, are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yes… I’m not even standing anyway. I’m really okay.”
Another week passed, and today was the day of the residents’ meeting.
The schedule should have been completed long ago, but due to the sudden advancement of the rut, various schedules were disrupted, and the meeting had to be postponed. He tried to postpone it as much as possible under the pretext of having to take care of Ryu Jeong, but he couldn’t postpone it any further due to Chief Yoon’s tearful plea that they might have to hold the meeting at dawn if they kept delaying.
He reluctantly prepared, but another obstacle awaited him. It was Ryu Jeong.
Ryu Jeong’s position was that he would naturally participate. Although his body had completely moved to Lee Do-hyeon’s house, Ryu Jeong argued that he was still a resident of Wolhyeon-dong because he hadn’t gone through administrative procedures such as registering his change of address. He could walk well without support, and the visible wounds had subsided to some extent, so when he insisted on participating as a resident, Lee Do-hyeon desperately tried to stop him. But Ryu Jeong’s stubbornness was not easily broken.
In the end, Ryu Jeong’s attendance became a foregone conclusion. It was also Ryu Jeong who flatly rejected Lee Do-hyeon’s suggestion to go to the meeting place together. The reason was that it could cause unnecessary misunderstandings. Instead, they compromised by having him take a car driven by a driver, get off in a deserted place, and enter quietly.
“The atmosphere won’t be bad at the beginning, but when we get to the compensation discussion, it will naturally become fierce. If it’s hard for you to watch, you can leave in the middle, so go home first.”
Where would there be an easy negotiation, but it was even more difficult with the residents who were stepping up to protect their homes, unlike the office workers who had their livelihoods at stake. The former were people who would naturally turn even harsh words into polite expressions, while the latter were so focused on protecting their homes or receiving compensation commensurate with them that elegant attitudes were a luxury.
He didn’t feel comfortable leaving Ryu Jeong in a place where rough and direct language was exchanged, a battlefield no different from a war zone, except for the absence of weapons. He had reluctantly given in, but he hoped that he would change his mind even now.
Lee Do-hyeon nervously shook his legs as he went down in the elevator. Ryu Jeong secretly suppressed a snort at his uncharacteristic behavior. He had always cherished him, but after spending the rut together, his attitude seemed to have become even more obsessive. He couldn’t help but feel tickled by the feeling of being a fragile glass bottle.
“Then I’ll see you at the meeting place, President.”
“…You said you wouldn’t even acknowledge me there.”
“Uh… yes.”
“You won’t even say goodbye until the end?”
When the elevator arrived in the underground parking lot, two cars were waiting for them. The first car was driven by Chief Yoon, and the following car was driven by Ryu Jeong’s personal driver. They had agreed to split up and go to the meeting place on their own, but Lee Do-hyeon had been subtly sarcastic since Ryu Jeong said that he would treat him like a stranger when they arrived.
It wasn’t that he didn’t understand his disappointment, but there was nothing he could do. It wasn’t like a gathering of complete strangers, and all the people sitting together on the residents’ side would be familiar faces. He didn’t think it would be good to show a friendly scene to Noh Hee-cheol and the Shop Owner, let alone Old Lady Jeong or Hardware Store Grandpa.
In particular, the Shop Owner had even gotten angry that he hadn’t given him Lee Do-hyeon’s business card… When he just smiled silently, Lee Do-hyeon sighed deeply.
“Jeong thinks I’m being childish right now, doesn’t he?”
“Uh… yes?”
“It’s okay if you think so. Because I think so too.”
I can’t help it. Lee Do-hyeon shrugged. Unlike his playful tone, his face was full of disappointment.
“But when you come home after this, you’re going to be in trouble.”
“Ah…”
Lee Do-hyeon, who sighed again, suddenly came forward. Ryu Jeong reflexively stepped back, and Lee Do-hyeon pulled him close, hugging his waist tightly. Ryu Jeong, who was suddenly in Lee Do-hyeon’s arms, glanced around with a flustered look. He was too conscious of Chief Yoon and the driver, who were waiting for him to get in the car quickly.
“Answer me, aren’t you?”
But he was the only one who was conscious of his surroundings. Lee Do-hyeon didn’t like that Ryu Jeong was looking elsewhere, so he leaned closer and lowered his head. At his gesture, as if telling him to kiss him quickly, Ryu Jeong’s face flushed instantly.
In the end, Ryu Jeong, unable to resist his urging, slightly raised his heels and lightly kissed Lee Do-hyeon’s lips. Then, he almost pushed Lee Do-hyeon away and got into the car without looking back. He bowed politely to Lee Do-hyeon, who was looking at him with a bewildered expression.
“We’re leaving,” he said calmly to the driver. “Yes,” he replied. Ryu Jeong’s earlobes, looking out the window all the way to Wolhyeon-dong, showed no signs of cooling down.
The meeting, which started at 1 p.m. in the small conference room of the Wolhyeon-dong Community Center, ended close to 7 p.m. He didn’t expect it to end quickly, but he didn’t know it would last for such a long time.
As expected, there was a heated argument over monetary compensation among the compensation plans. At the center of it was the convenience store Shop Owner, and Noh Hee-cheol, who was sitting next to him, fueled the atmosphere by occasionally adding sarcastic remarks. Some people who had already moved out a long time ago also appeared, supporting the Shop Owner in their capacity as owners and demanding more compensation.
It seemed unexpected for them that the President of Younggang Construction himself had appeared at a meeting that usually only involved working-level staff. At first, they were clearly flustered, but as soon as Lee Do-hyeon said into the microphone that he ‘promised to compensate them to the fullest extent,’ their attitude changed.
In the end, the meeting, which lasted for six hours without a break, did not reach a conclusion. Listening to the words of people who seemed to be reporters, it seemed that things rarely ended with just one meeting. But Ryu Jeong was worried about Lee Do-hyeon and couldn’t stand it. Ryu Jeong, who had been looking at Lee Do-hyeon throughout the meeting, no matter what the residents demanded, had to flinch every time he swallowed a sigh.
“Ha! Do you think our minds will change just because you hand out something like this?”
“Hey, you’re only giving us one? Our family has several people, it’s only fair to give us enough for the number of people.”
It was Ryu Jeong who said he wouldn’t greet him first, but it was Lee Do-hyeon who didn’t even look at him. As if he had forgotten that he was there, he didn’t even give him a glance, so Ryu Jeong, who was rather impatient, stretched his neck out to make his presence known. But as soon as the words came out that they should get up, he couldn’t do that anymore when he saw the working-level staff flocking around him.
“Don’t do that, give us one more! There are three people in our family!”
It was noisy outside. Wondering what was going on, he came out and saw the residents surrounding an employee and arguing. Looking at the conversations and the gift boxes in front of them, it seemed that a small gift had been prepared for the residents who attended the meeting. It seemed that they were giving one per household, but the residents, who were already very sensitive, were complaining to the employee that it wasn’t fair. No one was stopping them. Rather, the atmosphere was encouraging.