By Zephyria 
Eun-soo’s phone call was strange from beginning to end.
-That day. The hotel. That person at the hotel, it was Executive Director Seo. That man, the Alpha, it wasn’t anyone else… I didn’t know. I didn’t know, but now I know. There’s medicine, medicine in this box.
The words, jumping around haphazardly, failed to form sentences and drifted.
“Sigh… speak clearly so I can understand.”
Do-kwon said, letting out an irritated sigh. Had he been drinking? He hadn’t answered the phone to listen to words that were no different from drunken rambling. He had answered because the vibration sounded desperate. As expected, he should have ignored it.
He had answered out of mere curiosity, wondering why he was calling in the middle of the night after ignoring him in the elevator, and what he had to say to him while living with Seong-heon. Now, he was deeply regretting it.
-I’m… sorry… So, the hotel that day. The hotel… where my heat cycle started… The Alpha I met then was actually…
“…”
The sentence ended again without a period. Hotel. Heat cycle. Alpha. It was a state where only words that Do-kwon disliked were scattered.
Do-kwon clenched his fist tightly. The fountain pen in his hand trembled as if it would snap at any moment. A few minutes ago, he had thrown a fountain pen while thinking of Eun-soo, and since the nib was all bent, he had taken out a new one. It hadn’t been long, and he was about to ruin another one.
Do-kwon opened his mouth to ask what on earth the reason for the call was.
“Yoo Eun-soo.”
But there was no answer from Eun-soo. By the time he had called his name about three times.
-Ah… ahhh…
A faint moan from Eun-soo came through the receiver. And a few seconds later,
-Eun-soo.
Seong-heon’s voice was heard.
“…”
Do-kwon’s lips tightened. What was this situation? What on earth were the two of them doing that he had to receive a call like this at this hour?
He felt utterly disgusted. Regardless of what had happened between the two of them, the sight of himself holding a phone while knowing nothing felt impossibly wretched.
A trivial supporting character. A non-mainstream figure who could never be the lead. An insignificant role.
That was how Do-kwon felt right now.
Just as Do-kwon was about to demand what the hell they were doing, the call suddenly cut off.
“Ha…?”
Do-kwon let out a hollow laugh. What now… He was dumbfounded by the situation flowing unpredictably.
Eun-soo’s number, filling the screen, blinked. Then it soon went black. His own half-dazed reflection was mirrored on the smooth screen.
Do-kwon deliberated. Should he call back? Should he call and demand what the hell he was doing? Thinking that, he felt too pathetic and foolish, so he decided against it.
Do-kwon tossed the phone down. He readjusted his grip on the fountain pen and focused on the documents. But even that wasn’t easy. He had a strange feeling. It was somehow unsettling, unpleasant, and not refreshing.
Eventually, Do-kwon looked at the phone again. The phone was silent. It felt as if the call from Eun-soo had been a momentary dream.
No matter how distracted Eun-soo was, he wasn’t the type to speak so incoherently or abruptly hang up the phone. Wasn’t he the type to speak clearly and always say what needed to be said?
It was strange that he was overly excited, stuttering, and eventually unable to pronounce a single word properly, letting out only a shrill moan.
Could something have happened to his pregnant body?
Or did he take too many suppressants and suffer some kind of mental confusion?
But why would he take suppressants at this hour? Moreover, Seong-heon, whom he lived with, was a Beta.
Do-kwon tapped the documents with his fountain pen, tap, tap. Black ink messily stained the neat type.
Do-kwon’s Adam’s apple moved sharply up and down. Unable to ignore the strangely unpleasant feeling in the end, he finally picked up the phone.
Vrrr. The phone vibrated, and the screen lit up. Do-kwon’s pupils moved quickly.
“…”
Unfortunately, the owner of the vibration was not Eun-soo. It wasn’t a call either. It was a message, one that had been coming steadily for a few days.
[Hello, Mr. Seo Do-kwon.
Sorry for the late hour.
The store closing time is approaching.
When do you plan to pick up the ring?
It arrived from Paris a long time ago, but you haven’t come. Since it is a very valuable item, it is difficult to keep it in the store. Please visit us.
-HW Jewelry, Cheongdam Branch]
Reading the long message, Do-kwon furrowed his brow. The messages coming two or three times a week were extremely annoying.
About a month ago, he said he would send his secretary, but they said that wasn’t possible. They claimed personal pickup was the rule. So he had just said he would visit soon. Since then, Myeong-hui had worked him to death, leaving him no gap.
No, actually, there was a gap. It wasn’t a distant foreign country; it was just a few dozen minutes away by car, so he could have gone anytime. However, since it was obviously an item related to Eun-soo, he had been putting it off.
“Sigh…”
Leaning his head back, Do-kwon covered his eyes with the back of his hand. A ring. A ring. The owner was obvious. It would be Eun-soo. His pathetic past self seemed to have tried to provide even a ring for Eun-soo.
“I wasn’t some kind of total pushover…”
Do-kwon criticized himself in his characteristic low voice. For a while, he toyed with the phone in one hand. A stubborn lingering attachment to Eun-soo’s abruptly cut-off call clung to him and wouldn’t let go.
Do-kwon bit the inside of his cheek and then released it. Then he put the phone on the desk and even covered it with documents.
In that way, with a brief act of ignoring, Do-kwon pushed Eun-soo down into the pit.
* * *
[Come to the hospital.]
A message came from Myeong-hui early in the morning. Do-kwon, who was preparing for work, stared at Myeong-hui’s message with half-open eyes. Not the chairman’s office, but a hospital. The unusual location felt very ominous. It was even more so because it happened to be a hospital.
Do-kwon headed to the hospital without a word. When he called Secretary Jeong to say he was going to the hospital today, the reply came that he was already in front of the house. It was as if he had received a separate heads-up from Myeong-hui.
Do-kwon found that strange as well, but he just furrowed his brow once and let it be.
On the way to the hospital, Secretary Jeong gave a brief greeting and remained silent throughout. His face, glimpsed occasionally in the rearview mirror, looked dark. As if someone had died.
From then on, Do-kwon also began to feel a bit tense. Myeong-hui, the hospital, the gloomy atmosphere. No matter how he looked at it, it wasn’t a good sign. Had Myeong-hui or Ki-ho contracted a serious illness?
A crease formed above Do-kwon’s eyebrows. He didn’t have a particularly affectionate relationship with his parents, but they didn’t live like sworn enemies either. Parents were parents, and Do-kwon was clearly aware that he enjoyed a life others couldn’t even dream of thanks to them.
He had been raised with sufficient attention and love, and he had never felt resentment or any dissatisfaction toward them.
That was why this situation was extremely uncomfortable and anxiety-inducing.
When Do-kwon’s worry reached its peak, the car stopped in front of the hospital. Do-kwon quickly got out of the car.
Secretary Jeong, who got out with him, held the elevator for him.
“You can go to the VIP floor.”
Then he bowed politely. Do-kwon’s eyelid twitched.
“Aren’t you coming?”
“…Yes.”
“Why?”
“I already… yes, I already visited at dawn. I don’t wish to go again.”
Secretary Jeong said, casting his eyes down. At that sight, Do-kwon furrowed his brow as much as possible. He couldn’t even begin to guess what had happened for Secretary Jeong to speak with that face and that voice.
“…”
Do-kwon stared intently at Secretary Jeong. Secretary Jeong did not meet Do-kwon’s eyes for even a moment until the elevator arrived. Do-kwon had no choice but to enter the elevator alone.
The VIP-exclusive elevator reached the top floor in one go without stopping in between. Just before the elevator opened its mouth, Do-kwon unconsciously twisted his tie to loosen it. Then, coming to his senses, he tightened it again up to his neck.
In the hallway, secretaries with familiar faces were distributed. They were Myeong-hui’s staff. One of them bowed to Do-kwon and guided him to the hospital room. Do-kwon followed him, licking his dry lips.
Eventually, they reached the hospital room. Without giving Do-kwon time to prepare, the secretary knocked twice and opened the door. Do-kwon reluctantly entered the room.
However, a fairly large shadow lunged from inside.
“Do-kwon, you! How, how could you do that!”
It was Do-kwon’s father, Ki-ho. With eyelids stained bright red, Ki-ho grabbed Do-kwon by the collar and shook him violently. In this completely unexpected situation, Do-kwon only blinked.
What is this… Why is Ki-ho crying? No matter how soft a father he was, shedding tears was a very rare occurrence. While a bewildered Do-kwon stared blankly at Ki-ho, who was blaming him, Myeong-hui, who had approached unnoticed, gently stroked Ki-ho’s back.
“Honey. Please step outside for a moment.”
“But, honey…”
“It’s okay. Step outside.”
The words were gentle but firm. Ki-ho let go of Do-kwon’s collar. Myeong-hui wiped the tears wetting Ki-ho’s cheeks with the back of her hand. Then she signaled the secretary. The secretary nodded and escorted Ki-ho out.
Watching Ki-ho’s back as he left the room, Do-kwon let out a faint sigh and turned his head toward Myeong-hui.
“What is all this…”
Slap.
A fierce palm struck Do-kwon’s cheek hard. At first, he didn’t even feel the pain due to the absurdity. Did I just get hit? Did Myeong-hui actually strike me? It took several seconds to determine that.
Then, another slap. A palm struck his cheek. Due to the fierce force, not only his cheek but also the bridge of his nose and his eyeballs felt stinging.
Do-kwon looked at Myeong-hui. Then Myeong-hui gritted her teeth and raised her hand again. Do-kwon grabbed her wrist.
“Mother.”
“…Let go.”
“Even if you hit me, you should at least tell me the reason.”
Myeong-hui was by no means someone with a habit of hitting. There was no way she would strike her child based on her mood. She only raised her hand when something happened that required discipline, or when it was a matter where he deserved to be hit, and Do-kwon had never complained about such things.
Because it was always a situation of ‘he was hit because he deserved it.’ For example, when he fought with a friend in high school and broke the friend’s nose, or when he openly ignored a stupid, old college professor, or when he behaved rudely after accidentally smelling an Omega in the company, or more recently, when he heartlessly cast away the pregnant Eun-soo—those kinds of situations.
But what was it now? What was the reason? Being beaten without knowing anything was not his hobby.
As Do-kwon looked at Myeong-hui with cold eyes, Myeong-hui struck Do-kwon’s cheek again with the hand that wasn’t held. Do-kwon’s head whipped to the side. A metallic taste of blood lingered on his tongue, as if the inside of his mouth had burst.
Licking his lips briefly, Do-kwon shouted in an agitated voice.
“Mother!”
“You crazy bastard.”
“…”
“You disgusting bastard…”
As Myeong-hui blamed Do-kwon in a voice full of rage, clear tears filled her eyes.
“…Mother?”
Do-kwon’s pupils dilated greatly. Myeong-hui’s tears. Ki-ho’s tears were unexpected, but Myeong-hui’s tears were an event. It was the first time he had encountered this in his entire life living under her. It felt as if his heart dropped with a thud.
“Mother.”
Do-kwon quickly let go of Myeong-hui’s wrist. And as he looked at her with a face not knowing what to do, Myeong-hui shifted her shoulder and stepped back.
“Look at what you’ve done.”
She pointed toward the inside of the hospital room with her fingertip. Do-kwon’s gaze naturally flowed there. There…
“Do you know who that is?”
There was a lump covered in a white blanket. He had no choice but to describe it as a lump. The body was entirely in bandages, a ventilator was attached to the mouth, and various other machines were hanging, making unpleasant beeping sounds.
Do-kwon’s brow furrowed slightly. Ki-ho, Myeong-hui, and even Secretary Jeong were all physically intact, so who on earth was lying there…
“It’s Eun-soo.”
“…”
At those words, Do-kwon momentarily felt as if the ground beneath his feet had vanished, and he was plummeting far down to the bottom.
Blood drained from his entire body in an instant, and it felt as if cold water were swirling through his veins. Because of that, his internal organs froze coldly.
Eun-soo? The Yoo Eun-soo he knew?
Why was Eun-soo here? When they spoke on the phone yesterday, he had been stuttering, but he seemed fine. Even if his mental state wasn’t fully normal, he didn’t seem to be physically ill.
But this… no matter how you looked at it, this wasn’t normal. What had happened to him overnight to leave him lying in a hospital bed in such a state?
As if possessed, Do-kwon approached Eun-soo. Up close, Eun-soo’s appearance was far more devastating.
Gauze and bandages covered his small face, a ventilator hissed rhythmically, his chest rose and fell in shallow breaths, and the corners of his tightly closed eyes were stained deep red. His lips, visible beyond the ventilator, were desolate and parched.
Above all, Do-kwon couldn’t tear his eyes away from the fingers peeking out from beneath a thick cast on his wrist. Those thin fingers were riddled with small scars, despite how little surface area they had.
If the exposed parts were this bad, how many wounds were hidden beneath the blanket and the thin hospital gown? He was curious, but he didn’t have the courage to face the answer.
Do-kwon’s hand reached toward Eun-soo’s limp fingers. But just before his fingertips touched, he flinched, his shoulders trembling, and took a step back.
“Why is… why is Yoo Eun-soo here?”
Do-kwon asked, his eyes never leaving Eun-soo.
“A car accident,” Myeong-hui answered softly, wiping her tears with a tissue.
“I got the call in the early hours… I came to the hospital at dawn. Even with Eun-soo right in front of me, I didn’t recognize him. He was covered in blood… He had lost so much blood… the bed was completely soaked…”
She continued speaking slowly, stammering in a way that was unlike her. From the slight tremors in her voice, he could gauge the heartbreaking sight she had witnessed.
Do-kwon rubbed his face harshly with his palms. Now everything made sense. Secretary Jeong, who had said he didn’t want to enter the room again; the weeping Ki-ho; and Myeong-hui, who had been slapping her own cheeks.
Do-kwon closed his eyes tightly and opened them, only to feel a heavy weight of resentment slam into the back of his head.
“Where the hell were you? What were you doing while Eun-soo ended up in this state!”
Do-kwon’s brow furrowed slightly at those words. He understood the desire to blame someone now that Eun-soo was in this condition, but who was he to have prevented a car accident that happened while Eun-soo was in a completely different place? It was, quite literally, an accident.
If he had been right beside him, perhaps he could have held him and dodged, like the time a car had lunged at them in front of the OB-GYN clinic. But he had been somewhere else entirely.
It pained him that Eun-soo had ended up like this, but he had no intention of playing the villain who created this situation.
If fault were to be assigned, it naturally lay with the driver who hit Eun-soo, or if one had to find a sinner, it would be Eun-soo for standing on or near the road.
Do-kwon twisted his lips into a crooked smirk and looked at Myeong-hui.
“…You know I broke up with Yoo Eun-soo. I was at the office until midnight yesterday; how was I supposed to know about this accident and stop it?”
“You…”
Myeong-hui felt a chill run down her spine at the sight of her son, who was not just cold, but utterly numb. Ah, she had raised her child so wrongly. Even if he had only known Eun-soo for a few months due to the gaps in his memory, that could not serve as an excuse for such vicious indifference.
Fury boiled up in Myeong-hui’s forehead.
“This brat still hasn’t come to his senses!”
She strode toward the table. Do-kwon expected her to throw a teacup or something similar. He noticed a small vase on the table and had the trivial thought that getting hit by it might bring back his lost memories.
However, what Myeong-hui grabbed was, unexpectedly, the remote control. And even more unexpectedly, instead of throwing it at Do-kwon, she used it for its intended purpose and turned on the TV.
“Look. Look at that.”
“…”
“Look at what you missed, what you didn’t know.”
The TV flickered on, and the news was in full swing. An announcer with a tie tightened to the top of his neck sat in the center. Above his head to the left, the text [Breaking News – Seongjin Group Executive Director Sent to Prosecution on ‘Assault Charges’] appeared, and below, in a bold font, the headlines [Seongjin Group Executive Director Seo, Verbal Abuse and Assault of Pregnant Person] and [Citizens tried to rescue them, but in the end…] scrolled across the screen.
Unconsciously, Do-kwon took a step toward the TV. As if waiting for him to approach, the announcer began the news in a clear, precise voice.
Around 9 PM on the 31st. This is a video uploaded to the internet. A sturdy man is seen in a violent altercation with a pregnant person. As the two fight and shout for a while, citizens begin to intervene. Despite this, the quarrel between the two did not cease.
The announcer’s face disappeared from the screen, and the video appeared. The faces were blurred, but Do-kwon recognized who they were instantly. It was Eun-soo and Seong-heon.
Seong-heon was gripping Eun-soo’s forearm, preventing him from moving, and Eun-soo was screaming, struggling to break free from his grasp. The citizen’s camera vividly captured the severity of the situation, filming Eun-soo’s scarred ankles, twisted wrist, and protruding belly.
The reason this video is causing controversy among netizens is that the man in the video has been identified as a certain Mr. Seo, the Executive Director of Seongjin Group.
Citizens testified that Mr. Seo unilaterally abused the pregnant person, a certain Mr. Yoo, and employed violent language and behavior.
As those words ended, the video paused briefly, and the knee of a citizen was captured on screen.
“No, I’m telling you, it was truly terrifying. The person who looked pregnant was crying so much. They were really sobbing, and that man was just shouting, cursing, shaking them, threatening them…”
Another citizen’s hand appeared.
“The pregnant person’s condition looked bad. They were pale as a ghost, looked like they were about to die. It looked like their wrist was broken. The pregnant person tried to go somewhere, but the man blocked them. The pregnant person begged him to let go, saying it hurt, but the man didn’t even pretend to listen. They didn’t seem like a couple, so I wonder how…”
After the sympathy-filled interview ended, the video resumed.
The video does not end here. While citizens were restraining Mr. Seo, Mr. Yoo immediately began to flee.
Unfortunately, that escape was short-lived. Overwhelmed by terror, Mr. Yoo stepped onto the road instead of the sidewalk, and a black sedan traveling well above the speed limit struck Mr. Yoo directly.
The photo you see now was taken after the ambulance transported Mr. Yoo to the hospital. The bloodstains covering the ground and the debris of the shattered car vividly show the impact of the moment.
The pregnant Mr. Yoo fell into critical condition due to this accident, and unfortunately, it has been confirmed that the baby in the womb was miscarried.
As Mr. Seo’s identity and Mr. Yoo’s condition became known, fierce criticism from netizens is erupting.
Currently, Mr. Seo has been sent to the police and is under investigation. Much attention is focused on what the result will be and what position Seongjin Group will take regarding this incident.
With those words, Myeong-hui turned off the TV. Do-kwon took several short, sharp breaths. His dark pupils trembled rapidly. Every single scene had been shocking, but one phrase in particular hammered loudly into his ears.
“Miscarriage… does that mean…”
“…Bomi is dead,” Myeong-hui said, collapsing onto the sofa.
Do-kwon hurriedly looked at Eun-soo.
Eun-soo remained the same, but for some reason, it felt as if he were the one crying. He wondered if it was because Eun-soo’s red eyes were weeping even in his dreams.
A miscarriage. Bomi was dead. That tiny living being no longer existed in the world.
Do-kwon covered his mouth. If he didn’t, he felt as though his charred internal organs might surge up through his throat. The day they had pondered Bomi’s prenatal name while a spring breeze fluttered outside remained vivid in his mind.
In truth, it was a memory he hadn’t particularly revisited since breaking up with Eun-soo. Only now did it resurface.
‘Do-kwon.’
‘Yes.’
‘Our daughter.’
‘Yes.’
‘What should we name her for now?’
Eun-soo, looking much plumper than he did now, had asked while sucking on a chopstick. Sea cucumber, tripe, large intestines… as a string of bizarre prenatal names followed, Do-kwon looked around and locked eyes with the cherry blossoms in full bloom. In that moment, the name ‘Bomi’ flashed through his mind.
‘How about Bomi?’
‘Ah… Bomi?’
‘Yes. Bomi.’
Eun-soo repeated the pretty syllables—Bomi, Bomi—several times and then beamed.
‘I like it, Bomi.’
That smile was so clear and beautiful that Do-kwon had no choice but to smile back.
‘It’s great, Bomi.’
Patting his belly, Eun-soo called Bomi ‘Bomi’ for the first time.
‘Bomi. You’re Bomi now.’
Then, he took Do-kwon’s hand and placed it on his still-flat stomach.
‘Do-kwon, say hello too, hurry.’
That was probably the first time. The first time he had spoken to Bomi. He didn’t know why, but he felt nervous. Bomi probably wasn’t large enough to perceive his words at the time. He cleared his throat, chose his words carefully, and finally uttered:
‘…Hello, Bomi.’
It was a plain greeting, and Eun-soo let out a laugh at its simplicity.
That day. The weather had been so beautiful. It was the day he first heard Bomi’s heartbeat, the day he and Eun-soo shared love—not for the first time, but for the first time in a special way—the day they exchanged sweet confessions, and the day he first felt a deep paternal love for Bomi.
The memory of that time suddenly, shamelessly, returned.
Do-kwon slowly closed and opened his eyes to suppress the rising nausea. Myeong-hui poured heavy resentment over him.
“Bomi already had no vital signs by the time they arrived at the hospital. The doctor said that the impact of being hit by the car and falling to the ground… caused… that to happen.”
Covering her face with both hands, Myeong-hui sobbed sorrowfully.
“Do-kwon. What will Eun-soo do? Huh? What will that poor Eun-soo do…”
“…”
“How can that fragile child handle this… I’d rather he didn’t wake up for a while… I wish he didn’t have to know…”
At the sound of her trembling voice, Do-kwon felt as if his own body were shaking along with her. In fact, it was. His body trembled like an aspen leaf. A chill ran down his spine, and his muscles contracted violently, making it feel as though his bones were twisting.
Was it his fault that Eun-soo ended up like this?
Was it his fault that Bomi died?
Was the reason Myeong-hui and Ki-ho resented him, and the reason Secretary Jeong had looked at him with such cold eyes, because he had done something wrong?
He honestly didn’t know. Eun-soo had fought with Seong-heon. He didn’t know the reason yet. He would find out from now on, but he didn’t think the reason was because of him.
Seong-heon had always been shady and had done plenty of wicked things. He had known that, but he hadn’t told Eun-soo. He hadn’t felt the need to. To him, Eun-soo had been just that kind of “bad” Omega.
Was that the mistake? If he had told him, would Eun-soo not be lying there now?
He still didn’t know.
Do-kwon could know nothing.
Why Eun-soo was in that state. Why Bomi had to leave without ever seeing the light of the world. Why Seong-heon had treated Eun-soo that way.
And why he…
Why…
He felt such an impulse to die.
Why he wanted to slam his head against the floor.
Why he wanted to throw himself out the window.
His idiot, hollowed-out head gave no answer to any of these questions.
* * *
After leaving the hospital room, Do-kwon headed straight for the parking lot. He had to go to the police station where Seong-heon was. He had to go and ask what had happened. The only way to find the answer to these suffocating questions was for him to be struck by lightning and regain all his memories in an instant, or to rip out Seong-heon’s throat and force the truth to flow from his open windpipe.
As he stepped into the elevator, Secretary Jeong quickly followed. A heavy silence settled. Do-kwon stared straight ahead with a cold expression.
Secretary Jeong, on the other hand, was fidgeting. Not that he was pacing the narrow space of the elevator, but he kept fiddling with his fingers, brushing back his hair, adjusting his tie, fumbling in his pockets, rubbing his eyes, and biting his lip.
Then, the moment the elevator doors opened and Do-kwon stepped forward, he spoke.
“I… I have something to tell you, Director.”
“Later.”
Do-kwon refused firmly. He was far too busy finding Seong-heon. But Secretary Jeong did not give up. He risked being rude and blocked Do-kwon’s path.
Do-kwon’s eyebrow shot up. Angry pheromones began to seep out, but Secretary Jeong looked him straight in the eye.
“It’s about Team Leader Yoo.”
“…”
“Executive Director Seo is involved as well.”
“…”
“Please stop ignoring me and… please. Just listen.”
Secretary Jeong pleaded.
Secretary Jeong’s story was long. Very, very long. It lasted well over an hour.
However, it was a story where not a single sentence could be omitted. Through that story, Do-kwon learned why ‘Do-kwon’ had come to hate Omegas. He learned what kind of human Seong-heon was, and how ‘Do-kwon,’ knowing that, had tried to take revenge on Seong-heon.
It was a truly childish and immature method, but in a way, it was the ultimate revenge. Seong-heon hadn’t caused him immense harm or loss. Since he couldn’t seek material, social, or physical retribution simply because he had been deceived, this was the way.
Anyway, for those reasons, ‘Do-kwon’ approached Eun-soo. Then, as Seong-heon had described, he fell helplessly for the
Do-kwon listened to the story with an expressionless face.
As for how he felt… well, he didn’t feel much of anything. The sentences Secretary Jeong uttered didn’t feel like his own. It felt like the story of another ‘Do-kwon’—a stranger—so it didn’t resonate.
He simply understood the expression Seong-heon had made on the day they encountered each other in the elevator with Eun-soo—the way his eyebrows had twitched in surprise when Do-kwon called him ‘hyung,’ and the way he seemed subtly pleased by the news that Do-kwon had amnesia.
Do-kwon tapped his knee. Memory, time, and the words Secretary Jeong provided did not mix; they stayed separate like oil and water. Thus, he couldn’t organize them at all.
Seeing this, the perceptive Secretary Jeong asked tentatively.
“By any chance, is the reason you and Team Leader Yoo fell out… overlapping with the reason I mentioned earlier?”
“…”
At those words, Do-kwon’s eyelashes fluttered upward. Yes. He had to fit the puzzle together around that. ‘Do-kwon’ wasn’t in his head anyway; the important thing was to check if Seong-heon had interfered with the memories that were in his head.
The moment he and Eun-soo fell out—the moment he began to treat Eun-soo carelessly—was, naturally, starting from the hotel.
Seong-heon had been drugging the Omegas Do-kwon met and doing low-life things to them. Do-kwon had witnessed this with his own eyes, and that had created his hatred for Omegas.
Then, was the incident at the hotel also a play created by Seong-heon?
The reason he had gone to the hotel that day was for a meeting with a buyer. The location had been changed suddenly a day prior. He remembered swallowing his irritation because the buyer kept repeating points that had already been coordinated, even though it was a meeting that didn’t need to drag on. It was a common meeting, but it wasn’t a common situation.
After the meeting ended, on his way down, he smelled Eun-soo. Following that scent, he saw Eun-soo entering a hotel room in the arms of some man.
From that moment, his reason snapped, and his time and memories were fragmented into a mess. However, the words Eun-soo had said to him surfaced sporadically.
Eun-soo had said he thought that man was Do-kwon. He said he followed the scent because it smelled like him, and fled once he realized it wasn’t. He hadn’t believed it at the time, but thinking about it now, it was strange.
Immediately after that incident, Eun-soo had suffered pheromone shock. Secretary Jeong had said:
‘The reasons for pheromone shock include being exposed to Alpha pheromones for too long or too intensely, ingesting drugs or heat… heat inducers? Yes, things like heat inducers, or a malfunction in the patient’s heat cycle system.’
He really had been drugged. Just as Seo Seong-heon had done to every Omega Do-kwon had met, it was clear he had drugged Eun-soo and forced a heat cycle upon him.
But why had Eun-soo mistaken Seong-heon for him? Was that even possible? As he thought that far, something else suddenly flashed through his mind. While tracking Seong-heon’s movements some time ago, he had discovered that the man frequented an unexpected place: the Alpha Omega Pheromone Research Institute.
That was it. He had used that place to mimic his pheromones and deceive Eun-soo.
Do-kwon clenched his fists tightly. His jaw trembled with surging rage. But it wasn’t enough.
Why, for what reason, had Eun-soo fought so bitterly with Seong-heon? Had he not trusted him enough to live together in his house? Then why suddenly? For what reason?
Then, he recalled the words Eun-soo had said over the phone last night.
‘That day. The hotel. That person at the hotel, it was you, Executive Director Seo. That man, that Alpha, it wasn’t anyone else… I didn’t know. I didn’t know, but now I know. There’s medicine, medicine in this box.’
‘I mean, the hotel that day. The hotel where… where my heat cycle started… The Alpha I met then was actually…’
Hotel. Man. Alpha. Medicine. Executive Director.
Do-kwon let out a small sigh. The faintly trembling voice. He could finally understand what those fragmented words had been trying to convey.
Eun-soo had realized it. That the incident at the hotel was Seong-heon’s doing. That the Alpha was Seong-heon, covered in his fake pheromones. That was why he had called.
And the sudden disconnection must have been because Seong-heon had entered the house. Eun-soo must have fled from Seong-heon immediately and likely tried to come to him. In that condition, he had run so desperately to tell him that everything that had happened was a misunderstanding, a conspiracy orchestrated by someone.
Do-kwon closed his eyes tightly. His dry eyeballs stung as if sand had gotten into them. His nostrils burned as if he had inhaled needles, and the roof of his mouth felt raw, as if he had swallowed an astringent persimmon.
As Do-kwon struggled to compose his twisting breath, Secretary Jeong, who had been glancing at him, called out with a worried face.
“Director?”
“Just a moment. Just a moment… Secretary Jeong.”
Do-kwon asked for a moment of time. He needed time to settle his churning, suffocating chest and clear his head, which felt murky and slippery as if coated in oil.
Do-kwon remained motionless for a while. Then, just as Secretary Jeong began to tremble one leg in anxiety, he slowly opened his eyes.
He had to be sure. He couldn’t afford to look at only one side of things and ruin everything by being swayed by momentary emotion.
He had to find evidence. Evidence that would thoroughly destroy Seong-heon. Evidence to shove in Myeong-hui’s face. Apologizing to Eun-soo had to come after that.
Though Seong-heon was currently with the police, it wouldn’t be difficult for the situation to flip.
If a single article came out from Seong-heon’s side claiming that the pregnant Omega suffered from depression and mental illness, had attempted suicide, or had lost his reason and screamed in self-defense when his infidelity was revealed—claiming that he was merely trying to protect the fetus from negative influence—the atmosphere would shift in an instant.
Seong-heon would become the blind and devoted husband, and Eun-soo would become a mad, shameless pregnant Omega.
Therefore, he had to move quickly. He needed to know how Eun-soo ended up in that hotel and how Seong-heon had impersonated him.
There would be CCTV in the hotel, but there was no way Seong-heon would have been clumsy enough to leave such things behind. He was a man who had even coordinated the timing with buyers so that he and Eun-soo would encounter each other by chance. He must have collected the footage long ago. He had shown such thoroughness that he even blocked Eun-soo’s information to prevent his movements from being tracked.
Having finished his thoughts, Do-kwon commanded Secretary Jeong.
“Secretary Jeong, go to the office.”
“The office? Now? Why…?”
“Go and ransack Executive Director Seo Seong-heon’s office. Dig up everything that seems fishy.”
“Ah, yes.”
“Stop by Seo Seong-heon’s house as well.”
“Executive Director Seo’s house?”
“Sweep everything—laptops, external hard drives, even USBs… and the box. Find the box too.”
Do-kwon nodded as he spoke. Eun-soo had clearly mentioned a box. A box containing medicine. Upon finding it, he had immediately realized that the Alpha he met at the hotel was Seong-heon. That box must contain decisive evidence, the full extent of Seong-heon’s foul atrocities.
“A box? What kind of box?”
Secretary Jeong, who had been busily tapping on his phone at Do-kwon’s command, tilted his head.
“I don’t know the details. He said there was medicine in it. It probably isn’t that small. Anyway, just sweep up everything that seems suspicious. I’ll look at it myself.”
“Yes. But the office staff won’t just stand by.”
“And what are they going to do? Seo Seong-heon is at the police station. I’ll speak to his mother, so it doesn’t matter if you tear the place apart. Since it’s related to Yoo Eun-soo, she probably won’t say a word even if a few people get fired.”
“Yes. I understand.”
Secretary Jeong nodded. As he stood up, Do-kwon rose even faster. Secretary Jeong’s eyes widened.
“Are you coming along? Not staying at the hospital?”
“No. I have a place to go. I’ll stop by there and then head to the office.”
“May I ask where?”
“A hospital.”
“…A hospital?”
Secretary Jeong wrinkled his nose. He looked around. They were already at a hospital. It didn’t seem like he was going back up to the VIP ward. Then where…?
To Secretary Jeong’s questioning face, Do-kwon spoke as if throwing the words out.
“The OB-GYN clinic Yoo Eun-soo used to attend.”
I have something to confirm.
Having said that, Do-kwon snatched the car keys from Secretary Jeong’s hand and headed for the underground parking lot.
Entering the old OB-GYN clinic, Do-kwon strode across the hallway and headed straight for the consultation room.
“Oh my, excuse me! Excuse me! You have to check in first!”
A startled nurse followed him with quick steps, but Do-kwon ignored her and flung the consultation room door open. Inside, a couple and a doctor, still wearing rimless glasses, were sitting facing each other.
“It’s an emergency, so I apologize.”
Do-kwon apologized with an expression that looked not the least bit sorry. At this, the doctor’s eyebrows shot up. She stared intently at Do-kwon’s face. Then, as if recognizing his identity, she let out a short exclamation of “Ah.”
“What brings you here? Are you perhaps pregnant? I understood you to be an Alpha. How surprising.”
The soft voice was plain, but it was clearly sarcastic. She continued, staring at Do-kwon with sharp eyes.
“I will examine you, so please check in at the reception first…”
“Yoo Eun-soo has had a miscarriage.”
“…”
At Do-kwon’s sudden bombshell, not only the doctor but also the couple present froze stiff. Do-kwon swept back his slightly disheveled bangs with his palm. Then, with both hands clasped in front of him, he spoke with utmost politeness, completely different from when he had burst through the door.
“I came because I have something to ask. It will only take a moment. I will ensure you are compensated.”
The doctor stared intently at Do-kwon. Do-kwon accepted that accusing gaze with a calm face. He had come expecting to be cursed at, so this level of scrutiny was nothing.
After a period of silence, the doctor slightly pushed up her glasses and spoke in a lifeless voice.
“Pregnant Omega Yoo Eun-soo. It’s been over a month since he last visited. I was worried about him, but I didn’t know… he had miscarried. I thought he was attending another clinic.”
“…”
Do-kwon slowly shifted his jaw from side to side. Another clinic. It would have been better if that were the case. Unfortunately, Eun-soo had been going back and forth to a general hospital because his overall health was poor. Thinking of that made his throat tighten again. Do-kwon steadied his breath and loosened his tie.
At Do-kwon’s appearance, which looked somewhat like that of a sinner, the doctor’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“May I ask the reason for the miscarriage? There were signs of premature labor due to pheromone shock, but it wasn’t to the extent that he would miscarry before full term.”
“There was an accident. A traffic accident.”
“Ah…”
The doctor’s eyebrows twitched at the unexpected reason. A traffic accident. Of all people, Eun-soo. Of all people, a pregnant Omega. God is truly indifferent. The doctor let out a long sigh through her nose. Then, pulling her head back, she looked at Do-kwon again.
“But if it was a traffic accident, why have you come all the way here?”
“I have something to ask.”
“Yes, go ahead.”
“A few months ago, Yoo Eun-soo… must have come to this clinic due to pheromone shock.”
“Yes, he did.”
“Was there anything strange back then?”
“…”
The doctor’s lips pressed into a firm line. Her eyes instantly turned cold. Do-kwon’s question felt very unsettling. Isn’t Do-kwon Eun-soo’s guardian? Then why is he asking her about something ‘strange’?
Normally, the doctor would have asked, ‘Something strange?’ and then searched the medical records before answering, ‘Nothing in particular.’ But the reason she hesitated was that she knew about the ‘strange’ thing that had happened to Eun-soo.
The scene of a pale Eun-soo entering the consultation room came back vividly. He had come on a day he wasn’t scheduled to, so she had been a bit tense. And sure enough. Eun-soo had clutched his stomach, his eyes twisting in pain as he said, ‘My stomach feels like it’s being stabbed, like it’s twisting. Like someone is wringing out a towel.’
So they did a blood test, and the result was pheromone shock caused by low-quality drugs.
At the time, Eun-soo looked extremely anxious. It was a face she had seen countless times over decades of doing this work. This stupid world was always excessively cruel to the physically weak.
The doctor had asked what happened, and after hesitating for a moment, Eun-soo had opened up.
What happened to Eun-soo was what she had suspected. The doctor asked if he had reported it, and Eun-soo, perhaps too overwhelmed, had done nothing. It was a bit strange that someone usually so sharp would handle it so passively, but she thought that after such an ordeal, his mind might not have reached that far.
And just before he left, she had asked.
‘Does the father of the fetus know?’
What kind of expression had Eun-soo made at those words?
‘Not… yet…’
He had answered while casting his eyes down. His darkened face was full of anxiety and fear. But it wasn’t fear of the assailant who had attacked him. It was fear of the ‘father of the fetus’ she had mentioned.
Recalling this, the doctor clenched and then released her teeth. Do-kwon, who until a moment ago looked like a grieving father who had lost his child, now looked like a human less than a dog.
The doctor interlaced her fingers on the desk. Then, she stared at Do-kwon with a cold gaze.
“Even if there was something strange, I have nothing to tell you. That is the medical law.”
“Does that apply even though I am the guardian?”
Do-kwon asked, knitting his brows. The reason he had come here personally was that this doctor was the type of person who would not leak information about Eun-soo even if a knife were held to her throat if he had sent a secretary. However, he hadn’t expected her to keep her mouth shut even to him.
The doctor let out a hollow laugh at that.
“Guardian? Who? You?”
“…I didn’t come here to play word games.”
“Are you really the guardian? Legally? Mr. Yoo Eun-soo was unmarried.”
“That’s not the case, but…”
“Then what about to Mr. Yoo Eun-soo? Are you truly his guardian in his eyes?”
The doctor pressed Do-kwon without a moment’s pause. At the fierce attack, Do-kwon’s mouth snapped shut.
“…”
Guardian? Me? No. Do-kwon knew well that he was not Eun-soo’s guardian, nor did he have the right to be. Yet, thunder roared above his head. His fists kept clenching. His blunt nails repeatedly dug painful crescents into his palms.
Do-kwon rubbed his face roughly with his large hand. Then, in a softened voice, as if confessing, he spoke.
“It’s true that I have no right. I know that well. But this isn’t for me; it’s for Yoo Eun-soo.”
“…”
“I’m going to find the bastard who made Eun-soo like that. Once I find him, I won’t do something stupid like handing him over to the prosecution. I’m going to kill him.”
At the sentence filled with cold rage, the doctor’s fingertips twitched. She didn’t seem frightened; rather, she seemed shaken. Or perhaps intrigued. In any case, it wasn’t a negative reaction.
Do-kwon did not miss that twitch. He leaned forward, getting closer to the doctor, and whispered.
“Nothing will happen to this hospital. In fact, it will be beneficial. I will do whatever you want.”
He took a business card clip from his inner pocket. He pulled out one card and placed it in front of the doctor.
[Seongjin Group Director, Seo Do-kwon.]
“The only thing I want to know here is what happened to Yoo Eun-soo’s body. That’s all.”
“…”
The doctor stared blankly at the business card. A moment of silence followed. Then, as if having decided something, she pressed her lips together and released them.
She leaned over and rummaged through the drawer attached under the desk. Soon, she found a thick file and handed it to Do-kwon.
Do-kwon quickly took it and opened it. The pages were packed with text. However, it wasn’t Eun-soo’s information. They were all names he didn’t recognize. Do-kwon’s brow furrowed deeply.
“This isn’t what I was looking for.”
“These are the Omega mothers, the pregnant Omegas who come to our hospital.”
“And?”
“They are people currently in litigation because Alpha bastards sued them, wanting forced abortions.”
“…”
“They’ll probably lose. The abortions will be carried out.”
Do-kwon bit the inside of his cheek. Alphas, forced abortions, lawsuits. It was similar to the words he had once used to threaten Eun-soo. The roof of his mouth tightened as if he had eaten something astringent.
As Do-kwon gripped the file tightly, the doctor spoke with eyes flashing intensely.
“Provide lawyers for these people. Lawyers who win no matter what. One lawyer per mother so that not a single one can be handled carelessly. A conclusion must be reached as quickly as possible. Some of them are full-term.”
“…”
Do-kwon looked at the doctor quietly. It was unexpected. He thought she would ask him to expand the hospital, or move it, or give her money. Or perhaps get her a job at a famous hospital or make her a professor. He hadn’t expected such an altruistic request.
Long ago, when he had come here with Eun-soo, the conversation they had shared came to mind.
‘I told you she was a good doctor, right?’
‘Pardon?’
‘The fact that she can call you separately and scold you means she’s truly amazing. Who else could say unpleasant things to someone like you, Do-kwon?’
‘Yes. She seems like a good doctor.’
Just as he had said, this doctor was indeed a very good doctor. Do-kwon closed the file, handed it back to the doctor, and spoke.
“I’ll buy the judges.”
“…What?”
“There’s no point in just hiring lawyers for things like this. The judge makes the final decision. So wouldn’t it be better to buy the judges? Of course, changing the law would be best, but that takes time.”
“What… well, yes, then… that would be… better.”
The doctor stammered, completely blindsided by his words. Do-kwon nodded as if that settled it.
“Now, give me Yoo Eun-soo’s medical records.”
The doctor rummaged through the corner of the consultation room for a while and brought three files. She opened them upside down so Do-kwon could see them easily. They were filled with unrecognizable formulas, symbols, and graphs. The doctor began to explain, following the records with a ballpoint pen.
“These are the blood test records for pregnant Omega Yoo Eun-soo. See this part highlighted in fluorescent pen? This indicates a drug. A so-called heat inducer.”
“…”
“This part here only appears during a heat cycle, but when this overlapped with the heat inducer, it caused pheromone shock. The womb-sac contracts, the muscles twist, and the body releases pheromones like crazy as if in a heat cycle, so the physical exhaustion is immense.”
“What is the treatment method?”
“Contact with an Alpha.”
“…With an Alpha?”
“Yes. Sharing pheromones. Passing over the overflowing pheromones and receiving Alpha pheromones to suppress them. It’s like adding a spoonful of cold water to boiling water. Deep contact like sexual intercourse isn’t necessary; frequent contact, such as holding hands or hugging, is best.”
“…”
“But the patient refused, saying he hated it. He said he hated other Alphas.”
At those words, Do-kwon took a sharp breath. Hating other Alphas. He wondered how he could be so foolish while in pain, but then his throat stung, realizing that he was the one who had made Eun-soo that way.
The doctor opened another file.
“These are the medical records. As you can see here, there is a long history of suppressant prescriptions, right? As long as the patient refuses treatment with an Alpha, I cannot force it upon him. So, for a while, I only prescribed suppressants, but as you know, suppressants are bad for a pregnant woman’s body. Because of that, he fell ill, the pheromone shock didn’t improve, he took more suppressants, and his health deteriorated further. It was a vicious cycle.”
“…….”
“At the time, his morning sickness was so severe that he couldn’t eat anything, and he was still going to work, so his stress levels must have been immense. I was worried when he didn’t visit for a while, but when he later came in for suppressants, he mentioned he had been rushed to the emergency room in the middle of the night.”
Do-kwon slowly closed and opened his eyes. He already knew that Eun-soo had suffered from pheromone shock and had been hospitalized again. Yet, hearing it like this felt completely different. He felt as if he were suffocating. His lungs felt heavy, as if he had swallowed a boulder.
Do-kwon let out a long breath, blowing his bangs upward. The doctor picked up the final folder. However, unlike before, he hesitated.
“And this is… a photograph….”
“A photograph? An ultrasound?”
“No…….”
The doctor’s complexion grew grim. Do-kwon’s eyes twitched. A photograph. What else would a gynecologist take photos of besides an ultrasound?
The doctor let out a faint sigh. Then, he pushed the folder toward Do-kwon, as if he didn’t have the heart to open it himself.
“The pregnant Omega came to see me after… after that incident, but he hadn’t reported it to the police. I couldn’t ask for the reason, but I suggested we keep photos of the injuries just in case they might be needed later.”
“……Injuries? Are you saying Yoo Eun-soo was hurt?”
“You didn’t know?”
The doctor’s gaze instantly sharpened. His expression seemed to say, What is this crazy bastard talking about? Do-kwon quickly averted his eyes and opened the folder.
“…….”
The moment he saw the photo, his breath stopped.
It was a Polaroid. Eun-soo was shirtless, staring into space with a vacant expression. His gaunt upper body revealed glimpses of his ribs. His already prominent collarbones looked as if they were about to pierce through the skin, and only his lower abdomen was slightly swollen.
More than anything, what caught his eye were the ‘injuries’ the doctor mentioned. Dark bruises the size of a palm stained Eun-soo’s shoulders and hips. One of his wrists hung limp, swollen twice as large as the other for some unknown reason.
Staring at the photo, Do-kwon hurriedly covered his mouth. A wave of nausea surged up.
No matter how he looked at it, the Eun-soo in this photo was a victim. The Eun-soo he had seen at the hotel had been cradled in an Alpha’s arms with his eyes curving softly. But the Eun-soo in the photo looked as if he had barely crawled out of the swamps of hell.
Do-kwon’s lower lip trembled.
He hadn’t known. He truly hadn’t known Eun-soo was in this state. He hadn’t even tried to find out. Consumed by rage, he had only thought about how to torment Eun-soo, how to make him suffer.
He had been a fool to trust only his own eyes. He hadn’t bothered to look at the full picture. He had poured all his strength into resenting Eun-soo. As if commanded by someone, he had tried to hate him, to loathe him, and to vent his anger on him by any means necessary.
Without blinking, Do-kwon stared at the photo before abruptly slamming the folder shut. He looked like a heinous criminal hiding evidence. In truth, there was no difference. He closed it because facing his own shameless sins was too overwhelming.
Do-kwon stared silently at the black folder.
A thought occurred to him belatedly. Perhaps. The one who made Eun-soo like that wasn’t Seong-heon, nor was it the speeding car…
But himself.
* * *
Do-kwon entered the director’s office with a vacant expression, looking like someone whose soul had been sucked out. The image of Eun-soo’s photo flickered before his eyes so vividly that he felt like gouging his own eyeballs out.
The office was hectic and cluttered. Do-kwon’s subordinates, including Secretary Jeong, were rummaging through, tearing apart, and laying out items they had scavenged from Seong-heon’s executive office and home.
Do-kwon stared blankly at the tangled mess of belongings and people. The atmosphere felt like a physical manifestation of the chaos inside his own head.
“Director. You’re here.”
Secretary Jeong, spotting Do-kwon, hurried over. Do-kwon stared at him with unfocused eyes. Secretary Jeong’s eyebrows shot up. Do-kwon’s appearance—looking as if a screw had come loose—was entirely unfamiliar.
“Did something happen?”
“Happen? I wonder. Is this even ‘happening’….”
“Pardon?”
“Nothing. Did you find anything?”
Do-kwon asked, rubbing his face hard with both hands before pulling them away. Secretary Jeong nodded quickly. His eyes were sparkling, suggesting they had found a lot.
The moment Do-kwon sat at the desk, Secretary Jeong lined up the organized findings. As he attempted to open a heavy stack of unfair contracts, Do-kwon stopped him.
“No, you don’t need to show me the company matters. Organize them and send them straight to the Chairman’s office. My mother will handle it.”
“Then….”
“Videos. Were there any videos? The ones taken at the hotel. Anything with Yoo Eun-soo in it.”
“Ah! Ah… Yes. We have them.”
Secretary Jeong quickly pushed the contracts aside. He then placed a tablet in front of Do-kwon.
“I’ve arbitrarily edited it to show only the parts you need to see. However, there aren’t many clips.”
“That’s fine.”
Do-kwon carelessly shrugged off his suit jacket and played the video. Secretary Jeong swallowed hard and hung the discarded jacket in the air dresser.
The video was less than ten minutes long. Still, it contained everything Do-kwon needed to know and see.
The video began with Eun-soo and Seong-heon entering a restaurant. The two exchanged occasional glances and chatted. A staff member guided them, and they disappeared into a private room at the end of the hallway.
There was no footage from inside the room. It was unclear whether CCTV wasn’t installed there originally or if Seong-heon had arranged it in advance.
The footage fast-forwarded. Many people moved through the hallway captured by the CCTV, and food was continuously delivered to the room where Eun-soo and Seong-heon were.
However, there was only one staff member. Not that the restaurant only had one employee, but rather, the same employee was the one delivering a dozen different menu items to Eun-soo and Seong-heon’s room.
It wasn’t necessarily unusual, as staff are usually assigned to specific tables. But for some reason, Do-kwon’s eyes kept drifting toward him. The slouching gait and the dirty sneakers stained with various spots were out of place in a luxury restaurant.
“This employee here. Did you investigate him?”
Do-kwon paused the video and tapped the employee’s back on the screen.
“Pardon? No. I only edited the parts where Executive Director Seo appears. Isn’t he just a staff member?”
“Track this guy’s movements separately.”
“Uh… Yes, understood.”
Secretary Jeong nodded and turned around. Do-kwon played the video again. The fast-forwarding footage returned to normal speed. The employee entered the room carrying a silver water bottle. He came out shortly after. After about one or two minutes, Seong-heon emerged from the room first. Through the gap of the opening door, a glimpse of Eun-soo putting on—or perhaps taking off—his jacket appeared and then vanished.
As Seong-heon crossed the hallway, the screen changed. The footage followed his movements. Seong-heon appeared in various sizes across the CCTV capturing the restaurant’s overview and the opposite hallway.
Seong-heon headed toward the restroom. The moment he entered, the unsettling employee followed him in, carrying a paper bag.
A few minutes later, the employee came out first. He was still holding the paper bag, but it was impossible to tell if the contents were still inside. A few seconds after he disappeared, a man wearing a black track jacket emerged from the restroom.
It was Seong-heon. At the same time, he was the ‘man’ Do-kwon had seen at the hotel.
“…….”
Why hadn’t he noticed? Seong-heon’s face was clearly visible; if he had looked just a little more carefully, he would have known it was him. Because all his senses had been focused solely on Eun-soo, he hadn’t thought to identify the person beside him.
How stupid!
Do-kwon brushed his forehead in irritation.
Seong-heon strode back toward the room where Eun-soo was with large steps. He held a small object in his hand, but the CCTV quality was too poor to discern what it was.
As Seong-heon opened the room door, Eun-soo was not visible on the screen. Earlier, he had been seen sitting whenever the door opened and closed, so why not now? Do-kwon pressed the pause button. He stared intently at the screen.
Eun-soo was gone. Yet, Seong-heon entered the room without a hint of surprise. It was as if he had expected Eun-soo to be missing or invisible. Furthermore, his gaze was directed not forward, but toward the floor. As if he were looking at something below.
“…….”
Do-kwon’s eyes moved rapidly. Now that he looked… the chair where Eun-soo had been sitting was also gone.
Do-kwon could easily deduce the situation. Eun-soo had collapsed. Along with the chair. And he couldn’t get back up. This meant he was in a state where he couldn’t even lift the chair, let alone his own body. Seong-heon knew Eun-soo would be like that. That was why he looked down at the floor the moment he opened the door.
In other words, Eun-soo had already ingested the drug.
Do-kwon gritted his teeth and played the video.
Seong-heon opened the lid of the object in his hand. At that moment, the door closed. Fortunately, it opened again quickly. Eun-soo, his head hanging limp, was clinging to Seong-heon. His knees buckled helplessly before he could even take a single step, and his back and waist, which were always straight, were slumped like overcooked rice cakes.
Seong-heon, with complete indifference, held Eun-soo by the waist and left the restaurant. As if someone had arranged it in advance, there was no payment and no one stopped them.
As the two completely left the restaurant, the screen went black for a moment. The next clip was the elevator, and the following clip was the scene in the hallway that Do-kwon had seen with his own eyes.
In a scene lasting only a few seconds, Eun-soo, with blurred eyes, desperately burrowed into Seong-heon’s chest. No, that wasn’t the right description; he was rubbing his face against the nape of Seong-heon’s neck. Like a mole searching for something underground, he moved his head obsessively, targeting only the nape of Seong-heon’s neck.
He must have been searching for his scent.
Seong-heon is a Beta. There was no way he would have a pheromone scent. Eun-soo had instinctively buried his nose in the nape of the neck where pheromones are strongest, but since he couldn’t smell anything, he must have become even more anxious and struggled like that.
And so, the two disappeared into the hotel room. That was the extent of what Do-kwon saw.
The video jumped forward again. The clip was 3 seconds long, but according to the timestamp at the bottom, about 7 minutes had actually passed. It wasn’t a long time. It was far too short for anything to happen—that is, for them to have sex.
The door burst open, and Seong-heon rushed out as if fleeing. With a face of utter shock, as if he had seen a ghost, he slumped against the opposite wall and slid down to the floor.
Seong-heon sat sprawled in the hallway like that, staring blankly into space for over ten minutes. Do-kwon could infer the reason for Seong-heon’s reaction. Eun-soo had said so once.
‘Nothing happened! I said nothing happened! I begged that bad man who was pretending to be you. I begged him not to do it. I told him I was pregnant. That there was a baby in my stomach.’
‘I crawled on the floor begging like that! Do you know how I felt hiding under the table!’
At the time, Seong-heon didn’t know Eun-soo was pregnant. It was when Eun-soo, with the help of Myeong-hui, was hiding the fact of his pregnancy. Myeong-hui had strictly hidden the pregnancy, saying they had to be extremely careful lest people’s gossip cause Eun-soo stress. So, no matter how capable Seong-heon was, he couldn’t have found out.
But Eun-soo had revealed the pregnancy at the decisive moment to beg for mercy. That was why Seong-heon was acting so pathetic.
After sitting in the hallway for a long time, Seong-heon staggered to his feet and disappeared from the screen. About three minutes later, Seong-heon reappeared. In his hand was a jacket presumed to be Eun-soo’s. He entered the room and came out a few seconds later.
And the hotel room where Eun-soo was did not open again.
Do-kwon’s index finger tapped the desk anxiously.
What is Eun-soo doing inside? Is something happening? Just as he wondered, Seong-heon appeared, dressed in a proper suit. Then, unlike before, he knocked on the door. The door opened, and Eun-soo’s silhouette flickered briefly before disappearing.
He couldn’t tell for sure what state Eun-soo was in, but at least he could see that he was standing on his own two feet. Just before the door closed, he saw Eun-soo slump down to the floor. Then Seong-heon crouched in front of him. He wanted to see more, but the door closed.
Seong-heon had likely played the role of the kind friend with all his heart. While Do-kwon, driven mad by rage, had disappeared with his phone turned off, Seong-heon must have devoured that void, pushing his way closer and closer to Eun-soo’s side.
The video ended there.
“Haa…….”
Do-kwon let out a long sigh and leaned his head back. As he blinked slowly, organizing his thoughts,
“Director.”
Secretary Jeong approached with a laptop. Do-kwon licked his dry lips and straightened his posture.
“It seems this employee is connected to Executive Director Seo.”
On the laptop Secretary Jeong set down, a video was playing of the employee fidgeting in front of a water dispenser. He had placed a silver water bottle on top of the dispenser in the corner of the kitchen and was pouring five or six pills into it. He was glancing around frequently, making it obvious even at a glance that he was doing something wrong.
“Find this bastard and find out how much he was paid by Executive Director Seo. Find out if this was the first and last time, or if he did other things as well.”
“Yes. Shall I secure the evidence and ‘handle’ him?”
“Yeah.”
Do-kwon didn’t particularly care what Secretary Jeong meant by ‘handle.’ Whether he handed him over to the police, buried him in the ground, or threw him into the sea, it was none of Do-kwon’s concern.
“This drug. Can you find out what it is?”
Do-kwon tapped the white pill bottle in the man’s hand with his fingertip. Then Secretary Jeong said,
“I’ve already found out.”
He turned around and snapped his fingers. An employee organizing documents at the table brought over a black box. Secretary Jeong took it and placed it in front of Do-kwon.
“This was found at Executive Director Seo’s house. We thought it would be hard to find, but they said it was just lying open in the middle of the dressing room. The contents are what we gathered from the items scattered nearby.”
Do-kwon looked down at it silently. Secretary Jeong then opened the lid of the box for him. A pill bottle, two sprays, and a piece of plastic clothing appeared.
The clothing was familiar. It was what Seong-heon had been wearing in the video. Do-kwon pushed the clothing aside.
The pill bottle rolled toward him. Do-kwon picked it up and opened the lid. The pale pills made a clinking sound as they bumped into each other.
Secretary Jeong took the tablet Do-kwon had been watching. He opened an email he had received just before Do-kwon arrived and placed it back down.
“I requested an urgent drug analysis. The exact ingredients aren’t out yet, but we were able to determine what it’s used for.”
“…….”
“The pill bottle you’re holding is a heat… inducer. A heat inducer specifically for Omegas. It forces a heat cycle to occur, and even a small dose has a powerful effect. Not only does it cause a rapid increase in physical desire, but it also has effects similar to narcotics, such as hallucinations, auditory hallucinations, and tactile hallucinations.”
“Ha…….”
Do-kwon gripped the pill bottle tightly. To think he had fed something like this—something so vulgar—to Eun-soo. The image of Eun-soo collapsing on the floor after taking this, the image of Eun-soo clinging to Seong-heon, unable to even support his own legs, felt like it was strangling Do-kwon.
Out of habit, Do-kwon reached for his neck. It was to loosen his tie. However, since he had thrown it away upon leaving the gynecologist’s office, there was nothing around his neck.
Do-kwon irritably shoved the pill bottle back into the box. He touched the spray and looked at Secretary Jeong. As if waiting for the question, Secretary Jeong spoke.
“This is a pheromone. An Alpha pheromone.”
“……Alpha pheromone?”
Do-kwon furrowed his brow at the bizarre identity of the object. They made pheromones into a spray? It was an utterly grotesque idea. To put it in other terms, it was similar to putting human blood in a spray bottle.
Do-kwon twisted open the cap of the spray bottle. As he brought it toward his nose, a pungent smell pierced his nostrils like a spear before he could even get close.
What on earth is this…? Do-kwon recoiled, his brow furrowing deeply. Secretary Jeong quickly closed the cap.
“They say it was made by the Alpha Omega Pheromone Research Institute, and it’s presumed to be your pheromones, Director.”
“…My pheromones?”
“Yes. There was a record of you donating your pheromones to the research institute over a decade ago. Do you happen to remember?”
“Ah… that…”
Dominant Alphas are rare, and their pheromones are equally precious. Consequently, it was quite common to donate them to the state for research purposes. At Myeong-hui’s suggestion, he had donated them with her, told that they would be used to treat Alphas or Omegas with pheromone gland disorders.
As Do-kwon narrowed his eyes, recalling a memory that had grown hazy, Secretary Jeong continued.
“One of the employees embezzled a small amount of the donated pheromones and sold them to Executive Director Seo. He used them to create this pheromone spray. If sprayed like a perfume, it emits that specific pheromone scent.”
“…”
“It seems Executive Director Seo used this to impersonate you to Team Leader Yoo.”
Crazy bastard. Do-kwon muttered under his breath. He had practically filmed his own movie. The sheer depravity of Seong-heon, who had chosen every possible vile trick just to get Eun-soo into bed, was utterly horrific.
Eun-soo’s voice echoed in his ears.
‘But I thought that person… was you, Do-kwon.’
‘He smelled like you. That person. I suddenly went into heat and collapsed, and he approached me. He smelled like you, so I thought it was you.’
‘It didn’t make sense for you to be there at that time, in that moment… but I wasn’t in my right mind… so I just smelled him and thought it was you.’
To think it was actually true. To think those words were a fact. To think such a thing was actually possible. Do-kwon squeezed his eyes shut and then opened them. As he stared intently at the spray bottle, Secretary Jeong pushed another bottle toward him.
“This is what Executive Director Seo was holding in the video.”
“What is it?”
“They couldn’t confirm exactly what it is, but based on the ingredients, they say it’s similar to self-defense spray.”
“…Self-defense spray? You mean the stuff you spray in the faces of perverts?”
“Yes. Pepper spray. It’s also called pepper spray; if it gets in the eyes, it stings intensely and blurs the vision.”
“Seo Seong-heon used this on Yoo Eun-soo?”
Eun-soo wasn’t some intruder, and if it were Seong-heon, he could have easily overpowered Eun-soo with strength alone. Why go through the trouble of using a spray like this? Do-kwon tilted his head. Secretary Jeong shook his head.
“The ingredients are similar, but it doesn’t contain the component that makes the eyes sting. It’s only intended to blur the vision. An effect that makes it impossible to see what’s in front of you.”
“…So, Seo Seong-heon used this to blind Yoo Eun-soo so that he wouldn’t recognize his face?”
“Circumstantially, yes. That seems to be the case.”
Do-kwon took a deep breath. His chest expanded thickly.
His cluttered mind suddenly went blank. It was pure emptiness. There were so many things he had to do, but he couldn’t for the life of him determine the priority.
He just, he just… wanted to see Eun-soo.
Shamelessly, that was how he felt. He missed that clear, bright smile. If only it hadn’t been for Seong-heon. No, if only he hadn’t misunderstood him. No, if only he hadn’t lost his memory—no, no, that’s not it. In the first place, if only he hadn’t approached Eun-soo just to get revenge on Seong-heon.
He would still be living a vibrant life. He wouldn’t have to be lying in a hospital in such a state. Something like Bomi disappearing into the darkness without ever seeing the light would never have happened.
He felt nauseous. He hadn’t eaten all day, yet something kept trying to surge up from the back of his throat.
It could be a gag reflex, a scream, self-loathing, or an impulse to die. Or perhaps it was all of them.
Do-kwon remained still for a moment, without a word or action. Then, barely managing to pull himself together, he asked Secretary Jeong.
“When does Seo Seong-heon get out?”
“It looks like he’ll spend the full 48 hours at the police station. The Chairman is blocking his release. After that… well. I suppose it will be decided based on how the Chairman makes the official announcement.”
“…I see.”
Do-kwon nodded slowly. The reality and truth crashing over him like a tidal wave were confusing. The only thing clear and distinct was his rage toward Seong-heon.
Do-kwon rubbed his cheeks, which had grown rough in the meantime. After catching his breath for a moment, he looked at Secretary Jeong.
“What do I need to do?”
“Ah, given the situation… there’s quite a lot.”
Secretary Jeong smiled awkwardly and tapped on his tablet. He brought up Seong-jin’s stock chart. Blue arrows pierced Do-kwon’s retinas clearly.
“The stock price is plummeting because of Executive Director Seo. It’s only 8%, but the shareholders are in an uproar.”
“It’s not like the stock price hasn’t dropped before. It’s obvious it’ll go back up after a brief dip; do those old fogies still not get that?”
“Well, society is sensitive regarding Omega human rights and pregnant Omegas. If we don’t respond properly, it will keep falling. It seems there’s a growing opinion in online communities that a boycott should be launched.”
“Sigh… and?”
“And the Philippine factory contacted us asking to rewrite the contract. They were speaking their minds quite triumphantly.”
“Bullshit. Just cut them all off. There’s a limit to how much we can indulge them. Whatever we were paying the factory managers, pay the Philippine police double. And tell them to arrest the factory managers and all related organizations.”
“Yes. Understood. And these are the materials regarding the US branch that Executive Director Seo was in charge of; I thought it would be necessary for you to familiarize yourself with them.”
Secretary Jeong explained as he handed over a PDF file. Do-kwon squeezed his eyes shut and opened them again at the sight of the dense text. Because of Seong-heon, the work that was already plenty was now pouring down on him like a bombardment.
As Do-kwon frowned deeply at his throbbing temples, Secretary Jeong repeatedly lifted and lowered his heels on the spot. It seemed he had something to say.
Do-kwon asked with his eyes what it was. Secretary Jeong then pulled a small object, smaller than a palm, from his inner pocket.
“It’s Team Leader Yoo’s phone.”
“…”
“It was found in the dressing room, tucked under a drawer.”
Do-kwon stared silently at the phone. Whether someone had thrown it or Eun-soo had dropped it, one corner was crushed and the screen was covered in cracks.
Do-kwon lightly pressed and released the power button. The phone, which had miraculously survived, lit up the wallpaper.
“…”
Do-kwon hurriedly bit his lip.
On Eun-soo’s wallpaper… there were shoes. They were the white baby shoes Do-kwon had given him once. The shoes, basking in faint sunlight on a white table, were not in the box Do-kwon had provided, but inside a transparent glass case. It seemed Eun-soo had moved them separately.
Do-kwon couldn’t take his eyes off the photo. Seeing this, Secretary Jeong stepped back without a word.
* * *
Do-kwon stayed up all night at the office. There was a lot of work, and even if he closed his eyes to sleep, he didn’t feel like he could fall asleep; time just slipped away.
Do-kwon turned his gaze out the wide window. The sun was rising. Dawn collapsed between the high-rise buildings characteristic of Teheran-ro, and a soft sunlight seeped in.
Watching this, Do-kwon slowly closed and opened his eyes. He twisted his stiff neck from side to side and massaged his aching fingers, which had been gripping a fountain pen all night.
As he opened his eyes again, the phone placed on one side of the desk caught his eye. It was Eun-soo’s. It had stared him down so fiercely all night that he felt he had to keep glancing at it.
Do-kwon briefly pressed the power button. Bomi’s white shoes appeared. Then, a low battery alarm popped up. Looking at the flashing alarm, Do-kwon held the power button. A message appeared saying the phone was shutting down, and soon the screen went black.
Do-kwon took his jacket out of the air dresser and put it on. He tucked the cracked phone into his inner pocket and left the director’s office.
* * *
Four burly guards were standing in front of Eun-soo’s hospital room. Anyone seeing them would think a high-ranking government official, like a minister or vice-minister, was hospitalized. Upon spotting Do-kwon, they bowed slightly and opened the door for him.
After hesitating for a moment, Do-kwon stepped into the room.
The room was quiet. It was only natural, as the only person there was Eun-soo, who was in a deep sleep. Only the occasional beeping of machines and the sound of air blowing from the humidifier could be heard.
Do-kwon stood still near the door. He had come to see Eun-soo, but for some reason, he couldn’t bring himself to approach him. The air, saturated with the characteristic smell of disinfectant, seemed to block Do-kwon like a shield.
So, Do-kwon stood there for a long time. Then, just as he felt his soles were glued to the floor, just as his knees grew heavy, and just as his shoulders slumped as far as they could, he slowly approached Eun-soo.
Eun-soo looked exactly as he had yesterday. His eyes were closed, he was thin, and he was pale. How should he put it? He looked like a statue painstakingly carved from white marble by a renowned master. He was that beautiful, but there was no color in his skin, and no sign of vitality.
He hadn’t expected the bandages covering him to have decreased in just one day, but seeing them remain the same made his chest feel tight for some reason. It felt as if someone were pulling his ribs downward.
Do-kwon chewed his lower lip. He put his hands in his pockets and took them out, swept back his bangs, pinched his earlobe, and fussed by touching the tip of his nose, before finally tightening his lips as if he had made a decision. Then, he slowly leaned over.
When the distance between him and Eun-soo was about a span, Do-kwon stopped. Then, he took a deep, large breath.
“…”
He smelled Eun-soo. It was definitely the scent of Eun-soo’s pheromones. It was very faint, blurred by the alcohol smell permeating the room, but he could still tell it was the scent that came from Eun-soo.
Do-kwon let out a small sigh of relief. After confirming that Eun-soo was alive, his heavy chest felt cruelly lighter.
Even so, Do-kwon did not straighten his back and continued to gaze at Eun-soo from a close distance. As he did, his greed naturally expanded.
…Could I just touch him once?
Gently. As softly as possible. Could he touch him? He felt that if he could feel Eun-soo’s warmth, if he could touch his soft skin, he could perceive more clearly that he was alive.
Do-kwon swallowed hard. Once one impulse is satisfied, the second impulse and the desire to act on it grow twofold. Do-kwon, daringly and without knowing his place, reached out toward Eun-soo.
Just before his fingertips touched Eun-soo’s forehead, he heard a presence outside the door. Do-kwon quickly straightened his back. Not only that, he even stepped two paces back from the bed.
At the same time, the door opened. Do-kwon turned around, pretending to have an indifferent face. Myeong-hui and Ki-ho were standing there.
“Oh… Do-kwon?”
Ki-ho, holding a large bouquet of flowers, widened his eyes.
“…”
Myeong-hui just glared at Do-kwon with her narrow eyes without saying a word. Do-kwon bowed his head in greeting toward them.
Myeong-hui and Ki-ho approached Eun-soo’s side to check on his well-being. Guards had been watching outside all night, and they hadn’t received any particular contact from the doctor, but they needed to see it with their own eyes to be reassured.
Myeong-hui adjusted Eun-soo’s pillow. She gently brushed back the hair that Do-kwon hadn’t dared to touch and tucked the hand that had slipped out back under the blanket. Ki-ho checked the remaining water in the humidifier, adjusted the room temperature, and slightly increased the strength of the air purifier. Then, looking at the bouquet, he let out a hum from his throat.
“What is it?” Myeong-hui asked.
“I want to leave one by Eun-soo’s side. Which flower would be good?”
“Use this one.”
Myeong-hui picked a single, clear white blossom from among the colorful flowers. Ki-ho nodded, plucked the flower, and placed it in a slender vase on the nightstand. Then he headed toward the table with the rest. It seemed he intended to change the flowers in the vase on the table.
Watching Ki-ho, Myeong-hui turned her eyes back to Eun-soo and spoke to Do-kwon.
“What brings you here so early in the morning?”
“…I felt I should stop by.”
Myeong-hui snorted at Do-kwon’s low voice. What a useless and meaningless pretext.
Do-kwon licked his dry lips. Then, looking at Eun-soo along with Myeong-hui, he spoke.
“Did you see the files I sent?”
“Seong-heon’s materials? I saw them.”
“What do you intend to do?”
“I don’t know. I wasn’t surprised because I already knew most of it through the grapevine. It’s despicable, but Seong-heon’s parents have been calling so much, begging me to overlook it just once. I can’t completely ignore them since they are family.”
“…Mother.”
Do-kwon called Myeong-hui in a voice that sounded like a growl. So. Because they are blood-related family, is she going to protect Seong-heon? Is she going to forgive him?
He had assumed Myeong-hui would naturally cast Seong-heon aside. He thought she would throw him away like trash. He never imagined she would give such an answer.
Veins popped up on the back of Do-kwon’s tightly clenched hand.
If Myeong-hui intended to protect Seong-heon, that was the end of it. No matter how hard he struggled or screamed, if Myeong-hui held his ground, there was no way to bring Seong-heon down.
Do-kwon’s eyes twisted deeply. While he was pondering how to persuade Myeong-hui, she tilted her head slightly and looked at him.
“Why? Is it strange that I’m staying quiet when he’s the one who made Eun-soo like this?”
“…Yes.”
Do-kwon readily agreed. Because it was indeed strange. It was a decision unlike Myeong-hui. Since when did she ever talk about family and bloodlines? If she had, he would have been the CEO instead of a Director, and no matter what happened to Eun-soo, Myeong-hui would never have thrown a teacup at his face or hit him.
Myeong-hui sneered at Do-kwon’s face, which clearly displayed his discomfort.
“Then why did you only send that for the materials related to Seong-heon?”
“…Excuse me?”
“What I want to know is why Seong-heon was with Eun-soo. Why Eun-soo had to run away. Why he is lying here in this state. Why on earth did you send trivial company matters?”
“…”
“You surely know the reason. But the fact that you aren’t saying it—is it because that fact is truly trivial? Or is it because that fact is unfavorable to you as well?”
Do-kwon’s breath stopped. It was a piercing blow. The reason he kept silent about the terrible things Seong-heon did to Eun-soo. Yes, that was right. Just as she said, it was because it was unfavorable to him as well.
The fact that he had been played by Seong-heon’s cunning schemes was irritating, and the fact that he had abandoned Eun-soo because of it, the fact that he had ignored all of Eun-soo’s numerous attempts to clear up the misunderstanding, the fact that he had treated a phone call that was essentially a plea for help as something insignificant, and the fact that Eun-soo and Bomi ended up like this. In the end, it was all his choice and his fault, which was why he hadn’t revealed it.
Do-kwon’s face flushed bright red. His secrets weren’t fully exposed, he had just been pricked, but he felt an indescribable amount of shame.
Myeong-hui looked at Do-kwon with cold eyes.
“What are you trying to hide even after coming all the way here? Just how cowardly are you going to be?”
“…”
Do-kwon’s gaze dropped to the floor. Myeong-hui took a step closer. Then, she stroked the lapel of Do-kwon’s jacket with her index finger as if scratching it.
“Do-kwon. My son.”
“…”
“I never asked you to live a virtuous life, but you still shouldn’t live cowardly. With Eun-soo lying here like this, if that was the work of that bastard Seong-heon, shouldn’t you be trying to kill him even if your own limbs are torn apart?”
“…”
“How can you… be standing here… so perfectly fine?”
Myeong-hui looked at her handsome son with eyes tinged with faint disgust.
“…”
Do-kwon couldn’t say a word. At that, Myeong-hui clicked her tongue. Her expression was one of being sickened by her motionless son. As she turned away as if she had nothing more to say, Do-kwon stopped her with his characteristic low voice.
“You’re going to work today, right?”
“…”
“I’ll come up to the Chairman’s office before lunch.”
He spoke with a look of determination in his eyes.
Seong-heon arrived at work with exhaustion written all over his face. Having not slept a wink at the police station, nor after returning home, his skin looked rough and haggard.
It had been nearly three days since he last stepped foot in the office. Though it hadn’t been that long, the company felt unfamiliar. This was because, from the moment he entered, the sudden surge of gazes pricked at his skin like needles.
In truth, he was no stranger to being watched, but those had been looks of envy and admiration—not these kinds of ‘glares.’
Seong-heon stood before the elevator. The whispers that had been tickling his ears were now scratching at them relentlessly. A few employees standing beside him were chatting busily.
“That pregnant person in the news, I heard it’s Team Leader Yoo from the UI Design Team?”
“Huh? Really? Doesn’t Team Leader Yoo date Director Seo? Weren’t they totally lovey-dovey?”
“Right. But it seems Executive Director Seo liked Team Leader Yoo too. That’s why he imprisoned him.”
“Crazy, imprisonment? Is that why there was an accident while he was trying to escape?”
“Yeah. Total psycho, right?”
“Complete lunatic. Should he even be allowed in society?”
The raw condemnation and agitated tones were clearly meant to be overheard. Once the news broke with Seong-heon’s identity revealed, and the articles and videos spread across the internet, people quickly figured out Eun-soo’s identity as well.
Because of that, Seong-heon’s image as a gentle and nice man vanished in an instant, replaced by that of a perverted, psychotic madman. To make matters worse, his dignity had plummeted to the point where a mere employee could speak so recklessly about the company’s Executive Director.
“…….”
With an expressionless face, Seong-heon watched the descending elevator. Imprisonment. Imprisonment, huh… Had he forcibly locked Eun-soo away? No way. He had put in so much effort to ‘escort’ him.
Rumors gain weight easily. Feeding on people’s curiosity and chatter, they grow bloated, mixing truth and lies to crush the subject of the rumor. And once that weight is gained, it doesn’t come off easily, because people aren’t particularly interested in the truth.
Still, it was fine. Seong-heon knew well that the lifespan of such rumors was short.
The moment a single celebrity scandal broke, Seong-heon’s name would vanish from people’s minds in an instant. Moreover, how many of these people would even still be at this company in three or five years?
He felt disgusted, but he didn’t pay it much mind.
Thus, all the way up to the Executive Director’s office, Seong-heon heard every kind of remark. That he imprisoned Eun-soo, assaulted him, was jealous of Do-kwon, envious, had the audacity to show up at work, and was a shameless man who used money and power to get out of the police station.
Some were sporadically true, and some were false. But what did that matter?
Myeong-hui had called him back to the company. This meant that Do-kwon had not told Myeong-hui about what had happened between him and Seong-heon regarding Eun-soo. At most, he probably only reported the company secrets or funds that Seong-heon had embezzled.
A bitter smile played on Seong-heon’s lips. The idiot Seo Do-kwon was selfish to the end. He must have kept quiet because he knew Myeong-hui would certainly scold him if she found out what he had done to Eun-soo.
Tsk, tsk. Clicking his tongue silently, Seong-heon opened the door to his office. However…
“…….”
The office was a mess. As if a typhoon had swept through, books were scattered on the floor, drawers were all flung open, and files were empty. Expensive ornaments were tilted or knocked over.
It was obvious whose doing it was. His house had been the same.
Seong-heon grit his teeth. That son of a bitch, Seo Do-kwon. As he cursed inwardly,
“Hyung. You’re here?”
A low voice tickled his temple.
Seong-heon snapped his head around. He saw the back of a head sitting on the sofa. It was a silhouette he could recognize instantly. Seong-heon’s eyebrows shot up steeply, but he quickly donned a mask of composure.
“What brings you here?”
Seong-heon asked as he took off his jacket. Despite the boiling rage inside, his voice was quite mild.
Even if Myeong-hui had decided to keep him silent for now, this was a time to be cautious. Seeing how both the house and the office had been ransacked, there was a high possibility that Do-kwon now knew everything he had done to Eun-soo.
Seong-heon placed his jacket in the air dresser. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Looking at the ruined office gave him a headache. Where the hell were those secretary bastards? Come to think of it, he remembered the secretary’s desk being empty when he entered.
Seong-heon wrinkled his nose. He then began to personally tidy up the papers strewn across the desk. As he did, he asked Do-kwon.
“What about Eun-soo? Is he okay?”
“……You’re asking if Yoo Eun-soo is okay?”
“I was actually planning to visit the hospital today. Is he still in a coma?”
“…….”
“I’m sorry about Bomi. The car happened to be speeding…….”
Seong-heon narrowed his eyes as if his heart were truly aching. The emotion wasn’t fake. He had been genuinely shocked to hear that Eun-soo still hadn’t opened his eyes. That day, even as he sat on the road clutching the bleeding Eun-soo until the ambulance arrived, it had felt surreal.
“Ha…….”
Do-kwon let out a short, mocking laugh. ‘The car happened to be.’ He was a master at twisting his words like an eel, acting as if he bore no guilt whatsoever. As Do-kwon rubbed his face with his large hand, Seong-heon continued to grate on his nerves, oblivious to the tension.
“How about you? Well, you’re fine, right?”
“…….”
“You didn’t think of Bomi as your daughter anyway. And things were already over between you and Eun-soo.”
“Hyung. Know when to stop.”
“Why? I’m stopping exactly where I should. Isn’t it you, Do-kwon, who needs to gauge the limit?”
Seong-heon replied in a flat voice, staring at the bundle of documents in his hand. The papers, slashed with all sorts of graphs and numbers, harshly scratched his retinas. Looking at them made him feel nauseous, causing him to tighten his grip. The paper crumpled and twisted with a crunch. Seong-heon irritably shoved it into the trash can.
He then took a breath, surveying the chaotic state of the office. Yet, the anger surging within him refused to be contained.
Loosening his tie, Seong-heon strode toward Do-kwon. He stood beside him and looked down at him with cold eyes.
“Do-kwon. You didn’t make my house and office like this because of Eun-soo, did you? Don’t tell me you came all the way here to resent me? You? Why?”
“…….”
“You don’t have the right.”
Seong-heon did his best to kick and trample on Do-kwon’s mood. That Eun-soo ended up like that, that he was being called a lunatic by mere employees, and that his home and office were in this state—it was all because of Do-kwon.
“By what right do you resent me? What were you to Eun-soo? At best, weren’t you just the ‘trash ex’ who misunderstood Eun-soo and abandoned him on a whim?”
Seong-heon spoke with a bitter smile. At that, Do-kwon’s eyes clouded over. Everything Seong-heon spat out was nonsense. Yet, he kept being swayed and grew angry. It was because he subconsciously realized that Seong-heon’s words weren’t wrong.
Still, wrong was wrong. Anyone else might be one thing, but Seong-heon shouldn’t be the one blaming him. He was the very person who had torn him and Eun-soo apart. If not for him, he would still be facing Eun-soo, laughing and chatting.
“Stop… talking. Before I rip your mouth open.”
Do-kwon growled, clenching and then releasing his jaw. At that, the corners of Seong-heon’s mouth curled up.
He felt a perverse sense of excitement at the expected reaction. Do-kwon was still no different from when he was a green high schooler. Swept away by emotion, floundering in a hole he dug for himself. Even that great Dominant Alpha was, in the end, in the palm of his hand.
“Why? Do you hate my words that much? Be honest. You weren’t even that sad that Eun-soo ended up like that, were you?”
“…….”
“You’re just acting like this because you feel like you should be angry. Because it seems like the right thing to do, and because you think people around you will find it strange otherwise, so you’re just taking your anger out on me.”
“…….”
“A bastard who can’t remember a thing because there’s a hole in his head…….”
Do-kwon bolted upright and struck Seong-heon’s cheekbone. A dull thwack echoed sharply through the spacious office. It was a fist as hard as an iron ball.
Seong-heon was sent flying backward. It was just one punch, but the impact felt as if he had been hit by a dump truck.
Seong-heon felt as if his consciousness had momentarily left through the crown of his head before returning. A ringing sound echoed in his ears and his vision blurred, returning to normal only after several seconds. Then, an immense wave of pain poured in.
It felt as if his entire facial structure had been shattered. Perhaps his cheekbone had collapsed; every time he moved his jaw, he heard a rattling sound of bone.
Clutching his cheek, Seong-heon blinked rapidly. He then looked up at Do-kwon, who stood before him like a towering mountain, panting. Do-kwon’s burning eyes were filled with excitement and despair. At that, Seong-heon chuckled.
“Since you can’t remember, I’ll tell you. You’ve never loved Eun-soo. Not from the start, and not now. So stop acting so pathetic, you piece of shit.”
At those words, the veins in Do-kwon’s temples bulged. He grabbed Seong-heon by the collar. Even as his upper body was lifted by the tremendous force, Seong-heon continued to grin. Do-kwon let out a rough breath and swung his fist again.
Thud!
“Shut the fuck up. What the hell… do you know.”
You, who can’t even imagine the emotions I shared with Yoo Eun-soo. You, who never once received an affectionate gaze from him. How dare you talk as if you know everything about Eun-soo.
Thud, thwack!
The sounds of bones crushing and skin splitting echoed loudly. Blood burst from between Seong-heon’s teeth. His teeth wobbled, and thick blood pooled on his tongue.
Yet, Do-kwon’s violence showed no sign of stopping. Just as Do-kwon, with eyes like a demon, raised his blood-stained fist once more, Seong-heon glared and lunged at him. He rammed into Do-kwon with his entire body, like a bull.
No matter how strong Do-kwon was, he couldn’t ignore the weight of the large-framed Seong-heon. Moreover, because he had one hand raised in the air to swing and one shoulder pushed back, his center of gravity was unstable.
Do-kwon fell backward. Following a loud thump, a dull impact sound rang out. Do-kwon’s head collided with the side table next to the main sofa. For a moment, his brain shuddered. His startled brain seemed to shrink, and his blood ran cold.
“Ugh…….”
Do-kwon’s brow furrowed deeply. His vision blurred. As if seen through a broken lens, the world shattered. Red and green fragments fell, and black and white swayed from side to side.
Do-kwon shook his head violently to regain consciousness, but it only made him dizzier. Along with his cold skull, his entire body chilled.
Seeing Do-kwon in this state, Seong-heon seized the opportunity and climbed on top of him. He grabbed Do-kwon’s collar, something he had wanted to do for a long time. Since Do-kwon was half a head taller than him, this had always been limited to his imagination. To have it actually happen was an indescribable joy. It was a day worth celebrating.
Seong-heon struck Do-kwon’s cheek with a tightly clenched fist. He hit him, and hit him again. He crushed the high bridge of his nose and beat his smooth forehead and thick eyelids without hesitation.
The anger and inferiority that had been tangled in his chest for decades exploded brilliantly like fireworks. Strangely, all that rage turned into pleasure.
Seong-heon continued to grin as he beat Do-kwon.
“What do I not know? I know exactly why you approached Eun-soo two years ago, why you misunderstood him at that hotel, and how recklessly you treated him because of it. What don’t I know?”
“……Kh!”
“You’re the one who doesn’t know. You just closed your eyes and ears and spent your time resenting Eun-soo like an idiot. You stupid bastard.”
“…….”
“You don’t know, do you? How terrible Eun-soo’s condition was. Even after the morning sickness ended, he couldn’t eat. He suffered from nightmares all night. He said in his dreams, his parents burned to death, and you, who smiled in front of him, left in an instant.”
“…….”
“That’s why he was rushed to the emergency room several times. He called them all himself. ‘I’m an Omega, and I’m several months pregnant. My stomach hurts so much. Please help me.’ The paramedics clicked their tongues, saying they’d never heard such a calm request for help. That’s how desperate Eun-soo was. Because he had to save Bomi in his womb. And to do that, he had to survive himself.”
“…….”
“Eun-soo was even hesitant to be treated by an Alpha. He was afraid you would hate it if you found out. Do you know how hard it was to persuade him? He was finally starting to get healthy. Because of you… because of you!”
Do-kwon grimaced and let out a faint groan. It hurt. It was agonizing. It felt as if his head were splitting. It wasn’t the physical pain from Seong-heon’s fists. It was a headache he had felt before. The headache he often experienced after being discharged from the hospital following the car accident.
Furthermore, the words Seong-heon spat out were fragmented into sentences, words, and syllables, piercing Do-kwon’s entire body like knitting needles. It felt as if he were rolling in a field of thorns. He wondered if he had died and fallen into hell without realizing it.
Seong-heon tightened his grip on Do-kwon’s collar. Looking down into Do-kwon’s distorted eyes, he whispered in a voice filled with madness.
“I was trying to protect Eun-soo from you.”
“…….”
“I could have protected him if I just did a little more! You ruined everything, you bastard!”
“…….”
“If it weren’t for you, Eun-soo wouldn’t have ended up like this!”
Seong-heon’s scream rang out loudly. The echo that bounced off the smooth marble walls pressed down on Do-kwon even more heavily.
Do-kwon, twisting his head with a furrowed brow, licked his dry lips. His blood-soaked tongue flickered out and disappeared. Wrinkling his nose at the metallic taste of blood, he looked up at Seong-heon askew.
“Bull… shit. You’re the one who ruined everything.”
“Ha, me? No. From the moment you approached Eun-soo to get revenge on me…….”
“What does that matter. Yoo Eun-soo said he loved me. Then you should have just given up cleanly.”
At those words, Seong-heon’s ragged breathing stopped for a moment. He then gripped Do-kwon’s collar even more firmly.
“……No. Eun-soo doesn’t love you. He was just, just momentarily deceived…….”
“Then do you think he loved you?”
“…….”
“Probably not. What is there to see in a Beta like you?”
“……Shut up.”
“You don’t know how much Yoo Eun-soo loved my pheromones, do you? You don’t know how cute he was, sniffing like a puppy while held in my arms? On days he was stressed, he’d beg me to hold him—you’ll never know how beautiful that was until the day you die. Because you’re not an Alpha.”
“……I said shut up!”
Seong-heon shook Do-kwon’s collar violently. Do-kwon’s head slammed repeatedly against the floor. Do-kwon’s eyelids loosened. He could no longer feel the pain. His mind was hazy, as if he were on drugs. Seong-heon’s face, screaming something in front of him, split into two, then three.
Seong-heon thought Do-kwon was ignoring him. He thought Do-kwon felt that the violence of a lowly Beta wasn’t even worth dealing with.
Seong-heon’s eyes widened as he scanned the surroundings. He then grabbed a dried flower vase sitting on the table.
He wanted to kill Do-kwon. If he were gone, this terrible inferiority complex would vanish, this company would become his, and the solitary Eun-soo would surely come into his arms. Perhaps God would suddenly make him a Dominant Alpha one day.
Madness surged heavily in Seong-heon’s eyes.
The vase, raised high in the air, swayed dangerously when—bang. The office door opened without a knock.
Seong-heon’s bloodshot gaze turned toward the door. Standing there were Secretary Jeong, Myeong-hui, and her staff.
“Director!”
A horrified Secretary Jeong rushed toward Do-kwon. Shoving Seong-heon aside, he supported Do-kwon and helped him sit up. Do-kwon wiped the blood from his lips with the back of his hand. Myeong-hui stared at Do-kwon with cold, frozen eyes.
At that, Seong-heon set the vase down as if throwing it. He sprang up and approached Myeong-hui. Bowing his head as if apologetic, he stole glances at Myeong-hui’s expression.
“Chairman, this… this is because Director Seo swung his fist first…….”
“Enough. Do I really need to know every detail of your fistfights?”
Myeong-hui frowned slightly and shook her head. Men were such idiots. The way they resorted to their fists the moment things didn’t go their way was no different from beasts.
At Myeong-hui’s reaction, Seong-heon’s expression brightened noticeably.
“I will quickly handle my overdue work and come report to you.”
As he bowed politely, Myeong-hui tilted her head to the side.
“You? Work? Why?”
“Pardon?”
“Why are you working at my company?”
At Myeong-hui’s question, Seong-heon blinked rapidly. He then took a step toward her, but the secretaries grabbed his shoulders and pushed him back. Seong-heon irritably shook off their hands.
“The—the Chairwoman called for me!”
“Ah, right. I did call you. If you’re going to pack your things, you need someone to clear them out, don’t you? I can’t waste my precious employees on such a trivial task.”
“…….”
At Myeong-hui’s leisurely words, Seong-heon stammered, his jaw hanging open. He looked as if he might unsightly drool. Myeong-hui clicked her tongue at his foolish appearance.
Since childhood, Seong-heon had harbored an inferiority complex toward Do-kwon. It had been so pitiful to see him feel inferior over things he was born with. It had stayed in her heart for so long that she had intentionally been kinder to him and given him a better position than Do-kwon’s.
However, it seemed that wasn’t enough to satisfy him. Well, it would have been fine if it had turned into healthy competition. But he shouldn’t have used it to torment others. Moreover, reaching out to Eun-soo, who carried her granddaughter, was truly, truly unacceptable.
While Myeong-hui and Seong-heon exchanged meaningless glances, Secretary Jeong helped Do-kwon up. Do-kwon blinked slowly, clutching his head. He looked like a half-wit despite his decent stature.
Secretary Jeong, his face clouded with worry, bowed to Myeong-hui and left the executive office with Do-kwon. Once they disappeared through the door, Myeong-hui gave a slight nod of her chin to the secretary standing beside her. The secretary clicked the door shut.
To any observer, the atmosphere had shifted so that Do-kwon was the victim and Seong-heon was the perpetrator. Seong-heon tried to open his mouth to defend himself.
At that moment. Slap—. A sharp cracking sound echoed through the office.
Myeong-hui had struck Seong-heon across the cheek. Seong-heon’s eyes widened in shock. Myeong-hui had never once laid a hand on him. He knew she disciplined Do-kwon severely, but that had never extended to him. In the first place, it was absurd for cousins to be hitting each other.
But what was happening? Seong-heon looked at Myeong-hui with a bewildered face.
“Ch—Chairwoman?”
“How dare you lay a hand on my son.”
“…….”
Seong-heon gasped at Myeong-hui’s growl. ‘My son.’ This was the first time he had ever heard Myeong-hui refer to Do-kwon as her son. Of course, everyone knew Do-kwon was her son, so there was no need to state it explicitly, but she had never taken his side by calling him the son in her arms like this.
While Seong-heon stood dazed by an inexplicable sense of betrayal, Myeong-hui swept her neatly tied-up hair back with her palm. She then flopped down onto the sofa where Do-kwon had been sitting. Her long legs crossed elegantly, and her high heels sparkled brilliantly. The secretaries brushed past Seong-heon and stood behind her.
“Get out of my company.”
Myeong-hui spoke while staring out the window at the view of Teheran-ro.
“……Chairwoman.”
Seong-heon strode toward Myeong-hui. Immediately, the secretaries blocked her with their broad shoulders. Myeong-hui, turning her head halfway, gave a low notification.
“Don’t ever show your face here again. If it were up to me, I’d cut off your arms and legs and throw you out from here, but I’m holding back because of the affection we’ve shared over the years.”
“What did I do wrong?”
At those words, Myeong-hui sneered. Good heavens. To be so brazen. She realized she had seriously misjudged Seong-heon.
“Do you even know how much money you embezzled?”
“It’s probably less than the money I’ve earned for Seong-jin so far.”
“You know I’m not talking about actual money issues.”
“Then what is it?”
“Seong-heon. I put you in the Executive Director position because I trusted you. I thought you would manage the company well. But whether it’s a hundred won or ten billion, the fact that you embezzled money in the first place is where you went wrong.”
“…….”
“Well, fine. Let’s say, as you claim, the money you earned is more. But you shouldn’t have done that to people. What you did to Eun-soo, and what you did to the Omegas Do-kwon met—that is not something I can overlook.”
At those words, Seong-heon’s ribs tightened. Myeong-hui knew. She knew what he had done to Eun-soo. She knew the cruel things he had done to the Omegas Do-kwon had met. In other words, it meant Do-kwon had confessed everything to Myeong-hui.
This was unexpected. The atmosphere was not good. Myeong-hui valued people above all else.
As Seong-heon’s eyes darted left and right, wondering how to navigate this, Myeong-hui leaned back deep into the sofa and added.
“Playing with money is fine. But playing with people is unacceptable. Get out. You have no right to earn a living from Seong-jin.”
Seong-heon’s eyes twitched. Right. He had no right? Even if that were true, he had far more right than Do-kwon. He was certain of it. Seong-heon’s lips twisted crookedly. Clenching his fists, he murmured lowly.
“……You shouldn’t do this to me. I’ve been at Seong-jin for over ten years. Just the things I know would shake all of South Korea. Can you handle that?”
At that, Myeong-hui suddenly burst into laughter. She laughed loudly, pounding the armrest of the sofa as if something were incredibly funny. Myeong-hui turned her head sharply to look at Seong-heon. A murderous glint flashed in the corners of her eyes, where the remnants of laughter still lingered.
“And you? Can you handle the consequences of wagging that arrogant tongue?”
“……It’s not like I can’t.”
“Seong-heon. You know whose money your incompetent parents live on, don’t you?”
“…….”
At those words, Seong-heon’s eyelashes fluttered violently. He hadn’t expected his parents to come up in Myeong-hui’s mouth.
Just as she said, Seong-heon’s parents were incompetent. It was hard to believe they shared the same blood as Myeong-hui. They were all Betas, they weren’t smart, and they had no ambition.
Because of that, his parents were included among the many sources of inferiority Seong-heon felt toward Do-kwon. Unlike Myeong-hui, who was a wonderful adult, his parents were truly pathetic.
However, that didn’t mean they weren’t his parents. Since they were the ones who gave birth to him and raised him, he felt a certain amount of affection for them.
Myeong-hui, seeing Seong-heon’s face turn pale, continued calmly.
“The house your parents live in. The golf fees they pay every weekend. The clothes they buy every month. The car they change every six months. That’s all my money.”
“…….”
“And in a few years, it will be Do-kwon’s money.”
“…….”
“You should stay on my good side, Seong-heon. Not just with me, but with my son as well.”
“…….”
“Do you want your whole family rolling around on the streets?”
Seong-heon gnashed his teeth. Bloodshot veins appeared in his eyes, and a vein bulged on his forehead. His body trembled with rage. Watching him, Myeong-hui rose from her chair.
She had no hobby of interfering in children’s fights, but since Eun-soo was lying there, those involved with him had to receive their due punishment.
Seong-heon had been punished, and Do-kwon would also receive a fitting punishment. However, unlike Seong-heon, the one executing the punishment would not be Myeong-hui. It would be Eun-soo’s share once he woke up.
“You can clear your things by today, right?”
Asking a question that wasn’t really a question, Myeong-hui brushed past Seong-heon. Then, with the rhythmic click-clack of her heels, she left the executive office. The secretaries disappeared after her.
And so, Seong-heon was left alone in the spacious and luxurious, yet filthy, executive office.
* * *
This is the 9 o’clock news on the 3rd.
Executive Director Seo of Seong-jin Group was booked by the prosecution today at 2 PM.
Executive Director Seo, a Beta, illegally obtained Alpha pheromones from the
Furthermore, he is expected to undergo prosecution investigation on charges of instigating rape by administering illegal narcotics to Omegas several times, as well as violations regarding the possession and use of narcotics.
Chairwoman Seo of Seong-jin Group expressed deep responsibility for this incident and offered an apology. Executive Director Seo and related employees were immediately dismissed, and she stated that all future matters would be left to the prosecution and that she would sincerely assist with any necessary investigations.
Chairwoman Seo stated that the company would take the lead in ensuring the human rights of Omegas and striving for an equal company, as well as an equal society…
In fact, Seong-jin Group is counted as one of the most equal companies among the top 10 conglomerates in the country, with a 5:5 ratio of genders and Alpha/Omega proportions among employees and executives. Additionally, last year, they donated tens of billions for the equal rights of Omegas…
The news anchor chattered incessantly. The world was buzzing over the big news. However, Myeong-hui and Do-kwon, who were at the center of that news, were watching the screen with expressionless faces.
As the news broadcast scattered images of the Seong-jin Group headquarters, the Alpha Omega Pheromone Research Institute, and Seong-heon’s silhouette, Myeong-hui turned off the TV with the remote. Silence filled the hospital room as the noise was abruptly cut off.
Do-kwon had been standing by Eun-soo’s bed for a long time. He gazed down at Eun-soo’s face, which was bathed in the soft light of the lamp. As he did, his temples began to throb again.
The doctor had concluded that this headache was a mild concussion. It was caused by strong external force when he hit the nightstand and the floor. He wished that external force had brought some progress regarding his memories. But the situations commonly found in dramas or movies did not happen for Do-kwon.
Do-kwon ignored the pain by slightly knitting his brows. It was thanks to the fact that he had been dealing with it all day and had grown accustomed to the pain.
“Mother.”
Do-kwon called Myeong-hui in his characteristic low voice. Instead of answering, Myeong-hui glanced at Do-kwon’s profile. Feeling her gaze, Do-kwon asked in a flat tone.
“When you saw it, did it really seem like I loved Yoo Eun-soo?”
“Do you even have to ask?”
Myeong-hui answered without a moment’s hesitation. The image of Do-kwon walking around with a beaming smile, as if something had broken in him, remained vivid in her mind. He was a man who had Eun-soo’s name on his lips all day and had even tearfully become emotional when informed of Eun-soo’s pregnancy.
Myeong-hui had learned for the first time that Do-kwon possessed so many expressions. She had learned for the first time that a man well over thirty could smile as brightly as a child, and she had learned for the first time how much love could change a human being.
Eun-soo was another world, a savior, and love to Do-kwon. For the two of them at that time, that grand word was not at all excessive.
“You loved him very much. It was a sight to behold.”
“…….”
“Do you think we liked Eun-soo for no reason? We looked into him because you were so crazy about him, and once we did, we found the boy to be refined, beautiful, and kind, so we grew to like him too.”
Myeong-hui murmured, narrowing her eyes as if recalling a distant past. To this, Do-kwon rubbed his forehead and asked back.
“Did I… truly love him?”
“If you’re worried about what Seong-heon said, forget it. Do you think I can’t tell whether you were acting or if you truly fell in love?”
“But I still don’t know. I think I loved him, but it doesn’t feel real. It’s like it’s someone else’s story. Yoo Eun-soo is familiar, and it’s sad that he’s lying here like this, and it hurts my heart that Bomi… became like that, but still, I just don’t know.”
“……You’ll know when your memories return.”
Myeong-hui said, letting out a long sigh through her nose. At that, Do-kwon’s lips twitched.
When memories return.
As long as memories return.
It was something he had heard countless times from Myeong-hui, Secretary Jeong, and Eun-soo. Every time he heard it, he felt it was a truly irresponsible solution.
Who knows when his memories will return? Or rather, will they even return?
Do-kwon was afraid. He couldn’t decide what to do or how to act once Eun-soo woke up. Should he kneel and apologize? Should he press his head to the ground and beg for forgiveness?
It wasn’t that he couldn’t do it. It was true that he had done wrong, and it was true that he had driven him to the brink of death through his own arbitrary misunderstandings.
But if asked if that was sincere… well. Would it be sincere?
Everything was an unknown. There was nothing he remembered clearly, nothing he could know, and nothing he could be certain of. This was the first time in his life he had experienced such confusion and conflict, so he didn’t know how to handle it.
Do-kwon stared quietly at Eun-soo’s limp hand. After a few days, the wounds on the fingers had faded.
“Will my memories… return?”
“…….”
“Until yesterday, I had almost no headaches. I’ve adapted to company life, and I’ve read all the overdue economic magazines. So, I no longer feel a sense of urgency to recover my memories.”
“……Do-kwon.”
“Even so, will I be able to find them?”
Do-kwon’s monologue echoed softly through the late-night hospital room. At this, Myeong-hui rose from the sofa and approached Do-kwon. Do-kwon took his eyes off Eun-soo and looked at her. Myeong-hui’s lips, with slightly smudged lipstick, moved slowly.
“Memories.”
“…….”
“Find them.”
“…….”
“Whether you can find them or not, find them.”
“…….”
“Find them and beg Eun-soo. Tell him you’re sorry, that you were wrong. If Eun-soo doesn’t accept it, give him your neck to throttle.”
At those words, Do-kwon swallowed hard. He felt as if his Adam’s apple were already being squeezed.
Give him his neck to throttle.
Do-kwon looked at the hand of Eun-soo, who still had his eyes tightly closed. To give his neck to that white, small, and thin hand.
“…….”
Do-kwon’s thick Adam’s apple moved up and down significantly.
There was nothing he could clearly predict or be certain of, but he had the feeling that giving his neck to Eun-soo’s hand wouldn’t be that difficult.
『To be continued in Volume 4』