By Zephyria 
He couldn’t possibly offer nothing to a guest who had come all the way to his house. Kim Hui-won belatedly went into the kitchen to make tea.
Opening the cupboard, he saw a box of Wedgwood teacups. Was it three years ago, or two? He remembered Kwon Young-je receiving them as a gift and passing them on to him. He wondered if he would ever use them, but to think he would be serving Kwon Young-je with them, fate was truly strange.
He poured a strong cup of coffee and took it to the living room. Hui-won sat cross-legged on the bare floor, straightening his back. He stared at the steaming teacup for a moment before speaking.
“I heard you had some trouble because of me.”
Kwon Young-je placed the cup he was holding on the saucer. Sitting on the sofa, he had an air of superiority, like some British aristocrat. Showing off his sharp jawline and high nose, he responded briefly, “Ah.”
Hui-won looked up and met his gaze. He wasn’t about to accept the offer of handing over the building just because it was offered. He had to examine everything thoroughly before moving on. Hui-won rubbed his face as if washing it and let out a long breath.
“If I go back to being your secretary, the same situation will repeat itself countless times.”
“It won’t be easy.”
“Can you handle it, Executive Director?”
Kwon Young-je looked down at him without a word and picked up his cup again. The porcelain cup with its gold rim and blue petals suited him perfectly without the slightest sense of incongruity.
“Act confident. You haven’t done anything wrong.”
“……”
“You thought you could get 30 billion for free? You should be prepared for that much.”
It was a very Kwon Young-je-like answer, but it didn’t help Hui-won at all. His head, already tightly wrapped, began to throb.
“Give me some time to think.”
“Ten minutes. Decide within that time.”
“……”
While Hui-won leaned his elbow on the table and seriously pondered his future, Kwon Young-je waited for an answer, elegantly crossing his legs. Before the allotted time was up, he spoke first.
“Secretary Kim, think about it enough and come over.”
“……”
Hui-won stretched out the arm that had been supporting his head on the table. The eyes that looked up at Kwon Young-je were clearer than before. He had made a decision.
“Let’s rewrite the contract. I think it needs a lot of revisions.”
As if he knew those words would come, Kwon Young-je took out his cell phone from his jacket pocket. He made a call somewhere and said just one word, “Come up.” That was the end of the call.
In less than five minutes, the doorbell rang. Hui-won opened the door in a daze. Outside stood a man in a neat suit, a smile on his face.
Hui-won couldn’t hide his bewildered expression.
“Attorney Park.”
“Hello, Secretary Kim. It’s been a while.”
Kwon Young-je’s legal counsel greeted him politely, holding a black briefcase. These people, they were very determined. Hui-won chuckled at Kwon Young-je’s preparedness in having a lawyer on standby. Resigned, he welcomed the guest.
They moved to the dining table. A tense atmosphere flowed between the two men sitting across from each other at the rather awkward negotiating table. Only Attorney Park had a nonchalant look on his face.
On the draft contract page displayed on the laptop screen, the cursor was blinking. All preparations were complete. Attorney Park put his hands on the keypad and said casually.
“You two, feel free to talk.”
As soon as those words were spoken, silence fell. Kwon Young-je’s eyes became sharper. Like someone facing a major contract.
“First, you need about three months to adjust. I’ll transfer the building after that.”
“You’re giving me a probationary period? At my level?”
“As compensation for that period, I’ll pay the transfer tax.”
Ah, if that’s the case, okay. The tax will be enormous, so I’m grateful.
“The annual salary will be the same as before, but it will be adjusted to the prescribed rate of increase each year. There will be no separate salary negotiations.”
That was fine too. Hui-won nodded and immediately countered.
“Guarantee me one day off a week.”
“Make a realistic request.”
“I’m making an extremely realistic request. Secretaries have rights too.”
“It’s natural for Secretary Kim to move when I need him. Have we ever considered the time and date?”
“That’s what we’re negotiating now. You see, I’ve become someone who can’t live without days off anymore. If you can’t accommodate this, I can’t return to work.”
At his firm stance, Kwon Young-je’s solid face became even more rigid. A cold light flashed beneath his neatly groomed eyebrows. He was swallowing his displeasure, chewing it down his throat.
Long fingers tapped the table a couple of times. After a moment of contemplation, his tightly closed lips opened.
“Once every two weeks. No more.”
“Secretary Kim, do you agree?”
“Yes.”
He thought he would object unconditionally, but he gave in more easily than he expected. The result was quite satisfactory, so Hui-won didn’t add any more conditions. He then made another request.
“I hope you won’t give me a hard time for releasing pheromones.”
Ha, Kwon Young-je laughed as if he was dumbfounded. He leaned back in his chair, straightening his back, and crossed his arms. His handsome face was full of annoyance.
“How much are you planning to release?”
“Within common sense. Executive Director, you’re a sentient too, so you know, no matter how much you control your pheromones, they sometimes come out inadvertently. It’s a physiological phenomenon, so I hope you’ll take that into account.”
“……”
“You said you wanted to get used to Omega pheromones.”
Kwon Young-je glanced at Attorney Park and nodded. Attorney Park wrote the clause into the contract.
“But be careful in official settings.”
“Yes.”
“I’m making it clear, what I’m tolerating is within the normal range. If you do anything foolish, Secretary Kim will be no exception.”
What kind of obvious thing is he saying? Am I trying to seduce him or something?
Hui-won stared at Kwon Young-je as if he was dumbfounded. But his expression was so sincere that he lost the will to argue. It was best to just nod appropriately.
“I also need to get regular checkups every two months. This isn’t just limited to me, so Executive Director, you should join me.”
“We won’t have to take separate schedules then.”
For the first time in a while, their opinions coincided, and the tense atmosphere eased a little, and they could breathe. Kwon Young-je relaxed the tension in his furrowed brow and stretched out his upper body comfortably.
“Anything else?”
“Ah, you also have to give me leave when I’m in heat cycle. It’s so obvious that I wondered if I should even mention it, but I thought it would be better to put it in the contract.”
Instantly, Kwon Young-je’s face stiffened as if he had been shocked. It was as if he had never imagined that Kim Hui-won would go into heat.
“Executive Director?”
“…When is it due?”
“The first week of November.”
Despite the calm report, Kwon Young-je couldn’t easily relax his expression. While he rubbed his mouth with his palm, Hui-won continued to speak casually.
“Given the situation, I don’t think I’ll be able to take care of Executive Director’s rut either. From now on, I’ll assign a separate staff member to handle it. The secretarial staff should be familiar with it, so should I choose from them? Or should I look for someone with medical qualifications separately?”
Kwon Young-je answered after a long time.
“Do as you please.”
Hui-won continued to discuss the new contract clauses with Attorney Park. His calm tone and meticulous attention to each phrase were exactly what Kwon Young-je had always known, the competent Kim Hui-won himself.
It took him quite a while to accept that he was an Omega. He was aware of it, but Kim Secretary was still a Beta-like existence to Kwon Young-je.
Kim Hui-won going into heat, he couldn’t imagine him abandoning his humanity and chasing only his instincts.
Kwon Young-je pressed his eyes and let out a long breath. He forcibly erased his thoughts. He felt like he shouldn’t dwell on it. The Alpha’s sensitive senses were instinctively aware of the danger and were sending him a warning.
* * *
At 7:30 in the morning, the warm spring sunshine of May fell on Kwon Young-je’s head as he headed to work as usual. With the refreshing morning air, the perfect weather gradually lifted his spirits.
As he came out of the gate, he saw a familiar sedan and people lined up in a row. The driver and Kim Hui-won bowed deeply as soon as they saw Kwon Young-je.
“Good morning, Executive Director.”
Kwon Young-je’s sharp gaze swept over Secretary Kim from head to toe. A neat outfit, a pale face that suited him, and a voice that was pleasantly soothing to the ear.
Finally, he felt that everything was back in its place.
“Good morning.”
Kwon Young-je rarely greeted him. Kim Hui-won didn’t make a fuss about it, nor did he show any signs of surprise. He simply opened the back door as usual, as in his original routine, and added a brief nod.