By Zephyria 
It wаs аn incredibly сlumsу attemрt at cоmfоrt. Не соuld have bоught thе еntire shoр if he had put his mind tо it, yеt it was strаnge hоw such а smаll gеsture cоuld chаnge his mood.
“I’m оkay.”
So, hе spoke аs if it werе nоthing. That he was okаy. That hе didn’t nееd tо еat morе cаkе, that what thе twо of them had said wаs fine, аnd thаt the artiсlе brеаking wаs fine tоо.
“You dоn’t have to worry abоut it.”
Far from fеeling bad, it hаdn’t even left а mark оn his heart tо bеgin with. Even if thеy had hurlеd insults at him, Wоо-yеоn would hаvе let it gо in оnе ear аnd оut the оthеr.
“Аnd thе cake… you don’t have to buy it for me.”
A strange silence settled over them. Neither Seon-kyu nor Ga-ram could say anything as they looked at Woo-yeon. Woo-yeon lowered his gaze and spoke in a calm voice.
“You don’t have to worry about me.”
It was the same thing he had told Do-hyun earlier. He didn’t dislike hearing that they were worried, but this wasn’t something that warranted such attention. He hadn’t lived a miserable life, nor had he been deeply wounded. He had simply experienced something now that was bound to happen eventually.
“To be honest, this kind of thing makes me uncomfortable.”
He could never get used to this kind of kindness. Since it was something he had to overcome alone anyway, he didn’t want anyone’s help. He had always thought that way, and there was no need to suddenly change his mind now. At least, that’s what Woo-yeon thought.
“Well… fine.”
Ga-ram was the first to speak. With an indifferent expression, she wrinkled the bridge of her nose.
“The most useless worries in the world are worrying about celebrities and chaebols.”
It was a rather cynical remark—enough to make the silent Seon-kyu widen his eyes and stare at her. Ga-ram adjusted her high ponytail and looked down.
“Whether you’re an illegitimate child or a hidden child, if you say you’re okay, what am I supposed to say?”
Her face was unusually serious. Her voice, stripped of its usual playfulness, was clear and crisp as always. Slowly raising her eyes, Ga-ram stared straight at Woo-yeon.
“But.”
Her long, slanted eyes were as sharp as a predator’s. Her low voice felt chilling.
“How can I not worry when some bastard I don’t even know posts a photo of a kid I know?”
Woo-yeon fell silent, unable to say a word. He felt as if his mind were going blank, just as it had before. His throat went dry, and a heavy weight settled in his chest.
“Do you know what I spent the whole weekend looking up? I looked up whether that can be sued, how far portrait rights infringement goes, and whether a reporter is allowed to just write an article using someone else’s photo however they want.”
“….”
“And the first thing you say is that you’re uncomfortable with the sympathy?”
“Then what am I supposed to say?”
Woo-yeon asked back, setting down his fork. He had been gripping it so tightly that the handle felt warm.
“This isn’t the first or second time something like this has happened. To put it bluntly, it’ll probably keep happening in the future, so should I ask for worry every time it gets hard?”
“Why not?”
“What?”
His voice came out sharp. Reflexively biting his lip, Woo-yeon’s expression distorted. Ga-ram looked at him as if she couldn’t understand.
“It’s not like there’s a limit on how many times you can worry about someone; you can ask for comfort when things are hard. Do you only hear ‘I’m worried’ once or twice in your life?”
“I have heard it once or twice.”
Seon-kyu turned his head. An ambiguous gaze drifted toward Woo-yeon. Clenching his fists, Woo-yeon forced the words out.
“I said I’ve heard it once or twice.”
Ga-ram’s eyebrow shot up. Her deep brown eyes stared at Woo-yeon without wavering. Controlling his fluctuating pheromones, Woo-yeon spoke slowly.
“But what happens once I get used to it?”
This was what he feared most. Getting used to this kind of tenderness, this comfort, and emotions he thought he would never become close to in his entire life.
“It’s not like you’re going to treat me like this forever.”
While heading to the classroom and while listening to the lecture, he realized he had been too complacent. He should have always maintained a proper boundary, yet at some point, he had crumbled without any defenses. There was no way this kind of kindness would last forever.
“If something like this happens again…”
“Then I’ll buy you cake again.”
It was a nonchalant response. Ga-ram grumbled as she pressed the fork back into Woo-yeon’s hand.
“Why are you making this so complicated? This whole thing costs less than 50,000 won; I can just buy it every time something like this happens.”
Woo-yeon looked at Ga-ram with blank eyes. The warmth touching his fingertips didn’t feel unpleasant, unlike before. There was a time when he hated even being touched because she was an Alpha, but now, Ga-ram’s pheromones felt only warm.
“I’ll comfort you until you get sick of it and tell me to stop, so just eat the cake. Stop talking nonsense.”
Woo-yeon let out an unintentional hollow laugh. Seon-kyu, who was just reading the room, Ga-ram, who was secretly flustered, and the cake on the table—it all felt surreal.
“…I can’t eat all of this.”
He managed a weak protest, but Ga-ram didn’t listen in the slightest. Taking back the cake he had been poking at earlier, she took a huge bite. The way she ate the cake so aggressively was somehow embarrassing to watch.
Woo-yeon extended the fork in his hand toward the strawberry cake. Ga-ram and Seon-kyu’s gazes unconsciously followed the tip of his fork. When Woo-yeon took a strawberry from the top of the cake, Ga-ram beamed a smile.
“I knew you’d like that.”
The atmosphere softened instantly. As if they had never fought, the three of them shared the cake naturally. The sponge was crumbly and the cream was cheap, but Woo-yeon moved his fork without much complaint.
They spent a long time chatting about trivial things. No contact came from Do-hyun, and Woo-yeon wondered as he looked at his silent phone. Setting Do-hyun aside, it was strange that there was no contact from anywhere else.
“But is it okay to write an article based on a post someone else uploaded? Isn’t that a problem?”
“Of course it’s a problem. Those crazy bastard reporters.”
Ga-ram and Seon-kyu vented their frustration incessantly. They took turns cursing the reporter and the original poster as if they were the ones affected. Ga-ram, in particular, was busy clicking ‘dislike’ on every article that mentioned Woo-yeon.
“So, do you have anyone in mind who might have taken the photo?”
As the table was half-emptied, Seon-kyu asked tentatively. Woo-yeon put down the fork in his mouth and thought deeply.
“Someone in mind…”
Actually, there was someone. Once from the phrase ‘middle school classmate,’ and again from the photo taken in the classroom. There was no physical evidence, but there was more than enough circumstantial evidence. The only thing that bothered him was that he hadn’t seen the guy’s face during the festival.
“Hey, I looked it up and said it’s suable. Just sue them. People like that need to have their lives ruined.”
Ga-ram spoke while grinding her teeth. Seeing her restless state, she seemed very angry. In contrast, Woo-yeon was excessively calm.
“Well… suing won’t change anything, and for now, I haven’t suffered any actual damage.”
“What do you mean you haven’t suffered damage?”
Seon-kyu asked with a look of deep concern. In reality, his personal information had been leaked, and rumors had spread through the school. Reporters were swarming the main gate right now; how could he call this ‘no damage’? However, Woo-yeon’s thinking was a bit different.
“My personal info is something that pops up just by searching anyway.”
If you type ‘Ji Su-hyang’ into a portal site, not only his date of birth, but also his affiliation, education, and the name of his mother, ‘Ji Kyung-sook,’ appear. Since Woo-yeon would eventually be the same, he didn’t feel a sense of crisis over the veil being lifted.
“The articles and photos will be taken down in a week, and the company will handle the rest.”
Suing wasn’t exactly Woo-yeon’s role either. It was a matter for the Selection Group’s legal team to gather evidence and resolve quietly without anyone knowing.
“They might investigate things like my college admission or grades, but there’s nothing particularly problematic there.”
Even if his study abroad had been a shortcut, it wasn’t illegal. He had entered college honorably through the international student track, and Woo-yeon had worked harder at school than anyone.
Therefore, there was nothing for Woo-yeon to worry about.
“That’s why I said I’m okay.”
“….”
“….”
The two of them looked at Woo-yeon with bewildered faces. Their open-mouthed expressions were different from the worried looks they had worn until now. He had heard rumors that he was the heir to Selection Group and a chaebol, but this was the first time he had felt it so viscerally.
“You really… live in a different world from us.”
Ga-ram spoke in a dazed voice. To that, Woo-yeon replied bluntly.
“…We live in the same world.”
For a moment, a worry surfaced. A worry that they might suddenly change their attitude and feel a sense of distance.
But contrary to Woo-yeon’s concern, they had a serious conversation.
“Does a cheap cake like this actually comfort you? Can you maybe buy this whole cafe with your allowance instead of just a cake?”
“Woo-yeon, do you have one of those too? A fiancé?”
“Hey, Kim Do-hyun would curse you out if he heard that.”
“…Hyung Do-hyun would curse?”
Woo-yeon let out a hollow laugh and shook his head. When he replied that he didn’t have a fiancé, Ga-ram snorted, saying that dramas are total lies. The reason he didn’t have a fiancé was simply because Woo-yeon hadn’t been made public yet. It wasn’t the right atmosphere to explain the reason.
“If you’re a chaebol, do you get like, private tutors and all?”
For a split second, Woo-yeon’s expression stiffened. It was a very brief moment, but even Ga-ram’s pheromones felt unpleasant. Forcing his expression to soften, Woo-yeon swallowed hard.
“In the past… I did.”
“Wow, that’s amazing. Do they just bring in the best people for every single field?”
The reason Woo-yeon couldn’t smile was that those words were true. Because his elementary education was homeschooled, Woo-yeon had teachers for every subject. Naturally, his mother, who solved everything with money, didn’t deal with anyone who wasn’t the best.
‘Only Teacher was the exception.’
Do-hyun was the only unique case. Even if it was a prestigious university, he was a college freshman at twenty.
“But why isn’t Kim Do-hyun coming?”
“I think his phone repair is taking a long time.”
“Why go for a repair at a time like this? He should’ve just used it.”
Thinking of Do-hyun, Woo-yeon tried to shake off the memories of the past. Since it was all in the past, there was no need to dwell on the trauma. Fortunately, just imagining that upright face made him feel better.
“Ah, and…”
Starting softly, Woo-yeon looked at the two of them. It wasn’t particularly important, but he felt the need to correct the part they were misunderstanding. It wasn’t exactly a secret to begin with.
“I’m not an illegitimate child.”
“…Huh?”
Ga-ram’s eyes widened in surprise. It was because Woo-yeon had mentioned the part she hadn’t dared to ask. Woo-yeon added an explanation as if it were nothing.
“My mother is married.”