HIDDEN 154-155

Even though no one was screaming, it was exceptionally noisy and chaotic. An unorganized atmosphere. It was hard to keep my wits about me, as if I were in a bustling marketplace, so I went into the waiting room and leaned back into the sofa.

The wedding assistants nagged me, worried that dust might get on my white formal wear, but since my mental and physical stability was the priority, I tuned them out.

Is every wedding like this? Even though it’s my own wedding, I’m so scatterbrained that I don’t even know how things are progressing.

Kwon Yi-kang seemed to be walking around outside greeting guests, but since I have no acquaintances and no one to greet, I was just curled up in a ball.

“Is there anything to eat?”

Because I had been dragged around since morning for makeup, hair, and dressing up in formal wear, I hadn’t eaten. When I rubbed my hungry stomach and asked the assistant next to me, she waved her hand as if I had asked an absurd question.

“The ceremony will start soon. Your outfit is white, so it would be problematic if you spilled something while eating. Please bear with it a little longer.”

Was choosing the white outfit the problem?

I chose white because wearing black formal wear side-by-side with Kwon Yi-kang seemed too gloomy. If I had known this, I would have made Kwon Yi-kang wear the white one.

I chose it because white feels like the protagonist, it’s sparkly, and it looks cooler. A plain black suit looks [visit our site]too much like a gangster. Read on Read BL NovelsUntil a moment ago, I was proud that it was a satisfying choice, but that satisfaction crumbled in the face of hunger.

I’m not even asking for a full meal; I wish they’d give me some bread or crackers. It’s a wedding; aren’t there any rice cakes? Or even chocolate for my dropping blood sugar would be fine.

“Then can we eat together when the guests have their meal after the ceremony?”

“At that time, you’ll have to go around greeting the guests.”

The greeting Kwon Yi-kang is doing now is the greeting. Why do I have to go around greeting people again? Then when do the married couple eat? Isn’t this too unreasonable and discriminatory?

I looked at the assistant with wavering eyes, but not a single person was on my side.

“Soo-kyung. Your father is here.”

Kwon Yi-kang, who opened the door to the waiting room, led the Omega father toward me. Unlike me, who was dying of hunger, Kwon Yi-kang looked healthy and approached with a smile, but then he frowned upon seeing my expression.

“What’s wrong? Are you sick? Why does your face look so bad?”

“I’m hungry.”

“Ah…”

Letting out a low groan, he checked the time.

“Is there anything specific you want to eat?”

“No, anything edible is fine. My stomach is stinging from hunger. Gurgle gurgle.”

As I chirped like a hungry baby bird, asking him to put anything in my mouth quickly, Kwon Yi-kang nodded.

“Talk with your father. I’ll ask them to bring some light food you can eat.”

As expected, Kwon Yi-kang is the best. There is nothing that cannot be done if I talk to Kwon Yi-kang. I could proudly say that I chose a truly great wedding partner.

“I see you can still eat even on your wedding day.”

After Kwon Yi-kang left the waiting room, the Omega father, who sat beside me, spoke in a dry voice.

“We do everything so we can eat and live, so of course I have to eat.”

“Others are usually too nervous to eat even if told to. I envy your composure.”

“Father… no, never mind. Let’s just say I’m composed.”

I almost asked if he had starved during his own wedding, but knowing that that marriage was not a good memory, I kept my mouth shut.

“Is that great hospital director still refusing to sign the papers?”

“Is signing the papers the problem? It’s a matter of assets, so he’s stalling for time.”

“It’s already been several months. Isn’t he trying to embezzle the assets? If he has committed sins, he should divide the assets and make donations as a sign of reflection. That man doesn’t know how to reflect.”

“If he were a man who knew how to reflect, he wouldn’t have committed the sins in the first place.”

Father waved his hand, saying he didn’t want to talk about it anymore. I understand that feeling. Even if I’m saying it out of worry, to the person involved, it feels like I’m just bringing up unpleasant stories without providing any actual help.

“Did you give an envelope?”

“I gave a generous amount, just as you suggested.”

“Thank you. I’ll use it for a good cause.”

“A good cause?”

“I have to feed your grandchild well.”

“A grandfather at forty. It feels strange.”

As someone experiencing the feeling of becoming a father at twenty, I could fully empathize. I understand that complicated feeling.

“Is it about four or five months now?”

“It’s 16 weeks.”

“For that, it seems like your belly is starting to show.”

“That’s because I eat a lot… let’s not talk about that.”

Father tilted his head, glancing at my plump belly. Since it wasn’t a topic I wanted to discuss, I also shook my head.

Everyone has a secret they want to hide. It takes tact to pretend not to notice such things.

“You’ll give birth after the summer. When did they say the due date was?”

“Around early February next year? I heard that if you give birth when it’s cold, your joints ache.”

It’s also very sad that I have to worry about my joints at twenty. It would be nice if the baby were born in the cool spring or autumn. At times like this, I resented Kwon Yi-kang for executing the pregnancy plan alone.

Whether he knew I was resenting him or not, Kwon Yi-kang entered right on cue and placed a plate on the table. The plate was piled high with small rice balls, made to be easy to pick up and eat in one bite.

“I got a stern lecture that you’d ruin your clothes if you spilled anything while eating. I asked them to make food that can be eaten without spilling, so hurry up and eat.”

I wondered why there were rice balls in this luxurious wedding hall, but it seems today is a day where even Kwon Yi-kang has to listen to nagging.

“Aren’t you hungry? You haven’t eaten either.”

“I’m fine, so just eat. How hungry were you to be looking for food here? I should have made sure you ate before we left the house, but I didn’t think of it. I’m sorry.”

“You apologize for everything. Then I’m eating alone, okay?”

“Sure, just don’t swallow in a rush because you’re hungry; eat slowly.”

Kwon Yi-kang, who looked at me with a fond expression as I chewed the rice balls diligently, left the room when he was called from outside. He seems quite busy too. I stuck a straw into a water bottle and kept pushing rice balls into my mouth.

“I’m glad you two seem to get along well.”

“We get along great. I told you, there’s no one as good as him.”

There was meat inside. No wonder it tasted so good. My heart felt warm at the flavor of beef in my mouth.

“If you’re happy, then it’s a good thing. His Alpha pheromones are so strong that I’m still averse to them, but if you have no problem, what does it matter?”

“I like his pheromones. They smell good, and when I smell them, I feel like I’m going to come.”

“Watch your words.”

Father gave a low warning, glancing around.

“Still, keep going to the hospital. It might be that you’re still not used to pheromones, which is why you feel that way.”

“I think I’m normal now. I can roughly feel other Alphas’ or unauthorized copyOmegas’ Read on Read BL Novelspheromones. It’s not Read on Read BL Novelsthat I can’t feel pheromones and thus only find Kwon Yi-kang’s pheromones pleasant; they’re just actually good.”

If, by any chance, I were still abnormal as Father said and couldn’t feel pheromones well—which is why I wasn’t affected by Kwon Yi-kang’s pheromones like others are—then when I returned to normal, Kwon Yi-kang’s pheromones might feel suffocating.

If that were the case, I’d rather choose to live as an abnormal person. So what if I can’t feel other people’s pheromones? As long as I find my Alpha’s pheromones pleasant, that’s all that matters.

“You’ll be sitting in the parents’ seats, right?”

“I should.”

“I was going to remove all the chairs, but I guess I should leave one.”

“Is the hospital director not coming?”

“What kind of great person is he that you’re still adding ‘Director’ to his name? I didn’t even send that man an invitation.”

“Oh dear.”

Unlike his voice, not a single shred of pity could be seen on his face.

“I should go out and sit. Eat slowly. I’ll see you when the ceremony starts.”

“Why don’t you sit here a bit longer? If people see you alone, they’ll start gossiping noisily.”

“I’m going out to sit precisely so they can gossip.”

My father has definitely changed. He’s intentionally creating a reason for people to gossip by being conscious of others’ eyes. In the past, he would have repeatedly warned me to be careful with my words, speech, and behavior because there are many eyes watching.

“You know the parents’ seats are the best seats, right? Please stay for the meal after it’s over. I heard the food at hotel wedding halls is incredibly luxurious.”

“Seeing how you eat, you must be famished. I’ll look forward to it.”

Father’s lips curved into a soft arc as he replied in a languid voice, casting his gaze downward. With a smile that looked much more relaxed, Father left the waiting room.

I stared at his retreating back and finished the rice balls. I thought it was quite a lot, but as I picked them up one by one, the plate was soon clean.

Patting my full stomach, I sprawled back onto the sofa to digest. The nagging of the wedding assistants, telling me my hair was getting flattened, was a bonus.

“Is it a long time until we start?”

“You’ll have to wait about thirty more minutes.”

“Sigh.”

We could just prepare exactly on time and get the wedding over with quickly, so why do we have to come and wait so early? The problem is that guests arrive at their own pace even though the time is set. I calmed my heart by thinking about the congratulatory money that would come in.

I was killing time playing a game on my phone when a wedding venue employee knocked and entered the waiting room, looking somewhat troubled.

“The man claiming to be the groom’s father has arrived, but he doesn’t have an invitation, so it’s a bit difficult. Could you come out and verify?”

“My father?”

“Yes.”

Not Kwon Yi-kang’s father, but my father. My Omega father had left a short while ago, saying he would be seated in the hall, so it couldn’t be him. Could it be that my haughty hospital director father actually came all this way without an invitation?

Since it was unexpected, I stood up and followed the employee.

At the entrance of the venue, I saw the back of a man huffing and puffing, surrounded by staff. It was a familiar silhouette. As I waved my hand, the surrounding employees stepped back.

“You!”

Upon spotting me, my Alpha father stormed toward me, breathing heavily.

“You came even though I didn’t send an invitation.”

“You damn brat! How dare you bring shame to your father’s face? It’s absurd enough that you’re brazenly having a wedding without permission, but you’re having a secret wedding without even telling me?”

“Secret wedding, my foot. I’m doing it on a grand scale for everyone to know. And I didn’t tell you because you said you wouldn’t give your permission. If you had permitted it, I would have told you.”

What use is an invitation to a man who refuses to give his blessing? I had reached that conclusion with some thought, but he seemed furious at the idea of being ignored.

“Is that why you came to argue? On such a wonderful day, throwing around insults?”

“I’m going in. How can you have a wedding without your parents?”

“If you won’t give your permission, there’s no reason for you to enter. I refuse to let my wedding turn into a chaotic mess. Or, are you saying you’ll give your permission now?”

I stood askew, looking at my father with a smirk. When I demanded an answer—asking whether he would permit it or if he was still opposed—my father’s face twisted hideously.

“You goddamn brat.”

“Isn’t cursing and causing a scene at a wedding something that should be reported to the police? I’m so bewildered I don’t know what to do. What should I do in a situation like this?”

When I asked the employee who had come to get me, the employee also looked flustered, perhaps not expecting such a question. I wasn’t particularly expecting an answer; I was waiting for my father’s reaction.

“…Fine. I’ll permit it. I can’t overturn the whole thing after everyone has been invited. What a family disgrace. I’ll let it slide quietly for today.”

I have no idea what he’s talking about. Whether it “slides quietly” or not is a matter for me to decide, not him. He still hasn’t grasped the situation.

“I assume you didn’t just come to watch; did you prepare the wedding gift money?”

At my words, my father hurriedly pulled his wallet from his pocket.

“It’s not in small units like ten or a hundred thousand, is it? Oh, surely not. You have a director’s business card, after all.”

“You low-born brat, seriously.”

“Come to think of it, I have no jewelry, no traditional gifts, no bridal trousseau. I’m not even bringing a house.”

I let out a deep sigh and slumped my shoulders. To anyone watching, it would look like a total act, Read on Read BL Novelsbut as the [unauthorized copy]one performing the act, I felt no hesitation.

“Kwon Yi-kang’s father gave me a whole house in my name for the wedding. How is it that my own parents give me nothing? What’s the point of having parents if all they do is curse and oppose the marriage without giving a thing?”

“What on earth are you trying to do!”

“I wonder. What am I trying to do. Oh, isn’t the wedding starting soon? I should head back in.”

“I’ll give it to you. A house or whatever, I’ll give it, so let’s just go in for now.”

My father spoke urgently, grabbing me as I turned my back. I narrowed my eyes, wondering why he was suddenly acting so subservient just to enter the wedding hall.

“…It seems you and my father don’t get along well. Do you think something will be resolved if you meet and talk here? Why? Are you hoping that if you raise your voice in front of people, my father will back down?”

“…This is not a matter for you to interfere in.”

“I really don’t like disturbances at my wedding. I’m the only one losing out without receiving anything.”

“I said I’d give it! Would a house be enough?”

“I can’t trust your word, Father. You’ve said so many different things in the past. See? Even now, you’re all talk and actually giving nothing. If it were me, Read on Read BL NovelsI would have transferred the money via visit our siteaccount right now. You have absolutely no sense of urgency.”

Bank transfers are so simple. There’s phone banking, there are banking apps. Sending money takes barely a minute.

I borrowed a piece of memo paper from the front desk, wrote down my account number, and handed it to my father. As he stood there blankly holding it, I told him the current time.

“There are ten… no, sixteen minutes left until the wedding starts. I need time to prepare, so I should go back in with about ten minutes to spare. Six minutes should be plenty for an account transfer, don’t you think?”

Only then did my father realize what I meant. His expression twisted like a demon as he hurriedly pulled out his phone. Time flowed equitably as always, and just as the wait was starting to feel tedious, a deposit notification message arrived on my phone.

“Let’s go in now.”

At my father’s words, I checked the message and clicked my tongue.

“I guess house prices have dropped a lot lately. Is there actually a house you can buy for fifty million won?”

Fifty million as a wedding gift is a huge amount, but considering the cost of jewelry, traditional gifts, and a trousseau, it felt a bit lacking. I don’t know how much parents usually give during marriage, but compared to the house I received from Kwon Yi-kang’s father, it was woefully insufficient.

“Didn’t you just say you’d give me a house? You flip your words like the palm of your hand in an instant; how can I trust that you won’t cause a scene inside?”

And it wasn’t even hundreds of millions, just fifty. He’s truly stingy. That’s probably why he’s making such a fuss and refusing to sign the divorce papers for my Omega father. I couldn’t tell if he didn’t want to break up [stolen content]with my Omega father or [Read on Read BL Novels]if he just didn’t want to pay a massive alimony. Looking at his behavior now, I suspected it was the latter.

What a cheapskate.

“I really have to go in now. Since you took the time to come, please get home safely.”

“You little brat!”

“As I mentioned, please do not let in anyone without an invitation. And since there’s a chance someone might try to force their way in, please tell the staff to monitor strictly. If that happens, call the police first.”

I ignored my father, who was shouting curses as if letting out a lion’s roar, and spoke to the employee. Although the security personnel hired by Kwon Yi-kang were stationed inside and outside the venue, I said it specifically for my Alpha father to hear.

Low-born brat. Worse than a beast. Goddamn brat. Shame of the family. Ungrateful child. As I watched my father be dragged away by the staff while spewing all sorts of insults, I gave a scoff and turned around.

Kwon Yi-kang, who had been watching from behind since who knows when, shook his head with a smile as if I were beyond help.

“I didn’t expect you to kick him out.”

“It’s not a common occurrence. So, did you enjoy the show?”

“I came to get you since you were out. And I also intended to greet your father if he came in.”

“You’ll have no reason to greet that side in the future. Just think of him as a stranger.”

Kwon Yi-kang reached out, pulled me into an embrace, and began to walk slowly.

“I thought you’d be quietly eating and resting, but you’ve been quite busy.”

“Yeah. I even made some easy money. Fifty million won. Let’s buy something delicious to eat.”

“Even making money. Now I can put you anywhere without a worry.”

I know full well that he hears every detail of where I go and who I meet. He talks a big game for someone who follows me like a stalker whenever I try to go out.

“Can you really put me out there without any worries?”

“Hardly.”

A pleasant laugh lingered in my ears.

From afar, I heard a voice searching for the couple who were to enter the hall. The waiting wedding assistants rushed over and busily adjusted my clothes. After enduring a mountain of nagging—about why I left my spot just before [Read on Read BL Novels]the entrance and how my visit our siteclothes were wrinkled—I was finally able to stand before the doors of the hall.

“We’re finally becoming a married couple.”

Hearing the announcer’s notification and greeting from beyond the doors that the ceremony was about to begin, Kwon Yi-kang murmured in a voice full of emotion.

“I feel like we’ve knocked everything out at super-speed. The dating, the pregnancy, the marriage.”

It was almost surreal that all these things had happened in just half a year. If I hadn’t met Kwon Yi-kang, what would I be doing right now? I tried to imagine my life without him, but nothing came to mind.

“When I realize someone is mine, I have to stamp the papers quickly. Only fools regret it after letting someone slip away.”

I love that attitude. A person should be quick-handed. That’s the only way to get one more thing or possess one more thing. Kwon Yi-kang’s quickness was commendable.

“I have no intention of letting you go, nor do I have any intention of regretting. I’ll make you spend your whole life by my side, looking only at me.”

“It’s not that I’m by your side; we’re together now.”

“Yes, together. You and I. The three of us, including the baby.”

Kwon Yi-kang spoke as Read on Read BL Novels[unauthorized copy]if making a vow, sliding his stolen contenthand into mine and interlocking our fingers tightly.

Not entirely ‘me’ alone. Me and you. And the baby. We, bound by the relationship of family, will live together from now on.

‘We.’ A word with a pleasant resonance.

“We.”

I let the word that had been lingering in my mouth escape, and a happy smile spread as the vibration shook my ears.

“Please welcome the blessed couple who will become husband and wife today with a round of loud applause.”

With the announcer’s words, the doors before us opened. In the darkened hall, dazzling lights illuminated a pure white path. I couldn’t see the faces of the guests seated inside. Only the path stretched out before us, the path we had to walk, was shining brightly.

“Let’s go.”

Kwon Yi-kang said, pulling my hand. I looked at his face, flushed with anticipation and excitement, and slowly stepped onto the path leading forward.

That straight path resembled my future, which I would now walk holding Kwon Yi-kang’s hand. It was an exceptionally dazzling path, filled with excitement and heart-fluttering anticipation.

Hidden Vice_Fin