By Zephyria 
A week passed like that. Young-min also shut himself in his room and didn’t come out for the entire week. Jeong-min knocked on the door several times, but there was no answer.
Rather, because of that behavior, Jeong-min began to think that Young-min had truly loved Shin-woo. He had once called Young-min pathetic for always meeting people lightly and sleeping around. He hadn’t believed it even when Young-min said he loved Shin-woo.
He had thought Young-min was simply using him for his own purposes. That’s why it had hurt more and felt more upsetting.
No matter that Young-min was Jeong-min’s brother, Young-min was far lacking compared to Shin-woo. Of course, there was also a matter of Jeong-min’s personal feelings….
“Young-min. Come to my room when you feel better. Let’s talk.”
If he loved Shin-woo just as much, he would be experiencing pain. For now, Jeong-min decided to set aside his own feelings and comfort Young-min. As an older brother, it was the natural thing to do.
That night, Young-min visited Jeong-min’s room carrying a stack of magazines. His eyes, which Jeong-min expected to be swollen from crying, were unexpectedly fine, and his expression was bright. Feeling something was off, Jeong-min looked at Young-min.
Young-min spread the magazines he had brought across Jeong-min’s room and began explaining each person in the magazines.
While listening to Young-min, Jeong-min felt a sense of dissonance and grabbed Young-min’s arm.
“What are you doing right now?”
“What do you mean? I’m looking for my next husband candidate. Isn’t this guy cool? He’s a Dominant Alpha!”
“Shin Young-min.”
“This man is mixed-race. This is my type.”
“Shin Young-min!”
Jeong-min shouted and snatched the magazine from Young-min’s hand.
“What on earth are you doing? Are you sick? Are you in your right mind?!”
“What?”
Young-min looked at Jeong-min with an indifferent face. No sadness or pain could be felt in that expression.
“What do you mean ‘what’? Are you really going to break up with Shin-woo hyung?”
“Of course. How can I have a baby with a seedless watermelon?”
Jeong-min felt dizzy and swayed slightly. My god.
“Didn’t you… love Shin-woo hyung?”
“Of course I love him. But he has azoospermia.”
“If it’s love, can’t you overcome azoospermia?”
“To me, azoospermia is more important than love.”
“Young-min! What about Shin-woo hyung! You know how much he likes you!”
“Ah, that’s Shin-woo hyung’s problem, not mine! Not mine!! Fuck, right now! Even if he’s a piece of trash, I’d say I love him as long as he doesn’t have azoospermia!!”
Young-min’s voice rang out loudly. Jeong-min felt as if his heart had stopped. Young-min’s words were a shock, but it was because Shin-woo was standing behind the door, having arrived at some point.
Jeong-min instinctively stood up toward Shin-woo. Seeing Jeong-min rise as if possessed, Young-min glanced back. He naturally saw Shin-woo, but he made a face as if he had seen something he shouldn’t have, then focused back on the magazine.
Shin-woo let go of the doorknob. Seeing him disappear, Jeong-min ran out. Then, he saw something kicked on the floor in front of the door and picked it up.
A small ring case… inside were couple rings.
They were the two’s engagement rings.
Jeong-min gripped them tightly in his hand and ran toward Shin-woo. A heavy rain was falling outside.
Seeing him run out without an umbrella, Jeong-min also rushed out bare-bodied and called out to Shin-woo.
“Hyung, hyung, it’s raining. It’s raining. Hyung! Shin-woo hyung! You’ll catch a cold! Let’s use an umbrella. Please? Hyung! Shin-woo hyung!!”
As if he couldn’t hear Jeong-min’s voice, he just kept running. The more he did, the louder Jeong-min called him, his voice nearly breaking.
“Hyung did nothing wrong! You did nothing wrong! Shin-woo hyung! Shin-woo hyung!! Can you hear me? Please say something!! Hyung!!”
Why did this distance, which felt like it could be bridged in an instant, feel so far away?
“Hyung… it’s okay. Hyung… Shin-woo hyung, it’ll be okay. Hyung….”
The rain fell so heavily that he could barely see ahead. It felt like Shin-woo’s tears. Just as he had cried when Young-min and Shin-woo became lovers….
Jeong-min gradually ran out of breath. His body… suddenly became too heavy. He suddenly remembered the drug Kim Ju-hwan had forced him to take not long ago. Come to think of it, the date was almost here.
His vision blurred, and his body began to heat up. But unable to let Shin-woo go like this, he forced himself to follow until he stopped to catch his breath in front of a crosswalk. A car drove by and honked its horn, and at that moment, someone pulled Jeong-min’s arm.
With a splashing sound, water sprayed all over them, and the two tumbled onto the ground. Jeong-min coughed a couple of times and looked at the person hugging him. It was Shin-woo.
His entire body was filthy with muddy water. Yu Shin-woo is such a cool person…. A person who shines brightly….
“What is this… hyung, why do you look like this… our Shin-woo hyung is such a cool person. You’re really cool.”
Jeong-min pulled at his own wet clothes to wipe Shin-woo’s face. As Jeong-min shed tears, Shin-woo stroked Jeong-min’s hair.
“Hyung is okay. Go back inside quickly. What if you catch a cold?”
“What do you mean you’re okay.”
“Jeong-min.”
“…Why are you so weak? You’re a strong person. Over something like this… you’ll experience so much more love in the future….”
“Who would ever love me? I’m just an Alpha in name only. An Alpha with azoospermia… Even I think… it’s pathetic… I can understand why Young-min hates me.”
Shin-woo’s voice trembled once more. Jeong-min pulled him into an embrace. Not long ago, this was a man who had smiled brightly, as if he were holding all the happiness in the world. But now, it felt as if he had been cast into hell. What should he do? How could he save this man? What could he possibly do? Jeong-min felt anxious, terrified that Shin-woo might drift away from him just like this.
“So what if you have azoospermia? Any Omega who meets an Alpha like you is incredibly lucky.”
“Do you think there’s an Omega who would think that?”
“There is. Me.”
At Jeong-min’s words, Shin-woo’s trembling stopped. Jeong-min hugged him even tighter.
“If I awaken as an Omega, I’ll marry you. I’m the one who will marry you. I don’t need children. I only need you.”
Jeong-min released his arms and pulled out the ring case he had picked up earlier. From it, he took the ring that had clearly belonged to Young-min and slid it onto his own finger. Damn it, despite the difference in their build, their finger sizes were identical—as if to prove they were twins.
“Wow, it fits perfectly. It’s like this ring was made for me.”
Even if someone else had worn it first, what did it matter? The one wearing the ring now was him.
“Jeong-min…”
There was one left. Jeong-min slid the other ring onto Shin-woo’s finger.
“Hyung, you’re engaged to me now. It’s a promise. You can’t take it back. I’m going to marry you. You know how great of a person I am, right? So hold your head high! You’re an amazing Alpha!!”
Jeong-min smiled. In response, Shin-woo hugged Jeong-min tightly. He didn’t say a word, but he wept like that for a long time. For Jeong-min, that alone was enough.
He vowed over and over that he would make this man happy. So please, dear God—.
That night, Jeong-min’s awakening fever began.
The thunder, lightning, and rain showed no sign of stopping. The sky roared noisily, pouring down rain relentlessly as if it were grieving something deeply. It was as if it intended to devour the world.
Listening to those sounds, Jeong-min gripped his blanket.
The lethargy and flushing that had started in the evening… eventually, they turned into pain, and a high fever began to ravage his entire body. Jeong-min knew exactly what these symptoms were.
The awakening fever had finally begun. Jeong-min smiled. He just had to endure this time. With that thought, he sent a message to Shin-woo.
『Hyung, my awakening fever has finally started. I think it’s fate. No, it is fate. I think I was born to be your Omega.』
The number 1 disappeared almost instantly.
『Does it hurt a lot?』
Shin-woo’s kindness made him feel as if he might cry. Jeong-min looked at the ring on his finger and kissed it.
『No, it doesn’t hurt. Actually, I’m so happy. To finally awaken… You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this moment.』
『Jeong-min.』
『Yes, Shin-woo hyung.』
『Whether you are an Omega or an Alpha, I just want you to be happy.』
『Haha, then I’m an Omega! I’ll be truly happy if I become an Omega. Everything starts from then, Shin-woo hyung. Wait for me. I’m going to be aggressively affectionate.』
『Hang in there.』
Hearing Shin-woo’s encouragement made him miss him terribly. Jeong-min searched for a photo of Shin-woo in his gallery and stared at it for a long time, stroking the screen. A single tear fell.
“Hyung… Shin-woo hyung… wait… please wait for me….”
I’ll overcome this. I’ll overcome it for Hyung. Because I will become his Omega. Please wait for me.
Jeong-min kissed the ring on his finger once more. Waiting for the black clouds outside to clear and for the bright light of the future to arrive….