DFLT 17

“You’re saying you and Mr. Ji Yeonoh are that kind of relationship!”

“Define that kind of relationship.”

“A relationship where you shared a rut. A physical… connection.”

Tears welled up in Sehyun’s flushed eyes. Seo Heonyoung could confidently say he fell for Sehyun first. If there were three syllables etched vividly in his mind since before his sense of self formed, they would be Seo Heonyoung.

A sweet, floral scent wrapped around Heonyoung’s nose. The fragrance of roses with a drop of honey. It was the distinctive scent of dominant omega Do Sehyun.

“Hah.”

Heonyoung let out a hollow laugh through his teeth. An omega’s pheromones are released during emotional turmoil as intense as a heat cycle. Do Sehyun had jumped to conclusions about Seo Heonyoung and Ji Yeonoh’s relationship, even believing it to be true and interrogating him.

Explaining himself felt like too much effort. Instead, Heonyoung rolled up his shirt sleeve. The cufflink popped off as he tugged it forcefully, but he didn’t care and folded the sleeve a couple of times. A vivid injection mark and surrounding bruise stood out starkly on the bulging vein.

“I pumped suppressants into my vein. That’s why there’s a sharp drop in the late afternoon.”

Sehyun, mouth agape in shock, sank into his seat. As Heonyoung adjusted his sleeve, he asked Sehyun, who was speechless, in a flat tone.

“Sehyun, want to hear a secret that even my father doesn’t know?”

“…….”

“Dominant traits don’t always come from dominant parents. Conversely, there’s a small chance recessive traits can produce a dominant one.”

“…That’s basic sex education.”

Sehyun’s words, edged with irritation, questioned why Heonyoung spoke of common knowledge like it was a grand secret.

“No need to dig through textbooks. The proof is right in front of you.”

“…What?”

“My biological mother was a recessive omega.”

No way. Given TG’s long-standing rule of dominant alpha succession, Chairman Seo must be a dominant alpha, and Director Yoon Sang-ah is surely a dominant omega. Sehyun’s mental calculations sped up after picturing Heonyoung and Director Yoon Sang-ah’s strikingly dissimilar appearances side by side.

“She’s infertile, our dear Madam Yoon Sang-ah.”

Reading Sehyun’s dawning realization, the right corner of Heonyoung’s mouth curled up stylishly.

“My father had about three mistresses and secretly tested the fetuses’ traits. I, with dominant traits, was the only one who survived.”

The rose scent filled the room. Sehyun’s pheromones, overwhelmed by the heavy truth, were spiraling wildly.

“That means I have no reason to marry a dominant omega. Don’t make me question why I’m marrying you. I’m only agreeing to this marriage to avoid overcomplicating things.”

“…….”

“And Ji Yeonoh? I told you he’s just a wallflower who does his job diligently.”

“…Is he really just a wallflower?”

Sehyun’s weak question, laced with resentment, was directed at Heonyoung.

“What?”

“I knew of Mr. Ji Yeonoh before we met. You were always looking for him. You probably didn’t even realize it.”

Three years ago, it started as “Mr. Ji Yeonoh,” but now it was just “Ji Yeonoh.” Losing one syllable had closed the distance enough to color Seo Heonyoung’s daily life.

‘Oh, you’re Mr. Ji Yeonoh? Heonyoung works you hard, huh? You must be exhausted. You look worn out.’

Eighteen years. That’s how long Sehyun had orbited Heonyoung to get close. So, when he first met Ji Yeonoh, he couldn’t hide his displeasure.

“Do Sehyun, that’s enough.”

Heonyoung, who had been tolerating Sehyun’s pheromones, seemed to reach his limit. Though it could be risky for Heonyoung, fresh off a rut, Sehyun, consumed by emotion, couldn’t stop either.

“…Hyung, have you ever looked into Mr. Ji Yeonoh’s eyes?”

“No reason to.”

Without a moment’s hesitation, Heonyoung rubbed his tense brow and answered in a dry tone.

Sehyun’s eyes wavered like waves. Resentment for unreturned feelings and lingering attachment overflowed, rippling back. Having the same eyes, Sehyun recognized Ji Yeonoh’s unrequited love instantly.

Relieved that Seo Heonyoung had no interest in Ji Yeonoh’s gaze, Sehyun soon realized his own heart was buried somewhere deep under the sea, like a grain of sand untouched by light.

“He likes you.”

He almost envied the waves.

Chapter 2. Sole

This pitiful, century-defining unrequited love began with something akin to admiration.

‘If you put it that way, Ji Yeonoh isn’t just a beta—he’s a beta who outshines alphas.’

On his first day, seeing Heonyoung defend him, Yeonoh vowed never to be a blemish on Seo Heonyoung’s reputation. Though Heonyoung’s words may have had other motives, that first affirmation amid a lifetime of harsh judgment was unexpectedly powerful.

Like a fledgling breaking its shell and instinctively following the first being it sees, Ji Yeonoh followed Seo Heonyoung.

A month into the job, Yeonoh, attentively listening at a meeting, was scribbling furiously in his notebook. Amid the Monday morning lethargy draining everyone’s work drive, he was the only one bustling.

“That’s it for now. Let’s have the operational team stay back to discuss.”

As others stood to leave after Seo Heonyoung’s wrap-up, Yeonoh, unsure if he should follow, glanced around nervously.

“Mr. Ji Yeonoh, you can leave too.”

Unable to bear it, Heonyoung spoke, and several pairs of eyes turned to Yeonoh.

“Oh, uh! Yes!”

Ugh, he should’ve followed the others… Why did he linger so cluelessly? Hiding his flushed face, Yeonoh clutched his notebook and hurried out. In his rush, the pen precariously perched on the notebook’s cover fell to the floor with a clatter.

“Ugh… S-sorry!”

The pen rolled right to another employee’s feet. What kind of absurd physical comedy was this? Crawling under the table to retrieve it would be too embarrassing, so Yeonoh decided to come back for it after the meeting and bolted out.

What a commotion to start the morning. Back at his desk, Yeonoh sat in a daze.

“Yeonoh, let’s go for a smoke.”

“Yes? Oh, yes!”

Before he could gather his thoughts, his mentor, An Minhyuk, dragged him to the rooftop garden for a cigarette break. Minhyuk often pulled Yeonoh along like this several times a day.

Yeonoh had never smoked and recoiled at the smell, coughing reflexively. Growing up, he’d cough to drive out his father, who smoked freely at home, and the habit stuck into adulthood, making him shudder at cigarettes. He’d dodged peers’ smoking invitations in college, but his first mentor being a chain smoker was a cruel twist of fate.

“Still not smoking today?”

“I’m good. Haha.”

Minhyuk, with a cigarette in his mouth, offered Yeonoh the pack, but Yeonoh declined with a friendly smile. Refusing like this was its own kind of work.

“How’s it going? Work manageable?”

“Yes! Thanks to you teaching me well, I’m learning a lot.”

“Good. It’s the time to soak it all in.”

Finishing his sentence, An Minhyuk lit the cigarette and took a deep drag. Yeonoh had learned that holding his breath when smoke approached prevented coughing—a survival skill honed over the past month.

“Huh? The Executive Director’s over there.”

“What? Cough, hack!”

Caught off guard by Minhyuk’s sudden comment, Yeonoh inhaled the smoke he’d been holding back, choking and coughing. Following Minhyuk’s gaze, he saw Heonyoung in the outdoor garden, on a call. The meeting must’ve ended.

“Man, Yeonoh. You can’t even handle smoke, let alone smoke. How are you gonna survive this tough world?”

“S-sorry…”

“You’re too weak. Learn to smoke. All the company gossip happens over cigarettes.”

Though peers teased him for faking it since he was fine in smoky barbecue restaurants, Yeonoh couldn’t help that cigarette smoke made his head throb and his throat and temples tighten.

“It’s all about willpower. Back in my day, if seniors said to endure, you endured. If they said do it, you did it. That’s how I learned to smoke.”

An Minhyuk, now in his third year, had just shed the “newbie” title with Yeonoh’s arrival. Yeonoh vowed never to be that kind of mentor if he ever had a junior.