Marriage Mate: 10

TN: There was a mistake in the previous chapter, but I’ve fixed it now. Thanks for your understanding!

Yu-young’s father, who had been passionately praising the team leader and excitedly talking about the children Yu-young would have with him, only stopped when his older sisters burst into the room.

“Hey, Han Yu-young! Have you been well?”
“Hello, Executive Director Han.”

“You little punk, don’t act up.”

Yu-young’s sisters couldn’t hide their joy at seeing him after a long time. Even his usually cool-headed eldest sister bombarded him with questions about his recent activities, while his second sister clung to his hand and refused to let go.

The eldest sister was a dominant Alpha who had inherited their father’s blood and was widely acknowledged as the heir to SC Company’s management.

She had already married the son of a prestigious Omega congressman and was soaring ahead in life without any obstacles. With a fiery personality and strong drive that mirrored their father’s, it was needless to say that she had his complete trust and affection.

The second sister was a Beta, and she, too, had married early and settled down according to their father’s wishes. Unlike the bold and ambitious eldest sister, the younger sister had always been obedient and never once defied their father.

In conclusion, Yu-young was the only one in the family who clashed and argued loudly with their father.

“Hey, Han Yu-young. Do you still have no thoughts about marriage?”

While their parents excused themselves to the second floor to give them time alone, the eldest sister, sitting comfortably with her legs crossed, motioned for Yu-young. He frowned and handed her a fork with a piece of apple on it.

“Don’t start, sis. I just got an earful from Dad.”

“Why do you hate it so much? Is it because you haven’t met a decent Alpha? Should I introduce you to someone?”

“No. It’s just… Ugh… Dad is already trying to set me up with the new team leader coming to our department…”

Yu-young let out a deep sigh and shook his head. The eldest sister’s eyes gleamed with curiosity.

“The new team leader? Oh… You mean Team Leader Choi Dowon?”

“You know him?”

“Of course. The HR director had been after him for a while, and when he mentioned leaving his old company, they snatched him up. I heard he’s competent and reliable. But apparently, his personality is no joke.”

The eldest sister casually inspected her immaculately maintained nails as she spoke.

“But what about him? Don’t tell me Dad wants to set you up with him?”

“Yeah. Can you believe it?”

Unlike Yu-young, who looked utterly disgusted, both sisters burst into laughter at the same time.

“Wow, Dad’s really something else. How does he come up with these things?”
“Seriously. Han Yu-young in an office romance? That would be something to see.”

“I hate it! I’m never doing that!” Yu-young shouted in frustration.

“… But what do you mean about his personality? What’s so bad about it?”

“Oh, I heard he’s like a bulldozer at work, but his subordinates find him really intimidating.”

“Ha…”

Great. Another team leader with a terrible personality… Yu-young felt like wailing. Now he had to deal with both Deputy Manager Kim and this Choi Dowon guy.

“You haven’t seen him, have you, sis?”
“Of course not. Why, are you curious?”
“Of course, I am. Dad keeps going on about how he’s handsome and capable and whatever…”

“Oh?”

The eldest sister’s face lit up with a mischievous grin.

“Yu-young, don’t tell me… Are you interested in him?”
“No! Ugh, sis! That’s not it! He’s my boss, so of course, I’m curious!”

Yu-young shouted again, making his sisters burst into laughter. They had always been experts at teasing their only younger brother. Even as he glared at them in irritation, they only seemed to enjoy it more.

After spending some time catching up, they eventually said their goodbyes, promising to meet again soon. Their mother tried to convince Yu-young to stay the night since it was the weekend, but he smiled and politely declined, saying he would visit again soon.

‘Haa… I’m exhausted.’

As he drove home, all he could think about was collapsing onto his bed the moment he arrived. Fatigue was washing over him like a tidal wave.

I don’t even have the energy for a full bath. I’ll just take a quick shower, look through a photo book for a bit, and sleep.

Even though he was tired, the thought of being in his own space made him smile.

…

When he finally woke up, it was already ten in the morning. Stretching contentedly, Yu-young soon frowned as a wave of nausea hit him.

He had taken an excessive dose of suppressants yesterday to keep his parents and Alpha sister from noticing his unstable pheromones, and now the side effects were kicking in.

He was supposed to take another dose this morning, but there was no way he could stomach it now. Looks like I’m stuck at home today…

Muttering weakly, Yu-young got out of bed. He felt sluggish, and his body was warm—his condition was definitely not great.

‘Today’s my last day off…’

He mulled over it gloomily as he got up. Cooking anything elaborate was out of the question, so he decided to keep breakfast simple.

He whisked some eggs, added sugar, and dipped slices of bread to make French toast. As he nibbled on the toast with milk and fruit, he let out a deep sigh.

When I go back to work tomorrow, Deputy Manager Kim is going to make my life hell again. He probably won’t outright dump work on me like before since he has to be careful now, but he’ll definitely find other ways to be annoying.

And tomorrow is also the new team leader’s first day…

For so many reasons, Yu-young wished this Sunday would never end. Normally, he started feeling down around 5 PM on Sundays, but today, it wasn’t even noon, and he was already in a bad mood.

Hoping for a distraction, he browsed Netflix, flipping through various options, but his gloom wouldn’t lift. After lazing around for a while, he finally sat up around lunchtime.

‘Ugh… I need to move my body, or I’ll go crazy.’

Exercise seemed too much, but his fridge was nearly empty, so he decided to go grocery shopping instead. Feeling slightly better, he took his suppressant, washed it down with water, and made a shopping list on his phone.

“Arugula, oriental dressing, oranges… toothpaste, snacks, chocolate.”

After jotting everything down, he brewed himself an iced coffee in a tumbler to drink on the way. Then, grabbing his car keys and phone, he headed out.

As he shut the door behind him, his gaze landed on the apartment across from his.

‘Tch. That annoying bastard.’

Even if neighbors didn’t socialize much anymore, did he really have to live right across from someone like that? Out of all the available units, why did he have to move in here? It was absurd and infuriating.

Grumbling inwardly, Yu-young scrolled through his phone, picking a song to play in the car. Since the elevator was empty, he quietly played a newly released track, too absorbed in the music to notice the faint sound of a door opening behind him.

It wasn’t until the nearly shut elevator doors slid open again that he looked up—only to see that annoyingly handsome face once more.

“…Oh.”

Startled, Yu-young’s hand jerked, and his phone slipped from his grip. If it hit the floor, the screen would be shattered.

Reacting instinctively, he flung out the hand holding his coffee.

Ah, crap. The coffee!

But just before disaster struck, a large hand shot out and snatched the tilted tumbler from his grasp.

It happened so fast that Yu-Young, wide-eyed and dazed, could only let go of the cup without resistance.

The tall man standing before him spoke in a dry tone.

“Pulling the same stunt twice… Don’t you think that’s beyond cliché? It just makes you look lazy.”

With a look of disgust, the man handed the coffee back to Yu-Young.

Yu-Young, still in shock, stared blankly at the annoying neighbor in front of him.

Why… Why is this bastard here again?!

During these precious four days of vacation, he’d already run into this man three times by pure coincidence. How was this even possible? Even in the most ridiculous soap opera script, something this absurd would get criticized. Sure, they were neighbors, but this was ridiculous…

“Why… why are you standing in front of me again?”

“I should be asking you that.”

The man scoffed. He didn’t seem thrilled about running into Yu-Young either.

“Did you put a tracking device in my underwear or something? Otherwise, how do you keep—tch.”

“Hey!”

There it was again—that tch sound!

How could a person make someone’s blood boil in just three seconds? If that was a talent, it was certainly an annoying one. Yu-Young’s face turned red with anger.

I don’t give a damn about your damn underwear, okay?!

“We live in the same building. Of course, we’re bound to run into each other once in a while!”

“Oh, really? That’s funny, considering you had your nose buried in my underwear, sniffing around like a dog.”

“Wha—?! Hold on!”

Yu-Young was so furious he wanted to throw both his phone and coffee aside and grab the man by the collar. But knowing full well he stood no chance against him in either size or strength, he forced himself to resist the temptation.

Not because I’m scared. Nope. Just being a responsible citizen who doesn’t want to cause a public disturbance.

Just then, the elevator dinged, arriving at the underground parking lot.

Without a word, the man stepped out, making it clear he had no intention of wasting another second on Yu-Young.

Flustered, Yu-Young rushed after him, raising his voice.

“And what’s with this ‘stunt’ nonsense? You don’t actually think I spilled coffee on you on purpose, do you?”

“God, you’re loud. Back off, will you? My ears hurt.”

The man shot Yu-Young a look of sheer annoyance.

Seeing that expression made Yu-Young’s blood boil even more. He hurried in front of the man, blocking his way.

“Listen here, you—! I have zero interest in you, okay?! Not even a fraction of a damn ant’s piss worth of interest! Why the hell would I flirt with you?!”

“And yet, who’s the one constantly spilling coffee on me?”

“That was just—!”

“If I hadn’t caught it, wouldn’t it have landed on me again?”

“…”

“And then you’d be all flustered, offering to pay for dry cleaning, handing me your business card, right?”

Yu-Young had no rebuttal. Because… it was true.

If the man hadn’t caught the tumbler just now, the coffee would have spilled all over him. Then Yu-Young would have been panicking and apologizing, just like last time.

“And by the way—”

The man suddenly leaned in close.

Yu-Young flinched at the unexpected proximity. The man’s scent filled the space between them, and for a brief second, he was too stunned to move.

With his lips nearly brushing Yu-Young’s ear, the man murmured,

“You reek of pheromones. Do you even realize how strong they are right now?”

“W-what? I took my suppressant!”

“Seems like you don’t know how to manage yourself properly. You should’ve just stayed home.”

His voice was filled with contempt.

Yu-Young’s eyes widened.

That was it.

This bastard had officially crossed the line.

Just as the man turned to leave, Yu-Young instinctively reached out to grab his arm.

But the man suddenly halted and turned around first.

Yu-Young, who had been trailing behind him, almost crashed into him but barely managed to stop in time. Their proximity had shrunk to an almost threatening distance.

Yu-Young hesitated, looking up at him.

“W-what now…?”

Beep.

The headlights of a car flashed.

Without answering, the man shot Yu-Young a cold look before getting into his car.

Yu-Young stood there, dumbfounded, watching as the engine rumbled to life.

Then, with an impatient honk, the man gestured for him to move aside.

Still fuming, Yu-Young glared at him through the window, but the man didn’t budge.

As soon as Yu-Young stepped away, the car sped off without hesitation.

“Annoying bastard. I hope he steps in dog shit the second he gets out of that car.”

Grinding his teeth, Yu-Young seethed.

What the hell is his problem?

Now, he was just tired.

It wasn’t like he wanted to have an issue managing his pheromones. He even took the suppressant… so why was that guy acting like this?

Maybe it was time to get those artificial pheromone shots. Or at least buy a portable pheromone detector.

Yu-Young sighed and went back to tossing groceries into his cart.

Tomorrow, the infamous new team leader was starting. It was already nerve-wracking enough.

He needed to hurry home, wash up, and mentally prepare himself for work.