OMS 78
by Cherry“You came…?”
Despite yesterday’s events, Kim Jun-han came home after his workday was over, though Park Dong-sik hadn’t expected him to. When he’d asked by message what Park Dong-sik wanted to eat, Park Dong-sik said chicken, and now the smell of chicken filled the air as he walked inside the house. He put what he was carrying on the table and headed straight for the bathroom. Looking closer, there was another box that was sitting next to the chicken. What’s this? Park Dong-sik’s eyes widened slightly as he opened it.
“Oh?”
It was a cake lavishly decorated with appetizing strawberries. He looked back and forth between the desk calendar and the cake, wondering what the special occasion was. No way….Still, it was amazing. While admiring the beautifully made cake, Kim Jun-han emerged from his shower, having changed into comfortable clothes.
Park Dong-sik was anxious that the other man might catch Kim Tae-han’s pheromone scent on him. Or maybe he’d already seen it on camera. Sitting across from him, Kim Jun-han noticed the pile of books on the table and asked with a puzzled expression on his face.
“What are these?”
“Yoon-ah brought them over during the day. She says they’re children’s books.”
“Children’s books?”
“She said it’s good if the father reads them—”
Feeling awkward, he quickly changed the subject.
“I’ll enjoy the chicken. It smells good.”
As he put a chicken leg on a plate for Kim Jun-han, the latter picked up one of the books. He read aloud “Who Pooped on My Head?” then furrowed his brow.
“Why poop on the head…”
He kept tilting his head to one side in confusion while flipping through the book.
“It’s supposedly very popular.”
“Hmm…there must be a reason for its popularity.”
While he examined other books, Park Dong-sik dipped his finger in the cake and licked it, letting out a “Wow!” in admiration. It was in a totally different league from any cake he’d eaten before in his life.
“The whipped cream is really delicious!”
“That’s unexpected.”
“What is?”
“It’s a famous shop. I expected you to say it was fucking delicious.”
Park Dong-sik laughed out loud. He then told him about Madam Song’s visit and how she nagged about not cursing since the babies could hear. Meanwhile, he wrestled with whether to tell him about Kim Tae-han’s visit.
He must know. That was why the guards let him in so easily.
“Kim Tae-han came by this morning…”
“I know.”
“We slept together…”
“Yeah.”
“It was fine. No symptoms…”
“That’s good.”
“….”
“He’ll probably come every day. I told him to.”
Kim Jun-han was composed to the point of being cold, but Park Dong-sik couldn’t look him in the eye and just stared at the chicken. He didn’t understand why his chest felt tight even though Kim Jun-han was accepting that he wasn’t the biological father. He wanted to ask “Are you okay?” but the words ended up getting caught in his throat.
In the meantime, Kim Jun-han took out candles and matches from the cake box. As he stuck them in the middle of the cake, Park Dong-sik stopped his thoughts and tried to stop him.
“Just cut it and eat. Why bother with the candles?”
“We should celebrate. It’s your birthday.”
Ah…Park Dong-sik was left at a loss for words. The match flame transferred to the candle with a hiss. Kim Jun-han’s face wavered in the flickering light. The sudden situation made Park Dong-sik’s nose tingle and his vision blur.
“Should I sing too? Though I’m tone-deaf and it might be painful to hear?”
Park Dong-sik laughed silently.
“That’s okay.”
“Happy birthday.”
He barely held back the surge of emotion. After half-heartedly blowing out the candle, Kim Jun-han even clapped for him. His way of clapping was so characteristic of him, it felt like being congratulated as a subordinate employee. Still, it felt nice. While cutting the cake, Park Dong-sik handed the first piece to him.
“How did you know it’s my birthday?”
“From the background check before.”
“I promised Madam Song not to curse, but I’ll make an exception today.”
“Hm?”
“Thank you so fucking much.”
Kim Jun-han chuckled. They spent time talking about trivial things while eating cake. As the night grew late, Park Dong-sik couldn’t bring himself to ask him to stay over like yesterday. Around midnight, Kim Jun-han put on his jacket and searched for something in his pocket.
“I almost forgot the present.”
“What? Aren’t presents usually given while cutting the cake?”
“If you don’t want it, I can take it back.”
Park Dong-sik quickly snatched the box from his hand. What could this be?
“Open it after I leave. Good night.”
Park Dong-sik accompanied him to the entrance. When he tried to follow him to the gate, Kim Jun-han gestured for him to go back inside. The gate closed firmly and the sound of the car faded away.
Looking back, silence had settled in the house as if nothing had happened. Park Dong-sik glanced around the spacious house once and sat on the sofa, picking up the gift Kim Jun-han had left. As he unwrapped it and checked the contents, he burst out laughing involuntarily.
“Really now…”
The box contained a gleaming pure gold necklace.
***
“Why did you come today?”
Although the doctor had said to come for a check-up in a week, Park Dong-sik visited a day early. He couldn’t bring himself to come with Kim Jun-han and didn’t want to show him the babies. Taking Kim Tae-han wasn’t an option due to fear of people seeing them together, so he chose to come alone.
“Have you been well? Any unusual symptoms?”
“No.”
“Let’s look at the ultrasound first.”
Lying on the bed, the doctor drew the curtain and lifted his top. As he applied the gel and looked at the babies with the ultrasound, a face appeared. When Park Dong-sik pointed with an “Oh?” the doctor quickly captured the screen.
“They’re both being good today. Showing their faces to Mom.”
“But…”
“Yes?”
“They’re really ugly…”
“The babies can hear you.”
“Still, that’s a bit…”
“It might look that way because of the ultrasound.”
“I see…”
The doctor measured their size and pursed his lips with a “hmm.” Park Dong-sik’s attention was completely focused on the doctor’s mouth. For the past week, Kim Tae-han had visited before work every day for sex. Yesterday, he’d panicked when thin fluid leaked from his nipples, but Kim Tae-han had eagerly sucked it up, saying it was delicious.
And in the evenings, Kim Jun-han would visit, making sure he ate and was reading books. Like Cinderella, he’d return home at midnight, with no physical contact.
“How is it? Have they grown? Are they more similar now?”
“Well…I still can’t tell.”
Park Dong-sik furrowed his brow. Is Kim Tae-han’s potency strong but his pheromones weak? How else could there be no effect after doing it every single day? Feeling indignant, he urged him to look more carefully, but the answer remained the same.
“Are you eating well?”
“Yes, I’m eating plenty every day.”
“That’s good. You could stand to gain some weight. Right now, it’s just your belly showing.”
“Doctor, I have a question.”
“Yes?”
“Do you remember what I asked at first?”
The doctor thought carefully before nodding his head. On the first day, Park Dong-sik had asked about the probability of having twins with different fathers after being with two alphas. Later, he received an unexpected request from Madam Song. Unable to refuse, he had lied to CEO Kim Jun-han on the day of surgery, and according to the nurses, they saw Kim Jun-han and his brother arguing loudly in the hospital corridor that day.
“You were right, doctor. About it being less likely than getting struck by lightning and winning the lottery. It looks like that much is true.”
After recalling what had happened, the doctor hesitated before carefully asking.
“The two alphas you mentioned then…they weren’t CEO Kim and his brother, were they?”
Park Dong-sik was surprised by the doctor’s perceptiveness, but didn’t want to hide it anymore. Hadn’t the older doctor said that physicians couldn’t reveal patient information?
“You absolutely cannot tell anyone about this.”
“I’ll keep it confidential. But, really, with both of them…?”
“Do I seem like trash to you?”
When asked seriously, he couldn’t deny it. This young man has no flexibility. Park Dong-sik awkwardly pulled down his shirt and sat up. As he was getting off the bed, the doctor exclaimed, “Ah!”
“If that’s the case, it might be difficult to confirm who the father is.”
“Huh?”
“Though rare, when brothers have similar pheromones, even the fetuses can get confused.”
Park Dong-sik just blinked, thinking this was utter nonsense. So to summarize what the doctor was saying…
“You’re saying if the pheromones are similar, the babies won’t know who their father is?”
“That’s right.”
Park Dong-sik shook his head.
“That’s impossible. They only showed rejection toward CEO Kim.”
“Then he’s not the biological father. However, there’s another possibility. Even if he is the father, if there’s strong rejection toward the child, the child will reciprocate that rejection. With a dominant alpha like CEO Kim, his strong pheromones could have negatively imprinted on the babies. Sensitive babies would react more intensely.”
Park Dong-sik’s expression gradually distorted as he listened.
“So what you’re saying is, we won’t know until they’re born…?”
“Based on the circumstances so far.”
“Fucking hell. We’re back to square one.”
When he cursed out of frustration, the doctor shook his head.
“No cursing. The babies can hear everything.”
Regardless, Park Dong-sik snapped at the doctor.
“If you’d told me from the start, I could have saved myself some trouble!”
The doctor made an utterly wronged expression.
“Who would have imagined someone would do that with brothers…?”
Park Dong-sik couldn’t argue and felt deflated.
“I’ll come back next time…”
Outside, Park Dong-sik collapsed listlessly into a chair at the desk. As he sat there dazed, Kim Jun-han called his phone. Park Dong-sik rubbed his face vigorously. What should he say when he answers the phone? Would the other man be happy if told, “Hey, you might be a father too!”
Ah, I don’t know, I don’t know. While pulling at his hair, someone grabbed his shoulder.
“You!”
Turning around, he saw Lee Hee-soo’s mother standing there with a shocked expression.
“Your phone was off, no contact, and now you’re here…”
He trailed off as his gaze landed on Park Dong-sik’s belly.
Watching his eyes widen and mouth fall open, Park Dong-sik thought to himself, I’m fucked.