TSG 41

Se-hyun thought that he still got caught despite being careful. What should he do? Rather than searching for the answer to that, the first thing that came to mind was the fact that he couldn’t tell when he was caught.

“Se-hyun-ah, tell me.”

It was not ‘Secretary Ahn,’ or ‘Se-hyun-ssi’ but ‘Se-hyun-ah’. Shin Tae-oh, who gradually getting closer in terms of addressing him, smiled and urged him.

“I’m not just Seungnyang. Right?”

“Well…”

How did he know?

Now, Se-hyun couldn’t pretend not to know.

“I just said Taenyang out of support for the CEO. I hope that the person I respect will have a flowery path ahead.”

Ah, this didn’t make sense.

But at this moment, there was no need to dwell on that. Fortunately, Shin Tae-oh seemed to like his answer judging by his broadening smile.

Shin Tae-oh looked at Ha Jin-seong. The response seemed to be as if the explanation was now explained, but it seemed very childish. What should he do with this proud cat saying, ‘We’re closer now!’?

Ha Jin-seong looked at Shin Tae-oh and Se-hyun alternately for a moment and then laughed.

“What else can I say?”

It was a reaction that was not the least bit shocking. Was it because he didn’t want to deal with Shin Tae-oh’s childishness?

“I told you already. How long will it take?”

Ha Jin-seong now focused his attention on Shin Tae-oh. Just by excluding Se-hyun, the mysterious atmosphere from just now became heavier for a moment.

“Huh… Are you still holding out hope that someone will only look out for you?”

Ha Jin-seong twisted his mouth and laughed as if it was completely absurd.

“Just give up and live your life as usual. I mean, live like a eunuch.”

Eunuch was a bit harsh…

Se-hyun couldn’t control his expression as he looked at Ha Jin-seong.

What was it.

Ha Jin-seong kept trying to say something. Was it because he couldn’t provoke Shin Tae-oh that he felt restless?

Ha Jin-seong must have sensed Se-hyun’s gaze and tilted his head to make eye contact. He smiled slyly as usual.

“We went to the same school, Shin Tae-oh and I. We used to hang out occasionally when we were younger.”

He added a kind explanation, but Se-hyun was even more confused.

“If you’re really curious, ask Yoo Jin-hyun.”

Bringing up Yoo Jin-hyun seemed like more than just a casual remark. Ha Jin-seong looked at Shin Tae-oh again.

“You said so yourself. Everyone leaves you eventually.”

Se-hyun naturally looked at Shin Tae-oh. It seemed like a conversation between two people that he didn’t know about, but Shin Tae-oh’s sly smile disappeared. Shin Tae-oh kept his mouth shut as if he had heard something he couldn’t just ignore.

“If you had gone to the hotel with your secretary, you’d understand better. How quickly he would leave your side…”

Ha Jin-seong smirked and looked back at him.

“I’m coming to collect money for the shirt, so answer the phone calmly.”

The situation in which Ha Jin-seong came to visit him and subsequently became involved with Shin Tae-oh made Se-hyun’s heart heavy. Instead of Ha Jin-seong, who left without regret after saying he was done with what he had to say, Se-hyun worried about Shin Tae-oh’s condition.

“Sir.”

“…Let’s go to work.”

Se-hyun didn’t ask Shin Tae-oh if he was okay with his low voice.

“Yes.”

Se-hyun opened the backseat door and went to the driver’s seat as soon as ShinTaeoh got in. Their plan to eat together was canceled, but going to work was the best option for now.

⍣⍣⍣

Se-hyun’s gaze remained fixed on the CEO’s office. Despite coming to the company and entering the CEO’s office earlier, Shin Tae-oh hadn’t taken a single step out since then.

Shin Tae-oh didn’t even look for coffee or handle any approvals.

Thanks to that, Se-hyun simply sent away the people coming up with approval documents. Then, when he was finally alone, he bit his lip to suppress the sigh that threatened to escape and glanced around the CEO’s office.

Se-hyun thought Ha Jin-seong only hated Ha Min-hyuk. So, all he had to do was bother Ha Min-hyuk, but he kept bumping into Shin Tae-oh whenever he saw him.

Just as he pondered what to do, the savior arrived. Lee Jin-ho, who had returned from an outside appointment.

“Chief.”

“Everything alright?”

Se-hyun closed his mouth and looked at the documents in front of him after hearing Lee Jin-ho’s greeting. Lee Jin-ho followed Se-hyun’s gaze, noticed the stack of papers, and let out a sigh.

“I see something is going on.”

Se-hyun didn’t say anything and kept his lips sealed. He didn’t feel the need to mention meeting Ha Jin-seong or their conversation.

“Just wait.”

The chief secretary waved his hand at Se-hyun and entered the CEO’s office as if he wanted to ask him directly. As soon as the door was closed, Se-hyun released the tension in his stiffened posture.

“What’s going on?”

Shin Tae-oh caught Se-hyun calling him Taenyang. So, Se-hyun wondered when he found out. He even thought Shin Tae-oh might mention the number saved in his contacts…

‘What on earth is it?’

What did Ha Jin-seong mean?

As he pondered, the sound of the door opening made him reflexively stand up. He couldn’t take my eyes off the sight of Shin Tae-oh and Lee Jin-ho walking out.

“Get to work.”

Lee Jin-ho gestured for Se-hyun to sit down before shaking his phone. Understanding that he would contact him, Se-hyun nodded and took a seat.

Se-hyun recalled Shin Tae-oh’s complexion as he had just passed by.

“Looks like he’s caught a cold…”

He had returned to the company just now without eating anything, yet his face had turned pale. Even his lips had lost color, making him look unwell.

“Let’s not worry about it.”

He’s probably going home because he’s not feeling well. Then, the chief secretary will take care of going to the hospital or buying medicine.

Se-hyun shook his head and started looking at the schedule since he had time. He wondered if he should continue scheduling meetings with Yoo Jin-ha around this time of year…

Ask…

“Yoo Jin-ha?”

As soon as Se-hyun thought of the main-shou, he got goosebumps as if he had been stabbed in the back.

Ha Jin-seong originally went to see Yoo Jin-ha. Knowing that Ha Min-hyuk likes Yoo Jin-ha, he also scouts him and hovers around Yoo Jin-ha. Being a diligent jerk, he messes with people and diligently leaves his mark.

“So, Ha Jin-seong should be around Yu Jin-ha right now.”

Perhaps the reason he came here today was because he was bored after visiting Yoo Jin-ha?

It should be like that.

“Things should go according to the original plan.”

That’s how he can maintain this stable life as an extra.

⍣⍣⍣

Se-hyun came home from work on time and thought about it repeatedly as he stood in front of the front door. He had come this far, and there was a fierce conflict going on in his head about whether he should ring the bell or turn back.

“Push? Or not?”

He raised and lowered my hand dozens of times in front of Shin Tae-oh’s house.

Feeling unwell for a moment, he thought he might see him at work tomorrow. So, it might be more unusual to come like this…

Ignoring it wasn’t easy either.

While others might not know why Shin Tae-oh turned out like this, he knew. So just ignoring and passing by would prick his conscience.

But the reason Se-hyun hesitated again was because his true self was revealed to Shin Tae-oh. He even went as far as to give him the nickname “Taeyang-i” beyond just “Seungnyang-i” with his own mouth.

“Well, everything’s out in the open now.”

From being an omega to how he usually thought about Shin Tae-oh, everything was out. Now, he didn’t even know what face to put on in front of Shin Tae-oh.

Should he just put on an innocent expression as usual, pretending not to know anything?

“Let’s think about that later… for now, it’s just an extension of work.”

He found a compromise. Today, he decided to see Shin Tae-oh’s condition to ensure that work would return to normal from tomorrow.

After finishing his thoughts, Se-hyun rang the bell.

“Come in.”

The door opened in exactly one second.

When Se-hyun saw the wide open door, he had mixed feelings.

“Do you want to come in?”

“No.”

“You’ve become honest.”

Since he had already been exposed to Shin Tae-oh, there was no need to pretend anymore. So, instead of moving forward as if to close the door, he asked how the door opened so quickly.

“Since when have you been in front?”

“What do you mean?”

Shin Tae-oh sipped his coffee with an expression that seemed oblivious to everything.

“I mean, did you know I was here?”

“Yeah.”

Shin Tae-oh acted as if Se-hyun’s question was unexpected and answered honestly.

“It seemed like you were debating whether to press it or not, so I waited. I can’t keep someone who was about to leave.”

So, he saw everything.

He should have come after thinking about it at home. Therefore, once he decided to meet Shin Tae-oh, he shouldn’t hesitate twice and should go straight…

Putting aside unnecessary thoughts, Se-hyun handed over what he had brought.

“Have you eaten?”

Shin Tae-oh looked down at the rather large paper bag and shook his head.

“I’ve had an empty stomach for a while… ”

Does that mean he hasn’t eaten anything all day?

Suppressing a sigh, Se-hyun pushed the paper bag further toward Shin Tae-oh.

“I’ve prepared something soft. Eat it before it gets cold.”

“Hmm…”

Shin Tae-oh looked at him for a moment and then raised his index finger.

“I wonder if I’ll lose my memories if I eat this… ”

Where did he get that idea?

“Or maybe it’ll make me sick and unable to get up for days…”

“Just don’t eat it.”

At Shin Tae-oh’s nonsensical suspicion, Se-hyun decided to just leave. Coming here was just like exercising. As he lowered his hand holding the paper bag, Shin Tae-oh approached and grabbed his wrist.

“Let’s eat together.”

“…”

He should have said that from the beginning.

“Alright.”

Se-hyun, who was about to just hand it over, took a step into Shin Tae-oh’s house.

It was the first step after revealing his true self.

Was his heart pounding because of he was nervous, or was there another reason?