VDN Ch 145

While the man was mumbling absentmindedly, Nam-woon quickly picked it up. He then raised his gaze to examine the man’s face.

He’s not thinking anything strange, is he?

The man’s face turned pale and his hands were shaking. Before Nam-woon could say anything, the man stammered out a response.

“Are you trying to get me pregnant? How could you think of such a despicable thing? You bastard!

Whack. Whack.

“Ah! Hey, listen to me! That’s not it! Ah, ah!”

Even though he was smaller and skinnier than Nam-woon, the punches landed with the ferocity of a boxer. Nam-woon was lost in thought of the amount of times his body had been tormented today, and he let out a pitiful groan as he was hit without mercy.

***

The man, Lee Bong-nam, stared intently at Nam-woon, who was sipping on tea. When Nam-woon raised his gaze while putting down the paper cup, their eyes met. Bong-nam flinched and quickly averted his gaze. Then he grabbed the paper cup in a hurry but ended up spilling all the tea on the floor in a fluster.

“Ah, it’s hot!”

Startled, Nam-woon quickly grabbed Bong-nam’s hand and asked,

“Are you okay?”

“I-I’m fine.”

The tea had just been heated, so the temperature was very high. Despite his answer that he was fine, Nam-woon looked at Bong-nam’s white hand with a serious expression, feeling uneasy.

“Are you sure… you didn’t get burned?”

Bong-nam twisted his wrist and pulled his hand out. Nam-woon looked at Bong-nam, who turned his head with an uncomfortable expression, for a moment, then picked up a roll of toilet paper nearby and wiped the moisture off the floor.

“I-I’ll do it.”

Bong-nam stopped him in a panicked voice. Then he brought a rag and they wiped the floor together. During that time, their fingertips touched each other several times. Every time Bong-nam flinched and looked at Nam-woon’s expression. Nam-woon also glanced at him. It was natural to be wary of strangers, but his reaction was strangely excessive.

After thoroughly cleaning the floor until it shone, silence fell in the room. Bong-nam spoke first.

“I’m sorry about earlier… I thought you were going to do something bad to me.”

“Yes.”

“Just speak casually like you always do. It feels really strange when you don’t speak informally.”

“……”

Nam-woon did not respond in the casual tone as requested. Bong-nam glanced at him and then blurted out.

“Also, I didn’t know your traits had changed…”

At those words, Nam-woon’s face hardened. Bong-nam mustered the courage to speak.

“You can use our bathroom. Just this once. You need to do that.”

Bong-nam glanced at the small object in Nam-woon’s hand. Nam-woon also looked down at the pink test with a complicated expression.

“Hurry up.”

“……”

After hesitating for a long time, Nam-woon reluctantly headed to the bathroom at Bong-nam’s urging. 

Lee Bong-nam anxiously paced the room, staring at the firmly closed bathroom door. His tense demeanor resembled that of a young husband waiting for news of his wife’s pregnancy, but the reality was different.

That human scum Seok Nam-woon might be pregnant. Lee Bong-nam was surprised. Seok Nam-woon always ignored and looked down on omegas. When Bong-nam heard that his trait had changed to an omega, he immediately thought that he was receiving his own karma.

“Lee Bong-nam, don’t you know that I’m better than most alphas?”

“He has been cursed by the heavens. That snake bastard…”

When I was working part-time at the Peachy Peachy Restaurant, Seok Nam-woon would come to me every day and say things like that and ask me to date him. When Lee Bong-nam firmly rejected the offer, he upgraded his tactics, saying, They should get married instead.

“You don’t like dating? Then shall we get married? I think we should have three children…. Since our Bong-nam is dominant, it’s possible, right?”

Remembering the low jokes and giggles of Seok Nam-woon, Bong-nam ground his teeth in frustration. He truly is human scum… Even with Nam-woon standing right in front of him, Bong-nam couldn’t help but feel angry as he thought back to that time. He waited impatiently for Nam-woon to come out, mentally cursing him.

After a while, the bathroom door creaked open, and Seok Nam-woon came out with a pale face.

“W-What happened?”

Bong-nam approached cautiously and asked. His heart pounded as if it were his situation. Nam-woon, who had been keeping his lips tightly shut and not saying anything, leaned his back against the wall. Then, as if his legs had lost their strength, he slid down and sat down on the floor.

He felt like he already knew the result without needing to speak. Seeing Nam-woon’s dazed expression for the first time, Bong-nam cautiously spoke again.

“Seok Nam-woon?”

Nam-woon took a deep breath and soon buried his face between his legs. 

Lee Bong-nam’s expression suddenly became complicated. Seok Nam-woon’s hair was messy around the crown of his head as if he hadn’t washed all day, and his clothes were hurriedly put on, wearing sweatpants and a checkered shirt. It was an outfit that Seok Nam-woon would never wear under normal circumstances. In fact, because he started buttoning his shirt from the second button, there was one button left over at the very bottom. Bong-nam’s gaze turned to the front door this time. The purple bathroom slippers were lying inside out.

Seok Nam-woon always came to the store looking perfectly put together from head to toe. Bong-nam was confused by the completely different appearance. He didn’t look like this when he was drinking Ssanghwacha at the convenience store last time… It was the first time he had seen him looking so flustered.

Is this really the same Seok Nam-woon? His face was clearly the same, but he seemed like a completely different person.

Could it really be that he was pregnant? Bong-nam had thought that if Nam-woon had gotten into trouble, he would be very happy, but he didn’t feel like that. Maybe because he was also an omega, he felt uneasy about the situation. Where was the baby’s father, and why had he come all the way out to this remote place looking like that?

Was it because of the pitiful sight of Seok Nam-woon? He found himself feeling a surge of sympathy. Bong-nam tried to control his weak heart and opened his mouth.

“Um, Mr. Seok? If you’re done with the bathroom, could you please go home now?”

“……”

Perhaps he didn’t hear him, as Nam-woon remained still with his face buried between his legs. Bong-nam had no choice but to approach him, placing a hand on his shoulder and giving him a gentle shake. Then he heard a sniffle, and Bong-nam was taken aback.

No way, is he crying?

The sound of sniffling must have been crying. Seok Nam-woon is crying! Even that beast like man was very surprised by the unexpected turn of events. Bong-nam panicked and grabbed a roll of toilet paper that was next to him.

“Mr. Seok, please lift your face…”

At those words, Nam-woon raised his head from between his legs and rubbed his face dry with his hands. When he removed them, his eyes were slightly damp, and the redness around them became visible. With a flushed face, Nam-woon spoke.

“Would you like me to go home?”

“I told you to speak casually.”

“…I don’t have a home.”

“What? You don’t have a home?”

Had he been kicked out by his partner? Or did they have a big fight, and he had left on his own?

But what kind of person was that lover that made Seok Nam-woon like this? No matter how much they say they’re just meeting up, this really wasn’t right. They should take responsibility for their actions. Leaving a pregnant person alone in such a state was inexcusable.

Bong-nam, who was curious about what kind of person that trashy alpha was, couldn’t help but ask Nam-woon a question.

“Then whose house did you originally live in?” 

“Just… someone I know.”

“Did he tell you to leave? Or did you just walk out on your own? What kind of person is this… partner of yours? Is he a gangster like you?”

Nam-woon didn’t answer. Since he didn’t want to talk, Bong-nam suppressed his desire to ask questions about the other person and closed his mouth.

At that moment, Nam-woon’s pitiful voice pierced his ears.

“Mr. Bong-nam, no, Bong-nam, I don’t have anywhere to go.”

For a brief moment, Bong-nam was taken aback by Nam-woon’s direct words, but he quickly set aside the rising sympathy and managed to respond.

“So what do you expect me to do? What does it matter to me that you have nowhere to go? You can go anywhere.”

He quickly added without hearing Nam-woon’s answer, trying not to waver.

“Just because you’re in this situation doesn’t erase the disgusting things you did to me. How can I let you stay at my place? Get out right now.”

He deliberately rebuked him coldly. He felt Nam-woon staring blankly at him. However, Bong-nam didn’t even look at Nam-woon and calmly urged him on while organizing the dry dishes on the sink drying rack.

“Come on, hurry up. I have work tomorrow, so I need to sleep early.”

A moment later, he heard the rustling sound of movement behind him. Then he heard the sound of Nam-woon putting on his slippers. Bong-nam opened the refrigerator door without even glancing toward the shoe rack. Soon, he heard the sound of the door opening, and the noise from outside rushed in. However, he didn’t hear the sound of the door closing.

After a while, a rustling noise was heard behind him. Then, there was the sound of Nam-woon putting on his slippers. Bong-nam opened the refrigerator door without even looking at the shoe cabinet. Soon, he heard the door opening, and the noise from outside rushed in. However, the sound of the door closing was not heard.

What are you hesitating for? Hurry up and leave. Just as he thought that, a weak voice flew into his ears.

“I’m sorry for everything I did to you. I’m sorry, I really am.”

“.…!”

“Of course, this won’t make you feel better, but I just wanted to apologize properly. Okay, I’m leaving.”

With those words, a loud bang echoed as the door closed. Only then did Bong-nam realize he had been holding his breath. Consciously taking a deep breath, he crumpled his face as he stared at the front door. He felt uneasy.

As he finished saying that, the door slammed shut. Only then did Bong-nam realize that he was holding his breath. Bong-nam consciously took a deep breath and looked at the front door with his face crumpled. He felt uneasy.

…What’s with this? Now that it’s inconvenient for you, you suddenly apologize.

Bong-nam suddenly looked down at the shoe rack. There was moisture left in the spot where Nam-woon’s slippers had been. It was from when he had splashed water on Nam-woon earlier. Thinking back, Nam-woon had left without changing out of his wet clothes. Even though it was summer, the temperature difference between day and night was large these days, so it was quite chilly at night.

The wind was also blowing pretty hard… I wonder if he’ll catch a cold.

“Did he at least have some money with him?”

Seeing Seok Nam-woon’s face again after a long time, he looked extremely haggard. His eyes were hollow, and his complexion was pale, as if he had starved for three days. He also walked with a swaying motion, as if he had been beaten at the hands by that unknown alpha.

But they must have agreed to it, right?

A fundamental question surfaced later. Judging by Nam-woon’s reaction, perhaps they hadn’t agreed at all…

His heart felt heavy. He wanted to dismiss everything that had happened just now as if it had never happened, but he kept thinking of the way he had silently stood there taking the water bucket and the punches, his drooping shoulders shaking slightly, and his apologetic voice.