VDN Ch 146

Bong-nam fidgeted as he stared at the front door where Nam-woon had left, then he dashed out of the house without realizing it. As he ran down the alley like a madman, he spotted Seok Nam-woon far in the distance. He had his hands in his pockets, dragging his slippers along the ground.

“Mr. Seok!”

Nam-woon didn’t turn around, as he didn’t hear his call. After mustering his strength in his stomach again, Bong-nam shouted and rushed over, grabbing Nam-woon’s arm.

“Seok Nam-woon!”

Nam-woon, who had been walking with his shoulders hunched, opened his eyes wide and looked up. Lee Bong-nam gasped for breath and then lowered his head and spoke.

“Gasp, let’s go…”

“What?”

“I said let’s go. To my house.”

But you can’t stay for too long. Nam-woon’s mouth opened slightly at Bong-nam’s added words.

Lee Bong-nam, who had brought Nam-woon to his house, hurriedly prepared to go out again. As Nam-woon stood there blankly staring at him, Bong-nam took out a thin blanket, laid it on the floor, and tapped his hand on it. It seemed to be telling him to sit down. Nam-woon slowly walked toward it. However, he couldn’t sit down right away and glanced at Bong-nam.

Bong-nam went to one side of the room, dragged over a backpack, and began to stuff various items into it, including his wallet. It seemed he was gathering everything valuable from home, even taking his bankbook and laptop. After finally zipping up the bag, he asked with his large eyes.

“Is there anything you want to eat? There’s nothing to eat at home.”

Nam-woon answered softly, clutching his stomach as if he were hungry.

“Kimchi stew.”

“Kimchi stew?”

“Yes. With pork.”

It seems like there’s no morning sickness at all. Maybe it’s because it’s still early, Bong-nam muttered to himself. His voice was so low that Nam-woon couldn’t catch his words, but he guessed Bong-nam was probably cursing at him. With a tired gesture, Nam-woon sat down on the floor. Bong-nam, who flinched at that, took out the clothes for Nam-woon to change into and then stood up straight.

“Since it’s a big shirt, it should fit. I’ll head to the mart now.”

“Uh…okay…”

Bang.

After the door closed, Nam-woon stared at the entrance for a few seconds, and when he confirmed that Lee Bong-nam had completely left, he picked up the clothes he had left behind. Maybe because he had been wearing wet clothes, his nose had been running for a while. Nam-woon sniffled repeatedly as he changed his clothes and lay down on the blanket.

“I’m glad, I found a good place to stay…”

The first thing Nam-woon did after meeting Lee Bong-nam was to borrow his cell phone and call the Good People Center. But for some reason, no one answered the phone. Where did these guys go out to play in a group without me? He was at a loss when he called a few more times but no one answered, but he was very glad that he had a place to stay for the time being.

Looking back now, it was quite shameless of him to cling on like that, especially to the victim of the original Seok Nam-woon.

At first, he didn’t recognize the name, but when he heard it, it clicked. This was the omega part-timer that Yong-deuk had mentioned in the past, the one from Peachy Peachy.

When he realized that fact, he thought he would be kicked out immediately. If that happened, he would have nowhere to turn and would be left clinging on desperately. But who would have imagined that the kind Bong-nam would take him in?

To think he made someone like this quit their job after harassing them.

The original Seok Nam-woon was truly a despicable piece of trash.

I don’t know what Lee Bong-nam thought, but the apology Nam-woon gave a moment ago wasn’t calculated. He wanted to apologize to him on behalf of the real Seok Nam-woon for the unpleasant experience he had endured because he was an omega. He hoped that the shame and hurt he must have felt in the past would be alleviated a bit by that.

Since he unexpectedly received such kindness, Nam-woon planned to continue to apologize through words and actions during their time together. After organizing his thoughts about the future, Nam-woon relaxed and buried his face in the blanket.

“I really thought I was going to die from anxiety earlier.”

It was referring to the pregnancy test he had taken earlier. According to the pharmacist, omega pregnancy tests provide results immediately after intercourse.

Before getting pregnant, omegas experience a surge of what is called “Omega reproductive pheromones.” This is also known as pregnancy preparation pheromones, which explosively rise right after sexual intercourse, and if the levels reach a certain point, it signals that the body is preparing for pregnancy.

Please, please…!

After checking with trembling hands in the bathroom. Nam-woon defied against all odds and was not pregnant.

It was a relief. Having been tense about the problem all day, he immediately lost strength in his legs and sank down as soon as he saw the result. Was it because I was an omega artificially created by the system, or was it because the knotting started after the heat ended? I didn’t know the exact reason why I failed to get pregnant, but in any case, it was fortunate. As he was sighing in relief, an unpleasant noise rang out.

Ding-!!

[Congratulations! You have achieved two accomplishments.]

[Achievement 1: Role of a Freeloader

Achievement 2: Living in Two Houses]

Upon seeing the status window, Nam-woon yelled out in frustration. 

“Living in two houses? Hey, when did I ever do that! I only live in one house!” 

[You have gained the authority to check the withheld keywords due to the achievements.] 

[Would you like to check the keywords? 

▶ Yes] 

As always, his words were naturally ignored. Nam-woon furrowed his brow and moved his fingers. 

[You have obtained the title ‘Trash’! Experience points have been added.]  

[Trash Experience Points +25] 

Me, trash? Why on earth? 

[There is still room for redemption. However, if you progress further, you will become a ‘Trash Master,’ so be careful!]

“Please just say it in a way I can understand… What’s a trash Master?” 

[In addition, I will now send you the rewards obtained by fulfilling Role Fulfillment Clause 6 and Kwon Seo-oh’s Anger Gauge.]  

[Meeting ID: 6969 8282 6969 

Password: 0000] 

It was supposed to be a reward, but it was full of unfamiliar numbers. There was an ID and password, so it seemed like he had to log in somewhere, but where would I use it?

“You should at least tell me how to use this properly.” 

Ah, I don’t know. The system has been messing with me like this for a while now. Nam-woon collapsed onto the blanket and stared at the sparkling text with a blank expression. 

“Okay, just do whatever you want with it…”  

[Yes, thank you!]  

The system disappeared after saying those words. The house was quiet after even the window disappeared. Nam-woon, who was left alone, looked around the space where he used to live. It was a new feeling.

The building itself was exactly as he remembered, but the inside of the house was very different. There were cute decorations and photos that seemed to be Bong-nam’s taste hanging here and there around the room. It was a stark contrast to the barren landscape of his own home, which had only a blanket, a pillow, and a table. 

As Nam-woon slowly surveyed his surroundings, his eyes suddenly caught a glimpse of a small doll. It was a white dog plush. When he saw it, it naturally triggered faces that came to mind.

I wonder what Seo-oh and Se-han are doing right now.

Suddenly, he remembered Kwon Seo-oh’s panicked face that he had seen the last time. That was the first time he had seen him cry with that expression… He must have been very surprised too. It must have been his first time having a real rut.

Thinking back, Kwon Seo-oh’s crying face seemed a little, no, very beautiful. 

“I let it slide because it was pretty, really…”  

Next time, if we end up knotting or whatever again, I’ll definitely scold him. Nam-woon muttered to himself as he turned over onto his side.

Did our Se-han do well in survival training?

He had put on the sticker Se-han gave him, but he couldn’t find his phone. Because of that, all the photos he had taken of Se-han before leaving were wasted. He had planned to soothe his longing by looking at the photos in the album and the messages exchanged with Seo-oh before catching Chairman Seok and putting him in prison.

“What should I do? It’s only been a day.” 

I miss them already. 

Is the sun setting? The air in the room seemed to have grown a bit chilly, so Nam-woon curled up. Even though he had entered the home he longed for so much, it felt empty beside him. 

Nam-woon barely closed his eyes, trying to erase the exhausting day from his mind.

***

Clatter. Bang. 

“Ugh….” 

Nam-woon squinted his eyes at the noise he heard and stirred awake. Still not completely awake, he furrowed his brows and buried his face in the pillow, but he faintly heard someone’s voice. 

“…Seok.” 

Ah, it’s so noisy….Nam-woon turned to the opposite side, where the voice was coming from. Then, the voice grew louder. 

“Mr. Seok!” 

Startled by the loud voice, Nam-woon opened his heavy eyes. Under the bright fluorescent light, a pair of large eyes was staring down at him. 

“It’s already 12 o’clock. You must be hungry, so I’ve peeled some apples for you, please eat some.” 

“…….”

Nam-woon ruffled his messy hair and sat up. On a small table in one corner of the room, a plate of apples was set out. 

As he sat there dazed from the lingering sleepiness, it suddenly hit him. Ah, this isn’t Seo-oh’s house, it’s Lee Bong-nam’s house. It’s already been almost a week since he came here, and he still hadn’t gotten used to seeing a new face every morning, it felt awkward and unfamiliar.

“An apple in the morning… no, an apple eaten after waking up is good for your health. Hurry up and eat it.”

At Bong-nam’s words, Nam-woon shuffled his way to the table and picked up one of the beautifully sliced apples. He took a bite and the sweet and sour juice filled his mouth.

Somehow, Nam-woon had been properly playing the role of a freeloader at Bong-nam’s house for several days, just as the system had said. Initially, Nam-woon had wanted to repay Bong-nam’s kindness for taking him in by helping with household chores and preparing meals, but Bong-nam strongly protested.

“I’ll do everything. You don’t have to do anything.” 

His dissuasion was unusually firm. As if he had eyes in the back of his head, every time Nam-woon tried to help, he would somehow sense it and stop him, thwarting Nam-woon’s attempts to contribute. However, he couldn’t just suck on his thumb and live off of him.

In the end, on the second day, Nam-woon sat Bong-nam down and spoke seriously. 

“Bong-nam, I’m really bored. Doing nothing makes me feel depressed and lethargic, and I just want to lie down. I don’t even want to eat. It’s become annoying and bothersome to wash, go to the bathroom, or even breathe.” 

“What? Oh, uh… That won’t do….”

“Right. You think this isn’t right either, don’t you?”

Nam-woon asked Bong-nam, who was flustered and didn’t know what to do, to bring him a toolbox because he was so bored that he had to do some work. Bong-nam, who had been hesitant, gave him the toolbox with a worried face, and from that day on, Nam-woon started to work hard on the house.