DHG Ch 11

“All checked?”

Won Madam asked, sipping the juice Heewoo had brought.

“So, what’s the real reason? You only act like this when you want a favor.”

Won Madam shook the half-drunk fruit juice.

“I’m planning to move rooms.”

Heewoo said, having verified the debt records were in order.

Lately, he’d been even more cautious. The memory of encountering Kim Jinhwan in person had made him extremely wary. Even as a kid, he’d always buckled his seatbelt in cars. Truth be told, he was naturally timid. That tendency had intensified after meeting Kim Jinhwan.

It was only natural he’d avoid the room Kim Jinhwan had occupied.

“Which room number?”

Madam asked, tucking away the tablet with debt records. With recent staff adjustments, vacant rooms were plentiful. Won Madam casually handed over a card key.

The new room was nearly identical in size and layout to the previous one. The former occupant had mixed bulbs meant for the lounge, so the two fluorescent lights gave off slightly different hues, but it wasn’t bothersome.

Heewoo diligently moved his belongings, despite his injured hand. Since he was hiding from Kim Jinhwan, he planned to focus on studying. With six months until the next qualification exam in April, he intended to prioritize college entrance exam prep.

Maybe next year, he could take the exam.

If they let him go to the hospital, they probably wouldn’t stop him from going to a test center. A faint smile appeared on Heewoo’s lips as he meticulously cleaned the floor and bathroom with one arm. His heart swelled as he carefully arranged the new space.

After that, uneventful days followed.

Jang Seungyung, who hadn’t shown his face, suddenly started frequenting Benny’s for some reason, but it had nothing to do with Heewoo.

He simply noted the route from the underground parking entrance to the boss’s office. It was to avoid accidentally running into Jang Seungyung. Even now, just thinking of him made Heewoo’s chest ache, as if it had been forcibly gripped.

He stuck to the stairs, avoiding the elevator entirely. He ate in his room. By being cautious in every way, Heewoo maintained the most peaceful routine he’d had since graduating middle school.

But when the boss himself summoned him, there was no way to avoid it.

“…The boss?”

On an early October afternoon, with slanted sunlight streaming in, Heewoo looked awkwardly at Mingun, who had come to fetch him.

“Yeah, I definitely passed on the message.”

Mingun emphasized to the hesitant Heewoo.

Heewoo’s heart began to pound. The scar on his palm had nearly healed, but was there some lingering trauma in his mind? Blaming the rapid heartbeat on bad memories, he was about to leave the kitchen when—

“Heewoo.”

Mingun’s call stopped him in his tracks.

“Still not feeling great?”

“About what?”

“The pheromone shower.”

During his second hospital visit, the doctor had asked if he was getting pheromone showers. They were as essential for normalizing pheromones as taking medication.

An alpha had accompanied Heewoo that day. He’d noticed the doctor’s urging glance toward Mingun. On the way back, it was natural for Mingun to bring up the pheromone shower.

“Think it over. It’s really no big deal.”

Mingun said casually, stepping back. Glancing at his retreating figure, Heewoo reluctantly moved forward.

The boss’s office was on the third floor. Climbing the staff stairs as usual, Heewoo raised an eyebrow at a noise. The clamor grew louder as he reached the third floor. It sounded like something solid being cut—a deafening roar that seemed to shake the building’s walls, coming from the boss’s office.

What’s going on?

The double doors at the end of the long hallway were wide open. Approaching hesitantly, Heewoo met the gaze of Jang Seungyung’s secretary standing by the door’s edge.

Secretary Hwang. The man who’d taken Heewoo’s necklace from Jang Seungyung on the day of the attack. He was also there the last time Heewoo saw the twins.

“Come in,” Secretary Hwang said.

Bowing slightly, Heewoo stepped inside and faced the source of the noise.

In the deepest part of the office, where the safe had been, the space was now empty. The thick chains anchoring the safe to the floor had been cut. Workers were struggling to load the massive safe, weighing dozens of kilos, onto an industrial cart. In short, they were removing Kim Jinhwan’s safe.

“Take it away.”

Jang Seungyung, lounging on a nearby couch, issued the command.

The workers left with the rattling cart. Secretary Hwang followed to guide them, leaving only Jang Seungyung and Heewoo in the office.

Silence settled in the wake of the noise.

Then, the man stretched, rising with his surprisingly large, lanky frame. Suddenly, he strode toward Heewoo with unnerving precision. Heewoo nearly stepped back but managed a quick bow.

“Hm.”

Jang Seungyung, standing close to the reserved boy, scanned him from head to toe.

Did he trade the clothes I gave him for candy? He was dressed in similar worn, oversized clothes. Thick fabric that wouldn’t reveal the flush of his skin. The only change was short sleeves swapped for long ones.

So, he switched from summer to spring-autumn wear?

Well, even in rags, he still looked delicate. Jang Seungyung’s gaze lingered on the soft curve of Heewoo’s nose and lips. As he’d thought before, it was a face that invited touch.

“Wanna see what’s inside?”

Jang Seungyung grumbled, hunched slightly, his eyes fixed on Heewoo’s tightly closed lips. Leaning in until their faces nearly touched, he saw Heewoo flinch as their noses brushed.

Before he could savor the faintly sweet breath, Heewoo stepped back. Jang Seungyung, with a mocking grin, swiftly cornered him against the wall.

Heewoo’s pink lips tensed as he was trapped between Jang Seungyung’s body and the wall. Unlike his earlier indifference, he now looked nervous.

“What? I said I wanna see what’s inside.”

“…”

“The safe, I mean.”

Jang Seungyung chuckled, flicking Heewoo’s nose with his finger. Heewoo’s shoulders twitched, his head pressed against the wall.

As abruptly as he’d approached, Jang Seungyung stepped back. His gaze lingered regretfully on Heewoo’s face but moved on without hesitation.

He’d called Heewoo just to see his face. For now, he had to deal with the freshly extracted safe.

As he sauntered off to handle the tedious task—

“Give me back my necklace.”

For the first time in the room, Heewoo spoke.

Disappointingly, his voice was dry. Jang Seungyung had expected a tearful tone like before. Raising an eyebrow, he turned his head.

The beta boy still kept his eyes glued to the floor. The angle of the light made his skin look impossibly soft and fragile, as if it would easily bruise.

Jang Seungyung let out a short whistle, but Heewoo’s gaze didn’t budge. Hands in his pockets, he tilted his head to study the doll-like face, then asked in a deliberately polite tone:

“Pardon me, but what necklace?”

The playful formality was almost mocking.

“…The necklace. The one you took. You called it collateral.”

Heewoo replied. Jang Seungyung’s brow furrowed as he recalled the day he took over the establishment, yanking the necklace from that slender neck. Right, I kept it.

He had no intention of returning it but was tracing its whereabouts when Secretary Hwang returned.

“Director, we’re ready to leave.”

Jang Seungyung left without a reply. As the people and equipment cleared out, Heewoo was left alone in the noisy, empty space.

“…”

Heewoo clasped his trembling hands tightly.

Trying to steady his rattled mind, as if the cutting noise had torn through it, he kept his senses sharp toward the open door. Only after confirming the man wasn’t returning did he let out a short sigh.

Relief aside, he was a bit confused. Being summoned out of the blue, intimidated, and stared at uncomfortably—was that all?

He couldn’t have called me just to see my face… Why did he summon me?

Staring at the empty spot where the safe had been, like a pulled tooth, Heewoo turned his gaze to the window. The sky was dark, as if rain was coming.