DS 23

How much had he screamed for his throat to be this sore and rough… Yet, the man made him finish every grain of rice, without an ounce of mercy.

“If your ass loses weight, where am I supposed to slap and thrust into?”

How could every single word he uttered feel like needles piercing his temples? Eun-myeong was thoroughly intimidated. With no choice, he forced himself to empty the whole bowl. Eun-myeong glumly mixed his rice into the meat soup containing sliced radish. He scooped it up with the golden spoon decorated with ginseng patterns. Though it was tasty, somehow his stomach felt queasy. Worried about digestion, he made sure to eat kimchi with it.

Meanwhile, the man who had finished his meal quickly began grooming himself in the dressing room.

“…”

He seemed particularly happy today. Wearing only black trousers, he even hummed while dressing himself in a gray shirt. He raised the collar to tie a black silk tie, making a perfect knot. After inserting a tie pin with a round red decoration, he adjusted his tie again with sharp pats. Then he approached the sofa. He held documents in one hand. When he placed them on the table, Eun-myeong’s eyes naturally turned toward them.

“Read this and sign here.”

Eun-myeong lowered his eyes to the contract documents. The paper was white while the texts were black. But to Eun-myeong, the black text was so densely packed like an army of ants gathering around sweet candy.

“What is this?”

Eun-myeong asked dully. The man crossed his legs and answered slowly. His suit pants stretched tautly, screaming with tension.

“Since I took over the sushi restaurant owner’s debt, we need to write up a new contract.”

Ah, Eun-myeong let out a small sigh.

“You said you’d pay back the money since you were the one who did the crab thing, right?”

The man questioned back with his expression asking, “Am I wrong?” His glaring eyes were authoritative, and his tone, as usual, showed absolutely no consideration for others. He was a man far too accustomed to looking down on others. Fearing the man might take back his words, Eun-myeong quickly nodded.

“Yes, that’s right.”

After muttering quietly, he put his pen to his name written next to “Party B.” Immediately, an irritated sigh flowed from the man beside him. With a thwack, he knocked Eun-myeong’s pen away with the back of his hand.

“I told you to read it before signing, didn’t I?”

Those merciless eyes turned to Eun-myeong.

“What if some pervert wrote in here that they’d keep going until you’re pregnant with five kids?”

His tone was chilling.

“…Ah.”

Eun-myeong couldn’t form a response. He just rolled his eyes around. However, aside from the overwhelming number of characters that made his eyes strain, the contract was full of words Eun-myeong didn’t know. Yet he knew what shame was and couldn’t honestly admit his ignorance. These might have been words that even a high school graduate would know.

“Hm?”

As Eun-myeong kept his mouth shut like a clam, the man buried his head against his shoulder and asked again leisurely. One eyebrow shot up sharply. As usual, there was an ambiguous smile on his lips, but Eun-myeong knew that it was no longer just a smile. The smile was closer to the silver necklace always around the man’s neck, the flashy pin stuck in his tie, and the suit he wore. It was nothing more than a tool for his decoration. He rather seemed displeased.

“…Yes.”

Not wanting to irritate him unnecessarily, Eun-myeong nodded slightly. Even if he read it, he wouldn’t understand what it meant anyway, and even if he did understand, he couldn’t refuse. Besides, Eun-myeong already had hundreds of millions in debt. A little more on top wouldn’t make a difference.

“But if I become an Omega…”

Eun-myeong’s face fell gloomily. While he never expected his life to see sunshine, he hadn’t expected it to grow even darker.

“I’ll be sold, won’t I?”

For a moment, an evil energy filled the hotel room.

“…”

“…”

After a moment, there was a drawn-out creaking sound. The man had sunk deeply into the leather sofa. He crossed his legs with a snap. He took out a new pack of cigarettes from his chest, tore it open with his teeth, and spat out the wrapper. Eun-myeong flinched at the crude behavior.

The man peeled off the plastic wrap and pulled out a cigarette with his mouth. When he scraped the wheel of his alligator Zippo lighter, a blue flame burst forth. He lit the cigarette while severely furrowing his right eyebrow. The sharp line below his cheekbone hollowed deeply. Then he carelessly tossed the lighter onto the table. He exhaled smoke halfheartedly.

“Damn it, why does this taste so fucking awful. Are these bastards running a charity?”

He spewed vulgar curses with an insensitive face. The cigarette was clenched so tightly between his teeth that it looked like it might snap in half at any moment.

“So- I mean, Sir…”

Did he not hear the question that awaited an answer…? His eyes whipped around.

“What?”

Eun-myeong felt intimidated by those wild eyes. He fidgeted with the belt of his robe. He felt he needed to hold onto something for stability.

“Yesterday you said there was a way to turn Betas into Omegas…”

Gulp, he swallowed hard. His voice came out terribly strained.

“So if I become an Omega, I’ll be sold, right?”

Whether it was the orphanage director or the sushi restaurant owner, they all said the same thing whenever they opened their mouths. That they would have sold him for a high price if he were an Omega, that it was such a shame Eun-myeong wasn’t worth much. But yesterday, the man clearly…

‘Even if you’re a Beta, there’s a way to knead you into an Omega.’

That’s what he had said. Like someone who knew how to turn him into an Omega. Only then did all of the man’s actions start making sense. Ah, so that’s it. That’s why he took someone as useless and worthless as me, the thought occurred to him.

“Ah, that.”

He exhaled with a sneer. Looking at him again, he still appeared so perfect. In contrast, Eun-myeong felt like he looked shabby, wearing just a robe. Moreover, the thighs visible through the gaps in his robe were marked with reddish handprints. He felt mortifyingly embarrassed.

“That’s unknown, since we don’t know if you’ll actually become an Omega or not.”

The words that came out held no emotion. Rather, they were cold and excessively heartless. It was hard to believe this was the same man who had breathed roughly against his nape last night.

Right, this is how it should be. After all, that’s why we mi-mixed bodies…. Though an inexplicably miserable feeling swept over Eun-myeong, he consoled himself that it was fine anyway.

“You just need to squeeze tight and cum well. That’s how this mister makes his money, too.”

His clumsy middle finger tapped the contract repeatedly.

“When the time comes, I’ll find you a sugar daddy myself. Someone who’ll pay good money.”

“Yes,” he nodded quietly. Eun-myeong’s steady gaze was drawn to the contract. He slowly took in its contents.

One sheet of paper filled with mostly incomprehensible words. At the very end was almost the only word Eun-myeong could understand.

[Debtor Party B, Lee Eun-myeong.]

And right above it was Party A’s name. This must be this man’s name…? He quietly rolled the three syllables of the name he was learning for the first time on his tongue.

Kang… Pyeong… Won…

* * *

The man in the suit left the hotel room. Who knows where he was going, but Bear came to escort him, carrying an apple box under his arm.

Behind the two large figures, the door closed with a thud.

In the room the man had left, Eun-myeong quietly crawled into bed. When he pressed his cheek against the soft pillow, his reddish cheeks crumpled like a bitten steamed bun. He pulled the thick blanket up over his nostrils. His once-white nose had already become reddish and chafed. It stung terribly from how much the man had sucked on it with his mouth.

“…Ugh.”

Eun-myeong clutched his lower abdomen. His insides cramped like lightning strikes. His thin back naturally curved like a shrimp’s.

Of all times, it had to be after eating. The man had said he wouldn’t return his lower half if he left even a single grain of rice, so Eun-myeong had been forced to stuff the food into his mouth. Because of that, his lower stomach felt even more chaotic. It felt like a stone was inside, bumping and crashing around.

Suddenly, silence enveloped his body. Even though he was in pain, there was no one he could seek comfort from. Eun-myeong confronted the emotion creeping into his chest. His stomach felt empty, and his ribs felt as if they were full of holes.

…Was this loneliness?

It was such a strange thing. Being alone while sick wasn’t anything new… His body was a complete mess, and his backside still ached numbingly as if the man was still thrusting into him. Lying alone in bed like this, he felt as if he had been dropped from somewhere, abandoned in this world.

Eun-myeong bunched up the blanket and stuffed a handful into his mouth. He intended to just fall asleep. Because when he slept, he could turn his back on loneliness, even if just a little.