MM Side story 19

The problem was the team members who spent long hours in close quarters. Fortunately, Yu-young’s morning sickness was mild during the day but worse at night, so up until now, no one had discovered that Yu-young was pregnant. However, with his belly growing more noticeable, he felt it was becoming harder to hide. After much contemplation, Yu-young discussed with Do-won whether he should reveal the pregnancy.

There was no other option. Thankfully, the morning sickness was gradually subsiding, but his belly would only continue to grow. Although it had only been a few months, Yu-young wanted to maintain his position without gaps, even after the baby was born. After talking it over with Do-won, Yu-young casually mentioned to the team that he was pregnant with the child of someone he was dating and would be living together. Naturally, chaos erupted in the office.

“Oh my God, oh my God! Yu-young, you’re pregnant?! What do we do? Am I going to be an aunt?! Congratulations, congratulations!”

Ju-yeon, who looked like her eyes were about to pop out, jumped up and down in excitement, congratulating him.

“Really, congratulations, Assistant Han!”

“Thank you.”

Yoon-seok, who was standing next to him, also offered his congratulations. Recently, he had developed a relationship with someone he had been introduced to, and now, it seemed that his heart was much more at ease. This was something Yu-young was genuinely happy about.

All the team members congratulated Yu-young. Even Deputy Manager Kim, who used to criticize Yu-young, patted his shoulder with a bright smile. Though a bit embarrassed, Yu-young felt a strange joy after receiving all the congratulations.

“But, Yu-young, are you really not going to show us who the father is? Can we at least see a picture? I’m so curious!”

“Well… actually, I’m in a workplace relationship, so I’ll reveal it later.”

This caused another uproar in the office. Yu-young hadn’t wanted to attract too much attention, but there was no reason not to show a photo since it wasn’t someone from the same company. Naturally, Ju-yeon covered her mouth and screamed in shock.

“What? Who is it? Could it be someone from our team?!”

“No way… Haha, he’s from another team.”

“Which team?”

“That’s a bit too specific… I’ll tell you later. Later.”

Yu-young tried to deflect the question casually, but the curious gazes were still fixed on him, not letting up. He could feel the cold sweat running down his back. Just as he was awkwardly trying to wave them off, a deep voice came from behind.

“Why is it so noisy over here?”

“Oh, Team Leader.”

“Since it’s a workplace relationship, it would be difficult to disclose it, don’t you think? Let’s not make Yu-young too uncomfortable, and let’s focus on our work.”

Thanks to Do-won’s calm yet firm intervention, the situation settled down. Yu-young sighed inwardly, relieved to have passed this hurdle.

It was another close call. While Yu-young didn’t feel comfortable deceiving his team members, he thought it would be best to delay revealing his relationship with the team leader as long as possible.

“Ugh, I’m so bored.”

“Let’s finish up and go home, okay?”

It was the week when late-night work began. Yu-young’s team, the business planning team, was mainly responsible for reviewing and revising the plans made each quarter against the actual results gathered from the field.

The team members were all busy preparing reports for Do-won or organizing the interview notes from fieldwork. After quickly having sandwiches for dinner, they focused on their tasks in order to leave early.

‘I’m so tired…’

Yu-young also stared at the keyboard with bleary eyes. It was getting harder to sit still as his belly began to show. This was one of the symptoms of pregnancy. His back hurt, and his hips ached as he shifted uncomfortably, but nothing seemed to help.

‘I wish I could just lie down in Do-won’s office, buried in his clothes and fall asleep…’

That thought often crossed Yu-young’s mind while working. The doctor had already warned that the pregnancy would make him crave more of an alpha’s pheromones as time went on, but today, it felt especially urgent. He needed Do-won, missed him intensely. He wanted to hold him, bury his nose in his beautifully sculpted shoulders and belly, playfully bite him, and drift off to sleep in his arms.

‘What am I thinking…’

As Yu-young flushed, he quickly lowered his head. However, once the thought entered his mind, it kept haunting him.

In the darkness, Do-won’s face, looking down at him with a heated expression, seemed to flash in his mind. Every time he tried to suppress the growing desire, the muscles in his body tensed even more beautifully. The hands that touched him conveyed his raw, unmasked desire…

It was all Do-won’s fault. Yu-young, who had started to squirm uncontrollably, glared at the closed office door. Unlike before, when Do-won used to hold him often, lately, he was showing extreme restraint.

However, the more Do-won controlled himself, the more Yu-young’s patience wore thin. The doctor had said pregnancy increased desire, and that’s exactly how Yu-young felt. Although he understood why Do-won was doing this, he found himself desperately wanting everything about him.

‘Focus, everyone else is working. What am I doing…’

Yu-young snapped out of his daydream and sat up straight. But his posture, which had been stable for so long, kept faltering. He was exhausted and wanted to rest, or at least stretch and walk around the office a bit.

At that moment, Do-won called out from the team leader’s office in a nonchalant tone.

“Assistant Han, come in for a moment.”

“Yes? Yes.”

Startled, Yu-young quickly stood up from his seat. A bit of movement made him feel better. He knew that regular stretching and walking would help his body feel more comfortable, but it had felt awkward to do so in the midst of his focused team members, so he had forced himself to sit still.

As soon as the door to the team leader’s office closed behind him, a pleasant pheromone scent immediately filled the air. Just that alone seemed to ease some of the fatigue in his body.

“Assistant Han.”

“Yes.”

“Come closer.”

Yu-young, still puzzled, walked toward Do-won’s desk. Do-won spoke quietly.

“…You should go home for the day and rest.”

“It’s fine.”

Yu-young rejected the suggestion outright. Do-won sighed deeply.

“Pregnant employees are legally prohibited from working overtime. Don’t break the law.”

“I’m doing this voluntarily.”

“Then, as your spouse, I’ll ask you. I don’t want to make you suffer.”

“I know. But… everyone is working hard, and I don’t want to be the only one slacking off.”

Do-won’s earnest tone and Yu-young’s stubborn refusal clashed. Do-won’s gaze, which had been tracing Yu-young’s face, eventually dropped to the floor. With a small sigh, he spoke again.

“…Alright. If that’s your decision. But, in that case, work in my office today.”

“…Yes.”

“Not at the table. Work on the sofa here. If you get tired, lie down.”

“It’s fine.”

Yu-young willingly accepted the materials Do-won handed him, understanding that Do-won wanted to make him as comfortable as possible in his own space. He didn’t want to be stubborn anymore. Sitting quietly on the sofa, Yu-young began reading the materials. Do-won looked at him with a concerned expression before slowly shifting his gaze.

About an hour later, Do-won stood up from his chair.

“I’m going to step out to visit the business department. Stay comfortable here. Don’t leave.”

“Yes.”

Yu-young answered briefly while focused on checking the materials. A warm hand suddenly brushed his cheek. He looked up and watched Do-won’s figure as he walked out, closing the door behind him. Yu-young took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart, and then refocused on the materials.

He slowly got up from his seat and stretched several times. He walked around the team leader’s office a few times, feeling at ease using a separate space from the others. Sitting on the sofa had started to feel boring, so he put the materials on the table.

Just then, there was a knock on the door, followed by it opening.

“Oh, Ju-yeon, Yoon-seok.”

“Team leader told us to finish up and go home. Let’s leave together, Yu-young.”

Ju-yeon cheerfully spoke, and behind her, the other team members could be seen hurriedly packing up their things. Yu-young awkwardly pointed at the materials on the table.

“Ah… I’ll just finish reviewing this. I’m almost done.”

“Is it really okay for a pregnant person to stay this late? It must be hard… The team leader is so unreasonable, making you work more.”

“No, it’s fine… I’ll be leaving soon. Thank you for your hard work!”

“Assistant Han, just a little longer and then you can rest.”

After seeing the team members off, Yu-young returned to the office and sat down on the sofa again. With everyone gone, his body and mind finally relaxed.

‘I’ve almost finished my work too. I should leave as soon as the team leader comes back.’

He blinked his eyes a few times, trying to stay awake. But he quickly closed the door to the team leader’s office, feeling an aversion to the pheromones leaking out. Once he became aware of Do-won’s pheromones, he couldn’t shake the desperate desire for more of his scent. He needed Do-won’s presence more intensely now.

‘Why is this happening all of a sudden…’

His heartbeat started to quicken, and the sleepiness he had been fighting off completely vanished. His heart thumped erratically, and feeling restless, Yu-young wandered around the office, unable to settle down.

He missed Do-won’s arms so much that it felt like he could cry. The pregnancy was indeed making him crave an alpha’s pheromones more intensely than he had ever experienced. It felt like a shock, as if he needed to drown in Do-won’s scent, consumed by it.