VDN Ch 154

I haven’t contacted the Good People Center for a while. On the day I arrived at Bong-nam’s house, I tried calling several times, but no one answered. After that, for some reason, I had a feeling that Kwon Seo-oh would be lingering around the office, so I held back from calling. But now it was about time to get in touch.

Bong-nam, who had been quietly listening to Nam-woon, suddenly asked rudely,

“If you haven’t decided where to go yet, can’t you stay a bit longer?”

Bong-nam quickly continued,

“I think it’s better for you to stay somewhere familiar rather than move to somewhere new. And since I know your situation, I can take care of you.”

Though his tone was blunt, the content was affectionate. A chuckle escaped Nam-woon’s lips. I guess I’ll have to pay him well for the room.

“That’s okay. I appreciate you taking care of me this much..”

“……”

Bong-nam didn’t say anything more, just eating his meal, I wondered what he was thinking. For a while, the only sound in the room was the sound of dishes. Then Bong-nam muttered quietly.

“I heard alpha perfume is really expensive…”

“Uh?”

When Nam-woon asked back in surprise, Bong-nam lowered his gaze. He stirred the rice with his chopsticks and moved his mouth again.

“I saw the post-it note earlier. You’re planning to go to a perfume shop, right? To buy alpha perfume.”

How did he figure that out with such terrible handwriting? Nam-woon, who had been sweating nervously, nodded. Bong-nam didn’t know about things like trait-changing drugs, he was simply someone who knew the original Seok Nam-woon well. The original Seok Nam-woon was someone who wanted to be an alpha, yet he cursed them. It was clear that Bong-nam was misunderstanding that Nam-woon was buying perfume to pretend to be an alpha.

“I’m thinking of trying it out myself.”

“I heard it’s super expensive.”

“I’ve met the owner there once. I should ask for a discount.”

Nam-woon replied shamelessly. Upon that, Bong-nam made a face that seemed upset. 

“I understand. In your current situation, Mr. Seok, that kind of method might be necessary.”

“Uh, well. really?”

Bong-nam, seeing Nam-woon’s confused expression, swallowed a sigh that was about to escape his lips once again.

Pregnant omegas need the pheromones of their alpha partner. The alpha instinctively marks or showers their pheromones to protect their lineage with the omega. However, there are omegas that do not smell like their alpha despite being pregnant. These are omegas that are in the same situation as Nam-woon’s.

Those without partners are sometimes criticized by some conservative elders and are sometimes exposed to crimes that target omegas. I heard that many omegas these days buy and spray alpha perfume because of these incidents. Nam-woon must be looking for this perfume for that reason too.

Bong-nam hesitated for a long time, biting his lip before finally broaching the main topic.

“I’m curious about something. What kind of person is your lover?”

“Lover?”

Nam-woon gave an awkward expression at Bong-nam’s question. 

“I don’t have a lover?”

“What? But you took a pregnancy test back then!”

Bong-nam exclaimed in surprise, and Nam-woon scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment.

“That just happened by chance…”

Bong-nam looked stunned.

Crazy. You’re saying he wasn’t even your lover. What the hell were you thinking, being intimate with someone who wasn’t even your lover? Could it be that the man just wanted to have an offspring?

“So, you’re saying there’s no relationship between you and that person? Didn’t he never confess to you or anything?”

“Well? Uh…”

When Nam-woon answered vaguely, Bong-nam asked again.

“Then what would you do if that person wanted to see you again?”

“What?”

“If that guy wants to meet you, are you going to meet him? Even though that guy did something like knotting…?”

Bong-nam listened closely for Nam-woon’s next words. He expected him to say that he absolutely didn’t want to see that bastard and that he would never go back to that guy again.

However, Nam-woon’s response was completely different from what he expected. 

“I probably wouldn’t go see him.”

“…Right?” 

Bong-nam let out a sigh of relief at Nam-woon’s words. But then, with what Nam-woon said next, Bong-nam had to crumple his face in frustration. 

“But honestly, I do… kinda want to go see him.”

“What?” 

Bong-nam glared at Nam-woon with a look as if he had bitten into something unpleasant.

“Mr. Seok, how can you want to see someone like that? You’re here at my house right now, avoiding that person!”

“That’s true… but I just can’t help but worry.”

Nam-woon’s face looked embarrassed, but he was more serious than ever. “Huh…” Bong-nam dropped his chopsticks and let out a gasp. It suddenly dawned on him that Seok Nam-woon was a fool!

“What exactly is it about that jerk that has you worried?”

“Just everything?”

He then added,

“I’m curious about what he’s doing, what he’s eating… This is the first time I’ve ever said something like this, but I wasn’t supposed to even meet him in the first place. It’s really a miracle that we met like this. Maybe that’s why I keep thinking about him, no matter what I’m doing.”

“Mr. Seok, you really…”

Bong-nam called out to Nam-woon with a bewildered expression. Nam-woon averted his gaze, looking a bit sheepish, as if he realized he had said something embarrassing. Even after going through such an experience, he still hadn’t gotten over him.

What am I supposed to do with this fool? Bong-nam grumbled to himself and picked up his chopsticks again. Then, in a firm voice, he placed a piece of spam on Nam-woon’s spoon. 

“Mr. Seok, eat well and keep your strength up. From now on, I’ll take care of everything, so you just focus on your health and don’t worry about anything. I know how to handle people.”

Nam-woon nodded and stuffed the rice and side dishes that Bong-nam offered him into his mouth, mumbling,

“It tastes better because you gave it to me.”

Nam-woon laughed heartlessly. A thousand fires set in Bong-nam’s heart at that sight. Bong-nam couldn’t swallow his food after that and he gulped down cold water.

Unrequited love makes a person submissive. The moment that bastard approaches someone as foolish as Seok Nam-woon, it’s very likely that he will be dragged along without much resistance. It was clear that he had to meet that guy first. If that man had a terrible character, then he could prevent Seok Nam-woon from meeting him.

I will protect Seok Nam-woon and Hope. With that determination, Bong-nam eagerly moved side dishes to Nam-woon’s spoon.

***

Seo-oh finished his routine of looking for Nam-woon today and returned home to prepare for work.

He changed into the uniform for the perfume shop and checked his appearance. Then, he grabbed his wallet and phone to head out when the front gate swung open with a loud noise. Soon, Se-han came running into the yard and looked at Seo-oh’s outfit, asking,

“Hyung, are you going to your part-time job?”

“Yeah. Se-han, I made stir-fried sausages today, so if you get hungry, eat that with some rice. But don’t just eat the sausages. Make sure to eat the vegetables too.”

“Okay. Hyung, but didn’t anyone call you today?”

“No calls came in. Why do you keep asking that?”

Se-han made a sullen expression at Seo-oh’s question and trailed off, saying, “It’s nothing…” Seo-oh looked at his younger brother’s bulging cheeks with a worried expression. Se-han, who had been fiddling with his fingers, suddenly seemed to recall something and exclaimed, pulling out a small piece of paper from his pocket.

“Hyung, this.”

When Seo-oh received the crumpled paper and tried to unfold it, Se-han screamed,

“Ahh, you can’t look at it, Hyung! Just give it to Wooni when you see him. Tell him I gave it to you.”

“What is it?”

“… I wrote a letter because I wanted to talk to Wooni alone. So you can’t look at it, okay? I’ll write you a letter next time too, so don’t feel left out.”

“Okay. I got it.”

Seo-oh replied with a light smile. Se-han had been asking him frequently for the past few days if he had received a phone call, it sounded as if he was hinting that Nam-woon would contact him soon, which made his heart race. Se-han must be missing Nam-woon Hyung a lot too…

Seo-oh affectionately patted Se-han’s round head and went out the front door. As he went out onto the main street, he felt the glances of passersby. It was especially worse when he was commuting to and from work in his perfume shop uniform. Seo-oh crossed the traffic light, ignoring the gaze of the man looking at him from the side.

When he arrived at the bus stop, his phone rang. It was an unknown number. Could it be…? Seo-oh hurriedly pressed the call button.

“Hello?”

“……”

“……”

There was a long silence from the other end. Just as Seo-oh was about to speak first.

– Is this Kwon Seo-oh?

It was a voice he had never heard before. It wasn’t the voice he had been hoping for. Seo-oh relaxed his shoulders and silently waited for the other person to speak. Soon, the unfamiliar voice continued.

– You’re looking for Mr. Seok, no Seok Nam-woon, right? 

“Who are you?”

Seo-oh’s eyes widened at the familiar name coming from a stranger.

***

Bong-nam bit his nails while glancing at the café entrance. Soon, Seok Nam-woon’s lover… no, his cohabiting partner would arrive here. The voice that came through the receiver was very low and full of intimidation.

Perhaps Seok Nam-woon had fallen for him solely based on his voice. A man strong enough to overpower Seok Nam-woon, would have a face as large as a mountain and a face that looked as sturdy as rock. Bong-nam couldn’t even think of the appearance of the child who came to the convenience store and instead imagined the man’s face.

Even if his body is covered with dragons and tigers, don’t be intimidated. Check what kind of person he is. If it turns out he’s not the one, just say you had Nam-woon with you for a while but don’t know where he went afterward. Yes, that should be enough.

As Bong-nam was mentally preparing himself with his head down on the table, he saw the hem of pants made out of high-quality fabric. Bong-nam slowly raised his head.

“……!”

A man so tall that he couldn’t see everything at a glance was standing in front of him. Bong-nam finally managed to see the other person’s face after raising his head for a long time. Smooth skin without a single blemish and perfectly spaced facial features that he himself wouldn’t have unless he spent hundreds of millions of won on dermatology and plastic surgery. It was a handsome and pretty face. Only then did the child’s words come to his mind.

“My brother? He’s really cool!”

They say children are honest. It was exactly as the boy said. The man had a flashy appearance. Bong-nam also thought to himself, ‘Well, I’m not lacking in looks either.’ and declared a mental victory. However, the man had a charm that no man could dare to imitate.