#21
“You came just in time. Do something. He’s about to stop breathing.”
Kang Ye-ryeong urged Hyun-oh, who couldn’t take his eyes off Eunsol. How Hyun-oh had found this place wasn’t important right now. Eunsol’s eyes were about to close weakly.
Even if they called an ambulance, anxiety swept over her that Eunsol might be in danger before the paramedics arrived. That anxiety quickly spread to Hyun-oh as well.
Hyun-oh immediately went to Eunsol and let him lean against his chest. Then he cupped his hands around Eunsol’s nose and mouth.
“Mr. Lee Eunsol. Breathe slowly.”
“Ugh… Mr. Hyun-oh…”
“Yes. I’m here. It’s not difficult. Just focus on breathing, even if you have to do it consciously.”
Eunsol desperately clutched the cuff of Hyun-oh’s sleeve. The smooth fabric became completely crumpled in his pale hands. Like a young bird placed before a natural predator that finally found a safe nest, Eunsol burrowed into the broad chest.
Hyun-oh calmly helped Eunsol breathe. Tear-filled eyes wandered over Hyun-oh’s face in disbelief, like a lost child.
“Hoo, hoo, hoo…”
Eunsol tried to breathe as Hyun-oh instructed. His constricted breathing was returning to normal the moment he sensed Hyun-oh’s body scent and faint pheromones.
Hyun-oh didn’t rush Eunsol. He just looked down at him, waiting for his breathing to return.
Finally, when Eunsol’s breathing returned to normal, Hyun-oh took off his suit jacket and covered the frail body.
“Excuse me, hello. We’ve met once before at the Jusan Construction party. Do you remember?”
Kang Ye-ryeong exhaled sharply and swept back her hair. As soon as Hyun-oh stood up carrying Eunsol, Lee Joo-young approached him. Goosebumps rose on her neck as she saw Joo-young speaking with a smile on his face.
Even when she gave him an incredulous look with her arms crossed, Joo-young’s gaze remained fixed on Hyun-oh.
Ye-ryeong clicked her tongue at the brightly shining eyes. She never expected to feel annoyed rather than pleased about having such a handsome son.
Even though Eunsol’s breathing had returned to normal, it would be good to have him examined by a doctor after such a shock. Just as Ye-ryeong was gathering her breath to begin round two, Hyun-oh spoke.
“Did you threaten my husband?”
Hyun-oh’s gaze hardened as he felt trembling from Eunsol’s chest. The moment Joo-young’s voice rang through the room, Eunsol reacted.
He knew that Eunsol’s relationship with his family wasn’t good. But he didn’t know that he was this afraid of his stepbrother and stepmother.
Though Hyun-oh didn’t show it, he was quite shocked by Eunsol’s condition when he first entered.
Eunsol was someone who became greatly intimidated even by small things Hyun-oh said or did. That’s why Hyun-oh was careful with his words and actions around Eunsol, not wanting to startle him. He treated him with such consideration. He couldn’t possibly like whoever had pressured Eunsol to the point of hyperventilation.
“No. My mother and I were just greeting Eunsol since we haven’t seen him in a long time. As you know, Mr. Hyun-oh, Eunsol tends to overreact to minor things.”
Joo-young’s tone was filled with certainty, as if he knew exactly what Hyun-oh was thinking.
Ye-ryeong, who had been watching to see what Hyun-oh might do, frowned fiercely. A scoffing laugh escaped her at the thought that her son might actually fall for such nonsense.
Her lack of trust in Hyun-oh stemmed from his behavior early in their marriage when he left for a long business trip to America.
She could understand that work was more important than family life, but she had been secretly seething after watching Eunsol grow thinner by the day in his absence.
She was about to tell him off for hesitating instead of shutting that vicious mouth immediately.
“Hnngh…”
“What is this…”
Wow. Ye-ryeong let out a small exclamation that didn’t fit the situation.
She never expected to experience her grown son’s pheromones so intensely. Hyun-oh, who was exceptionally skilled at controlling his pheromones, rarely released them in front of others.
That was true even in front of his birth mother. In fact, though she had the title of birth mother, their relationship was worse than that of strangers. Ye-ryeong knew well that she meant less to Hyun-oh than Kim Myungjun did.
Yet now, Hyun-oh, who was usually so obsessive about his pheromones, was releasing them ferociously enough to make Joo-young’s knees buckle.
The impact of the pheromones reached Yoo Hye-jin as well. Mother and son collapsed to the floor almost simultaneously.
“Mr. Hyun-oh…”
Joo-young looked up at Hyun-oh with bloodshot eyes from the shock. He felt like he was suffocating from the alpha’s pheromones.
Like Eunsol who had hyperventilated earlier, Joo-young couldn’t breathe properly. His gasping face contorted precariously as if he might pass out at any moment.
“I don’t believe I ever gave you permission to call me by my name.”
Despite the two of them writhing like insects on the floor, Hyun-oh’s face remained expressionless. Ye-ryeong quietly whistled to herself.
Hyun-oh was directing his pheromones specifically at the two of them, so she wasn’t directly affected.
Even so, the pheromones were becoming dense enough to fill the sealed space with no open windows, making it equally hard to breathe.
Though instinct screamed at her to leave immediately, she couldn’t miss this interesting scene.
The pheromones tingling on her skin indicated that Hyun-oh was quite angry. She had never seen Hyun-oh direct his anger at anyone in her life.
Moreover, when you thought about it, Hyun-oh and Ye-ryeong were on the same side now. Both of them were standing on Eunsol’s side, confronting those two.
When they had been on opposite sides, she couldn’t have found him more annoying, but now that Hyun-oh was on her side, she felt supported.
“And there will never come a day when you can comfortably call me by my name.”
Hyun-oh continued, as if driving in a stake. Due to the increasingly powerful pheromones, ugly wrinkles formed on Joo-young’s face.
Hye-jin even wet herself. Her face flushed bright red with shame as the smell of urine gradually spread.
Ye-ryeong provocatively pinched her nose while looking at her, making the blush on Hye-jin’s cheeks even deeper.
“I trust that what happened in this room today will not leak outside. As for family greetings, we will contact you if we feel inclined to do so.”
Though he said that, Hyun-oh had no intention of letting Eunsol be entangled with these people anymore.
Except for the fact that Hyun-oh was standing perfectly fine while Joo-young and Hye-jin were plastered to the floor, the conversation could almost be considered normal.
It wasn’t hard to predict what would happen if this incident leaked outside. With Eunsol and Hyun-oh’s marriage, the two families were in the midst of new business discussions.
Chairman Lee would not remain idle. Not to protect Joo-young and Hye-jin, but to avoid offending Hyun-oh, he would surely pressure his wife and child. It was clearly intimidation if you looked a little deeper.
An alpha pressuring an omega with pheromones was socially condemned. Though there was no specific law against it, it could lead to imprisonment if it progressed to sexual harassment.
Normally, Hyun-oh maintained a clean attitude, not revealing his pheromones unless absolutely necessary. But today, he acted instinctively rather than rationally. There was no need to worry about peripheral matters when punishing those who had touched his person.
Even though it was a time when he was competing with his half-brother for the position of next chairman, Hyun-oh didn’t want to hold back in a situation like this.
After unilaterally concluding the matter, Hyun-oh turned and left. Ye-ryeong also raised the corner of her mouth spitefully toward the trembling pair before following Hyun-oh.
“Are you alright—”
“…Get out!”
Kim Soo-in, who had seen Hyun-oh and Ye-ryeong leave with Eunsol, opened the door out of concern for the situation inside, only to be mistreated. Joo-young had thrown the shoe she was wearing.
Shame crossed Su-in’s face as she looked at the shoe that hit the front of her thigh and fell.
However, she habitually composed herself and bowed her head in greeting. After quietly closing the door, though, she went to the break room and gathered the employees.
In places frequently visited by chaebol wives, rumors with untraceable sources tend to spread.
Since Ye-ryeong and Hye-jin had clashed, one side would inevitably be unable to use Rose. The clear advantage of power was on Ye-ryeong’s side.
Kim Soo-in was in a position where she needed to impress Ye-ryeong. Since Hye-jin and Joo-young had offended Ye-ryeong, they were no longer people Su-in needed to bow to.
“Listen carefully to what I’m about to say.”
“Yes, Manager.”
The employees paid attention to her words. Today’s disturbance in the shop was both frightening and fascinating to employees who hadn’t worked there long.
They had heard from seniors that interesting incidents happen from time to time while working, but some employees were experiencing such a situation for the first time.
The scene inside, revealed when Kim Soo-in opened the door, was vaguely visible to other employees as well.
Seeing these always dignified people collapse so disgracefully stirred a strange satisfaction in everyone’s hearts.
“The information I’m giving you, leak it subtly using only initials. Don’t spread it openly, and pick only one loose-lipped person each. Understood?”
“Yes.”
This was partly to teach Joo-young a lesson for throwing a shoe at her when she asked if she was okay, but more importantly, it was to get on Ye-ryeong’s good side.
These people valued face tremendously, more than one might expect. Some would even stake their lives on it.
Even if disguised with initials, those who should know would surely figure it out. These weren’t people who openly spread rumors. They were people who would subtly hide criticism and mockery within everyday conversation.
Every time that happened, Hye-jin and Joo-young would surely tremble without being able to say anything, just like the scene they had witnessed. The thought alone was satisfying.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
