That was the most ideal ending for him and himself.
Someone he could turn away from cleanly without lingering emotions or attachments—someone who, if they happened to run into each other someday, they could simply smile, exchange pleasantries about how they’ve been, and then pass by one another.
He thought he could do that, which is why he chose this path. And he agreed to the marriage believing that the other man could do the same.
So it shouldn’t have turned out like this.
While he stood there motionless out of frustration, his phone, tossed onto the passenger seat, began to ring.
As it continued ringing persistently, he reluctantly picked up the phone to see a familiar name on the screen.
It was a call he didn’t want to take right now.
But he couldn’t avoid it either, so he was forced to press the answer button.
“Hello.”
* * *
[Karma] “I couldn’t answer because I was in a meeting. I just arrived. I’ll come up right away.”
Juwon, who had been anxiously tapping his fingertips on the table, finally saw Junghyun’s message and felt relieved but also resentful.
“You could have at least sent a message earlier…”
He had been worried sick for over an hour when neither his calls nor messages were answered. He complained that Junghyun could have sent a quick message even during the meeting.
Then he started tapping his fingers on the table again in agitation.
Actually, there was no reason to be this anxious about meeting Junghyun.
If it hadn’t been for that troubling phone call, that is.
“What the hell is this kid up to?”
Junghyun’s life was generally chaotic, but most of the problems he caused were manageable.
This time was different, though.
First, he’d made a strange request that left Juwon unsettled, and now he was bringing in something scary that Juwon had never seen before, making the situation even worse.
As he gulped down cold water, wondering what Junghyun was thinking, there was a knock at the door. The door opened immediately after, and Junghyun walked in.
“Hey, you…”
Juwon was about to scold him for not answering calls, but hesitated when he saw Junghyun’s face.
“What’s wrong with your face?”
“Huh?”
“Your face looks like mine.”
Junghyun’s only advantage had always been his health. Every time they met, Juwon had been amazed that the kid never got sick, always having a healthy complexion. So he asked why Junghyun looked so pale today, without a hint of color in his face.
Junghyun smiled in response. “So you’re aware your own face doesn’t look good?”
“Being sickly is part of my charm.”
After Juwon added “but it’s not yours,” Junghyun took off his thick military jacket, hung it on the coat rack, and sat down across from him.
“Everyone’s been saying the same thing. I haven’t been feeling well lately. My condition isn’t great.”
“You?”
“Even I have times when I don’t feel well.”
“…Is it because of Cha Jaehyuk?”
Surprised by this sudden question, Junghyun looked up at Juwon as he was pouring water.
At Junghyun’s questioning gaze, Juwon clicked his tongue as if Junghyun should already know.
“How could you be physically well living with a dominant Alpha? Your hormones must be a mess, right?”
At Juwon’s concern that no matter how healthy Junghyun was, he couldn’t withstand that, Junghyun averted his gaze and poured water into his glass.
“…Well… I guess so.”
Clearly, three months ago, despite having suppressants injected directly into his veins, his heat had suddenly started because of Jaehyuk.
But it was fine now, that part.
After their relationship began, he’d grown accustomed to Jaehyuk’s hormones, and since becoming pregnant, he no longer showed hormonal reactions to him.
“I’m fine now that I’ve gotten used to it. It’s just that my hormonal state isn’t good. I think my heat might start soon too.”
“Why did you make this mess by getting married to someone who doesn’t even match your temperament?”
“I told you, I was curious about what kind of person he was. Did you order already?”
“It’ll be out soon.”
When Juwon said he’d already ordered because Junghyun had suddenly mentioned wanting jajangmyeon, Junghyun reached out his hand.
“The documents?”
“Let’s do that after eating. There’s no rush. More importantly, don’t you have something to tell me first?”
Junghyun paused as he was about to drink water, taken aback by the sudden change of topic.
Too many possible issues crossed his mind. But he pretended not to know and looked up.
“Not really. Why?”
“Cha Jaehyuk.”
Just as he’d expected, at the mention of that name, Junghyun couldn’t hide his unease.
“What about Jaehyuk hyung?”
“He called me an hour ago.”
“…Called you?”
“He suddenly greeted me and asked to meet this weekend. I nearly died trying to decline. I told him I wasn’t feeling well, but he seemed ready to force his way in anyway.”
Relieved because this was roughly what he’d expected, Junghyun relaxed and drank his water again.
He had wondered about this since Jaehyuk mentioned it in the morning—the man was definitely overly proactive.
“It’s just because he hasn’t been able to properly greet you yet. Ignore him. I’ll make sure he doesn’t visit your home.”
“So why does he need to greet me in the first place?”
“…”
“If I hadn’t received that request from you, I would have thought you two had grown fond of each other over time. But from what you’re doing, that doesn’t seem to be the case… What exactly is going on between you two?”
“It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.”
“How can that be nothing? You’re preparing for divorce, but he has no intention of divorcing? When he suddenly contacted me, I jokingly asked if he was finally giving divorce notice, but he got serious and said that would never happen. It gave me chills.”
“Wouldn’t it be stranger to announce divorce right then and there?”
“No, it wasn’t just a formality. He reacted extremely sensitively to a casually thrown joke, and it seriously gave me goosebumps.”
Juwon was rolling up his sleeve to show that his arm hair was still standing on end when their ordered food arrived.
At the perfectly timed arrival of food spreading across the large table, Junghyun calmly picked up his chopsticks.
Then, as he mixed his jajangmyeon, he casually commented, “Maybe the room temperature suddenly dropped.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. The pressure in his voice was no joke. And that’s not all. Suddenly there’s a massive investment flowing from Hanju to our side. How am I supposed to interpret this?”
Junghyun, who had been eating mindlessly, looked up in surprise at this unexpected information.
“…Investment?”
“Investment money keeps flowing in from their side. Meanwhile, they seem to be collecting our stocks. I don’t know what they’re thinking, but… anyway, this level of involvement doesn’t look like someone planning to divorce soon.”
“…”
“It’s time to come clean. What’s going on with you two? How did you end up so out of sync with each other?”
“It’s just like you said. We’ve grown fond of each other while living together. Our hobbies and personalities match well.”
As Junghyun continued to deflect while busily moving his chopsticks, Juwon paused.
Then he asked, “Your personalities match?”
“Yes.”
“With you?”
“Yes.”
“…No wonder I felt a chill down my spine when talking to him. He must have a terribly bad personality.”
“Yes. It’s bad.”
“Then why are you trying to divorce your apparent soulmate?”
“Because I’m afraid of growing even fonder.”
“Why? If you get along well, you could just live that way. You must have had feelings when you married him, despite all my objections.”
“I was curious about what kind of person he was, but now that I know, I don’t think someone like me should live with him.”
“Afraid he’ll ruin his personality even more?”
At that moment, Junghyun laughed while eating his jajangmyeon.
It was an unexpected interpretation, but in a way, it was accurate.
“Something like that.”
“I’m not joking. Your partner is creepy.”
“He’s not that bad.”
Juwon looked at Junghyun with disdain as he diligently ate the sweet and sour pork and braised pork belly.
“I’ve lived 25 years longer than you—don’t you think I can tell that much? Dominant Alphas are all cut from the same cloth. That’s why I strongly opposed your marriage and didn’t say much when you mentioned divorce. But if he’s responding like this, the situation changes. Divorce isn’t something you can do alone. If he refuses, you can’t divorce him. Going to court would put you at an even bigger disadvantage.”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ll handle it.”
“How?”
“Just eat and don’t worry. I need to finish quickly and get back to the office.”
As Junghyun said they couldn’t sit here forever and began filling Juwon’s plate with food, Juwon finally picked up his chopsticks. He nibbled at the food bit by bit while continuing the conversation.
“The problem is that I am worried. If you were fighting bitterly and divorcing, I’d be relieved that the time had finally come. But this situation is perplexing. He’s clearly showing that he likes you—what are you going to do? Today he seemed ready to come along with you, and I nearly had a heart attack trying to decline, saying I had important things to discuss with you.”
“I know. So stop worrying. He’s not the type to treat harshly someone he cares about.”
“Knowing that, you’re still going to proceed with the divorce on your own?”
“Eat.”
As Junghyun turned his gaze away, telling Juwon to stop talking and finish his food, Juwon struck at his most vulnerable spot.
“Why? Are you afraid of becoming happy?”
At those words, Junghyun’s hand momentarily paused.
As expected, Juwon knew him too well. And that made things very uncomfortable.
“That’s right.”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
