Chapter 11
“What are you doing?”
It was Han Taekyung. Until just now, he had been wearing his taekwondo uniform, but now he was neatly dressed and standing in front of Igeon. People around them, disappointed at missing a good show, took a step back when they spotted Han Taekyung and whispered to each other that it was really him, their faces flushing with admiration.
What’s this? These people who approached Igeon without hesitation just now seemed intimidated by Han Taekyung. No, it felt more like they wanted to observe him from a distance, which gave Igeon a strange feeling. Meanwhile, Han Taekyung, seemingly oblivious to the attention, smoothed down Igeon’s slightly lifted shirt and picked up the bag from the floor, placing it in Igeon’s arms.
“Let’s go.”
“Hmm?”
Go where? Actually, did I make plans with you?
“I’ll buy you a meal.”
“Huh?”
“Meat.”
Wow… who could refuse such a temptation? We can make up a plan even if there wasn’t one. Igeon nodded, and Han Taekyung smiled and led the way.
“I’ll see you next time.”
Not wanting to make a bad impression on those who would become his seniors next year, Igeon made sure to bow politely before following Han Taekyung.
“Hey, don’t you greet your seniors?”
“They’re not seniors yet.”
“Well, that’s true, but…”
“I’ll greet them when they become seniors.”
“…Right. Whatever.”
Do as you please.
Following Han Taekyung out of the building, Igeon saw a black sedan parked in front. It was the same car he had seen when they came for the written test. The driver, spotting Han Taekyung, got out and opened the back door, and Han Taekyung thanked him.
“Get in.”
“Huh? Me?”
“Yes, I said I’d buy you meat.”
“Oh… right…”
That’s right. That’s why I followed him out, but I never expected to ride in such a nice car. Actually, it’s rather intimidating. Should I get in or not? It suddenly hit Igeon that this guy was really the son of a wealthy family.
“Hurry.”
“Um…”
With Han Taekyung’s continuous urging and seeing that he wouldn’t get in until Igeon did, Seo Igeon reluctantly climbed into the back seat, followed by Han Taekyung sitting beside him. The driver closed the back door and took his place in the driver’s seat.
“Please take us to the NI Hotel in Gangnam.”
“Yes, understood.”
Hotel?
“Why a hotel?”
“There’s a galbi restaurant on the 24th floor that’s delicious.”
Going to a hotel to eat galbi?! I thought we’d just go to some decent meat place. It was already uncomfortable enough just sitting here, and now it was getting even more uncomfortable. I want to get out. I should have just gone straight to Instructor Jin. Hmm? Wait a minute.
“By the way, are you alone today?”
When Seo Igeon asked, Han Taekyung nodded.
“My instructor had something to do today, so he couldn’t come. What about you?”
“Me too, my instructor’s gastritis suddenly got worse, so he couldn’t come.”
“So we were both alone. If I had known, I would have come to pick you up.”
“No, I’ll pass. This car is too much for me.”
“If it makes you uncomfortable, I could have just walked to pick you up.”
‘You’? Why? Igeon was about to ask but held back. It wouldn’t be polite to speak too coldly to someone who was going to treat him to meat. Actually, the timing to ask such a question seemed to have passed long ago.
“Seo Igeon.”
Ah, that startled me. He suddenly called my name.
“What?”
“Have you not received your regulator shot yet?”
“Huh? Oh. Why?”
Han Taekyung leaned in slightly and sniffed. His handsome face came so close that Igeon was startled, pressing himself against the car seat.
“I can smell your pheromones.”
“Oh no, is it strong? I was trying to control it.”
“You should get your shot today.”
“Ah! You’re right. I was planning to get it after we finished.”
But now I’m here, lured by the promise of meat. What should I do? If I eat meat first, I might be late for the hospital… Should I just give up on the meat?
“Want to go to our hospital for your shot?”
“Huh?”
“It’s free anyway, so it doesn’t matter where you get it, right?”
“That’s true.”
“Given our current direction, going to our hospital would be faster. Let’s get your shot on the way, then go eat galbi.”
Honestly, there was no reason to refuse. In a situation where he thought he’d have to give up one thing, he’d found a way to have both—who would turn that down? When Igeon nodded, Han Taekyung asked the driver to take them to the hospital.
“What about you? Did you get your regulator?”
“I got it yesterday right away.”
“But you can still sense my pheromones?”
“Hmm… just a little.”
“Maybe because you’re dominant?”
“Maybe.”
It was an ambiguous answer, but Igeon took it as positive. Come to think of it, he had taken the pheromone test with a dominant alpha yesterday. In a way, he was really fortunate that there had been no problems. After all, dominant alpha pheromones were so powerful that even regular alphas could develop trauma after experiencing their threatening pheromones.
“We’ve arrived.”
At the driver’s words, Igeon looked out the window and saw that they had already reached NI Hospital. He remembered that the hospital used to have a different name, but a few years ago, when all affiliates were unified under NI, this hospital’s name had also changed to NI.
“Oh? Taekyung.”
As soon as they entered the hospital, a doctor in a white coat spotted Han Taekyung and approached.
“Doctor.”
“What brings you here at this hour? Is something wrong?”
It didn’t seem like a joke or a casual greeting. Han Taekyung shook his head at the doctor’s serious question.
“No. My friend hasn’t received his pheromone regulator shot yet. He’s the friend I’ll be competing with in the selection tournament tomorrow, so it’s a bit urgent. Could you give him priority?”
“Ah, if that’s the case, of course. Student, your name?”
“Seo Igeon.”
Seo Igeon quickly opened the app with his personal information and handed his phone to the doctor, who registered Igeon’s information at the reception desk and then took him to his office.
“Roll up your sleeve.”
“Yes.”
As Seo Igeon rolled up his right sleeve, the doctor personally administered the injection. It felt strangely like receiving special treatment.
“Same taekwondo as Taekyung?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“National Sports University?”
“Yes, National Sports University, and I’m aiming to be a senior national team athlete.”
“I see. Get along well with that boy Taekyung.”
“Haha, yes.”
After getting the simple injection and leaving the office, Igeon saw Han Taekyung standing up from the waiting area. Seo Igeon approached and held out his hand for his bag that Han Taekyung was carrying.
“I’ll carry it until we reach the car. Your arm will be sore.”
“No, it’s not that bad.”
“Still. We should be careful.”
No, really, it’s not that serious? As Igeon looked bewildered, the doctor who had come out with him shrugged and patted Igeon’s back.
“Taekyung, how are your fathers?”
“They’re both doing well with no health issues. They’ve even started hiking recently.”
“That’s good. I thought no news is good news, so I deliberately didn’t contact them.”
“Yes, I’ll make sure there’s no need for you to contact them in the future.”
“The same goes for you. Don’t show up suddenly like this. It makes my heart drop. At least call ahead.”
“Yes, I understand. We’ll be going now.”
“Where are you going?”
“I’m going to eat galbi with Igeon.”
Now he’s started using my name casually. Without even my surname, just “Igeon.” Well, the timing to comment on that had also passed long ago, so Seo Igeon just laughed awkwardly.
“Galbi is good. NI Hotel?”
“Yes.”
“Delicious.”
“I’ll take you there sometime.”
“No need. Just stay healthy.”
The doctor coolly said goodbye and sent them off. They left the hospital and got back into the waiting car, and Han Taekyung put Igeon’s bag in the trunk.
“By the way… is something wrong with your health?”
Seo Igeon asked out of genuine curiosity. The doctor’s attitude was similar to that of Instructor Kim Tae-woon from yesterday. They were talking as if the healthy, robust Han Taekyung standing in front of him might collapse at any moment.
“No, I’m healthy.”
The person in question looked at Seo Igeon as if to say “What are you talking about?”
“I just had a lot of minor illnesses, so the doctor worries. I used to have small illnesses when I was young.”
“Ah…”
Is this what Instructor Jin was talking about? Well, if it was just minor illnesses, it probably wouldn’t be newsworthy enough for articles or columns. He’s not some prince of a kingdom where they’d write, “On such-and-such a day, Young Master Han Taekyung was ill with such-and-such a disease.”
“He’s been looking after me since I was young, so he still sees me as a child, I guess.”
“Ah, I can see that. Instructor Jin also says that I still look like I’m 8 years old to him. He says I’ll probably always be 8 years old to him.”
“Right. I think it’s something like that.”
After the car started moving, they were able to converse more naturally than before. Just as they were getting to know each other a little better through various small talk, the car stopped in front of the hotel. Someone opened the door, and as Han Taekyung got out, people standing in front rushed over to greet him. Among them, a man who looked to be in his early 50s came out and politely greeted Han Taekyung, about to guide him, when Han Taekyung raised his hand.
“Manager, don’t worry about me.”
“But what about the CEO…”
“I’ll speak to him separately. We’re going to the 24th floor. We’ll eat well and leave on our own. If we need anything, I’ll let you know. So there’s no need to assign anyone to us.”
“Yes, understood.”
The person called the manager took a step back, and Han Taekyung, as if all this was natural, received their greetings and entered the hotel, standing in front of the elevator. Meanwhile, Seo Igeon, feeling a bit like a country bumpkin, looked around in amazement at the NI Hotel he was visiting for the first time.
The chandeliers on the ceiling, the gold-covered walls, and the marble floors all looked incredibly luxurious.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
