The massive cafeteria was laid out comfortably, with seating arranged so that whether you came alone or in a group, there was always a good place to sit. Just that alone gave Yeon Yiseo a sense of relief—at least he didn’t have to worry about food expenses.
After eating, he returned to the office and got back to work. Just like at Dymine, there was no need to stay excessively late. In fact, compared to Dymine, he could go home at a much earlier hour, and that unfamiliar feeling took some getting used to.
After a few days of this, he realized just how much work he’d been doing back at Dymine. He’d assumed it was normal, since Ethan worked himself to the bone too—but clearly, it hadn’t been.
Of course, it’s not like he hadn’t been paid—he did receive extra compensation for the overtime, so his paycheck had been fairly generous. But as a Beta, even if the money was decent, his body had suffered. When he thought about that, he found himself thinking a hundred times over that switching to Scott Industries had been the right choice.
The people here weren’t overly warm, but they weren’t hostile either. There was nothing particularly difficult about adjusting.
He’d worried a little that Alexander might stop by the secretary’s office out of the blue, but that concern remained just that—a worry.
His first day had been packed with getting up to speed on the work, and Alexander never showed. Yiseo also didn’t need to go into the executive office. His tasks for the day simply involved reviewing and processing documents at his desk. He wasn’t answering phones yet, but he paid close attention to how his coworkers handled calls and quietly picked up tips.
After work, he checked his phone again, but there was still no message from Seo Eunwoo. Wondering if something had happened, he called. The dial tone rang for quite a while, and just as he thought it would go to voicemail, Eunwoo picked up.
“Hello? Eunwoo?”
—Oh, hey, Yiseo. Yeah. What’s up?
Eunwoo’s voice was rougher than usual. He didn’t even seem to have checked the message Yiseo had sent. It made Yiseo wonder if he was coming down with something.
“Are you sick? Did you catch a cold or something?”
—Huh? Ah… yeah, kind of. Anyway, what’s going on? Did something happen?
Eunwoo dodged the question a little awkwardly.
“It’s nothing major, I just sent you a message that I transferred from Dymine to Scott Industries, but you didn’t reply, so I was wondering if everything was alright.”
—…What did you say? Yiseo, I think I misheard you… What?
Eunwoo asked again, stunned. When Yiseo repeated himself, there was a brief silence on the other end of the line.
—Wait, what happened?
“Ah, well… it’s a long story.”
—Jeez… So does that mean it’s totally over between you and Ethan?
Yiseo hesitated a little before replying.
“I think it’s fair to say that, yeah…”
—What the hell happened…? Ugh, I think it’d be better to hear all this in person. I’ll get in touch soon.
“Alright. Get some rest, and I’ll see you later.”
Since Seo Eunwoo was an extreme-dominant Alpha, it made Yiseo even more worried—how bad did the cold have to be for it to hit someone like him this hard? With that lingering concern, he ended the call.
***
Yiseo had assumed Eunwoo would reach out the very next day—but he didn’t.
All he received was a text: [I’ve got a bunch of urgent stuff piled up. Let me finish this and I’ll get in touch!]
And just like that, three days passed.
Tonight, unusually, Yiseo was working overtime alone. When he finished and checked the time before heading out, it was just after 9 PM. He hadn’t had dinner, so he was pretty hungry. Still, thanks to a satisfying lunch, he wasn’t completely exhausted.
Planning to head home and at least have some milk to take the edge off his hunger, he shut off the lights in the empty office.
He wondered if Alexander had already left for the day. Unlike at Dymine, he wasn’t in a position to casually meet the CEO, so he had no way of knowing the man’s exact schedule.
Because he hadn’t been pushing his limits physically, his usual pheromone deficiency symptoms—like dry thirst—had been slower to kick in. Still, he’d probably need to receive another dose from Alexander soon.
As he walked toward the elevators, he saw the doors just beginning to close.
“Hold on a second!”
He instinctively shouted, and the doors reopened—to reveal none other than Alexander. He was pressing the open button and raised an eyebrow slightly when he saw Yiseo standing there.
“Heading home now?”
“Oh—hello, sir. Yes. I had some things I needed to finish up.”
Yiseo felt relieved at how casually Alexander spoke to him. Maybe he’d been unconsciously tense since their relationship had changed from one involving rival companies to one where Alexander was now his direct superior.
Yiseo’s gaze drifted to Alexander’s right hand. He still worried about the bite mark he’d left. He’d bitten down pretty hard—it had to have hurt. But Alexander hadn’t once complained. Yiseo couldn’t help wondering how much of a scar was left.
“The finger’s healed completely. No need to worry.”
Noticing where Yiseo was looking, Alexander lifted his hand and showed him. Sure enough, there wasn’t even a trace of the wound.
It hadn’t even been that many days, yet the injury had vanished entirely. Must be one of the perks of being an extreme-dominant Alpha.
“That’s a relief.”
Yiseo let out a quiet breath of relief just as the elevator came to a stop.
“Have you had dinner yet?”
“No, I was just going to eat when I got home.”
All he had at home was half a glass of milk and some biscuits, but still.
Alexander looked at the changing numbers on the elevator display and made a small thoughtful noise.
“Actually, I haven’t eaten either. Would you mind having dinner with me?”
“…Sorry?”
Caught off guard by the sudden offer, Yiseo blinked and stared at him.
“There’s a great burger place nearby. I’d rather not eat alone. What do you say?”
Maybe Alexander just didn’t like eating alone. But if that were the case, he could’ve just gone home to eat.
That thought crossed Yiseo’s mind, but he found it hard to say no. He’d already received so much from Alexander—how could he turn down something so small?
In the end, the words that came out of Yiseo’s mouth were:
“Sure.”
***
First off, he hadn’t known a place like this even existed. Second, he never imagined Alexander would know a place like this.
Under the dim lights, people sat enjoying burgers and beer.
At first glance, it seemed like a pub—but it wasn’t. The music wasn’t loud, playing at a comfortable volume. The atmosphere was relaxed.
The tables were clean, but the menus had unidentifiable stains that gave the place a less-than-sterile impression.
To be honest, it was almost hard to believe someone like Alexander would frequent a place like this.
“The burgers are really good. As far as I know, the kitchen’s clean, and the food’s legit.”
Yiseo, who’d been eyeing the menu, instinctively curled his fingers as if someone had read his mind.
He scanned the prices first.
“This chili cheese burger is really good. Highly recommended.”
“Is that so?”
Yiseo responded casually while keeping his eyes on the menu, replaying Alexander’s words in his head.
Recommending something because it was good—that was normal enough. But for it to be good meant that Alexander liked it. That was a matter of personal taste.
Everyone had likes and dislikes, obviously. But for some reason, the idea that Alexander had preferences—and that this chili cheese burger was something he liked—felt strange.
Strange? No… that wasn’t quite the right word.
Cute.
Yeah, cute felt more accurate.
Blinking slowly, Yiseo turned his focus back to the menu.
The chili cheese burger set was $20, while the burger alone was $15.
The price made him hesitate a bit, and as he debated, Alexander chimed in.
“For the record, dinner’s on me.”
“…Sorry?”
“Don’t tell me you’ve never heard what my salary is in the news?”
Alexander chuckled, his eyes crinkling gently at Yiseo’s surprised reaction. His tone implied that someone like him paying separately wasn’t even a possibility. That it was odd they were even having this conversation at all.
“If you can’t decide, feel free to order everything and try a bit of each.”
“Oh, no need for that. That would just waste food. I’ll go with the chili cheese burger, then.”
“As a set?”
“Ah… yes.”
Not sure what Alexander might say next, Yiseo simply nodded.
The staff member who’d been keeping an eye on their table approached at just the right moment.
“Hello, Daisy.”
“Wow… this is the first time I’ve seen you here with company.”
The staff member clearly recognized Alexander and greeted him. At her words, Alexander glanced briefly at Yiseo.
Catching that subtle movement, she mouthed an ohhh and quickly shut her mouth, switching to a more professional tone.
“What can I get you two?”
“We’ll have one double cheese bacon burger set, and one chili cheese burger set.”
She jotted down the details with her pen as she confirmed the specifics of the set meals.
