What was this? Could it be that he had been thinking of spending his rut with Yeonwoo too? Of course, sex with Yeonwoo had been satisfying so far, but a rut was a different matter. Even with preparation in advance, it placed a considerable physical burden on an omega, so he hadn’t thought about asking Yeonwoo for that too…
‘…’
Munbeom couldn’t speak for a while.
Frozen in place, he took a deep breath and exhaled, intending to say he would let him know later.
‘But your mother contacted me.’
At the sudden statement, a shallow wrinkle formed between Munbeom’s brows. Though they were on the phone, Hwayoung must have imagined Munbeom’s displeased face, as he continued carefully.
‘She somehow contacted me through one of my patients, saying that because she’s getting older, she can’t control her pheromones well. I pretended not to know and offered to introduce her to a specialist, when suddenly she asked how you were doing.’
It was supposed to be highly confidential that Munbeom used Hwayoung’s hospital, but she had somehow figured it out and tried to sound him out. It was entirely possible for her, but it was unpleasant to hear that his mother had probed about his recent activities through Hwayoung.
‘Of course, I denied it, saying I didn’t know what she was talking about, but she wouldn’t listen. She just kept saying what she wanted to say, just like before. So I also steeled myself and said whatever, when suddenly she asked if you were seeing an omega. Even though I told her I didn’t know anything, she didn’t seem to believe me.’
‘…’
‘I know you’ll handle it well, but… just in case, have a few people watch over your partner. Maybe I’ve been watching too many movies lately. It makes me worry about strange things.’
After that, Hwayoung ended the call, saying that if Munbeom had anything to say about the rut, he could talk via text or phone, whatever was convenient.
From that moment, Munbeom felt a mild headache. Frowning at the unpleasant pain he hadn’t felt for a while, he tilted his head back and exhaled a long breath.
Then, remembering that Secretary Kang was still standing there, he moved away from the desk. Turning to the window to look outside, his view was completely blocked by thick rain. To make matters worse, lightning struck not far away, and his vision brightened momentarily. At the heavy rumbling sound that followed belatedly, Secretary Kang unconsciously exclaimed a soft “wow.” He immediately closed his mouth, becoming aware of Ho Munbeom’s presence.
“Find out who my mother is meeting and where.”
“Yes.”
“Also prepare for the possibility that we might need to force her to leave the country.”
Secretary Kang, who once again answered that he understood, checked Ho Munbeom’s profile as he looked out the window. As expected, his complexion wasn’t good. It was inevitable with weather like this, but he had been fine for a while.
He seemed to know the reason for this too, but couldn’t bring it up first. Only if Munbeom mentioned it first could he contact Yeonwoo.
There must be an area of pheromones that even a hyper-dominant alpha couldn’t control. Still, if he knew a way to alleviate the discomfort, it would be good if he could use it as much as possible.
Secretary Kang, as part of his duties, also knew about his alpha boss’s rut schedule. They would also need to properly discuss the schedule for that period.
Seeing that Munbeom, who was just looking at the raindrops falling as if to break the window, seemed to have no more interest in him, Secretary Kang quietly turned around. At that moment, he heard a very faint whisper of “Yeonwoo.” Relieved at the name he had been waiting for, Secretary Kang turned back before Munbeom even finished speaking.
“Yes, shall I schedule a meeting?”
“…”
Only after speaking did he realize how eagerly he had responded, which was embarrassing. Regardless, Munbeom, who still had his gaze fixed outside the window, slowly moved his lips.
“Let’s do that.”
“…You’ll meet him today, right?”
Munbeom answered by slightly moving his chin.
“Where shall I arrange for you to meet this time?”
It had started with a hotel suite, but at some point, it moved to Ho Munbeom’s private villa, or to a resort that wasn’t even open yet. Thinking it might be difficult to find a better place immediately than the most recent one, Munbeom suddenly said, “No.”
“Yeonwoo might have his own schedule. Let’s leave it for now.”
“…Ah, shall we do that?”
Before, he seemed to have known Yeonwoo’s part-time work schedule completely and had almost unilaterally set meeting times. Was he now being considerate? If that’s what the boss wanted to do, then that’s what would be done.
Secretary Kang, who had been observing, nodded his head and quietly went out. Left alone again, Munbeom placed one hand on his waist and tilted his head back. As if it had been waiting, thunder rumbled from afar, and thick rain fell as if to break the window, causing deep wrinkles to form between his brows.
“…”
After sending Yeonwoo away like that, Munbeom immediately went to see his grandfather.
It was to ask what he was thinking when he called Yeonwoo, and what conversation they had. But when Munbeom faced his grandfather, who was in the garden, he couldn’t say a word.
Although he had pretended to be critically ill to push for Munbeom’s marriage and had forcibly arranged a blind date, Ho Jaejung was the man who had built Ho Moon Group to what it was today. He was no ordinary old man. Perhaps because of this, though it was quite rare, when he stood with his hands behind his back and stared at him, Munbeom sometimes found himself at a loss for words. At those times, it felt like his innermost thoughts were being read and exposed. Finding that sensation uncomfortable and displeasing, Munbeom frowned, and Ho Jaejung clicked his tongue and muttered as if to himself.
‘You still have a long way to go. Child, child.’
Then, as if something was deeply unsatisfactory, he wagged his finger at Munbeom several times before quickly passing by. Although Munbeom wondered why he was acting that way when he was the one who had arbitrarily called Yeonwoo, he couldn’t follow his grandfather.
After standing there for a long time, Munbeom returned home and checked the cleared dining table. Looking at the place that had been cleaned as if wondering when he had cooked and eaten with Yeonwoo, he felt something difficult to explain. That feeling lasted quite a long time.
The usual Ho Munbeom would have worked even on weekends. But this time, for the first time in a very long while, he did nothing. He sat on the sofa watching movies and read books he had been meaning to read when he had time. He had never thought about the passage of time before, but then he felt it moving so slowly. Whether watching movies or reading books, he checked the time over and over.
It was the same now.
Taking out his phone, which he usually put away while working, he checked the time and unconsciously let out a long breath. After staring at his phone with a stony face, he soon dialed a number one by one. And as his thumb, which had been hovering over the call button, pressed down, the ringtone immediately sounded.
He wondered if the evenly ringing tone was something to be this tense about. Munbeom, who had been unknowingly hardening his expression, slightly widened his eyes the moment the ringtone stopped. Just as he put the mobile phone to his ear and opened his mouth, the call was disconnected.
“…”
With a beeping sound, Munbeom’s expression hardened too.
He couldn’t immediately comprehend what was happening. Without even having time to wonder what on earth was going on, he pressed the call button again. After a short ringtone, the other person answered the phone again, and Munbeom waited.
[…]
Silence. Munbeom put the phone to his ear and opened his mouth.
“Yeonwoo?”
As he whispered the name questioningly, he heard the sound of a long exhalation from the other side. As if releasing what had been held in all along, feeling the long and somewhat trembling breath, a thin wrinkle formed between Munbeom’s brows.
[…Yes.]
Upon hearing the short answer, his expression hardened further.
His voice, Munbeom muttered to himself, and unknowingly, he was holding his suit jacket that was hung in the space behind his office.
“Why does your voice sound like that? Are you unwell?”
[No…, um.]
After starting to say no and then closing his mouth, Yeonwoo soon spoke softly.
[It’s been raining for the past few days, so I was taking a nap. That’s probably why my voice is hoarse.]
“…”
[I’m not unwell anywhere. I’m fine.]
Yeonwoo always said he was fine. Having heard such words from the beginning, it seemed Munbeom had subconsciously expected that “I’m fine” would naturally come from Yeonwoo. And at the same time as the doubt arose that a person couldn’t always be fine, his mouth opened automatically.
“Are you free today?”
The words flowed out before he could even think, and in that moment, Munbeom felt his heart beating. Feeling a slightly faster heartbeat than usual, he added that if it was okay, he would like to see his face for a moment.
It was the third time coming to a café where there was no one else.
The first time he was nervous, and the second time, being with Munbeom, he hadn’t thought to look around. But perhaps because this was his third visit, he felt a little more at ease.
There was no one in the café when he arrived first this time either. The café owner wasn’t visible, but as if anticipating the arrival time, warm tea and cake that could be eaten simply were placed on the table. Looking at the cookies and tea that seemed even more delicious because they looked good, Yeonwoo wrapped both hands around the teacup.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
