There was no malice in the voice that asked the question. Eyes shining dark brown stared persistently at Kang-woo. Kang-woo’s lips stiffened as if frozen, unable to move easily.
His father’s voice—warning him never to let anyone discover his Omega trait—flashed through his mind. Yet a strange surge of courage stirred for a brief moment, overpowering that memory.
If it were him—if it were Kyung-wook—maybe even if he revealed the truth, Kyung-wook would still treat him the same as before. That faint hope began to take root.
“…Yeah. I’m an Omega.”
In the end, Kang-woo admitted the truth. Strength naturally gathered in both his hands. He clenched his fists tightly, waiting for what Kyung-wook would say next.
But after standing there for a long moment without any particular reaction, Kyung-wook simply handed the suppressants back to him.
“Take it.”
He tilted his chin slightly.
“If it’s your heat cycle, you’re supposed to take it with every meal, right?”
Kyung-wook’s attitude was utterly calm. It was as if he had always known Kang-woo was an Omega—there wasn’t even the slightest change in his expression.
Kang-woo hesitated for a moment before opening the bottle he had received. He took out two pills and swallowed them with water. Even while he did so, Kyung-wook’s eyes remained fixed stubbornly on him.
That night, Kang-woo lay in bed tossing and turning for hours. He tried to suppress the swelling emotions inside him.
Kyung-wook had learned his trait. Yet he hadn’t shown even the slightest rejection toward Omegas. Only then did Kang-woo truly realize that nothing between them had changed.
He even thought maybe it was for the better. He had been feeling guilty about lying to him anyway. It had been a little shocking to be exposed like this, but he felt relieved that the person who discovered he was an Omega was Kyung-wook and not someone else.
But it didn’t take long for him to realize that everything had been nothing more than a misunderstanding.
***
A few days later, during a day with a physical education class.
For once, the PE teacher gave them free time, so Kang-woo’s class ended up playing soccer together.
Kang-woo jogged lazily across the field. He had never been particularly interested in soccer to begin with. Even though he was only half-heartedly pretending to participate while keeping his position, sweat still ran down his back under the blazing sunlight.
“YAAAAH! GOAL!!”
Thanks to Kyung-wook’s play, the ball flew into the opposing team’s net. At the same time cheers erupted, the bell for break time rang.
Feeling pleased, Kang-woo returned to the classroom with the other sweat-soaked students.
“Ah, shit. It’s fucking hot.”
The students gathered in front of the wall-mounted fans, flapping their gym uniforms. Leaving them behind, Kang-woo went to the bathroom to change his clothes before returning to the classroom.
Ever since manifesting as an Omega, he had become conscious of small things one by one. Kang-woo’s skin was paler than most people’s, so whenever he undressed he tended to attract attention. That was why he avoided changing clothes in front of others whenever possible.
Holding his sweat-drenched gym uniform, he stepped into the classroom—when suddenly his eyes met Kyung-wook’s.
For a moment, Kyung-wook’s eyes flashed with a strange light.
“Kang-woo.”
Kang-woo walked toward him when he was called. The gazes of the boys who had been sitting together chatting also turned toward him.
“We’re thirsty. Can you go buy us some drinks?”
With a smile that was ambiguous—half joking, half serious—Kyung-wook made the request.
“Huh?”
Kang-woo was so surprised that the question slipped out before he could stop it. It was the first time Kyung-wook had ever asked him for something like that.
The other boys were startled too and tried to stop him.
“Hey, Kang-woo’s not your errand boy. We can just go buy them together.”
“Yeah. Let’s all go real quick. The store isn’t even far.”
But Kyung-wook was firm.
“What’s wrong with going alone? I’ll give him money.”
His tone suggested there was absolutely nothing wrong with it.
What was this situation? Kang-woo felt confused, and the atmosphere suddenly became strange. All the boys fell silent, glancing nervously between Kyung-wook and Kang-woo.
“Kang-woo, you can go by yourself, right?”
Kyung-wook spoke in his usual friendly tone. His gentle smile filled Kang-woo’s vision.
In that moment, Kang-woo experienced a strange sensation—a chill brushing past the back of his neck.
Looking back now, it was human instinct warning him that something had begun.
But at the time, Kang-woo failed to realize that the seed of his misfortune had sprouted right there. He simply thought he was being overly sensitive.
Perhaps it was instinctive denial. The only way he could understand the situation was to laugh it off as a harmless joke between friends.
After a short silence, Kang-woo forced the corners of his lips upward.
“Yeah, I’ll go. Give me the money.”
He confidently held out his hand. Kyung-wook’s smile deepened as he took a card out of his wallet and handed it to him.
“I’ll have cola.”
“What about the rest of you? Tell me one by one what you want.”
Smiling, Kang-woo took everyone’s drink orders before turning around. Even as he left the classroom, the boys looked hesitant, unsure whether they should follow him or not. But Kyung-wook—who normally would have taken the lead—remained seated, so no one dared stand up.
Kang-woo went alone to the school store, bought five cans of drinks, and returned to the classroom carrying them in his arms. The distance had taken less than five minutes, yet that day it felt strangely long and far.
“Nice. Thanks, Kang-woo.”
“Hey, Kyung-wook’s the one who bought them. Thank him.”
“Oh, right. Baek Kyung-wook, thanks for the drinks.”
As soon as Kang-woo placed the drinks on the desk, the boys noisily grabbed their cans.
“Here.”
Kang-woo approached Kyung-wook, who was sitting on the desk, and handed him his cola along with the card. Kyung-wook looked up, his eyes curving into a gentle smile.
“Thanks, Kang-woo.”
Seeing that he looked no different from usual, Kang-woo felt relieved.
Right. Everything is the same. Nothing has changed.
He kept repeating that to himself.
***
But Kang-woo’s wishes were never fulfilled—not even once.
He hadn’t asked for much. Just one thing. He only wished that Kyung-wook—his closest friend—would not change.
But as time slowly passed, Kyung-wook gradually began to change.
It was around the time rumors began spreading that Assemblyman Baek was preparing for his third marriage. Kyung-wook seemed to be arguing with his father more and more often. Kang-woo could tell from the wounds left on his face.
Despite his son’s fierce opposition, Assemblyman Baek ultimately pushed forward with the remarriage. Kang-woo could never forget the expression on Kyung-wook’s face as he watched his father’s wedding.
And perhaps that was the turning point. Kyung-wook slowly began drifting onto the wrong path.
He started hanging around with boys known as troublemakers at school, and before long he had picked up smoking and drinking as well. He went in and out of the local police station as if it were routine.
At the same time, Kyung-wook’s behavior toward Kang-woo gradually began crossing the line.
Under the pretext of friendship, Kyung-wook asked Kang-woo to do unfair things—like bringing expensive liquor from his father’s house or holding onto cigarette packs during bag inspections. Sometimes he even ordered Kang-woo around like a servant for trivial errands.
But even more humiliating than that were the times when Kyung-wook dragged him along and played cruel jokes on him in front of the others.
“Let go, Baek Kyung-wook…!”
On his way to get a textbook from his locker, Kang-woo was suddenly grabbed by Kyung-wook and forced to sit on his thigh. Wrapping an arm around Kang-woo’s waist, Kyung-wook giggled as if he had discovered a fun new game.
“Hold still, Kang-woo. What’s the big deal between friends? I can let you sit on my thigh and hug you a little.”
Even amid the commotion, the rest of the class pretended not to see. Making eye contact with Kyung-wook’s group, who practically controlled the room, would only bring trouble.
“What the hell? Are you guys gay? Fuck. Baek Kyung-wook, do you like Kim Kang-woo?”
The boys in Kyung-wook’s group jeered with snickering voices. Kyung-wook simply smiled without caring.
“Come on, no way. Kang-woo’s pretty, sure, but he’s not my type. He’s not soft enough. And honestly, putting it in the back hole seems kinda gross.”
The color drained from Kang-woo’s face instantly.
Why was he being forced to hear something like this?
He tried to push himself off Kyung-wook’s lap, bracing his legs. But Kyung-wook’s arms wrapped tightly around his waist, leaving him only able to grind his hips awkwardly against him.
The more he struggled, the more clearly he felt the heavy hardness pressing against his backside.
What made it even worse was that Kyung-wook was subtly releasing his pheromones. Kang-woo wanted desperately to escape the thick scent irritating his nose.
It was faint enough that Betas wouldn’t notice it—but to Kang-woo, an Omega, it was impossible to ignore.
“Our Kang-woo… should I check how much you’ve grown?”
Along with the teasing voice, a large hand moved toward his crotch.
“Let go…! Let go of me!”
Startled, Kang-woo struggled even more violently. He shook his head and clawed at the arms around his waist.
Faced with such firm resistance, Kyung-wook finally raised both hands.
“Ah, okay, okay. I won’t touch you, I won’t touch you, Kim Kang-woo.”
As if granting a favor, Kyung-wook released him. Kang-woo quickly escaped and stood up. His eyes burned hot as he clenched his teeth and glared at Kyung-wook.
After stepping a few paces away, his legs trembled.
“Such a pain.”
Kyung-wook casually crossed his legs, his expression completely indifferent—as if he felt no guilt whatsoever.
Kang-woo’s hands tightened into fists.
He resented him. He couldn’t understand what Kyung-wook’s intentions were—why he would do something like that to him in public.
“Seriously, this guy acts as sensitive as a girl.”
The others chimed in, mocking Kang-woo along with him. Being ridiculed in the middle of the group was humiliating and degrading.
Kang-woo shoved past them and ran out of the classroom, rushing to the bathroom. As he crossed the hallway, their snickering laughter echoed behind him like ringing in his ears.
As if being chased, Kang-woo rushed into an empty bathroom stall, slammed the door shut, and crouched against the wall. Tears burst out before he could hold them back.
He buried the sound of his sobbing inside his arms.
He didn’t know how things had come to this. Each day was nothing but confusion.
After that, the nightmare-like days continued. Kang-woo hoped Kyung-wook’s changed behavior was only a momentary lapse—a phase of rebellion. Maybe as time passed, he would come to his senses and things would return to how they once were.
He held onto that small hope.
But little by little, he had no choice but to admit the truth.
The two of them were no longer equals.
The way the other students looked at Kang-woo gradually changed as well. No one openly rejected him, but they subtly began keeping their distance.
Whenever he noticed them glancing at him and whispering in the classroom, Kang-woo suspected Kyung-wook. The fear that Kyung-wook might have revealed his secret began to dominate his thoughts.
“Kyung-wook, wait. I need to talk to you for a moment.”
Unable to endure the anxiety any longer, Kang-woo stopped Kyung-wook after school as he was about to leave.
It had been a long time since Kang-woo had spoken to him first.
By now, their relationship had turned one-sided—Kyung-wook only sought Kang-woo out when he needed something.
