“You’re saying you want to see Yu-jin?”
His mother was the first to speak, her face twisted in displeasure. Winston didn’t like that Gordon and Lady Catherine were standing behind her, but he held back his emotions and replied calmly.
“It’s already been three months since I last saw him. I’m much better now, and I believe it’s time I see Yu-jin again.”
Up until now, he’d been forbidden from receiving visitors due to his critical condition. At most, he got to see his mother once every few days, and all he ever heard about Yu-jin was that he was doing fine.
Of course, Winston never fully believed that. He knew exactly what kind of looks his family gave him. Even before the incident with the muggers, they never missed a chance to badmouth Yu-jin behind his back—it wasn’t hard to guess what was really going on.
Still, there was nothing he could do until now. Simply keeping himself alive had taken everything he had. He still couldn’t walk without crutches, and the pain hadn’t gone away either.
He’d had no choice but to leave Yu-jin in their hands until now, but things were different. More than anything, he just wanted to see him—desperately. Every time he imagined Yu-jin trembling in fear all alone, it felt like his heart was being scorched from the inside.
My love. My one and only life.
Yu-jin was everything to Winston.
“Let me see him. Now.”
Winston glared at them, eyes bloodshot, teeth clenched. At his son’s furious demand, Madam Campbell let out a sigh full of exasperation, Gordon’s face twisted in disgust, and Lady Catherine stood frozen, unsure what to do.
“Aren’t you even curious what happened to those muggers?”
It was Gordon who finally spoke. Sure, it was an important issue—but to Winston, confirming Yu-jin’s safety came before anything else.
“I’ll hear it after I see Yu-jin.”
Gordon scoffed at Winston’s stubbornness and let out a sigh. In the end, they were the first to back down.
“Fine. Very well.”
Madam Campbell finally spoke in a quiet voice.
“As you wish, we’ll let you meet him. But first, you need to hear us out.”
“If it’s about Yu-jin, I’m not interested. I already know exactly what you’re going to say.”
His reply was sharp, without a hint of hesitation. Madam Campbell simply looked at her son in silence. Then, with a subtle glance, she signaled to Gordon, who, as if he’d been waiting for it, reached into the inner pocket of his suit jacket.
“Here.”
Gordon tossed something onto the bed where Winston was sitting, a smirk tugging at his lips.
“We’ve been hiding this for your sake. But if you’re well enough to throw tantrums like this, there’s no need to keep it from you anymore. See for yourself how that filthy little slut was deceiving you.”
A dozen or more photographs entered Winston’s field of vision. Spread out on the bed, every single one of them was vile—so disgusting he didn’t even want to touch them. He let out a short breath and picked one up.
In front of his entire family, Winston tore the photos to shreds—photos of Yu-jin tangled up naked with other men. He crushed the scraps in his fist, then opened his hand and let the pieces fall outside the bed.
Winston opened his mouth without even glancing at the photos that fluttered helplessly to the ground and scattered across the hospital floor.
“These are all fake. Do you really think I’d fall for this kind of cheap setup?”
His conviction was unshakable. But even as she looked at her son, Madam Campbell remained entirely unfazed.
“I figured you might say that.”
Her voice was slow and measured as she pressed her fingers to her forehead.
“But hearing you actually say it out loud… it’s not exactly pleasant. That Omega has managed to seduce not just my husband, but now my son too. Honestly…”
“Don’t you dare speak ill of Yu-jin. It won’t change how I feel about him.” Winston glared at his mother, his eyes burning with fury. “Yu-jin seduced Father? Do you even remember how old he was when he came here? If you honestly believe a child like that deliberately tried to tempt Father, then I’m sorry, Mother—but you’ve lost your mind.”
“Winston!”
“Mother, are you alright?!” Gordon raised his voice in alarm, and Catherine immediately reached out to steady Madam Campbell’s arm as if she’d been waiting for the cue. But Madam Campbell said nothing. She simply looked down at Winston with a cold, emotionless face.
“Perhaps he was innocent at first.” Slowly, deliberately, she began to speak again. Each word sounded as though she was carefully chewing it before letting it out. “But once he manifested as an Omega, things changed. That’s just how they are, isn’t it? Obsessed with that filth—spreading their legs whenever the heat hits them.”
“And Alphas are any different?” Winston shot back, his voice sharp. But Madam Campbell didn’t even blink—she seemed prepared for the question.
“Exactly. That’s what Alphas do—go mad for those Omegas. So now you understand, don’t you? What it’s like to be consumed by pheromones.”
“Yu-jin isn’t like that.”
“That’s just what you want to believe. But how could anyone possibly overcome their nature?”
Rage surged in Winston’s chest, but he knew there were no words that could make her understand. Not his mother, not anyone—they would never believe that Yu-jin was different. But that was the only truth that mattered. That they were different—that belief was his everything. So when that truth was denied, he lost all desire to keep arguing.
“Enough. Just let me see him. Where is Yu-jin?”
Changing tactics, Winston turned to ignoring them entirely. Madam Campbell stared at his face for a while before finally speaking.
“If you want to see him that badly, why don’t you go see him yourself?” Her voice was ice-cold, making Winston instinctively furrow his brow. Still, she continued without pause.
“You don’t trust a word we say, so what choice do we have? If you care that much for him, go on—see for yourself. We won’t involve ourselves in this matter any further.”
Unexpectedly, she backed off far too easily. Winston had been bracing for a stronger fight, so her abrupt surrender left him momentarily stunned.
“…What are you planning?”
“Planning? Watch your tongue!” Catherine snapped, stepping in before Winston could press further.
“We’ve held our tongues for your sake all this time, and this is how you repay us? You’re being incredibly rude. How could you act like this? You could at least pretend to listen—”
“That’s enough, Catherine. Let it go.”
Their mother cut her daughter off with a cold voice, her gaze still locked onto Winston. She continued speaking, never once looking away.
“If you won’t listen, no matter what truth is put before you, then all we can do is wait for you to realize it on your own. Let him go. Winston will be the one who regrets it later.”
Madam Campbell narrowed her eyes and added,
“All we can do is wait, don’t you think?”
Winston said nothing. He only looked back at her, as if to say, Just tell me where Yu-jin is already.
“We’ll begin the discharge process. Wait until then.”
She went on,“If your body’s recovered this much, there’s no reason for you to remain in the hospital, is there? Once everything is finalized, I’ll have a car waiting for you. It’ll take you to where Yu-jin is.”
Madam Campbell curled her lips into a cold, crooked smile.
“I hope your faith doesn’t break.”
Her final words felt like a curse.
Without another word, she turned on her heels and walked out of the hospital room. Gordon and Lady Catherine followed after her, leaving Winston finally alone.
He let out a breath and glanced around. Shreds of the torn photographs still remained on the bed. And of all the images left, his eyes locked with one of Yu-jin’s—his expression dazed, consumed by ecstasy.
With a curse under his breath, Winston snatched up the rest of the photos and threw them into the trash.
Someone’s been forging those photos of Yu-jin and spreading them.
Winston believed it—firmly. There was no way Yu-jin would betray him.
I have to see him.
Otherwise, this sick feeling in his gut wasn’t going to go away. He needed to hold Yu-jin, breathe him in, feel his scent and calm his heart. As soon as Yu-jin said he was okay, everything would fall back into place—just like before.
There’s no way Yu-jin would ever do something like that.
Winston kept repeating it to himself. It’s all fake. It’s just a ploy to drive us apart. No one knows better than I do how pure and innocent he is.
Yu-jin has no one but me.
And the same was true for Winston. No one could replace Yu-jin. They were each other’s only one.
Then why…
Winston clenched his jaw as a cold sweat beaded in his palm.
Why do I keep feeling like something’s wrong?
It nagged at him—the way Madam Campbell and the others had been so calm. They couldn’t have seriously thought this little trick would work on him, so then… why were they so unfazed? Why had they given up so easily?
No. Stop. Don’t think about it anymore.
Shaking his head, he tried to chase away the doubts creeping in.
Is there even any reason to wait? Why not just take the car now and go straight there?
Without hesitating any longer, Winston rose from the bed.
Pain exploded through his body, and with a groan, his knees buckled beneath him. Haa, haa… Harsh, ragged breaths escaped his lips as he froze in place, the agony momentarily paralyzing him. After a long pause, he finally managed to pull himself together, slowly straightening up with great effort.
He called for the guard waiting outside and, with his help, changed clothes. Even that simple act left him barely holding it together as he stepped out of the hospital room at last.
By the time he managed to climb into the car, his entire body was soaked in sweat.
“Are you alright, sir? If it’s too much, there’s some medication in the console box…”
The driver asked anxiously. Following his suggestion, Winston opened the compartment.
His hand trembled so badly that it took him three tries to complete the simple motion. He groped around inside until he found the bottle and a small water bottle, then swallowed the pills all at once.
In the quietly moving vehicle, Winston sat with his eyes closed, silently praying for the medication to kick in. For the pain to end.
For something—anything—to save him from this torment.
But the nightmare was only just beginning.
