“...Pregnancy...?”
I kept my mouth shut for a long while before finally asking the question. It was so absurd that it felt embarrassing to even say it out loud.
“Oh, I just thought I’d ntion it, just in case. Your pheromone levels are extrely unstable. Even considering the suppressants... See here? The graph isn’t consistent, right? This kind of fluctuation can occur in the early stages of pregnancy.”
The doctor explained while showing the test results directly. Before the consultation, they had done a quick blood test and a pheromone test. It was a standard procedure when a phenotype visited the clinic. Of course, it wasn’t sothing that could be definitively diagnosed just by looking, but as the doctor said, the fluctuations in the graph were sharp, as if it were swinging like a pendulum. Even to my untrained eye, it didn’t look normal.
“That can’t be right...”
In my mory—and in Baek Sieon’s mory—nothing like that had ever happened. I could say that with absolute certainty.
“Yes, it could still be sothing else even if it’s not pregnancy.”
Haa... Thank god. If the doctor had drawn this out any longer, I really would’ve lost it. Why did he have to drop the pregnancy bomb first instead of leading with that?
“You seem to have had quite a bit of contact with an Alpha recently... If that’s the case, there’s probably no need to worry too much.”
“...What...? What kind of contact...?”
Today, I feel like my brain has been reduced to mush. Either that or this bastard of a doctor is just screwing with , making it impossible to understand what he’s saying in one go.
“Well... sexual contact.”
Th-this insane bastard!
“There hasn’t been any!”
“Pardon?”
“I haven’t...! No, anyway, I haven’t done anything like that recently!”
I left out the part about never having had any experience at all because that was too embarrassing to admit. But for so reason, my face felt like it was about to explode. It was as if my chastity had been denied, and yet that very chastity didn’t feel entirely like a good thing. Anyway, I felt weird.
“Oh... Then, could it be that there’s a dominant Alpha nearby...? No, normally, just from the pherotype alone, it shouldn’t cause this kind of reaction...”
Hearing his words, a certain face popped into my mind.
“There is. A completely extre dominant Alpha. I don’t know the exact percentile, but in terms of pherotype, he’d definitely be in the top 1%.”
Only then did the doctor’s expression shift as if he had found the answer. The only monster with such an extre pherotype around was Yoon Taeo. And among the already rare phenotypes, those with such dominant traits were even more exceptionally rare.
“Well, in that case, it does make sense... You two must be... really close, huh?”
“...What?”
“Oh, nothing. Anyway, if that’s the case, there shouldn’t be any major issues. You’ll continue with the sa suppressants as before, correct?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
What the hell. Why did he stop talking halfway through? Now I’m even more curious.
“Then, just co back in two weeks.”
I stood up, feeling irritated at the doctor’s smug face, as if he had just solved the whole issue on his own. Sothing about this still felt incredibly unsettling.
“Oh, patient.”
Just as I was about to step out of the examination room, he called out to again.
“Be careful. Judging by the current levels, it wouldn’t be strange if your heat cycle hits at any mont.”
“...What...?”
The doctor bid farewell with a calm, gentle smile. As if he hadn’t just thrown a bombshell and walked away without a care.
❖ ❖ ❖
The doctor had kept it vague. He only reiterated that my pheromone levels were unstable to the point where a heat cycle could strike at any mont, yet it was still possible to mask them with suppressants. Nothing more. No further explanation.
“Why are you so late! Do you know how flustered I was when the CEO called?”
“I’m sorry. The appointnt got backed up.”
After carefully concealing the dication and making my way back to the parking lot, Kang Seokho greeted with a face that looked like he was about to burst into tears.
“Haa... We’re late. Get in.”
“Late for what...?”
“How the hell would I know? You and the CEO made the plans.”
What the hell is he even talking about? Kang Seokho kept spewing things that made no sense as he hastily started the car.
“But, Chief Baek... Don’t you think you’ve really pissed off the CEO this ti...?”
“What...?”
Kang Seokho’s tone was different from usual—devoid of any playful sarcasm. The brief glance he shot through the rearview mirror wasn’t a joke either.
“Haa... To be honest, the CEO is currently digging up any evidence that you tried to run away.”
He was investigating everything—ports, immigration offices, brokers who forged fake identities, and organizations that specialized in smuggling people out. If I had genuinely planned to run, there was no way I wouldn’t get caught.
“I think he’s really out to get you, trying to find concrete proof and completely destroy you. What are you going to do?”
I never had any plans to run away, but hearing that made feel a little queasy. If even a single false rumor surfaced sowhere, my neck would be on the line. Just like the ones in the Secretary Team who had tried to run away before.
“...You started all this ss, and now you’re pretending to be worried...?”
“No, I was just... I was only joking when I said it! I didn’t think the CEO would take it so seriously... And to be fair, it did kind of look that way.”
Honestly, the situation had been a little suspicious. Before my first day off in ages, I had cleaned out my desk, thinking I wouldn’t be back for a while. I left my na tag on the center of the desk to avoid losing it, packed so clothes, and headed back to my apartnt to sleep there for the first ti in forever. And to top it off, I missed several calls while chatting with Gyuil.
And most crucially... yeah, my mood had been pretty terrible lately. All because of Yoon Taeo.
“We’re here. Get out.”
“...Why are we here?”
“How the hell would I know? Get out. I’ve got places to be.”
Under Kang Seokho’s urging, I got out of the car. Despite being outside, the lobby had several heaters strategically placed, radiating enough warmth to keep out the chill. Kang Seokho parked the car and ca to stand right beside .
Before I could even ask what the hell was going on, a familiar SUV pulled up in front of us.
“...What brings the CEO here...?”
Yoon Taeo stepped out of the car, wearing a thin black coat. The sun had just set, and it was still during business hours. Running into him here, at this unexpected place, felt off.
“Where’s your na tag?”
Ah, right.
“Oh... I-I couldn’t wear it to the hospital...”
I fumbled through my pockets and took out the na tag, fastening it around my neck.
“I’m pretty sure I told you not to take it off without my permission.”
Ignoring my question, Yoon Taeo grabbed my wrist and led inside the building. Kang Seokho naturally fell a few steps behind, maintaining a careful distance.
“Well, it’s just... If I’d known you’d be here, I wouldn’t have taken it off... But can I please just take it off for a mont?”
I put it on as soon as I heard Taeo’s voice, but honestly, I wanted to rip it off imdiately. It was the middle of a weekday afternoon at a Gangnam departnt store, and the childish na tag made feel like every eye was on . My neck was burning.
“If you don’t like it, I could make you one as a necklace. I think I said that before.”
“No! No, it’s fine... Seriously.”
If it’s Taeo, he’d do it. I wouldn’t put it past him to give a na tag necklace that I could never take off for the rest of my life.
“You ca out of the hospital pretty late.”
“Oh... There were a lot of people.”
The word “hospital” fell from his lips, and my heart plumted. Was he implying sothing? Did he know sothing? But from the way he said it, it didn’t seem like he was aware of anything specific.
“Well, they said I’m almost fully recovered. They said I’m fine...”
You know how they say that when you lie, you tend to over-explain? That’s exactly what was happening. My mouth just kept running with details no one asked for.
“Why do you get sick so often? Were you always this frail?”
...To be honest, the only ti I was genuinely sick was that one ti I caught a cold. Every other ti had been a lie or an excuse.
“Yeah... I’m kind of... weak like that.”
Well, since it’s already co to this, might as well play the sympathy card and milk it for what it’s worth, right?
“So you’re just lying to my face now, huh, Sieon?”
“...I’m sorry. Actually, I’m pretty healthy...”
His hand landed on my shoulder with a firm grip, and I had no choice but to confess the truth. Sotis, Yoon Taeo was clueless as a brick. But other tis, it was like he could see right through . Unfortunately, this was the ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) latter.
“So... why are you here?”
“Are you seriously asking because you don’t know?”
I must still be way off the mark. Even as he pulled into the basent food court of the departnt store, I had no idea what he was up to. What the hell... What is he trying to say...? I glanced up and caught sight of Yoon Taeo’s eyebrow twitching at a sharp angle. That was a bad sign. Crisis mode. I needed to get my brain in gear.
“Oh! Of course, I know! Why wouldn’t I know...?”
“Then what?”
Phew. Maybe it was because I’d had a rare day off to relax, but my mind suddenly sparked with the right answer.
“We’re here to buy dinner ingredients for our CEO! Let’s hurry and get what we need and head ho!”
“...Our...?”
“I wonder if they have venison...?”
“...Whatever.”
The nonsense I blurted out just happened to be the correct answer. But did I say sothing wrong again? Why did his expression get even weirder...?
Relieved to have avoided a bullet, I started to grab a shopping basket and place it in the cart.
“Let go.”
“What...?”
Before I could even ask what he was doing, the cart went flying to the side. Taeo had pushed it away carelessly, yet it just so happened to roll smoothly and stop right in front of Kang Seokho.
Seokho stood there, dumbfounded, before catching on and awkwardly started pushing the cart towards us.
“Let’s go.”
And just like that, Kang Seokho beca our porter.
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