Correction Chapter 105

He didn’t think he would be unconditionally happy.

He was too old to dream such sweet dreams, and it wasn’t as if he didn’t know reality.

But… he thought that if he had just one part happiness, he could do without the other nine.

Was even that a foolish thought and wish?

✽✽✽

─One year later

“Phew….”

His back ached, and the hole that had received the penis ached. What was bitter about it all was that it didn’t hurt as much as it used to. Rather, just a little bit, it had reached a point where he even thought, ‘Wouldn’t this be okay?’ He never had much pride as an alpha to begin with, but for things to become like this… he wasn’t sure whether to say that man was amazing.

Walking down the street, Jungmin decided he couldn’t go on and sat down lightly on the edge of a flowerbed. It was quiet with no people around, perhaps because it was a bit of a secluded spot.

He looked up at the sky and saw it was dyed black and filled with dark clouds. Maybe it will rain tomorrow…. It had been a long time since he’d sobered up, and he really should be heading home… but Jungmin took out his quiet phone, which hadn’t buzzed for hours, to check if he had any messages.

There were a few messages: a picture of a baby from Youngmin, who had recently remarried and had a daughter, boasting about his child, and a few messages looking for him in a group chat with his old hospital colleagues.

Other than that… there was nothing. The message thread containing the message he was truly waiting for and wanted to see was far down, requiring a long scroll.

He smiled bitterly and opened his internet browser. He read and reread the ‘Alpha Pregnancy’ news article he had seen earlier in the day. Nowhere did it say that the pregnant alpha had become an omega. It just said ‘alpha’.

But that’s not enough…. Is it really impossible? Jungmin sighed again and looked up at the sky.

His heart kept crumbling. He thought he could endure it, but maybe he was just tired.

“Huh?”

Suddenly, a bright light shone toward Jungmin. It was so dazzling that he closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them, a car was slowly approaching. It was the same car he had just had sex in. What? Didn’t he leave? Did I see wrong? While Jungmin was blinking, the owner of the car got out and came over.

“What are you doing here?”

“Uh….”

He hadn’t seen wrong. The alpha who had thoroughly used his body and then left so coldly was standing before him as if nothing had happened.

“Didn’t you leave? Did I leave something in the car?”

“You even took the injection, your body’s not in a normal state right now, so why aren’t you going home quickly?”

Kim Joohwan tutted and took off his own jacket, draping it over Jungmin’s shoulders.

“I’m fine.”

When Jungmin tried to give the jacket back, Kim Joohwan quickly stopped him.

“It’s fine. I’ll take you home. Get up.”

“Um….”

Jungmin didn’t get up, just sat there and smiled as if slightly troubled.

“You can’t get up?”

“It seems so. Thanks to a certain someone.”

“Don’t blame others… you drank too much, sunbae.”

“And I had the drug on top of that… thinking about it, it’s amazing my body is even intact.”

“Who said it’s intact?”

He still couldn’t build muscle, and the trembling in his hands remained. He was trying hard to manage his body, including exercising, so it wasn’t that obvious on the outside, and he was only keeping it somewhat under control with medication. Jungmin’s body was a complete mess. And the only people who knew this were currently Jungmin and Kim Joohwan.

“Get up. I’ll help you.”

As if he had no choice, Kim Joohwan grabbed Jungmin’s arm and helped him to his feet. He didn’t think it was necessary to go this far… but when he actually stood up, he couldn’t stand straight. All the strength drained from his body, and he felt nauseous. Jungmin pushed Kim Joohwan away and threw up everything he had eaten. Watching him, Kim Joohwan tutted and patted his back.

“Let’s increase the interval between your injections.”

“…No.”

Jungmin managed to say one word before heaving again for a long time. Since he hadn’t eaten properly, the liquid coming out was just clear, but it was agonizing. After emptying his stomach completely, he managed to get into the car with Kim Joohwan’s help.

It was definitely the car he had been entangled with just a while ago, but there was no smell, and the seats were clean. Of course, they had been neat about it, but… there was no trace of their earlier lovemaking.

Jungmin sat in the passenger seat and closed his eyes. He felt the seat recline slightly and Kim Joohwan fastening his seatbelt, but he remained still. He didn’t have the strength to lift a single finger right now.

Then, suddenly, he felt a strange sensation on his lips and opened his eyes to see Kim Joohwan wiping the corners of his mouth with his own handkerchief.

“What… why are you doing this…?”

“…You’re drooling all over the place, so am I supposed to just leave it?”

“I’m not drooling… I’ll wipe it.”

“I already wiped it all anyway.”

“Then give me that handkerchief. I’ll buy you a new one.”

“…Alright. Fine.”

Kim Joohwan tossed the handkerchief to Jungmin as if throwing it. Jungmin painstakingly picked up the handkerchief, stuffed it into his pocket, and closed his eyes again. Then, as if something suddenly occurred to him, he sat up, and Kim Joohwan silently pressed him back down.

“Home address….”

“I know it. How many times have I taken you home?”

“Ah…. Right.”

He could feel the strength draining from Jungmin’s voice, his pronunciation becoming slurred.

“Sleep. I’ll wake you up when we get there.”

“Uh… but I feel bad. You were supposed to meet an omega… today….”

“Stop with the useless talk, and sleep.”

Despite saying that, Jungmin continued to mumble to himself for a while longer before slowly leaning his body against the seat. Soon, the tension left his body, and the sound of even breathing filled the car. Kim Joohwan took a blanket from the back seat and covered Jungmin with it. It wasn’t cold enough to feel the chill yet, but Jungmin often said he felt cold these days, perhaps because he couldn’t regulate his body temperature properly anymore. It was true that his body felt colder to the touch than before.

He turned off the car engine and looked at the sleeping Jungmin.

“An omega, my ass.”

It’s getting hard to lie anymore. Every time, pretending not to be interested, pretending to meet omegas so he wouldn’t feel burdened…. But if he hadn’t, this man would not have kept him by his side.

That’s bitter, too…. Why doesn’t he show any interest in me when he likes another alpha so much? Then again, considering what I’ve done, is this karma?… Sadly, Kim Joohwan was very good at self-assessment.

“Shin Jungmin.”

He reached out and stroked his hair. Did you ever think you would do something this foolish again? He had hoped to get involved with Shin Jungmin again, but not in this form. The expectation that another path might open up was also futile. The wheel of fate was not that forgiving.

Jungmin’s reunion with Kim Joohwan was a year after they had last spent a rut together. It was in the hallway of the research ward.

Upon hearing the news that Yoo Shinwoo had been brought to the hospital on the verge of cardiac arrest, Kim Joohwan had rushed to the research institute. It wasn’t because he was worried about Yoo Shinwoo. It was because of Shin Jungmin, who would be going through hell by his side.

The best and most renowned doctors and researchers would be attending to Yoo Shinwoo, but he knew that no one would be taking care of Jungmin, who would be despairing by his side….

Sure enough, when Kim Joohwan arrived at the hospital, Jungmin looked utterly exhausted.

「Sunbae.」

Kim Joohwan called out cautiously. At that, Jungmin, who had been praying with his hands clasped and head bowed, slowly looked up. He looked surprised to see Kim Joohwan’s face for a moment, then smiled bitterly.

‘…I guess it was meant to be like this.’

That one sentence held many meanings.

He knew that Shin Jungmin hadn’t stopped taking the drug to become an omega. Kim Joohwan always tracked his movements. He knew he was acquiring the drug, and Kim Joohwan had secretly bought out that pharmaceutical company.

He provided the drug Jungmin wanted but didn’t give him anything that would harm his body. Nevertheless, there was no way a body, once broken, would return to normal. His once healthy-looking skin had lost its glow, and his body was withered and gaunt.

He had always been watching from afar and receiving reports, but seeing him in person was different. How did it come to this? You left in search of love. I thought you would be happy by Yoo Shinwoo’s side. It was infuriating and drove me crazy, but how many times did I suppress myself, thinking that if you were smiling, that would be good enough? But he didn’t look happy at all.

The problem was Yoo Shinwoo’s condition. He had failed to find an omega with a high compatibility rate during the three-month grace period. He had proudly declared he would live on with medicine, but in less than half a year, his body developed a resistance to the drugs, and his health rapidly deteriorated again, forcing him to be hospitalized. After that, at Yoo Shinwoo’s request, they searched for omegas again and attempted to form a bond several times, but all attempts failed. That was still ongoing.

Shin Jungmin had watched the entire process from the sidelines.

‘It’s because of me.’

Feeling guilty.

‘It’s because I’m by his side….’

The Shin Jungmin who had always been dignified and confident… who had been full of light, had disappeared in just one year. That was absolutely not the future Kim Joohwan wanted. But paradoxically, it was an opportunity. A golden opportunity to re-tie what had been severed.