Correction Chapter 122

While hospitalized, Jungmin didn’t think about anything else and focused solely on his recovery. That was also a way to lessen the anxiety of Kim Joohwan, who was staying by his side.

Kim Joohwan never left Jungmin’s side while he was in the hospital. Even though it must have been inconvenient in many ways, he continued to live at the hospital with him.

Jungmin, likewise, did not nag Kim Joohwan at all about things like going to work. He just figured he would handle it well on his own, and above all, Jungmin also felt more at ease with Kim Joohwan there, so for the first time, he acted selfishly towards Kim Joohwan.

After ten days of hospital life, he confirmed there was nothing wrong with his body and was discharged. Since he couldn’t go back to his family home, he returned to the house where he had been staying alone and spent about another two weeks recuperating. After recovering some of his strength, Jungmin told Kim Joohwan that he wanted to see Yoo Shinwoo.

“I was waiting for you to say that.”

Kim Joohwan accepted Jungmin’s words as if it were a matter of course, as if he had really been waiting.

“Because you’re the type of person who isn’t satisfied until you sort things out yourself, sunbae. I don’t know whether to call you foolish or steadfast…”

He added, along with a comment that was ambiguously an insult or not.

“But I have a condition. You have to agree to this for me to let you meet him.”

“What is it?”

“Meet him with me. I don’t want to see you and Yoo Shinwoo alone together anymore.”

Looking at Kim Joohwan, who was now making his demands openly, Jungmin blinked his eyes and then smiled.

“Actually, I was going to ask you for that favor. I have no desire to be alone with Shinwoo hyung either. And don’t leave us alone. I might just kill him, you know.”

“Ah, I won’t stop that. Don’t worry and just kill him. I’ll take care of the aftermath.”

At Kim Joohwan’s words, Jungmin laughed out loud, and while drinking orange juice, he suddenly felt his body stiffen. He probably wouldn’t be able to drink plain water anymore. He felt that if anything else tasted even slightly different, he would unconsciously throw it all up.

Kim Joohwan, noticing what Jungmin was thinking, took the orange juice from Jungmin’s hand, took a sip, and then handed it back to Jungmin.

“What are you doing?”

“Being your food taster.”

“Don’t do it if you’re not going to do it for life.”

“I will do it for life. So don’t worry and drink it, sunbae. Something like that will never happen again.”

Jungmin pretended not to hear the word ‘for life,’ which contained both emphasis and coercion, but he knew he could no longer just let it slide.

“Kim Joohwan.”

“Yes.”

He answers so well.

“I’ll end things properly with Shinwoo hyung. So don’t be anxious.”

“…I’m not anxious. It’s just… you’re someone who can live strongly on your own, sunbae.”

“I’m not that strong, though?”

“No. The Shin Jungmin I know is stronger than anyone. The weak one was me.”

“Wow, I can’t agree with that.”

Jungmin laughed, telling him not to be ridiculous, then finished the orange juice he had personally tasted for him and placed the empty cup on the table.

“But that might be because I don’t know you well. Let’s slowly… after we sort this out, let’s talk slowly.”

“Yes… I’ll be waiting.”

He’s not a puppy, how can the words ‘I’ll wait obediently’ be so unfitting… But it genuinely seemed like he wouldn’t budge until told to move and would just quietly stay by his side, which gave Jungmin a sense of relief.

Two days after that, Jungmin met Yoo Shinwoo.

Yoo Shinwoo was in a detention center. Absurdly, the reason he was in the detention center was because of drugs. Kim Joohwan had him detained under various charges, but he later found out that the police had been investigating him on drug charges and cooperated with the investigation. Afterwards, conclusive evidence was secured, and Yoo Shinwoo was confirmed as a drug offender.

Jungmin couldn’t hide his bewilderment at the news. He knew that he had received treatment for drug use in America as well, but to think he had started using again in Korea. Since when, exactly? No, he wasn’t curious. In the end, that was Yoo Shinwoo’s choice, and the one who had to take responsibility was himself.

Jungmin decided to only ask what he was truly curious about.

“It’s been a while.”

That was the first thing Yoo Shinwoo said upon seeing Jungmin. Jungmin clenched his fists tightly. To think that a person whose face alone brought him joy just a few months ago could be so hateful, resentful, and loathsome.

“Are you feeling okay?”

“For you to ask me that, hyung… isn’t it a bit ridiculous?”

“I suppose it is.”

“hyung, why on earth did you do it?”

Kim Joohwan had also asked him multiple times. ‘Why on earth did you do it?’ to Yoo Shinwoo. Each time, he had only replied, ‘I’ll tell Jungmin.’ Each time, Kim Joohwan had wanted to kill Yoo Shinwoo but held back. It was because he thought that killing or saving him was Shin Jungmin’s part to play.

“I just can’t figure it out, no matter how much I think about it. It might have been your child, so why would you do that, hyung? But it seemed like… you knew it wasn’t your child.”

“That’s right. I knew. But you getting pregnant and becoming an omega, that’s what I was waiting for. You have no idea how long I waited.”

“What do you mean?”

“If you had gotten pregnant, I would have killed the child, and if you had become an omega, I thought about… forcing you to mate with another alpha. So that you could live in the same pain as me for the rest of your life.”

His heart… sinks. Kim Joohwan shot up, and Jungmin held him back.

“Why?”

“You still don’t get it? Jungmin, I hate you. I’ve hated you so much for a long time. You, who made me like this… how could I possibly like you? Think about it. I went to America because of you, I broke up with Youngmin because of you, and I did drugs and came back with my body a wreck because of you. It was all because of you. So how could I like you? Even if you could cure this illness, I would have never mated with you. That’s how much I despise and hate you, Shin Jungmin. I hate you for loving me, it’s sickening and disgusting.”

“sunbae, let’s get up.”

This time, Kim Joohwan grabbed Jungmin. As if telling him not to listen anymore, he tried to pull him up, but Jungmin stopped him once again.

“I’m okay.”

“sunbae.”

“Kim Joohwan, I’m okay. Because I need to know.”

Jungmin took a deep breath in and out. His mind and heart were calm. He wasn’t even angry. He felt that the creature in front of him wasn’t a target worthy of his anger.

“So? Because everything is my fault. You wanted to get revenge on me?”

“As expected, you’re smart, Jungmin. You know ten things when I tell you one. But why, why didn’t you know that you and I could never be together? Why didn’t you know that I hate you?”

“So that’s why you dated me?”

“That’s right.”

Now, it all makes sense. The reason Yoo Shinwoo became cold as soon as they started dating, the fact that he slept with other omegas, the complete lack of physical contact… It was all a kind of sign, but he was the one who had ignored it. Like a fool.

“That’s because you’re pathetic, hyung. Why do you blame me? Why is your problem with Youngmin my fault?”

“That bastard Youngmin, I would have killed him someday, too.”

So this was the kind of pathetic person he was… Why did I… like someone like this?

“You twins made me this way.”

“…hyung, stop acting like the victim. Do you remember the university MT trip? You raped me. But I covered it up with love. You shouldn’t be saying things like this.”

It was a relief that he wasn’t allowed to bring in even a small personal item. If he had been holding even a ballpoint pen, he felt like he would have stabbed this man right now.

“What are you talking about. You were the one who wanted to sleep with me. That’s why you came to seduce me, reeking of Youngmin’s pheromones. Disgusting. It’s because of you, Shin Jungmin. Because of you, I!! I got this illness!! If it weren’t for you… if it weren’t for you brothers, I wouldn’t have become like this. Shin Youngmin, if that bastard had just married me!! We would have been different.”

He started spouting nonsensical things that didn’t add up. He bit his fingernails, looking anxious, and shook his leg restlessly. It was clearly a symptom of drug withdrawal. The investigators in charge must have judged it to be dangerous, as they came inside the investigation room. Jungmin got up from his seat.

“Let’s go. I don’t want to be here anymore.”

At Jungmin’s words, Kim Joohwan also got up to follow.

“Jungmin.”

Yoo Shinwoo’s affectionate voice came from behind. But Jungmin did not turn back.

“Don’t leave me. Let’s be together. You like me, hyung. You like me enough to abandon your own secondary gender! You like your hyung. Right?”

No, hyung. The hyung I liked doesn’t exist.

I think he never existed in this world in the first place. It’s just that I was blinded by love and couldn’t see properly. He never existed from the start.

“Hey!! Where are you going!! You should be here too!! You can’t just leave me like this!! Shin Jungmin!!”

Without looking back, he walked out of the police station. The voice ringing out behind him is so loud that his ears hurt as if they would tear. He tried not to cry, but tears came out.

It couldn’t be helped. It wasn’t because he felt sorry for Yoo Shinwoo, nor because they broke up, nor because he would never see him again. He didn’t want to feel self-pity or feel sorry for himself, either. It was simply that the long stretch of time felt like a waste.

“Jungmin sunbae.”

Kim Joohwan grabbed Jungmin’s arm. Then, he offered his handkerchief.

“It’s okay to cry.”

Jungmin stared down at the handkerchief. Did he deserve to receive this? Because he was a fool. He had lost this man’s child, too… did he have that right?

“However, I hope you don’t blame yourself, sunbae. The time that has passed and the feelings you poured out, all of it… It’s all infuriating, but it wasn’t wrong. The one who made it all in vain is that person, so resent and curse that person instead, sunbae. Don’t curse yourself.”

Jungmin accepted the handkerchief.

“Thanks to you, my tears have completely stopped. But I’ll accept it gladly.”

Clutching the handkerchief tightly, Jungmin smiled.

“You should have punched him. I could have handled that much.”

“He wasn’t worth it. I don’t want to waste my energy on something like that. Phew… I’m hungry.”

At Jungmin’s words, Kim Joohwan’s face lit up. He didn’t need to worry anymore.

“I’ll buy you something delicious.”

Jungmin nodded his head. As Kim Joohwan opened the car door for him, Jungmin sat in the passenger seat and closed his eyes. Fortunately, he… did not look back at the past.