The House of Three Chapter 2.2

In case he might get stabbed, Heeyoung, who was hastily pulling his bottom back, sucked in a sharp breath at the murderous presence he felt from above.

When he cautiously raised his head, what he saw were two eyes, just as murderous as the presence.

His quietly startled body had long since frozen like a stone. While Heeyoung couldn’t make a single move, Gyojin tilted his head askew and observed his dazed face.

He, having chanced upon Heeyoung, stared at him with unnerving persistence. His gaze, as if asking, ‘Where did that thing pop up from?’, was nothing short of chilling. Even when the terrified Heeyoung lowered his eyes, the burdensome stare was not easily withdrawn.

After scanning Heeyoung’s attire and realizing he was an employee here, Gyojin shot a glance at the manager who was standing there foolishly.

The moment the cool gaze landed on him, the manager, letting out a small “Hic!” in fright, rushed out like an arrow and roughly grabbed the arm of the kneeling Heeyoung.

“Hey, get up. Come over here…”

As if summoning strength from nowhere, the manager dragged Heeyoung, who was about the same height as him, and placed him among the other employees. Having blended in and naturally become a bystander, Heeyoung was in a daze, not knowing what was happening.

Am I the only one this shocked?

Looking around, he saw that the other employees’ faces were also deathly pale. However, that was merely a fleeting expression. The employees, stroking their chests, soon let out sighs of relief and showed faint smiles. Someone muttered that it was a relief the boss had arrived.

The boss… So that man who suddenly stormed in and swung a beer bottle was the boss.

Still, this was a situation that could by no means be called a relief.

Heeyoung, who had been stealthily watching the employees with a somewhat uncomfortable gaze, looked straight ahead. The boss who had been looking down at him so murderously had turned his back as if nothing had happened. He didn’t seem satisfied even after striking the customer’s head with a beer bottle, showing no intention of leaving Room 5.

Standing with his weight on one leg, Gyojin took a cigarette from his back pocket, put it in his mouth, and lit it. Sucking on the filter with a gusto that made his cheeks cave in, he snatched a bill pad from a nearby employee.

The bill, now in his hand, soon fell onto the customer’s head. Thwack! After striking the head, the bill fluttered down limply, stained with the customer’s dark red blood. But Cha Gyojin remained unfazed by it and exhaled a long plume of cigarette smoke he had drawn deep into his lungs.

“You spent this much money to cause a scene? A man has his pride, where do you get off causing a fuss with such petty cash, huh? Huh? You’ve ruined today’s business because of you.”

Unlike the manager who had been gently placating the customer, saying, “We’re sorry, Boss, please calm down,” Gyojin’s method was incomparably rough. His attitude of prioritizing only his establishment and its profits made him seem like a vicious boss.

Was it his words that provoked him? The customer, who had been groaning after being hit with the beer bottle, began to fumble at his head with his swollen hand. When sticky blood smeared his palm, he breathed out in rage, “Hiss, hiss,” and shot his head up.

“Are you crazy? Ouch, you hit my head with a bottle, how dare you, not knowing how scary the world is… Shit, the boss, tell the boss to come out! No, no. Call the police right now!”

The way he tried to stop the bleeding with one hand while flailing the other to order someone to call the police was as pathetic as a dying insect.

Tsk. Gyojin, standing haughtily and looking down at the customer, clicked his tongue, not hiding his annoyance.

“Look at this punk. If you have something to say, say it. I’m here, the boss. Because of your damn rampage, I couldn’t even finish what I was doing and had to grace you with my presence all the way here.”

His tone, mocking the other man, was frigid. The customer, who had flinched for a moment at Gyojin’s unbendingly stiff attitude, soon shouted again, raising his voice. It was a desperate cry, as if making a final struggle after being cornered.

“I’m a customer, for god’s sake! These guys are being so damn disrespectful! Are you the boss? Then manage your employees properly, you hear me. An Omega bastard holding his head up so stiffly and acting all defiant, and even bringing along some brat, so unlucky, shit! And this, I’m not going to just let it go that you broke my head!”

In a situation where the customer might call the police at any moment and press charges, Gyojin let out a small, ambiguous laugh. He then followed up with a question in a dry voice.

“A brat?”

At that single phrase, not only the customer but also the employees watching from the sidelines gulped down dry saliva. For some reason, the tension that had been filling Room 5 felt as if it had grown even heavier.

As Gyojin fell silent, the room was filled with utter stillness. The only sound to be heard was the faint noise of him flicking the long ash from his cigarette with his fingertip.

Before long, the cigarette butt was thrown to the floor. The sound of Gyojin’s dress shoes taking a brisk step toward the customer was also briefly heard.

“Hey.”

He called out to the customer in a thuggish tone. The customer, his lips trembling, opened his mouth to answer defiantly, but what followed was not a greasy voice but a horrific impact sound.

THUD!

Gyojin had slammed the customer’s head into the table.

Heeyoung realized for the first time in his life that someone could grip a person’s head with one hand like a basketball and inflict violence so brutally.

Since the table was made of marble, the impact must have been even more severe. Smashing a head that was already bleeding from a beer bottle hit, the bones might have been crushed.

Isn’t this punishment enough? No matter how much of a nuisance the customer was, this, this was crossing the line.

But Gyojin, as if this was just the beginning, started to truly reveal his temper.

He picked up the ashtray and brought it down on the customer’s head several times. His large build was threatening enough on its own, but the sight of him wielding violence with that body was shocking in itself.

The customer’s condition was already a wreck. He was in such a wretched state that even if he were rushed to the emergency room right now, he likely wouldn’t escape becoming a vegetable. The customer, who had initially let out groans like “Ugh,” had lost consciousness and was only letting out strained, shallow breaths.

Gyojin only stopped the violence after the man was completely broken.

“Hey, Sir. Haven’t you heard the rumors about this place? We only treat the suckers who spend money like kings.”

Smiling kindly enough for his dimples to show, he lifted the customer’s chin and continued.

“When a pathetic thing like you crawls in here, chugs a few bottles of cheap liquor, and acts up, how do you think the gangster who manages this place feels, huh? Especially when I’m busy as fuck. I’d feel like dunking you.”

“…”

“But turns out this bastard didn’t just cause a scene, he messed with a kid too? Tell me, am I pissed or not?”

His two eyes, fixed on the customer, glinted fiercely. A murderous intent was laced into every word he uttered. Just hearing it was enough to make one’s knees buckle, but the unconscious customer, with his eyes rolled back and gasping for air, seemed to have no idea what he was saying.

When no discernible reaction came, Gyojin slapped the customer’s cheek with his palm.

“Wake up. Why are you such a crybaby.”

A crybaby. That was by no means a reaction that could be called being a crybaby. How could anyone stay conscious after being struck in the head multiple times in such a short period?

Straightening his back, Gyojin opened a bottle of water from the table and poured the cold water over the customer’s face. The customer, suddenly doused with water, coughed violently and blinked his eyes open, and only then did Gyojin, seemingly satisfied, take out another cigarette and jabber on.

“You know what the filthiest thing in the world is? Bastards who act high and mighty towards the weak and raise their hands so easily.”

As he said this, he shooed away the nearby employees and quietly closed the door to Room 5.

“And I’m the kind of guy who gets off on catching scumbags like you and beating the shit out of them, thinking, ah, so I was a human being after all!”

Click.

The door locked soon after, and the barely smoked cigarette fell between the customer’s legs.

“Heuk…!”

Cold water was once again poured over the bloodied customer’s face.

🌿

“Ah, cold!”

The child, who had sucked on the straw with his lips puckered adorably, wrinkled his nose. After tasting the lemonade filled to the brim with ice, he immediately reached for the french fries.

Heeyoung sat opposite him, watching the child quietly as he mumbled and swallowed a french fry longer than his own finger.

About 15 minutes ago, Heeyoung, who had been chased out of Room 5, had discovered the child standing blankly amidst the chaotic situation.

The child, standing alone among the employees, was staring at Room 5 with eyes full of curiosity. Inside, the boss was still on a rampage, and despite the door being closed, the sounds of things breaking and crashing didn’t cease.

Exposing a child to a situation rampant with all sorts of profanity and violence was tantamount to abuse. The scene witnessed, even for a brief moment, could potentially remain as a lifelong trauma.

So, Heeyoung bypassed the employees who were busy whispering amongst themselves and quietly left the establishment with the child. His intention was to protect the child in a safe place until the situation was resolved.

The place he came to after leaving the alley lined with entertainment establishments was a hamburger joint located in a nearby downtown area.

When Heeyoung offered to buy him a hamburger, the child insisted on french fries and ice cream. Though he had been glancing around cautiously when he first followed along, once he stood in front of the kiosk, he grinned as if that had never happened and shrewdly selected the items he wanted to eat.

While the child ate his french fries, Heeyoung carefully checked his small face to see if there were any scratches. He had planned to take him to the hospital immediately if he was hurt, but thankfully, not a single scratch, not even the size of a fingernail, was found.

“How old are you, little one? An elementary schooler?”

As Heeyoung, who had been just watching him eat, spoke, the child looked up with a start and answered cheerfully.

“Yep, 1st grade.”

“What’s your name?”

“Me? I’m Cha Cheonghyun.”

Cha Cheonghyun. Even though he was young, his features were so distinct and sharp that he probably heard people around him say how handsome he was, and it seemed his parents had given him a cool name as well.

Cheonghyun, Cha Cheonghyun. Heeyoung rolled the child’s name on his tongue, a slight smile pulling at the corners of his lips.

“That’s a pretty name. I’m Heeyoung. Lee Heeyoung.”

“Heeyoung, Lee Heeyoung… That’s really unique.”

Cheonghyun did the same. He muttered Heeyoung’s name with a slight lisp. Looking closely, Heeyoung saw that he was missing a front tooth. Right, his baby teeth would be starting to fall out around this age.

He really is… a little kid. I never thought I’d get involved with this child in this way. It felt strange to be having a pure conversation after so long.

“You must have been really scared earlier. Let’s stay here with me for a bit before we go back.”

“Okay, then.”

By the way, Cheonghyun had a peculiar side to him for his age. He showed no signs of fear despite being separated from his parent, and he was perfectly fine even after witnessing the boss storm in and cause a ruckus. Even now, he wasn’t whining about when he would see his dad but was more focused on tearing open a ketchup packet.

“Here, let me do it.”

Feeling a sense of oddity, Heeyoung quickly took the ketchup and squeezed it onto the tray. He also folded up the sleeve of the child’s thick clothes once to make it easier for Cheonghyun to eat. Thanks to his experience raising his younger brother on his back, his handling of the child was gentle and adept.

Unlike Heeyoung, who was used to this, Cheonghyun seemed somewhat awkward. He flinched the moment Heeyoung’s hand touched him, freezing like a stone, and suddenly his ears turned beet red.

In that state, Cheonghyun, who had been sneaking glances at Heeyoung, suddenly mustered up the courage to ask.

“Aren’t you gonna eat?”

It was an absurdly cute use of informal speech. Perhaps his father, busy working at the bar, hadn’t paid much attention to his education.

“Yeah, it’s okay, I don’t need to eat. But Cheonghyun, you shouldn’t call me ‘you’. You should call me ‘hyung’.”

It bothered him too much to just let it go, so when he gently corrected him, Cheonghyun surprisingly nodded obediently. It seemed he wasn’t a rebellious child who had gone astray early on, but a child who still had much to learn.

It was a heartbreaking reality, but children who grew up in poverty often missed out on even basic education due to their deprived environment. There were so many things that parents, not schools, should teach, but those very parents were too busy making a living to spare any attention for their children.

Heeyoung suspected Cheonghyun might be a child with such circumstances.

“Hey, Cheonghyun. Where are your parents?”

“At the bar. But I only have one dad!”

“Ah, I see…”

To think he had only one father who worked at an entertainment establishment, his circumstances were worse than expected.

“Let’s go back to your dad after that mean man leaves.”

“…Okay.”

Heeyoung deliberately reassured Cheonghyun, who didn’t seem particularly anxious. Even if he appeared fine on the outside, he might be looking for his father on the inside. Conversely, the child’s father back at the establishment might be frantically searching for Cheonghyun.

After hearing his answer, he reached out and gently wiped the ice cream smeared on Cheonghyun’s mouth. It was an unconscious action. Along with it, he even muttered to himself, “Gosh, you’re getting it all over yourself,” causing Cheonghyun, who had stopped his spoon mid-air, to look up at Heeyoung with sparkling eyes.

Cheonghyun had been flinching every time Heeyoung’s touch landed on him since earlier. His father Gyojin’s expressions of affection were always rough and playful, the man who drove him to and from school was as blunt as a bear, and he had been subtly disliked by the older guys working at the establishment. It was only natural for him to be surprised by each and every one of Heeyoung’s endlessly gentle touches.

Heeyoung showed Cheonghyun warmth without any particular reason. Even though they had just met, he had readily stepped forward to fight the bad man, bought him french fries and ice cream, squeezed the ketchup for him, and wiped his mouth.

But what he liked most of all was that he had held his hand tightly the whole way from the establishment to the hamburger place.

‘My teacher said there are kind-hearted angels living up in heaven.’

Could this hyung be an angel who can’t go back to heaven because his wings were taken away?

Cheonghyun’s earlobes, filled with this pure question, turned red once again.

Cheonghyun, whose sparkling, star-like eyes held only Heeyoung, hesitated before asking.

“Hey, hyung. Why are you so nice to me?”

“Because it’s you, Cheonghyun. We just met today, but I like you and want to be friends.”

“Why? Why though?”

This time, not just his earlobes but his entire face turned red as Cheonghyun asked again. When the answer didn’t come quickly, he slyly tugged on Heeyoung’s collar and urged, “Huh? Hyung, why do you like me? Why do you want to be friends with me?”

Was it because of the title he hadn’t heard in such a long time? Heeyoung barely held back the feeling of his heart clenching and his eyes growing hot. It was because the image of his late younger brother overlapped with Cheonghyun’s innocent face.

He had never confided in anyone about his family after his permanent farewell with his brother, but now, while talking to another person, Heeyoung uttered the word ‘brother’ for the first time.

“Actually, hyung had a younger brother as young as you, Cheonghyun. Maybe it’s because he reminds me of my brother, but I feel a great sense of familiarity with you, Cheonghyun, so that’s why I want to be friends.”

“A brother? Where is your brother, hyung?”

It was a difficult answer for a young child to understand. When the innocent question returned, Heeyoung smiled quietly and skillfully changed the subject.

“Well… Cheonghyun, do you want a cheese stick too? Hyung will buy you one.”

“Is that okay?”

“Of course, it’s okay.”

When he deliberately pointed to the cheese stick drawn on the advertisement poster and offered, an excited Cheonghyun nodded his head vigorously. He seemed to have completely forgotten about the brother story.

Heeyoung placed the newly bought cheese stick in Cheonghyun’s mouth. Cheonghyun, who had been munching on the cheese stick as if he’d been waiting for it, hesitantly offered the remaining cheese stick to Heeyoung.

His thoughtfulness was so admirable. Heeyoung smiled brightly and stroked the child’s cheeks.

Cheonghyun’s whole body stiffened, and he couldn’t even meet Heeyoung’s eyes, just munching with his mouth. The cheeks that the faint warmth had swept over were a sea of fire.

Heeyoung, oblivious, was only concerned with the temperature of the heater inside the restaurant.

The two spent forty minutes at the hamburger joint before getting up. By now, the establishment should have been cleaned up. Heeyoung held Cheonghyun’s hand tightly and quickly passed through the street lined with entertainment establishments.

It was just as they were dodging drunk people and had arrived in front of Ignis.

An unusually large man popped out from the entrance. Heeyoung instinctively took a step back and stopped in his tracks.

The man’s identity was the boss. The boss who had suddenly stormed in and beaten the customer to a pulp. As soon as he spotted Heeyoung and Cheonghyun standing blankly in front of the building, he scrunched up the space between his eyebrows and strode towards them.

“Oh, there! There he is, Cheonghyun. Hey, Lee Heeyoung. What do you think you’re doing, taking the kid!”

Behind him was the manager as well. The manager, who seemed to have had a rough time, his forehead drenched in sweat, immediately began to berate Heeyoung, busy watching Gyojin’s expression.

What is this situation. Before Heeyoung could even grasp the atmosphere, Gyojin, who had approached, looked down intently at the two of them standing with their hands held tightly, and raised one eyebrow crookedly.

“Cha Cheonghyun, follow me.”

Then he commanded in a voice that sounded as if he could harm the child at any moment.

His behavior, appearing out of nowhere and scaring the child, didn’t look good at all. Besides, of all people, he couldn’t understand why someone like the boss was trying to take Cheonghyun.

Isn’t that man the boss who runs this huge entertainment establishment and a gangster who could beat a person to death without blinking an eye?

Sure enough, a terrified Cheonghyun let out a frightened “Hic!” and hid behind Heeyoung’s legs. It was heart-wrenching to see the small child squirming to somehow survive, so Heeyoung completely hid Cheonghyun’s body and stood blocking Gyojin’s path.

He knew it was an audacious act, but he couldn’t just hand over a helpless child to a gangster to save his own skin.

The manager, watching Heeyoung’s sudden action, covered his face with both hands as if in despair, while Gyojin let out a scoff as if in disbelief and took another step closer.

Just one step. It was only one step, but due to his wide stride, the distance between the two of them narrowed drastically.

Heeyoung stealthily looked up at Gyojin, who had come right up to his nose. Facing him up close, his massive frame felt particularly intimidating. His body, with its broad chest and the solid muscles firmly set on his shoulders, felt especially fierce.

He was a man to whom the words gangster, or loan shark, or mobster, suited better than anyone, and he was, in fact, a loan shark and a mobster. Half of the monthly salary he received for a month’s work would probably go into Gyojin’s pocket, so it wasn’t exactly a wrong statement.

When his thoughts reached that point, a slight sense of fear crept in, and his spine felt a chill.

I need to look away, quickly. But Gyojin would not withdraw the gaze he had fixed so intently on him.

It was more than just an angry or annoyed gaze; the emotion dwelling in his pitch-black pupils was peculiar. It was a gaze that seemed to not only meticulously scan a stranger but also to peer into his very soul.

As the persistence deepened, a faint pheromone leaked from him. It was not the kind of pheromone carelessly released in an unguarded moment.

The scent, rough like him yet subtly alluring, enveloped his body precisely, so Heeyoung could in no way judge this as a mistake.

Gulp. As he swallowed to wet his parched throat, his Adam’s apple bobbed greatly. Enduring the pheromone with his whole body, a dominant Alpha’s unique pheromone that was distinctly different from other Alphas, made it difficult to even stand still.

Was he feeling a strange sense of displeasure, as if he had been stripped bare?

“Omega?”

Gyojin asked out of the blue. He asked it intentionally, despite knowing that all the men working in his establishment were Omegas.

As Heeyoung hesitated to answer, not understanding the intention, the manager who had been standing with bated breath spoke up instead.

“Yes, Boss. He’s a Recessive. First time seeing his face, right? Ha, haha. He’s a kid who came in as a waiter a month ago.”

Even to the sycophantic voice, Gyojin only reacted coldly. “Ah.” After a short, indifferent sigh, he scanned Heeyoung’s thin body with a meaningful gaze.

He felt a naked pressure, but Heeyoung held on, putting strength into both legs. It was a sign that he would never hand over the child hidden behind him.

Gyojin, despite having noticed the meaning, did not back down easily. On the contrary, he even bent his waist to match Heeyoung’s eye level and spat out rude words without hesitation.

“Not moving?”

Heeyoung bit his lip tightly, thinking about how to handle this situation. The manager gave him a look as if to say, “Don’t do anything foolish and just move aside quietly,” but he pretended not to see it and opened his mouth.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t understand why you, the Boss, are trying to take the child.”

Although it was clearly a confrontational statement, coming from Heeyoung’s mouth, it sounded only polite. It was calm and gentle, yet strangely, there was a daring side to it.

Gyojin looked at the lips that were talking back to him in a soft, low voice as if they were pathetic, and then sneered.

“Do I need to get your permission to take my own kid? What, are you his dad or something?”

“…Excuse me?”

For Heeyoung, it was a statement he couldn’t possibly believe.

My own kid? So, the boss is Cheonghyun’s father?

Not a waiter struggling to raise a child alone while working at an entertainment establishment without a spouse, but the boss of Ignis, that man who is nothing short of a delinquent, is the child’s father? He felt as if he had been struck on the back of the head.

While the astonished Heeyoung couldn’t close his mouth, Gyojin sternly warned the tightly hidden Cheonghyun.

“Cha Cheonghyun, return to your position.”

Even if he was his father, his tone for addressing his son was awfully thuggish.

Could it be, he’s not abusing Cheonghyun, is he?

For a moment, a plausible suspicion arose. His scary tone, and the fact that he left a child unattended in an entertainment establishment like this. There was more than one strange thing.

“…Hiccup!”

Meanwhile, Cheonghyun, feeling a sense of crisis at his father’s roar, hiccupped and hid further behind Heeyoung’s legs. He had been severely scolded by his father before for disturbing the employees working at the establishment, and he couldn’t even guess how much he would be scolded this time.

So, after racking his brain, Cheonghyun came up with a clever idea and chose to cling to Heeyoung.

“Hyung, please save me…”

As Cheonghyun whimpered pitifully, Heeyoung’s eyes, now convinced of child abuse, flew open fiercely.

As the two of them suddenly took sides and glared at him, Gyojin showed an unfiltered reaction of genuine disbelief.

“Well, well, look at these two. What are you doing?”

Even though he swaggered and gestured for him to come over, Cheonghyun didn’t listen and just shook his head ‘no, no’. Heeyoung, knowing nothing, was busy openly protecting Cheonghyun and shielding him with his body.

Ha, for fuck’s sake, what is this situation…

Muttering to himself at the ridiculous situation, Gyojin irritably rubbed the area near his eyebrows. He had been called a son of a bitch and a bastard here and there, but this was the first time he’d been treated like a child abuser.

He beckoned with his finger towards Cheonghyun, who was hiding quietly with only his eyes peeking out.

“Hey, Cha Cheonghyun.”

His voice, calling the name as if giving a second warning, was rough. It was a voice that would make even a child who was about to come out hide in fear.

Heeyoung couldn’t just stand by and watch Gyojin scold the child further, so he carefully added a word.

“Boss, cornering a child so threateningly like that could be child abuse,”

“Abuse? Are you spouting off to me right now that I’m abusing my kid?”

When he finally brought up the word ‘child abuse’, an enraged Gyojin cut him off and retorted. Of course, he knew he shouldn’t judge a person by their appearance alone and that meddling in other people’s affairs was being nosy, but Heeyoung couldn’t stop his retort.

“It’s just, I can see that Cheonghyun is in a difficult position… Abuse isn’t just about using physical violence. Things like leaving a child alone in an establishment like this, or using a threatening tone that scares the child…”

could be considered abuse.

As he continued to drone on with his words while sneaking glances, Gyojin burst out into a genuine laugh.

Instead of pushing Heeyoung further, he decided to wait leisurely. He intended to just watch and see how far this audacious one would go.

Is he acting up because he has a pretty face, or what. Heeyoung, who was trembling yet standing firmly in front of him, talking back in an attempt to hide the child, was nothing short of amusing.

He’s glaring with his big round eyes, but he can’t even meet my gaze. How dare someone who’s not even the child’s father give me advice, this isn’t normal.

As I just stood there and stared him down, he shut up on his own, I guess he got scared.

“Are you done?”

If it were up to his temper, he would have grabbed him by the collar and dragged him over, but his son was watching with his own two eyes. Conscious of Cheonghyun, Gyojin pulled Heeyoung’s shoulder towards him in a sudden hug.

Pulled by the sudden force, Heeyoung couldn’t even resist and had to be held in an awkward position in the broad embrace.

Huu…

Just as he was taking a deep breath in his fluster, feeling only the pounding of his heart.

Gyojin, who had brought his face close to his ear, whispered in a chilling voice.

“What’s with you, meddling in my kid’s business and running your mouth since a while ago. I don’t remember having a kid with you after fucking you.”

The expression, spat out so bluntly without any filter, was enough to evoke shame. Heeyoung frowned and clenched his teeth. His jaw was trembling from being quite startled.

Does he, does he have to talk like this. I was just worried about Cheonghyun.

Gyojin’s fiercely sarcastic attitude was the worst. Unable to talk back to the boss, he could only glare at him with contemptuous eyes, but then he started joking around as if he had never been scary.

“What are you looking at. Stop meddling where you don’t belong, and use that pretty face of yours to earn money and diligently pay off your debt. Don’t aim for my wife’s spot, okay? I’m so popular it’s tiring.”

In all his life, he had never seen a person like this. Stunned by his absurd way of speaking, Heeyoung could only open and close his lips.

“No, what…”

Words that couldn’t quite form beyond his throat came out in broken pieces.

Whether he did or not, Gyojin, who was looking at his son with half-lidded eyes, suddenly took out a 50,000 won bill from his wallet and fluttered it.

“Come now and you get two of these. If you don’t listen to dad and keep resisting over there, you get nothing.”

At that one phrase, the child shot out as if he had never been hiding.

Heeyoung was shocked yet again. In a situation where he should be apologizing for not showing a good side to the child, and gently coaxing him over, he’s luring him with money? Moreover, his skill showed that it wasn’t the first or second time he had educated his child in such a way.

Truly, he was cherry-picking all the things one shouldn’t do while raising a child.

Heeyoung, who belatedly came to his senses, tried to grab the running Cheonghyun, but the child was already in his father’s hands.

Gyojin lifted Cheonghyun, who had walked out on his own, and slung him over his shoulder, then called the manager and gave some instructions. In the meantime, when Cheonghyun, slung over his shoulder like a sack of luggage, let out a grumble, he even slapped his bottom.

Eventually, Cheonghyun burst into tears, struggling and screaming wildly. He also swung his tightly clenched fists here and there, but Gyojin, as if used to such things, simply readjusted the struggling child in his arms.

“Waaah! Dad is mean!”

“You’re meaner, you brat. Stop messing with your old man.”

The child’s loud crying faded into the distance as Gyojin headed towards the parking lot.

Vrooom!

Before long, a foreign car sped past Heeyoung at a fierce speed. It was a fleeting moment, but Heeyoung witnessed Cheonghyun’s face, stuck to the window with snot running down his nose.

Was he staring in the direction the car had gone, unable to shake off his worry? The manager, who had confirmed that Gyojin had left, rushed over and began to scold Heeyoung.

“Hey, what were you thinking, talking back to the Boss, huh? Anyway, this bastard Lee Heeyoung, I should have known when you were being nosy everywhere. Haa.”

“…”

“No, and when did you take the kid out? Do you even know how angry the Boss was when he came out of the room and the kid was gone?”

“I thought it wasn’t right to expose a young child to that kind of situation, so I just took him with me for a moment.”

As Heeyoung, who had been listening quietly, explained calmly, the manager lost his words and put a hand on his forehead. It was because Heeyoung’s words were not entirely wrong.

“Anyway, you should know you got lucky today. I’m talking about ruining a day’s business by handling a customer like that, you punk. Normally, the Boss wouldn’t have let it go, but because the kid was involved, he let it pass without saying much.”

“…”

The manager chided him in a tone that suggested he should be bowing in gratitude, but Heeyoung, who had actually caused the trouble, had a somewhat sullen expression.

He didn’t feel any gratitude for the boss’s special pardon. It was because his crude words and actions were etched in his mind.

Heeyoung was just worried about Cheonghyun, who was only eight years old.

“You’re barely listening, what is this attitude of yours? Lee Heeyoung.”

“…I’m sorry, Manager. I should have handled the customer well in the first place so a commotion wouldn’t have started… I know I was wrong. I’ll make sure something like today never happens again.”

Still, he clearly apologized and reflected on his mistake. The manager also didn’t scold him further since he obediently bowed his head.

“Phew, just go home for today.”

“…I’ll be leaving now.”

Bowing, Heeyoung turned around, and he couldn’t shake off his dark expression the entire way back to his shabby lodging.

His heart was heavy because he kept thinking of Cheonghyun, who was like a younger brother to him.

🌿

“You’re a bit late today, aren’t you?”

As he opened the front door, Lee Seowon rushed out as if he had been waiting and greeted the two of them. Gyojin didn’t even pretend to listen and patted Cheonghyun’s back.

“Go up and get ready to wash up.”

“Okay. Can I take a banana milk to the bathroom?”

“Do as you please, my son.”

Cheonghyun’s face was puffy from whining the whole way in the car. He was a child who, one moment was crying and twisting his body, saying ‘Dad is mean, don’t scold me,’ and the next moment was in a good mood at the thought of sipping banana milk while taking a bath.

After taking off his shoes, Cheonghyun hurried past Seowon, lest he try to talk to him, and headed to his room. Gyojin also slipped his feet into slippers and followed behind him.

It was a particularly stiff and sore day, probably because he had just dealt with a tiring matter. Gyojin, who had roughly loosened his tie and tossed it on the sofa, then took off his coat and suit jacket in succession and threw them on the floor. The watch on his wrist had broken while he was rampaging in the room earlier, so he took it off and threw it in the trash.

It seemed that if he went up to the second-floor bathroom now, washed Cheonghyun, and soaked his tired body in hot water, he could end his shitty day on a reasonably satisfactory note.

But there was someone who was trying to ruin that small plan.

“Didn’t you get my message?”

Lee Seowon, who had been trailing behind him at some point, grabbed his arm. He was already stressed from the messages that made his phone blow up every day, and now that he was asking directly, his nerves frayed.

“Let go.”

Gyojin irritably shook off Seowon’s arm and stepped on the stairs. A war of words was only fun with those who were worth arguing with. It was the same for one-sided tantrums. The opponent had to be worth dealing with for him to even look at their face and exchange words, whether it was a normal conversation or a string of curses.

As he walked on without even glancing back, he heard the usual breathy sounds of someone fuming. Normally, he would have persistently followed behind and tried to start a conversation, but today, he read Gyojin’s mood and held his tongue. Like the cunning bastard he was, his perceptiveness was top-notch.

Shaking off that persistent gaze, Gyojin entered the powder room and began to take off his clothes one by one. The sound of Cheonghyun splashing and playing with water was faintly leaking from the bathroom inside, as if he had gone in first and turned on the water.

Right. How nice would it be if only such cute sounds could be heard in the house. Then there would be no reason to frown even after coming home from work.

“Can’t even be comfortable in my own damn house.”

Even though the house was clearly in his name, Gyojin didn’t feel comfortable. In truth, it was all his own doing.

If I had known it would be this shitty, I would have refused, even if it was my benefactor’s suggestion. But regretting it now was useless.

The peaceful atmosphere of the house had been broken exactly one month ago.

Gyojin had a benefactor who was like a father to him. It was Chairman Baek Giseung of the Baekyeon Group, a name that anyone living in this land would have heard at least once.

His connection with him had started from a very young age. Chairman Baek Giseung had taken him in when he was a wanderer after leaving the orphanage, found his family for him, and later even supported him when he started his gangster activities in earnest.

The business card he always carried in his wallet was also thanks to the chairman. Cha Gyojin, Managing Director of Baekyeon Resort & Hotel. It was a position too grand for a gangster like him.

Having received such grace, Gyojin had been loyal to Chairman Baek Giseung and had faithfully carried out his instructions, even if they were dangerous and illegal.

As a result, the two of them became as close as a parent and child, but perhaps because that affection grew unusually large, Chairman Baek Giseung began to disapprove of Gyojin, who was raising an adopted child without getting married.

No matter how much Gyojin reassured him, giving all sorts of reasons like, “It’s fine, what’s wrong with raising a child alone,” the chairman’s stubbornness was not easily broken. Then, he finally pushed his will and sent his nephew, Lee Seowon, to Gyojin’s house.

With the chairman going that far, Gyojin had no choice but to comply. Of course, he didn’t accept it without any conditions.

Gyojin promised to live with Lee Seowon for just four months, and if he still didn’t develop any feelings, he would end it cleanly. Fortunately, both Chairman Baek Giseung and Lee Seowon silently agreed to that condition.

So, he just had to endure for the remaining three months. Yes, he just had to endure and hold on for three months. But he didn’t know why a period of less than half a year felt so long.

Lee Seowon, who was busy clinging to him with a face that clearly said ‘I’m very interested in Cha Gyojin,’ seemed intent on settling down in this house somehow, but Gyojin not only had not the slightest interest in Lee Seowon, but also found living in the same house with him unpleasant.

It was because he had noticed that Lee Seowon strangely detested Cheonghyun.

After that, Gyojin had to put on a show, in case Lee Seowon might harm the child. Like sending Cheonghyun to an academy until he came home, or leaving him at the establishment like today.

The problem was that the kid didn’t follow along well. Just today, he almost got seriously hurt by getting involved with some pig bastard at the establishment. The little thing, not even knowing his father’s heart, really.

“Ugh, fuck. I’m the idiot for caving to the chairman’s stubbornness.”

Ending his long train of thought with self-blame, Gyojin didn’t delay any longer and threw open the bathroom door.

Pushing through the thick steam that filled the entrance, he saw Cheonghyun flapping around in the bathtub. Again, again, he was playing with water without even washing his body.

“Brat, who told you to play. Come here, let me wash your hair.”

“Ah, but I hate shampoo…”

“Are you a puppy? Even Jjorongie from next door washes better than you, son.”

Gyojin easily picked up the dawdling child and sat him on the bath stool. He stuck a banana milk in the mouth that was making whiny, reluctant sounds like “Hng, eung,” and poured water over his fist-sized head.

After squeezing shampoo onto his wet hair, he rubbed the scalp with a rough hand and lathered it up. Then, Cheonghyun spat out the straw with a “Ptooey!” and shrieked, “My eyes! Dad, it’s getting in my eyes!”

“It stings! My eyes sting!”

“Did it get in? Sorry. Close your eyes tight, I’m pouring water.”

“Aaaah! Urgh, poof! Dad, Dad!”

“Hey, I told you to stay still. A little man making such a fuss.”

The hand that had rinsed the foam away with water naturally moved to the child’s face. When he roughly rubbed his face with soap, Cheonghyun screamed again, saying his eyes stung or something. Gyojin nonchalantly poured water and even made him blow his nose.

His hands were moving busily, but his eyes were meticulously scanning Cheonghyun’s body. He was checking if he was hurt anywhere.

Then, Heeyoung’s face suddenly came to mind. To be precise, he recalled the image of him speaking his mind in a soft, low voice even while trembling.

Unable to resist the sudden surge of curiosity, Gyojin asked a question.

“Son, where were you with that guy earlier?”

When he asked out of the blue, Cheonghyun turned around with a “Huh?” and thought hard about something. Then, not even five seconds later, his face lit up.

“Ah, Heeyoung-hyung?”

Surprised by the unexpected answer, Gyojin stopped what he was doing to finish washing him and frowned.

“Hyung? I’ve taught you to use proper titles, but the kid who calls everyone ‘hey, you’ is saying ‘hyung’ for some reason?”

He couldn’t believe that Cheonghyun, who was equally rude to everyone, had uttered the title ‘hyung’. Besides, what was with that shy expression? He was his son, but he had never seen such a side of him before.

Whether his father was surprised or not, Cheonghyun was excited to brag about what had happened with Heeyoung today.

“Heeyoung-hyung is a hyung! Dad, earlier, Heeyoung-hyung bought me ice cream, and french fries, and a cheese stick too?”

It seems he took the kid and fled to a hamburger joint while I lost my mind and was beating up a customer. In the meantime, he fed him quite well. No wonder he didn’t say a word about being hungry the whole way home.

Gyojin let out a 괜히 bitter remark.

“He fed someone else’s kid cheap stuff.”

At that, Cheonghyun hit Gyojin’s arm and chest with his fisted hands.

“It’s not cheap! It’s not! Hyung bought it for me to eat!”

This little thing, he’s trying so hard to protect a hyung he just met today. It was a strange behavior no matter how many times he saw it.

Gyojin gave Cheonghyun a painless flick on the nose and scolded him.

“Where do you think you’re hitting your dad.”

He scolded him in a not-so-strict voice and got into the bathtub with the child.

Resting both arms on the edge of the tub and tilting his head back, Gyojin didn’t say anything for a while. Had five peaceful minutes passed like that? Cheonghyun, who had been playing with the water by himself, suddenly clung to Gyojin’s torso.

“Dad, I don’t want to live with that ugly Lee Seowon! I’d rather live with Heeyoung-hyung…”

The former was something he heard all the time, but the latter was something he was hearing for the first time. Looking at that sullen face with a meaningful gaze, Gyojin pushed Cheonghyun’s forehead with his index finger and answered.

“I don’t want to live with that thing either. But please bear with it for just three more months, son. I’ll let you do whatever you want after Lee Seowon leaves.”

“Hmph…”

It was frustrating that all he could say was to endure. When he roughly stroked his head with an apologetic heart, Cheonghyun stopped sulking and resumed playing with the water.

Gyojin splashed a little water at Cheonghyun, who was playfully teasing him, and thought.

My son, who’s busy putting up his thorns to everyone, even said he wants to live with a guy he just met today. Did he take a liking to that guy named Lee Heeyoung?

Well, he certainly had a pretty face for a Recessive Omega. Gyojin once again carefully replayed Heeyoung’s image in his memory.

Fair skin that looked almost pale, and kind eyes that held a faint melancholy. Every time he blinked his round, unangled eyes, his long eyelashes created a shadow, which was subtly dreamlike.

His slender body looked so fragile it seemed like it would break with a bit of force, but contrary to his wildflower-like image, he hid a firm side. The way his hands and expression were so sharp when protecting the child.

Most peculiar of all was the fact that no matter how much he frowned and showed hostility, his gentle impression never changed.

Objectively, he had looks that would stand out anywhere you put him. It was a face that would easily work on adults, so how could it not work on kids.

Gyojin poked Cheonghyun’s plump bottom with the tip of his toe.

“You brat, you’re an Alpha too, so you’re into pretty faces. The blood on your head hasn’t even dried yet, sheesh.”

“What are you talking about! Stop it! Ahaha, it tickles!”

At the same time, the child’s clear laughter filled the bathroom. It was a pleasant echo, and one he wanted to hear for the rest of his life, if possible.