Pheromone Off Chapter 13

“He says it’s Seong Yeonwoo’s, but whatever. The family all drinks it together anyway. We also have a fucking huge wine cellar in the annex. My hyung’s. But I just go and drink there whenever I want.”

At the innocent face that knew nothing and the nonchalant words, Hajin smacked his lips and nodded his head.

“Right. Normally it’s like that….”

Normally it was. No matter whose the wine cellar was, it roughly existed for all the family members to enjoy together. However, he was an existence who couldn’t even share and drink that single drop of alcohol.

“Then why are you having soju when you left those expensive drinks behind?”

Hajin changed the subject. Then, Kwon Sabin suddenly looked at him crossly and moved his lips dissatisfiedly.

“…Originally, sometimes you crave cheap stuff too.”

“…”

“Somehow my mood today is fucking strange too.”

Kwon Sabin ruffled his own hair roughly with a voice mixed with irritation. For some reason, he didn’t seem in a good mood. He was about to ask if something was wrong, but didn’t particularly want to ask about personal matters, so he shut his mouth.

Thanks to not replying further, a brief silence settled down. Kwon Sabin glanced out of the corner of his eye as if stealing a look at Hajin’s side profile, who was chewing on the squid mindlessly and just staring blankly while downing his drink. Staring quietly for a moment at those characteristic sunken pupils that didn’t show where they were looking, he slowly dragged his gaze down. Below the gaze where a certain sorrowfulness was revealed, passing the smooth bridge of his nose, Kwon Sabin’s eyes stopped on the bruise around his mouth that rose darkly even under the dim lighting.

“…Is it Seong Suhyun?”

In fact, he had seen it ever since they sat at the dinner table. It wasn’t surprising since Hajin carrying injuries around was a common thing, but it always bothered him strangely anyway. Even when they ran into each other occasionally at family gatherings, or when they went to school, a bruise around his eyes or a wound around his mouth, or else a bruise mark near his neck that was seen by chance between his clothes.

Everyone mostly knew tacitly what the cause of those injuries was. But because it was a personal family matter, nobody could deeply involve themselves, that was all. The one who could say a word was at least the elder of the family, Chairman Kwon.

“It would be Seong Suhyun ‘hyung’.”

At the unconcerned answer, Kwon Sabin twitched the bridge of his nose.

“Hyung, my foot. Do you even want to call that bastard hyung?”

“Still, he’s ten years older.”

“I don’t call just anyone hyung.”

“While you do it consistently to Sayoung hyung.”

“Of course. If I don’t, what kind of things I’ll face— ah, forget it. I’m asking if you still live getting beaten up.”

Thanks to Hajin who skillfully changed the subject, Kwon Sabin was almost swept away for a moment before moving back to the original topic.

“How old is that bastard that he’s still childishly beating people up and throwing a fit.”

“…”

“Did he make you like this after hearing that you’re marrying Kwon Sayoung?”

Kwon Sabin added the words without taking his eyes off the injury.

“If you really even marry— no. Are you really going to marry?”

Question after question. Kwon Sabin didn’t stop questioning, as if there was so much he was curious about. Hajin downed the rest of his alcohol with a peaceful face, as if taking those voices as background music.

“No, looking at it, it doesn’t even look like he’s going to break up with Seong Yeonwoo, but are you really going to do it? With a bastard who has a lover?”

“…Is it okay for you to call your hyung a bastard?”

“Hey you punk, is that what’s important?”

Whether the casually asked question was absurd, Kwon Sabin raised his voice a level louder.

“Even though guys who do marriage separately and dating separately are scattered all over this field. I’m asking if there’s a reason to do that of all things. Besides, you’re twenty now, twenty. Do you want to hear yourself called a married man at twenty years old?”

Kwon Sabin approached closely with a gradually excited appearance and asked urgently.

“And you know. Those two are dating truly sincerely.”

“…”

“Listening to the talk those two were having, it didn’t even look like they would break up. Would both families’ parents have actually thought of marrying you and Kwon Sayoung? Those two are fucking close. Even our mom, look how much she adores Seong Yeonwoo.”

“…Keep it a secret.”

Hajin tossed the words indifferently toward him, who spoke without hesitation words that touched the other person without thought.

“What.”

“The talk you heard at the restaurant earlier.”

“That those two won’t break up?”

“Yeah.”

“Why should I.”

Kwon Sayoung said the people who knew this talk were Seong Yeonwoo and himself, Kwon Sayoung himself, only three people. He seemed not to have thought that someone would have eavesdropped, but unfortunately, there was one more person who knew.

“…Because the elders shouldn’t know.”

“Ah—, it’s a secret?”

“…”

“…You’re really going to do it, this marriage.”

Kwon Sabin’s eyes narrowed blearily. Whether he had read the intention of his request, his chattering mouth shut tightly. Then soon, with a face full of grumpiness, he leaned his back deeply against the chair and shrugged his shoulders.

“I don’t want to keep it a secret though?”

“What?”

“If I do it, what are you going to do for me.”

“…Is it such a hard thing for you that I have to do something?”

“Of course. You have to completely deceive those elders.”

“…I didn’t know you were a personality that felt guilt over deceiving elders.”

“Right. You know too little about me.”

“…”

“So don’t think about taking it easy for free.”

Hajin stared at him quietly with somewhat dumbfounded eyes at the absurd proposal.

“If you want to keep it a secret, name a condition that will move my heart. Otherwise, there’s absolutely no mercy.”

He kicked back his chair and stood up, speaking in a firm tone. Was his request such a difficult thing? Hajin looked up blankly at him, who was entirely worked up by himself.

“Do you really have to attach a condition like that?”

“Because I just don’t want to grant it for nothing, you know?”

Throwing a tantrum again. He was always that way. He never just let things slide easily. Always like a child, as if teasing.

“…I don’t particularly have anything to give you. You know.”

“Then I can’t keep it a secret.”

“Your hyung wants it kept a secret.”

“That’s Kwon Sayoung’s business.”

“…”

“Think about it well. Because I’ll keep my mouth shut until then.”

Letting out a sneer, Kwon Sabin crammed all of the squid he had almost finished eating into his mouth, and turned away cleanly and walked with long strides as if he had no more business. Maybe because his legs were long, he had gone quite far in that short time, but he came to a dead halt and suddenly turned back to Hajin with a jerk. After looking around with a suddenly flustered look, he soon began to return quickly.

What is he doing…. Hajin ended up watching his out-of-nowhere behavior. Kwon Sabin, who had left putting on airs, came back clumsily and snatched up his black plastic bag that was placed on the table with a jerk.

“…I forgot.”

It seemed he definitely wanted to pack and take his own things. Turning away again with his item sheepishly, he turned around once more and glared at him as if staring him down.

“No, but that marriage really—! …Never mind, ha… forget it.”

Stopping himself from getting worked up alone again, he turned with a jerk and disappeared leisurely. He couldn’t know the reason why he was exceptionally excited about the marriage talk, but since he had never once understood that personality and whim, Hajin just stared quietly at the receding back. Watching him while having nothing to do, he pondered what kind of condition to set, but no answer came to mind. The fact itself that Kwon Sabin wanted something from him was a question.

࣪˖ ִֶָ🍇་༘

The engagement preparation proceeded faster than expected. Not long after, employees—whether they were Kwon Sayoung’s people or Grandfather’s people he couldn’t know—visited Yu-jeong-je and began by organizing his luggage. It seemed that it wasn’t starting from the engagement ceremony, but starting from moving houses.

Seong Suhyun, who looked past the scene of several employees packing luggage, still had a displeased face, and Seong Yeonwoo was not seen since early morning. Since it was decided to be done anyway, Hajin decided to stop being flustered by this situation. Although he thought it was a bit fast, he packed his luggage without bothering to start a conversation.

Just then, the phone rang, and when he checked, it wasn’t a saved number.

“Hello.”

—Have the employees arrived?

Despite living in this house and seeing each other’s faces so frequently, they didn’t even know each other’s contact information.

“…Did you send them, Hyung?”

—To be exact, they are employees sent because our Chairman pestered. I had no intention of rushing like this either. There’s nothing good about living stuck together early anyway.

“Ah….”

—Just pack roughly what’s necessary and come over. Since I sent a driver too, he’ll arrive soon.

It was almost like a notification, but it wasn’t a bad situation only for him. Since he had decided to do the engagement, if he stayed in this house continuously, his breath would have been stifled from walking on eggshells.

“Yes. …But by any chance, do my mother and father also know that I’m moving today right away?”

—It must be a matter that came up separately among the elders on the night there was a gathering. It seems you hadn’t heard about it.

Ah…. It meant that the talk had already come up among the elders, but they hadn’t bothered to convey it to him.

“…Ah. I understand.”

—Since there’s something to talk about separately at dinner time, make sure to keep your place. Since we decided to have dinner separately with the elders too, don’t make other appointments.

“…Yes.”

—See you later.

He kept his business brief and hung up the phone. Hajin stared quietly at the disconnected phone and began to pack his luggage again. His side profile as he silently organized showed no emotion and was only detached.