My Alpha Era Began with Gongjindan Chapter 61

Contrary to my worries, the auntie was remarkably calm. Only Jung Saebom, with a look of utter disgust, threw an apple at me. I’m not Gregor Samsa from Kafka’s novel, yet here I was being pelted with apples like this.

If Jung Pureum, who had good athletic reflexes, hadn’t caught the apple flying toward me, I would have become the first Korean medicine doctor to die from an apple strike.

“I told you not to engage in public displays of affection in our house….”

Jung Saebom clenched her molars tight. Oh dear, if she keeps that up, she’ll strain her temporomandibular joint later….

Whether her daughter said that or not, the auntie next door took me, who was about to leave, back into the house, sat me down, and peeled an apple for me. I knelt in someone else’s living room and dutifully ate only the neatly peeled apple pieces.

“You haven’t come by at all, but you still came to cheer for Pureum since his qualifying trials are tomorrow, huh.”

“Ah, yes….”

“Right, once the preliminaries are over, feel free to come and go comfortably. Pureum, this is an important time for you too, so focus only on the qualifying trials for now.”

Being in this situation made me feel like a daughter-in-law visiting her in-laws’ house for the first time in a while. I hadn’t done anything wrong (well, I had done something, but the auntie seemed fine with it), yet I felt like a criminal unjustly accused.

I stuffed my mouth full of apple and chewed, glancing at the Jung siblings’ reactions.

Jung Saebom clearly wanted me out of her house as soon as possible, but Jung Pureum clung to me tightly and wouldn’t let go.

I poked Jung Pureum in the side to hint that he should be mindful and back off, but the guy, who had already evolved into a leech, remained perfectly composed even in front of his mom and sister.

“Yeonghwa, I’m always grateful to you.”

The auntie next door suddenly launched a gratitude attack on me, while I was floundering with Jung Pureum attached to me.

Hearing the word “grateful” jolted me wide awake. I was someone who had no excuses even when trapped in her living room by her grasp, so I had no idea what she could possibly be grateful for. Even after eating a lot of fruit, my mouth felt parched.

“If it weren’t for you, how would Pureum have ever entered the qualifying trials?”

Without meaning to, I checked Jung Pureum’s expression.

There were no specific details, but the auntie was thanking me for turning Jung Pureum into an Alpha.

What exactly is a trait, anyway. I heard that his records are better now as an Alpha than they were when he was a Beta. But even during his Beta days, Jung Pureum was an excellent athlete.

Of course, if his trait hadn’t changed, it would have been difficult for him to enter the qualifying trials regardless of his records. Because in this field, they favor Alphas, who are affected by pheromones, over Betas who consistently post good records.

Jung Pureum got the chance to compete in the national team qualifying trials thanks to becoming an Alpha. This is an undeniable fact. It’s cheap and dirty, but it’s only natural that the auntie next door would say things like that.

The problem was that Jung Pureum was right next to me. No matter how easygoing Jung Pureum’s personality is, he couldn’t possibly be unaffected by hearing such words….

“That’s right. It’s all thanks to Yeonghwa hyung.”

…Or could he?

I laughed along, ha ha ho ho, and looked at Jung Pureum, who was putting apple pieces into my mouth. Jung Pureum genuinely seemed to have no thoughts about it at all.

From what I remember, Jung Pureum occasionally felt a bit wistful about being a Beta. It wasn’t because of swimming; he just used to ask me, with a wistful look, ‘Is it because I’m a Beta?’ so it might have just been my imagination.

Come to think of it, even though it was hard to succeed as a swimmer due to his trait, he didn’t seem to resent it much. Jung Pureum was the type, even as a child, to swim one more lap rather than spend time being frustrated.

“You don’t need to be so self-conscious. You seem to think that going from Beta to Alpha is a bad thing, but for Pureum, it was actually a good thing.”

“….”

“You’ve never had a bad influence on Pureum. Not once.”

I feel like his pheromones have been unstable recently because of me, though…. I wanted to argue against the auntie’s words, but I couldn’t easily open my mouth.

Jung Saebom, who had finished eating her share of the apple, left first. Her reason was that just looking at my face made her feel as stifled as if she’d eaten a sweet potato, so she couldn’t stand being in the same place.

“I’ll enjoy the Gyeongokgo you sent.”

“Ah, yes. It should be fine for the uncle to take. One spoonful a day, and….”

“Tell your mother… no, ahem. Tell your mother I’ll enjoy it well.”

Did she just say ‘in-laws’?

For a moment, I thought I heard things, but looking at the auntie’s solemn face, I was sure I had misheard. There’s no way she, who isn’t even my mother, would say such a thing.

When I got up to leave, Jung Pureum jumped up too, saying he would walk me out. What’s there to walk me to when it’s the house next door? Even when I told him I was fine and tried to peel him off, Jung Pureum was completely stubborn.

“Yeonghwa.”

Before I stepped out the front door, the auntie called me. I tensed up and turned around, and she slowly opened her mouth.

“It’s good that you think of Pureum, but you need to take care of yourself first. Understand?”

It was a statement filled with affection and concern.

Whenever the usually brusque auntie next door acted like this, I didn’t know what to do. She’s not even my real family, yet sometimes, this place felt like my own home. A place I could return to anytime, with people who would support me no matter what problems arose….

∞ ∞ ∞

Twenty-year-old Moon Yeonghwa was a freshman stubbornly made up of tenacity and obstinacy.

The world was not particularly kind to Moon Yeonghwa. An Omega, instead of marrying a good Alpha, wanting to open a Korean medicine clinic? Someone who has to take a week off whenever a heat cycle hits, wanting to run their own business?

Attendance was crucial for university lectures. But Moon Yeonghwa, being a fervent Omega, couldn’t avoid his heat cycles. Because of that, no matter how well he did on exams, he always got an A- instead of an A+. His trait was always holding him back.

The few Alpha professors casually spat out obscene jokes. Wouldn’t it be better to just snag a good Alpha and get married? Yeonghwa, you’re pretty enough as it is.

His already prickly personality grew worse, and Moon Yeonghwa inevitably ended up in physical altercations with anyone who picked a fight with him. Other people could just live their lives without issue, but Moon Yeonghwa always had to prove something.

How smart he was, how assertive his personality was, how he wasn’t swayed by others’ pheromones….

If he wasn’t superior to others, he’d hear things like, ‘Well, what do you expect from an Omega.’ If he got sick in the middle of something, he’d hear, ‘I knew that would happen.’

How detestable the advice to love oneself sounded! Moon Yeonghwa was sometimes flabbergasted. Hey! Even when I try to love myself, you guys keep getting in the way!

‘Come over and have dinner before you go.’

The auntie next door was the first person to offer such unconditional goodwill to that Moon Yeonghwa. Though she did later use him as a free acupuncture provider or something.

Anyway, the first time was truly unconditional goodwill. It was also thanks to the auntie next door that he met twelve-year-old Jung Pureum, who was coming home from school holding a stick of tteokbokki in each hand.

Unbeknownst to Moon Yeonghwa, Jung Pureum, who had been completely smitten with Moon Yeonghwa since early childhood, extended the tteokbokki to him with a heart full of ulterior motives. It was the maximum expression of interest a twelve-year-old could show.

From that time on, Moon Yeonghwa’s life became a bit more bearable. He was getting fed regularly, so it probably was more bearable in reality too. Flesh filled out his gaunt face, and the expression that once only seemed ready to kill everyone gradually gained a sense of ease.

Sitting Jung Pureum, who was eight years his junior, down, Moon Yeonghwa didn’t hesitate to talk about killing his professor. Jung Pureum was an excellent confidant even as a child. Whenever Moon Yeonghwa said he was going to kill the professor, Jung Pureum would chime in, saying he’d do his utmost to help dispose of the evidence.

It was a truly precious relationship.

Moon Yeonghwa didn’t want to ruin this relationship. A relationship where they supported each other. A relationship where, during his toughest times, he could casually say, ‘I’m having a hard time.’

This was why he instinctively avoided Jung Pureum’s affections. Becoming lovers could make it more special. But wouldn’t they eventually break up?

If he just remained a familiar hyung, he could see him for a lifetime, but if they became something like lovers, it would eventually come to an end. If he broke up with Jung Pureum, his connection with the neighbor’s family would also end.

Knowing that, he didn’t want to develop into a relationship with a predetermined ending. He didn’t want to drift away from the people who had always been there for him during his most difficult times. He was afraid of a relationship that had become close regardless of traits changing just because of those very traits.

[Do well]

[To grant hyung’s wish, you gotta become a national team member first]

On the day of the qualifying trials, Moon Yeonghwa was busy running his clinic and couldn’t go to support in person. It wasn’t like his presence would change the outcome anyway. So, Moon Yeonghwa just left a few messages for Jung Pureum.

Since he had met him in person and cheered him on the day before, Jung Pureum probably wouldn’t feel too disappointed by this. The national team qualifying trials, held in an Alpha-exclusive pool, were inherently difficult to even apply to watch.

“Director, are you okay?”

“…Ah? Yes.”

“Why are you so spaced out?”

“It’s because Pureum’s qualifying trials are today.”

“Ah, the national team qualifying trials?”

“Yes. I’m a bit worried.”

“Anyone would think you gave birth to Pureum, Director.”

I did give birth to him in my heart. Moon Yeonghwa followed Kim Miyoung, who laughed lightly, and gave an awkward smile.

“By the way, it’s really amazing. How close you and Pureum are.”

“That’s just because Pureum accepts me well.”

“That’s true, but even if you pretend not to be, Pureum really likes you. I thought you weren’t the type to get close to people easily.”

“Me?”

“Yeah. It’s not really my place to say, but if you don’t think a little, everyone can hurt you so easily. I did too.”

Kim Miyoung, who had once remarked that it was a relief Jung Pureum became an Alpha instead of an Omega, wore an awkward expression.

“So I thought it’d be hard to get close to you at first. It’s fine now, but….”

“Really? I thought the assistant and I were close from the start….”

“Now we’re definitely mega best friends who defy generations.”

Even if not mega best friends, they were certainly reliable colleagues. At least Moon Yeonghwa was willing to believe Kim Miyoung if she said red beans could be used to make soybean paste.

“So, I was wondering, as your mega best friend, can I ask you one thing?”

“You laid down all that groundwork just to ask me one question?”

“Director… are you really going on a blind date?”

At Kim Miyoung’s straightforward question, Moon Yeonghwa’s eyes widened. He hadn’t told anyone, so he had no idea how Kim Miyoung found out.