My Alpha Era Began with Gongjindan Chapter 89

Nam Jungyoon had liked Moon Yeonghwa for a very brief period during university. About three days, give or take.

Anyone would become a devotee when someone appears like a savior to rescue them from a group project that was about to ruin their grade. Back then, Moon Yeonghwa was like a GPA savior to Nam Jungyoon. Now, he’s more like a salary savior.

Whenever he was with Moon Yeonghwa, setting everything else aside, he felt like he was doing proper work. Results came in proportion to effort, and even when unfair things happened occasionally, he could keep from giving up.

But Moon Yeonghwa had absolutely zero interest in Nam Jungyoon.

Nam Jungyoon was an alpha too, but Moon Yeonghwa treated him like a pebble rolling on the street. It wasn’t that he was particularly uninterested in Nam Jungyoon—Moon Yeonghwa was simply indifferent to everyone.

Even that ill-tempered Baek Wonhee had initially tried to get along with Moon Yeonghwa. It was true that he approached because he thought Moon Yeonghwa was a beta, but the fundamental reason for “approaching” was interest.

But the result was disastrous.

Moon Yeonghwa wasn’t interested in Baek Wonhee either. Even if Baek Wonhee had been a dominant alpha rather than a beta, he probably wouldn’t have been interested. Moon Yeonghwa seemed incapable of even imagining that others might feel romantic attraction toward him.

Moon Yeonghwa’s self-esteem, which had been shattered by his surroundings countless times, always seemed to recover quickly. But once broken, things never return to their complete original form. Let alone something broken multiple times.

Moon Yeonghwa was more delicate than he appeared. At least, that’s how Nam Jungyoon felt. The fact that he never noticed when someone liked him—that was probably less about truly being oblivious and more about an underlying distrust of himself.

But regardless of understanding him, Nam Jungyoon got goosebumps whenever he recalled Moon Yeonghwa’s subtle popularity during university.

Even thinking back, he was amazed that he himself had liked that oblivious human for even three days. If that feeling had lasted just a little longer, Nam Jungyoon would have died of hwabyeong early on.

Objectively speaking, Moon Yeonghwa is a fairly decent person aside from his temper and obliviousness. At least he looks the part.

So it was no surprise that the countless people who were charmed by his appearance alone would be swept away like autumn leaves once they learned his personality. It was hard to keep liking someone who couldn’t understand even when directly shown affection.

[Pureum-ah]

[Are you training well?]

[I have good news and bad news for you]

[Which do you want to hear first]

But there existed a human who ignored all these adverse conditions and unrequitedly loved Moon Yeonghwa for eight years.

Nam Jungyoon, whose interest in Moon Yeonghwa had completely drained in just three days, thought Jung Pureum was remarkable for enduring eight years of that obliviousness.

He might be a respected senior, but as an object of unrequited love, he was the absolute worst—how did he last eight years?

Every time Nam Jungyoon saw Jung Pureum clinging to Moon Yeonghwa and trying every flattering trick, his heart ached. Pureum-ah! Hyung really thinks you’re too good for him!

In Nam Jungyoon’s view, Jung Pureum was an attractive person. Polite, smiles easily, and kind to everyone! Nam Jungyoon liked Moon Yeonghwa for paying well, but on a human level, he thought Jung Pureum was far better.

So he helped Jung Pureum in subtle ways. Kim Miyoung, who worked with Nam Jungyoon, was also on Jung Pureum’s side rather than Moon Yeonghwa’s, so there was no hesitation.

Jung Pureum didn’t reject the help from Kim Miyoung and Nam Jungyoon either. Especially during the clinic’s opening period, Jung Pureum would have borrowed even a cat’s paw if possible. When someone offered help, he would have bowed in gratitude.

Kim Miyoung and Nam Jungyoon’s assistance was quite effective. In the end, even Moon Yeonghwa started paying proper attention to Jung Pureum. Even Nam Jungyoon could feel that Moon Yeonghwa liked Jung Pureum.

They say sincerity moves heaven—after eight years of chaos, even that eye-needle witch finally learned what awareness was.

Nam Jungyoon averted his eyes from Jung Pureum and Moon Yeonghwa, who were biting and sucking at each other in the treatment room, and thought: Pureum-ah, make sure you marry that guy so you don’t release him back into society…

Then suddenly, Hong Seonghyeon appeared.

Of course, Hong Seonghyeon is a beta. A beta, whose chances of connecting with an omega are astronomically low. He’d even been married once. Divorced now, but his ex-spouse was a beta woman.

So it was absurd for him to suddenly be drawn to Moon Yeonghwa, a male omega. But Nam Jungyoon had a feeling. And feelings weren’t something only Kim Miyoung could sense.

Hong Seonghyeon… you liked Moon Yeonghwa, didn’t you…

It was a terrible feeling.

Nam Jungyoon lamented as he watched Hong Seonghyeon’s ears redden at the mere words “I trust you.” No! This can’t be! Moon Yeonghwa already has a boyfriend eight years younger! You’re seven years older! And you’ve been married before!

Having people with such wide age gaps on both sides drawn to you—if that’s a talent, it’s certainly one. Nam Jungyoon grew suspicious that there might be a vein of water running around Moon Yeonghwa.

[Start with the good news]

[Wait]

[It’s not another blind date, is it?]

After a while, a reply came from Jung Pureum.

It was just past 8 PM. Nam Jungyoon, who had been lying in bed watching YouTube, sprang up to check Jung Pureum’s message.

[It’s not a blind date]

[The good news is]

[We hired another vice-director]

At the news of hiring another vice-director, Jung Pureum sent a puppy emoji setting off a fanfare. Nam Jungyoon felt miserable again. How did someone as good as you end up…

[And the bad news?]

[It’s not that hyung collapsed or got sick or got followed by a weirdo or had an unexpected heat cycle or a competing clinic opened nearby, is it?]

With so many possibilities for “bad” news, Jung Pureum’s reply grew long. Nam Jungyoon read the contents with fresh admiration. …Wow, all of those actually happened before.

[Senior is healthy]

[No competing clinic opened either]

[However]

[The new vice-director]

Nam Jungyoon debated for about three seconds whether he should tell Jung Pureum, who was in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province, this fact.

[Seems to like senior]

But his finger pressing the send button was faster than his reason. The hand is quicker than the mind… Nam Jungyoon stared at the chat window where the read receipt had disappeared in an instant.

After a long silence, three crying puppy emojis appeared in succession at the top of the chat window. Nam Jungyoon lamented once again. Honestly, how did someone as kind and cute as Pureum end up…

Meanwhile, upon hearing Nam Jungyoon’s tattling, Jung Pureum unconsciously punched the wall.

“Whoa, you startled me. Why the sudden show of strength?”

“Pureum would have been good at martial arts instead of swimming, I’m telling you. Or taekwondo would’ve worked too.”

While the other athletes standing nearby laughed and chuckled, Jung Pureum couldn’t smile. The new vice-director likes Moon Yeonghwa? What the hell kind of bolt from the blue is this?

“Hey, do oblivious people tend to be popular?”

“What are you talking about? How can someone oblivious be popular?”

“I hate oblivious people. Don’t most people avoid them?”

“Being around them is frustrating. Oblivious people, I mean.”

“Then why…”

Why do people keep flocking to Yeonghwa hyung?

As Jung Pureum pressed his forehead and sighed, the athletes gathered around him one by one. Like hyenas anticipating an interesting story.

“Why? Did your partner cheat? Is your partner the oblivious type? Is it hard on you?”

“I knew it. Pureum, you’re still young so you might not know, but when you’re stuck in a training camp, everyone wears their slippers backwards.”

“This isn’t the military, why are you talking about slippers?”

“Training camp and the military are similar, aren’t they? We don’t do pointless labor, but we train even harder than soldiers.”

“Well, you’re athletes, so that’s natural.”

“…It’s not about cheating or anything.”

The athletes who had been chatting in groups gradually fell silent at Jung Pureum’s sullen reaction.

“It’s just… while I’m away, I’m worried someone might try to make a move on hyung…”

“Oh my my.”

“Our Pureum, I didn’t peg you as the jealous type, but you’ve got some possessive tendencies, huh?”

“I knew it. Remember when he ran off leaving us behind just because we wanted to see his partner’s face? Said they’d wear out.”

“Wait, what exactly have you been ‘knowing’ since earlier?”

Even as the commotion around him grew, Jung Pureum’s mood remained low. If he was a newly hired vice-director, he’d be spending all day with Moon Yeonghwa, just like Kim Miyoung and Nam Jungyoon. The clinic was their workplace.

How anxious he’d been when Nam Jungyoon first appeared at the clinic. When he heard from Nam Jungyoon’s own mouth that Moon Yeonghwa had been “popular,” his heart had dropped.

But Nam Jungyoon was a far more sensible person than Jung Pureum had expected. He might respect and like Moon Yeonghwa as a person, but he didn’t view him as a romantic prospect. With sensible people like Nam Jungyoon, even if they stayed by Moon Yeonghwa’s side all the time, it was reassuring. Sensible people generally didn’t think of Moon Yeonghwa as a romantic interest…

But this newly appeared vice-director was a complete unknown to Jung Pureum. He knew nothing—not his face, not his name, not his secondary gender, not even his age.

And that unknown person was showing interest in Moon Yeonghwa.

Even while thinking that once Moon Yeonghwa’s obliviousness came into play, that interest wouldn’t last long, he still wanted to dash out of the training camp right now, grab Moon Yeonghwa, and plead “The one who likes hyung the most is me!”

“Tell us what happened, just a little.”

At that moment, one of the athletes closest to Jung Pureum sat down nearby. A shooting athlete of similar age to Kim Miyoung, who was like an aunt to him, persuaded Jung Pureum to confide in her.

Normally Jung Pureum would have insisted it was a secret, but he opened his mouth because the middle-aged athlete sitting before him reminded him so much of Kim Miyoung.

So Jung Pureum gave a brief preview of his eight-year-long unrequited love story to the friendly athletes surrounding him.