MJ | Chapter 3

“Does it hurt?”

“No, it’s fine.”

A colorful floral pattern was tattooed on the area from President Choi’s side to his hip bone. Despite his words, his brows twitched every time the sharp needle pierced his skin to inject ink.

As Jungin wiped away the ink and blood with his left hand, the design became more vivid.

“How old are you this year, Jungin?”

“Twenty-nine.”

“Already? Time flies.”

Jungin smiled. He first encountered tattooing when he followed a senior in college who was learning it. A while later, the senior quit, but Jungin took a break from school, studied abroad, and returned to open his own shop.

Shortly after opening, President Choi became a customer.

“Do you have a partner yet?”

“No.”

“Want me to introduce someone? Remember my cousin who came last time? She liked you.”

About a month ago, President Choi’s cousin came to get a small line tattoo on her ankle. She was an aspiring actress, if he remembered correctly. Unlike her brother, she was quiet and shy. It was surprising she wanted to be an actress with such a personality.

“Sorry, I’m not in a position to date anyone right now.”

Jungin politely declined, and President Choi laughed. He knew a bit about Jungin’s family situation. Jungin’s father was a pastor who had taken in and raised children with nowhere to go long before Jungin was born.

When Jungin was eighteen, his father was hit by a motorcycle and passed away. The perpetrator was a young man in his early twenties who supported his sick parents by delivering on a motorcycle.

Though his father passed away, his mother forgave the young man without hesitation. As Jungin grew, she wished for him to live his own life, not follow his father’s path. When he decided to quit school and learn tattooing, she was supportive.

However, as the years passed, the number of children entering the care facility increased, and with his father gone, he couldn’t leave everything to his mother.

“If you ever need help, let me know. I’ll support you in any way I can.”

For a brief moment, desire flickered in President Choi’s eyes. Jungin pretended not to notice.

“Thank you for saying so.”

“At first, I thought you were an omega. Did you know I released a lot of pheromones?”

“Did you?”

“I was so disappointed when I found out you were a beta. I was completely fooled by the pleasant scent.”

Jungin didn’t know why he had such a scent as a beta. He’d been that way since birth, and he’d never doubted his omega status growing up.

As he worked on coloring, his phone vibrated in his coat pocket. He intended to ignore it, but it didn’t seem to stop. After apologizing to President Choi, he took off his gloves and answered the call. It was his younger sister, Ryu Mina.

He hesitated, wondering whether to answer. His ten-year-younger sister was an omega, and while she hadn’t caused major trouble, she’d been a bit of a handful. A sudden call was never a good sign.

[Oppa! It’s me. Where are you?]

Her urgent voice came through the phone. Jungin sighed softly.

“I’m working. I’ll call you later.”

[Work isn’t important right now.]

“Why? Did someone run off with the house deed?”

He joked, but a moment of silence followed. Jungin’s eyes moved slowly from side to side. A chill ran down his spine. With a groan, his sister’s defeated voice came through.

[How did you know?]

***

The loud music was so noisy it spilled outside. Inside, a party was in full swing. In the small pool, alphas and omegas in swimsuits were tangled together, and in more private areas, they were consumed by their desires.

Kim Minjae grabbed a slender omega and buried his lips in her neck. As he released pheromones, the omega’s slender body shivered. Just then, someone tapped his back. Of all times. He turned to see Secretary Yoon with two large men in tow. Their intimidating presence changed the atmosphere inside.

“Where’s CEO Kim?”

Kim Minjae rubbed his chin with a troubled expression.

“What should I do? Hajun is really busy right now….”

The man’s eyes gleamed coldly behind his silver-rimmed glasses. The large men behind him stepped forward, and feeling the urgency, Minjae raised his hands to stop them. Wait a moment. I’ll bring him right away. Please wait.

But Secretary Yoon ignored the request to wait and followed them inside.

The deeper they went, the thicker the cigarette smoke became. As a beta, Secretary Yoon couldn’t sense it, but the room was likely filled with pheromones. He felt fortunate he couldn’t smell it.

People were tangled everywhere, and empty bottles rolled on the floor. Kim Minjae stopped at the end of the hallway. After knocking and opening the door, he saw Kim Hajun sitting on the sofa. In front of him, a woman in a slip stood on the sofa, looking down at him.

Holding a champagne glass, Kim Hajun looked up at the woman and slipped his hand inside her fluttering black slip. As his hand moved higher, Secretary Yoon strode in and turned off the music.

The noisy room fell silent. The floor was soaked with champagne someone had spilled. Secretary Yoon wiped the champagne from his shoe soles on the carpet. As the atmosphere turned cold, the people in the room began to leave one by one.

Hajun looked displeased at the unexpected guest.

“Did I invite our Secretary Yoon?”

“The chairman wants you to come.”

“Why?”

“You know better than I do.”

Hajun finished his champagne and smiled shamelessly. I don’t know.

“He said to bring you by force if necessary.”

“Oh dear.”

“The chairman is very angry.”

“Well, you should’ve handled the article better. Our father isn’t what he used to be. Or maybe his subordinates aren’t doing their jobs properly.”

Secretary Yoon sighed at the sarcasm. The man in front of him had a face everyone admired, but his personality was terrible. The bigger problem was that he was Chairman Kim’s only son.

He constantly created scandals, and now he was involved with an actress just a day after her divorce. Speculation arose that they’d been having an affair throughout her marriage, and within the party, there was criticism about not managing his child. Chairman Kim was in a panic.

“Could you please stay quiet until the chairman finishes his work?”

“That’s why I’m having the party at home. What’s the problem?”

Secretary Yoon responded with a sigh.

“Could you please leave?”

“The chairman said to bring you,”

“That’s why. If I’m going, I need to get dressed, don’t I?”

I can’t go like this, right? Kim Hajun smiled and spread his arms, showing his messy shirt. Secretary Yoon had no choice but to step outside. He said he’d change clothes and come out, but the music started again. He checked the time. Ten more minutes. If he didn’t come out, he’d really drag him out this time.

He recalled the first time he met Kim Hajun. People didn’t believe it, but he was incredibly bright and polite, and anyone could see he was a beautiful child. As an only child, he was showered with love from his family, and the late chairman even created a foundation named after him when he was born.

His grandmother, Lee Soonok, was usually cold, but she always made exceptions for her grandson. She often appeared at official events holding young Kim Hajun, and even now, she sided with her grandson, scolding her son, Chairman Kim.

Growing up with all the love from his family, Kim Hajun excelled in every aspect. Not only in academics, but he also had a good character and generous nature, and Chairman Kim often heard compliments about raising his son well.

Then, at fifteen, something went wrong with his body, and he collapsed. Fortunately, the surgery went well, and he spent about two years recuperating in Chairman Kim’s hometown. But for some reason, he started changing after returning to Seoul.

At first, Chairman Kim welcomed the change. He thought his son was finally going through adolescence. Even when he started hanging out with delinquent friends and going out more, he wasn’t too worried.

Then a big incident happened. His wandering grew more severe, and for some reason, he obtained sleeping pills and took them all. When news came that he’d been taken to the emergency room, Chairman Kim’s wife fainted on the spot.

The atmosphere at home was hellish. Realizing too late that it wasn’t just a simple rebellion, they tried to find out what had happened, but there was no clear reason. They even considered bullying at his previous school, but that wasn’t it either.

Over time, Kim Hajun’s rebellion subsided, but the relationship between father and son never returned to what it was. As Secretary Yoon recalled the past, he sighed, and the door opened, revealing Kim Hajun. He had changed clothes and looked perfectly fine.