KA Chapter 2

Yihyun’s mother had gone to great lengths to conceal her son’s secondary gender. Because of that, Youngjun was the only doctor she allowed to treat him, and he knew she had even kept Yihyun from receiving the mandatory post-manifestation education.

But even so, was it really okay for someone to be this ignorant of their own nature?

Guilt crept up on Youngjun as a physician, but what came out of his mouth was something else entirely.

“…You two go to the same university?”

“Yeah. Our semesters never lined up, so we didn’t run into each other. But now that I’m back, it just happened.”

Yihyun replied with a vaguely bitter look on his face.

Youngjun watched him for a long moment before letting out a quiet sigh and finally continuing.

“I’ll give you a suppressant prescription. Don’t overuse it. Your pheromones are unstable, and it’s just in case something happens.”

“…”

As he recorded the prescription in the chart, Youngjun hesitated, then added more.

“And I don’t know what happened exactly, but maybe it’s for the best. Whether it’s Baek Juho or someone else, keep your distance from Alphas.”

“What?”

“My rule is not to get involved in anything outside the hospital room, but I’ve been complicit in this ridiculous charade. So this is me speaking as your actual attending physician.”

Youngjun leaned back in his chair, speaking flatly, though his hands continued diligently writing on the chart.

“You haven’t really started believing you’re a recessive Alpha just because people have called you that for years, have you?”

Yihyun listened in silence.

Youngjun wasn’t someone who usually spoke from the heart, especially not to someone as guarded as Yihyun. For someone so cautious, his tone now was surprisingly firm.

“No matter what anyone says, no matter what label they try to slap over you, there’s one thing that will never change.”

But even as he spoke with conviction, Youngjun avoided saying certain words. Years of helping forge false medical records for Yihyun had turned that restraint into a habit.

It was clearly something he had said with courage, but ironically, it only served to reinforce the reality of Yihyun’s situation.

Perhaps because of that, a quiet, bitter laugh slipped from his lips.

Just as that anonymous poster had suggested, Yihyun wanted to dismiss the pheromones flooding in from an Alpha as nothing more than provocation. But the truth engraved in his blood wouldn’t let him.

Because Cha Yihyun wasn’t a recessive Alpha, or any Alpha at all. He was an Omega.

As he recalled the one undeniable truth Youngjun never spoke aloud, Yihyun gave a faint smile. “Yeah. I’ll keep that in mind.”

***

The youngest son of the wealthy Cha family, landowners known for generations of dominant Alphas. Just hearing that much, everyone would assume he was a dominant Alpha too.

He had striking, delicate features and a sharp mind. By the time he entered elementary school, he was clearly one of the brightest students.

There wasn’t a shadow of doubt. Even Yihyun himself had believed he was an Alpha.

And then, two weeks before the winter break of his sixteenth year, everything turned upside down.

The secondary gender report he was meant to give to his parents had a symbol he didn’t recognize at first. Not the familiar Alpha mark he’d grown up seeing on his father’s and brothers’ forms. It was the Omega symbol.

The moment he saw it, he naturally thought: Ah, it’s a machine error.

Because otherwise, this was impossible. But even at the major hospital he visited alone with his mother, the test showed that same unfamiliar symbol again.

Even now, a decade later, Yihyun remembered the doctor’s words word for word, “Male Omegas are a rare case even within Omegas. And dominant, too? That’s remarkable. Congratulations.”

He also remembered his mother’s face as she sat beside him. A face no one would ever associate with someone being congratulated. If anything, it looked like she’d just been handed a death sentence.

From that moment on, the truth was buried. The Cha and Baek families had only just begun to restore their relationship. Baek Juho and Cha Yihyun were meant to symbolize that alliance and lead the next generation forward.

So what would it mean, now, for Yihyun to be revealed as an Omega?

It seemed they thought this would put the Baek family at a great disadvantage. More than anything, as the doctor had said, male Omegas were rare, and it was a hard fact to accept in a conservative family.

Instead of remaining an Omega, Cha Yihyun chose to live as a recessive Alpha. And so, the truth became something only Yihyun, his mother, and his attending physician would carry.

Yihyun naturally became more withdrawn in his school life. As a result, he grew distant from Baek Juho, who was always at the center of every crowd wherever he went.

By the time he turned twenty, he gave up entirely on competing for a spot in the family business and decided to enroll in an arts university instead.

He had always been interested in film, but more importantly, he believed that was the only way to sever the last thread of connection between him and Baek Juho, who had already stepped into the role of heir. To Yihyun, Baek Juho was the very reason he ended up living as a recessive Alpha.

He thought that would be the end. No, he believed he could make it the end…

Yihyun opened the front door and came to a halt the moment he stepped inside. It was because of the familiar pair of sneakers left by the shoe cabinet.

The white sneakers had their heels slightly crushed, kicked off without care. He hesitated for a moment, then let out a soft sigh and stepped inside.

The living room, which he’d turned the lights off in before leaving, was now bright. And on the sofa was a familiar figure.

A pair of long legs was sticking out over the armrest of the sofa. As he walked closer, he saw Baek Juho asleep with a book resting on his chest.

That guy who, more often than not, chose to sleep at Yihyun’s place instead of his own. Even when Yihyun changed the door lock code, he always found some unimaginable method to break in uninvited.

At times like this, Yihyun couldn’t help but think that maybe his grandfather wasn’t completely wrong after all.

He muttered quietly to himself.

“Such a thug, as always.”

He ignored him and began loosening the shirt collar that was choking him, only to suddenly realize it had been a long time since he’d last seen Baek Juho’s face looking this peaceful in sleep.

It was just that every time he opened his mouth, he ruined it with something stupid, but there was no denying he was a handsome man. His jet-black hair made his pale skin stand out even more, and there wasn’t a single blemish on his face.

Yihyun’s gaze followed the sharp lines of his features downward, and suddenly, his shirt caught his attention.

He was wearing the half-zip knit that had been mentioned earlier on the anonymous board. Because of the way he was reclining at an angle, the knit had slipped to the side, revealing a hint of his firm chest muscles.

As far as Yihyun knew, Baek Juho wasn’t particularly diligent about working out. Even so, by the time he’d finished growing, his body had developed naturally well-defined muscles. It made Yihyun click his tongue quietly, wondering if this was why everyone found Alphas so irritating. Just then, Baek Juho spoke.

“Gonna stare a hole through my face?”

Turns out he wasn’t asleep after all. He slowly opened his eyes and grinned.

“What, struck by how good-looking I am all over again?”

That infuriating arrogance still rolled right off his tongue, just like always. Yihyun quickly looked away and replied flatly.

“I told you to stop coming in without permission.”

Juho yawned and sat up, apparently used to Yihyun’s frosty tone.

“Are we strangers now? That’s a little hurtful. You know I’m sensitive.”

He made the excuse half-heartedly, then gulped down the water on the table as if it were his own place. After setting the glass down, he stretched, and suddenly an odd scent drifted over.

Yihyun thought it might be Baek Juho’s pheromones, but it was different.

It was something more unpleasant…

His brow furrowed instinctively as he glared at him. Juho slung one arm over the back of the sofa and gave a smug smile, as if he’d been waiting for this.

“I’ll leave in a bit. The last Omega must’ve taken some kind of heat inducer or something. The nasty pheromone stench just won’t clear out of my house.”

His tone was breezy, but the words were anything but.

As a dominant Alpha, Baek Juho had been regularly meeting Omegas for some time now. It didn’t seem like he was in a steady relationship with anyone, since every time he showed up, he reeked of someone new. Smelling the lingering scent of a stranger’s arousal was nothing short of revolting.

Glancing around the room, Baek Juho continued as if nothing were wrong.

“By the way, what diffuser do you use? Your place always smells great. It’s like, before I know it, I find myself here again.”

Baek Juho ran a hand through his hair and closed his eyes lazily, as if it hadn’t been him speaking so insolently just moments ago.

Yihyun placed the black plastic bag containing his medication on the table. Next to it was another black bag. Baek Juho must have brought beer again.

Yihyun averted his gaze and replied casually, “If the scent of an Omega in heat is so bad, try acting a little more decent.”

Even to his own ears, his tone had a sharp edge. Sensing the change with keen precision, Juho rested his chin in his hand and looked up at Yihyun with a lazy smile tugging at his lips.

“What’s with the attitude? I’m decent. Someone might think I’m sleeping around.”

Yihyun gave him a look that said he wasn’t buying a word of it, and Baek Juho merely shrugged as if oblivious.

“Everyone needs a way to let off steam. Don’t act like you don’t know that.”

At the end of his sentence, Baek Juho’s eyes curved prettily with a smile. Yihyun let out a deep sigh at that carefree demeanor, but Baek Juho abruptly shifted gears.

“Or maybe not. Maybe you don’t know, Yihyun.”

“……”

He was clearly poking at Yihyun’s status as a recessive.

Yihyun turned his head away dismissively, but Baek Juho didn’t seem to care. Narrowing his eyes, he slowly looked Yihyun up and down.

“Tell me. You are letting off steam once in a while, right?”

There it was again. In an instant, the relaxed atmosphere changed. A scent like a lavish bouquet that resembled him. Baek Juho had released his pheromones.