TAF Ch 10

“…Was that it?”

As if a realization had dawned on him, Yeonwoo opened his eyes. An alpha’s rut cycle was longer than an omega’s. And depending on the person and the situation, an alpha’s possessiveness could intensify when they had a partner.

For some alphas, this possessiveness became pathologically strong. There were even medications to mitigate the aggression associated with it.

Could this be the reason Chahyun had gone this far?

Even so, confining him like this was too much. Chahyun had been insistent on sex during their last rut and hadn’t wanted him to leave the bed, but that was within the realm of expected behavior.

However, even if there hadn’t been any unusual behavior before, this was a special situation, wasn’t it? A sudden, unwanted breakup was a different story. It was enough to trigger an alpha’s possessiveness, which was amplified during their rut.

Thinking about it this way, Chahyun’s abnormal behavior since yesterday made some sense. But…

“He’s doing this even before his rut?”

Yeonwoo muttered to himself without realizing it.

If this was happening now, things could get much worse when his rut actually started. He’d gone through ruts with Chahyun many times, but they’d never broken up during one, so he couldn’t imagine what would happen.

Moreover, with his own heat cycle overlapping, if he was trapped like this, he’d inevitably end up sleeping with Chahyun, who was about to marry someone else, day and night. Driven purely by instinct, regardless of his will.

Perhaps that’s what Chahyun was hoping for, keeping him locked up until his heat was over. He might have thought that after a few days of non-stop sex, Yeonwoo’s resentment towards the marriage would fade and they’d go back to how things were.

Either way, whether it was his heat or Chahyun’s rut, this couldn’t continue. Yeonwoo came to that conclusion.

He didn’t want Chahyun’s obsession to get any worse. If this was happening before his rut, once it actually started, he might end up tied up.

He had to escape while he still had his phone.

…But how?

He knew from experience that getting angry wouldn’t work. A physical confrontation was also impossible due to the difference in their size.

‘I didn’t mean to hurt you. I just got angry for a moment…’

Yeonwoo nibbled on his fingernails, remembering Chahyun’s genuinely flustered expression as he knelt before him earlier.

Perhaps it would be better to appease him rather than being too confrontational…

✧✧✧

The next morning, Yeonwoo got out of bed and immediately checked the front door.

“Sigh.”

As expected, the two men were still guarding the door.

“You cannot go outside.”

Not wanting to respond to their impersonal words, Yeonwoo slammed the door shut. He walked over and collapsed onto the sofa.

He habitually checked his phone and saw a missed call from his mother. Since he’d missed her call a few days ago as well, he immediately pressed the call button.

—Son, are you doing well?

“You called last night. Is something wrong?”

—Nothing much. I was just wondering what you’ve been up to, Yeonwoo. And I wanted to hear your voice.

“Same as always. How’s your back? You said it was hurting.”

—My back will heal if I leave it alone. It’s much better since the surgery. Do you have any side dishes at home? If not, I can…”

“It’s okay, Mom. Don’t bother making side dishes when your back hurts. I’m fine.”

—Really? I wanted to go to Seoul to see your face while I was at it. It’s been a while…

Yeonwoo, who had been slumped on the sofa during the call, sat up at his mother’s words.

“…No, I’m a bit busy these days. Come later.”

—Is something wrong?

“Nothing serious, just… I’m busy. Anyway, if you’re coming, come next month or the month after, not this month.”

—Are you overworking yourself? Is everything really alright?

“It’s not that serious… Sigh, there’s just… something going on. Anyway, I’ll call you back later.”

The conversation with his mother made him feel uneasy. He could hear her hesitating on the other end, as if she had more to say, but Yeonwoo pretended not to notice and hung up.

His mother didn’t know he was dating Chahyun. So he usually met her at the officetel or the cafe when she came to Seoul. He couldn’t bring himself to explain the current situation to his mother, so this was the best he could do.

Besides this, there were other complicated family matters. Yeonwoo hadn’t contacted his father in a long time, but he knew his mother still contacted him occasionally.

His father, still addicted to gambling, seemed to be asking his mother for money, and most of the money she gave him ultimately came from Yeonwoo.

No matter how much he told her not to, she continued to help his father, so at some point, Yeonwoo had become uncomfortable talking to her. Every time she mentioned money, he felt suffocated.

After the call, Yeonwoo lay listlessly on the sofa, staring at the ceiling.

The housekeeper, who usually worked at the apartment, brought him food and side dishes, but he only exchanged brief greetings and didn’t talk further.

Even the housekeeper, who was always friendly at the apartment he shared with Chahyun, didn’t initiate any conversation today.

Yeonwoo killed time, waiting for Chahyun to come home from work.

But Chahyun didn’t come, even at 7 PM, 9 PM, or midnight. There was no contact either.

Yeonwoo stared blankly at the closed front door in the darkened living room.

“What is he trying to do?”

Yeonwoo muttered, feeling defeated. He’d waited all day, hoping to appease Chahyun, but the day had passed him by.

He’d thought Chahyun would come right after work.

Left alone in the cold, empty space, he felt utterly dejected.

Why? Because he’d heard that Chahyun was getting married?

As soon as that thought crossed his mind, an image of Chahyun smiling and spending time with his fiancée bloomed in his mind.

‘Getting married doesn’t mean we’re breaking up.’

‘Nothing will change. This house will stay the same, and I’ll keep living here.’

Chahyun had spoken about marriage so casually. But Yeonwoo knew better than anyone that it wasn’t that simple.

Born out of wedlock, Yeonwoo had witnessed firsthand how his mother was treated by society.

His naive mother, deceived by his father who pretended to be single, had raised Yeonwoo alone, enduring the scorn and ridicule of being labeled a “dirty mistress.” Wherever she went, she was always whispered about behind her back.

‘That woman had an affair with a married man, right?’ 

‘Oh my god. So she’s a homewrecker? How shameless.’ 

‘She stole someone else’s husband and even had a child, as if she did nothing wrong.’

The sins of his father, who had deceived his mother and abandoned his responsibility for his child, were overshadowed by the existence of his mother and Yeonwoo and went largely unnoticed. The label of “dirty woman” and “illegitimate child” only disappeared when his parents finally registered their marriage when Yeonwoo was nine.

That’s how the world worked. The details didn’t matter. People were judged based on appearances.

Perhaps Chahyun, instinctively aware of this unfair reality, spoke so lightly about marriage. Because he knew how little responsibility he would actually bear. And Yeonwoo would be the one to bear the full brunt of the consequences of accepting this marriage.

He felt betrayed that Chahyun, of all people, was the one offering him such a painful position.

“…….”

Consumed by dark thoughts, Yeonwoo spent the night by the front door. But the tightly closed door remained unopened until dawn.

✧✧✧

On the third day of his confinement, when Yeonwoo tried calling the police again, the men guarding his door confiscated his phone.

“Give me back my phone.”

“We cannot do that at this time.”

“Give it back!”

“…….”

No response. He banged on the closed door and yelled, but he could no longer even open the door freely, and he’d lost his only means of contacting anyone.

Just like that, Yeonwoo was completely isolated in his officetel.

The gravity of the situation finally hit him. He could no longer maintain his naive belief that he could somehow get out. It seemed Chahyun really intended to keep him here until his heat cycle was over.

After hours of confronting the men at the door, Yeonwoo gave up and returned to the living room, exhausted. He’d gotten a small scratch on his wrist from the doorknob during a brief struggle with one of the men. He absently rubbed the wound.