WCK | Chapter 1.2

Unlike the snowflakes gently falling outside, the inside was warm. It might have been due to the silently running heater, but the overall warm lighting made it feel even cozier. It was fascinating how white lighting, not yellow, could appear warm.

This is my first time here.

Thanks to Young-oh taking him along whenever he got a suit tailored, Seo-on wasn’t unfamiliar with such spaces. However, whether it was a matter of taste, this was his first time at this tailor shop. Seo-on recalled the message saying he’d be about 10 minutes late and sipped the warm tea. The tea, brewed at the right temperature, wasn’t hot, but it was a kind of habit.

So this is the Executive Director’s taste in suits.

The topic of wedding attire came up during their first meeting.

“If you have a preference, let’s go with that.”

Cha Dokwon asked about Seo-on’s suit preference while rubbing his cheek with a vague expression. It was then that Seo-on realized why the man was surprised by his school uniform. He assumed the man knew his age, but apparently not.

“I’ve never had a suit tailored before. I’ll get it done where you do, Executive Director.”

“……When would be a good time for you?”

“I’ll match it to your schedule, Executive Director. I have plenty of time now.”

The casual acceptance of the delay was purely because the man was a working professional.

Even though it was the weekend, Seo-on knew that weekends didn’t exist for working professionals. Moreover, the other party wasn’t a new employee but part of the owner’s family. While his commute might be flexible, it was clear as day that work would be piled up like a mountain.

The reason they couldn’t get the wedding attire tailored immediately after their first meeting and only came now in December was because the man didn’t have much free time.

“Still, it’s a bit awkward to do it alone.”

Seo-on brought the mug to his lips and looked out the large window behind the sofa. The snow that had been pouring down before he came in had stopped, and the white clouds had cleared, revealing a bright blue sky.

He said it would take 10 minutes.

Waiting had become a routine when meeting Young-oh or Ji-oh outside, so this time didn’t feel particularly tedious. In fact, he felt relieved that his marriage partner wasn’t coming right away.

Even setting aside the elders’ advice to meet at least three times before marriage, it wasn’t uncomfortable to meet the man since they couldn’t enter the wedding hall on the second meeting. However, given that the other party was much older, he needed to prepare himself mentally.

Choosing warm tea when asked by the staff what he would like was also to calm his mind with tea.

‘It didn’t feel awkward, though.’

Perhaps because he was waiting for Cha Dokwon, his first meeting with him naturally came to mind.

It wasn’t as awkward as he thought. He slightly regretted not changing out of his school uniform instead of preparing flowers, but that was a thought he had before giving the flowers to the man, not during the meal.

“Is there anything you don’t eat or are allergic to?”

“No. I eat anything well. I’ll go with whatever you recommend, Executive Director.”

He suddenly realized he was leaving all the decisions to the man, which made him feel a bit embarrassed, but Seo-on had no choice. He hadn’t established a preference for suits yet, he had plenty of time, and he wasn’t familiar with this restaurant.

Usually, even when dining out, his parents or brother and sister would order delicious food for him, so he didn’t know much.

Seo-on glanced at the man’s expression. Noticing that he was being watched, Cha Dokwon met his gaze. His face was devoid of unnecessary emotions, as if he had never been surprised by Seo-on.

“No need to be conscious.”

“I was worried I was pushing too much onto you, Executive Director.”

The man moved his lips slowly. Yoon Seo-on unconsciously moved his lips as he watched the man let out a soft laugh.

“That’s expected at your age.”

It was a facial expression he hadn’t imagined due to the man’s cold demeanor.

He can smile, huh… Though there’s no one in the world who can’t smile, he had expected the man to remain stern due to his cold demeanor. This must be why they say not to judge people by first impressions.

“I’ll order, so if there’s anything you want, feel free to say.”

“Okay…”

He wondered if he was acting too much like the youngest, but since it was clear the man saw him as a child, Seo-on simply nodded in response instead of adding more words.

The dining atmosphere wasn’t bad. And Seo-on didn’t feel uncomfortable with the man.

It felt completely different from eating with family or friends. However, having been his grandfather’s conversation partner for a long time and being naturally unreserved with adults, there was no reason to feel awkward. As if to prove that, the conversation continued intermittently.

The topics were more superficial than related to marriage, but there was no tension causing sweaty palms or a churning stomach.

“If I were your sister’s age, I’d probably talk about business.”

Seo-on was ten years younger than his sister, Yoon Ji-oh. He was fifteen years younger than his brother, Yoon Young-oh. It was an environment where he couldn’t help but be used to being treated like a baby by his siblings, even being called a baby at nineteen.

And Seo-on vaguely guessed that if the arranged marriage with CH had surfaced a bit earlier, the partner might have been Yoon Ji-oh instead of him. Even though significant age differences in marriage were common in this world, marriages with more than a twelve-year age gap were not.

Moreover, same-sex marriages were not common either.

Due to the somewhat distorted form of wealth and power inheritance among conglomerates, there were increasing calls to entrust companies to professional managers rather than children, but in reality, it was just a story from another world.

People in high society still wanted to pass on their wealth and power to their bloodline, and for that, they needed children of their own flesh and blood.

The fact that gender didn’t matter in marriage had the advantage of broadening the range of choices, but it couldn’t compare to the fatal disadvantage of not being able to have children. As a result, same-sex marriages were less common than marriages between completely different species.

“But why did the Executive Director accept?”

It occurred to him belatedly that the partner might not have been that important to him. Judging by his surprise at seeing Seo-on, it was clear he didn’t know his background.

Why didn’t he call it off?

When the day to get the wedding attire tailored was postponed by several weeks, he thought the marriage might be called off, but since today had come, it seemed that wasn’t the case.

While he was deep in thought about the absent partner, he heard the door open, and Seo-on instinctively turned his head toward the sound. He made eye contact with the man entering.

The man’s light bow prompted Seo-on to bow his head.

“Let’s see it right away.”

“Yes. Please wait a moment.”

Once the staff who guided him disappeared, silence filled the room.

“Sorry for being late.”

But the silence didn’t last long. Cha Dokwon approached and offered an apology.

“It might sound like an excuse, but something came up suddenly.”

“It’s okay. My brother and sister are often late because of work too. Have you eaten?”

“Yes. How about you, Yoon Seo-on?”

“I’ve eaten too.”

While contemplating whether to stand up, Dokwon sat beside him. Thanks to that, Seo-on could remain seated on the sofa instead of continuing his contemplation.

He glanced at the person sitting beside him. Seeing the man under the restaurant’s somewhat dim lighting felt distinctly different from seeing him in brighter light.

Although they had faced each other on the first day they met, this second encounter felt more relaxed. The man’s features came into clearer view—perhaps more so because of the bright lighting.

‘I’m curious about the Executive Director’s true form.’

Having grown up among family members with distinct features, he had never felt curious about someone’s true form. Yet, the man before him possessed a handsomeness—elegant enough to stir that very curiosity.

His long, dark eyebrows framed a sharply defined brow bone, which gave way to angular bone structure and deep-set, keenly opened eyes. Even his smooth, unblemished nose—free of any deviation—contributed to a presence that evoked the image of a predator.

The human form’s face tends to follow the true form, so the true form would be beautiful enough to captivate one’s gaze.

The faintly reflected iridescence in his jet-black pupils was needless to say. Unlike Seo-on, whose irises were light brown whether in true form or human form, the man would have irises that turned bright yellow when reverting to his true form.

The sharply angled jawline and prominently protruding Adam’s apple would give a fierce impression when transforming into a beast.

‘Will I ever see it?’

It’s extremely rare for humans to revert to their true form. Even though they are born with their original form, it’s natural to transform into a human form as they age.

As they gradually spend more time as humans, living in human form becomes much more familiar, and eventually, voluntarily reverting to their true form becomes rare.

There are instances where one reverts to their true form involuntarily during puberty when emotions are hard to control, under extreme stress, or when severely injured, but the man likely didn’t fall into any of those categories, so he probably wouldn’t encounter his true form in the future.

I need to control it well too…

Seo-on fidgeted with his fingers. Unlike the man, who was called an anomaly due to melanism, Seo-on was a type who became an anomaly due to genetic mutation, so he was clumsy at controlling his transformation compared to ordinary people. Although he hadn’t suddenly turned into a puppy since he was young, he couldn’t predict what might happen if his environment changed.

There was medication to prepare for such situations. The problem was that it didn’t work well for Seo-on, who was an anomaly.

Perhaps because he had been staring for too long while thinking about something else, Cha Dokwon rolled his eyes toward him. Pretending not to see seemed stranger, so Seo-on blinked blankly.

Then the man slightly furrowed his brows and spoke.

“Is your preparation for the regular admissions going well?”

It was a voice that seemed to be trying to draw out a conversation as an adult rather than out of genuine curiosity.

However, Seo-on blinked blankly again. Regular admissions? Is he talking about the application?

“I got accepted through early admissions.”

These days, there aren’t many current students going to college through regular admissions.

“Ah, early admissions.”

At that unexpected moment when the generation gap made itself known, Dokwon discreetly furrowed his brows.