PC | Chapter 2.1

After finishing his second meeting with Director Yun Pansu, I was on my way out when a message suddenly arrived from an unsaved number. It was a short greeting, asking if I was doing well. After hesitating for a long time, I cautiously asked who it was, and he introduced himself as “Kim Dongjin.”

Kim Dongjin?

The Kim Dongjin I knew had been one of the crowd that used to hang around with Park Suwon. We had lost contact after high school graduation, so how had he gotten my number and reached out to me? Before I could even reply, another message came in.

“Chocolate, candy, jelly, snacks, drinks, cup ramen, triangle kimbap”

They were words that made no sense to me. Frowning, I stared hard at the screen. Was he asking me to buy them? Even as I got into the car, I kept stringing the words together in every possible combination.

When I absentmindedly muttered each word out loud, Changseok, who was in the driver’s seat, suddenly asked, “Should we stop by a convenience store?” Ah… right. Come to think of it, they were all things sold at convenience stores. And suddenly I remembered how, after basketball, we used to crowd into a convenience store and eat cup ramen with triangle kimbap.

“Liu Villa”

Another message arrived. I fell into thought again over the riddle-like words. When I opened a map app and searched Liu Villa, there was a convenience store in front of the villa. It wasn’t far from my place either.

“Changseok, please drop me off at the convenience store near Liu Villa.”

“If you need anything, just tell me. I’ll buy it for you.”

“I just feel like walking a little.”

Not long after, the car slowly came to a stop, and the convenience store sign appeared outside the window. I covered my face with a ball cap and mask, then got out of the car. Changseok kept urging me, clearly worried, to call him as soon as I got home. I looked around and went into the store.

With the jingle of the bell, the part-timer sitting at the register stood up. I scanned the inside of the store with my eyes and headed for the drinks section, lingering in front of the refrigerator.

Then someone came up beside me and stood shoulder to shoulder with me. I turned my head without thinking, and there was a man in a tracksuit with a ball cap pulled low over his face. Thinking it might be Kim Dongjin, I tilted my head slightly to confirm his face.

“…Park Suwon?”

I covered my mouth over the mask and stumbled back a step. Only then did those mysterious words make sense. Consciously checking my surroundings, I looked at Park Suwon. It had truly been a long time since we’d seen each other alone like this in private.

“You figured it out pretty fast.”

“What the hell are you doing here? Are you even allowed to be out like this?”

“When Jung Inhyuk is in rut, it’s my leave. You probably didn’t know because you’ve been with Executive Director Jung the whole time.”

“…Then what about the executive director?”

“Locked up in a hotel room, what else.”

“You called me here?”

Park Suwon reached out and grabbed my wrist. He pulled my sleeve up a little and stared at the bandaged wrist. My face burned hot. It felt like my shame had been exposed. I tried to tug my sleeve down to hide the bandage, but Park Suwon stubbornly held onto my wrist and wouldn’t let go.

“I kept worrying about it. Your wrist. I also wondered if you ended up in trouble because of me.”

“…You’re the one who got punched by Jung Inhyuk, so why are you worrying about me?”

“Lee Shinjae.”

“…Yeah.”

“I’m saying this again. I didn’t quit basketball because of you, I quit of my own free will. I probably would’ve quit even if my father were still alive. And you didn’t ruin my life. Don’t apologize to me.”

Park Suwon patted my shoulder gently. I lowered my head and squeezed my eyes shut. What he said was a lie. When Park Suwon’s father died by suicide, his family fell apart. His mother collapsed from the shock and became ill, and Park Suwon, buried under debt, gave up on his dream.

I didn’t know the details of what happened or why he killed himself, but somehow it all felt like my fault. My words and actions had surely provoked Jung Inhyuk. The guilt of having stolen the dream of that boy who had sparkled so vividly on the basketball court weighed heavily on my chest.

“I still have to be Jung Inhyuk’s dog, if only because of my mother. I can’t give you information anymore.”

“…Sorry. I shouldn’t have asked you for that.”

“Executive Director Jung fired Manager An. From now on, I’ll be taking over everything he used to do. Maybe I’ll have to do something to you that I can’t help either.”

Park Suwon clenched his jaw tightly, as if in pain, and forced the words out with difficulty. Manager An had been Jung Inhyuk’s hunting dog. He mostly found people who had embezzled company funds, damaged the company, and then gone into hiding.

And that included finding me, the one who had run away. No matter where I was, Manager An would appear like a ghost and casually seize me by the hair. The memory of his face, grinning ominously with a half-broken front tooth visible, gave me a chill.

I understood what it meant for Park Suwon to take over Manager An’s work. It meant that if I ran away again, Park Suwon would be the one to come after me. I would be dragged back by him like a dog and thrown in front of Jung Inhyuk. A short, ragged breath escaped me.

“Do it.”

“Lee Shinjae.”

“I said do it.”

“Hey.”

“Jung Inhyuk probably thinks that if he puts you in Manager An’s place, I won’t be able to run. No, I’ll run even harder. I’ll struggle not to be caught by you. I’ll run desperately.”

Breathing hard, I opened the refrigerator and took out two bottles of ion drink. After paying, I left one on the counter and walked out.

✿ • ✿ • ✿

Actor Lee Shinjae makes a dazzling comeback with Director Yun Pansu’s new film, <Villain>

Director Yun Pansu succeeds in casting Lee Shinjae after three requests

Lee Shinjae signals a transformation in his acting

Time passed in such a blur that I could no longer tell which day was coming and which was leaving. Director Yun Pansu liked me enough to hand me the appearance contract right at the first meeting. Not long after the second meeting ended, the production company and my agency discussed things and the casting was finalized.

But despite the word comeback, I was devoting myself completely not to the script, but to the materials Kang Jigyu had given me. There was far too much an omega had to know.

If I had gone through a normal manifestation, I would have learned all of it as part of the education curriculum, but I had to figure everything out on my own, without a single person teaching me.

From taking suppressants to contraception, pheromone control, heat cycles, omega-related laws, and emergency response methods, even finding reliable information instead of rumors was a task in itself.

“In cases of mutation or delayed manifestation, the side effects of suppressants were shown to be approximately 28 percent higher than in normally manifested omegas.”

What was despairing was that all of this only applied to omegas who had manifested normally. In cases of mutation or delayed manifestation, if one parent was a trait carrier, delayed manifestation was considered, and the possibility of mutation had to be kept in mind.

I removed my glasses and set them on the table, then covered my face with both hands. But no matter what I read, this anxious, tangled feeling wouldn’t calm down. Jung Inhyuk still hadn’t contacted me even though his rut had ended. At this moment, enduring it felt like standing on the calm waves before a storm.

I startled every time the phone rang, and late at night I would unconsciously strain my ears for outside sounds. Every single day felt like torment.

I took a sip of water and picked the materials back up. I read and reread the sections on omega reproduction until the paper was practically frayed to pieces. Compared to female omegas, pregnancy and childbirth were more dangerous for male omegas.

Poorly developed organs formed later in life, a skeleton unsuited to childbirth, postpartum complications. One scholar said that a baby came out into the world by tearing at an omega’s life. That was how many risks pregnancy itself carried. This applied broadly to beta females, female omegas, and male omegas alike.

-Get me my child.

Every time I remembered Jung Inhyuk’s words, chills ran over me. It sounded as if he were urging me toward death. Hah. I threw the pile of documents onto the floor and covered my face. I still couldn’t accept the fact that I had become an omega. Even though several tests and ultrasounds had confirmed that a womb had taken root in my abdomen, if I could, I wanted to deny it. I resented Jung Inhyuk.

I raised my head and stared at the red light on the camera blinking at a steady rhythm. This house was a prison in everything but name. A house completely under Jung Inhyuk’s control.

Ridiculously, after moving in here, I had never once adjusted the boiler temperature or turned the air conditioner on or off myself. Jung Inhyuk managed everything remotely, from the humidity and temperature of the house to its security and overall condition.

Early after the move, I had once changed the password because I hated Jung Inhyuk walking in whenever he wanted, but the next day it had been changed back to the original one.

He wanted me to remain under the exact environment he desired, without even a millimeter of error. Remembering that made it feel like my breath had caught in my throat.

Suddenly, my phone started ringing. I reached out and checked the screen, and as expected, it was Jung Inhyuk.

“Hello.”

[What are you glaring at like you want to kill someone?]

“……”

[Get ready to go out.]

“…Right now?”

[Get ready and come to the parking lot.]

Without even having time to tidy the papers scattered messily over the sofa and table, I shot to my feet. I quickly washed my face and brushed my teeth, then ran into the dressing room.

I shoved on a shirt and pants and grabbed the first padded jacket my hand touched. I was sitting on the floor putting on my socks when Ohnji came over, whining softly.

Ah! Ohnji’s food, I’d forgotten to give Ohnji his meal.