Even before meeting him face-to-face, Go Igyeol had fallen out of her favor. Once Im Yeonhee decided she would show him what it meant to suffer under one’s in-laws, she became, surprisingly, magnanimous. When there were many eyes watching, she acted like the kindest mother-in-law in the world toward Go Igyeol. But when they were alone, she was excessively rude, difficult, and so sensitive that nothing he did could please her.
Her eyes, whose outer corners swept sharply upward, stared straight at Go Igyeol.
“Still no baby news?”
“…I’m sorry.”
“There it is again. Sorry, sorry, that’s all you ever say. It’s already been two years since you got married, so why aren’t you pregnant? You said you’re not even using contraception. It’s because you’re recessive after all, isn’t it? If the field is no good, then no matter how excellent the seed planted in it is, it can’t grow. Isn’t that right?”
“Seo Dohyeon and I are trying together, so if you could wait just a little—”
He could not reveal a pregnancy he had not even told Seo Dohyeon about to Seo Dohyeon’s mother. But at the same time, a part of him wondered whether she might help him if he told her he was pregnant. He was just beginning to consider whether it would be better to tell her instead.
“Can effort solve everything? Are you and our Dohyeon even close? Honestly, this is why I told Father over and over that we had to bring a dominant omega into the family. If you haven’t gotten pregnant for over two years, then clearly there’s a problem with you because you’re recessive, isn’t there? Am I wrong? If we just sit here and wait blindly, I’ll die before anything happens. This is why recessives won’t do! No matter how dominant our Dohyeon is, with you being recessive, how could any child born from you have a good trait? Even if you give birth, it’ll be a problem. A problem!”
“……”
“What is that look on your face? Don’t tell me you’re offended just because I criticized you a little for being recessive. Does it upset you that I’m saying this? Everyone in the world knows a dominant omega is a hundred, a thousand times better than a recessive omega. What is there to be so offended about that you’re making that face?”
It felt as if someone had dumped ice water over Go Igyeol and told him to come to his senses. He quickly erased the thought of asking Im Yeonhee for help.
“Ahem. Hm.”
At Go Igyeol’s frozen expression, Im Yeonhee gave an awkward little cough. Seeing his face, as if he might cry at the slightest touch, she wondered if she had gone a bit too far. It had only seemed more effective to pressure Go Igyeol than to pressure Seo Dohyeon, since there had been no baby news after two years of marriage. She did not truly believe a bad trait would be born just because he was recessive.
Even when the omega was recessive, if the spouse was a dominant alpha, most children were born with a dominant trait. But he did not know that, which was why he looked so despondent. Im Yeonhee thought Go Igyeol looked pitiful, but she had no desire to tell him, nor any desire to apologize. She only worried that word might reach her father-in-law that she had mistreated him, so she broke the silence and tried to smooth things over just enough.
“Listen. That was just a manner of speaking, all right?”
“……”
“Are you protesting now because what I said offended you?”
“That isn’t it. I know you didn’t mean it in a bad way, Mother. Please don’t worry.”
Even after Go Igyeol answered, she could not erase the displeased look from her face. She clicked her tongue and rose from her seat. Go Igyeol, who had not even been allowed to sit and had remained standing the entire time, followed her at a fixed distance. After passing through the dining room and entering the kitchen, she called two of the servants moving busily in practiced order.
“The Chairman said he wants fresh kimchi, so while you’re making it, teach our child too. Dohyeon takes after the Chairman’s tastes exactly.”
“Yes, Madam.”
“Igyeol, you should learn properly today too. Understood?”
A beautiful smile, so lovely it seemed drawn onto her face, appeared on features still refined enough to make her middle age seem irrelevant. A hand with not a single rough edge touched his thin back lightly. At the gentle stroke, Go Igyeol, who had gone stiff, quickly came back to himself.
“Yes.”
“I’ll be out for a little while, so teach our Igyeol well. And before the child leaves, pack some kimchi for Executive Director Seo.”
“Yes, Madam. Have a safe trip.”
Go Igyeol stood there blankly, unable to get used to the way Im Yeonhee called him our child and our Igyeol, then bowed when she turned and left the kitchen. Im Yeonhee disappeared elegantly, without even making a sound with her slippers. Only after the door clicked shut did the gazes fixed on the floor slowly lift toward Go Igyeol.
“…Please don’t feel uncomfortable. Just teach me.”
“Then please help a little with mixing the seasoning. And with tasting it.”
“I’ll help prepare the ingredients too. I heard the family home doesn’t make kimchi in bulk. Do you make fresh kimchi like this every time?”
“The Chairman’s taste is very particular, so if it ripens even a little, he won’t touch it.”
The servants in aprons gathered as if this were nothing unusual, then dispersed to find their respective tasks. One of them approached hesitantly and handed Go Igyeol a basket full of green onions.
“We wash the roots clean and use them for stock, so cut those off and gather them separately. Split this part in half lengthwise, then chop it. Not too finely.”
“Should I wash them outside? There are so many, I think it’ll be hard to wash them here.”
“We usually do that too, but… it’ll be cold if you do it outside. Will you be all right?”
They worried about Go Igyeol, but they did not actively try to stop him. The green onions were bulky and there were too many of them, so washing them inside would take up a lot of space. If possible, they were quietly hoping he would even finish chopping them before coming back in.
“I’ll trim them outside and bring them in.”
“The outdoor faucet doesn’t have hot water, so if you get cold, come back inside after doing a little.”
“Understood.”
Go Igyeol picked up the basket filled with green onions and went outside. It was March. They called it spring, but the last cold snap had not yet withdrawn.
*****
Preparing the green onions took longer than he had expected. He rinsed the dirt tangled around the roots clean, cut the roots off and gathered them separately, then cut the stalks into proper lengths. By the time he had repeatedly plunged his hands in and out of the water, they were swollen red from the cold.
He had not known he would be doing this kind of work, so he had come wearing only a thin cardigan. In the spring wind that cut into his skin, Go Igyeol kept sniffling. Even so, he silently prepared the green onions, thinking it was a hundred times better than being inside smelling food and dry-heaving.
How long had he been out there?
Perhaps because he had visited at an awkward hour, it seemed a great deal of time had passed. The sky was already flushed red.
“How long have I been here…?”
A pile of half-cut green onions rolled across the cutting board. The basket that the servants working inside had come to empty several times was once again full of chopped green onions. This time, he wanted to take it in himself. It was cold, and his frozen hands hurt, so he wanted it even more. Go Igyeol straightened the back he had been bending over, checked the sky, and sniffled. He was surprised that making kimchi required this many green onions.
“…My back hurts.”
He was shaking the water off his apron with a sigh when he heard someone behind him. The instant he turned around by reflex, he found Seo Dohyeon standing there, his face twisted into a deep scowl.
“…Oh… why are you… Hello.”
“Ha.”
Even Go Igyeol knew the greeting had sounded stupid. But he had no idea what he was supposed to say. He could not understand why Seo Dohyeon had come at this hour, and to the family home of all places. Why was that man here?
“I’m curious what exactly you’re doing right now.”
“…They said they were making kimchi… so I’m preparing green onions…”
“Who told you to do that?”
“Mother said it was a side dish you liked too… so I said I wanted to learn.”
Seo Dohyeon frowned as if he had seen something he could not bear to look at. Then he exhaled. As evening fell and the temperature dropped, his breath spread white in the air.
“Come here.”
“I’m not done yet…”
“Did I ever tell you to learn this kind of shit for me?”
“……”
Seo Dohyeon strode toward Go Igyeol, who had frozen in an awkward posture, grabbed his arm, and pulled him upright. He untied the loosely fastened apron and threw it onto the ground, then immediately took Go Igyeol and crossed the yard.
“W-wait. If you leave like this, it’ll be difficult. They’ll be put in a difficult position. If I suddenly disappear—”
“Who will?”
“What?”
“I asked who will be put in a difficult position.”
Because Seo Dohyeon asked while staring at him so sharply, Go Igyeol’s lips only moved soundlessly before he lowered his gaze. The people working busily inside would probably think it was strange if he suddenly disappeared, and even if he left, he thought he should at least say goodbye.
“The people… working inside.”
“Ha. You really do find every possible way, don’t you? Be quiet and follow me. I’m not in the mood to go in and announce that we’re leaving.”
“…Still, if you leave like this, I’ll be… put in an awkward position.”
Go Igyeol twisted his wrist free from Seo Dohyeon’s grip and murmured.
“I’ll just… say goodbye and come right out. I’ll tell them Seo Dohyeon came to pick me up, and we’ll take the kimchi later—”
“There’s no need. I don’t even like it that much anyway. I just eat it if it’s there.”
“…Then I’ll only say goodbye and come out.”
Rubbing his wrist, where a dull ache remained, Go Igyeol bowed his head to Seo Dohyeon, picked up the basket, and ran back toward the faucet area.
“Fuck, why is he taking that with him?”
Seo Dohyeon muttered under his breath with a low sigh, then shut his mouth. He could not hold back the crude curse. In weather that was beyond chilly and outright cold, what had Go Igyeol been doing outside, frozen all over like that? The moment Seo Dohyeon saw him, it felt as if his blood had surged backward.