Haejin, who had been curled up on the bed in the clothes he had intended to wear out, lifted his head sharply at the commotion outside. The moment he realized it was the sound he had been waiting for, he hurriedly moved, heading out.
The instant he understood that the servants did not truly fail to know the butler’s whereabouts but simply did not wish to deal with him, despair overtook him. Worse still, he had no money on hand, so he could not go to the hospital on his own.
The money he received as payment for the contract had been spent entirely on his adoptive parents’ hospital bills. The small amount he had brought with him was nearly gone, as he had been unable to do any other work during that time. Even that was not in cash, so he could not use it immediately.
More than anything, going to the hospital was the one right he possessed. And yet the indifferent Lyle had not even safeguarded that for him.
Haejin, who had endured everything else until now, finally erupted.
“Mr. Vermouth!”
As the master of the estate arrived, the servants gathered in orderly lines before the massive front gates. It was a far cry from the disdainful expressions they wore whenever Haejin spoke to them.
He knew that if he stepped forward now, countless sneers would pour down on him tomorrow. But he had no choice. The moment he saw the butler standing out to receive Lyle, it became clear that the man had known all day that Haejin had been searching for him—and had deliberately ignored him.
“…What is it.”
Lyle, who had just stepped out of the car at the gates of the estate, raised his head at the voice that seemed to seize his ears. In the distance, Haejin—his hair like the night—was running toward him.
It had been a very long time since he had seen his bare face. Lyle’s gaze settled on it. A face both strangely unfamiliar and familiar at once. Above all, in the past five years, Haejin had never once stopped him like this.
“Mr. Vermouth, I need a moment to speak with you.”
Suddenly he recalled the way the boy had hesitated the last time their bodies had overlapped. He had assumed then that it was merely because his legs hurt. Had he truly had something to say?
“You.”
Lyle, who had shown a flicker of puzzlement, stiffened. As Haejin approached, his scent flowed toward him more strongly than usual. Lyle had always recoiled from Omega pheromones. And yet, in this unfamiliar setting, the moment he faced Haejin, he realized he had grown quite accustomed to this pheromone. To the point that he felt no rejection at all—and that startled him.
Forcing aside the thought, Lyle frowned. He had thought him docile all this time—had he in fact been the calculating sort, waiting for his moment like this?
“Mr. Vermouth, today—”
“If you need something, tell the butler.”
“Pardon? But—”
“Are we on terms to speak like this, privately?”
“….”
When he continued to fail to understand, Lyle made his position unmistakably clear. His time was by no means cheap. The fact that he had to waste it standing here, unable even to enter his estate, was deeply unpleasant.
Yet what appeared on Haejin’s face at those words was not the shame or embarrassment an Omega rejected might display.
It was a sorrowful expression, like heavy rain.
It surfaced briefly, then vanished. The late-night moonlight, filtered through clouds, illuminated Haejin’s pale face for a fleeting instant before fading.
The unexpected sight drew Lyle’s gaze. But only for a moment. He decided that he had already given enough of his time. Ignoring Haejin, who still stood frozen as if turned to stone, he entered the estate.
It felt as though a gaze remained lodged in his back for quite some time.
***
“….”
Lyle frowned as he looked down at the whiskey swirling in his glass. His reflection, faintly distorted in the liquid, shifted—and suddenly became Haejin’s sorrowful face.
This was all because of that Omega who, after five years of docility, was suddenly showing abnormal behavior. Haejin’s greatest merit had been his obedience. This abrupt display of willfulness displeased him greatly.
The face he had encountered again after so long was unchanged. The youthful features characteristic of an East Asian face still carried a peculiar atmosphere despite the passing years.
True to a city where most of the year was overcast, in Heavy Rain City clouds often obscured the moon even at night. Seen by that faint light, his face felt different from when Lyle had looked at him after their coupling not long ago.
As he irritably drank his liquor, Lyle found himself thinking that the sorrowful expression had seemed unusually earnest tonight.
He should have at least heard what he was going to say.
“…Ha.”
It was a pointless thought. Perhaps his rut was approaching—his mind felt scattered, unable to focus properly on work.
Running a hand irritably through his hair, he calculated the timing of his rut period. Only a few days remained.
He had no time to waste mental energy on unnecessary matters. Like the vast funds he controlled, the Vermouth corporation was enormous; every minute and every second awaited his decisions. If there would be a gap during his rut period, preparations had to be made in advance.
Even after dragging his thoughts this far, Haejin’s face continued to drift through his mind. It was irritating enough to provoke a faint headache.
That face which had shone even in the dark night, those black eyes.
“….”
For some reason his throat felt dry, and Lyle poured himself another drink despite having intended to stop.
Between the sharp clinks of ice, he saw Haejin’s face again in the glass. Unpleasantly clean.
Omegas were troublesome. Creatures more ruled by instinct than Alphas themselves. If he did not wish to inherit the foolishness of his forefathers, it was best to keep his distance.
The butler would handle Haejin’s matter. A recessive Alpha, the butler had managed this estate for many years with competence. He was somewhat greedy, but loyal. Lyle did not concern himself much. In any case, given the importance of Haejin’s role, he trusted that the man was managing him carefully.
Unaware of how great a fissure that decision would create.
***
The next day, Haejin left the estate alone.
Yesterday, for the first time in a long while, he had cried by himself in his room. Since around the third year, even when he wished to cry, no tears had come.
Only a few drops fell now, as if marking the limit. Nothing more followed. Fearing faintly that something inside him had emptied out completely, Haejin endured that unease until morning.
Perhaps word had spread throughout the estate; the breakfast that was usually delivered did not come. The enormous contract fees he received were spent entirely on hospital bills. Thus he could only survive by relying on the food, clothing, and shelter provided by the estate. When they had first signed the contract, Lyle himself had said he need not worry about such subsidiary matters.
But those basics had not been upheld for quite some time. The clean clothes that had once arrived daily came only sporadically, and sometimes he had to clean his room himself.
Surely the Vermouth family was not lacking in funds. This was simply the damage born of Lyle’s indifference. From Lyle’s attitude yesterday—his complete unwillingness even to listen—Haejin had felt that clearly.
He could have searched for the butler again, as Lyle had instructed. But he did not. Or rather, he could not. After being humiliated like that yesterday, he could not bear to cling to the servants and beg.
So he left the estate. There was still a small emergency fund in his bank account. He planned to walk to where the bank was, then withdraw money and call a taxi for the return trip.
“Cold.”
Late autumn had one foot already in winter. The autumn rain falling like mist made the surroundings all the more desolate.
Heavy Rain City was famous for its relentless rain. The sky was perpetually gray; he could scarcely remember when he had last seen it brightly lit.
The main estate of the Vermouth family stood on the outskirts of Heavy Rain City. For security reasons, the surrounding land had been boldly designed into open grassland. Even building such a grand estate in the country’s most expensive city testified to the Vermouth family’s wealth.
But for Haejin now, it was only an obstacle. He had to walk a considerable distance before reaching a part of the city where cars passed. Since the accident, he had deliberately avoided long walks, but he had no alternative. The rain and sudden exertion caused his left ankle to throb.
Braving the cold late-autumn rain, Haejin finally reached the city. His toes were soaked and freezing, yet the citizens of Heavy Rain knew well that in weather like this, one had to keep moving.
In truth, perhaps there was no need to rush here so urgently. The documents weighed on his mind, but he could have waited another day or two and taken the car provided by the estate. The butler would likely not want the contract jeopardized.
And yet his heart felt strangely impatient. He longed desperately to see his parents’ faces and tell them that, though he was struggling, he was trying. Perhaps the cold treatment at the estate had cut deeper than he had realized.
Since the accident, his parents had fallen immediately into comas, growing thinner by the day. His mother, who had once embraced him so warmly that he could scarcely breathe, now clung to her fragile life as little more than skin and bone.
Haejin believed that the fact they continued to breathe, however faintly, was entirely for his sake—so that he would not be left alone again.