The moment Yeonwoo lost his phone, the anxiety hit him like a wave—so intense, it made a mockery of all the composure he’d clung to until now. The complete isolation from the outside world felt deeply unsettling and suffocating.
In the silence, the only sound was the steady ticking of the wall clock. And in the cracks of that stillness, long-forgotten voices crept back in one by one.
"What kind of traits does the kid have?"
"Looks sly already—bet he’s gonna be an Omega too, huh?"
"Guess he’s doomed to follow his mother’s fate."
"Look at that little brat already walking around with his nose in the air. Definitely that woman’s spawn."
It was just like back then. His mother would be out working and only come home late at night. Yeonwoo would wait in that one-room flat all day. And when the solitude became unbearable after twelve hours alone, he’d quietly step outside and hover near the entrance, hoping to spot her on her way back.
People in the neighborhood would throw out comments as they passed him by—as if he deserved that kind of treatment. Each time, Yeonwoo would pretend not to hear a thing, retreating back into that small room and sealing himself off from the world again.
At the time, Yeonwoo had thought of himself as trapped in a little box. No matter where he was, he felt like he couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move. But not knowing how to escape, he stayed there—unwillingly but inevitably.
Even then, the ticking of the wall clock had echoed in his ears all day, grating and endless.
He thought those memories had faded, but now they came flooding back with brutal clarity.
Yeonwoo abruptly rose from the sofa. He crossed the room, took the clock down from the wall, and ripped out the batteries.
“……”
Only then did the silence truly return. The noise in his head dulled.
But he still couldn’t completely separate himself from the memories of his childhood. Just like back then, he found himself staring at the front door of the officetel, endlessly waiting for it to open—waiting for Chahyun.
The sudden realization that his current situation wasn’t so different from the past brought a deep ache to his chest. If Chahyun really did go through with marrying someone else, then Yeonwoo would become exactly what those townspeople always said—just like his mother.
What had he done wrong? All he wanted was to live with dignity. Was it so outrageous to wish to stand beside Chahyun proudly? Did he deserve to be treated like this just for that?
Yeonwoo stared blankly at the clock and batteries lying in front of him for a long time.
At some point, he must have dozed off, because the room had grown dark. Curled up on the sofa, Yeonwoo blinked slowly and glanced at the digital clock.
It was already past midnight. Chahyun—the one who had imprisoned him here—hadn’t shown up again.
The short nap had taken the edge off his depression, but anger quickly rose to take its place. Anger at being betrayed. At being handed over to the world for scorn and humiliation by Baek Chahyun himself.
What was he supposed to do now? Yeonwoo fell deep into thought.
Haa…
He had already ruled out screaming or throwing a tantrum. To quell the burning in his chest, he took a deep breath.
“Excuse me.”
Having made up his mind to get out of here no matter what, Yeonwoo walked to the front door. He’d come up with one possible way to get his phone back—even just for a moment.
“I need to call Baek Chahyun. Just for a second.”
He said this aloud to the closed door. And surprisingly, after being unresponsive all day, it opened.
“If you need something, let us know.”
“I’ll tell him myself—on the phone.”
At the mention of calling Chahyun, the man returned the confiscated phone without resistance. He watched Yeonwoo closely, making it clear he expected the call to happen under supervision.
Avoiding the man’s gaze, Yeonwoo dialed Chahyun’s number.
—Hello?
Despite the hour, Chahyun picked up immediately. His voice was clear and alert, as if he hadn’t slept at all.
“My ankle hurts.”
Yeonwoo spoke in the softest, most delicate voice he could muster. The man standing guard twitched slightly at how drastically different it sounded from what he’d just heard.
Yeonwoo didn’t care. He had already committed to escaping—there was no point in shame now.
—How does it hurt?
Chahyun’s reply came instantly.
“I don’t know. It just throbs… it aches…”
—How does it look? Is it swollen?
“No. But it hurts so bad I can’t sleep at all.”
—Can you walk? I’ll head to the hospital now. No—forget it, I’ll come to you.
His anxious voice dug sharply into Yeonwoo’s ear.
It felt a little absurd, faking an injury and heading to the hospital in the middle of the night—but Yeonwoo had said it without much thought, just to get Chahyun to show up. Now it felt like he’d made things more complicated.
Still, going to the hospital wasn’t a bad idea. It might be a chance to grab a few things he might need later. Thinking quickly, Yeonwoo gave a calm answer.
“Okay.”
—Hang in there. Make sure you take the painkillers I gave you.
“…Hurry.”
—I’m leaving now. Stay seated or lie down. Don’t strain it.
Chahyun’s voice was urgent with concern. Hearing him panic gave Yeonwoo a twisted sense of satisfaction.
If he was still this worried, then he must still love him.
So why, then, was Baek Chahyun planning to marry someone else?
Why did he expect Yeonwoo to quietly accept it?
Why?
Yeonwoo knew these questions had no use now—but once they took root, he couldn’t stop them.
Sitting in a daze, he suddenly remembered something. He jumped to his feet, flipped on the light, and opened the drawer beside the bed.
He rummaged through the clutter until his fingers found something familiar.
“There it is.”
A heat delay suppressant.
Thankfully, there were still some left from last time.
If the heat cycle came on schedule, things would only spiral further out of control. Suppressants weren’t always reliable—they could even be dangerous in situations like this. Delay medication was safer.
Without water, Yeonwoo dry-swallowed a pill and tucked the bottle back in the drawer. Right then, he heard the sound of footsteps approaching from the front door.
***
Chahyun carried Yeonwoo on his back and placed him in the car before driving them to the hospital. The ankle didn’t hurt at all, so being carried like that felt awkward.
Chahyun peppered him with questions about his symptoms during the drive. Yeonwoo had to scrape the bottom of the barrel to fabricate convincing answers. Aside from when the injury had first happened, he’d never really been in serious pain, so he had no idea how to describe it in detail.
He worried that Chahyun had caught on to the lie and was probing. But when he glanced over, he saw that Chahyun—gripping the wheel with a tense face—was wholly focused on his every word. Thankfully, it seemed he believed him.
At the ER, a nurse instructed them to wait for a moment. With Chahyun’s help, Yeonwoo sat down in a chair, and Chahyun sat beside him.
“Make sure you don’t skip rehab again.”
“Okay.”
“If I can’t go with you, I’ll send someone.”
“Who would you send?”
Yeonwoo stared at their feet, aligned side by side, and asked suddenly.
“My assistant.”
“Why your assistant? What does she have to do with me?”
“That’s literally why I hired her.”
“……”
“Fuck’s sake, why is no one coming?”
It hadn’t even been five minutes, but Chahyun was already snapping with impatience.
“Hello, Director.”
Right on cue, a doctor in a white coat approached quickly.
“You have a patient. You should’ve come faster.”
Chahyun responded brusquely.
“I apologize for the wait. You’re experiencing ankle pain again, I hear? Same side as last time?”
“He fell three days ago. Sprained it. Says the pain hasn’t gone away.”
“Let’s run some tests first.”
The doctor and nurse gently escorted Yeonwoo into the exam room. Chahyun silently watched him disappear down the hall.
As expected, the results showed nothing. It had been an act from the start—no abnormalities could possibly show up.
He had felt a brief ache after falling a few days ago, but it had long since healed.
The doctor, believing Yeonwoo’s continued claims of pain, couldn’t very well announce in front of a frantic Chahyun that nothing was wrong.
In the end, the doctor gave the usual spiel—that the muscles had likely been strained, that Yeonwoo should rest the joint and begin physical therapy. They also fitted him with an ankle brace.
“Also… I haven’t been able to sleep because of the pain. Could you prescribe something for that too?”
“Of course. Please have a seat outside.”
The waiting area was a bit of a walk from the exam room, so Chahyun offered to carry him again. Yeonwoo considered refusing, but worried that walking too confidently would expose his lie. In the end, he obediently let himself be carried.
Though they were both adult men, Chahyun stood with ease and carried Yeonwoo to the waiting area without even breaking a sweat.
He gently lowered Yeonwoo into a seat like one might handle a newborn. That was when Yeonwoo finally registered what Chahyun was wearing.
He’d thrown a coat on over his pajamas—a ridiculous look. It was all the more jarring because, despite his recklessness, Chahyun usually paid great attention to his appearance.