Chapter 30: Between Brothers

“Ugh… how embarrassing…”

As soon as Go Ha-jin entered the waiting room, he collapsed onto the floor. Then he grabbed at his carefully styled hair with both hands and roughly messed it up. He couldn’t help it. An omega who collapsed in the middle of a wedding kiss, how humiliating was that?

While Chae Woo-seok’s tongue had been moving inside his mouth, Ha-jin’s legs had given out, and he’d dropped straight to the floor. If he had to defend himself, it was only because the unfamiliar sensation in such a sensitive place made him forget he needed to keep standing.

“Maybe you should work on your lower body strength.”

“And whose fault do you think that is?!”

The moment the cause of all this spoke, Ha-jin’s rising despair turned into anger.

“Mine? Your chopstick-like legs giving out is my fault too?”

“W-why would you kiss me like that?! Who uses their tongue at a wedding?!”

“Don’t know. It’s my first wedding too. They said to kiss, so I just did what I usually do. Who was the one rushing me to hurry up?”

Woo-seok’s face was full of amusement. Ha-jin always exceeded his expectations, and this time was no different. He knew Ha-jin was weak to physical contact, but he hadn’t expected him to collapse from a kiss, face flushed bright red.

It could’ve been humiliating, but Woo-seok didn’t care. It was entertaining.

“…Don’t tell me… that was your first kiss?”

“D-don’t be ridiculous! Me? No way!”

Ha-jin shot up to his feet to protest. Whether someone had experience or not didn’t matter when it came to kissing. It wasn’t something to brag about or be ashamed of. But for some reason, he didn’t want to be honest with Woo-seok, so he acted tougher on purpose.

He regretted it almost immediately. The grin spreading across Woo-seok’s face grew wider. Woo-seok leaned in closer with that infuriating smile.

“Guess it was. Ha-jin hyung, shouldn’t you thank me for giving you your first kiss?”

“You crazy-”

“Shh.”

“…Are you insane?”

That annoying habit again. Whenever Woo-seok teased him, he’d call him “hyung.” It sent chills down Ha-jin’s spine. A man built like a bear calling him that, it didn’t suit him at all. Ha-jin nearly swore reflexively, but the sharp look in Woo-seok’s eyes stopped him.

Then…

Peck.

A soft touch landed briefly on Ha-jin’s parted lips.

Ha-jin froze. It was only after Woo-seok pulled away that he realized what had just happened.

“That’s a bonus. Be grateful. I let you experience kissing for the first time in your 29 years.”

Woo-seok spoke as if nothing had happened.

“…I said it wasn’t my first kiss.”

Ha-jin forced out an annoyed tone and turned toward the restroom inside the waiting room, pretending it hadn’t affected him at all.

“And by the way, you’re terrible at kissing! I’ve never met someone worse!”

Right before stepping inside, he shouted something Woo-seok probably wouldn’t believe anyway. Seeing Woo-seok charge toward him like a bull, Ha-jin quickly slipped into the bathroom and locked the door.

A loud bang followed, along with a threat to open the door immediately, but he ignored it.

“…What the hell…”

Once alone, the tension drained from his body. During the short walk to the restroom, his legs had nearly given out again. Not because of the kiss, but because of his pounding chest.

His heart was racing wildly, like someone was hammering it with a fist. The sound of his pulse filled his ears.

He couldn’t understand what had just happened.

A kiss during a wedding? Fine, he could dismiss that as Woo-seok misunderstanding. Maybe he thought “kiss” literally meant kissing. Considering his promiscuous past, it wasn’t impossible.

But that second kiss… what was that?

No one had asked for it. There was no reason for it.

‘Is he crazy? What’s wrong with him…? Wait… could it be…?’

Crouching down, Ha-jin began trying to analyze Woo-seok’s intentions, completely ignoring the obvious reason his heart was beating so wildly.

****

“Congratulations on your wedding.”

“Ah… thank you.”

After the ceremony, there was a small reception. Ha-jin had been dragged around by Ah-seong, Il-ju, and Woo-seok, greeting endless guests. Ministers, directors, chairmen, he was exhausted.

Finally slipping away to a quieter corner, a vaguely familiar man approached him.

Unfortunately, Woo-seok wasn’t by his side, so Ha-jin had to figure out who it was himself. A flicker of anxiety crossed his mind. The man felt familiar, but he couldn’t place him, what if he was someone Ha-jin had scammed before?

“Sorry for the late introduction. I’m Chae Joon-seok, Woo-seok’s older brother.”

“Ah! Hello, I’m Go Ha-jin. Nice to meet you.”

Relief washed over him. Of course, Woo-seok’s brother. No wonder he seemed familiar. But even so, he felt completely different from Woo-seok. They didn’t seem like siblings at all.

“Is there something on my face?”

“Oh, sorry. You look a lot like the chairman.”

“I hear that often. You look very… capable, sister-in-law.”

“C-capable? What does that even mean…?”

He seemed easygoing. Calling him “sister-in-law” right away, describing him like that, it was all unexpected. But his warm smile made it hard to feel uncomfortable.

“Someone like you, that’s what ‘capable’ looks like. Smart, neat, and kind of cute.”

Even with the explanation, it didn’t fully click. But his gestures were oddly amusing, and Ha-jin couldn’t help but smile.

“You look even better when you smile. Greeting people is harder than the ceremony, right? Take a break when you can.”

“Ah… thank you. I was getting tired.”

He really did seem thoughtful. Maybe those exaggerated gestures earlier were meant to make him smile. Now he simply looked calm and gentle, as if he truly understood Ha-jin’s situation.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

At that moment, Woo-seok’s voice cut in sharply.

“Oh, Woo-seok, I was just talking to your brother-”

Ha-jin’s words were cut off as his arm was yanked hard.

“I asked what you’re doing. I don’t remember inviting you here.”

Ignoring Ha-jin, Woo-seok stood in front of his brother, pulling Ha-jin behind him. His grip was tight, almost painful.

“Oh. I didn’t come to see you either. Just bad luck.”

“Bad luck? Then stop ruining someone else’s wedding and get lost.”

“Still, I should at least greet my sister-in-law.”

“Cut the ‘family’ crap. Who are you planning to ruin this time?”

Ha-jin instinctively shrank behind Woo-seok. The atmosphere had turned sharp in an instant.

Woo-seok was always rough, but this was different, his hostility was intense. It felt like he might throw a punch at any moment. And his brother… he was just as cold now.

“You’ve got some nerve.”

“Save it. Leave before I make you.”

As the tension escalated, Ha-jin struggled to breathe. The aggressive pheromones from the two alphas pressed down on him. Even someone with weak traits like him couldn’t endure it.

“W-Woo-seok…”

His head spun, his breathing grew shallow. He felt like he might faint. Desperately, he leaned against Woo-seok’s back, wrapping his arms weakly around his waist.

“…Damn it.”

Woo-seok’s expression darkened further. He muttered under his breath and supported Ha-jin’s waist.

Thankfully, the suffocating pheromones quickly faded.

“You need to rest. Why were you even talking to someone like him?”

Without waiting, Woo-seok lifted Ha-jin into his arms.

“H-hey, put me down. I can walk!”

“Stay still. Your legs give out every two seconds. What? You planning to crawl?”

He wasn’t wrong. Ha-jin still couldn’t walk properly. But being carried like this, face pressed against Woo-seok’s chest, legs hooked around him like a koala, was mortifying.

“Who carries an adult like this…?”

Now people were staring. Chae Woo-seok doing something like this? It was enough to spark rumors.

“Be quiet. And you should be grateful I didn’t throw you over my shoulder. Did you lie about your weight too? Why are you so heavy?”

“I-it’s just my bone structure!”

Not that it looked romantic at all.

Then, as they moved away, Ha-jin caught Joon-seok’s gaze from afar.

His lips moved silently:

‘I’m sorry. It was nice meeting you.’

His expression was completely different from before, gentle again.

Ha-jin thought to himself.

‘What a strange man.’