Chapter 147: A Severed Truth

He wasn’t Hyunwoo’s brother.

What did that even mean?

Hyunjin blinked slowly.

He had heard it clearly, yet he couldn’t believe it.

“You heard me.
That kid isn’t related to you by a single drop of blood.
So—”

“Ha… why are you telling me this only now?”

“You wouldn’t need to hear it if you had behaved properly.”

Chairman Joo frowned.

He looked at Hyunwoo with clear displeasure.

Hyunwoo, now nineteen, was about to graduate.

He planned to move out as soon as he entered university.

But Hyunjin kept weighing on his mind.

Just as he suspected, Hyunjin had awakened as an Omega, and immediately afterward, he was sent to the annex far away from the main residence where Hyunwoo lived.

An intentional separation.

If that was the plan, they might as well have sent Hyunjin somewhere else entirely—instead they kept him just close enough to be bothersome.

And because Hyunjin was a dominant Omega, he was surprisingly good at pheromone control.

He struggled only right after awakening, but because suppressants worked well on him, his heat was quickly brought under control.

Once there was no longer a good reason to isolate him, Chairman Joo reluctantly brought Hyunjin back to the main house.

Even if he claimed it was a contract relationship, he couldn’t risk Nayeon noticing anything strange, nor could reporters find out.

‘When I leave this house, I’m taking Hyunjin with me.’

‘What?’

‘You don’t even care about him anyway.’

“……”

Hyunwoo had spoken with a strangely indifferent yet possessive look in his eyes.

As an Alpha himself, Chairman Joo immediately recognized the unique possessiveness his son displayed toward Hyunjin.

He clicked his tongue at the sight of a boy so similar to himself.

After being attached since childhood, this was bound to happen one day….

So Chairman Joo revealed the truth he had intended to keep secret forever.

“How does that make any sense?
Do you think this house is some bird nest where you let someone else lay eggs!?”

“Nayeon and I made an agreement beforehand.”

“Still!”

Hyunwoo almost shouted.

He truly believed Hyunjin was his real brother.

That was why he had treated him kindly.

But he was actually unrelated—no blood shared at all.

Hyunwoo felt deceived.

If he had known from the start, he never would’ve treated him that well.

Biting his lip, he spun around.

“Hyung….”

“……”

When he opened the door, he saw Hyunjin trembling.

His clear, vulnerable eyes only irritated Hyunwoo further.

“Hyung, wait—”

“Don’t touch me!”

“……!”

Hyunwoo smacked away Hyunjin’s outstretched hand.

He recoiled as if touched by something filthy.

Hyunjin’s hand froze in midair, and he couldn’t bring himself to reach out again.

“Ha… I thought you were my brother.
Turns out you’re some stranger’s kid.”

“……”

“Disgusting.”

Hyunwoo glared at him with contempt before turning sharply away.

Hyunjin couldn’t follow—his legs wouldn’t move.

He stood there blankly until he noticed the study door still wide open.

His shoulders jerked in fear.

The only thing he knew was that he had to get away.

Somehow, without remembering how, he made it back to his room.

“Ugh….”

Once inside, Hyunjin collapsed against the door.

He slid down helplessly, a suppressed sound escaping his clenched teeth.

“Hnngh… hngh….”

Once the tears began, they didn’t stop.

They fell hard, pattering onto the floor.

Until recently, he had been devastated about awakening as an Omega.

He wished he hadn’t.

But now he realized that wasn’t the problem.

Omega, Alpha—it didn’t matter.

None of it mattered at all.

I wish… I hadn’t been born at all.

In a place where no one comforted him, Hyunjin could only blame himself as he cried.

Time passed, and Hyunjin turned twenty.

He had no interest in studying and didn’t want to attend university, but his birth mother, Nayeon—who had ignored him all his life—insisted he at least get a degree.

By luck, he was accepted into a prestigious university through early admission.

He wanted to leave that house as soon as possible anyway.

Saying he wanted to live near the university provided the perfect excuse.

At last, Hyunjin escaped the home that had been his personal hell.

Now I can finally live freely.
Do whatever I want.

He promised himself.

Even Hyunwoo’s coldness faded with time, becoming a dull, distant memory.

“Hi, you’re Joo Hyunjin, right?”

“Ah… yeah.”

Outside the house, Hyunjin was quite popular.

He only had low self-esteem because of how he grew up.

Pretty looks and a gentle personality—there were few who disliked him.

Alphas, Omegas, Betas—everyone found him harmless and wanted to be close.

He always made friends easily, even in new environments.

University was no different.

“I went to XX High School.”

“Really?
You did?”

“Yeah.
We were never in the same class.
Funny we meet here.”

“It is kind of funny.”

One of his classmates had gone to the same high school.

They had never spoken, but he recognized Hyunjin—likely from passing each other in the halls.

“Heh, guys from our school will be jealous.
Loads of them wanted to be friends with you.
Me too.”

“Haha… no way.”

“What, are you pretending to be humble?
You have looked in a mirror, right?”

“Uh…”

Hyunjin fell quiet.

He knew he was considered good-looking.

But what use was any of that?

The one person he desperately wanted attention from had thrown him away.

That was why his self-esteem was so low.

“Anyway, our year is full of good-looking people.
That guy over there—is he our age?
He’s really handsome.”

“……?”

Hyunjin turned in the direction his classmate pointed.

There stood a boy with unusually pale skin.

He’s an Alpha.

Hyunjin sensed it immediately.

Broad-shouldered, tall—visibly different from the others.

Not quite a man yet, not quite a boy either.

His youthful face was strangely captivating.

Hyunjin couldn’t look away.

He barely heard what his classmate was saying anymore.

It felt as if only the two of them existed.

“……?”

“……!”

Their eyes met.

Hyunjin inhaled sharply.

For some reason, he couldn’t look away from those brown eyes.

“Hey, he’s coming this way.”

“……”

The boy walked toward them, expression unreadable.

Hyunjin forced himself to turn his head.

“Hi.”

“Haha, hey!”

His classmate greeted him excitedly.

Hyunjin pretended not to be interested, but listened closely.

Lee Seunghyuk…

That was the Alpha’s name.

For some reason, it stuck in his mind.

After sensing his presence up close, Hyunjin realized—Seunghyuk was dominant, just like him.

Alpha and Omega.

Both dominant.

Their classmates whispered about how good they looked together.

Perhaps because of that, Seunghyuk kept his distance.

He didn’t approach Hyunjin directly, only observed him from a distance—just like when they first met.

Then one day, on the way to the club room, Hyunjin got caught up in a minor confrontation.

A few people who had always disliked him cornered him.

The one who stepped in to help was Seunghyuk, who happened to be passing by.

The same people who mocked Hyunjin had nothing to say in front of Seunghyuk.

“Why do you let them talk to you like that?”

“What?”

Hyunjin had expected help, but Seunghyuk spoke bluntly.

And again, Hyunjin had nothing to say.

Being disliked was normal for him.

Even the person he admired most had rejected him—so of course others might too.

But Seunghyuk seemed frustrated by Hyunjin’s acceptance of that.

Hyunjin only smiled back at him.

“Thanks.”

“……”

After that, they spent time together occasionally.

Being with Seunghyuk felt strangely comfortable.

Unlike others, Seunghyuk didn’t cling or behave awkwardly toward him.

Gradually, the wounds inflicted by Hyunwoo began to fade.

And just as his heart was finally healing—

Hyunjin froze when someone unexpected appeared before him.

“Hyunjin-ah, hi?”

“…….”

With a bright smile just like before—

Hyunwoo had returned to him.

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