Chapter 8: Peanuts and a New Life

“Ugh. Blech!”

He had heard that the absence of an Alpha’s pheromones could worsen morning sickness, but experiencing it firsthand was a different story.

He couldn’t eat anything, and even water had a strange, fishy smell that made him throw up every time he drank it.

At first, it was agonizing to be hungry but unable to eat, but now his stomach was so sore it was difficult to swallow any food at all.

Even rice porridge came back up, and his body’s nutrients were draining away so quickly that in just a few weeks, Noah’s face became extremely gaunt.

His mother, Dongseok, and Minho brought him all sorts of things said to be good for pregnant people, but it was no use since he couldn’t eat them.

He was so exhausted that he just lay in bed, only managing to regain some strength by going to the hospital for IV drips periodically.

[Are you okay?]

It was the Alpha who had caused a scene at his house.

He had considered changing his number, but thought it was too much of a fuss just for this one guy, so he had kept it, and the guy had been relentlessly contacting him.

He was bored out of his mind, his daily life consisting of nothing but lying in bed and breathing due to the morning sickness.

Since he sent messages regularly, Noah started replying occasionally, and before he knew it, they were having trivial conversations.

Thanks to that, he was able to clear up the misunderstanding that he had intentionally released his pheromones and even received an apology.

As they talked, he realized the guy wasn’t a completely hopeless case, so after some thought, he confessed that he was pregnant.

The guy seemed shocked by the news and didn’t contact him for a while, but then he started spouting nonsense about how he would protect him and the baby.

Even though Noah had made it crystal clear that he wasn’t his type, the guy was relentless.

He might have become an Omega, but he had no intention of getting involved with a guy who had the same thing between his legs.

[I’m in front of your house. Can you come out for a sec? I have something for you.]

He had gotten a shot at the hospital yesterday, so he was feeling relatively okay.

He threw on a hoodie over his t-shirt and opened the main gate.

“What is it?”

Seungho’s eyes trembled with a sorrowful look as he gazed at Noah, who had greeted him with a blunt tone.

“You… never mind. Take this.”

“What is this?”

Everyone who saw Noah for the first time in a while looked at him with pity.

He had never been on the heavy side, but with each passing day, his complexion worsened, and his body was becoming dry and gaunt as it lost moisture.

If he were alone, at least his mind would be at ease, but he was worried about the negative effects on the baby, and his mental state was becoming frayed.

The only thing Noah, who couldn’t eat well, could do to conserve as much energy as possible was to stay home and minimize his movements.

His mother was worried about his physical health, but she was even more concerned about his increasingly smileless and withered expression.

“These are peanuts. My mom and aunts said it was the only thing they could eat when they had morning sickness. I asked them since you were having a hard time, and they packed some for me.”

“…”

“You can try one, and if you can’t eat it, you can just throw it away. Don’t feel pressured.”

This was the first time Seungho had seen Noah since being warned and chased away by the police, and Noah looked like a sick person.

The wrists and neck visible outside his baggy hoodie looked so frail they could snap with the slightest pressure.

His eyes were sunken and hollow, and his sharp jawline was gaunt enough to cut.

But what had changed the most was his expression and tone of voice.

There was a desolation he had never noticed when they were texting, and it made his own heart ache.

Still, to him, Noah was like a dried flower—lifeless, yet still beautiful.

“Are you… really okay?”

“Yeah. I’m going back in. Thanks for this. I’ll buy you a meal sometime.”

Then and now, Noah was still Seungho’s ideal type.

But his pride wouldn’t allow him to beg for affection like a coward, not when Noah said he didn’t like him and was even carrying another Alpha’s child.

He had thought about staying friends, not wanting to lose him completely, but seeing his desolate face again ignited a fire in his chest.

Back inside, Noah opened the box Seungho had given him and swallowed hard at the nutty smell of the peanuts.

It had been a long time since a smell had whetted his appetite.

Hesitantly, he tried a peanut, and it was perfect.

The more he ate, the more his stomach settled, and with the simple joy of chewing that he hadn’t felt in a long time, Noah quickly devoured half of the peanuts Seungho had brought.

“Hah, I feel alive.”

It was the first small feeling of fullness he had experienced in a month.

Even water had been hard to drink, but when he drank it with the peanuts, the unpleasant fishy taste was gone, and for some reason, he felt like he could eat other things too.

[Thank you so much. The peanuts are delicious ㅠㅠ]

Contrary to his hopes, there was nothing other than peanuts and water that he could eat without throwing up.

Still, having something he could eat was a huge relief.

The doctor also said it was a good thing he found something he could eat and that it was fine as long as he didn’t eat too much.

Noah and his mother could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

After a few weeks, he started to gain back some of the weight he had lost.

Peanuts were quite high in calories for their portion size.

Seungho appointed himself as the official peanut supplier.

Even when Noah said he could just buy them at the market, Seungho was insistent.

After trying peanuts from the market and grocery store a couple of times, Noah had to admit that there was a definite difference in taste.

Seungho said he ordered them directly from a famous farm, but when Noah asked for the information, he stubbornly refused, saying it was a secret.

Noah wasn’t sure what to do about him coming over to see him under the pretext of delivering peanuts, but his sincere efforts began to slowly open Noah’s heart.

Four years later.

As dusk settled, the merchants of one of Seoul’s few remaining traditional markets were closing up for the day, but the meat restaurant at the entrance of the market was busy preparing for the evening rush.

The place was still thriving, with locals becoming long-time regulars thanks to the consistent quality of the meat and reasonable prices, a place to soothe the day’s fatigue with greasy meat and a glass of soju.

Even though it was still early, there were already a few scattered customers.

As Noah rattled open the shop’s iron door, a youthful voice called out.

“Welcome.”

A small boy, looking out of place in a meat restaurant, greeted the customer, then hopped down from his chair and trotted over to stand in front of Noah.

He stretched his arms high up as if asking to be held, and Noah bent down and swooped him up.

It was a natural gesture.

“Peanut, you don’t have to say ‘welcome’. That’s what Grandma and Great-Aunt do.”

“Peanut doesn’t have to?”

“Nope.”

Noah’s eyes were full of affection as he watched the child nod his small chin as if he truly understood.

“Noah, you’re here?”

Aunt Yeongju, who had been busy in the kitchen, came out with a tray of side dishes and greeted Noah.

“Yes. Auntie, where’s Mom?”

“Oh. She just stepped out to buy something.”

“Okay.”

“Um… hello, Noah-ssi.”

A man who had been sitting alone in a corner stood up and acknowledged Noah.

He had a hesitant tone and wore a worn-out suit that looked like it had been worn for a long time.

He was an Alpha who sometimes came to the restaurant and waited for Noah.

“Yes, hello.”

The Alpha’s neck flushed red, as if just being greeted was enough to make him happy.

Just then, the door opened again, and a stout middle-aged woman entered.

“Hey! I told you not to come, but you’re here again. How many times do I have to tell you that our Noah isn’t interested in you? Yeongju, I told you not to let this man in.”

“Oh, sis! How can I turn away a customer asking for food?”

Noah’s mother, Na Eunsun, frowned but seemed to agree with her words as she clamped her mouth shut.

“Then eat up and go. Noah, you go upstairs right now and don’t come to the shop anymore. I’ll take Peanut.”

“Mom, how can you say that? Peanut’s been here for so long his speech has gotten weird. What kind of five-year-old greets people with ‘welcome’?”

“What?”

His mother burst out laughing at the unexpected story, cackling for a long time.

Noah’s face soured.

They say children learn everything from their parents, and he was worried sick that his son was only learning strange things.

“Peanut did that! My baby!”

Eunsun, who had become a grandmother at an early age, beamed at the child, looking as if she couldn’t handle how adorable he was.

The child, seeing his grandmother laugh at him, smiled back bashfully.

“Mom! You’re not even telling him not to do it!”

“Alright, alright. You must be tired, go on in. In my opinion, Peanut is smarter than you, so don’t worry.”

Noah pouted in dissatisfaction.

But he knew he would lose an argument with his mother, so he had no choice but to back down.

“We’re leaving!”

“Bye, Grandma, Auntie.”

His mother, who had already disappeared into the kitchen, just waved her hand from afar, seemingly busy.

Noah dressed the child in his outerwear and slung the yellow kindergarten bag over his own shoulder.

He was looking around to see if he had forgotten anything when it happened.

“Um, Noah-ssi, this.”

Taking advantage of the moment his mother and aunt were in the kitchen, the Alpha slipped a business card into Noah’s hand.

“Please, just have a cup of tea with me. I’m really not a strange person. I’m confident I can be good to Peanut, and… Ugh!”

The Alpha, his face bright red as he hastily made his appeal, suddenly bent one knee and staggered.

Seeing him stumble while just standing there, it seemed his lower body was weak.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes? Yes!”

The man turned around to see a boy who was quite tall for a five-year-old standing there.

Something had definitely kicked him hard behind the knee, but the child was smiling at him like an innocent angel.

‘Surely not,’ the man thought.

He scratched his head and returned to his seat, saying.

“I’ll be waiting for your call, Noah-ssi!”