Chapter 99: Cracks in the Quiet House

“Hey!”

Ha-jin was too stunned to respond when Chae Woo-seok suddenly appeared from somewhere and stepped between the two of them.

Seeing Woo-seok standing with his back to him made Ha-jin feel a little… no, a lot relieved. Just moments ago, he had been filled with frustration toward the man, but now none of it remained.

“Let’s talk. For a minute.”

“…Sure.”

Jun-seok answered calmly.

“See you later, brother-in-law.”

As if Ha-jin didn’t even exist, Woo-seok turned and walked away with Jun-seok.

It was a strange situation, but Ha-jin found himself thinking it was for the best. Better that the two of them disappeared together.

“Go straight home. Don’t even think about wandering anywhere else.”

Woo-seok left behind only that curt remark.

It should have sounded annoying, but somehow it didn’t.

Ha-jin quietly watched the two figures grow smaller in the distance.

More precisely… he watched Chae Jun-seok.

No matter how he thought about it, something felt wrong.

He stared at Jun-seok’s retreating back as if trying to burn it into his memory before finally turning and entering the house.

The front door shut behind him with a click.

Familiar warmth and familiar scents wrapped around him, and only then did his legs finally give out.

“Haa…”

The truth was, Ha-jin had wanted to tell Woo-seok something for days.

That the omega serial killer seemed to be someone very close to him.

More directly… that it could be Jun-seok or Il-joo.

It wasn’t a baseless suspicion.

“You’d better hope for a better outcome next time, Woo-seok.”

The serial killer had called him Woo-seok.

Even with the voice changer distorting his voice, the way he said it had sounded unnervingly natural.

Thinking back on their conversation from the beginning, it had felt like the man knew Woo-seok personally.

An alpha close enough to come and go from the house.

Someone who knew about Ha-jin’s pregnancy.

Someone familiar enough to call Woo-seok by name.

Jun-seok or Il-joo would both fit that description.

But the suspicion had been too vague, and the timing had never felt right to bring it up.

Then, just a little while ago, Jun-seok had said something that bothered him even more.

When they were talking about the omega serial killer, Jun-seok had said,

“You’re really brave, brother-in-law. Most people are terrified.”

Most people are terrified.

As if he had seen them himself.

It could have been a simple slip of the tongue.

But the moment he heard it, Ha-jin had felt as though Jun-seok’s voice had transformed into the distorted voice of the omega serial killer.

That was why his steps had slowed.

He had forced himself to remain calm all the way home, using every ounce of self-control he had.

So when he saw Woo-seok waiting outside the house, he had been overwhelmingly relieved.

Once again, Woo-seok’s back had looked incredibly dependable.

Just as it had the day he saved him from the serial killer.

“What are you doing here? Kneeling in repentance?”

Apparently the conversation hadn’t lasted long.

Woo-seok had already returned.

“W-why would I be repenting?”

Forget dependable.

The moment he stepped through the front door, he was already radiating irritation.

He wasn’t dependable at all.

He was just an overgrown elementary schooler.

“So that’s why you suddenly told me to decide whether we divorced or not? What was it? You want to replace your husband? Planning to divorce me and get together with my brother?”

“Watch your mouth! Are you insane? Get together with him?”

Even morning dramas wouldn’t come up with something this ridiculous.

Ha-jin’s mind went completely blank.

That was how absurd the accusation was.

“Why? You said you wished I were even half the man Jun-seok is. Planning to make that wish come true after divorcing me?”

How much of that conversation did this bastard hear?

Woo-seok was speaking faster than Ha-jin had ever heard before.

Words poured out like rapid-fire bullets, and Ha-jin felt his head spinning.

The worst part was that he had no defense.

Everything Woo-seok was saying had come out of his own mouth.

“T-that’s not what I meant!”

“What part of it? You said we weren’t even close. Amazing. Yesterday you were busy biting my lips, and today you’ve already changed your tune. Is this what they call being an opportunist, Go Ha-jin?”

The longer Woo-seok sulked, the more irritated Ha-jin became.

“Haa…”

He let out a slow breath.

“So what did you say when Chairman Chae told you to divorce me if you weren’t going to inherit the company?”

“…”

“You didn’t say a single thing then, and now you’re saying all this? Don’t you think that’s a little ridiculous?”

Ha-jin turned away first.

He couldn’t solve this argument.

Dragging it out any longer was pointless.

Even now, Woo-seok had fallen silent.

He didn’t say a single word while Ha-jin walked into the bedroom.

That silence only made Ha-jin angrier.

‘At least argue back. Ah… I was supposed to tell him about the omega serial killer. Not anymore.’

Right now, he didn’t want to talk about it.

Whatever happened, happened.

Ha-jin climbed into bed and pulled the blanket over his head.

Left alone in the entryway, Woo-seok took out a hidden pack of cigarettes and went outside.

He had barely smoked since getting married.

But tonight, he couldn’t hold back.

The familiar dizziness of nicotine hit him immediately.

He exhaled a long stream of smoke into the dark sky.

No matter how deeply he inhaled or how slowly he exhaled, the suffocating heaviness in his chest refused to ease.

No matter how he looked at it, Ha-jin was right.

And yet the sense of disappointment wouldn’t disappear.

Was it because of what Ha-jin had said to Jun-seok?

No.

Those jokes meant nothing.

What hurt was what Ha-jin had said earlier.

That he didn’t care.

That they had never planned to spend their lives together anyway.

Every word had been true.

So why had hearing it hurt this much?

Why had Ha-jin reached a conclusion on his own while Woo-seok was still desperately searching for an answer?

The white smoke drifted away like a sigh.

“Um…”

“Oh. Hello.”

Ha-jin had been taking a walk near the house when he saw Tae Seol greeting him first.

He stopped in surprise.

Had Tae Seol ever started a conversation with him before?

“If you’re free… would you like to have coffee with me?”

“You’re talking to me?”

“Yes…”

Why was it so hard for him to say?

Tae Seol looked as though he were gathering the courage to ask someone on a date.

It was unexpected, but not a difficult request.

“Would you like to come to my place? It’s probably closer.”

“No! Let’s go to my house! I got some really good coffee beans…”

Tae Seol’s house.

Ha-jin realized he was curious.

It was the only place he had never been inside.

And little Si-yeol would be there too.

He wanted to see that smiling face again.

As if they had simply happened to be walking in the same direction, Tae Seol silently took the lead.

Ha-jin hurried after him.

Tae Seol was walking so quickly that anyone watching would think he was trying to escape a stranger.

“Come in. It’s nothing special.”

“Ah, thank you.”

As soon as Ha-jin stepped inside, he almost blurted out, It really isn’t anything special.

He had assumed Tae Seol’s house would be similar to the main house and Woo-seok’s house.

It wasn’t.

The difference was astonishing.

Compared to those houses, this place was almost shabby.

Expensive-looking furniture sat awkwardly beside things that looked obviously cheap.

Nothing matched.

“Si-yeol! Hello!”

Fortunately, the baby in the living room distracted him before he could accidentally insult the house.

There was no graceful way to say, What a nice house.

Instead, all of his attention went to the doll-like baby.

“A-bu!”

“Oh, sweetheart…”

The moment Ha-jin approached, Si-yeol broke into a huge smile and waved his tiny arms and legs excitedly.

Ha-jin’s heart physically ached.

This level of cuteness was dangerous.

While Tae Seol prepared the coffee, Ha-jin lay on the floor and played with Si-yeol face-to-face.

He poked the baby’s chubby cheek once, and Si-yeol burst into giggles.

He tickled his palm, and the giggles came again.

It was impossible not to adore him.

So this was how parents became completely obsessed with their children.

“Your coffee.”

“Ah, thank you. Sorry… Si-yeol is just too cute.”

Only then did Ha-jin remember that Tae Seol usually didn’t like people getting too close to his child.

Still, he had invited him for coffee, so hopefully he wouldn’t mind.

As expected, Tae Seol simply led him to the sofa without saying anything.

After a brief silence, Tae Seol spoke first.

“About the baby…”

He hesitated.

“Please don’t blame yourself too much.”

“…Thank you.”

Another unexpected comfort.

First Jae-yi, and now Tae Seol.

Because he had never expected it, Ha-jin froze for a moment.

Fortunately, it seemed Tae Seol had only intended it as a simple expression of sympathy.

He didn’t continue the topic.

The truth was that the two of them had almost nothing in common.

Without Si-yeol, the silence would have been unbearable.

“So the younger master is going to inherit the company too, isn’t he?”

“The company? I’m not really sure. I don’t know much about those things.”

“I heard the chairman spoke with him privately.”

‘This family really has no secrets.’

Or maybe the conversation between Woo-seok and Chairman Chae hadn’t been considered secret in the first place.

Ha-jin had the distinct feeling that Tae Seol was trying to sound him out.

“Woo-seok didn’t say anything when he came home. Did you hear something?”

“N-no! Why would I hear anything? I’m always at home…”

The way he flustered made it obvious he had heard something.

But Ha-jin decided not to press him.

Looking around the house, he couldn’t help worrying about Jun-seok’s future.

If Jun-seok failed to become the heir, they could lose even this modest house.

No wonder Tae Seol would be anxious.

“I’m really jealous of you, Ha-jin.”

“…Me? Why?”

“Because a dominant omega gets forgiven no matter what they do.”

For a brief moment, Tae Seol’s voice sounded different.

Sharper.

Almost angry.

Ha-jin couldn’t tell whether it was resentment, sarcasm, or something else entirely.

He shouldn’t have thought that.

But he did.

“…What?”

“Ah!”

Tae Seol immediately smiled awkwardly.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. Please, drink the coffee. It’s really good.”

His voice had already returned to normal.

Ha-jin picked up the cup and took a sip.

Then something suddenly caught his attention.

“You have a lot of vases.”

“Vases?”

“Didn’t Si-yeol break one yesterday?”

Tae Seol looked genuinely confused.

According to Jun-seok, a vase had shattered the night before.

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