ATGRA 54

On the bus back to Seoul, I slept the whole way. I couldn’t help it. It was because my mom had been hounding me right up until I got on the bus. I felt like my soul had been completely drained.

My mom showed a profound interest in Jung Pureum. Even though I had denied it several times, she seemed to have decided that Jung Pureum and I were some kind of couple.

I felt sorry for Jung Pureum for constantly being subjected to this misunderstanding. An omega boyfriend or whatever, that poor kid had been dragged to an unscheduled training session because of the coach’s misunderstanding.

Still, perhaps out of mother-son affection, my mom kept her mouth shut about Jung Pureum as promised. She said something about wanting to keep the fun to herself, so she would keep it a secret from the rest of the family for the time being.

…Honestly, I wasn’t sure what my mom’s standard for “for the time being” was, so I was anxious. I was fine, but I was worried that Jung Pureum would be put in a difficult situation because of me.

I did joke that if we were old and still single we should just get married, but of course I wasn’t serious.

After being held captive by my grandfather and mom and listening to them nag about marriage for days on end, I was on the verge of losing my mind and made a dark joke. Marriage? What marriage? I’m a director married to his clinic, like a queen married to her country.

Above all, Jung Pureum deserves to meet someone better. He should become a handsome, alpha, national swim team gold medalist, and make foreigners say, “Do you know Jung Pureum?”

It was better for idols and sports stars to marry as late as possible, if they could. While many fans welcomed marriage, saying that having a family improved performance, being single was more advantageous for attracting a fandom.

Besides being pestered by my mom, I had a lot of other things to think about. The drama <You’re Too Much, My Alpha Who Used to Be a Beta!> kept bothering me.

When I checked the synopsis on the KBC website, the detailed settings were different, but I noticed evidence that they had used the gongjindan I developed in the drama’s plot without permission. Even Ms. Kim Miyoung, upon hearing this, said it would be better to talk to the drama PD.

Contacting the broadcast station itself wasn’t difficult. Their contact email address was listed on their website.

However, despite sending an email, I received no reply.

It was the broadcast station’s typical habit of not reading and ignoring. They probably get hundreds of inquiry emails a day, so there was no way they would check them properly. Later, when it becomes a serious issue, they’ll probably make an excuse like, “The suggestion was omitted due to a system error.”

In the end, I contacted the broadcast station PD I knew, Producer Kim, who had recently left <I Want to Know Everything>. Producer Kim called me less than an hour after I left him a message.

—…What is it?

His first greeting was very prickly. Still, it seemed he had something to be guilty about, as he was cautiously watching my reaction. Anyone would think I had some dirt on this guy.

In fact, I don’t hold much of a grudge against Producer Kim. It’s true he screwed me over, but in the end, he did a 357-degree turn and aired a correction broadcast.

I still don’t understand why a “The PD is crazy!” style correction broadcast came out. While it’s all for the best, there were many suspicious parts.

At first, I thought it was because he had become mortal enemies with Baek Wonhee and cut ties, but seeing that the PD of <I Want to Know Everything> was eventually replaced, it didn’t seem like Producer Kim had successfully cut his ties with the rotten connection.

“Have you been well?”

—…

“It’s nothing much, I was just calling to see if you could possibly connect me with a drama PD.”

Just because I don’t hold a grudge doesn’t mean I can’t screw him over.

I shamelessly asked the person who obviously hadn’t been well if he had been well. Can you feel it, Producer Kim? The crap I felt when you kept pestering me to go to a company dinner?

It was obvious he wouldn’t be happy with me, the person who had been blocking him, now seeking him out when I needed something. If Producer Kim found this kind of call amusing, he wasn’t sane.

I could hear the sound of teeth grinding over the high-performance phone, so thankfully, it seemed Producer Kim was still in his right mind.

—We’re in the culture and education department of the station. Even if you ask me to connect you, it’s not like I know everyone at the station…

“Ah, so you’re saying you don’t have any connections at the station, Producer Kim.”

—…I don’t know every single PD.

“I see.”

When I quickly agreed and didn’t add anything more, Producer Kim spoke again.

—The drama department… Who is it?

I thought he would refuse right away, but I don’t know how he interpreted my silence, because a reluctant reply came back. I thought he would curse me out and hang up, but it seemed he was actually going to look for the person.

I could feel his voice trembling with anger, but I didn’t understand why he was trying to help me. Did I, by any chance, unknowingly get some dirt on this person?

“Producer Lee Minsoo. I heard he’s doing <You’re Too Much, My Alpha Who Used to Be a Beta!> this time. Do you know him?”

—I think I can give you his contact information. I’ll give you his direct number.

I got the drama PD’s contact information more easily than I had expected.

Do people normally give out others’ contact information this easily? My heart trembled anew at the lightness of personal information. Mr. Producer Lee Minsoo, your number was just sold to me for free…

—…How long are you going to threaten people like this?

I had jotted down the number he gave me and was about to hang up when Producer Kim said something strange. He had given it to me coolly himself, and now he was calling it a threat. It was absurd.

“What are you talking about?”

—Don’t pretend you don’t know. You’re conspiring with that kid, aren’t you?

…Who is that kid?

I was truly confused. I wanted to go find Producer Kim right now and demand to know what he meant by what he just said. Why am I the only one who doesn’t know what I’m conspiring about?

When I fell silent, Producer Kim hung up first with a small curse. My mind was filled with question marks. Because of that, I couldn’t even contact Producer Lee Minsoo right away. My head was too complicated.

Hearing the words “threat” and “kid,” something did come to mind.

I immediately thought of Jung Pureum. But how on earth could Jung Pureum threaten Producer Kim? Jung Pureum wasn’t a third-generation chaebol, nor did he have a dark enough personality to plot schemes. He was just a physical education student majoring in swimming with the national team tryouts just around the corner.

Circumstantially, it seemed Producer Kim had been threatened by someone into airing the correction broadcast about the gongjindan, and because of that, he thought I had some dirt on him. I had no idea what his weakness was.

I had no intention of stepping up to clear up that misunderstanding. As they say, a burnt child dreads the fire. He must have a lot of bad karma, so his heart probably pounds even if I just keep my mouth shut.

There were many unresolved questions, but it wasn’t something I could find the answer to by worrying about it alone.

I was just planning to meet Jung Pureum and ask him directly about Producer Kim’s remark. I had faith that if it was something I needed to know, Jung Pureum would tell me himself.

When the bus stopped at the Seoul Express Bus Terminal, the final destination, people got up from their seats in a rush. I also squeezed into the narrow bus aisle and disembarked safely.

When I went down to my family home, my luggage was light, but now my hands were heavy. That was even after I had shipped the herbal medicine my grandfather prepared by courier.

As I was carrying the suitcase my mom had packed for me and staggered, someone snatched my luggage from behind and held it.

“Hyung, what is all this? There are two suitcases…”

It was a voice I had really wanted to hear. Hearing Jung Pureum’s voice made me realize I was back in Seoul. My family home was truly a nagging hell.

I made a big show of being tired and handed my other luggage to Jung Pureum. Unlike me, who was being dragged by the luggage, Jung Pureum carried my bags lightly.

“You know too. How intense my grandfather is. He packed a whole bundle of stuff, from all sorts of medicinal herbs and some supplements to clothes made of rayon.”

“It would have been a disaster if I hadn’t come to pick you up.”

“If you hadn’t been here, I would have collapsed on my way to catch a taxi.”

As expected, talking to him in person is much better than over the phone.

I took a deep breath. My energy was a bit drained, but I felt my mind calming down. The headache I had gotten because of the broadcast station PD disappeared as soon as I saw Jung Pureum.

“Hm?”

But there was something a little strange.

Jung Pureum smelled of perfume. It was a typical men’s perfume scent. I stopped in my tracks and looked at Jung Pureum’s back.

He said he had succeeded in controlling his pheromones, so it was understandable that I couldn’t smell them. It wasn’t surprising, as he had finally managed to do his part as an alpha perfectly. If anything, it was something to be congratulated for.

However, the unfamiliar perfume scent was a bit subtle. Did he normally wear this kind of perfume? It didn’t seem to be a scent that suited him well…

“Pureum.”

“Yes.”

“Are you wearing perfume?”

Jung Pureum nodded at my question. He had a slightly embarrassed expression.

He must have wanted to dress up a bit. I could have just thought that and let it go, but something felt unsettling. That was even though the perfume scent wasn’t that bad.

It felt like something was subtly mixed in with the cool scent. I had never paid such sensitive attention to someone else’s body scent before, but suddenly it felt like all my senses were being forcibly heightened.

“That perfume, it doesn’t really suit you.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. It’s subtle. I’m not usually sensitive to other people’s perfume scents.”

With all the energy drained from my body, I leaned against Jung Pureum. I wanted to ask why he had bothered to wear perfume, but the words didn’t come out easily.