ATGRA 49

I think it’s time to talk about my family again. My family is from a royal bloodline of oriental medical doctors. My grandfather is an oriental medical doctor, my mother is an oriental medical doctor, my father is an oriental medical doctor… my whole family consists of oriental medical doctors.

“Son, it’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“Mom!”

My mom had come to the bus terminal to pick me up. It was a huge relief. The buses in this neighborhood, unlike in Seoul, run on an hourly schedule.

I rushed towards my mom. My beautiful mother, as lovely as ever… and behind her, I could also see my less-than-noticeable dad.

“What about the clinic? Why are you both out here?”

“Ahem, have you been well?”

“Your dad was about to faint when he heard you were coming down to recuperate, so we came together.”

“It wasn’t quite fainting…”

It might seem like they worry too much about their grown-up son, but my dad also had a tendency to treat me like a child left by the water’s edge. Though not as much as my grandfather.

I awkwardly hugged my dad. It was a little embarrassing that I was still a worrisome son to my parents even though I’m almost thirty.

“Have you eaten?”

“Not yet.”

“Then, let’s go to a restaurant to eat before we head home.”

“They said you’ve been having a hard time, you’ve lost some weight.”

My weight seemed to be the same, but my parents saw me as endlessly frail. Thanks to that, I was held captive by my mom and dad and transported to a high-end traditional Korean restaurant.

As I mentioned before, my family is a family of oriental medical doctors with tradition and history. What that means is… I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth. Since we’re not a chaebol family, would that make it a silver spoon? My family is just from a royal—oriental medical doctor—bloodline.

It might sound conceited, but it’s true that I grew up without wanting for anything. Thanks to that, it was easy for me to open my own clinic in Seoul.

“Go home, unpack your things, and then go say hello to your grandfather.”

“Um…”

“Your grandfather heard you were coming and prepared a pack of restorative medicine for you a few days ago.”

“Umm…”

“Go play some Go with him, too.”

I nodded, not knowing whether the Korean beef bulgogi was going into my nose or my mouth.

Meeting my grandfather was a mandatory, unavoidable event anyway. I would only know how much I’d be nagged about the TV appearance related to the gongjindan once I got there.

“By the way, Yeonghwa, are you not seeing anyone these days?”

“Honey, why do you keep asking him things like that while he’s eating?”

“Well, our Yeonghwa is at that age now…”

“Kids these days get married late. Hey, Yeonghwa. You have to meet as many alphas as you can before you decide. Your mom thinks it’s good for you to have a lot of casual dating experiences.”

“Casual dating! What if you get involved with some weirdo? Your dad is against it.”

The life of an only son became really tiring when marriage was involved. The continuation of the family line depended on me. At times like these, I desperately wished for siblings.

I silently stuffed japchae into my mouth. Even though I was eating such delicious food, I felt like I was going to get indigestion.

Ever since I turned twenty-five, my parents would casually try to find out whether I was seeing someone or not.

My parents are really good people, but they had a strangely conservative side. Or maybe they were only conservative when it came to me.

The reason for their prying was obvious. I was the only omega in our family. Except for some unknown ancestor, everyone down to our second cousins was a beta. So, they constantly worried about the future of me, the omega.

It was useless to rebel and say it was an unnecessary worry. My parents’ concern wasn’t aimed at tormenting me. It was a pure affection that made it difficult to tell them to stop, which made a person wither away even more.

“I’ve said it before, but I’m not getting married.”

“No, why?”

“He’s still young. Kids who say things like that are usually the first ones to get married.”

“That’s true.”

Even if I were to make a bloody vow of non-marriage right here, my parents would never believe me.

I sighed inwardly. When I put down my chopsticks, my dad pushed a side dish of seasoned vegetables in front of me, asking why I wasn’t eating more.

I can’t say anything because I know they’re saying these things out of concern. There’s a reason I turn into a zombie every time I come back from my family home.

Everything is abundant, and the people around me are all good, but I’m just perfect for withering away and dying in their midst… If I get annoyed here, I’ll just end up being an unfilial son.

“Let’s just go home. I’m tired.”

This talk of dating and marriage should be banned by law. I groaned as I was loaded into my parents’ car and headed home.

Day 1 of returning to my family home, and I already feel like I’m going to die.

The very next day, I got in the car again to go see my grandfather.

My parents and my grandfather lived a short distance from each other. They said it was difficult for a father-in-law and son-in-law to live together.

“Grandfather, I’m here.”

“Yeonghwa!”

My grandfather must have been waiting for me all along, because he shot up from his seat as soon as I arrived. Seeing him run out to greet me in his socks made me feel bad for some reason.

“How long has it been, huh? Oh my, our Yeonghwa… you’re a shadow of your former self. Have you been eating well?”

I had a full course meal at a high-end traditional Korean restaurant just yesterday. However, to play the part of a good grandson, I leaned pathetically into my grandfather’s arms.

“I haven’t had much of an appetite lately.”

“…What did you say?”

Sometimes, I have to act weak like this to make my grandfather happy.

My grandfather, saying he knew it, pushed a whole bunch of restorative medicines and pills that he had prepared for me in advance. I had to take a few right on the spot.

After that, I endured about three hours of my grandfather’s nagging while playing a game of Go. That bastard Baek Wonhee, I keep getting scolded because of you!

Even though I said it was all resolved, my grandfather was furious. I heard him repeat about three times that it would be difficult for me to run a clinic with my frail body.

Frail. I looked at myself, a perfectly healthy adult male. It’s true that I’m on the thin side, but I’m taller than the average Korean man. Plus, thanks to my job change to an offensive oriental medical doctor, I could easily subdue most alphas with a large acupuncture needle.

“This old man is worried you’ll get into some big trouble. The world is so dangerous these days. You take after me from a young age, with only your courage to commend…”

“…”

“I know you’re clever, beautiful, and resourceful because you take after me. But that’s not enough! In this harsh world, an omega achieving great things all alone is like building a tower with sand.”

My grandfather would cheer me on, but then he’d cut me down like this. I know he doesn’t mean it, but those kinds of remarks sometimes confused me.

Whether I was confused or not, my only option was to continue listening to my grandfather’s nagging. If I had known this would happen, I should have sneakily moved a Go stone to a more advantageous position just now.

“This time, too, how much did people laugh at you for being an omega. If you had just worked under this old man instead of opening your own clinic, you wouldn’t have had to hear such things…”

If I had worked under my grandfather as he said, it would have been easier to build my career and my body would have been more comfortable. However, it was certain that I would have had a huge fight with my grandfather at some point and gone independent.

My grandfather really likes me, but he worries just as much, so his concern about his ‘omega grandson’ was extreme. Even now, he was nagging so much I felt like my ears were bleeding.

Besides, the real part was just beginning.

“So, Yeonghwa… are you not seeing any alphas these days?”

Anyone would think the family elders had ganged up to ask the same question. An alpha I’m seeing? The beta I see almost every day did become an alpha.

But I couldn’t just answer that truthfully.

“I’m still too busy with the clinic to think about dating.”

“Hmm, is that so.”

“You know, Grandfather. I like working the most.”

At my words, my grandfather turned his head with a more dejected expression than when he lost at Go. I heard that someone among his friends had recently become a great-grandfather, and his reaction was very direct.

“Since that’s your wish, I can’t force you, but…”

“If there’s a good person, wouldn’t I naturally do something about it? But for now, my clinic is more important. I thought you would understand me, Grandfather. You always! All the time! Constantly! Put me first.”

I rattled off words before my grandfather could say anything more. The speed was fast enough that I could have easily passed the first round if I went on a rapper competition program.

However, my grandfather ignored my defense and got to the main point.

“How about going on one blind date?”

“…”

“Your mother said that among her friend’s sons, there’s a decent alpha. His family is good, and he’s around the same age. He couldn’t become an oriental medical doctor, but he works as a doctor, so this old man thinks he would be a good match.”

A blind date, what the hell is a blind date! On the second day of my return home, I felt like all the energy was being sucked out of my body.

And on top of that, a Western doctor? Not even an oriental medical doctor?

This is unacceptable. It’s not that I want a fellow oriental medical doctor as a spouse, but a Western doctor is a bit much. Are we going to have marital spats every day over different medical views?

After religion and politics, you have to agree on medicine to be able to live together. How could I share a meal with a Western doctor who calls oriental medicine folk remedies?

I expressed my strong refusal. I’m only twenty-eight, so why are the family elders so desperate to get me married? They act as if something terrible will happen if I don’t imprint early, which only brings out my contrarian spirit. I’ll definitely live alone.

At my repeated refusal, my grandfather put on a stern expression. A whole round of worries about how an omega could live alone in this harsh world followed. I just thought to myself, ‘Just kill me…’

“You too must quickly find a good match and settle down!”

Somebody save me.

At this point, I missed Jung Pureum.

Pureum, quickly get your spot in the national team selection match back and save your hyung from here…