AOA 84

“You little shit. Look at you, acting up the moment I go easy on you.”

“See? He shows his true colors right away. And they want me to marry him? I’m out.”

Choi Jaeha spat out all his words in a rush and tried to pull me away, but Baek Yeongseop snatched me from his grip.

“Hold on. I’ve got something to say to him.”

“Oh, what now.”

“This is a family matter. You should back off unless you wanna lose it and piss yourself on the floor. Shut your mouth.”

Baek Yeongseop released his pheromones. I wasn’t particularly affected, but Choi Jaeha was. He scowled and backed away a few steps.

Even when Jaeha cursed him out, calling him insane, Baek Yeongseop didn’t so much as blink. He grabbed my wrist and dragged me to a quiet corner of the hallway.

Bodyguards nearby followed, but at Baek Yeongseop’s signal, they backed off. There was no helping it, they were part of Daesong Group’s security team.

I assessed the situation and asked calmly,

“What is it you want?”

“You have been to the hospital? Are you broken somewhere? Does Grandpa know? If you lied to him, you’re screwed. If you’re a damn failure, just admit it.”

“That’s my private life. I won’t answer.”

“Seriously, you’re a brick wall. No fun at all.”

Baek Yeongseop chuckled, but I didn’t react.

“If that’s all, I’ll be going now.”

“I heard you met with Grandpa separately on New Year’s. With Mugyeong. What did he say, huh?”

“That’s also private. I won’t answer.”

“Fuck off. I already know you got scolded for sleeping in separate rooms. You planning not to have kids? Is it ‘cause you’re defective? You’ll get thrown out.”

His snide, offhand remarks made my mind snap to attention, not because he said I’d be kicked out for not having kids.

Before my regression, things like this happened often. I was out of my mind then, so I answered all of Yeongseop’s questions honestly.

At the time, I hadn’t manifested as an omega, so it was normal to sleep in separate rooms, and since I couldn’t have kids anyway, questions like that never came up.

Instead, Yeongseop was more curious about who Baek Mugyeong was seeing and where he was going. I hardly knew anything, but I told him everything I did know.

Honestly, I don’t remember exactly what I told him back then. But since I hadn’t known much about Baek Mugyeong’s whereabouts or activities, it probably hadn’t mattered.

Maybe that’s why Yeongseop had been unusually lenient with me. He looked down on me, called me an idiot with a chuckle, but he’d been relatively tolerant.

Now, Baek Yeongseop was doing the exact same thing he had done back then. But this time, I wasn’t out of my mind. I definitely wasn’t going to answer him honestly.

I racked my brain, wondering what Baek Mugyeong would have done in my place.

“He said he won’t be staying in Korea long.”

“Oh? That bastard’s heading back to the States?”

When I stayed silent, Yeongseop burst out laughing. He went on and on about how Mugyeong was drunk on America, full of fake sophistication, distracted, and incapable of doing his job.

“Here. Take this.”

He handed me an extremely luxurious business card, or rather, shoved it into the breast pocket of my suit.

“That’s my direct line. Call me if you need anything. I’ll help you once. Even a clueless idiot like you should know what that means, right? Hahaha. Speak of the devil… here he comes.”

I turned my head to follow his gaze. Baek Mugyeong was walking toward us. Next to him, Choi Jaeha was gesturing in this direction and muttering something, probably cursing out Baek Yeongseop.

Mugyeong was clearly visible as he made his way slowly through the bustling art gallery lobby. His tall, broad figure stood out among the crowd.

Even on the weekend, Mugyeong was dressed sharply in a suit. It reminded me of how even the wedding photographer had been intimidated by him.

He looked incredible, but for some reason, seeing him made my stomach sink. A red light blinked in my mind.

It felt like that moment in childhood when you were about to get scolded by your mom, when you’d broken something after being told a hundred times not to.

I didn’t do anything wrong. Talking to Baek Yeongseop was just a coincidence.

I grumbled to myself and forced my nerves to settle.

“Wow, coming to catch your cheating wife?”

“It’s been a while.”

“A while? Come on.”

“A month counts as a while.”

“Is that so? Well, whatever. That’s not the point. You’ve got a terribly boring wife. I just wanted to chat as family, but he slammed a wall up, saying it was ‘private.’ Honestly, you two suit each other. Enjoy your little duo time. I’m out.”

Yeongseop waved and left with a grin, trying to pass off his behavior as some sort of excuse. But it didn’t work on Baek Mugyeong.

“What happened?”

His face was as blank as ever, his tone calm, but it wasn’t hard to tell he was in a terrible mood.

“We ran into each other by chance.”

Once Yeongseop was gone, Choi Jaeha finally stepped in. He said it had been a coincidence and that Im Songyoon was also here. I agreed.

“Give me the card.”

“Yes.”

Given the timing, he must’ve seen Yeongseop hand me the card. I obediently pulled it from my jacket pocket and gave it to him.

“Why did you take this?”

“Come on, that’s not fair. What was he supposed to do, refuse it? He’s your cousin. What power does Minchae have to say no?”

Choi Jaeha answered for me without hesitation, saying exactly what I had only thought. It felt strangely satisfying.

But since Mugyeong still looked displeased, I kept a straight face and didn’t smile.

“We should move somewhere else.”

The corner of the gallery lobby wasn’t exactly crowded, but it wasn’t the right place for a serious conversation.

Especially since Baek Mugyeong was fairly well known. If things got heated, it could easily turn into rumors of marital strife.

It was only right to be cautious. I nodded in agreement.

Rather than ride somewhere, Baek Mugyeong stepped outside the gallery.

The gallery on the outskirts of Seoul had a large outdoor garden styled like a park.

The weather was nice, and there were quite a few people out there, but it was spacious enough for private conversation.

I followed Baek Mugyeong toward the outer edge of the garden, with Choi Jaeha tagging along.

Though Mugyeong flatly refused to let him come, saying marital matters should remain between spouses. Jaeha insisted on watching over us, even if he didn’t listen in.

He kept his distance, and since he wasn’t interfering, Mugyeong didn’t stop him.

The bodyguards trailed us from farther back.

It felt like our argument was being live-streamed, and I wanted to suggest going home, but Mugyeong declined.

So now we stood facing each other under the shade of a tree.

“I’ll ask first. Why did you come here?”

He was about to speak, but I cut him off. I genuinely wanted to know why he had come all the way to the museum.

“Does it matter?”

“Yes.”

“I knew Baek Yeongseop’s schedule. There was an event here. I figured he’d come with Im Songyoon.”

I had to read into what Mugyeong wasn’t saying. He came here because he expected Baek Yeongseop and Im Songyoon would be at Geumpalang Art Museum.

Because he knew Songyoon had been openly harassing me, he came, just in case. That was probably his reason.

But it was still just speculation.

“What do they have to do with anything?”

“There’s nothing good about being seen by them. So, what did Baek Yeongseop say to you?”

“Nothing much.”

“Jeong Minchae. Don’t play dumb.”

“What?”

“Baek Yeongseop doesn’t give his personal card to just anyone. You didn’t know that?”

“I…”

I really didn’t. I’d gotten the same card before my regression too. Then and now, I took it without thinking.

I never imagined this was something Baek Mugyeong would take issue with.

“Are you going to say you didn’t know I have a bad relationship with him?”

He pressed in with a low voice. It felt like an interrogation.

It pissed me off to be misunderstood about my relationship with Yeongseop, but picking a fight with an obviously furious man would be foolish.

“He knew I met with your grandfather on New Year’s. That we’re in separate rooms. He asked if I plan on having kids.”

“And?”

“I ignored everything else and just said you wanted to go back to the States. That’s all.”

“What else?”

“There’s nothing else. Why are you doing this?”

I’d tried to be patient, but it was getting too much. I wasn’t some criminal, and just taking a damn business card didn’t warrant this kind of treatment.

Before the regression, no matter what I did with Yeongseop, Mugyeong had never cared. He warned me a few times to stay away, and when I didn’t listen, he gave up.

He had looked at me like I was pathetic, but he never yelled or got angry, except right before his death.

I hid how upset I was and glared back at him, tension tightening my face.

I wanted to shove back like Jaeha would, but instead I took a deep breath and summoned what little patience I had left.