Chapter 38

Leaving Mugyeol behind, Yi-seon bolted. It was pure instinct. Being in a state of sheer panic left his legs weak and made running difficult, so he walked as fast as humanly possible. Then, a booming shout erupted against Yi-seon’s retreating back.

“Hey! Ryu Yi-seon! I said marry me!”

The face of the fleeing Yi-seon blanched even paler. The spectators’ faces drained of color just the same. Clatter-crash! Unable to withstand the shock, the spectator Kwon Jeongjin dropped his phone for the second time. This time, the strength gave out in his legs as well, causing him to stagger and brace a hand against the wall.

“I said I’ll take responsibility! I’ll take responsibility for the rest of your life!”

Is this guy an actual lunatic?!

Because Yeon Mugyeol showed no sign of stopping his barking, Yi-seon spun on his heel. Sprinting frantically back toward Mugyeol, he clamped both hands over the boy’s mouth.

“Shut up!”

Yet one could hardly derail a runaway train with a pair of chopsticks. Effortlessly peeling away Yi-seon’s palms from his mouth, Mugyeol yelled again as if possessed by an evil spirit, “Marry me! I said marry me!”

“Mugyeol-ah, please… calm down. Okay?”

Yi-seon could not believe the scene unfolding before his eyes.

Why am I the main subject of this instead of a spectator?

He wished someone would just hit him with a car and knock him out cold right then and there.

Spurred on by sheer spite and hysteria, the two began grappling and tangling together. Yi-seon made a frantic mess of trying to stop Mugyeol—clamping his mouth, grabbing his hair—yet Mugyeol did not yield in the slightest. At the top of his voice, he relentlessly pressed for marriage.

And at that very moment, the students past the corner of the building were bearing witness to a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle. Yoo Harin in particular, who had once handed cookies to Mugyeol, was on the verge of collapsing.

Gripping his phone tightly so as not to drop it again, Kwon Jeongjin asked as if in a dream, “Hey… is this for real…?”

“Unbelievably so, yes…”

To Kwon Jeongjin’s knowledge, Mugyeol and Yi-seon were just friends. Truly, real friends. The kind who threw their arms over each other’s shoulders, cursed and giggled together, and sprawled out side by side on their stomachs munching on snacks. So what on earth was this?

Moreover, the Mugyeol he knew was the guy who had spent his entire school life blabbering about having a crush on Su-ah. Yet at the same time, he had been the type to make quintessential privileged-Alpha remarks about how, although he liked Su-ah, he would marry a dominant Omega.

That Yeon Mugyeol was currently carrying on like that over there.

“Didn’t Mugyeol like Su-ah noona…?”

“Well… love moves around, after all…”

“I guess that’s true…”

Even in the midst of this, Mugyeol was screaming at Yi-seon to get married while spouting baffling nonsense about making sure to ruin his life thoroughly. Guess he knew marrying him would be a nightmare? Then again, if his proposal was this unhinged, how could married life be smooth? Knowing one’s place was truly that important.

“Come to think of it, wasn’t there a rumor back then that Yeon Mugyeol jumped Yi-seon? That he pinned him onto an infirmary bed and forcibly kissed him?”

“They said it was just an accident, though. Didn’t he just trip and fall?”

“Think about it carefully. It wasn’t just an accident.”

“…You’re right! He’s been planning this since back then? Come to think of it, Mugyeol is a ‘J’ on the MBTI!”

“Exactly! It was totally premeditated! To spread rumors that there was something going on between him and Yi-seon!”

“He always said he’d marry a female dominant Omega, but I guess when true love shows up, none of that matters!”

“I know, right!”

The spectators’ faces brightened as if they had uncovered the ultimate truth.

On the other hand, Yi-seon’s expression was the exact opposite. His face turned excessively pale as he tried to peel away Mugyeol, who clung to him like an octopus’s suction cups while screaming that they should grow terribly old together. He shoved with arms trembling violently to shake Mugyeol off, but it proved utterly futile. It was a pathetic sight, hopelessly outmatched in physical stature and raw strength.

“Poor Yi-seon…”

Even the onlookers were growing sick of it.

“Yeon Mugyeol is totally clinging to him.”

“I know. Dropping to his knees and everything…”

“I really never expected Yeon Mugyeol to be like that…”

“He must genuinely like Yi-seon.”

“Well, Yi-seon really is a great guy…”

Having reached a unanimous consensus, they nodded in unison.

All that was reflected in the onlookers’ eyes was Yeon Mugyeol’s desperate sincerity, raising an absolute ruckus as he clung to Yi-seon’s waist and begged for marriage.

❖ ❖ ❖

“You are seriously driving me crazy…”

Haa…

Yi-seon let out a heavy sigh and gently patted Mugyeol’s face. It wasn’t driven by personal greed. In his attempt to get rid of Mugyeol, he had swung his fist wildly, and it had connected, causing Mugyeol’s nose to burst.

The sight of Yeon Mugyeol clinging to him and begging for marriage while blood streamed down his nostrils was something he wouldn’t forget until the day he died. It went beyond horror into sheer wonder.

Thankfully, the infirmary door happened to be unlocked. Dragging Mugyeol inside by force, Yi-seon wiped the blood smeared across his face with alcohol swabs and plugged cotton balls up his nostrils. The nosebleed had already stopped, but guilt compelled him to do it anyway.

Perhaps having calmed down somewhat, Mugyeol docilely accepted Yi-seon’s touch. His face was composed, unrecognizable from the unhinged fit he had thrown in front of everyone earlier.

Having cleaned all the blood off Mugyeol, Yi-seon slumped into the opposite chair. His energy was completely drained. His clothes were a total wreck from wrestling with Mugyeol. Tucking his disheveled shirt back into his trousers, he lifted his gaze to find Mugyeol with his tie half undone and his hair wildly tousled. Blood was smeared on his shirt collar, making him look at a glance like a mental patient.

What on earth was this circus on graduation day?

“Yeon Mugyeol, you’re seriously in trouble having a personality like this.”

“…”

“The other kids saw the whole freak show earlier. What are you going to do?”

“…”

“How are you going to fix this? I can’t think of a single solution. Should we just say you had a temporary fit of madness? Tell them you were possessed by a spirit. That’s the only way.”

Toward Yi-seon, who muttered despondently in half-jest, Mugyeol raised his head and stared. “It’d probably be better to hold the wedding after graduating college, right?”

“Yeah. Wait, what?”

“Should we hold an engagement ceremony first, at least?”

“Huh?” Yi-seon asked, stupefied.

He hadn’t properly processed what Mugyeol was babbling about. Only a few seconds later did it register, causing him to bolt up from his seat.

“What are you talking about? What after graduating college?”

“Or should we just do it right away? It doesn’t matter to me either way, but if a baby happens, it might disrupt your college graduation.”

“What did you say…?”

“I mean, I could take a leave of absence to do the childcare, but…” As if laying out plans entirely on his own, Mugyeol muttered while staring unfocused into space.

“What… what kind of… what…” Yi-seon was plunged into extreme turmoil. Hearing words that should never have come out of Mugyeol caused his language faculties to rapidly regress.

A wedding? A baby? Childcare?

I was wondering what he was sitting there thinking about, and it’s this kind of utter absurdity?

As close friends, he already knew Mugyeol’s personality. He knew the guy could be impulsive at times, and he was well aware of his nonsensical stubbornness. He also knew Mugyeol could throw tantrums when he couldn’t handle his own temper, and he was familiar with his blind, obsessive competitiveness that hated losing.

Even so, this crossed the line. Wasn’t marriage one of life’s most monumental affairs, something that shouldn’t be decided on an impulse? Besides, Mugyeol was currently in a state of borderline mental incompetence, afflicted by an unhinged madness that precluded normal reasoning.

“What kind of nonsense is that, Mugyeol-ah? Get a grip.”

His legs giving out, Yi-seon dropped heavily into the chair. He had no idea where or how to begin pacifying this deranged bastard. Mugyeol was like a traditional gong—the harder you struck it, the louder it clanged—so Yi-seon couldn’t even afford to take a hardline stance. There was simply no predicting how far out of control he might spiral.

“Why doesn’t it make sense?” Mugyeol asked in a low voice, his half-crazed eyes making him look even more terrifying.

Muttering away with his school uniform collar splattered in blood was practically the stuff of horror films.

“How could it make sense?”

“I gave it some serious thought while getting beaten up by you earlier.”

“Don’t you dare think deeply…”

“And it seemed like it might actually be pretty decent.”

What is supposed to be ‘decent’ about it?

Yi-seon grew mildly curious. To put it bluntly, he was pissed off to the point of insanity, yet feeling curious on top of that made him feel like a lunatic himself.

Did I lose my mind from receiving too big of a shock? Just like Yeon Mugyeol in front of me?

“What seems decent about it? Go on, speak first.”

“I was planning to get married based on conditions anyway. But looking at it now, your conditions aren’t that objectionable. Why didn’t I think of this sooner?”

“Conditions…?”

“Grandfather is fond of you. You’re an Omega, so an heir won’t be an issue, your family background is decent, and being with you is comfortable and fun.”

“Do people get married just because it’s comfortable and fun? Think carefully. You said you’d marry a female dominant Omega. Tall, pretty, gentle yet feisty, with over ninety percent compatibility. Aside from height, I don’t fit any of those. And even that’s only because I’m taller compared to female omegas.”

“Either way, you’re an Omega too.”

“Are you even listening to me right now? What about our compatibility?”

“My father and dad got married even with compatibility under fifty. Though they fought like dogs and got divorced, of course.”

Yi-seon let out a deep sigh. “Seriously… I really, really hate saying this with my own mouth… but if compatibility is low, getting pregnant is difficult too…”

As the words left his mouth, he felt genuinely dizzy. Yet even against Yi-seon’s demoralized persuasion, Mugyeol didn’t budge.

“If the chances of implantation are lower than others, we just have to do it more than others. It took a bit of time, but my dad still gave birth to me.”

“…”

He truly was a stubborn piece of work. Because he was dragging his own bloodline into his tirade, Yi-seon couldn’t even formulate a proper rebuttal. Not touching someone’s family was an unwritten rule every Korean had to respect.

Belatedly, Yi-seon realized: there was absolutely no reasoning with the Yeon Mugyeol in front of him right now.

This guy is an absolute fucking lunatic…

Why am I having this conversation with Yeon Mugyeol?

Where did things start going wrong?

The day we met?

No matter how much he racked his brain, there was no answer, so he quietly shut his mouth. His brain felt overloaded, but since he had already been severely shaken mentally, getting shaken any further made no difference.