Divorce Contract C2

Chapter 2

Seeing his face grow paler and paler, a few passing nurses stopped to check on Go Igyeol’s condition. When asked if he was all right, he nodded, but he knew he couldn’t remain in the hospital any longer and rose to leave.

He was glad he had come somewhere far from home. Sorting through his tangled thoughts, Igyeol sat at a bus stop and stared out at the road. Amid the noise, he wrestled fiercely with himself: was it better to give birth or to end the pregnancy?

He had meant to search for a hospital where a termination was possible… but the sound of the baby’s strong heartbeat still echoed in his ears. If only he could run far enough, somewhere beyond Seo Dohyeon’s reach. If only he could escape before the pregnancy showed. Then… then maybe he could bear the child.

Though he had first resolved firmly to end it, Igyeol now found himself desperately searching for ways to keep the baby. His eyes grew hot again and again. Even when he rubbed them hard, trying to hold back the sobs welling up inside him, the tears seeped through once more.

Maybe he could beg Dohyeon to let him give birth. But no—that man would never have allowed such a thing, not when he had written such a clause into their contract.

“…Ha.”

“Igyeol? Is that you?”

At the sound of someone approaching, he turned his head. A large hand held out a soft handkerchief. Raising his gaze, he saw a gentle face fill his vision.

“Look at this, meeting you here. It’s been ages.”

“……”

“Do you live around here?”

The corners of his mouth curved easily, drawing a soft line. Without realizing it, a tear rolled down Igyeol’s pale cheek, betraying him. The man pressed the unused handkerchief firmly against Igyeol’s tear-stained face, asking no questions about why he was crying at a bus stop. Instead, he talked idly about how cold the weather still was for spring, or asked if he had eaten lunch, even though it was long past noon.

“I work nearby.”

“……”

“There—see that sign? Black one. ‘Na Seunghui Law Office.’ I’m just helping out my cousin there part-time until the end of vacation.”

Smiling brightly, entirely at ease, he plopped down beside him and offered the handkerchief again. Igyeol only turned his head away. The man stuffed it back into his pocket and spoke once more.

“What are the odds, us meeting like this? Strange, isn’t it?”

“……”

“But aren’t those clothes too thin? Aren’t you cold? Wait a second.”

“I’ll… go as soon as the bus comes.”

At last, Igyeol spoke. His voice was tight and restrained, declaring as though ready to leap onto the next bus. Still smiling, the man replied “Do what you want,” then dashed off toward a convenience store. His tall figure soon disappeared, then reappeared, striding quickly back.

“Ha—beat the bus, didn’t I?” he said with a grin, holding out something. In his hand was a warm bottle filled with yellow liquid. Igyeol only stared down at it, making no move to take it.

“Still as awkward as ever.”

With a sheepish laugh, the man pushed the bottle into Igyeol’s hand, then scratched the back of his head and distracted himself by fidgeting—crossing and uncrossing his legs, tapping his foot, restless as ever. Igyeol’s gaze fell on his spotless sneakers.

“If you’ve nothing else to say, go. …Na Seonu.”

“Wow, you remembered? Honestly, I thought you would’ve forgotten my name. I almost reintroduced myself.”

Catching sight of his brightly arched smile, Igyeol let out a small, weary laugh.

“You were our class rep… how could I forget.”

“…You’re smiling, Igyeol.”

Na Seonu gazed at him in awe, then joked that being class representative had been worth it, if only for this one faint smile.

“I thought I’d be upset if you didn’t remember me. But I also knew I couldn’t blame you—we were never that close.”

“……”

“But it’s nice, that you did remember.”

Igyeol stayed quiet while Seonu rambled on cheerfully—lively chatter about school, professors, classmates, his part-time job, his cousin. Now and then, he asked how Igyeol had been, but Igyeol only managed an awkward laugh in reply.

“You’re still as quiet as ever.”

“…Sorry.”

“What for? You’re strange like always.”

When Igyeol gifted him a gentle smile, Seonu laughed again. Just then, someone behind him clapped a hand on his shoulder.

“Hey, what are you doing out here?”

At the pleasant voice, Igyeol’s eyes lifted naturally. The newcomer looked much like Seonu, but with sharper, cat-like eyes and a striking beauty. Though his manner was neat and proper, his expression was sulky.

“Who’s this? A friend? Hello?”

“Ah… Hello.”

When he smiled, his eyes curved into crescents, and his demeanor changed at once—smooth and mature, unlike Seonu’s awkwardness. Wind ruffled his hair. Igyeol inhaled a faint, sweet scent on that breeze—unmistakably pheromones. An omega? And he had smelled it before, somewhere. His face too felt oddly familiar. Was it his imagination?

“So Seonu does have friends. Nice to meet you. But why are you still out here, lunch break’s long over.”

Carrying a tray of franchise coffees, the man smiled politely, though irritation seeped under his tone as he addressed Seonu, all the while his eyes lingered on Igyeol. Tilting his head, chewing his cheek as though trying to recall something, his sharp profile accentuated by the gesture. Igyeol lowered his gaze to escape it. Only then did his attention return to Seonu, muttering about how cold it was as he handed him the tray.

“We were just talking.”

“I told you, speak properly when you’re at work.”

“You don’t even use formal speech yourself…!”

So this must be that cousin at the law office—Na Seunghui? Thought Igyeol, suddenly feeling like an intruder. He rose quietly, deciding he’d be better off taking a taxi than waiting for a bus that never came.

“Seonu. I’ll go first.”

“Ah—then at least give me your number. Let’s grab a meal, this time for real.”

“…Okay.”

Entering eleven digits into Seonu’s phone, he handed it back and hailed an oncoming taxi. Thankfully it didn’t pass him by, stopping right before him. As he opened the back door and turned to wave goodbye, Seonu smiling behind him, Na Seunghui suddenly murmured from his side.

“Seo Dohyeon? Isn’t that right?”

At his question, Igyeol made no reply and quickly slid inside the cab. Na Seunghui, Na Seunghui… Sitting back, he repeated the familiar name and face, struggling to recall when and where, if anywhere, he and Dohyeon had met this man before.

Only a few days later, after his hospital visit, he encountered him again.

That evening, Dohyeon had sent a message telling him to prepare for dinner. Though nausea had robbed him of appetite for days, Igyeol wasn’t in a position to refuse. Still, looking back, if he had known he’d meet that man again, he might have begged to stay home, pleading his poor health.

“It’s been a while, Dohyeon.”

“Introduce yourself. This is Go Igyeol—you saw him before the wedding.”

“Ah, so we meet again.”

Rising from his seat, Na Seunghui greeted them, extending a small white hand toward Igyeol.

“How have you been?”

“…Hello.”

“And did you get home safely that day?”

As he spoke casually, Seo Dohyeon’s eyes turned toward Igyeol. When asked when they had met, Seunghui only replied vaguely, “A few days ago,” letting the subject drop. Yet Igyeol felt prickly, as though seated on needles.

“Wine?”

“No.”

“Your face doesn’t look well. Are you truly okay?”

Leaning closer to his ear, Dohyeon asked quietly. Flushed by the closeness, Igyeol nodded, heart pounding rapidly.

“I’m fine. Truly.”

“If you aren’t, don’t endure it. Tell me.”

“…I will.”

Across from them, Seunghui observed with a smile, remarking how good they looked together, voicing admiration. Dohyeon’s reaction was muted, uninterested.

“When did you two meet, anyway?”

“Us? When was it…? Near my office. It turns out Igyeol was in the same class as my cousin.”

“Your cousin?”

“Yes. Younger kid. On break with nothing to do, so I set him to organizing files. Smart boy. Cute.”

With a grin, Seunghui glanced at Igyeol, his gaze tinged with the look one gives a child.

“Seonu’s still so boyish—you, though, Igyeol, you don’t seem that way at all. It’s curious.”

“Watch your words.”

Dohyeon’s cutting look left no doubt he disliked the remark.

“My mistake. Didn’t mean to offend. I only meant, unlike Seonu, marriage seems to have made you more mature.”

“It’s nothing.”

“But… something I was wondering. That day, why were you there? Seonu said you’d been crying.”

“…Crying?”

Both sets of eyes turned to him at once. Dohyeon even twisted his body toward him, urging him to explain. Under their piercing attention, Igyeol bit his lip and mumbled it was nothing. But to Dohyeon, it wasn’t enough.

“What friend? I don’t recall you saying you were meeting anyone.”

“It was just for a moment in the morning. A friend you don’t know, Dohyeon.”