NLFSD Chapter 40

Chapter 40

The gossip circulating within the company had been true. The rumor that someone was checking available dates for the luxury wedding hall at the company’s hotel turned out to be entirely accurate. Here they were, taking time out of the weekend to travel far just to worry about the guests’ palates.

No. Wait—so he was planning to marry some other Omega? Timed perfectly for spring, when their reflection period* would end…? Then what did that make Jiwoon? Just a pushover, a fool tagging along on venue tours?

For a fleeting moment, tens of thousands of thoughts spun through Jiwoon’s mind, only worsening his confusion.

“Hey!”

Jiwoon’s voice cracked as he asked,

“Who exactly are you marrying?!”

His brows knitted as he jabbed a trembling finger toward Taecheon. He pretended to be brave, pretended to be angry—but truthfully, Jiwoon was terrified of Taecheon’s answer.

Who could it be? The stunning Omega No. 3 who had once caused a stir at Love Village? Or the precious eldest daughter of that trading company, the one long rumored within the office? Or… had he somehow found time to date someone else altogether?

Damn it, what a cursed life. Realizing I’m in love only to get dumped right after? No wonder nothing ever goes right. The indigestion during the trip when I tried to make a move, the constant embarrassing situations—ugh, I can’t even confess properly before it’s all over.

“Hurry up and answer!”

Jiwoon shouted again, on the verge of tears. But Taecheon’s expression was… odd. Not smiling, not frowning, not even angry. If anything, it bordered on incredulity.

“What’s with that face?”

“I just can’t believe it.”

“You can’t believe it? You’re married on paper and yet planning to marry some other Omega? That’s what’s unbelievable!”

Since things had already reached this point, Jiwoon decided he might as well point and yell at the top of his lungs. Do you think you’ll be happy after trampling on an Omega’s pure feelings? In Jiwoon’s heated state, he saw nothing else.

“Marrying another Omega? What are you even talking about?”

“You’re looking for wedding venues right now! To get married!”

Tears threatened to spill as Jiwoon bit his lip hard. At that moment, Taecheon furrowed his brow and suddenly seemed to realize something.

“Assistant Manager Lee, don’t tell me… You think I’m marrying someone else?”

“Yes! Of course I do. Who is it? Just tell me already!”

Taecheon rubbed his face with one hand, the corners of his mouth curving upward, his gaze softening into something almost tender—like he’d just seen something irresistibly cute.

“Who else would I marry but you?”

Thud. Jiwoon felt as if someone had smashed a massive hammer over his head. So this is what being blindsided feels like.

“…Wh-what?”

Utterly shocked, Jiwoon shot to his feet.

“W-what did you just say?”

“I said I’m marrying you.”

“Me?!”

Completely flustered, Jiwoon flailed backward, stumbling over the tablecloth and nearly toppling over with arms flung wide.

“Whoa—!”

Just before he could fall disgracefully, strong arms caught him—Taecheon’s arms, wrapping firmly around his waist.

“Are you okay?”

Taecheon looked down at him, his face etched with concern.

“F-fine… No, wait, not fine—”

Jiwoon gasped for air. His heart thundered like a runaway train, ringing in his ears.

Had he really heard right? Or was this all an auditory hallucination born of being hopelessly in love? Was this even real, or just a dream?

“Um… what you just said…”

“What about it?”

“The thing about… m-marriage…”

“Ah. You mean that.”

“Are we… really doing that?”

Jiwoon looked up at Taecheon, fear and disbelief clouding his wide eyes.

“I’m thinking sometime next spring, but the timing’s flexible. If you have a preferred date, tell me.”

“Eek!”

Jiwoon shrieked outright. His heart felt like it might stop.

“What’s wrong?!”

“T-this is insane! How could—how could you and I be getting married?!”

Flailing, Jiwoon shoved Taecheon away and collapsed into his chair, gulping down water and raking a trembling hand through his hair. Taecheon watched him calmly.

“Don’t tell me you don’t want to. Am I forcing my feelings on you?”

“No!”

Jiwoon frantically shook his head, crossing his arms into an X. No matter how timid and quick to dig himself into holes he could be, he wasn’t stupid enough to say he disliked this.

“I don’t dislike it! Not at all!”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“Uh… It’s not a problem, exactly—it’s just… way too sudden. Yes, sudden.”

“Sudden? We’re already legally married.”

Taecheon crossed his arms, eyes filled with faint reproach.

“That was a clerical error. That’s different.”

“So you do dislike marrying me?”

“No! Absolutely not, please don’t misunderstand!”

No matter how much they talked, they weren’t getting anywhere. Of course Jiwoon didn’t dislike the idea—he was practically ready to break into a celebratory dance. But even so, everything in life followed an order, a process. As a man of reason, Jiwoon couldn’t just leap into Taecheon’s reckless proposal headfirst.

Get a grip! Someone has to straighten this out.

Draining the rest of his water in one shot, Jiwoon took a deep breath and spoke again.

“What I mean is—shouldn’t there be some steps before marriage?”

“What steps? Explain it so I can understand.”

“…I don’t know all the details, but usually you date first and then get married, right?”

“You don’t know? Didn’t you claim you’d dated a whole truckload of Alphas before?”

Taecheon chuckled softly, sliding his glass of water toward Jiwoon. It was a relaxed smile, as though he saw right through every flimsy excuse Jiwoon had ever made.

Ah. Crap. I really did say that, didn’t I.

Jiwoon wanted to throttle his past self, but now wasn’t the time.

“I-I mean, that was then. This is now. The point is, this marriage is missing the proper process.”

Jiwoon nodded firmly, proud of his perfectly logical argument. He could almost applaud himself.

“Hm…”

Taecheon rubbed his chin thoughtfully, silent for a moment. Jiwoon anxiously waited to see what would happen next. He didn’t have to wait long—Taecheon soon delivered his verdict.

“Then let’s do this. Let’s start dating.”

“…Huh?”

“Date me. How about it?”

Taecheon said it while covering Jiwoon’s hand with his own. Jiwoon was so overwhelmed—confused, flustered, heart pounding—that he couldn’t speak. His lips parted soundlessly, face so flushed it felt like his blood vessels might burst.

What did I just hear? He wants to date me? Me and Taecheon—dating? But we’re already married… So now it’s marriage first, dating later? How does that even work? Does this change everything?

He might not have real experience with dating, but he’d absorbed enough through movies, books, and friends’ advice to know what love and romance were supposed to be.

Looking only at each other, seeing the world through rose-colored glasses—that was dating. Now he could hold Taecheon’s hand, kiss him openly, confess without fear. And someday, Taecheon might seek his lips, embrace him passionately like on that deserted island, shower him with affection.

Me… with the Director… in that kind of relationship?

Jiwoon’s mind short-circuited, thoughts tangled into chaos. His body froze, stiff as stone, incapable of saying yes—or anything at all. Taecheon gazed at him gently and continued.

“As I said before, I’ve lived without knowing a thing about romance. So you’re right—let’s do this. Let’s date.”

His words said he was clueless, yet the way Taecheon firmly clasped Jiwoon’s hand with his large, steady one was anything but awkward. If anything, it carried the air of a seasoned pro. Jiwoon’s chest felt like it would burst; even breathing was difficult.

“Jiwoon. Your answer.”

“…Yes.”

Of course yes! Yes, yes, YES! Why wouldn’t I? Am I insane?

Jiwoon nodded like a madman. Taecheon beamed at him with that radiant smile from before, squeezing his hand even tighter. It was a smile so perfect it felt unreal.

And so, months after they’d technically been married, the two finally began dating. What had started as someone’s mistake was now finding its way toward something real and deliberate.