“He was totally caught off guard. What were you planning to do if he actually went to report you?”
“I just wanted to gauge his living standards. Also, he didn’t report me and that’s that. If I have to step up my game for this project, I have to bond with him and only when he thinks I am trustworthy, would I be able to enter his house with permission. Fuck! Can I even get back home at that rate?”
“Still, if you were reported earlier, it would take less than a minute for all this to end. No matter how skilfully you dodge it, it will bite you in the ass anyway.”
“I know. I just have to be careful when I get there. But since I barrelled my way in, I did find something useful.”
“Which is?”
Kwon Taejung debated whether or not to tell Baek Jinwoo that Yigyeom was not a Beta but an Omega. In the end, he decided not to and replied with a smirk.
It wouldn’t be fun to tell Baek Jinwoo, who was a Beta himself, that Yigyeom was an Omega. So he didn’t have the urge to tell him. Plus, there was the part where he didn’t want to spill the beans on Yigyeom’s secret which he was keeping to himself.
“I am not so sure about it as of yet, so I want to brew it a little more.”
“Got it. If there is something I can help you with, let me know.”
As if out of habit, he said thanks. Without much meaning, the word rolled off his tongue when he felt the mild, sweet peachy smell on the tip of his nose. It was going to be an interesting 3 months.
***
Wearing an oversized bunny mask and a fur suit, Yigyeom raised his hands and waved the balloons as if to welcome the bystanders. It was his job to wear a doll-like mask, but compared to the money he received, the suit was too thick and the mask was too heavy and his shoulders hurt badly.
Yigyeom knew that he wasn’t in a situation where he could be picky about what part-time jobs he could take, so he straightened his arms and waved until it hurt. He couldn’t do anything except wave the balloons at the bystanders.
After receiving the envelope given by the owner of the newly opened cellphone shop, he went inside the building, tagging along with other people wearing animal masks. He went inside the washroom and changed into his clothes. It was still March so it wasn’t that hot but maybe it was because of the animal costume he wore that caused his clothes and hair to be drenched in sweat.
“Yigyeom, tomorrow it is going to a chicken shop. You are coming, right? Next week, there is a part-time job at a hotel. Wanna join me? The hourly wage is insanely high!”
“Sure, I will do it. I can do anything and everything. So please call me if a new job comes up. Morning shift, night shift, anything goes. It’s even okay at dawn. Of course, weekends are okay too.”
“Yeah, okay. The boss is making a fuss to take you along with me everywhere. Whenever you are there, shit ton of people come too. Isn’t there good work these days?”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Tfr. Ktfgf jgf j iba bo kbgxrtbqr yflcu rfa eq gfmfcais. Pa’r qgbyjyis yfmjerf bo atja jcv la’r wemt yfaafg atjc yfobgf.”
“Pa’r yfaafg atjc cjvj, jcv P jirb tjnf ab olcv kbgx yea ktja atf tfii lr atlr? Memx! Kbvjs la’r j mja jcv abwbggbk lr j mtlmxfc’r tfjv.”
As Kang Jihoon pursed a cigarette between his lips, he offered one to Yigyeom, but all Yigyeom could think of was the price. Yigyeom rejected the offer by waving with two hands and washing his face after turning on the cold water. As Kang Jihoon noticed the water droplets rolling down his cheeks to the end of his chin, he pulled out some paper towels and passed them to him as he puffed his smoke.
“Thank you.”
“Every day is drab since I am a Beta. Whether it’s an Alpha or an Omega, they all have rut cycles for a month so they stay holed up in their home. If you are poor, being a Beta is better. Inhibitors are not that cheap.”
At Kang Jihoon’s words, the hands that were clutching onto the paper towels trembled slightly. Even though it had already been 3 years since he hadn’t been able to function as an Omega properly because of the inhibitor’s side effects, whenever someone would raise the topic of Omega, Yigyeom got excessively conscious. It wasn’t a conversation that had anything to do with him, however, he still had the traits of an Omega.
“Hey, there are still a lot of people who are Omega. If they wanted to, they could have sold their faces and earned a fortune. For Betas, fuck! Everything is so fucking vague.”
There was a loud voice echoing from one of the bathroom stalls. Yigyeom tossed the wet paper towel and inclined his face to the direction of the noise. Soon, there was the sound of the door being unlocked and Yoo Jaemin came out with his clothes changed, his hair dishevelled and sweaty.
“Of course, if you grab one Alpha, you can make a shit ton of money.”
“There are Alphas who marry Betas, so go and find one.”
“Fuck, don’t even.”
Yigeom, who couldn’t blend into their conversation, pressed down on his heart which was pounding hard every second. He never said that he was a Beta and everyone just assumed him to be one. But he was not calm since it was all a big lie.
“Yigyeom, you totally have the face of an Omega.”
The sudden sharp words were too blatant. Yigyeom, who was surprised at Kang Jihoon’s words, composed his morphed face and raised his head.
“You should go visit an agency or something. You can make the dough by selling your face. You can become an idol with that face for sure!”
After hearing Kang Jihoon, Yigyeom unconsciously rubbed his fingers on the moist sink and laughed awkwardly. He didn’t know how to reply.
“It’s a little late for him to debut, though. These days, they start training while they are ankle biters. Yigyeom, how old are you?”
Yoo Jaemin pushed a cigarette between his lips and gestured to Kang Jihoon to lend him a light as he watched Yigyeom. Yigyeom pushed the tips of his fingers and nodded.
“Yes. I just turned 20.”
“Then, it’s late. Well, debuting at 20 is… never mind. How about a shot at acting? Can you act?”
“…I can’t. I can’t do those kinds of things.”
“One of my acquaintances from this part-time goes to an acting school. Should I introduce you to him?”
Yigyeom just wanted the conversation to take its course, and he was uncomfortable if it would continue. He reciprocated by waving his hands lightly. The two people didn’t press further and segwayed to another topic.
“I will head out first. I have another part-time job to go to.”
“Ah, at the cafe?”
“Yes…I will see you tomorrow.”
“Sure, see you tomorrow.”
Hugging the animal suit, Yigyeom exited the building, inhaled the clean air and sighed deeply. The reek of cigarettes was too strong and it hurt his head while his heart ran a mile a minute, enough to hurt especially from the talk about Omegas.
“Haaa…”
It’s okay. Nobody knows I’m an Omega. There is no smell of pheromones, my heat cycle doesn’t come and all the alphas think of me as a Beta. It will be okay if it continues like this. There is nothing to be conscious of. I just have to continue by being nonchalant…
“…”
Taking a sharp inhale, Yigyeom quickly approached the previous event’s office car that was on the side of the street and stored the rabbit costume inside its trunk. He then opened his phone and confirmed the time. There was still 20 minutes left until his shift. Ah, he should run. As soon as the thought struck, he started to run.
As he safely took turns with the previous employee, Yigyeom wore the cafe’s uniform and stood at the counter. Since it was a vague time just before dinner there weren’t many people rushing in so he could spend the next few hours leisurely.
After filling the showcase with cakes, bread and drinks, he took a seat under the counter and felt his legs hurting. Yigyeom leaned forward and patted his calf before letting out a sigh.
“…”
It was frustrating for Yigyeom to realize that the situation didn’t seem to improve even after working so hard to the point that his legs were burning up. Even though he was paying back the relocation fees that his grandfather was swindled off little by little, Yigyeom knew it was like pouring water in a bottomless pit. Would this situation ever get better? Could he ever pay back the debt?
“…”
Yigyeom wondered if Grandpa had eaten his lunch properly. Although, if he laid back right after, he would get sick. Worry tailed another worry. It was because there were too many things to worry about. But among all those things, the most he worried about was his grandfather. His grandfather was his only family and responsibility but also the reason why he was living such a hard life.
Since his grandfather was very sick, whenever he thought about him, he felt frustration coiling in the pit of his stomach. But thanks to the auntie who was still residing at the slum and was taking care of grandfather’s lunch and dinner, he could relax a little. But there weren’t many days left until that help would also cease.
“Yigyeom, I’m moving next month. Our Junghee has to go to school…and I think this place is going to be demolished soon. So I thought that I should move. I feel bad leaving the two of you here.”
If the laundry house would move soon, there would be only seven houses left. Yigyeom thought that in the end, only he would be left. After breathing out a sigh, as his head was throbbing painfully, he closed his eyes before opening it again.
Yigyeom despised being relaxed. Whenever there would be time for thoughts to surge in, reality would always hit him hard. It was better when he was busy, busy to the point of being unable to think of anything.
If he were that busy throughout the whole day, he would collapse on the bed and sleep from exhaustion. It was better than being depressed about the reality and it was the more acceptable. Although, it was different from what other people usually deemed acceptable.
Let’s stop thinking about depressing things and clean up. After shaking his head, Yigyeom stood up, took a broom from the cleaning room and leaned slightly before cleaning the floor where there weren’t many people.
“…The smell of cigarettes.”
Since those guys, earlier, were smoking right in front of him, the smell stuck. Even though he changed into another uniform, he wasn’t sure if it was the pants but it smelled lightly of cigarettes as he moved.
If the smell persisted, the customers would feel uncomfortable… Deciding that he should spray the deodorant kept in the cleaning room, he put down the broom and returned to the cleaning room.
Yigyeom wasn’t sure when the customer would come in, so he kept the door open halfway and sprayed deodorant on his pants. When he smelled the deodorant, he remembered the face he saw that morning. The face of the man from between the crack when opened the main door.
Go go yigyeom!! 🐰🍑
Thaank u for the translation ~ 💓