Pig Government Official

-23-

Saturday evening at 8 PM. Jihoon was sitting in a corner of the cafe, watching Netflix’s new series “14th District” on his tablet. His nose occasionally itched, but he thought it might be due to the changing seasons and took a sip of his warm latte. The cafe wasn’t bustling, but most seats were occupied.

Jihoon looked at his quiet phone, thinking Jeonggwan must have eaten well and gone home. He sent another message to Jeonggwan.

[My… baby pig… seems to have finally been barbecued…]

After staring at the unread KakaoTalk message for a few more seconds, Jihoon put his phone down again. He had been worried about Jeonggwan eating sushi with Won Junjae on Saturday, but knowing the true nature of this unusual baby pig, he figured nothing bad would happen.

It suddenly struck him as remarkable. The Won family generally doesn’t like seafood. It’s not an allergy; they just don’t like the fishy taste. He and his mother were the same, and of course, Won Junjae’s side was too… Going out for sushi? He thought Kim Jeonggwan must really be something else.

But strangely, he didn’t seem like a cunning person. He wasn’t the type to maintain relationships for personal gain. If anything, he would fight against such people. Come to think of it, Kim Jeonggwan was truly multifaceted.

He seemed timid yet bold, proud yet surprisingly yielding. Well, how can you define a person by just one aspect? People who seem one way can be another – that’s human nature.

Jihoon stretched and turned his attention back to his tablet to focus on Netflix again.

Ding-.

Hearing the bell from the cafe’s main entrance, Jihoon looked up absent-mindedly, thinking a customer had arrived. He froze.

It wasn’t Kim Jeonggwan or Won Junjae, nor was it a celebrity.

“…Huh?”

The person who entered the cafe was a tall, extremely handsome man who drew the attention of everyone in the cafe. Even in just a gray hoodie and jeans, he exuded a masculine aura.

“Jung Taegeon! What are you drinking?”

“I’ll have a chocolate latte.”

The man, who seemed to have come in with friends, ordered a chocolate latte. He looked like the type to always drink iced Americano. But his name is Jung Taegeon…? Jihoon didn’t recognize the name, so he stared intently at the man, trying to remember where he might have seen him.

While waiting for his companions to order at the counter, the man’s eyes met Jihoon’s, who was staring at him blatantly.

However, he immediately looked away as if he didn’t know Jihoon at all.

He doesn’t know me? So he’s not from the social circle? But why do I feel like I know him? I’m sure I’ve seen him somewhere… Who on earth is he?

The man sat down at an empty table with his friends, which happened to be Won Junjae’s usual spot – the seat directly facing where Jeonggwan bakes. Jihoon found this strangely fitting.

“…!”

Suddenly, the man jerked his head up and started looking around as if searching for something. What’s he looking for? Did he drop something? Jihoon, who had been lost in admiring the man’s face, snapped back into his role as the owner, wondering if he should bring napkins.

The man’s gaze turned towards the empty kitchen area.

* * *

Jeonggwan was smiling happily on the second floor of a small, cute cafe, with an expensive, not-so-cute chocolate set spread out before him.

“I always only ate one apricot chocolate when I came here because it was so expensive!”

“…”

This cafe that Jeonggwan frequented was a chocolate specialty shop, but the prices were so devilishly high that he could only buy one of his favorite apricot chocolates, or maybe two on special occasions like birthdays.

However, bringing the Won Jae Electronics executive director changed things.

Jeonggwan, who had dragged Won Junjae here saying it was his first time at a dessert cafe, pointed from here to there saying he wanted to try everything to the blankly standing Won Junjae next to him.

“We’ll take everything.”

Won Junjae bought it all without a moment’s hesitation, as if it was no big deal.

This is it. This is it! Jeonggwan stared intently at each chocolate package that screamed expensive even from the box. He had always wanted to try the plum and fig chocolates, but they were only sold in packages, so he had never tasted them before.

But not anymore. Now I have plum and fig in my hands. I have to show this off on Instagram. Jeonggwan giggled as he took out his phone and started taking pictures of the chocolates from various angles. They were truly dazzling.

The third-generation chaebol sitting across from him wore an expression of complete incomprehension, not understanding why Jeonggwan was taking dozens of photos instead of eating the chocolates he had bought because Jeonggwan said he wanted them.

Catching this, Jeonggwan pointed to two chocolates with an air of specially explaining because Won Junjae had bought them.

“Look at this one. And this one.”

“…”

“These can only be eaten if you buy the package, and I’m trying them for the first time today.”

“…”

“Thank you.”

This time, Jeonggwan smiled at Won Junjae with genuine gratitude, not something he saw on YouTube or an attempt to seduce him. He was always sincere about food. Jeonggwan was humming and showing his good mood with his whole body.

“…”

And as Won Junjae was staring blankly at Jeonggwan like that, he blinked a few times and then…

“…Ah, aah…!”

He put the plum chocolate, which Jeonggwan had clearly said he was trying for the first time today, into his own mouth.

The fact that he didn’t even seem flustered after eating it suggested he had done it on purpose. Won Junjae stared at Jeonggwan while chewing the chocolate, and Jeonggwan was dumbfounded. Didn’t I clearly say this could only be eaten if you buy the package…?

While Jeonggwan was stunned, Won Junjae, having finished chewing and swallowing the chocolate, calmly spoke.

“It’s just okay.”

“You jerk!”

Slap. Jeonggwan hit Won Junjae’s shoulder in anger. It wasn’t a tantrum, but a truly instinctive act of violence.

Jeonggwan was slightly surprised at his own action, but Won Junjae, who Jeonggwan thought would be even more shocked, unexpectedly let out a small chuckle. Jeonggwan’s lips protruded in a pout.

“It was mine!”

“I’ll buy you more.”

“When?”

Jeonggwan pressed fiercely.

Junjae, with his arms crossed, rolled his eyes a few times, then turned his head away from Jeonggwan and answered.

“Well, we could come again next week…”

* * *

The car drove along the main road at a speed that was neither fast nor slow. The cool breeze coming through the finger-width open window was pleasantly refreshing, making it easy to get lost in thought.

Won Junjae looked down at the empty seat beside him where Jeonggwan had been sitting until just moments ago. A seat that had felt more occupied than with any other omega who had sat there. He let out a wry laugh, realizing that even such trivial thoughts were now associated with Jeonggwan, to the point where thoughts of Jeonggwan seemed to dominate him.

Junjae felt like he wasn’t in his right mind. Was he going crazy because of Jeonggwan’s pheromones? Was he becoming more addicted rather than developing a tolerance?

Lately, he felt like a stranger to himself.

He felt unfamiliar with himself for thinking time wasn’t passing as he waited only for Saturdays, and for checking his watch repeatedly during lunch with a subsidiary company president, only waiting for the evening.

He didn’t get angry seeing Jeonggwan make nonsensical complaints about why he didn’t come to pick him up on their first date, nor when Jeonggwan got upset and left because they weren’t going for dessert, as if he had room for more food.

He should have found it annoying to see Jeonggwan singing and swaying over a single chocolate, but instead… he impulsively ate the one-of-a-kind chocolate, wanting to see that behavior again. And even when Jeonggwan hit him in anger, he found himself laughing…

It all felt so unfamiliar.

What should he call these emotions? Amusement? Fun?

They say unfamiliar emotions hit hard, and he wondered if he had lived without fun until now. Maybe that’s why he was participating in this nonsensical play.

“…It’s annoying.”

But he really hated admitting to himself that he was responding to that pig, whether it was fun or whatever. When he was alone like this, he would try to regain his senses and tell himself to ignore it next time. To just take the pheromones and leave even if the pig spoke to him. But it was so annoying that whenever he saw the pig, he found himself looking forward to what he would say next, what expression he would make.

Until now, he had only pursued and associated with perfect omegas that made others go “wow”. Omegas with pure faces, well-maintained figures and hair. Omegas with dignified and graceful voices that never raised above a certain pitch.

That’s what a perfect omega that fits his ideal type is. Not… someone whose cheeks push up to their cheekbones when they rest their chin in their hands.

Ding-.

[The hyungs ate all the rum chocolates. ㅜ]

…Not a pig who cries over losing a few pieces out of so many chocolates.

[That’s too ba|…]

A pig who doesn’t hesitate to text him without permission, and himself eagerly typing a reply… It’s really annoying.

Click. He turned off the phone screen without sending the reply.