Prologue

The problem of my life.

Ryu Min-je was the problem of my life.

He was a dominant alpha—handsome, rich, and from a chaebol family. Anyone would envy a husband like that, but for me, it was different.

A wound.

If I had to describe him in one word, nothing else fit.

It was only natural that I held a crush on my childhood friend whom I met when I was eight. But to Ryu Min-je, I was just a friend.

Unlike Ryu Min-je, who presented at sixteen, I presented as an omega at nineteen, late when everyone else had already presented. When I nervously confessed, his reaction blew all my expectations.

‘Wow, we can be friends for life!’

‘What?’

‘Why? They say alphas and omegas can’t be friends. But I like short, cute, and affectionate omegas, so we won’t ever have to worry about the problem of love versus friendship, right?’

That was it. Ryu Min-je’s taste was completely opposite of me. I was tall, not cute, and had no aegyo whatsoever. My heart ached, but I couldn’t bring myself to say I liked him.

Thanks to that, even though we were a dominant alpha and a dominant omega, we remained friends after becoming adults, graduating college, and entering society. Even at twenty-eight, I still hadn’t given up my feelings, and I had even imprinted on him—although it was extremely rare for an omega to imprint first.

But Ryu Min-je seemed to have no interest in me at all. That he didn’t reciprocate even after I imprinted on him, which was evidence of my crazy love for him, hurt my pride. On the other hand, I was grateful to be by his side as a friend. As Ryu Min-je said, if we dated and broke up, we wouldn’t even be friends.

However, things didn’t go so easily.

Lack of pheromones from my imprint partner.

In college, we were at the same school, so I saw him every day. But after graduation, we started working at different companies and saw each other once every few months, and my health rapidly deteriorated. Nosebleeds became a daily occurrence, and I suffered from chronic pain like dizziness, headaches, and muscle aches. I collapsed and was rushed to the emergency room more and more often. But even when I went to the hospital, the doctors always said the same thing.

‘You need to receive pheromones from your imprint partner.’

That was impossible for me. Ryu Min-je didn’t like me at all, and if I had the courage to ask him to stay by my side, I would have confessed when I was nineteen.

As I remained silent, one year passed, then two. By the time five years had passed since I imprinted on him, the pain had become so familiar that it felt natural. Then one day, after overexerting myself for an important project and collapsing, I heard something different from before.

‘If things continue like this, you won’t live long.’

‘How long?’

‘Given the rate of deterioration, five years at most.’

‘At least?’

‘Two years… Honestly, even now, you could suddenly become critical at any moment.’

I was twenty-eight, and while I couldn’t even guarantee tomorrow, let alone thirty, I had been clinging to work to function as a capable person, and I was just about to get promoted. I felt empty, and a little sad. All because I loved Ryu Min-je, but he could never love me back.

‘If I receive my imprint partner’s pheromones, can I live longer?’

‘If you receive enough, you’ll improve. It’s the only treatment.’

After agonizing over it, I confessed to Ryu Min-je. I told him I had imprinted on him and needed his pheromones. I left out the part about being on borrowed time. I didn’t want him to pity me for having little time left.

…Looking back now, I should have told him I was terminally ill.

Ryu Min-je was surprised when he heard about the imprint.

“What? You imprinted on me? …Did you like me?”

I knew he wouldn’t know, that he saw me only as a friend, but it still stung. I never expected to confess this way after such a long unrequited love, so I answered with resignation.

“Yeah, I like you.”

“No…”

Unable to continue, Ryu Min-je finally opened his mouth after a long while.

“Let’s get married.”

“What?”

“You said you imprinted on me. So you have to stay by my side, right? Since I’m an alpha and you’re an omega, getting married will solve it.”

“Who proposes like saying ‘We’re both hungry, so let’s go eat’?”

“Then is there another way? You said you can’t be away from me, right?”

“That’s true…”

Seeing his face that clearly had no idea what the problem was, I had no clue where to begin explaining.

“Marry me, Yoo Jae-ha.”

Was this right? Could marriage be so haphazard?

I was bewildered, but at least my terminal condition was resolved. He was my first love and the object of my unrequited love for over a decade, so honestly, the word marriage made my heart flutter.

But my excitement was premature.

We were both busy, and my health was urgent, so we skipped the wedding ceremony and kept the honeymoon short—just a weekend. Still, I was nervous at the luxury hotel we booked for the honeymoon. I showered and waited on the bed first. To solve the pheromone problem, skin contact was best, especially on the first night of our honeymoon. I naturally assumed we’d have s*x.

How long did I wait? Ryu Min-je came out of the shower and flopped down next to me. Half-doubting, I cautiously started by saying it was our first night.

Then I realized how wrong I was.

“You want to have s*x? That’s a bit weird, like doing it with family.”

That Ryu Min-je didn’t have a shred of romantic feeling for me.

It wasn’t something I didn’t know. That was exactly why I had hidden my feelings for so long, even after I realized I loved him and ended up imprinting on him. But even though we had rushed into marriage, I guess I subconsciously hoped. Hoped that maybe, just maybe, Ryu Min-je liked me too.

But my expectations shattered, and anger surged.

“Then we’ll sleep separately.”

I got up abruptly, left the room, and booked another room.

Maybe the reason I was so angry was at myself. For expecting something like a fool. For knowing full well that Ryu Min-je didn’t like me but not being able to let go of my feelings for over ten years.

To Ryu Min-je, Yoo Jae-ha wasn’t an omega. Just a childhood friend.

After that, I gave up hope. Every day, I reminded myself that we were just friends, only asking for a pheromone shower once a week because of the imprint. My heart ached a little, but my health improved compared to before the marriage, since I was receiving pheromones from my imprint partner. Over the six months of marriage, at least I didn’t collapse.

Our married life was dry, like a stale cake, not sweet like chocolate. But I told myself that this was enough, that I had avoided a terminal state, and that was why I had told him in the first place. I forced myself to ignore the fact that I actually wanted to be loved by Ryu Min-je.

Then one day, something happened.

Ryu Min-je went into rut.

My body naturally responded to my imprint partner’s heat. And the aroused omega’s pheromones further stimulated the alpha in rut. So we had our first night together.

Neither my confession nor our marriage had gone as I wished, but the first time was different. It was the worst.

I know that the stronger the secondary gender, the stronger the instinct during heat, and reason disappears. But that was the problem. Even unconsciously, he rejected me. Throughout the whole thing, he never once looked at my face. He insisted only on doggy style, never showing me his face. Could you call it s*x if it was just insertion without any kissing or foreplay?

Also, I’d heard that alphas, due to their strong possessiveness, dote on their omega partners after the heat subsides. But when his rut ended, Ryu Min-je left the room without me. Left alone—no, abandoned on the bed—I felt unspeakably miserable. It wasn’t just that he didn’t like me; it was as if he had an accident because of his rut and hated me.

‘…I guess Ryu Min-je dislikes me.’

I had known for a long time that he didn’t like me, so even though my heart ached, I could endure it. But him hating me…

I stopped thinking there, dragged my body that ached as if I’d been beaten, and barely made it to the bathroom. I stood under the shower spray, staring blankly for a long time.

I suffered from body aches for days, probably from the exhaustion of several days of rut. It was just after I had been promoted. Because I had taken time off for Ryu Min-je’s rut, I was busy catching up on work, and the pain showed no signs of subsiding. Actually, I think I wanted to escape through work. Going home meant seeing Ryu Min-je or at least smelling his pheromones; just the thought made me sick and nauseous.

One day, still plagued by the lingering pain, I came home late from work to find Ryu Min-je wasn’t there. I had been avoiding him because it was hard to see his face, but I still got worried when it got late, so I called him.

[The number you have called is not available. Please leave a message after the tone.]

Ryu Min-je often came home late, so usually I would just think he was late again, but that day I couldn’t shake the worry. But even after calling several times, it all went to voicemail.

After 1 a.m., Ryu Min-je came home drunk. The moment I saw him, I inexplicably snapped and demanded to know why he hadn’t answered my calls.

Ryu Min-je seemed indifferent.

“I might miss a call if I’m drinking with friends.”

“Ryu Min-je, do you even realize you’re a married man?”

“Married? Honestly, we got married because you needed to be with me.”

It felt like a knife gutted me.

“I see.”

It hurt so much that my voice came out monotonous. Without another word, I turned and left the house.

“Where are you going?”

I thought I heard his voice from behind, but I didn’t stop.

On the cold November dawn, where the biting wind seemed to freeze even my wounds, I walked along the empty sidewalk and accepted that Ryu Min-je had married me reluctantly. I accepted that the person I loved hated me.

It was time to end this. My foolish unrequited love, and this marriage forced by imprinting on someone who hated me. I would get a divorce and disappear from Ryu Min-je’s life. If I left Ryu Min-je’s side, I would go back to being on borrowed time, but I wasn’t brazen enough to force marriage on someone who clearly hated me. Honestly, every moment by his side deepened my wounds, and I didn’t have the strength to endure anymore.

I planned to find a motel, sleep for a night, and propose divorce the next day. But as I looked for a motel, I blacked out.

When I opened my eyes, I was in the emergency room.

“Congratulations. You’re pregnant.”

I felt like the world was lying to me. Pregnant after just one rut together? I had just decided on divorce that dawn, and now I was pregnant with the child of a man who didn’t love me. I let out a hollow laugh.

Even in the moment I decided to divorce, Ryu Min-je was the problem of my life. But the real problem was something else.

At this incredible timing, Ryu Min-je did a 180-degree turn.