Just One Last Smile

Jaeyeol buried his nose in the nape of Seonwoo’s neck and took a deep breath.
The now-familiar scent rose subtly from his skin.
He felt his dizzying, complicated feelings slowly settle.
To someone else, it might be just pheromones, but for Jaeyeol, this one scent—which allowed them to fully sense and understand each other—was more desperately needed than he’d thought.
This was right.
Jaeyeol slowly sorted out his feelings.
His choice wasn’t wrong.
The union of an Alpha and an Omega was the natural order set from the beginning.
The momentary hesitation was surely just because it was unfamiliar.
Because he’d been with Seo Haeyoon for too long, because he’d had only Seo Haeyoon for too long.
That’s why it felt strange.
There was no mistake in the decision he had made.
He chose to believe that.
“Let’s… live happily together, Seonwoo.”
Jaeyeol murmured like a vow, tightening his arm around Seonwoo’s waist.
Tomorrow, everything would be over.
There would be nothing more to agonize over, nothing left to weigh on a scale.
‘When we get married, we’ll live truly happily.’
Ignoring the voice that had once chattered adorably only in front of him, Jaeyeol captured Seonwoo’s lips.
Even as he made that vow, he didn’t realize he was thinking of Haeyoon.
Nor did he know who the Omega he was promising his life to had been thinking of all this time.
The final night flowed on like that.

* * * *

“Haa….”
Haeyoon let out a deep sigh.
It was the moment he had just parked his car.
His heart, which hadn’t calmed down the entire way here, was now pounding as if it might leap out of his chest.
His hands trembled, fumbling clumsily with the seatbelt.
He had run here, doing things he normally wouldn’t do, all for this moment.
The decisive moment was now right before him.
He could have not come here.
He could have just gotten drunk with friends, cursed a bit, cried a little, shaken it off, and moved on with his life.
It was they who had pushed the Haeyoon who could have done that to come here.
“You don’t want to go in?”
At that moment, a voice came from the driver’s seat.
Turning his head, soft eyes were quietly gazing at him.
It was Baek Jeongha, a man whose true feelings about being here were unknowable.
‘You don’t want to go in?’
Jeongha’s voice echoed in his ears like tinnitus.
Haeyoon swallowed dryly.
Jeongha’s voice was extremely light.
So light it even felt cool.
‘What I mean is… I’ll wait until you’re ready, hyung.’
At that moment, Jeongha’s words from before echoed in his ears.
Strangely, the statement that he didn’t have to do it immediately gave Haeyoon the courage to do anything right then.
‘I’ll help you with whatever form of revenge it takes.’
The word ‘revenge’ was not light.
Yet, the decision to take ‘revenge’ on people he had once loved with all his heart would have been a heavy burden for Haeyoon to bear alone.
Whenever that happened, it was Baek Jeongha who lightened the weight of it all.
Sometimes with a playful attitude, sometimes with an indifference that suggested it was all trivial to him, he always lessened Haeyoon’s load.
So this time, too, Haeyoon habitually shook off the layers of emotion piled up in his heart.
It’s no big deal.
This isn’t some cruel revenge drama against a family enemy.
Just as Baek Jeongha’s attitude has been consistent from the start, this is simply a game.
It’s the first and last struggle of Seo Haeyoon, who has always been taken advantage of.
He’s not betraying them or trying to ruin their lives.
There’s no need to be so grave.
“No.”
Haeyoon answered in a lighter voice.
Considering the wounds and pain he’d received, this was rather a pathetic way to vent.
Who knew how effective a blow this would be to them.
Maybe they wouldn’t care at all.
They claimed to be soulmates, a love of a thousand years.
If a ten-year lover, a friend, meant nothing to them, why would they care who their discarded ex was with?
Still, Haeyoon wanted to reclaim at least a shred of his dignity in front of them today.
He wanted to let them know he wasn’t left there, trampled and broken.
Even if that dignity was a meaningless illusion.
“Shall we go?”
Jeongha asked in a bright voice, as if to break the heavy air.
His tone suggested it was just a casual stroll.
That was right.
What was the big deal?
Going to laugh in the faces of people who were only worth that much—what was so difficult about that?
“Yeah. Let’s go.”
Haeyoon nodded comfortably.
It was time to pour a cool disinfectant over the bitter wound.

* * * *

True to his ostentatious nature, the wedding hall where the ceremony would take place was the epitome of luxury, starting from the lobby.
Haeyoon stood briefly at the entrance, looking at the large photo table set up on one side of the lobby.
The lovely couple soon to become spouses smiled radiantly in the photos, proudly displaying their affection for each other.
A scene of them kissing was beautifully decorated like a movie poster.
They were literally a pair straight out of a movie.
Groom: Oh Jaeyeol
Groom: Ahn Seonwoo
The names of the two leads, already seen on the invitation, were displayed along with words wishing them congratulations and happiness.
That’s why.
That’s why Haeyoon had also come here today to congratulate the two.
Haeyoon turned his head to look at Jeongha.
He was standing very close to Haeyoon, faithful to his role.
Haeyoon called him.
“Jeongha.”
“Yeah?”
“If I ask to hold your arm… would it be too obvious?”
As he finished speaking, Haeyoon’s gaze turned toward the groom, Mr. Oh Jaeyeol, standing at the entrance of the hall greeting guests from a distance.
His impeccably dressed appearance resembled a certain future day Haeyoon had dreamed of countless times.
“Hmm….”
In the meantime, Jeongha, who had followed Haeyoon’s gaze and glanced at Jaeyeol, opened his mouth.
“Holding an arm is a bit too blatant, isn’t it?”
“Is it?”
“Holding hands would be more natural.”
Before Haeyoon could react to the unexpected answer, Jeongha’s hand naturally grasped his.
Linking their fingers and gently rubbing the back of Haeyoon’s hand with his thumb was exactly what a lover would do.
The reality of what he was doing struck him anew, and Haeyoon gulped.
It was a blessing that his face rarely showed much expression at times like this.
Even with a stiff face, it wouldn’t look awkward.
“Are you uncomfortable?”
Jeongha asked, feeling Haeyoon’s body tense slightly.
They were about to plunge into the heart of the ‘drama,’ and it would be troublesome for both if he wasn’t ready.
Haeyoon turned his head and met his gaze.
Jeongha tried hard to read the emotion in his eyes.
Seo Haeyoon wasn’t a man of many words.
To know him, you had to constantly meet his eyes and fiercely observe him.
That’s why Jeongha always found Haeyoon interesting.
With a calm expression as if attending the wedding of someone not close at all, Haeyoon shook his head.
“If you’re not uncomfortable, then I’m not.”
“I’m fine.”
“Okay.”
Nodding slightly, Haeyoon hesitated for a moment before speaking again.
“…I’ll be in your care.”
His tone was surprisingly calm for the situation.
‘I’m tired of seeing you. You’re boring and dull.’
The harsh words Seo Haeyoon was said to have heard from his longtime lover were probably directed at this very aspect of him.
Jeongha replied with a ‘Yeah,’ as calmly as Haeyoon, then followed him as he moved first, walking through the center of the lobby.
The gazes of those who recognized Haeyoon began to land on him.
Silence fell over the previously bustling space, and that silence turned into soundless exclamations.
Ex-boyfriend, affair, Ahn Seonwoo, friend.
Keywords that could summarize the current situation intermittently flowed, laying themselves like a red carpet before Haeyoon’s feet.
And then.
Oh Jaeyeol, one of today’s main couple, who had been busy welcoming guests, saw Seo Haeyoon.
The smile that had filled his face slowly faded, replaced by an expression of confusion and shock.
Jeongha tightened his grip on Haeyoon’s hand.
A thrill starting from his toes shot up his spine to the top of his head in an instant.
He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d felt such stimulation.
Jeongha had always lived feeling an inexplicable boredom.
Seo Haeyoon spoke.
“Congratulations on your wedding, Hyung.”
What an idiot, Jeongha thought of Jaeyeol.
How could this be boring?
How could someone who could come to his ex’s wedding—who not only cheated with his best friend but is now marrying him—and offer congratulations this calmly possibly be boring?
Jeongha savored the satisfying feeling and greeted the groom, Oh Jaeyeol, whose eyes were shaking pitifully.
“Congratulations on your wedding. I came with Haeyoon.”
Instantly, Jaeyeol’s gaze shot toward their intimately clasped hands.
He thought it was good they’d decided to hold hands.
Surprisingly, it was Haeyoon who answered Jeongha first.
“…Call me Hyung.”
Jeongha bit his lip.
He almost burst out laughing.
This, this was exactly what was so interesting.
To say you’ll get revenge, to show off your well-off self defiantly, to bring someone here for that, and then the only thing you say is to call you ‘Hyung’?
The corners of Jeongha’s eyes softened amiably as he gave a playful smile.
Jaeyeol was staring blankly at the scene.
“What do you mean ‘Hyung’ to your boyfriend?”
At Jeongha’s follow-up, Jaeyeol’s eyes shook even more violently.
Boyfriend.
Boyfriend?
Seo Haeyoon’s boyfriend?
Meaning, not Oh Jaeyeol, but Seo Haeyoon’s boyfriend.
It was as if he’d heard a word that shouldn’t exist in the world; his mind went blank.
Regardless, Haeyoon answered Jeongha with an intentionally ‘Hyung-like’ attitude.
“Even if you’re my boyfriend, I’m still your Hyung.”
“Yeah, yeah. Got it, Hyung. I’m Haeyoon Hyung’s boyfriend. Happy now?”
As if placating a younger lover, Jeongha then turned to look at Jaeyeol again and spoke.
“I am younger than him, you see. As you might know.”
With Jeongha’s playful wink, Jaeyeol finally seemed to snap out of his frozen state and opened his mouth.
“Seo Haeyoon! …What are you doing here?”