The Confession of a One-Sided Imprint

“Sunbae, hurry up and give me an excuse.”

Yoon Dae-eon and Seon Ji-ha moved to the room next door. It wasn’t Ji-ha’s idea; Dae-eon had taken him by the wrist and led him there himself.

Since it was the place where everything had gone down the day before, Dae-eon hesitated for a moment before entering, but he had to say what needed to be said. With a look of extreme reluctance, Ji-ha slowly moved the furniture he had used to block the way and opened the door.

If Dae-eon had come here alone, he wouldn’t have even been able to see the door behind the obstruction. Just what kind of “precious things” was Ji-ha collecting that he felt the need to barricade the entrance?

“Wait, why is this even here?”

The room was neatly organized, showing no trace of the events from the previous day. All of Dae-eon’s clothes, which had served as makeshift sheets the night before, were folded and arranged so precisely that an outsider might have mistaken the room for a boutique shop.

The first thing Dae-eon picked up was a common plastic straw and cup. The shop name printed on the side was familiar—it was from a franchise cafe he and Ji-ha had visited once.

Come to think of it, Ji-ha had said back then that he’d already thrown the trash away, but Dae-eon hadn’t seen a single trash can on their way out. He’d wondered if Ji-ha had just dropped it on the ground when he disappeared for a second, but it turned out he had brought it here.

“This is getting a little scary…….”

Seeing the items Ji-ha had hoarded actually gave him goosebumps. Dae-eon rubbed his arms as he looked around the room.

“……Should I give them back……?”

He whipped his head around at the tiny voice that followed. Seon Ji-ha was staring at him.

What was ridiculous was that his face as he asked “Should I give them back?” looked beyond pathetic—it was downright gloomy. He looked as heartbroken as a child whose favorite toy was being taken away.

Dae-eon couldn’t even manage a hollow laugh anymore. He wondered if he was losing his mind because seeing that face made his heart soften again.

He already knew that Ji-ha had an obsessive streak with objects unlike most people, and since no real harm had come to him, his heart kept lightening. Knowing he shouldn’t, Dae-eon asked tentatively:

“Sunbae, then… why did you throw away that rag on the sofa the other day? I mean, your security blanket.”

“Because I don’t need it anymore…….”

“You said you get anxious and agitated if you can’t see it.”

Ji-ha fell silent for a moment. He hesitated as if fumbling for words before slowly opening his mouth.

“……I don’t feel okay even when I look at it now…….”

“Then what about these things?”

“When Dae-eon isn’t here…… I have to look at these instead…….”

Ji-ha stopped mid-sentence and hung his head low. It seemed he knew how strange this was. Looking at him, Dae-eon felt a surge of pity for some reason.

“I—I get anxious and agitated. If Dae-eon isn’t here, if I can’t see you…….”

Ji-ha, whose hands had been hovering indecisively, finally scurried over and pulled Dae-eon into an embrace. He buried his face in Dae-eon’s shoulder and mumbled:

“I was wrong…….”

I’m really going to lose it.

Dae-eon stood there awkwardly, unable to even hug him back. No one would believe that this man, begging for forgiveness, was the same rough man from yesterday.

One side of his brain shouted that this was dangerous and he should push him away; the other side whispered that the man had his reasons and he should try to understand.

Struggling between the two choices, Dae-eon raised his hand and slowly stroked Ji-ha’s broad back.

Even knowing he was being swayed by him, Dae-eon couldn’t push him away. He knew this sympathy stemmed from his own attraction to Seon Ji-ha.

But, still.

“……Just don’t do it again, okay?”

Was I always such a pushover? he wondered. Maybe it was because he’d never seen someone love him so blindly before.

Is this what it feels like when someone imprints on you?

To Dae-eon, it was something you only saw in books or movies—they say once you imprint, you can blindly see only that one person. Just like the Seon Ji-ha right in front of him.

“……I’m okay as long as I’m next to Dae-eon…….”

“I can’t be by your side all the time.”

“Where are you going?”

The follow-up question was quite urgent. At the same time, the arms around Dae-eon’s waist tightened. It was as if he thought Dae-eon would run away if he didn’t hold on.

“I’m not saying I’m leaving……. Ugh, Sunbae, my waist hurts.”

At the mention of pain, Ji-ha immediately loosened his grip and hugged him gently. This is why I can’t be firm. Dae-eon kept stroking his back to keep him calm.

“I have lectures to attend and lots of things to do, so I can’t always be next to you. Even people who have imprinted don’t act like this.”

Ji-ha listened to Dae-eon’s words in silence, inhaling his scent deeply from the crook of his neck. Because his face was buried, Dae-eon couldn’t see Ji-ha’s expression—or how sharp his gaze had become.

“……I did…….”

“Huh? What did you say?”

The words went by too fast for Dae-eon to catch. Ji-ha’s voice had been muffled against him. Dae-eon tilted his head down to ask again.

“What did you say, Sunbae?”

“I imprinted.”

“……What?”

Blink, blink.

Dae-eon tilted his head, thinking he must have misheard. He let out a nervous laugh and asked:

“Imprinted? On who?”

“……On Dae-eon…….”

He didn’t mishear this time. Dae-eon froze for a second before grabbing Ji-ha’s arms and prying them off him. When he took a step back, Ji-ha tried to cling to him again.

Dae-eon blocked him. With a deep frown, he looked Ji-ha straight in the eye and asked:

“You did what to who?”

“I imprinted on Dae-eon…….”

“No, I mean, how? What does that even mean?”

“A one-sided imprint.”

“I did that…….”

Ji-ha’s voice trailed off. Dae-eon blinked, chewing over those words.

One-sided imprint. Dae-eon wasn’t unfamiliar with the term. It was one of the problematic phenomena in modern society that everyone was wary of.

Unlike a typical imprint that usually happens during s*x, a one-sided imprint can happen naturally in daily life for the most trivial reasons. That was exactly why it was dangerous.

News reports occasionally featured murder cases triggered by one-sided imprints. As a Beta, Dae-eon would usually just click his tongue in pity and move on, thinking it had nothing to do with him.

Who on earth would ever one-sidedly imprint on a Beta like me?

But Seon Ji-ha was saying he had done just that. Dae-eon slowly retraced his history with Ji-ha. Come to think of it, there had been several strange occurrences.

The anxiety when the other person was out of sight, wanting to know every detail of their schedule—and while taking their belongings was a bit extreme, even that was a symptom of obsession. He hadn’t thought of it before, but Ji-ha’s actions mirrored the aftereffects of a one-sided imprint.

“Are you serious? You imprinted on me……?”

Ji-ha nodded with downcast eyes but a look of absolute certainty. Even now, his hands were twitching as if he wanted to reach out and cling to Dae-eon.

Wait… could I actually be a Recessive Omega?

His mind even wandered toward that possibility. A late manifestation? But he quickly corrected himself. That was ridiculous.

All Alphas and Omegas are born with their traits. Dae-eon had never heard of a late manifestation.

And most decisively, he had his uncle check him every year. While there were hospitals for Alphas and Omegas, there weren’t separate ones for Betas, so even when he wasn’t sick, he was summoned by his uncle for various check-ups.

And every single time, the result was: “Yoon Dae-eon is 100% Beta.”

“That’s impossible.”

“……Why……?”

“Because I’m……!”

The word “Beta” reached the tip of his tongue but didn’t come out. Is it okay to say it? He couldn’t quite decide.

In that gap, Ji-ha approached again. This time, he hugged Dae-eon even more thoroughly to ensure he couldn’t escape.

Earlier, it looked like Ji-ha was being held by Dae-eon, but now it was the opposite. Ji-ha wrapped his arms around Dae-eon’s waist and back, locking him in place.

Due to the lingering effects of the Rut from just yesterday, Ji-ha was in an extremely sensitive state. Furthermore, because of the one-sided imprint, even a moment of Dae-eon being out of sight felt like insects crawling in his brain.

Ji-ha fell silent as his symptoms felt even more intense than before the Rut. Dae-eon also seemed lost in thought.

What is Dae-eon thinking right now?

I wish I could dig into his brain and find out. Every time he thinks of someone else instead of me, bit by bit…….

Before Ji-ha’s thoughts could spiral further, Dae-eon continued:

“Sunbae, you’re mistaken. That can’t be right.”

“I’m asking why…….”

Ji-ha’s voice grew languid. Now that his face was hidden while hugging Dae-eon, his expression shifted completely. His glistening eyes practically licked up the Dae-eon held in his arms.

Why was he rejecting the one-sided imprint? He could figure out the reason without even thinking deeply.

Ah.

“Is it because you’ve already imprinted on someone else……?”