Omega Complex Novel (Completed) - Chapter 83

A chilling silence hung between us. I was pinned beneath Choi Taegyeom, and Choi Taegyeom was pressing down on my body. Aunt’s face gradually filled with horror as she watched us, frozen in place.

“You…!”

Dressed in a suit and tie, he clearly looked like he had just returned from work. I hadn’t heard the front door open; I must have been too engrossed in kissing. As I awkwardly glanced around, Aunt’s mouth fell open, and she pointed at us.

“You’re doing…!”

I knew I had to say something to explain. With such a compromising position and these alluring pheromones, it was highly susceptible to misunderstanding. Although we weren’t doing anything strange, it was certainly suspicious from an Alpha Aunt’s perspective.

“…Mom, it’s not what you think.”

Choi Taegyeom was the first to speak. He awkwardly got up from on top of me and began in a low voice. The moment he took a step off the bed, Aunt let out a fierce roar.

“Choi Taegyeom!”

I flinched and sat up. Choi Taegyeom also looked surprised, his eyes wide as he stared at Aunt. Aunt strode towards Choi Taegyeom and unhesitatingly slapped him hard on the back.

“Are you crazy? Huh!”

Thwack! A sound that hurt just to hear echoed. Choi Taegyeom instinctively flinched and stepped back from Aunt. Aunt, not letting him go, hit him a few more times and then sprayed a strong burst of sharp pheromones.

“What do you think you’re doing right now!”

It was an excessive reaction for simply witnessing physical contact. The pheromones emanating from Aunt were so sharp that they suppressed not only me, an Omega, but even Choi Taegyeom, a dominant Alpha. I couldn’t say anything and just watched nervously, when Aunt’s gaze suddenly snapped to me.

“…Yoonwoo, you.”

Gulp, I swallowed. I didn’t think she’d hit me too, but I was nervous about what kind of scolding I would receive. So, I immediately knelt down to apologize, but then a voice, more worried than ever, returned.

“Are you okay?”

“…”

I couldn’t say anything and just stared at Aunt. I had expected countless questions like, “What are you doing?” or “What were you thinking?”, but I never expected this question.

As I stammered, Aunt sat on the bed with a serious expression.

“Oh dear, the child’s face is completely pale.”

“…Huh?”

Aunt touched my cheek with an incredibly careful hand. She held both my cheeks and examined my face from side to side, clearly showing she was worried about me. Her gentle gaze and the softened pheromones were 180 degrees different from how she had treated Choi Taegyeom.

“Choi Taegyeom.”

Aunt stood up, her back to me, as if to shield me. The ominous pheromones flowing from her exuded a threatening aura.

“You, get out of this house right now…”

“…Aunt!”

I hastily reached out and grabbed Aunt. The moment my arm was grasped, Aunt sharply turned to look at me. Choi Taegyeom and Aunt, both their gazes, filled with different emotions, looked at me.

“That…”

My mind was complex. But as I took a breath, the reason Aunt was so angry, and the reason she was trying to protect me—all of it clicked into place like puzzle pieces.

Aunt probably thought he was trying to force himself on me. It wasn’t forced, nor was it that kind of skinship, but since he was pinning me down, it could certainly look that way.

“It’s, it’s not what you think, Aunt.”

My trembling voice barely managed to utter a sentence. My heart was pounding, and my stiff pheromones slowly crept out. I stammered a little, but the meaning must have been clear. How she interpreted that, Aunt’s expression hardened sternly.

“If you’re trying to cover for Taegyeom, then…”

“No, no!”

I interrupted Aunt and waved my hands. Aunt pursed her lips, as if telling me to continue. I glanced at Choi Taegyeom, and he finally showed a look of understanding.

“I’m not covering for him. We were just playing around, and it ended up like this. Really.”

Perhaps it was because I, as a child, had covered for Choi Taegyeom’s mistakes countless times, but Aunt didn’t readily believe me. She even gave me a somewhat pitiful look. I let go of Aunt’s arm and pleaded in an earnest voice.

“You know Taegyeom isn’t that kind of kid. It’s really not. Seriously.”

“…Taegyeom, you tell me. Is that really true?”

With a small sigh, Choi Taegyeom ran a hand over his face. His face, filled with a sense of failure, also held a bit of tiredness and embarrassment. He covered his mouth, furrowed his brows, and spoke in a small voice.

“How could I do such a thing to Lee Yoonwoo?”

“…”

Aunt very slowly turned to look at us. She narrowed her eyes as if trying to gauge his true feelings, even glaring at Choi Taegyeom. Her eyes, so similar to Choi Taegyeom’s, quickly assessed the situation.

“…Yoonwoo, setting aside when you are presented as an Omega…”

After a very brief pause, Aunt pulled down her tie and retracted her pheromones. A deep shadow still lingered between her brows.

“If it’s not what Mom thinks, then why is the room so full of pheromones?”

Her low voice created an intimidating atmosphere. My whole body stiffened from the intense tension. Aunt unbuttoned one button of her shirt and stared at Choi Taegyeom.

“And you, Taegyeom.”

Choi Taegyeom was also as tense as I was. He had somehow straightened his body and was subtly avoiding her gaze.

“Didn’t you say you’ve been sleeping at Yoonwoo’s studio apartment for the past few days?”

He had nothing to say. Although he hadn’t committed a crime, there were certainly aspects that were problematic. Whoosh, Aunt let out a deep sigh, gestured towards the door with her chin, and started walking.

“Both of you, let’s talk with Mom.”

Aunt sat on the living room sofa and listened to our story. From when I presented, when we started dating, how the past five years had been, to the explanation that it really wasn’t ‘that kind of thing’ Aunt was imagining. Choi Taegyeom did most of the talking, openly defending me and helping Aunt understand.

“…That’s how it happened.”

After all the explanations, Aunt looked at me with a complex expression. Her gaze, mixed with worry and pity, also appeared intermittently when she heard about me hiding the fact that I was an Omega. At least I was relieved that her gaze wasn’t blaming me.

“I wondered why I felt Omega pheromones in the house…”

Aunt murmured softly and pressed a hand to her forehead. I wondered why she had come in so quickly, but it seemed my pheromones had lingered in the living room when I entered the house. Since Aunt was also a dominant Alpha, she must have been sensitive to even faint traces of pheromones.

“Okay, first…”

Aunt slowly began, then glanced at Choi Taegyeom. Her face, with features slightly finer than Choi Taegyeom’s, wore a troubled expression.

“Taegyeom, Mom is sorry for misunderstanding.”

This was something I always admired about Aunt. As an adult and a mother, it wouldn’t be easy to apologize to her child, but Aunt always clearly apologized for anything she felt she had done wrong. Choi Taegyeom apologizing first when he argued with me was also something he learned from Aunt.

“It’s okay. It was understandable…”

He awkwardly furrowed his brows and averted his gaze. Having been caught in such a situation, even Choi Taegyeom must have felt embarrassed. Moreover, he had blurted out many unplanned things. Originally, he hadn’t intended to suddenly reveal that we were dating like this.

“And Yoonwoo.”

“…Yes.”

Perhaps because she was friends with my prosecutor mom, Aunt also made me feel a suppressed sense of guilt when I met her gaze directly. Her unusually light-colored eyes had a subtle atmosphere different from Choi Taegyeom’s.

“It’s a little disappointing that you hid your secondary gender even from me.”

He clenched his fists tightly and bowed his head. “I’m sorry,” he mumbled softly, and his aunt tapped the table.

“I’m not scolding you, so lift your head. It would naturally be hard to say that Taegyeom is an Omega, he’d be shocked. I understand, too. Your secondary gender isn’t that important in life anyway.”

I slowly lifted my eyes. Just as she said she wasn’t scolding me, my aunt had her usual gentle gaze. As soon as our eyes met, she gracefully folded her beautiful eyes into a half-moon.

“Anyway, you have to give your parents credit for being so tight-lipped.”

Honestly, I hadn’t expected my parents to keep my secret so well. I thought they would have told my aunt and uncle, even if not Choi Taegyeom. It seemed they had been more thorough than I thought in keeping quiet about my secondary gender.

“As for the two of you dating, I won’t say much since you’re both adults.”

Her calm voice was enough to melt my frozen heart. Only then did the tension in my shoulders loosen.

“Instead, only do things you can both take responsibility for.”

“Things you can take responsibility for” probably encompassed many things: our relationship, how we would deal with things in the future, and the romantic aspects that would occasionally follow.

“Especially Choi Taegyeom.”

“…”

“Don’t forget what your mother said a long time ago.”

What she said a long time ago? I looked back at Choi Taegyeom with that thought. He glanced at me, then lightly clenched the fist that had been resting on his thigh. A strangely resolute voice flowed from his flushed lips.

“I know.”

My aunt smiled, pleased. I always felt that the three family members looked exactly alike when they smiled. My aunt, my uncle, and Choi Taegyeom—their smiles were truly bright and gentle.

“Good, then that’s settled.”

Fortunately, my aunt finished speaking without any hint of worry. She straightened her pants and stood up, as if the conversation was over. My aunt, who had also picked up the tie she’d left on the table, gently stroked both Choi Taegyeom’s and my heads.

“Date beautifully, beautifully.”

A gentle pheromone wafted faintly. Unlike Choi Taegyeom’s, her mature pheromone had the ability to relax one’s mind. My aunt gently smoothed my hair and spoke in a very kind voice.

“If Taegyeom doesn’t treat you well, tell me. You, Yoonwoo, are my son too.”

It was a line my parents would playfully laugh at if they heard it, saying “my son.” It was also something my aunt had always said since I was little. I quietly nodded and let out a soft chuckle.

“Yes, don’t worry.”

I wondered why she had come home so early, but my aunt said she had received a call from my mother. My mom had asked her to look after me, saying she would be late today and that I would surely be alone. My mom, who asked my aunt, was one thing, but my aunt, who rushed over at that one word, was truly something else.

Choi Taegyeom couldn’t hide his disbelief as he watched her. When he said our family doted on Lee Yoonwoo too much, my aunt snorted as if she found it absurd. Even to me, that wasn’t something Choi Taegyeom should be saying.

“Ah, I’m tired.”

As soon as my aunt, relieved that I was with Choi Taegyeom, returned to her company, he lay down with his head on my thigh. He seemed quite startled too, as fatigue was etched around his eyes. I brushed his bangs back and gently massaged his smooth forehead.

“Aunt didn’t seem as surprised as I thought.”

“About what?”

“Us dating. I thought she’d be more surprised, but she didn’t react much.”

“Ah, that.”

Choi Taegyeom reached out his hand to the side and grabbed the remote control on the table. A boring variety show was playing on the TV he turned on.

“She probably expected it.”

After manipulating the remote a few times, Choi Taegyeom switched to a famous movie channel and turned to face the TV. His gaze was also directed at the TV, not me.

“How many years have I liked you?”

His voice was quite calm. I traced his sharp jawline with my fingertips, letting out a faint hum. My fingers moved stealthily, passing over his smooth cheek and even touching his slender eyelashes. Instead of stopping me, he took my hand and rubbed his nose against my palm.

“So she must have thought I finally touched you after holding back for so long.”

“…Isn’t that a bit harsh for a son?”

“Well, I have a record.”

“A record?”

Choi Taegyeom curled the corners of his lips and turned his gaze towards me. His thinly double-lidded eyes curved gently, as if flirting. Smooch, his soft lips touched my palm and then pulled away.

“It’s just… a thing.”

“What is it? Now I’m curious.”

I poked Choi Taegyeom’s face, but he didn’t seem to want to tell me. He turned his head and buried his face in my thigh, clearly intending to change the subject. Choi Taegyeom, who playfully bit his fingertip, gestured towards the movie with his chin.

“Just watch the movie. A fun one is on.”

“We’ve seen that more than three times.”

“Have we?”

The movie playing on TV was one of the famous series that aired on holidays. They said there were seven parts, but no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t remember ever watching it properly from beginning to end. It was because after watching the movie for a while, one of us would fall asleep, or both of us would get hungry and leave.

“Does he die there?”

“He dies in the next part. And it’s not him, it’s another character.”

“Foreign actors all look so similar.”

“You can’t even tell Koreans apart.”

I rubbed Choi Taegyeom’s head hard as if to punish him, and he laughed, fiddling with my fingers.

The movie continued, and only the actors’ dialogue echoed throughout the house for a long time. They weren’t using particularly difficult English, so I could roughly understand the content without looking at the subtitles. So, I secretly watched Choi Taegyeom, only listening to the sound, when he intertwined his fingers with mine and spoke.

“Your face is going to wear out.”

The TV screen was reflected in his clear eyes. The changing colored lights sparkled beautifully like glass beads. Choi Taegyeom tilted the corner of his lips and reached out to cup the back of my head.

“You can watch that without subtitles, right?”

It was a question that didn’t need an answer. As soon as I opened my mouth, our soft lips met.

Looks like we won’t be watching it to the end this time either. Thinking that, I caressed Choi Taegyeom’s ear. A faintly mixed pheromone clung sweetly to the end of his breath. The movie, which had already entered its latter half, was slowly building to a climax.