Chapter Text
Regret
I
He needed people to make connections, expand his empire, secure power and maintain control.
Baekjeong had learned that when he was young.
He had also learned that people were replaceable, untrustworthy, temporary.
He understood that the hard way, when his mother vanished at the hands of his father.
So he built connections anyway.
A tangled web of individuals —useful, disposable and, ultimately, insignificant—.
Sometimes he sought them himself. Like Allen, intelligent enough to expand the empire worldwide, but foolish enough to ignore how little he actually mattered to Baekjeong.
Or Kang Inbeom, pulled straight from prison and repurposed into another place of the board, of Baekjeong's game.
Other times, life threaded people into his path on its own.
That was Yun Taegeom.
Baekjeong still remembered laughing when Allen showed him the file of who, at the time, was only one of his debtors.
Taegeom, the supposed beta, was anything but.
The deception amused him. The audacity even more.
Then they met.
And little by little, Taegeom piqued his interest.
Omega or not, he was useful, intelligent. Strong. Efficient.
A perfect asset.
All he needed was to know his place.
Baekjeong broke him quickly.
Or at least, that's what he believed at first.
Because despite all of his particularities, despite existing far outside of what people expected from omegas, Taegeom still carried one of their most identifiable instincts:
He would do anything to protect his child.
Baekjeong used that ruthlessly. He fed on Taegeom's compliance. On his fear, on the hatred burning in his eyes every time he obeyed.
Then something changed.
Quietly. Slowly.
Out of all the people orbiting his life, Taegeom became the only one who remained in his mind after leaving the room.
The one he searched for automatically, the one he turned toward first —much to Taegeom's misfortune—.
A year after meeting him, Baekjeong understood what had happened.
Possessiveness had rooted itself inside him.
Ugly. Violent. Absolute.
So he made sure to leave traces of himself on Taegeom whenever he could. Enough that those who paid attention would notice despite the scent blockers.
Baekjeong existed all over him.
Taegeom hated him.
Baekjeong knew that.
His mother had hated his father too, and she stayed anyway.
So hatred didn't matter as long as Taegeom remained.
Sometimes Baekjeong hated him too.
Hated how unbreakable he was.
Hated how he could own Taegeom's body completely and still fail to possess the rest of him.
The last few months unraveled everything.
Money started to disappear.
People started to disappear.
Control disappeared with them.
And while chasing Kim Gunwoo, Baekjeong found himself remembering things he preferred buried.
His childhood.
The hunger.
The trash-filled alleys.
The fighting.
Survival.
Remembering was dangerous.
So he grounded himself by looking at Taegeom.
“When the police raided the place where I fought Kim Gunwoo. You seemed pretty desperate to get me out of there,” he made sure to keep his tone casual while staring into the glass in his hand “Were you scared I’d get caught?”
Something buried deep inside him wanted Taegeom to say yes.
Wanted proof that he mattered beyond fear.
“What do you want me to say?” Taegeom asked in a low but barely controlled tone. “That if you burn, I burn too? Well, I do. That's the life you built for me.”
For a second, the words annoyed him, then they settled unpleasantly inside him, making him understand that Taegeom might leave the moment another path opened for him.
And he hated that thought immediately.
Later he found Taegeom with dry tears decorating his face.
That alone unsettled him.
After two years together, he had never seen the omega break like that.
“You've been crying.” He pointed out.
Taegeom apologized automatically, like he usually did.
“Sometimes I forget how sensitive omegas are,” he heard himself say, and he almost flinched at his own words, at how they didn't carry the venom they usually did. “Mina will be fine. You can pay for a better hospital if needed.”
Taegeom remained silent. Then he tried to leave, but instead, he ended up in Baekjeong's arms.
Then the mark happened.
Impulsive.
Instinctive.
He took it the same way he took everything else. Without asking. Without permission.
Only afterward, holding Taegeom’s trembling body against his own, did the realization fully settle in.
He had marked him.
They were mates now.
Or something close enough to resemble it.
That made his possessiveness escalate further.
After it happened, He saw Taegeom try to appear normal, walk through that yacht with a gauze covering the mark. Taegeom didn't notice Kang Inbeom following him with his eyes, taking a deep breath with a sharpened gaze as he realized that Yun Taegeom was not a beta. He looked like a dog who had just smelled meat.
Taegeom didn't notice, but Baekjeong did.
And he took the other alpha from the neck and pushed him until his back touched a wall.
“Don't even think about it” Baekjeong warned him. “he’s mine. I marked him.”
But the mark had been insignificant.
Only a few days later, Taegeom betrayed him.
In that van, with a smile that turned into something painful, the omega confirmed his decision of walking on a different path.
And Baekjeong thought, with bitter amusement, that maybe destiny was truly laughing at him.
Because perhaps he really would become his father after all.
He would kill his mate just like his father had.
And they fought each other in that tunnel until Baekjeong got the upper hand, until Taegeom lay at his mercy, his head against the sidewalk, vulnerable and exposed.
Baekjeong could finish him with a simple blow that would snap his head.
“Why?” He asked instead, as he held Taegeom's jaw with a hurting grip.
“I wanted… I wanted to protect my children”.
Children.
Plural.
Baekjeong stepped back immediately as the realization struck hard enough to momentarily silence even his anger.
Taegeom closed his eyes and kept quiet. Not fighting anymore. Only waiting.
Wanting to die. Believing Baekjeong would kill him.
Maybe he would have.
A few minutes earlier, he probably would have.
But Taegeom's words had made Baekjeong hesitate for the first time in years.
II
Taegeom wanted to sleep. He wanted to disappear. More than anything he wished he could erase his existence entirely and spare himself from the pain. But the world and its problems refused to wait no matter how badly he hurt.
Baekjeong had let him live.
And somehow, Taegeom didn't feel relieved.
The hospital room was crowded. He knew everyone there in one way or another, and he noticed the absences immediately.
Moon Guangmu and Min Gangyong weren't there.
Taegeom wondered if they were dead.
Instead Hong Minbeom and the cybercrimes investigator Allen had been fighting against, Kang Taeyeong, stood near the back of the room.
Beside them were Lee Woojeong, Kim Gunwoo and Hong Woojin. Their presence alone made the room feel cramped, but it was the tension between them what made the air feel suffocating.
“Mr. Yun,” Lee Woojeong said gently, his voice cutting through Taegeom's headache. “I know you're not feeling well right now, but you're the only surviving witness who can tell us what happened in that tunnel.”
Instead of answering, Taegeom studied the people in front of him. Gunwoo looked worried, though he was clearly trying to hold himself together. Woojin looked worse, eyes red and expression broken as multiple bruises covered his face, and he seemed exhausted to the bone, as though sadness and rage alone were keeping him standing.
For a moment Taegeom wondered if Baekjeong had finally succeeded in kidnapping Gunwoo's mother after all.
Beside everyone else, Hong Minbeom stood by a window in complete silence, fury radiating from him like heat from a starving wolf. A wolf that was ready to attack.
“Is it alive?” The question slipped out of Taegeom's mouth before he could stop it.
“Sorry?” Woojeong tilted his head slightly.
“The baby.” Taegeom clarified quietly.
For a moment, the detective's expression tightened, and Taegeom's stomach dropped.
“It's alive.”
Taegeom let out a shaky breath.
“We don't have time for this.”
Woojin stepped forward so suddenly he almost shoved Woojeong aside.
His red and swollen eyes looked straight at Taegeom.
He grabbed the omega's arm hard enough to make the pain spread through his bruised body.
“Listen to me,” Woojin snapped. “Speak right now. Those bastards you worked with took Gunwoo's mother, and we don't have time for your bullshit. Why didn't Baekjeong kill you? Are you still working for him?”
For just a second, Taegeom did wish Baekjeong had actually killed him.
When Woojin's grip hardened, Gunwoo stepped forward and placed a hand on the alpha's shoulder.
“Hyung, stop,” he said quietly, “you're hurting him.”
Woojin froze.
Then he let Taegeom go.
Lee Woojeong stepped back into the conversation carefully, reclaiming control before things escalated further.
“Mr. Yun,” he said slowly, visibly choosing his words with care “do you think Im Baekjeong let you live for a reason?”
Taegeom exhaled heavily. He closed his eyes for a moment before answering.
“He let the child live.”
Silence followed immediately.
Gunwoo and Woojin exchanged a look.
“He let you live because of your child?” Woojeong asked carefully.
Taegeom shook his head.
“He let me live because of his child.”
It took several seconds for the meaning of those words to settle over the room.
“Is Im Baekjeong the father?” Kang Taeyeong asked for the first time, her voice carrying a nervous tone.
Taegeom nodded tiredly and the atmosphere shifted instantly.
Everyone looked at one another with varying degrees of concern, suspicion and discomfort.
Taegeom couldn't blame them. Nothing about him looked trustworthy anymore.
“Is the mark on your neck his too?” Kang Taeyeong asked.
Another nod.
Woojin inhaled sharply.
“We never should've trusted this motherfucker.”
Woojeong immediately raised a hand, trying to calm the situation again, but Gunwoo spoke before he could.
“So…you two are a couple.”
Taegeom stiffened, then a short, bitter laugh escaped him.
“We're not a couple.”
Having to clarify it made nausea rise in his throat.
“But you're having a child.” Gunwoo replied, confusion obvious in his voice, as if the conclusion should've been simple.
“We're not a couple,” Taegeom repeated. Then he paused, making himself continue despite the humiliation curling beneath his skin. "He’s been forcing me to sleep with him for years.”
The room fell silent.
And Taegeom realized, with strange detachment, that it was the first time he had ever said it aloud.
Sleep with him.
He knew there was a proper word for it.
He still couldn't bring himself to say it.
“But… the mark…” Gunwoo started quietly, only for the rest of the sentence to die in his throat as understanding crossed his face.
The others understood too.
Some looked uncomfortable, others sympathetic, but the pity in their expressions was the worst part.
“Was the mark consensual?” Woojeong asked softly, even though it was obvious he already knew the answer.
“No.” Silence stretched again and Taegeom lowered his eyes. “I'm sorry I'm not being more useful.”
Not long afterward, the room emptied once more, leaving him alone with his thoughts.
Alone with his memories.
With the past.
With the present.
With his mistakes.
And with the uncertainty waiting for him beyond all of it.
III
His mother's eyes were warm, though the warmth was drowned beneath layers of worry.
Mina lay on the floor of the hospital room despite Taegeom's protests, quietly coloring inside a book with complete focus.
Taegeom had hugged her tightly the moment she arrived, suddenly aware that he had no way of knowing when —or if— he would be allowed to hold her again.
She had smiled at him brightly, showering him with the sweet, thoughtless affection only children were capable of.
And Taegeom had cried as he turned his face away from his mother in shame.
For a moment, he felt guilty for her too. For staining her honor. For forcing her to hide because of him. For leaving Mina in her care while he destroyed everything around them.
Eventually, the visit came to an end. A police officer guarding the room informed then curtly that visiting hours were over.
Taegeom watched them leave while grief settled heavily inside his chest.
He wondered what prison would be like. Whether they would let Mina visit him. Whether she would still want to.
The room suddenly felt freezing and suffocating at the same time.
The air vanished from his lungs.
Taegeom tried to take a deep breath, but pain bloomed sharply through his chest before he could. His knees hit the floor moments later as a burning sensation spread violently through his body.
For one terrifying instant, he felt completely disconnected from himself as he vaguely noticed the guard calling for a doctor.
A few minutes later, medical staff flooded the room along Lee Woojeong, who, at that point, had become a constant presence in Taegeom's life.
His breath turned erratic, and it took a mild sedative to finally call him down.
For a moment, Taegeom wondered if he was dying.
Part of him wished he was.
While the nurses adjusted the IV attached to his arm, Taegeom noticed the doctor speaking quietly to Woojeong before approaching him directly.
The interaction made something bitter twist inside him.
Patient confidentiality no longer existed for him.
He was a prisoner first and a person second. Anything regarding him would pass through the police before it reached himself.
Still, internally, he was grateful that Lee Woojeong seemed decent enough not to abuse that power.
Taegeom hated how vulnerable that realization made him feel.
“Mr. Yun,” the doctor began carefully, “you're no longer in danger. What you just experienced are residual symptoms related to mate-seeking syndrome.”
Taegeom frowned immediately.
Residual symptoms.
Mate-seeking syndrome.
It took only a second for his exhausted mind to connect the pieces together.
The symptoms weren't his.
They were Baekjeong's.
“The mark on your neck was placed recently, correct?” the doctor asked, though it was obvious she already knew the answer.
Taegeom nodded slowly.
“What you're experiencing is only a minor reflection of the new bond formed with an alpha,” she explained with a small professional smile. “It seems he's suffering the more severe side of the connection.”
Taegeom didn't know how to feel about that.
Was Baekjeong truly suffering?
That was hard to imagine.
And if he was, what exactly was Taegeom supposed to feel in response?
His thoughts tangled together into something impossible to separate.
The first thing he remembered was Baekjeong's voice that day on the van:
So you'll stay with me for a long time.
The mark had been meant to bind Taegeom permanently to him.
And somehow, the bond was hurting Baekjeong more instead.
Still, Taegeom couldn't find satisfaction in that realization.
After years of submission, the idea that Baekjeong's instincts could somehow revolve around him felt deeply confusing instead of empowering.
“Detective Lee gave me a general explanation of the situation,” the doctor continued, interrupting his thoughts “I understand the situation is… delicate. So I strongly advise caution moving forward.”
The implication beneath her voice was impossible to miss.
“Is Im Baekjeong's health in danger?” Woojeong asked immediately.
Taegeom saw the detective's expression sharpen with quiet concentration.
“Not necessarily physically,” the doctor replied. “But psychologically, yes. Alpha's suffering from mate-seeking syndrome can become dangerous both to themselves and to others.”
Taegeom swallowed.
Baekjeong was already violent enough.
The thought of him becoming even worse made unease crawl beneath his skin.
“It usually begins with restlessness,” the doctor continued “then escalates into aggression due to hormonal imbalance caused by separation from the omega.”
“Is it permanent?” He dared to ask. Her gaze shifted briefly toward Taegeom.
“Sometimes it isn't. Sometimes it is. It’s hard to tell. Every bond is different.” she formed a tight line with her mouth for a moment. “Some of the emotional instability may reflect onto you as well. It will likely be uncomfortable but manageable as long as you remain somewhere calm and safe.”
Taegeom almost laughed at that.
Safe.
The word barely felt real anymore.
Once the doctor left, silence settled between him and Woojeong.
Then the detective spoke.
“Mr. Yun,” he began carefully, “tomorrow we're moving you to the hotel where Gunwoo and Woojin are staying. I think it would be best if we all talked once you're settled there.”
Sometimes, Lee Woojeong’s tone struck him as strangely absurd.
The detective spoke to him as if he were offering advice. Sometimes even as if he were asking for Taegeom's agreement.
But reality remained the same.
Taegeom was still just a pawn trapped inside someone else's game.
IV
He felt nauseous as people entered the conference room, and the metallic taste in his mouth intensified as Hong Minbeom stared down at him as if he were an insect.
Taegeom held his gaze anyway, his face impassive even as shame twisted inside him.
Woojin, Gunwoo, Taeyeong and Woojeong were there too and Taegeom clung to the latter’s presence like a lifeline.
He felt like prey in a wolf's den.
At first, he wasn't entirely sure why they needed him there.
Then Minbeom spoke.
“Tell me how to contact Lee Manbae.” His tone was harsh. Unforgiving.
Taegeom dragged his tongue across his teeth before answering. Years beside Baekjeong had taught him how to endure hostility.
“He has several phone numbers. You’ll have to call all of them and see which one works.”
He watched the others get to work under palpable tension. Taegeom remained silent, speaking only when addressed directly, and as more unsuccessful calls piled up, his anxiety worsened.
All the while, he could feel Woojin’s accusatory stare fixed on him, as though the alpha were still weighing Taegeom's loyalties.
He didn’t blame him, but that didn’t make it any less unnerving.
Then, on the final call, Lee Manbae's voice cut through the room.
“Who’s this?”
“It’s Hong Minbeom. Put Im Baekjeong through.”
Minbeom’s voice left no room for refusal.
Taegeom’s heartbeat quickened involuntary when he heard Baekjeong’s voice.
He felt Gunwoo glance at him.
“Let’s have a two-on-two fight. Gunwoo and Woojin against Kang Inbeom and you.”
The proposal immediately sent a chill down Taegeom’s spine.
Did they know Baekjeong was experiencing mate-seeking syndrome? They had to.
Lee Woojeong wouldn’t hide information like that.
Fighting Baekjeong under normal circumstances was dangerous enough.
“Why would I?” Baekjeong's voice sounded calm, but Taegeom knew better.
His words carried restrained fury.
“We'll bet 100 billion won each. The winner will take it all.”
Then all of them heard it.
The sound of struggling.
Gunwoo's mother's crying out as Baekjeong manhandled her.
The threats in his voice made Taegeom's stomach twist. He knew those threats weren't empty.
But Hong Minbeom didn't back down. Instead, his voice sharpened to match Baekjeong’s anger.
Somewhere in the middle of the confrontation, Manbae intervened. He tried to calm Baekjeong down, though the commotion made most of his words impossible to understand.
Only one thing became clear.
Taegeom's name had been mentioned.
Then the call disconnected, leaving silence behind.
Woojin and Gunwoo both looked shaken now, fear and helplessness bleeding into their expressions. Woojin looked especially affected because he had been the one who failed to protect Gunwoo's mother.
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Then Minbeom’s phone buzzed against the table.
“President Hong Minbeom,” Manbae said, "please excuse me for this, but whether you meant to or not, if you get Im Baekjeong worked up like that, he'll do serious damage. Especially now that Yun Taegeom isn't beside him.”
Taegeom's shoulders tensed as every eye in the room landed on him.
“He's a loose cannon,” Manbae continued after a pause. Silence thickened. “is Taegeom with you?”
Hong Minbeom looked toward Woojeong instead of answering immediately.
Woojeong hesitated for only a second before nodding.
Taegeom's jaw tightened.
He had no say in any of this.
People passed him around like currency.
“Yes,” Minbeom answered “He's under our custody right now.”
“Good. Here's what I can do for you, and I hope you'll accept it. Think it through. We won't put any money down. Instead, Kim Gunwoo's mom will be escorted near the venue.” Taegeom knew that tone. The tone Manbae used when he was making business. “If we lose, we’ll release her. But if we win, we'll take the entire pot and leave on a private jet. Once we've safely arrived at our destination, we'll release her. Do you understand?”
“Yes.”
“And one more thing.”
There was a pause.
“Bring Yun Taegeom with you.”
Woojin was the first one to break the silence afterward, letting out a long sigh.
Kim Gunwoo looked toward Taegeom with visible conflict in his eyes. As though he still couldn't reconcile the contradiction of Taegeom being both perpetrator and victim.
“Why does he want Taegeom there?” Gunwoo asked quietly.
Minbeom shrugged before glancing directly at Taegeom.
“He might want to drag him back to Thailand with him,” he said. Then he smiled coldly. “Or he might want to kill him.”
“Mr. Yun…” Woojeong started gently, placing a hand on his shoulder.
Taegeom interrupted him.
“It's okay.” He said softly. He was suddenly feeling exhausted. “I'll go.”
He wasn't entirely sure why he agreed so easily. There was never certainty where Baekjeong was concerned.
But if his presence increased the chances of getting Gunwoo's mother back safely, then he would do it.
Not necessarily for Gunwoo.
But because it would take more than a lifetime to atone for everything he had done.
V
As the symptoms increased, he remembered his late wife's pregnancy.
The nausea.
The constant exhaustion.
The overstimulated bladder.
He was experiencing it all now, just as she once had.
The difference was that when she suffered through it, Taegeom had been there to hold her hand.
He was going through it alone.
The ten days Manbae requested passed in a strange blur filled with frantic movement and planning. Of course, Taegeom wasn't included in everything. No matter what happened, they would always be wary of him. Still, they told him enough for him to understand something clearly:
He would be there to watch the fight.
Despite the discomfort weighing down his body, he woke up that morning with sharpened senses, ready once again for violence, though deep down he wished it wouldn't come to that.
He stared at his reflection in the mirror for a long moment. His stomach was still flat, but the firmness there had already begun to soften.
A bittersweet smile caressed his face before someone informed him it was time to leave.
Gunwoo, Woojin, Minbeom and Taegeom rode the car in silence until Taegeom broke it himself.
“Mina likes you very much,” he said quietly looking at Woojin through the rearview mirror. “She told me you let her put stickers on you.”
Woojin frowned, visibly caught off guard by the sudden conversation.
Taegeom swallowed his shame before continuing, this time glancing toward Gunwoo as well “If I…” his voice faltered slightly. “If I die can you make sure Mina and my mother are taken care of?”
He had no right to ask that of them.
Still, he did.
Gunwoo looked directly at him, fire burning behind his eyes.
“No one’s dying today.”
Silence returned after that.
Nobody spoke again until they arrived.
Lee Manbae and Allen received them at the venue. Taegeom immediately felt their eyes settle on him while Minbeom handed over the money.
Manbae wore his usual smirk, but Allen looked different.
Angry at him.
Hurt.
Taegeom ignored both of them, silently grateful neither attempted to speak to him.
As they walked toward the arena, Taegeom could practically feel things moving beneath the surface.
Both sides had plans.
Hidden intentions.
And Taegeom still wasn't entirely sure what his own role in all of this was supposed to be.
The cage stood waiting in the middle of the room.
Beside it rested the metal covers meant for Gunwoo and Woojin's knuckles.
He watched the two men exchange a silent nod before wrapping their hands.
Finally, they were willing to fight dirty too.
Taegeom felt a brief flicker of relief. There was no other way of surviving Baekjeong.
“Taegeom.”
His relief vanished immediately.
That voice.
“Come here.” Baekjeong ordered.
Taegeom turned slowly, trying to suppress his anxiety before remembering how useless that was now.
The bond between them was too new.
Too raw.
They could feel each other. Especially this close.
Their eyes locked, and time seemed to stall for a moment.
Taegeom swallowed hard. Not because of fear or hatred, but because of the grief suddenly tightening inside his chest.
He blinked away the tears tightening to surface.
“Come here.” Baekjeong repeated, extending a hand toward him.
The gesture itself seemed almost gentle.
But Taegeom knew better.
Through the bond, he could feel it clearly:
The anger.
The desperation.
The violent instability simmering beneath the surface.
From the corner of his eye, he noticed Woojin step forward until he stood beside Taegeom.
“Whatever you need to say to him,” Woojin said coldly, “you can say it in front of us.”
Taegeom barely had time to process the statement. Perhaps Woojin had finally accepted that the enemy of his enemy could be useful.
Baekjeong snorted dismissively.
“Did you actually say goodbye to Mina this time?” He asked, looking at Taegeom.
The omega frowned, confused.
Baekjeong raised an eyebrow.
“Didn't president Hong tell you?” he asked casually. “If I win-” he paused. Then corrected himself. “When I win, you're coming back to Thailand with me. That was part of the deal.”
Taegeom immediately looked toward Minbeom.
Gunwoo and Woojin did the same, confused.
Minbeom merely shrugged, indifferent.
Taegeom understood instantly.
Minbeom had sold him.
Silence stretched between them.
Then Baekjeong turned and walked away.
A few moments later, he returned prepared for the fight.
Taegeom walked to stay beside Minbeom while Gunwoo and Woojin spoke to each other.
He resisted the overwhelming urge to say something.
To protest.
To remind Minbeom that he was not property.
But he remained silent.
To Baekjeong's visible surprise, Woojin entered the cage first.
Taegeom recognized immediately how uneven the match was.
Woojin was skilled, but Baekjeong existed on another level entirely.
Still, Woojin endured.
He taunted him. Provoked him. Kept getting back up.
And eventually he managed to land a brutal strike near Baekjeong’s temple, splitting his eyebrow open. Blood streamed down the alpha’s face.
And Taegeom felt everything.
The rage.
The restlessness.
The hostility.
Even the disgust curling beneath Baekjeong’s skin.
He inhaled slowly once the first match ended.
Then Gunwoo entered the cage against Kang Inbeom while a doctor worked quickly to stop the bleeding on Baekjeong’s face.
Even then, Baekjeong kept staring at him.
Relentlessly.
For one reckless moment, Taegeom looked back.
Not with hatred.
With pleading.
And he saw it.
A brief flicker of hesitation crossing Baekjeong’s expression before disappearing just as quickly.
Gunwoo defeated Kang Inbeom fast, the large alpha’s strength rendered useless against Gunwoo’s precision and determination.
Then, in the blink of an eye, Taegeom found himself watching Gunwoo fight the man who had ruined him.
Gunwoo ignored the injuries from the previous match entirely, throwing himself at Baekjeong without hesitation. And once again, Taegeom wished he had resisted years ago the way Gunwoo was resisting now.
Woojin and Hong Minbeom watched intently, tension easing each time Gunwoo landed a clean hit or managed to slow Baekjeong down.
Allen watched from the opposite side with his usual smile, visibly pleased whenever Baekjeong hurt Gunwoo.
Taegeom remained silent. Because every punch Baekjeong received echoed inside his own body moments later.
At first, it was manageable.
Then the bond worsened. His pulse became uneven. Heat spread beneath his skin and the pain stopped feeling distant.
He folded sharply, fingers pressing against his ribs as nausea climbed his throat.
Still, he stayed quiet.
Then Gunwoo struck Baekjeong across the jaw hard enough to snap his head sideways, making something inside Taegeom break with it.
A strangled sound tore from his throat as he collapsed to his knees.
The sound grew louder, more urgent. And it took Taegeom a moment to understand he was the one making it.
Amidst the fight, Baekjeong turned instinctively toward the sound.
For one brief second, their eyes met.
Taegeom saw it immediately.
Alarm.
That single moment of distraction was enough.
Gunwoo’s final strike sent Baekjeong crashing unconscious to the floor.
Gunwoo had won.
It took Taegeom several minutes to steady himself again. Around him, chaos unfolded rapidly.
Gunwoo ran toward Woojin.
Police officers stormed the building.
Allen was dragged away in handcuffs.
Kang Inbeom was carried out unconscious.
Taegeom barely registered any of it.
Instead, he walked toward Baekjeong. Slowly. Unsteadily.
The alpha was beginning to regain consciousness by the time Taegeom sat beside him.
In only a few more moments, he would be arrested.
For real this time.
“Baekjeong.” The name left Taegeom’s mouth naturally.
No honorifics.
No formalities.
Just man to man.
Omega to alpha.
Baekjeong’s eyes shifted toward him slowly.
“Taegeom.”
His voice sounded rough. Painfully uncertain for the first time since they had met.
Taegeom swallowed before speaking.
“I’m not forgetting anything,” he said quietly. “And I’m not forgiving you. I never will.”
Baekjeong remained silent. “But if you ever learn how to become a better person…” Taegeom continued, forcing the words through the ache tightening his throat, “if you ever learn how to care about someone without destroying them…”
He stood up slowly.
“Then come see you child someday.”
Baekjeong’s breathing became uneven. Taegeom looked down at him one final time.
“Only when you learn how to be a better man.”
For a moment, Baekjeong looked incapable of moving.
Incapable of speaking.
Then the police reached him.
As officers forced handcuffs onto the alpha’s wrists, Taegeom felt it through the bond:
Sorrow.
Regret.
Not his own.
Baekjeong’s.
Taegeom turned away before the dragged him out.
Outside, Gunwoo’s mother had finally been reunited with Gunwoo and Woojin.
Lee Woojeong stood nearby, quietly giving the family space before approaching Taegeom instead.
“Are you okay?” the detective asked softly.
Taegeom nodded automatically.
Then, after a pause:
“Are you?”
Woojeong smiled faintly and nodded back.
“I’ve been thinking,” he admitted. “And I still need to discuss it with my team but… I think you might have more options than you realize, Mr. Yun.”
Taegeom frowned.
“What do you mean?”
“There’s no way to avoid a trial,” Woojeong said honestly. “But considering everything you know about this world… it would be a waste not to use that knowledge.”
Taegeom stared at him silently, and Woojeong took a breath before continuing.
“I’m planning to propose domiciliary arrest instead of prison time.”
That made Taegeom stiffen slightly.
“You’d wear an ankle monitor,” Woojeong explained. “You’d still have mandatory community service and regular supervision. But you’d remain relatively free as long as you cooperate with the police.”
Silence stretched between them. This time, Taegeom couldn't stop the tears slipping quietly down his face.
“You’ll need to find me a very good lawyer then.” he muttered weakly.
Woojeong nodded.
“People won’t forgive you easily,” he admitted. “But maybe we can start somewhere.”
Taegeom exhaled shakily.
And while watching Gunwoo, Woojin and Gunwoo’s mother hold each other close, he realized something for the first time in years.
He was finally getting his life back.
A small, selfish part of him made one final wish. One he would never admit aloud.
He hoped Baekjeong would someday find a way too.
Epilogue
He traced a finger across the scar on his abdomen. Then he let the fabric of his shirt fall back into place and turned to watch his children sleeping peacefully.
His mother was asleep in the other room too.
Taegeom walked slowly through the house until he reached the kitchen. He poured himself a glass of water and leaned against the counter as he thought about his life.
Many things had changed.
Almost a year ago, after that conversation with Woojeong, Baekjeong had been taken away.
He vanished.
Taegeom had hated the smug expression on Hong Minbeom’s face afterward. Deep down, he knew that the man had something to do with it.
Eventually, rumors spread.
Rumors that Im Baekjeong was dead.
But Taegeom knew better.
“He’s not dead, President Hong,” He had told him once. “I would’ve felt it if he was.”
Still, that didn’t change the fact that Baekjeong was nowhere to be found.
That he stopped feeling the alpha’s emotions as the distance between them widened.
Months passed.
Taegeom continued working with the police while his trial progressed slowly through the courts. It was exhausting, but he would not trade his current life for anything.
Even with the ankle monitor attached to him. Even with the weight of everything he had done.
He was with his family again.
He could breathe. He could exist as himself.
One day, Woojeong arrived with a new assignment.
Find Im Baekjeong.
And Taegeom helped.
But the search remained fruitless.
He took another sip of water when a nearly imperceptible sound reached his ears.
His body reacted instantly.
He placed the glass down and reached for a knife instead.
At the same time, a familiar sensation settled heavily inside his chest.
No.
It couldn’t be.
Taegeom moved silently toward the front door.
Then a shadow appeared outside.
His grip tightened around the knife as his eyes adjusted to the darkness and the figure slowly became recognizable.
He stepped back in shock.
Baekjeong.
The alpha slowly raised both hands, showing his empty palms.
“It’s okay,” he said quietly. “I’m not here to hurt you.”
Taegeom stared at him.
His hair was longer now, but apart from that, he looked almost the same.
“What are you doing here?”
He didn’t lower the knife, but something deep inside him told him Baekjeong was speaking honestly.
“You told me to find a way back.” The words stole Taegeom’s breath for a second. “You already had the baby.” Baekjeong muttered.
Taegeom nodded slowly.
His mind raced through the possibilities, through dangers, through every instinct telling him to shut the door.
Instead, after several long seconds, he inhaled deeply.
“Wait here.”
The first sign that Baekjeong truly meant no harm was that he obeyed immediately.
He stayed exactly where he was while Taegeom disappeared inside the house.
When he returned, he carried a sleeping child carefully in his arms.
Taegeom turned on a small lamp near the entrance.
“If you try anything," he warned quietly, “you’ll regret it.”
Baekjeong nodded once.
Then Taegeom stepped closer.
And through the dim light, he saw Baekjeong’s expression soften as he looked down at the baby.
“A girl?” he asked softly.
Taegeom nodded again.
“Mina’s happy,” he murmured. “She says now she has someone to do girl stuff with.”
It felt strange.
Talking normally. Talking without violence, without business, without blood or betrayal hanging over every sentence.
“She’s beautiful,” Baekjeong said.
Carefully, almost hesitantly, he touched the baby’s cheek with one finger.
The child frowned slightly in her sleep but didn’t wake.
“Her name is Haeun.”
Baekjeong smiled then.
Not the cruel smile Taegeom knew so well. Not sarcasm or mockery.
A real smile.
A buzzing sound suddenly cut through the quiet.
Baekjeong glanced down at the phone inside his pocket.
“I have to go back,” he said.
Then he turned and started walking away.
This time, Taegeom stepped forward first.
Questions crowded his mind. Where had Baekjeong been? What had happened after he disappeared? Why come back now?
But in the end, he only said one thing.
“I’m supposed to report you if I see you.”
Baekjeong paused and looked back over his shoulder.
“Don’t tell them yet,” he said quietly. “Give me time.”
His gaze lingered on Taegeom and the child one last moment.
“I’ll come back on my own.”
Then Taegeom watched him disappear into the night.