Unscented Trajectory - Chapter 69

Episode 69:

 

The face of Lee Joohyuk, who was standing precariously with a face as tough as Soohyun, came to mind. He was a man who gave his heart to whatever he ripped when he ripped it. Because Soohyun alone made him remember everything. And even though he was by his side to keep the covenant, he caused him all sorts of injuries, so he felt like he was trying to accept all the pain sweetly.

 

Junwoo still hated Joohyuk. Even now, he often thinks that it would have been better if Soohyun had not met him.

 

He was a selfish man who only knew himself at his own pace, and that was the case even while Soohyun was by his side. Over the course of a year, he handled Soohyun harshly, so much that it was hard to put into words.

 

Nevertheless, he was still Soohyun’s mate. Even Soohyun, who was struggling to erase his traces, would know. The love that has been cherished for a long time without breaking even for a moment was not something that can be cut off easily.

 

Just bite him.

 

A cold voice echoed in his head.

 

Engrave. Only then can it be completely yours.

 

As the voice said, he can change the mate through engraving. If he bit Soohyun’s neck, from that moment on, he will be his partner, not Joohyuk.

 

“Please take good care of Soohyun.”

 

When he met Lee Joohyuk at the hospital, he clearly knew that Soohyun was having a baby. Thinking it was Junwoo’s child, he managed to speak with a face that looked like he was about to collapse at any moment. Saying goodbye to Soohyun.

 

It wasn’t the Joohyuk that Junwoo knew. If it was the Lee Joohyuk he knew, he might have pushed Soohyun over whose child it was, and he could have shown extreme hostility to him.

 

Lee Joohyuk that day was very different from the past.

 

He asked if heI was confident that he would not regret it.

 

He knew how much Joohyuk had missed Soohyun while visiting the ossuary. He was a person who only looked for Soohyun to the point that he lost his memory and lost his mind.

 

Such a person completely suppressed the instinct and hostility as an Alpha. Because of the fact that he was the one who will stand by his Omega.

 

“… I am used to it.”

 

Like someone who has constantly regretted for 17 years.

 

Junwoo was also hiding his resentment against Joohyuk, but he lived with many regrets for not being able to protect Soohyun at the time of the incident.

 

The two looked alike.

 

Not only did he spend a time full of regrets, but even though he had another alpha’s child, he loved Soohyun unwaveringly.

 

Maybe that’s why he developed compassion.

 

Knowing everything about Joohyuk, he wanted to give Soohyun a choice. Soohyun, who stood upright after shaking, had to make a fair choice.

 

Will he erase all the past and move forward like now, or will he look back on the difficult past and hold the hand of Lee Joohyuk?

 

If he chose the former, he was thinking of imprinting him. No matter how many days, months, or years it may take, he will persuade him constantly.

 

But if he chooses the latter, there is only one thing for Junwoo to do.

 

* * *

 

Seohwan arrived about 20 minutes after Soohyun and Lee Jungho’s interview started.

 

Junwoo, who was in the hallway leading to the president’s room, recognized Seohwan and bowed deeply to him.

 

“You came… … .”

 

“Kang Junwoo, are you crazy?”

 

Seohwan, who cut off Junwoo’s words before he could even finish his words, approached with a frown on his eyes. Although it was a pheromone that was rough enough to bring attention to any alpha, Junwoo did not change his expression.

 

“I told him to bring out Lee Jungho, but I didn’t tell him to let him meet Soohyun alone.”

 

“I know. I’m sorry.”

 

Seohwan, who looked at Junwoo’s calm face, gave an order to him with a cold face.

 

“Go and get Lee Jungho right now.”

 

Even though he heard clearly, Junwoo did not move.

 

“What are you doing? Please bring Lee Jungho out.”

 

Even though he said it again, Junwoo didn’t react and kept his eyes down.

 

“Kang Junwoo, don’t make me say it too many times.”

 

“I’m sorry.”

 

Seohwan’s face was horribly contorted. He shoved Junwoo’s shoulder and headed directly to the president’s room. However, it didn’t take long and he was again blocked by Junwoo.

 

Seohwan smiled as if exasperated at Junwoo’s rebellion, which he had never seen before.

 

“What are we going to do now?”

 

“Please wait a little longer.”

 

“Are you doing this knowing what Lee Jungho will say to Soohyun? It wouldn’t be good for you either.”

 

Seohwan suppressed his anger and swallowed it.

 

Lee Jungho ignored his own warning and decided to look for Soohyun. In other words, it is to bring up the past. In the process, it was almost inevitable that the story of Joohyuk’s mental illness and the ossuary would come out.

 

If it was Junwoo who knew the contents, wouldn’t he have to stop Lee Jungho even more? If the misunderstandings about Soohyun about Joohyuk were cleared up, it will shake things up a lot.

 

Even so, Junwoo stopped Seohwan. As if Soohyun wanted to hear everything from Lee Jungho.

 

“Get out of here now.”

 

“You can’t get him out.”

 

Junwoo was adamant. As Seohwan, he still didn’t understand.

 

At that moment, he heard the door open at the end of the hallway. The eyes of the two men turned to it at the same time.

 

The one who opened the door and came out was Lee Jungho, exhausted as if he had come out of hard work. He staggered for a moment and was walking slowly with his hand on the hallway wall.

 

Lee Jungho raised his head and made a surprised face. Then, soon made a determined face.

 

Seohwan quickly approached Lee Jungho. This time, even Junwoo did not stop him.

 

“How much did you say?”

 

A low voice that suppressed his anger rang out fiercely. Lee Jungho answered calmly with his eyes closed.

 

“… Everything.”

 

Abusive words in English flowed from Seohwan’s teeth. He passed Lee Jungho and went straight into the president’s room.

 

Junwoo, who contacted the secretary’s office and asked to see off Chairman Lee Jungho, also went to the president’s office. His legs felt heavy and creaky, but he walked nonetheless.

 

As he got to the front of the president’s room, he heard Soohyun’s voice.

 

“Not only did my father know everything, but he was directly involved.”

 

It was a different voice than usual.

 

He looked at Soohyun’s face through the half-open door. Again, he was only expressionless, showing no emotion. So he was more worried.

 

Seohwan was holding Soohyun’s hand and had a troubled face.

 

“Soohyun-ah, what happened back then… … !”

 

“Father.”

 

Soohyun resolutely pulled out the hand held by Seohwan.

 

“I want you to give me some time to think.”

 

“Soohyun-ah… .”

 

“It will take a while. For a moment… … .”

 

Soohyun’s eyes sank deeply. Seohwan, who was looking at him, bit his lower lip and raised his eyebrows.

 

He stretched out his arms and gently took Soohyun in her arms. Fortunately, he didn’t push him away. Perhaps that was comforting, Seohwan immediately left the president’s room without a word.

 

Soohyun said while holding Junwoo’s arm, who was standing by the door.

 

“I have a place to go.”

 

His voice was quite calm, but his hands were trembling.

 

* * *

 

‘What’s going on here, damn it.’

 

Haejun hurriedly drove the car with a stiff face.

 

“It’s been a while, Lee Haejun.”

 

An unexpected phone call took him by surprise.

 

Soohyun, who called first, said that he was heading to the Paju Ossuary. It was the place that Ahn Seohee managed, and it was a building under the corporation foundation, now represented by Haejun. In addition, it was the place where Joohyuk’s mother, Park Hyein, and the ashes that were thought to be his dead mate were enshrined.

 

Soohyun told him to come alone without telling anyone. Perhaps when he said ‘don’t tell anyone’, he was obviously referring to Joohyuk.

 

‘Why are you here now? … .’

 

He didn’t know how he became interested in the ossuary, but he had a history of his own corruption that he had no choice but to hold hands with them half-forcibly, so he couldn’t just ignore it.

 

Haejun, who arrived at the ossuary in Paju with a sad face, was able to find Soohyun soon. He looked up at the ossuary building, deep in thought.

 

Haejun saw Soohyun and felt his legs stop.

 

It was a strange feeling.

 

He once saw Soohyun, who unexpectedly appeared as the chairman of the Muyeol group, from a distance. Even if he didn’t want to see his face, he made a lot of noise in the media and even appeared on various social media sites.

 

It was a completely different presence from when he was standing next to Joohyuk as ‘Kwon Yihyeon’. He had a striking appearance, but apart from that, the atmosphere was different. It wasn’t of a young president who suddenly popped out one day, but had the dignity of being able to lead many people for a long time skillfully. It’s hard to wonder how they’ve been hiding it so far.

 

But today something was different. It wasn’t the feeling of the strong and intimidating Muyeol group president who didn’t think a single needle would fit in.

 

Calm but somehow precarious. It was like the last appearance of ‘Kwon Yihyeon’ that Haejun saw.

 

As he got closer, a man named Kang Junwoo, who was standing behind Soohyun, recognized him first. As he got closer, the alpha pheromone that could not be ignored emanating from him seemed to envelop his neck in a menacing way.

 

Soohyun turned his head and met Haejun’s gaze. As soon as he saw his black eyes, which he couldn’t understand, he seemed to feel frustrated for some reason. So, without realizing it, he threw it out.

 

“You’ve changed so much that I almost didn’t recognize you.”

 

It was a bit of sarcasm, but Soohyun didn’t feel bad. He, who was still looking at Haejun with an expressionless face, threw his gaze at the ossuary again.

 

As Haejun knew, it was not the first time Soohyun had been to this ossuary. He knew that there were several times when Ahn Seohee was in charge of managing it, and Joohyuk followed him in front of it.

 

Since 17 years ago, Joohyuk has been visiting the ossuary every month without skipping a beat. It was the same with Soohyun as Kwon Yihyeon, and he too stood outside the building like the rest of the bodyguards.

 

As rumored, he would have known that he was meeting his mother, Park Hyein. Joohyuk himself wanted to look like that, so he was very careful about security and rumors, so it was clear that even Soohyun would not have been able to look deep inside.

 

Only the family knew about the secret of the ossuary. And none of them like to see secrets leaked. It was a secret that was kept that way, and it is still the same today.

 

But he didn’t know why, Soohyun seemed to know everything.

 

A dry tone flowed from between Soohyun’s lips.

 

“I have a request for you, Lee Haejun.”

 

“It’s amazing that you have something to ask of me.”

 

He spoke in a shrill voice.

 

As Haejun, he couldn’t see Soohyun well. Recently, there had been talk of Joohyuk’s dismissal as the chairman because he stole all the good collaborations of the Shinwoo group. It seemed that Joohyuk had expected it and wanted it to happen, but Haejun was not convinced.

 

There was a reason Haejun didn’t like him, even if the business part was left out. Right after Soohyun disappeared from the penthouse, Joohyuk became more and more exhausted day by day. Now he didn’t have enough, and he seemed like a man trying to embrace all the pain alone.

 

He became a person who did not say that it hurts even if it hurts, and just kept saying it was okay to a difficult subject. Even as he said that, he would always think of someone with vague eyes. It was as if he had to do the same.

 

Haejun didn’t know exactly what happened to Joohyuk and Soohyun in the past. All he knew is that Joohyuk had a mate who died while saving him when he was young, and they loved each other enough to make a covenant. Joohyuk had managed to survive to protect the ashes of his dead partner.

 

From a young age, he was often betrayed or taken away by Ahn Seohee and Lee Sihoon. Because of that, he thought it would be foolish to trust someone without payment, and it was the same for Haejun.

 

The only thing that Joohyuk was hanging on was his dead partner. Very occasionally, when talking about his dead partner, he often showed infinitely warm and sad eyes, unlike his usual selfish and cold appearance. Those eyes were still there.

 

He was worried because he clearly knew who he was thinking about. Soohyun must have felt the same way as he stayed with him to protect Joohyuk, but it was frustrating why they had to be so twisted.

 

‘If you’re thinking of ending it, don’t feel sorry, just finish it.’

 

That was better. If he’s pushing Joohyuk to cut him off completely, he hoped that he would do it without looking back. He had no doubts that Soohyun also had a strong heart to do that.

 

He shouldn’t have come to the ossuary like this.

 

“I want to see the mortuary that Lee Joohyuk comes to.”

 

There shouldn’t have been any questions about the mortuary where Joohyuk entered.

 

“I want to see for myself the ashes of his dead mate.”

 

There should have been no knowledge of the existence of the ossuary.

 

Haejun didn’t answer hastily and just looked at Soohyun. As if waiting for an answer, he kept his mouth shut and still looked at the ossuary.

 

He didn’t know how he knew about the mortuary of the ossuary, but one thing was certain.

 

Soohyun knew everything.

 

“… It’s a place no one can enter except my brother.”

 

“What Lee Joohyuk wanted to meet wasn’t the ashes of the person he didn’t know, but me.”

 

Soohyun’s head tilted and a different emotion passed through his black eyes in an instant.

 

“Who the mortuary is for, doesn’t Lee Haejun know well?”

 

He couldn’t say anything. Rather than being unable to refute Soohyun’s words, for some reason, Joohyuk’s appearance seemed to flicker to him, so he couldn’t keep his mouth shut.

 

He knew it couldn’t. If Joohyuk finds out, he may think about why he did something useless, and he may express disappointment that he has never seen before to Haejun.

 

However, Haejun headed towards the entrance of the ossuary and told Soohyun to follow him. It would be irreversible, but he just hoped that this would cut through the wall between the two of them a little bit.

 

Soohyun, standing in front of the VIP private memorial hall, looked tat he nameplate.

 

A blank plaque with no name written on it.

 

Joohyuk, who forgot his partner’s name, could not write anything on the nameplate. Even nicknames.

 

Haejun pressed his index finger on the fingerprint recognition device. Originally, only Joohyuk could open it, but after entrusting Haejun to manage the ossuary and this mortuary, he too was able to enter.

 

There was the sound of the lock being released with a small mechanical sound. Haejun opened the door and turned to the side, looking at Soohyun.

 

He saw the appearance of the mortuary in front of him and slowly walked into it, step by step.

 

The first thing he saw was the ossuary, which was enshrined in the front. There were countless things in the tall glass cupboards around it. Undying artificial flowers, dolls, various accessories, and more.

 

Soohyun, who was looking around at the things that were obviously for small children, walked in front of the bloody clothes, which he thought was a bit reluctant to put them in the morgue. It was the only thing that was dirty among many things.

 

A bloody white shirt, black trousers, a black jacket, and worn sneakers that were clearly a child’s.

 

It was clear that it was Soohyun’s clothes and shoes he was wearing at the time of the incident.

 

Until the moment he saw it, Soohyun didn’t waver. Rather, he looked so dignified that Haejun was surprised.

 

“… Could you please leave me alone for a moment?”

 

To Soohyun’s words, Junwoo replied that he would leave right away. He glanced around the inside of the ossuary with a complicated face and closed the door directly.

 

In the mortuary, where there was a chill, only Soohyun was left.

 

Soohyun, who was now alone, lifted his head and focused on each object.

 

‘The flower I wanted to see, the doll he said looked like me, the necklace made from my birthstone, the watch he was going to give as a gift on the day I became an adult… … .’

 

Even though it was the first time he saw the objects, the feeling that they were for him came to me.

 

Was this even an instinct, or was it because they made a covenant?

 

Even though he lost his memory, Joohyuk seemed to know all the conversations he had with Soohyun. As if keeping his promise, he piled up presents for Soohyun one by one here. Just like Soohyun left a letter missing Joohyuk every month in the basement of the villa.

 

He turned to look at the blood-stained clothes again.

 

The clothes that he had taken off from the body he found, the vivid bloodstains, the traces of pheromone that would have disappeared now but must have been there at the time, the cold ashes, and the memory of Joohyuk witnessing his decapitation.

 

He couldn’t help but think he was dead. Most of the memories of that time disappeared, and he forgot what could be called memories. Even so, Joohyuk missed him up to this day and has had an upright love for him.

 

Soohyun, who had all the memories, and Joohyuk, whose memories were shattered, everyone was the same. They missed each other and tried to protect them somehow. Whether it’s a mate who has lost his memory or the remains of a dead mate.

 

Soohyun, who remembered everything, found Joohyuk and lived to keep him according to the covenant.

 

Joohyuk, who has lost his memories of the past, has no choice but to live to honor Soohyun’s false image and somehow protect it.

 

The trajectory they each walked was not different in any way.

 

Ripples began to form in the black eyes that did not waver like a hard jewel. The lines around his eyes suddenly filled with water and immediately dripped down.

 

Soohyun’s face was crumbling little by little.

 

* * *