LET’S go back to thirty minutes ago...
Jeon Hyunsik drummed his fingers against the table in front of him. After what had happened at the waterfall, when Kang Haneul collapsed and was taken to the hospital, he and Lim Suho had been brought back to the ship. They’d been separated into different rooms. He didn’t know what had happened to Lim Suho, but he’d been left alone in this room for hours now. No one had come to talk to him, not even once. He hadn’t heard a single sound from outside the door.
He’d checked the door earlier. It wasn’t locked, which meant he could leave if he wanted to. But he knew he wouldn’t. Walking out now would look too much like an admission of guilt. He was aware that cameras were still rolling, capturing everything. If he stayed calm and looked confused, it would help sell the image of someone who had no idea what was going on.
And that’s exactly what he did.
But after literal hours of this, even he was starting to lose his patience. What the hell were these people playing at? Did they forget he was here? Or was this some kind of strategy, meant to wear him down so that when they finally came to question him, he’d slip up and say something he shouldn’t?
Hyunsik almost scoffed at the thought. He’d been through this kind of thing before, more than once. And so far, he’d never slipped. Even if he did, he was confident he could still find a way out. If he didn’t believe that, he never would have pulled the shit he did with Kang Haneul.
Logically, he knew he shouldn’t have done it. Especially since they were in the middle of a survival program. But he just couldn’t help himself. How dare that Omega act like he was above him? Because that was precisely how Kang Haneul had acted around him. No matter how much he smiled and played polite, his dislike for Hyunsik was obvious. It seeped out of every move he made. And it grated on Hyunsik. Who did he think he was? He should have been grateful that Hyunsik was even paying him attention.
Truth be told, Kang Haneul wasn’t the most beautiful Omega Hyunsik had ever seen. But there was just something about him. When Hyunsik first saw him, he hadn’t thought much of him, mostly because of those ugly glasses he always wore at the start. But during the theme song filming, when Haneul was all made up and not wearing those glasses, Hyunsik couldn’t take his eyes off him.
It was like those glasses had been holding back his full effect. The moment they came off, it was like a switch had been flipped. Hyunsik couldn’t really explain it. All he knew was that he wanted to walk straight over to Haneul, shove him against the wall, sink his teeth into his glands, and completely wreck him. He was sure he wasn’t the only Alpha in that room who felt the same way. Kang Haneul practically dripped with sex appeal. He was like a walking talking Viagra. That was how strong his pull was.
Hyunsik had wanted to approach him, but he never got the chance. Between the first mission taking up most of his time and Kang Haneul always being surrounded by people, he couldn’t even get close to him. But then fate seemed to be on his side when they ended up on the same team for the second mission. He thought that was finally his opening. But Kang Haneul shut down every attempt he made, always with that polite smile. It was infuriating. Especially since he didn’t act like that around Lim Suho, who was also an Alpha.
At first, he thought Haneul was acting aloof because it was obvious he was interested. But then he saw how Haneul acted around Jung Taeyang, another Alpha who was clearly just as interested in him as Hyunsik was. Anyone with half a brain could see it. And yet, despite that, Haneul still smiled at Jung Taeyang like he’d hung the moon. That was when Hyunsik understood. It wasn’t that Haneul didn’t like Alphas showing interest. He just picked which Alpha’s attention he was willing to accept.
It was a massive blow to Hyunsik’s ego. In what way was Jung Taeyang better than him? Sure, the other ranked higher right now, but that could change. In terms of looks, Jung Taeyang might be handsome, but so was he. Same for talent. They were practically on the same level when it came to dancing and singing. So why Jung Taeyang and not him?
His irritation over the whole situation boiled over when Kang Haneul got more live votes than him during their dance performance. He couldn’t believe it. But then he figured Haneul must have seduced the audience with that face of his, and he could understand how that happened. He didn’t like it, though. It didn’t make sense. How could an Omega be better than an Alpha? He wanted to teach Kang Haneul a lesson. To put him in his place. Below an Alpha. To show him that an Omega was nothing more than a slave to their own pheromones. That when it came down to it, they’d be the ones writhing and begging an Alpha to bite them.
And he had exactly what he needed to make that happen.
Hidden among his suppressant pills was another pill. His secret weapon for whenever he wanted to teach a stuck-up Omega a lesson. Which happened more often than it should. Omegas these days really thought they were on the same level as Alphas. It was this new mentality society had been feeding them, this idea that they deserved more than they were given. Which couldn’t be further from the truth. Omegas belonged at home, keeping their Alpha’s house clean and functional, and being available for their Alpha’s needs. What else were they good for?
Hyunsik wished he could just say that out loud. But people would act outraged, even though he knew most of them thought the same way he did. They’d deny it, of course, but he knew the truth.