Chapter 127 - Hard Truth 1

'Seoksu Station'

Wonho takes a deep breath, slowly eyeing around his carriage, making sure it is not obvious. As usual, a few people enter the already full train, but there is no sign of Juwon. Letting a long sigh of relief, Wonho lets his guard down and relax. He only has a few more station before he needs to get off. Then he will have to be aware of that alpha again.

Since the day Heiran introduced them, Wonho has been seeing that man a few times. And in that few times, that alpha always gives him a weird look, as if he is discontent about something. Which is weird because Sangmo treats him normally, that is, as normal as mere acquaintance can be, while Heiran is as friendly as she probably always is. But that alpha from marketing, he scares Wonho.

And unfortunately for him, he discovered that the man lives around Seoksu station, which is coincidentally on the line that he has to take to go to work. The first time he realizes this fact, he was on his way back home. Their eyes met and Juwon kept staring at him the whole time, as if threatening him, before getting off at his station. Needless to say, Wonho makes sure to get on the train back home after making sure the man is nowhere in sight since then.

Only, the commute to his work is a different story. There is no way to know if they are going to take the same train because the man's station is after his. He has no way to avoid it, except going to work earlier. Which is not worth it because he is usually exhausted after a day's work to get up early.

So Wonho just bears it, the torturous 45-minute commute to his company, for almost a month. He only has to endure this a while longer – the internship will end in two weeks.

Already arriving at his station, Wonho quickly gets off to the platform, and heads straight to the elevator, making sure not to look at his surrounding. He doesn't have to suffer if he cannot see the man. Turning the volume of his earpiece up, Wonho jumps as he feels a hand on his shoulder. 'Dongchan!'

Thank god.

#####

Wonho just cannot keep himself awake right now as his keeps dozing off, even while working on his drawing. The project he is working on will be concluded this week so there is a lot he has to do, hence why he does not get more than a few hours of sleep every day. It seems the exhaustion finally caught on to him.

'Hey, go get some coffee.' Kimoon, one of the senior architects seated in front of him suggests. Shaking his head a few times to hopefully activate his brain by hurting it, Wonho rubs his eyes softly. He then brings up the canned coffee he just drank, to show to the man.

'Go get some espresso.' Wonho turns his head, to look at the mini lounge they have on the floor. As far as he knows, there are no espresso machine, or even instant espresso. Or did Kimoon mean making a really saturated instant coffee?

'Here, go get me one too.' The older man hands Wonho his card, to which Wonho only stares at him, confused. It is still working time, he is not allowed to go out. Right?

'Nobody cares. You worked till late every day. Just go take a nap.'

'Lunch's over…' Wonho reminds the man, still very much reluctant. He is afraid this will ruin his reputation which will affect his performance evaluation. And he does not want that to happen, because he really wants to work here. He can't screw up right now, not at the end.

'It's better to take a nap and be more efficient than working like this. Go. But half an hour.' Not knowing how to argue with Kimoon since the man is speaking the truth, Wonho says his thanks and accepts the card. He then makes his way to the elevator, constantly looking left and right while waiting to see if anybody is eyeing him suspiciously or talking about him. But indeed, nobody cares.

Guess everyone is used to the situation.

Feeling relieved, the tired intern walks towards the staff café and orders himself a double shot espresso. If he is going to do this despite his anxious state, he needs to return with a clear mind and ready to work. Once the hot drink is in his hand, Wonho finds a good spot right at the back of the cafe and sets his phone to vibrate in 10 minutes. Then, Wonho closes his eyes.

#####

The omega wakes up at the vibration, still tired but feeling refreshed nonetheless. Wiping his face, Wonho squeezes some eyedrops for his dry eyes, making sure his contact lenses stay in place. Then, he drinks the miracle liquid that is the espresso.

Very bitter. But powerful.

Architecture is going to turn him into caffeine addict. He swears it-

Shit.

Juwon.

The man is seated a few tables away from him, with another male in a business suit. They are busy talking, having a business discussion from the looks of it. And yet, even without the man facing him like he usually would, Wonho can tell the alpha is not pleased with the sight of him. Because he will constantly steal a glance at Wonho, with the same cold expression.

Not wanting to show how nervous he is, Wonho quietly gets up after pretending to look at his watch. Unfortunately, just as he about to leave, he remembers that he still has to buy coffee for the senior who lent him his credit card. It will be really rude to return empty-handed, especially because he actually already used the card to pay for his own espresso earlier.

Ordering the coffee, trying his hard not to tap his shoes on the floor, Wonho keeps his eyes on the barista's every move. He swears she can work faster. What is taking so long??

'Hey kid.' Wonho flinches at the voice. Even without turning around, he already know who the voice belongs to. 'We need to talk. You better stay here.'