Chapter 35.1

Forced Smile (1)

*This story is from the POV of the app developer, Yanagi. It takes place before the events of the main story.

The wedding ceremony of my classmates.

At the glamorous venue, I found the back of someone sitting with his head down.

That person was sitting at the seat on the bride’s family side. I heard that the bride had two younger brothers who were many years apart from her, so that person must be one of them.

Even from a distance, I could immediately tell that the expression on his face wasn’t a bright one.

While everyone else had happy smiles on their face and were in a festive mood, he was the only one with a somber expression. It made me curious and I couldn’t take my eyes off him for a while.

He looked as if he was worried about something.

He would look around his surroundings and sometimes furrowed his eyebrows, as if he was in pain.

His pained expression always remained in my memory.

The reason why I remembered that event even though one year has passed, was because I passed by him again.

It was in front of the verse clinic. I happened to see him at the entrance of the clinic I visited for my regular checkup. He seemed to have gotten a little taller, but my impression of him hasn’t changed much.

He was still walking with his head down, and he walked right past me without even noticing my gaze.

“He’s Sou. My little brother-in-law.”

It was Ninomiya Kazuki, my doctor and also my classmate, who explained that to me while looking at my chart.

He was also the star of the wedding ceremony from a year ago.

It’s been almost a year since he started opening the clinic after his marriage. Many other patients beside me have started coming here now, and it’s getting harder and harder to get the time I wanted when I make an appointment a week in advance.

Kazuki’s personality must be one of the reasons too.

He has a calm and gentle air with him, and just hearing him talk makes you feel at ease. This part of him hasn’t changed much since he was a student. Even though the clinic has become very popular, he still takes time for each patient, and the fact that he listens to their needs in a caring manner scores high.

Moreover, the fact that Kazuki himself is an omega must be the reason why this clinic is more popular than other verse clinics.

It was quite rare for omegas to be a doctor.

This was because not many people even aspire to become one. Even if they did, many of them might think that they would never achieve it.

No matter how many good suppressants were developed, omegas were generally suffering from the heat. It was the norm for them to be unable to lead a normal life around that time.

Since they couldn’t even live their daily lives properly, there was no way they could tackle their studies.

And heat always comes once every month. Every time omegas took some days off for their heat, the gap in academic performance between them and their peers grows. Even if they make an effort to close the gap, the next heat cycle would come soon.

Many omegas stopped trying and gave up on their future because of this reality.

I was one of those omegas who made that effort, but Kazuki’s effort was immeasurable, as he had clearly stated from the time we met that he wanted to become a doctor.

He was truly a hard worker, always being at the top of the grade alongside the alphas.

A lot of omegas wanted to be examined by such an omega doctor, so this small clinic was bustling with patients from all over the country.

“So that kid is also an omega.”

“Yeah. I found out about a year ago, just before the wedding.”

Is that why he always had that kind of expression on his face that day?

The reason why he always looked so gloomy must be because he still couldn’t come to terms with his gender as an omega. As an omega, I can somewhat understand that feeling.

However, even though one year has passed since then, his expression hasn’t changed much.

When I saw his face as he came out of the clinic with a downcast expression, it immediately reminded me of that day. He might still be dragging something heavy about his gender.

“Don’t you listen to his problems, Kazuki?”

The fact that he just came out of this clinic means that he must be a patient here as well.

Omegas who had no pair need to visit the clinic at least once every two months. This was because they need a suppressant every time their heat arrived.

I wonder if he relies on Kazuki… as his personal doctor, brother-in-law, and also a fellow omega.

“…Hm, you know, Sou is the type of person who doesn’t feel comfortable discussing his problems with people around him. He did have me as his personal doctor, but he still won’t tell me what he really feels yet.”

Kazuki looked away from the chart, turned his chair around, and faced me. He has a troubled smile on his face.

He tilted his head slightly and tapped his fingers behind his ears.

It was the gesture Kazuki often do when he was thinking about something.

“I’m wondering if I should recommend him to another clinic.”

“He wouldn’t even talk about it to you?”

“No, that’s not true. He’s more than willing to talk to me. But, how do I say it? He probably does it unconsciously, but it feels like there’s a line between us… I think that maybe he’s not telling me how he really feels. Ah, this is just how I feel about it, I don’t know what’s really going on.”

“…I kind of understand it.”