“Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain. We will soon begin our descent into San Francisco International Airport. The local time is–”

Yejun groaned as he heard the announcement, resisting the need to open his eyes just yet. He had stayed awake for most of the flight, only opting to take a short nap when they were about two hours out. However, he now regretted the decision, his head aching from the lack of proper rest. 

“ –fasten your seatbelts and return your seats to the upright position. Thank you.” The pilot began to repeat the announcement in English and Yejun sighed, slowly raising his seat. He politely refused the attendant's offer of a warm towel, instead rubbing at his temple as he tried to will away the dull throb behind his eyes.

Yejun glanced over as he noticed his fellow leads in similar states, all stretching and getting ready for landing, but clearly all still exhausted. After all, it was almost 10pm in Korea, and now they were landing at 4am the same day. He found timezones both fascinating and annoying in situations like this. 

“At least nothing is scheduled today.” Yejun sighed, closing his eyes again as the attendants did another pass to make sure everyone had their seatbelts fastened before they would sit for landing. Since it was so close to the fourth of July, they  had very little to do these first few days. Mostly a meeting tomorrow on the first and then nothing until the 5th. The “meeting” was more of an introductory dinner and Yejun seemed to vaguely remember a lunch on the second but he couldn't remember.

Yejun honestly didn’t know much about the publisher or the book series they were trying to get the rights for, but according to Minjae, a lot of fan translations had taken off online. He seemed convinced it would be profitable for Baekwon to secure the official translation rights before anyone else could. His mother  obviously agreed, considering she had sent all of the Gye leads to meet with the American publisher. 

The captain’s voice came over the intercom again.

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We are now preparing for our final approach into San Francisco International Airport. For your safety…”

Yejun took another deep breath, tuning out the rest of the announcement. He was ready to land, check his phone and sleep in an actual bed. He felt as the plane started to turn, a slight lurch in his stomach that made him swallow against the faint nausea building from fatigue. Landing was smooth and Yejun felt relieved. He hated landing the most. 

He quickly reached into his carry-on, pulling out his phone. He hadn’t bothered to take it off airplane mode for the entire flight, and he heard as other first class passengers similarly reached for theirs. He quickly swiped and his heart jumped as he saw he had a message. 

It was from Jihun.

Yejun frowned. The entire team knew he was going to be gone for two weeks and he had told them only to message him if it was urgent. Taking a deep breath, Yejun opened the message. 

Yoo (Pyeonjip): Lim-nim, you should hear this.

Beneath the message was a recording that was still trying to load. Yejun felt a tightness in his chest as he watched the little spinning icon on the screen. Even though they were now taxiing to the gate, the signal was still not the best and he pressed his lips together. The airport’s sodium lights slipped past, and despite the early hour, Yejun could see the first hints of dawn in the sky. 

The recording finally loaded, and he quickly dug out the headphones he had put away. He waited a moment to hear the Bluetooth pairing confirmation and pressed play. 

“ –could go with him. It’s a two week trip and my rut is soon. It’s not like I can rut in America. They allow sex.”

It was Jieun. Yejun frowned as he heard another voice, but it was vague and he couldn’t quite make out what they said or who it was she was talking to. Clearly, Jihun’s focus had been to record Jieun, but why?

“I mean, you know how beta sex is. Yejun is no different and I hate the waiting. It’s why I need an omega. Something I don’t have to wait for.”

Yejun’s heart stopped. 

Yejun is no different.

She didn’t mean that. She couldn’t. Yejun’s mind thought back to their anniversary just the night before. She had praised him, told him how perfect he looked on his knees for her. He went out of his way to be different for her, to make it enjoyable. 

Jieun was protecting him, that’s why. If anyone knew that a beta like him, especially one expected to inherit the prestigious Baekwon Press, was considerate of an alpha’s needs, his reputation would be destroyed. He had broken all the rules for her… She was lying to protect him, to protect his reputation, their future. Just in case someone heard, just in case–

“So you always say.” 

The other person spoke again. Yejun heard them clearly this time and he felt as if the world had fallen out from beneath him. 

It was Woojin. 

“I mean it’s still good, but it's just not the same,” Jieun continued, and her tone carried the casual boredom of someone discussing an inconvenience rather than a person’s worth. “As rare as sex is, I want to just go for it sometimes. But I can’t bear the idea of hurting him. It’s difficult, you know?”

Yejun pressed the earbud deeper into his ear as if that would somehow make the words different. His thumb trembled against the screen. He could feel tears starting in his eyes.

“So, same place?”

Same… place?

“Yeah, I’ll let you know when my eyes change.” Jieun chuckled, and Yejun heard a click as the recording ended. 

He pressed play again. 

He listened over and over. Something cold unfurled in Yejun’s chest, icy fingers curling around his ribs and squeezing. Yejun’s thumb hovered over the screen, the blue progress bar crawling back to the start for the fifth time. He didn’t even realize that the seatbelt sign had turned off until he felt a soft tap on his arm.

“Lim-nim, first class is deboarding.” The attendant’s polite tone pulled him back, and he lifted his gaze, blinking as if waking from a long sleep.

“Ah… my apologies, Thank you,” he murmured, quickly yanking out the headphones and grabbing his bag as he walked down the aisle. The floor felt unsteady beneath his feet, and Yejun felt his stomach churn from more than altitude sickness. 

Jieun had no reason to lie to Woojin; Woojin grew up around Yejun. Knew Yejun since they were kids. Had always been someone Yejun trusted without even thinking about it. He could understand her lying to someone else, but not Woojin.

Yejun got to the jet bridge, and lost the fight with his nausea. He leaned over to the trashcan on the janitor cart, and threw up the little bit of food in his stomach. The acid in his throat burned, but the taste of bile was nothing compared to the hollow taste of betrayal.

He had allowed her in his mouth. Had allowed her into his body. Had learned her habits, her wants, her pleasure… 

And she has reduced him to being “no different”.

Yejun threw up again.

“Lim-nim?” Minjae’s voice made Yejun look up and he saw the worried look on his fellow lead’s face. Yejun shook his head, accepting the paper towel the janitor offered him to wipe his face. He had expected the man to be mad, but honestly they looked relieved he had thrown up in the trash can rather than the airway. 

“I’m fine, Lee-ssi,” Yejun insisted, adjusting the strap of his carry-on as he threw his phone back into its pocket. He didn’t want to think about the recording. Of Jieun. “Let’s hurry. I am sure everyone is tired.”

“Don’t push yourself too hard,” Minjae offered but Yejun walked past him. If he stopped moving again, he was going to start thinking. If he started thinking, he was going to feel sick again. He would absolutely fall apart if he gave himself the smallest chance to process what he’d heard.

He didn’t have time for that.