Hyunseok lowered his head, guilt filling his eyes.

"I don't know what happened..."

Jeewon let out a quiet sigh before placing a reassuring hand on Hyunseok's shoulder.

"It's okay. Don't worry. I know you're blaming yourself again, but stop thinking like that. If anyone should be blamed, it's your father... not you."

Hyunseok remained silent, his eyes never leaving Yihan.

After examining him for a few moments, Jeewon slowly spoke again.

"I don't think we should continue treating him here. Let's take him to the hospital."

Hyunseok immediately shook his head.

"I don't think we can. If we take him there, the news will spread sooner or later. If the Chairman finds out, he'll definitely interfere."

Jeewon thought for a moment before nodding.

"That's fine. We'll use the private entrance at the back of the hospital. I'll arrange everything beforehand, so you don't have to worry."

Hyunseok silently nodded. Just as Jeewon was about to prepare his medical kit, something suddenly crossed Hyunseok's mind.

"By the way... I remembered something."

Jeewon looked at him curiously.

"What happened?"

"I thought it was just a dream... but it felt incredibly real."

Jeewon's expression turned serious.

"What kind of dream?"

Hyunseok looked down at Yihan before speaking.

"When I was sleeping in my room, I felt someone open the door. He walked toward me, kicked me on my butt, and kept saying something like, 'Wake up. Your exams are in a few days. If your rank drops, I'll kill you.' It felt so real that, for a second, I actually thought someone had entered my room."

For a few seconds, silence filled the room.

Then suddenly...

Jeewon burst into laughter.

"Hahaha! Someone kicked Cha Hyunseok? I've known you for years, but I never imagined anyone would have the courage to kick your butt."

He laughed so hard that tears formed in the corners of his eyes.

"I'm telling you, Hyun... it was just a dream. No one in this country would dare do something like that."

Hyunseok let out a helpless sigh before glancing at Yihan once again.

"...Maybe."

Jeewon's laughter slowly faded as his expression became serious again.

"Come on. We'll talk about your strange dream later. Right now, getting Yihan to the hospital is more important."

Without wasting another second, Hyunseok carefully lifted Yihan into his arms and carried him outside. He gently laid him in the back seat of the car before getting in himself, while Jeewon quickly took the driver's seat and started the engine.

Nearly thirty minutes later, they arrived at the hospital through the private entrance at the back of the building. Before stepping out of the car, both of them looked around carefully to make sure no one had noticed their arrival.

Earlier, Jeewon had already informed his trusted staff to prepare everything in advance. He had also ordered them not to register Yihan's name in the hospital records or reveal his visit to anyone.

As soon as they entered, the medical staff immediately took Yihan inside. For the next two hours, they performed every possible examination while Hyunseok waited anxiously inside Jeewon's office.

He couldn't sit still for even a minute. Every few seconds, his eyes drifted toward the office door, hoping someone would come in with good news.

After what felt like an eternity, the office door finally opened.

Jeewon walked inside carrying a medical file before quietly sitting down across from Hyunseok.

The moment Hyunseok noticed the serious look on his face, his heart sank.

He immediately stood up.

"What happened? Is something wrong with Yihan?"

Jeewon shook his head before placing the file on the desk.

"No. You can relax. We performed every possible test, and everything came back normal. His fever is completely gone, and there isn't anything physically wrong with him."

Hyunseok finally let out the breath he had been holding.

"Then... why did he collapse?"

Jeewon leaned back in his chair before answering.

"I think it was because of your overwhelming alpha pheromones. Normally, Yihan wouldn't react this way, but think about it. For the past several days, he has locked himself inside his room. He barely ate anything, barely left his bed, and his body became much weaker than before."

He paused before continuing.

"You know you're a Crown Alpha. Even healthy omegas struggle to withstand your pheromones. In Yihan's current condition, it makes sense that he collapsed."

Hyunseok lowered his eyes, silently thinking about Jeewon's explanation.

After a few moments, Jeewon smiled faintly.

"You know... everyone thinks Cha Hyunseok is fearless. You always look calm, cold, and impossible to shake."

He chuckled softly before continuing.

"But deep down, you're nothing more than a worried rat. I've never seen someone panic this much over another person."

For the first time that day...

A faint smile slowly appeared on Hyunseok's face.

After that, the atmosphere inside the room became much calmer. Since there was nothing else they could do except wait for Yihan to wake up, the two of them slowly started talking about ordinary things.

Jeewon leaned back in his chair while taking a sip of his coffee before looking at Hyunseok.

"So... what happened to your brother? Is he still causing trouble for you and your sister?"

Hyunseok let out a helpless sigh before rubbing his forehead.

"You already know how he is. Last time, he signed a few blank documents just because someone offered him five hundred million won. Later, those papers were used to illegally occupy a piece of land. The whole incident became a huge scandal. Every news channel was covering him for days. Father and I had to spend weeks cleaning up the mess. After that, Father removed him from the President position and demoted him to Executive Board Director."

He paused for a moment before continuing.

"To stop the news from spreading any further, we sent him abroad for a few months. Everything has finally calmed down now... but I still don't know when Father is going to lose his temper again."

Jeewon nodded as if he had expected that answer.

"Yeah... I heard everything from your sister. She has it much harder now. She's managing this hospital, several shopping malls, hotels, and even some of your company's operations. She never seemed interested in business when we were younger."

Hyunseok smiled bitterly.

"None of us had a choice. Whether we liked it or not, Father had already decided our future long ago. My brother was supposed to become the President, my sister was assigned to manage the group's businesses, and I became the CEO. Even though we're all in our thirties now, we still can't go against Father's decisions."

Jeewon chuckled softly before shaking his head.

"That's true. I've known your family for years, but every time I see the Chairman, I still get chills. Sometimes I wonder if that man even knows what smiling looks like."

A faint smile finally appeared on Hyunseok's face.

"I've wondered the same thing."

Before either of them could continue the conversation, someone suddenly knocked on the office door.

Knock. Knock.

"Come in."

A nurse hurried inside, slightly out of breath.

"Doctor... the patient has regained consciousness."

Both Hyunseok and Jeewon immediately stood up.

Without wasting another second, they hurried out of the office and walked quickly toward Yihan's room.

Meanwhile, Yihan slowly sat up on the hospital bed and looked around the room. The white walls, the faint smell of disinfectant, the heart monitor beside the bed, and the sunlight filtering through the curtains instantly made him relax. The panic that had consumed him moments ago slowly disappeared, and he let out a long breath before leaning back against the pillow.

"I knew it..." he muttered to himself with a relieved smile. "Everything that happened was just a dream."

He looked down at his body once again before gently touching his arms and chest, searching for the injuries from the accident. There wasn't a single wound. Not even a scar. The more he thought about it, the more convinced he became that everything he had experienced was simply a nightmare created while he was unconscious.

"I think I was in a coma because of the accident," he murmured, trying to make sense of everything. "Maybe I've been unconscious for several days... that's why I didn't have any injuries in that dream. Yeah... that has to be it."

A small laugh escaped his lips as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Haha... what kind of ridiculous dream was that?" he said, shaking his head. "A man marrying another man...."

He couldn't help but laugh again.

"That could never happen in Korea. Same-sex marriage is illegal. How could two men possibly get married?" he muttered before adding under his breath, "That dream was seriously messed up."

Just then, he heard footsteps approaching from outside the room. The sound grew closer with every passing second, making the smile on his face grow even wider.

"They're here..." he whispered happily. "Mom, Dad, and my brother must've heard that I finally woke up."

For the first time since opening his eyes, the fear inside him completely disappeared. He leaned back comfortably against the bed, waiting for the door to open.

"Thank God..." he said with a relieved sigh. "I'm finally back where I belong."

The sound of footsteps outside the room gradually became heavier, echoing through the silent corridor.

Yihan's smile widened.

"They're here..."

He straightened himself on the bed and looked expectantly toward the door, already imagining his parents and brother rushing inside after hearing that he had finally woken up.

A few seconds later...

Click.

The doorknob slowly turned.

The door quietly opened.

Yihan immediately lifted his head.

But the smile on his face froze.

Standing at the entrance...

...were two completely unfamiliar men.

One of them was tall, dressed in an expensive black suit. Even without saying a single word, his cold expression and overwhelming presence filled the entire room.

Beside him stood another man wearing a white doctor's coat, carrying a medical file in one hand. Unlike the first man, his expression was much gentler, but his eyes were filled with concern as he looked at Yihan.

Yihan stared at them in complete confusion.

"...Who are you?"

The hope that had filled his heart only moments ago disappeared without a trace.

A cold chill slowly ran down his spine.

His heartbeat, which had finally calmed down...

...started racing once again.