Dirty Switch

"Yoonwoo, calm down."
Startled by Joo Yoonwoo’s sharp outburst, Chairman Joo and President Yoo, who had been frozen in place, belatedly stepped in. But Yoonwoo, consumed with the urge to tarnish Seo Baekhan no matter what, couldn’t be calmed so easily. In the end, even the medical staff had to intervene and pull her away.
"How dare you show your shameless face here, when it's because of you that Taehyun ended up like this!"
"President Joo, for the Young Master's stability, this was unavoidable. Please, let us explain—"
"Stability? He passed out in shock from the bullshit that bastard said, and you expect him to calm down with that asshole around?"
Whether she'd been filled in on what had happened just moments ago, or had sensed it on her own, Yoonwoo shouted in a voice nearly shrieking with rage.
"Yoonwoo."
Unable to watch any longer, Chairman Joo gently grabbed her arm and pulled her close. His plea—at the very least not to cause a scene in the hospital—seemed to barely anchor her slipping composure.
"Do you even feel sorry?"
Roughly wiping her tear-streaked face, Yoonwoo asked,
"Seo Baekhan, are you even sorry for what you did to Taehyun?"
She looked utterly disgusted by Baekhan’s calm demeanor, even after being slapped across the face.
"Maybe to you it was just a marriage based on terms, but still… the person who carried your child had to undergo surgery because of you, your child is gone, and you don't even flinch?"
"President Joo, the Young Master will be waking up soon."
Though the surgery had gone well, the medical staff emphasized that Joo Taehyun required complete rest, and persistently tried to soothe Yoonwoo.
"Dad, pheromones or whatever—they don’t have to be in the same room, right? You don’t have to be physically touching to feel them?"
Her voice dropped a few decibels, as if some reason had returned at the mention of complete rest, but the determination in Yoonwoo’s stance was clear. She stood guard at the door, making it obvious she had no intention of letting Seo Baekhan enter the room.
"Can’t we just hand over something he wore or whatever? There are indirect ways. If we really have to, can’t we just draw his blood and smear it on the wall—"
"I have to be there."
Seo Baekhan finally opened his mouth, quietly spitting out a torn bit of his inner cheek from having bitten it too hard. This much lashing out—he could take it. A few slaps, really, was getting off easy.
"I understand you're angry, but right now, what matters most is monitoring Taehyun’s condition."
"You—!"
"You saw it yourself, Father, Mother. You know how effective my pheromones are on him."
What Taehyun needs now… isn’t a good drug. It’s me.
At Baekhan’s calm declaration, Yoonwoo ground her teeth, but this time even President Yoo tried to stop her.
"Let him in."

"Mom!"
"We’re not helping anyway. Dr. Seo just has to hold his hand and Taehyun’s complexion improves. If our youngest can feel better, why should we chase him out?"
Of course, it wasn’t like Yoonwoo didn’t understand that. Maybe she didn’t feel the imprint as profoundly as their parents who had seen it firsthand, but even Dr. Woo, the attending physician, had said it outright—Baekhan’s pheromones were more effective than any medicine.
Still.
"Mom, I... I should’ve stopped him back then."
"…Yoonwoo."
"I shouldn’t have ignored it or brushed it off—I should’ve really listened to him, and then…"
Yoonwoo couldn’t hold back any longer and collapsed into Chairman Joo and President Yoo’s arms.
"He was so excited, saying they were going to ride the Ferris wheel… Imagine what he felt, holding a press conference in that state, Taehyun…"
Seo Baekhan gave a discreet look to the medical staff, gesturing toward Yoonwoo’s wrist—still red from lashing out without any control, asking them to check it.
"What are you doing, get in already."
As if unwilling to let anyone see another moment of private family emotion, President Yoo issued the order coldly. Seo Baekhan brushed back his disheveled hair, bowed slightly, and passed them by.
At the door, he paused and took a slow breath. Getting slapped by someone for the first time in his life hadn’t fazed him much—but knowing that Joo Taehyun was inside made his chest churn.
Of course, the hesitation only lasted a moment. He went inside without delay.
In truth, Seo Baekhan was disoriented. Just realizing the state he was in was confusing enough.
There was the variable of Dirty Switch, yes—but among all the research he’d reviewed, nothing described a case like this.
Two of the same trait had imprinted.
And on top of that, as if waiting for it… a pregnancy had followed.
Even if he kept questioning what had already happened, what difference would it make now? This was an unforeseen situation where every countermeasure was useless. A sense of powerlessness lingered in Baekhan’s chest.
Was it really just because we imprinted? Is that why this all happened?
If so, it makes even less sense. I’m not that far gone.
Right.
Taehyun’s tearful confession still haunted him with its inexplicable weight.
It really was strange. Imprinting shouldn’t have caused him to behave so irrationally—so unlike himself.
Why had he done it?
Why had he thrown himself into it without any regard for anything?
Imprinting isn’t some chemical reaction triggered purely by emotion. Whether it’s one-sided or mutual, that fact doesn’t change.
It was true—he felt drawn to him in a way he couldn’t explain. His body pulled toward Taehyun on its own. But it wasn’t just arousal.
When Taehyun was in danger, he instinctively acted—without even realizing it.
Unable to have sex, the most effective way to transmit his pheromones was to embrace his imprinted partner and struggle to let his breath reach him.
Had there been another Alpha nearby, they might have passed out from the sheer force of it. His pheromones surged like a tidal wave, as if obeying his will, wrapping tightly around Taehyun and forming a dense protective barrier.
"……"
He stood by the doorway for a moment, blankly watching Joo Taehyun.
First things first—he needed to stabilize what was in front of him.
Taehyun’s abnormal condition wouldn’t resolve by just being in the same space. This was only temporary.
And if, at some point, his pheromones turned toxic to Taehyun? He couldn’t control the concentration at will. What would he do then?
Leaving aside their ongoing divorce, Baekhan didn’t want Taehyun’s body to break down any further.
The clinical scent of alcohol filled the room, now laced with the fresh green notes of spring foliage—Taehyun’s pheromone, now familiar to him.
But the delicate floral note that used to flutter like a dandelion seed was gone. That subtle essence that once peeked out like a shy sprout beneath the trees—there wasn’t a trace of it left.
Only then did Seo Baekhan finally understand. That faint floral scent that had bloomed at some point… had been the child’s signal.
That tiny being, barely a lump of flesh, had emitted a remarkably harmonious pheromone—one that fit both Baekhan and Taehyun perfectly. It truly was their child.
"…Joo Taehyun."
Without realizing it, he called out his name. But Joo Taehyun didn’t even flinch. The pallor of his face under Baekhan’s shadow hadn’t changed at all.
"Joo Taehyun."
But as soon as he said his name aloud, Baekhan knew.
He was conscious.
He hated relying on gut feelings or instinct—but there was no other way to describe this certainty.
"The surgery… went well."
Even as he gently called out, Taehyun didn’t respond.
Then suddenly, his eyelids fluttered.
'His eyelashes… were they always this long?'
There was a glint of moisture at the tips, or so it seemed—but that was a mistake. When Taehyun finally lifted his lids, his face looked so ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ dry it seemed on the verge of crumbling.
"There aren’t many cases like ours, but… I’ll find out. What caused the imprint, and your pregnancy… what we need to do for your health from now on, I’ll—"
"It doesn’t… matter anymore."
Taehyun, eyes half-lidded, turned away from him and spoke in a voice cracked beyond recognition.
"There’s no need to argue over custody or parental rights anymore."
"…Joo Taehyun."
Taehyun’s empty eyes held no concern for his own body. He just let out a lifeless chuckle.
"A kid you didn’t even want… is gone now anyway."