Despite waiting for an answer, Jaekyung remained silent, and the growing silence choked Jihon. In general, he did not expect such words as "I forgive you" or "I am glad that the misunderstanding is resolved." All he needs is a simple confirmation from Jaekyung. If Jaekyung didn't want to continue the conversation, then Jihong could just leave. Perhaps he should return home on his own? «... How long will I have to stay in this state? Are we going to sit here face to face all night?" as Jihong silently swallowed his dry saliva, a familiar sound rang out: "Hyung."

Jihon was overwhelmed with a wave of surprise mixed with anxiety when the guy suddenly called him. It was this word thrown by Jaekyung that made his whole body tense up, because he could not even imagine what would follow him.

"So you changed the chip?"

Once again, the boy's question took Jihon by surprise. Unable to speak, Jihong looked up in confusion.

"I asked if you changed the chip?"

"Oh, yes. I put a new one

"Then it won't affect me anymore, right?"

«… Is this what you are interested in?" - Jihong was defeated again, because he was again caught off guard. He expected phrases like, "Hyung, are you really an omega? Why did you lie? Why did you pretend to be a beta?", but definitely not about the chip. He fell into a brief stupor, but then quickly realized the reason. Yes, Jaekyung didn't care about other people's affairs. Why would he be interested in Jihon's lies? In any case, this is not his concern. The most important thing for Jaekyung is whether the omega pheromones will work on him.

"About that, well... unless there is a problem with the chip... No... you said you could easily smell pheromones, didn't I smell?" asked Jihong nervously, although he changed the chip, even increased the dosage of drugs, and smoked two cigarettes to get rid of this trail.

— No, I don't

Jaekyung's answer immediately made him feel relieved, and he added, "I see. As long as the chip works, there should be no problems."

"All right

"yes...

"I want to sign with your company, hyun

"Hm.?" What, sorry?

Jaekyung pulled the towel off his head and before Jihong could ask again, he continued, "I'm going to sign with Spoin."

«…….»

Jihong stared directly at him, and then, relaxing his clasped hands, said, "Mm, I'm sorry, Mr. Kwon Jaekyung..."

"Why all of a sudden?"

Jaekyung frowned, puzzled by the sudden change in Jihon's tone to a formal one. Jihong tapped the table with his fingertips and added businesslike, "From the company's point of view, there's no reason to refuse... But to be honest, it seems a little unexpected. It's hard to believe. May I ask why you decided to cooperate with us?"

"Having seen how the CEO defended the interests of his employee, I don't think he is a scumbag.

"Well, that's true," Jihong silently agreed. He couldn't deny it, because it was one of the company's strengths, which could be seen as a kind of highlight. "But I know that you negotiated with Kava."

"I decided not to cooperate with them

"And the reason is...?"

"They're constantly changing their terms," he replied without listening to Jihon. - I made it clear that I am not going to participate in the Olympic Games next year. At first, they agreed, but now they say that I can't refuse. Do they want to include a condition that I will participate unconditionally if I don't have an injury, and I need it?"

Jihong unconsciously muttered, "Oh," remembering the phone conversation he overheard yesterday in the hotel lobby. He knew that arguing with Jaekyung was pointless due to his nature, but he didn't expect their negotiations to be canceled.

– Why don't you go to the Olympic Games?

"Because I don't want to

Jaekyung said as he cut it off, leaving Jihong speechless again.

"Is this true? If the athlete himself does not want to participate, what else can be said? I think I have no choice but to answer, 'Yes, I understand,'" Jihong thought.

"That was my condition from the beginning, they only pretended to agree. But in the end, we still decided to do everything in our own way. If they keep turning their own words like this, how can I trust them in the future?" concluded Jaekyung, pushing his hair back as a small drop of water flew out of his still wet hair. "I can't cooperate with them. If they behave like this before I signed the contract, then what will happen when I make agreements with them. I'm just going to cooperate with you, as contact, meeting and negotiating terms with others will take too long."

Paraphrasing his speech, you can understand that he is simply too lazy to look for another company. "Well, how else to describe what is happening, after all, it suits Kwon Jaekyung so well?" - Jihong silently smiled, looking at the table and raising his head again, decided to ask: "But will your mother agree to a contract with our company?"

Jaekyung replied puzzled: "This is my contract, what does my mother have to do with it?"

"What...? No, if you're such an independent guy, why have you left all the paperwork to her until now?"

Jaekyung threw a towel over his bag and gave out something unimaginable: "But instead, I would like to change one condition."

"What term are you.....

"You should join my management team, hyung." He interrupted Jihon in mid-sentence. Jihong looked at him with his mouth closed and then asked again, "Excuse me, but may I know why?"

"Because you're the only former swimmer in the company.

Jaekyung replied as if to hint, "You know what that means, right?"

Of course, Jihong understood everything. In Western countries, including Australia, the management team or agent group often included lawyers and officials who were former athletes of the sport. A lawyer could provide legal advice, and the former athlete had connections and influence in the industry that could help in revising the rules. But it was for this reason that Jihong resisted. After all, at the moment, he did not have serious connections to talk about, because his active career turned out to be very short (rather, Jaekyung's mother had a wider circle of acquaintances). And his presence was so insignificant, even when he was involved in the revision of the rules. No, he is sure that he will not be able to help at all.

— I have a question. If we hire a former swimmer, will you consider him? Someone else will be more useful than me, and...

— No, I don't.

Jaekyung interrupted him again. It seemed that he would not listen to Jihon's words this time either.

—... So you want me to do it unconditionally

"Yes

"May I ask why?"

Throwing harsh answers all the time, Jaekyung fell silent for the first time, which made Jihong even more nervous: "What's going on? Why does he insist on my candidacy without good reason? Does he want to set me up? Does he still hold a grudge against the past? Or is it because of how I reacted to Jaekyung's actions yesterday by accepting their sexual harassment.....?"

"I'm very shy of people," Jaekyung suddenly blurted out after a long pause. "If I work with Spoin, all the people of their federation who helped me until yesterday will be absent, and I will be left alone, surrounded only by Spoin employees. I feel comfortable having at least one familiar face around. That's why you should be on the management team, hyung."

Jakyon's request made sense. After all, he was not sociable, and his social skills left much to be desired. Having someone nearby to coordinate will be beneficial not only for him, but also for the Spoin staff themselves. Once they got used to each other, Jihon would be able to leave.

«... But I still wonder if he is shy of me. Does his behavior look like shyness? He can best be described as a person who treats acquaintances and strangers in the same way: they are all invisible to him," Jihon reasoned.

"The first installment should be at the standard level," the athlete said. And Jihong, who was thinking about how to express his disagreement, unconsciously exclaimed, as if he were the person who lacked communication skills: "What? Hey, are you serious?"

"What's that suddenly casual tone?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Jihong quickly changed his manner of speaking, and Jaekyung made a small remark, "Yes, and please don't make me repeat the same thing over and over again. You understand everything."

As expected, he was lost to society. But Jaekyung's lack of social skills was not a problem.

"He said that the down payment should be at a normal level? Then he is satisfied with the conditions that the company offered? Will he really sign a contract? Really?" - Jihon's heart beat faster from the flow of thoughts. Even though Jaekyung mentioned it first, it seemed that a contract that was so far away seemed to have become a reality. If the down payment burden disappears, then it will be a huge opportunity for Spoin. What was happening resembled not just winning, but winning the lottery. If the down payment remains at a normal level, then there is no need to worry about participating in the Olympics, as the risks will remain minimal: it is obvious that Jaekyung's shares in the advertising market will rise even more once he achieves a Grand Slam, and if he keeps the value of the shares at the same level, they will be able to make up for the initial payment in just a year. A single year.

If the contribution remains the same, then this is more than enough to make a profit, and the funds spent will be recouped in just a few commercials.