Sole Omega in an Alpha Family chapter 23

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Jungin continued studying diligently, never knowing when he’d return to his original body.

His eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep after staying up until dawn.

Feeling especially heavy today, he rubbed his tired eyes and headed downstairs.

“You look exhausted. Were you up late studying again?”

“Yeah… until around three.”

“Kid, if you keep that up, you’ll never grow any taller.”

His brothers, who were already sitting at the table, glanced at Jungin’s pale face and frowned.

His complexion, already fair, was ghostly today.

“Tsk, whatever… Oh, ma’am, could I have some coffee, too?”

Jungin asked the housekeeper as he placed a bowl of soup in front of him.

His eyes were closing on their own, and he knew he wouldn’t make it through the day without some caffeine.

Honestly, he needed the coffee more than the food.

“What do you think, Mr. Lee?”

“Just half a cup, not too much.”

“All right.”

“But don’t drink it on an empty stomach. Finish your meal first.”

Jungin had grown accustomed to his brothers managing every little detail of his life, from his eating to his sleeping.

He hurriedly mixed rice into his soup to finish quickly, eager for that coffee, but felt their gazes on him again.

“What?”

With a big spoonful of rice halfway to his mouth, he looked up to see Junwoo placing some shredded beef on top of it.

“You need to eat your side dishes too. Protein is especially important for someone your age.”

“Yeah, kid, haha. At this rate, when are you ever gonna grow big like your brother?”

The older brothers were abnormally large.

Are all Alphas naturally this well-built?

Even though he would be an adult next year, Lee Jungin was more than a head shorter than his older brothers.

Plus, since his original body was similar in height to his brothers, every time someone brought up growth spurts, it felt like they were directly speaking to him.

Frustrated, Jungin shoved a large piece of meat into his mouth, chewing quickly, but in his haste, he choked.

“Cough, cough—”

“Jungwoo, Jungseo. Stop teasing the kid and focus on yourselves. Ma’am, could we get some more water here?”

“T-thanks.”

He had forgotten how tiny Lee Jungin’s throat was.

His appetite and eating speed were like Choi Jungin’s, but his body was still Lee Jungin’s, leading to these kinds of mishaps.

As he reached for the water the lady had brought, a faint, earthy smell caught his attention.

It looked like barley tea… Did barley always smell like this?

Suspicious, he took a small sip. A sweet yet bitter taste lingered on his tongue.

“Ugh, what is this?”

“Even if it tastes bad, don’t waste it. It’s herbal medicine.”

“Herbal medicine?”

Jungin, making a face, bit his tongue lightly in protest.

Having already finished two bowls of rice, Jungseo chuckled and said, “Our eldest brother asked Auntie to get that for you. It’s red ginseng, just drink it like water.”

“Why am I even drinking this…?”

The taste reminded him of something from years ago.

When he was a little kid, almost 10 years ago, he had snuck into the orphanage director’s office and tasted a candy wrapped in red packaging.

Expecting it to be sweet, he had popped the whole thing into his mouth, only to be betrayed by its bitterness, which made him burst into tears.

As that nightmare from the past resurfaced, he pushed the cup of medicine away.

“I can’t drink this… Hyung, I’ll just eat well from now on, okay? I won’t be picky, and I’ll eat meat often. Can I skip this? Just give me some water… And didn’t you say we could have coffee after eating?”

“No way. You’ve been looking weak and tired lately. If it were up to me, I’d give you something even stronger, but I know you have a weak stomach, so I’m going easy on you.”

Even Jungwoo chimed in, pushing the cup back toward him.

Their firmness left Jungin pouting with drooping eyebrows.

‘Sigh. I know I’m being spoiled, but seriously, it tastes awful. I just can’t drink it…’

“Hyung…”

“…That won’t work.”

“Brothers, what if I get more stressed from being forced to drink this gross stuff and end up even sicker?”

The brothers were particularly stubborn when it came to Jungin’s health.

No matter how much he called them “Hyung,” their expressions only softened slightly, but their firmly pressed lips didn’t budge.

In the end, Jungin raised the white flag, squeezing his eyes shut.

“Fine… But instead, I’ll go for a 30-minute walk every evening. Is that enough?”

“A walk? Really?”

At the mention of walks, the youngest brother’s demeanor was like that of a puppy wagging its tail and panting in excitement.

Considering he had always refused their invitations for walks, saying he felt sick or tired, this was probably a welcome surprise.

“Yeah? What time?”

Was it just his imagination, or did Jungjin and Jungwoo’s voices sound eager?

Oh, wait. Is that it?

“Do you guys want to come too?”

“Well, now that I think about it, I’ve been gaining some extra weight lately, so I should at least walk a little.”

“Yeah, I’m almost thirty now, and my stamina is definitely not what it used to be. Walking is the best exercise, I guess.”

The eldest and second brother both nodded in agreement, listing reasons why they needed to join the walks too.

Watching them, Jungseo seemed to fear that his exclusive time with Jungin was slipping away.

His voice, heavy with dissatisfaction, broke through.

“What are you even talking about? You both work out for two hours every day, with a personal trainer! What nonsense is this?”

But, as usual, he ended up losing to his two older brothers.

“Alright… then we’ll all walk together every day at 8 p.m.”

Since the older brothers had work, the time was set for 8 p.m.

Watching them fight so fiercely over such trivial matters, Jungin hurriedly gulped down his food.

Seeing them bicker like that wasn’t new anymore; it wasn’t enough to wake him up.

After finishing his meal, Jungin finally received his promised coffee, holding it warmly in his hands as he cImbed into the car.

“Good morning, sir.”

“Good morning to you as well, young master.”

A few days ago, a driver had been assigned to take him to and from school.

Since the eldest brother had gotten busier and could no longer drop him off every day, this was the solution.

It was the same for the second and youngest brother, and honestly, this arrangement made him feel more at ease.

“Thank you. Oh, and sir, I have a club meeting after school today, so I might be about an hour late.”

“Understood. I’ll pick you up around 7 p.m. then.”

Today was mock exam day, so school would end earlier than usual.

Afterward, he planned to visit the orphanage, so he gave himself extra time.

As the driver wished him well, Jungin bowed, silently cursing his guilty conscience.

“Lee Jungin. What were you thinking yesterday? You know there are Imits to how far you can joke around, right? Do you even understand how hard it was to settle the matter without calling for a disciplinary hearing?”

As soon as he arrived at school, he was summoned to the teacher’s office.

It seemed that the lecture he’d received after being caned yesterday still hadn’t fully appeased his homeroom teacher’s anger.

“I told you yesterday, I wasn’t joking. I really thought I saw someone acting, so I reacted accordingly. And why do I get in trouble, but students who smoke on school grounds don’t?”

“Hah, talking back like you’ve done nothing wrong? That’s enough. I want you to write a 30-page reflection and submit it by tomorrow morning.”

“Teacher.”

“Make that 50 pages. Anything else?”

Every time he tried to argue, the teacher would bring up calling his guardians, knowing full well that Jungin couldn’t refuse.

“No, nothing else.”

Biting down hard on his lower lip, Jungin’s response seemed to satisfy the teacher, who waved him away.

“Felt like déjà vu.”

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