Of course, it wasn’t that he was still frightened by the pheromones, but rather that he had no idea how to explain to Seunghyun what had happened with Geonyul.
Geonyul, whom he had thought was the kind main character from the original work, was actually a terrible person. He had tried to use Jin Suhwan to break and deceive Seunghyun. It was something utterly unforgivable.
But he couldn’t bring himself to tell Seunghyun. Although it wasn’t something Suhwan himself had done, the fact remained that in the past, Jin Suhwan had completely fallen for Geonyul and promised to hand over Seunghyun to him.
The current Seunghyun seemed to like him regardless of the past, but even so, bringing up the past in that way felt uncomfortable. He just wanted to see and talk about only good things with Seunghyun.
“It was… nothing much. I was a bit drunk and got worked up…”
“…”
“Really, it’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.”
The excuse was terribly inadequate. Suhwan was worried whether Seunghyun would believe it. Sure enough, Seunghyun stroked the wound on his neck with a serious face and asked:
“Nothing much, yet it left a wound like this?”
“Ah, this is…”
“Should I talk to Ju Geonyul?”
Seunghyun’s fingers lightly traced the still-red marks. A sharp light momentarily flashed in his eyes before disappearing.
“What? No, don’t do that.”
“But if that bastard does something to you again…”
“No. It’s fine, really fine.”
Suhwan could bear Geonyul harming him. But if he touched Seunghyun, that would be unbearable. Moreover, because of their relationship as the main character and male lead, it was impossible to predict what might happen if they met. Suhwan was terrified of that possibility.
“Still…”
As Seunghyun was about to say more, unable to let it go, Suhwan finally squeezed his eyes shut and said:
“I also… don’t like you meeting other alphas.”
“…”
Wow, what a stupid thing to say. Suhwan regretted his words as soon as they left his mouth. But he couldn’t take back what he had already said.
After a moment of silence at Suhwan’s words, Seunghyun mumbled:
“I see. You don’t like me meeting other alphas.”
“Huh…? Yes, that’s right.”
Suhwan slightly opened his eyes at Seunghyun’s response. He saw Seunghyun’s face filled with what seemed like joy. Seunghyun continued with a smile:
“You don’t like me talking to other alphas, or even making eye contact with them, right?”
“What?”
No, not to that extent…
As Suhwan tilted his head, finding Seunghyun’s words somewhat strange, Seunghyun reached out, firmly grasped Suhwan’s hand, and interlaced their fingers.
“Then you shouldn’t speak a single word to any omega other than me, nor make eye contact with them. Right?”
“Huh?”
Why… did the conversation turn this way?
Seeing Suhwan’s confusion, Seunghyun gave a sweet smile.
“I’m joking.”
With a soft chuckle, Seunghyun gently bit Suhwan’s cheek, not enough to hurt.
I almost fell for it… Suhwan, who had been growing anxious, secretly sighed in relief.
“Don’t tease me, really.”
“Hehe.”
Looking at Suhwan as if he found him adorably endearing, Seunghyun laughed again in a low voice. Suhwan felt increasingly embarrassed as time passed.
Moreover, his heart kept beating loudly as if it were malfunctioning. He was worried Seunghyun might hear it.
“Senior, by the way.”
“Yes?”
“Why didn’t you answer your phone yesterday?”
Only then did Suhwan recall that Seunghyun had called him no less than thirty-six times yesterday. At the time, it had been overshadowed by the incident with Geonyul, but with thirty-six calls, something must have happened. Suhwan asked in a concerned voice:
“Ah, I went to the club gathering yesterday. But did something happen yesterday? You called a lot.”
“…You went to the club gathering without telling me?”
“Huh? Ah, that… I’m sorry.”
His mind had been so occupied with the original story’s content and the situation with Geonyul that he had gone to the club gathering without telling Seunghyun. Seeing Seunghyun’s hurt expression, Suhwan realized his mistake.
“I won’t do that again.”
Everything was a first for Suhwan. Liking someone, dating someone. So everything felt clumsy. He wished he had a more sensitive personality, but since he didn’t, he felt very sorry toward Seunghyun.
“It’s okay. But.”
“…?”
“Next time you don’t answer my calls, I’ll lock you up in this room.”
“…!”
Suhwan’s eyes widened at the quietly whispered words. Lock him up? It was a terrifying statement. Suhwan awkwardly opened his mouth:
“That’s also a joke… right?”
“…”
However, Seunghyun merely looked at Suhwan with a faint smile, offering no response. Suhwan continued to watch him nervously.
It must be a joke, right? Surely? There’s no way he would say something like that seriously…
But in the end, Seunghyun did not answer whether it was a joke and changed the subject.
“Aren’t you hungry?”
“Hmm? Oh, yes, I’m hungry. But, um…”
“What should we eat?”
In the end, Suhwan left the bedroom without getting an answer. After eating a simple breakfast with what they had, they sat side by side on the sofa. While playing with Suhwan’s hand, Seunghyun murmured:
“I don’t want to go to work.”
Seunghyun, who worked part-time on weekends, would need to leave soon. Suhwan also felt reluctant to part.
Should I give him money? Just enough for his part-time job earnings, like an allowance… Since we’re engaged, wouldn’t that be acceptable?
He had that thought momentarily but quickly shook his head. In the original story, Seunghyun was the type to clearly separate public and private matters, even when receiving help from Geonyul. Giving money just because he wanted to stay together—it was too selfish and shameless.
However, it seems Seunghyun also shared the same desire not to part.
“Want to come with me?”
“Huh?”
“Let’s go on a date after my shift ends.”
“A date?”
Date. It was a word that resonated differently. Suhwan swallowed hard, feeling his heart tickle involuntarily.
Come to think of it, he had never gone out with Seunghyun. Though they had accidentally met outside a few times, they had never gone out together with a specific destination in mind. A date with Seunghyun. His heart was already fluttering.
“Where are we going?”
“Since my shift ends in the late afternoon, we probably can’t go far. Plus, tomorrow’s Monday.”
“Ah… right.”
“Let’s just shop together and have dinner today.”
“Okay, let’s do that.”
When Suhwan nodded, Seunghyun smiled brightly and gave him a quick peck on the lips. Though by now he should be used to such light kisses, Suhwan’s face reddened again.
Cute. So cute. I want to devour him right now.
Restraining the urge to push him down on the sofa, Seunghyun barely managed to stand up.
“Then let’s get ready and go.”
“Ah…”
Going together meant starting from his commute to work? Then would he have to wait somewhere until Seunghyun’s shift ended? Where?
…Not at the café?
Suhwan’s expression turned slightly pale.
***
D.Clare was a café right in front of the university. This meant that on weekdays during the semester, it was packed with students, but on weekends, it was relatively quiet.
Seated at a single-person table, Suhwan kept looking around. He had even worn a hat in case someone recognized him, but it seemed like needless worry.
With a sigh of relief, he stared at the tall glass before him. White bubbles rose from the yellowish lemonade.
While pretending to watch the drink, Suhwan kept glancing toward the counter. There was Seunghyun, preparing ordered beverages. He looked so good in the café uniform.
Seunghyun wore a dark brown shirt and a black apron. The uniform matched the café’s overall wood-tone ambiance.
Suhwan kept stealing glances at the working Seunghyun, not even looking at the book he had brought to read. Meanwhile, Seunghyun appeared too busy with work to notice, which made Suhwan feel embarrassed about his one-sided behavior.
“Haah.”
Sighing, he traced the surface of the glass with his finger. Water droplets clung to his fingertips from the transparent glass.
He recalled again the original story content he had briefly thought about in the morning. To take Geonyul’s role as the main character, he would first need to persuade Chairman Jin. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to sell the medicine developed by Seunghyun and his brother, nor clear their unjust accusations.
But could he really persuade Chairman Jin? Suhwan honestly wasn’t confident. Unlike Geonyul, who was a dominant alpha and had built a solid position as Hansung’s successor, Suhwan had too many marks against him with Chairman Jin. Though it wasn’t his own doing, Jin Suhwan had lived too disgracefully.
Moreover, Chairman Jin disliked Seunghyun. That’s why he was so determined to break off the engagement… He had no idea what to say to persuade him. The more he thought about it, the more his head ached.
“Ugh.”
“…Senior?”
“Ah!”
Startled, he looked up to find Seunghyun standing beside him, looking down with sympathetic eyes.
When did he come? The surprised Suhwan looked up at Seunghyun.
“I’m sorry. It must be boring waiting.”
“No, it’s fine.”
“Eat this.”
Seunghyun placed something on a plate in front of Suhwan. Looking at it, he saw colorful, appetizing macarons stacked on the plate. Suhwan’s eyes widened.
“Macarons?”
“You haven’t tried the ones here, right? They’re quite delicious.”
“Ah, but I didn’t pay for them.”
“It’s fine, just eat.”
Seunghyun smiled and pushed the plate toward Suhwan. At this, Suhwan couldn’t refuse any further and reached for a macaron.
“I’ll enjoy it.”
“Yes.”
The first one he picked was a pink macaron. Judging by the color, it seemed like it would be strawberry flavored. Suhwan immediately popped the macaron into his mouth.
