I was at a loss for words at such a shameless proposition. In exchange for letting me see Se-yul, he wanted me to stay by his side. It seemed he had completely erased from his memory the reason I had come to this place in the first place.
There was so much I wanted to say, but I didn’t want to waste any more energy. I had learned to give up because I knew that no matter what I said, the outcome would be the same.
He stared at me in silence, then left with a faint, clouded smile. I waited until the soft crunching of grass beneath his feet faded completely before finally lifting my downcast gaze.
—”I’ll give you everything you want, Seo-yul hyung.”
Such pretty words, yet he wouldn’t even consider giving me the one thing I truly wanted. He didn’t seem to care where things had gone wrong, as long as he could keep me by his side.
Even if I hated him, ignored him, or resented him—was that all truly fine with him? He claimed to love me, begged for my affection, and yet, why did he keep making things so difficult for me?
—”Don’t abandon me.”
Then choose: be a villain or a pitiable wretch—just pick one. The way I despised him yet couldn’t help but feel sorry for him was driving me insane. This must be what they call a love-hate relationship.
“I don’t want to think about this.”
I shook my head violently, cutting off the flood of thoughts. Jumping to my feet, I wrung the excess water from my soaked clothes and went to put on the shoes I had taken off earlier.
Before heading back to my bedroom, I took one last look around the greenhouse, which was too vast to take in at a glance. I genuinely liked this place, but the thought of it becoming just another cage dampened any sense of joy.
‘It’s all the same.’
Thinking back, I had never particularly liked gardens even when I was in District 5. I had only gone outside because staying cooped up in my room was suffocating. It wasn’t that I ever had a special fondness for flowers or greenery.
Just as the version of him in my memories remained frozen in childhood, the version of me he remembered was also stuck in the past. That’s why he didn’t know what I liked now—he was simply chasing after childhood memories.
The first garden we visited together, the greenhouse where we first stood under the moonlight… Perhaps, deep down, he sincerely wished we could return to the way we were before we parted ways.
‘How pathetic.’
Lost in thought again, I gazed at the flower fields stretching into the distance. I only snapped out of it when I heard approaching footsteps. Quickly wiping my eyes, I turned around—only to find a stranger standing before me.
“Hello.”
Though somewhat faint, the man’s hair was close to a reddish hue. The moment I recognized him as a Shining, I instinctively raised my hand to cover my nose and mouth, but he quickly reassured me that it wasn’t necessary.
“Oh, don’t worry. My pheromones are weak, so you’ll be fine.”
Even so, I couldn’t bring myself to trust him completely, so I remained on high alert and put some distance between us. The man tried a bit more to ease my wariness, but eventually, he let out a deep sigh as if giving up.
Looking at him closely, his face felt incredibly familiar. What was the name of that unwelcome intruder who had barged into my bedroom once? The Shining who hadn’t gotten along with him—
“…Joshua?”
“Joshua is my twin brother. My name is Jeremy.”
The Joshua I remembered had been rude and violent, but the man who introduced himself as Jeremy seemed far more gentle and polite in comparison.
Even though they had identical faces, Jeremy’s hair was noticeably lighter than Joshua’s. It was more brown than red—so much so that if I hadn’t paid close attention, I might not have realized he was a Shining at all.
“Have you met my brother before?”
“Once… before.”
“I doubt it was a pleasant experience.”
Jeremy smiled brightly as if filling in the unspoken words I had left out. His friendly demeanor, so different from Joshua’s, made me lower my guard just a little.
Only after cautiously lowering my hand from my nose and mouth did I take a proper look at him. His smiling face, befitting a Shining, was undeniably attractive.
Of course, not as much as a certain someone I was sick of seeing.
“What should I call you?”
“Me?”
“Yes. I figured you wouldn’t like it if I called you ‘Vincent’s future mate.’”
“Han Seo-yul.”
The moment I heard the words “Vincent’s mate,” my brow furrowed, and I gave my name without hesitation. Jeremy’s eyes widened slightly before he let out a laugh.
“Ah, Han Seo-yul. Then I’ll call you Seo-yul.”
I didn’t particularly like how he casually dropped my surname from the very first meeting, but I let him do as he pleased since we likely wouldn’t see each other again after this.
“I’ve wanted to meet you at least once.”
“Me?”
“Yes. Everyone’s curious, you know—about the omega Vincent personally brought in and intends to make his mate.”
My shoulders flinched at how naturally Jeremy referred to me as an omega. Having lived in District 1, I knew all too well how omegas were treated here, and my reaction was purely instinctual.
“Did you know the whole district was thrown into chaos because of it?”
“…Was I supposed to?”
“Well, not really. You’re not from District 1, after all.”
The amusement lingering in his eyes vanished in an instant. It was brief, but I caught the shift immediately and instinctively rebuilt the defenses I had just let down.
Never trust a Shining. Someone had said that before. Was it Se-yul?
“Joshua said you might be pregnant. Does that mean we’ll be seeing the first Shining soon?”
“What—”
Not just the district leader, but everyone else, too—they were oddly sensitive about pregnancy news. I was about to deny it outright, saying it was ridiculous, but when I saw Jeremy’s eerily gleaming eyes, I quickly shut my mouth.
I shouldn’t say anything.
Pressing my lips tightly together, I glanced behind me. He should be back by now, but there was still no sign of him. Jeremy followed my gaze and asked,
“Where did Vincent go?”
“He went to grab something for a moment…”
Smoothly, without permission, his hand reached out and touched my cheek.
At that moment, a faint trace of pheromones brushed past the tip of my nose. It was subtle, almost buried under the overwhelming scent of flowers around us, but even that fleeting whiff was enough to make my face twist in disgust.
“Just… Ugh.”
I shoved Jeremy away and staggered back, putting a wide distance between us. If I had inhaled that scent any longer, I was sure I would have vomited everything inside me.
“Seo-yul, are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
I raised a hand to stop Jeremy from approaching. But he, full of concern, insisted that I didn’t look well and kept trying to come closer. In the end, an unintentional game of tag ensued—until I misstepped and plunged straight into the lake.
“Seo-yul!”
I flailed my arms, struggling to regain my balance, but it was no use. Something seemed to be pulling me down, dragging me deeper into the water. Through my blurring vision, I saw bubbles rising to the surface.
I can’t breathe.
As my consciousness began slipping away, a hand suddenly grabbed my limp arm. And just as I was about to sink endlessly into the depths, my body was yanked upward.
“Haah… Hah…”
“Seo-yul hyung, are you okay?”
Still unable to regain my senses, I felt his urgent voice tremble as he held onto me. His hand patted my back, and before I could even think, I coughed up the water I had swallowed. Cough, cough—the spasms wouldn’t stop.
“Jeremy, what the hell do you think you’re doing?”
He turned his gaze to Jeremy, his voice cold. Jeremy, who had been standing near the lakeshore, immediately began explaining himself, claiming it wasn’t what it looked like. But the moment his eyes flared, bloodshot with rage, I knew he wasn’t listening.
“N-No, I— Hah… I fell in on my own.”
I barely managed to grab his arm before he could storm out of the lake. His furious eyes locked onto mine. Good. If I hadn’t stopped him, I didn’t know what might have happened.
I wanted to tell him that we should just go back to the bedroom. But the amount of water I had swallowed made my stomach churn, and only dry heaves came out instead.
“Let’s go back first.”
He lifted me into his arms as he spoke. Both of us were soaking wet, but his warmth seeped into me. Resting my head against his chest, I let out a small hum of agreement.
He waded through the water and carried me toward the greenhouse exit.
“Seo-yul—”
“Move.”
He cut Jeremy off before he could finish. A sudden surge of pheromones poured out of him, and the nausea in my gut finally settled.
He took a step forward and murmured softly,
“Get some rest.”
Only then did I allow my grasp on consciousness to slip away.
