“Yeon Yuri.”
The moment I finished the very official “assignment” with Ki Tae-young and opened the front door, the sight of my pretty baby wearing an apron came into view. Just seeing him melted away the fatigue that had piled up throughout the day, and my heart instantly felt at ease.
I could now clearly understand why people were always chanting about aprons, aprons. It was the perfect outfit that satisfied both a sense of possessiveness—he’s mine—and pure aesthetic pleasure. I did think it was a bit perverted, but it had already been a long time since I’d defined myself as a pervert. It didn’t affect me in the slightest.
“What, baby?”
Smiling brightly, I ran toward Do Jihoon to hug him. But Jihoon lifted a hand and stopped me. At his rejection, I halted mid-run and dejectedly crouched down pitifully near the entrance.
“Why, baby……”
“You smell.”
“Ah, right.”
I’d been with Ki Tae-young the whole time, so it made sense that his pheromone scent had rubbed off on me. Like a marimo suddenly filled with joy, I sprang up and spread both arms out to the sides.
It was so Jihoon could spray his pheromones.
“Here.”
“Good.”
Without a second of hesitation, he began spraying pheromones all over me. From my head, to my face, shoulders, legs, and feet. I wasn’t even exaggerating—it felt like I was submerged in a bathtub filled with pheromones. I was like a single head of cabbage being pickled in a concentrated pheromone solution.
The emotion of jealousy was unmistakably dissolved within his pheromones. I felt sorry about it, but at the same time it made me happy.
Just as the corners of my lips were lifting higher and higher—
“You like it, Yuri?”
His voice was clearly gentle, yet for some reason goosebumps crept up my spine. I felt like a pet dog that had caused trouble and was now nervously watching its owner.
Jihoon let out a faint sigh and strode toward me. Startled, I reflexively tried to run away—but Jihoon was in front of me and the front door was behind me. I couldn’t escape, let alone move.
“W-why are you acting like this……?”
Like a praying believer, I clasped my hands together in front of my chest. But Jihoon simply grabbed my wrists and easily pulled them down. I’d been going to the gym for about a month now, but that level of experience was nowhere near enough to fend off muscle-pig Do Jihoon.
The pheromones he had been spraying all over my body had already shifted tracks—from “jealousy” into something else.
“Yuri. Can you show me your face?”
Jihoon’s lips hovered close to my forehead. His breath stirred my bangs, tickling my skin. I had no idea where things had gone wrong—I couldn’t follow his emotional shift at all.
“……I’m hungry. Let’s eat, okay?”
“Yeah, let’s eat. So lift your face.”
The logic didn’t match at all, so what did he mean so? When I kept my head lowered, Jihoon pressed his lips against my bangs. Then he placed his nose against my forehead and took a deep breath.
And suddenly, a wave of worry hit me.
Oh shit. I’ve been outside all day…! My scalp probably smells like crap!
My heart dropped. I quickly lifted my head and looked at him.
“Hey, Doji! I smell—”
And the face I met looked like that of a predator who had just succeeded in a hunt.
……I was a dumb ameba.
“Mm—”
Unfortunately, he was someone who knew exactly how to make use of a given opportunity. Jihoon lowered his head and pressed his lips against mine like he intended to devour me.
His movements were rough. Even light kisses were usually overwhelming enough—but this passionate kiss quickly left me breathless. When I turned my head to avoid his lips, Jihoon followed me without hesitation.
His pheromones carried a clear sense of displeasure, and he bit down hard on my lips. Before I knew it, the metallic taste of blood lingered on the tip of my tongue.
“Hey, stop……”
“Why, Yuri? Didn’t you come back covered in pheromones all over your body so I’d do this?”
Jihoon pulled his lips away and pressed his forehead against mine.
“What are you talking about?”
“Your whole body reeks of that damn apple scent. It’s so sweet it makes my nose sting.”
His black eyes looked darker than usual. I couldn’t tell if it was because he was displeased or because of some other emotion. The only thing I could be certain of was that he was furious in his agitation.
Unfulfilled possessiveness. Jealousy caused by another alpha. That much was all I could grasp.
Jihoon’s lips repeatedly revealed and hid his canine teeth like those of a carnivore. His gaze was thick, like he might pounce at any moment. My body tensed on its own.
“……”
But Jihoon didn’t pounce.
Instead, as if exhausted, he simply rested his face against my shoulder. The grip around my wrist had long since loosened.
I gently patted his back as he leaned against me, then wrapped my arms around him tightly. Jihoon also slid his arms around my back and held me just as firmly.
After a little time passed, the pheromones that had been whipping around sharply like a fierce wind gradually settled down. It seemed Jihoon had calmed.
“……I’m sorry.”
He suddenly apologized.
“For what?”
I asked sincerely, confused.
“For blocking your movement and treating you roughly.”
“You didn’t treat me roughly.”
“Pushing my lips onto yours out of nowhere isn’t treating you roughly?”
Before I knew it, I was defending Jihoon’s actions, and Jihoon was refuting my defense. I couldn’t shake the feeling that things had gotten completely reversed—but wrong was wrong, so I kept insisting.
“Yeah. I wanted to do it too anyway, so I’m just grateful you started first.”
“……You turned your head like you didn’t want to.”
“I turned it because I needed to breathe, baby. You’ve gotta do things in moderation.”
Jihoon buried his head into my shoulder and rubbed against me with small movements. I liked seeing this childish side of him. Do Jihoon was always so mature, so the sides of him only I was allowed to see were all incredibly lovable.
“Doji. What’s with this apron?”
“I wear it every day.”
“Really? I guess I didn’t know since I’m always just looking at your back. So our Doji dressed up because he wanted to look pretty for Yuri?”
“……What kind of train of thought do you have to go through for it to end up in that direction?”
Jihoon slowly lifted his head and looked at me with a face that had completely gone cold.
Just moments ago he’d been trembling like a puppy in the middle of winter, and now he was looking down at me like a bird observing peristaltic movement in prey. Without another word, he turned and walked into the kitchen.
Sniffling loudly, I shouted that Doji had abandoned me. Jihoon coldly replied that I was being noisy and told me to hurry up and come inside.
***
Time passed before we knew it, and it was already early November.
Do Jihoon and I headed to Yangpyeong with the club members for an MT combined with a paragliding experience. The president said it was to manage time efficiently by combining the two activities. As expected, she was a reliable person.
Inside the large tour bus, we sang songs and played games, enjoying the trip in our own way.
After about an hour of travel, we arrived at the pension, which had a lovely atmosphere and looked beautiful. It sat high in the mountains, surrounded by trees and autumn flowers. Leaves dyed in warm colors and fallen foliage decorated both sky and ground.
“Pretty……”
“No time to admire the scenery. Move the luggage first!”
“We’re using this whole place. There are seven rooms, so we’ll decide later.”
The president and vice president led the club members inside while organizing everyone who had been standing around in awe. We carried our luggage and placed it in one corner of the living room before looking around the inside of the pension.
Just as the president said, the place was huge. Even if we laid out bedding in the living room and slept there, it would still be big enough to accommodate all the club members. Taking a quick peek inside one of the rooms, I even saw a double bed placed inside.
“It’s way bigger than I expected, right?”
“Yeah.”
Unlike me, who was visibly excited, Do Jihoon responded calmly.
“Yeon Yuri! Look over here! There’s a squirrel!”
“What?! Where!”
The club members gathered by the window and called me over, so I quickly ran toward it to see the squirrel.
Since that last drinking gathering, I’d exchanged numbers with the club members and had gotten pretty close with them. When I first sent messages on KakaoTalk, I could see they felt awkward, so I deliberately approached them more enthusiastically.
Now we were practically neighborhood friends.
“Isn’t that just a squirrel?”
“No, look at the tail. It’s weird. That’s a chipmunk.”
“No way, it’s a squirrel.”
“I’m telling you it’s a chipmunk.”
We were in the middle of a completely pointless argument about whether it was a squirrel or a chipmunk when—
“It’s a chipmunk.”
Woo Hyun-woo added his opinion while slinging an arm around the back of my neck. The sudden weight made my body lurch forward.
Woo Hyun-woo quickly grabbed my arm and stopped me from falling.
“Hey. Be careful.”
