Siwoo silently draped a cardigan over Sanho’s shoulders. For a brief moment, it could shield Sanho from the blatant gazes of the street. However, the large hand that had wrapped the cardigan around him soon lost its strength and fell away. It was due to the unbearable patience that had worn thin. Siwoo leaned his forehead against Sanho’s shoulder as if he were collapsing.
“Hyung… I…”
“Sanho.”
He carefully brushed over the bandage that wrapped around Sanho’s collarbone.
“Are you hurt…? Does it hurt now?”
Sanho’s body stiffened at Siwoo’s trembling voice. A voice suppressed by Siwoo’s clenched teeth burst forth.
“You’re really… hurt. You were cut by a knife.”
“…I…”
“It must have hurt.”
Something foreign trickled down his cheek. The hot moisture was sufficiently foreign. A tear that rolled down Siwoo’s cheek gathered at the tip of his chin before falling down. It landed on Sanho’s hand. As Sanho looked at his wet hand, he spoke in a small voice.
“Are you… crying…?”
“I missed you, you know.”
“…….”
“I really, really missed you.”
Siwoo slowly lifted his head. The eyes that curved beautifully like a crescent moon when he smiled were now damp instead of warm laughter. A thin stream of water traced down his pale cheek. Sanho’s face, staring blankly at Siwoo’s wet face, was as white as a sheet. Another drop of moisture trickled down his cheek.
“But… I didn’t want to see this.”
He carefully adjusted the cardigan wrapped around Sanho. The strength in his hand gradually increased until it was tightly clenched into a fist.
“I didn’t want to see you seducing someone whose face you don’t even know…”
“…….”
“Do you even know where you are? How dangerous a place like this is… Why do you keep doing this…?”
“No, no. I really didn’t mean to….”
“Am I just constantly getting in your way?”
Siwoo didn’t catch the way Sanho’s mouth, which had barely opened, closed again. His vision was completely blurred.
“Meeting Yang Joo-cheol, releasing your pheromones on your own, clinging to and groping an unknown person here… all of that is what you wanted, isn’t it? And I’m the one who keeps getting in your way without even knowing that?”
The tears hanging on his eyelashes created a distortion. Looking at Sanho, Siwoo spoke as if to himself.
“Why can’t you just do what you want?”
Why won’t you say anything even now?
“Why is it so difficult for you?”
It would be nice if you could at least give me some excuse. Sanho quietly placed his hand on Siwoo’s clenched fist, which was still holding the cardigan. Looking at the blood-stained sleeve of his patient gown, Sanho spoke.
“What should I do for you to be okay with me?”
“…Sanho.”
“You can’t do what I want either.”
“I’m struggling too. I don’t know what’s so difficult. Everything is just… difficult.”
Siwoo quietly watched his own face reflected in Sanho’s dark eyes.
“Hyung.”
“…….”
“Do what you want to do the most right now.”
“…….”
“Don’t think about anything, just do what your heart wants right now.”
For a moment, it felt like time had stopped. The bustling noise of the street felt eerily quiet, as if it had entered a vacuum. Siwoo’s clenched fist slowly relaxed, and that hand cradled Sanho’s small cheek. His large hand, covering Sanho’s face, firmly held his round cheek and the back of his head. Their lips met.
“Ha…”
Siwoo’s fingertips gently pressed down. As if wanting to roughly invade between Sanho’s lips, his smooth tongue traced the outline of Sanho’s round lips. But it didn’t dare to push in. Only after Sanho’s lips parted slightly did he cautiously push the tip of his tongue inside. A fierce desire surged within him, wanting to devour him right then and there.
“Ugh, ah…”
But he couldn’t hold this boy in his arms with uncertainty. He couldn’t act like the other Alphas who treated him roughly. What Siwoo wanted wasn’t that.
“Mm…”
As the kiss carefully explored his mouth, a soft moan slipped through Sanho’s lips, as if he were burning with desire. Siwoo, who had been gently sliding his lips along Sanho’s jawline, barely restrained the urge to kiss the nape of his neck and slowly lifted his head. He brushed his thumb over Sanho’s lips, which were moist from his saliva. Sanho quietly asked.
“Why did you kiss me?”
“…Sanho, I…”
“Was kissing me what you wanted to do the most right now? Why?”
“…….”
“I really don’t understand. I have no idea what you’re thinking or what you want.”
Sanho grasped Siwoo’s hand, which was trying to pull away from his lips.
“Do you think I’m a vulgar Omega?”
Sanho lowered his eyes, twisted in pain. Soon, his despairing face lifted again to look at Siwoo. Sanho pressed Siwoo’s fingertip, which had touched his lips, into his own mouth. Sanho’s smooth and moist tongue met the fingertip that had invaded between his lips. Like a child licking a cherished candy, his tongue moved gently.
“I didn’t want to show you something like this. I’d rather die. But right now…”
“…….”
“I wish you wanted my body like the other Alphas do. Then it would have been easier. Acting in a way that pleases you—”
“Baek Sanho.”
“I just wanted to be by your side. That’s all.”
“Baek Sanho, listen to me.”
Siwoo pulled his hand away from Sanho’s lips and took hold of Sanho’s hand again. Various emotions were gathered in his still wet eyes.
“I want just one thing.”
“…….”
“I don’t want anyone to treat you carelessly, Sanho. Not even you… I don’t want you to treat yourself carelessly. You, the most precious person in the world, I don’t want anyone to touch you.”
“……What does that mean? Is that all you want?”
“You don’t know how dangerous it is for you right now.”
“I don’t care about that—”
“No, it matters to me.”
Sanho. Siwoo called Sanho softly and opened his mouth again.
“I’ll give you everything you want. I can do everything you want.”
Sanho’s hand, trapped in Siwoo’s large hand, trembled slightly. Siwoo looked at Sanho with determined eyes.
“Just say one word. Just one word so I can protect you. Then I can grant you everything you want. Everything.”
“…….”
“Just say you need help, just one word.”
Sanho looked at Siwoo for a while.
“If I say that… will you stay by my side? No matter what happens?”
“Yeah. No matter what.”
Just like when he asked if he liked him under the white stars dotted against the black sky at the camping site, Sanho chewed on his lip. His lips, which had been fluttering as if they would open, finally parted.
“…Please help me. As you wish.”
The moment the small voice punctuated the sentence, Siwoo pulled Sanho into a tight embrace. He held him so tightly that he could hardly breathe. Their hearts thudded against each other. A sweet scent wafted gently from Sanho’s nape. It wasn’t a sultry pheromone, but rather a fresher scent of Sanho. The pure and innocent scent of Sanho was perhaps more seductive than pheromones. The desire to sink his teeth into that nape and leave a mark surged within him.
Siwoo slowly took a deep breath. He had to be satisfied with just inhaling this sweet scent. That was his role in protecting this boy.
“…….”
“…….”
To protect the boy in his arms, Siwoo recalled what he needed to do. A concrete and clear plan was necessary. It had to be a very solid and elaborate plan. First, he needed to avoid his father’s notice. Provoking his father further would only worsen the situation. He needed time to hide Sanho in a safe place, and to create that time, he had to conceal himself from his father’s sight. Not just himself, but Sanho as well.
Reluctantly, Siwoo slowly released his grip on Sanho’s shoulder. The fist that had been clenched behind Siwoo also relaxed. As Siwoo quietly gazed at the neon lights reflected in Sanho’s dark eyes, he spoke.
“Sanho, listen carefully. This is important.”
“…Yes.”
“I might not be able to see you for a while. Maybe a little longer. I might not be able to find you or run into you.”
“Why…?”
“I have things to prepare. Just wait a little, and I’ll definitely come to find you.”
“How long do I have to wait…?”
“As soon as possible.”
At that moment, a man in a black suit caught Siwoo’s eye as he walked up to the entrance of P Club. It seemed he had found the people he was looking for, as he headed straight toward Siwoo and Sanho. Siwoo kept his mouth shut as he faced the man. The pheromones of the dominant Alpha spread out, creating a sense of tension. The man in the black suit, Gyu-cheol, paused for a moment at Siwoo’s sharp vigilance. But soon, he stood calmly in front of them.
“Director Jin Siwoo.”
“…….”
“You need to return to the hospital. The car will arrive shortly.”
Siwoo met Gyu-cheol’s gaze without breaking his expression. He didn’t say a word, but the Alpha’s pheromones swirled threateningly. Gyu-cheol’s breathing quickened slightly, as if suffocated by Siwoo’s pheromones. However, he continued in a dry tone.
“I will take Baek Sanho home.”
When his name was called, Sanho frowned and looked at Gyu-cheol. Siwoo pulled Sanho’s shoulder a little closer to him. Gyu-cheol, watching that closely, spoke again.
“You know that’s the most rational decision. The chairman is watching.”
Gyu-cheol slightly turned his head to glance at the tall club’s exterior wall.
“It would be safest for Baek Sanho to go with me.”
After taking a breath, he poured out more words. This time, it was directed at Sanho.
“The chairman has instructed that the bet be postponed. He said he would give Baek Sanho a chance.”
A bet? Siwoo’s eyebrows furrowed. Turning his head to look at Sanho, he saw Sanho glaring defiantly at the club’s exterior wall, his mouth tightly shut. What kind of bet is he talking about? If there’s a situation I don’t know about…
“Let’s go, Director. You know it wouldn’t be good to provoke the chairman any further today.”
Just then, a black sedan slid into the alley. The car, with heavily tinted windows, quietly approached and stopped in front of them. Siwoo stared at the car that had come to a halt before him.
“Director, hurry.”
In fact, Gyu-cheol was right. As he had thought, provoking his father would only lead to trouble. It was wiser to remain inconspicuous right now. The reason that had been dominated by emotions quickly returned to its cold state. Siwoo gently stroked Sanho’s shoulder. He tried to smile at the frightened eyes looking at him.
“Sanho, can you wait for me?”
“…Hyung.”
“Yeah? You’ll wait for me, right?”
Sanho shook his head slightly. His furrowed eyes were anxiously directed at Siwoo. Siwoo managed to smile, hoping that Sanho would feel a little relieved.
“Just let me go for now, Sanho.”
“I don’t want to. You said we might not see each other for a while…”
Siwoo bent down to look closely at Sanho’s face. He stared intently into his dark eyes.
“Yeah. If you don’t let me go, I won’t leave.”
“Then… go—”
“But right now, you have to let me go.”
In a small voice, Siwoo continued.
“Only then can I come to find you. I’ll definitely do that.”
His wet eyes became stiff. Hoping that Sanho wouldn’t feel anxious, Siwoo smiled gently. Finally, Sanho nodded at him. A sense of relief washed over him at that gesture of permission. There was no longer any room to think of anything else. He would act solely to protect this boy. Once he safely protected him,
“Sanho, there’s something I want to tell you.”
Stopping his steps, Siwoo spoke to Sanho.
“I’ll tell you when we meet again. I promise.”
“What… what is it?”
Siwoo smiled faintly at Sanho.
“It’s that I love you.”
Sanho’s eyes widened in surprise.
“When that time comes, you have to answer me too. Just like I asked at the camping site.”
Tell me if you like me too. Siwoo’s hand, which had rested on Sanho’s shoulder, slowly fell away.
