“Again with the Park family.”
Seo Inho muttered under his breath as he stared at his phone screen. He was seated in the back of a black sedan. Whenever he needed to call a chauffeur, he opted for a sedan instead of a sports car.
Having had a drink before leaving the house, he had no choice but to summon a driver. Instead of sitting behind the wheel himself, Inho sat in the backseat, skimming through additional documents his secretary had sent him.
The file from the secretary was a long personal profile. As he scrolled down, an image of a company ID card appeared. In the photo, a man with a pleasant expression was smiling brightly.
Park Geon-wook. Thirty-six years old. He was the alpha who had dragged Haon through the supermarket.
The bastard worked at the same company as his wife and even had a five-year-old child.
Inho let out a small chuckle as he read through the file. Catching the faint sound of laughter, the driver focused even more on the road.
After glancing through the information, Inho returned to his phone’s home screen and tapped on an app.
A live feed of his bedroom popped up.
Haon was sound asleep on the bed. Switching to the living room camera, he saw Tae-hwi and Ho-young watching TV together.
He had installed home cameras in his bedroom, living room, and the hallway by the front door. It was a precaution in case Haon left the house again without saying a word.
Returning to the bedroom feed, he watched Haon sleeping like the dead. Even seeing him with his own eyes didn’t fully ease his mind.
Inho felt anxious. Everything about Haon made him uneasy.
The black sedan eventually pulled up in front of a six-story motel. Standing near the entrance was Inho’s secretary.
“Room 403.”
Inho stepped out of the car alone and jerked his chin at the secretary to lead the way. His expression darkened further when he took in the exterior of the building.
The moment he stepped inside, the stench of cheap air freshener hit him squarely in the nose.
Riding the tiny elevator, just as cramped as the building itself, Inho shifted his gaze around. Watching the floor numbers rise slowly on the panel, he suddenly remembered something and turned to his secretary.
“May I borrow your ring?”
“My ring, sir?”
“Yes.”
Without asking further questions, the secretary slipped off the old wedding ring from his ring finger and handed it over. Though he had a bad feeling about it, he figured if the ring wasn’t returned, he could always bill Inho for something more expensive. The design was outdated anyway.
“Wait by the door. I’ll be out quickly.”
Sliding the ring onto his middle finger, Inho spoke as he stepped off the elevator first. As expected, the secretary merely nodded without a word, praying that things wouldn’t escalate.
When Inho opened the door to Room 403, the first things he noticed were the tacky wallpaper and blackout curtains. Whether looking at the outside or the inside, it was a place he wouldn’t want to stay in for even a moment longer than necessary.
At the sound of the door opening, the man who had arrived earlier flinched and turned around. He had broad shoulders and was quite tall. His handsome features more or less matched the photo, though he looked far more haggard in person.
“You’re Park Geon-wook, right?”
Inho addressed him while briefly surveying the cramped motel room. He had never imagined he would step foot in a place like this.
“Yes, that’s right…”
The man stood awkwardly, rubbing his mouth as he stared at Inho. His face was dark with stubble from not shaving, and the shadows under his eyes suggested he hadn’t slept properly for days. Still, he had probably gotten more sleep than Inho.
“Your phone first.”
Slumping onto the bed, Inho beckoned with a flick of his fingers. The man, his cracked lips twitching, fished a phone out of his pants pocket and handed it over. It was Haon’s phone.
“The battery died, that’s all. I didn’t turn it off on purpose.”
The man blurted out explanations that hadn’t been asked for, trying desperately to sound calm. But he couldn’t hide the trembling in his eyes.
“Sit.”
Inho said, slipping Haon’s phone into his pocket. The man hesitated, then moved toward a chair against the wall. Before he could reach it, Inho spoke again.
“Not the chair.”
His jet-black eyes flicked toward the floor.
A thick vein bulged on the man’s reddening neck. He swallowed hard and then knelt down on the floor.
“Closer.”
Inho beckoned again with his fingers.
The man crawled forward on his knees across the dusty, stained rug until he reached Inho. Inho watched the man’s flushed face with cold indifference. When the man was within arm’s reach, Inho raised his hand high.
Smack—!
The force of Inho’s punch whipped the man’s head to the side. A splatter of blood hit the rug.
The ring had torn into the man’s cheek, and blood streamed down freely. Clutching his face, the man swayed and collapsed onto the floor.
“You come here often, don’t you?”
Inho grabbed the man by the collar and hauled him back up to a sitting position.
At the sound of Inho’s low voice, the man’s pupils quivered even more violently. The man’s credit card records showed the same motel’s name cropping up every two to three months.
“Did you bring Haon here too?”
Inho asked as he wiped the blood off the back of his hand onto the man’s shoulder. Just from sitting on it, the bed’s squeaky mattress sounded like it might collapse at any moment. The grotesque interior was bad enough, but judging by the yellowed bedding, it was clear the place didn’t even meet basic standards of hygiene.
Guess he thought it was too much of a waste to spend real money on someone he was just using to satisfy his lust. Even though he took his wife and kid to luxury hotels.
“J-just once… we did it just once,” the man stammered.
The man, who had already knelt of his own accord, now lowered himself fully, pressing his body flat against the floor. He begged with his forehead scraping the ground, pleading for Inho not to inform his company.
But it was already too late. All the evidence had been sent to his wife—his credit card transactions, the random chat logs—everything. He couldn’t even deny it. Among his chat partners were several barely-of-age individuals.
“I-I swear, it wasn’t because I wanted to!”
Inho stared down at the human trash, mocking the way he still tried to speak like a person.
“H-he came onto me first! He was panting like he was about to pass out from heat, so I had no choice but to sleep with him!”
As soon as the man finished his pathetic excuse, his head slammed back down against the floor.
“Kegh! Hrk!”
Inho kicked the man’s shoulder, then drove the pointed toe of his dress shoe into the man’s gut. Still unsatisfied, he grabbed the man by the collar and rained punches down on him.
The man’s cheek, already torn, swelled and flushed crimson where Inho’s fist struck again. Groaning in agony, he gagged and heaved, but all that spilled from his mouth was a splash of bile and two intact teeth. Moments later, one of his loosened front teeth clattered out, disappearing into the filthy rug.
“Honestly, thanks.”
Inho said with a cold laugh. He ground the fallen tooth underfoot and locked eyes with the man.
“I really wanted to catch at least one of you bastards… but there just wasn’t a way.”
Grabbing the weeping man by the nape, Inho slammed his head into the floor again and again, murmuring his thanks.
After all, the man had come crawling to him willingly. How could he not be grateful?
***
Before heading home, Inho texted Tae-hwi, telling him he could leave. Along with his thanks, he transferred Tae-hwi a sum so large it would likely scare him. He ignored Tae-hwi’s polite refusal to accept the payment.
He quickened his pace as he passed through the silent front hall and climbed the long staircase. He couldn’t wait to see Haon.
Haon was still sleeping on his side, just like in the video feed. So deeply asleep that even his breathing was nearly imperceptible.
Inho slowly approached the bed and leaned over Haon. He pressed his ear close to Haon’s nose to check if he was still breathing.
Thankfully, a faint, steady sound of breathing soon reached his ears. Suppressing the urge to kiss him, Inho simply took in Haon’s face for a long moment before heading to the bathroom.
Instead of tossing his shirt into the laundry basket, he stuffed it straight into the trash can, then stepped into the shower booth.
He scrubbed himself under water so hot that steam rose into the air, determined to wash off the stench of cheap soap. He cleaned the blood out from under his nails, occasionally closing his eyes and leaning against the wall. The dizziness on top of his insomnia had been getting worse lately. It was only natural—he hadn’t slept properly in days.
Even after Inho finished showering, Haon showed no signs of waking. Although he was always a heavy sleeper, it seemed the accumulated exhaustion and a budding cold had him completely knocked out.
Moving as carefully as possible not to disturb him, Inho climbed onto the bed. He pressed his body tightly against Haon’s back, curling a large arm around his narrow shoulders.
When Inho pressed his nose against Haon’s feverish, heated nape, a faint scent of skin seeped into his senses. It was a warm, comforting scent that soothed him from the inside out.
Inho deliberately inhaled even deeper, filling his lungs with Haon’s scent. Yet it still wasn’t enough; he kept burying his nose into the soft, delicate skin.
He didn’t want to be separated from Haon. He wished he could just merge with him completely. If that were possible, he would never have to feel anxious again, and Haon would never be hurt.
But such a thing was impossible.
Instead, Inho marked Haon with his pheromones. He left his scent everywhere—on the surface and deep within—staking his claim, warning all the other alphas to stay away. If anyone so much as touched him, they would die.
“Kh-cough…”
Haon blinked awake, stirred by the tickling sensation at the back of his neck. Something moist was brushing against his skin.
“Inho-ssi…?”
Recognizing the familiar arms wrapped around him, Haon let out a small sigh of relief—only to widen his eyes when he felt a soft tongue licking at his neck. Had Inho been drinking? But there was no smell of alcohol.
“Sorry for waking you.”
Inho apologized even as he continued to lick Haon’s nape. When Haon gave a tiny, ticklish laugh, Inho pulled him even closer, now gently sucking at his neck.
Haon’s laughter grew a little more complicated.
“That… tickles…”
Haon whispered shyly, pressing his thighs together as he squirmed. His neck felt like it was burning up, almost as if someone had touched his chest instead. Maybe it was just the fever from the cold.
Trying to hide his neck, Haon twisted his body around and faced Inho. The room was too dark to clearly see Inho’s face, which was a shame, but his scent was even more distinct in the darkness.
“Did you take a shower?”
Haon asked, catching the especially pleasant scent coming from Inho—an elegant mixture of body wash and soft skin fragrance that tickled his nose in a good way.
“Yeah, just now.”
Inho slipped under the blanket alongside Haon and opened his arms. Haon, as if he had been waiting, immediately nestled into his embrace.
The slow, steady beat of Inho’s heart soothed Haon’s mind. He closed his eyes for a moment, his lips parting slightly, words ready to spill out. There was so much he wanted to say.
“Where did you go?”
He asked the question that had been weighing on his mind the most, looking up at Inho.
Inho smiled softly before answering and gently touched Haon’s forehead. Thankfully, the fever had gone down a little.
“I’m not sick anymore.”
Haon lightly grasped Inho’s hand, trying to reassure him not to worry. Sensing the sincerity in Haon’s gesture, Inho’s smile grew a bit wider.
He brought Haon’s hand to his lips and kissed each finger one by one as he answered.
“I found your phone.”
Haon’s expression stiffened instantly.
After noticing it, Inho pressed his lips to his own bandaged palm and asked in a low voice.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
