…No way. It couldn’t be.
Rather than letting his imagination run wild, contacting the inspection team was the priority. Yeon Yiseo pressed the emergency button, and before the notification had even finished chiming, the on-call 24-hour inspection team responded swiftly.
—Yes, how can we help you?
“The elevator has stopped. It’s Elevator 10 at Dymine headquarters.”
—Confirmed. We’ll dispatch a team immediately. Attempting to escape on your own could be dangerous, so please sit down on the floor and wait. If you’re feeling suffocated, it might be due to nerves. The air circulation system inside the elevator is functioning, so try not to panic. We should arrive within 20 minutes.
“Understood. Please hurry as much as you can.”
After ending the call, Yeon Yiseo turned to Ethan and spoke.
“They said the inspection team is on their way, so we just need to wait a little.”
“I heard. You should sit down too, Mr. Yeon. You’re looking a bit pale.”
He probably did. Because truthfully—he was scared. Not pretending otherwise, Yeon Yiseo quietly followed Ethan’s advice and sat on the floor.
Even though it seemed unlikely, the fear of the elevator crashing kept creeping into his mind. This wasn’t some run-down building in the slums—it was Dymine’s, which underwent regular inspections. The fact that something like this could happen here felt unreal.
He used to wonder why people got scared in situations like this. Now that he was living through it, he understood: it was the fear fueled by imagination—imagining the worst-case scenario.
What if the cables snapped and the elevator plummeted? He had no choice but to wait helplessly, trapped in his own anxiety. The elevator that had always felt spacious suddenly seemed claustrophobic. The air circulating inside even made it feel a little chilly.
He brought his knees together, rested his arms atop them, and let out a quiet sigh—
Only to raise his head when he sensed someone moving closer.
“CEO?”
“You seemed really scared. I figured asking you to come over would be pointless—you didn’t look like you could move.”
He was right. Ethan had come and sat right next to him. The warmth radiating from the person beside him helped ease some of the tension.
There was a pleasant scent in the air—warm yet refreshing. It was a little ridiculous, given the situation, but the fragrance calmed him and lifted his mood. The thirst that had been nagging at him all this time seemed to dull slightly.
Sniffing quietly to trace the source of the scent, Yeon Yiseo quickly realized it was coming from Ethan.
“Sorry, you just… smell really nice…”
“Feeling a bit better now?”
“Huh? Ah, yes. I am… Um, by any chance…”
Ethan looked at him silently. That alone was enough for Yeon Yiseo to realize the comforting scent was Ethan’s pheromone.
“I heard you’re a recessive Omega, so I need to be extra careful with regulation.”
“Ah, um… Thank you.”
Ethan was doing this out of kindness. There couldn’t be any other motive.
Judging from what he’d said, Ethan had only released a very mild amount of pheromones. He hadn’t needed to do that, and yet he had—just to ease Yeon Yiseo’s fear. That alone was more than enough reason to be grateful.
“It’s the first time I’ve ever smelled someone else’s pheromones.”
Yeon Yiseo muttered quietly, and Ethan, catching it, looked slightly surprised.
“Really? After your manifestation, wouldn’t you have needed someone’s help?”
“Haha… Well, I had my reasons.”
“For someone who says that…”
Ethan trailed off mid-sentence as if lost in thought. Yeon Yiseo waited for him to continue.
“For someone who says that, your scent… wasn’t bad at all.”
“Is that so?”
Yeon Yiseo didn’t really have a reply for that, so he just responded simply.
To him, Ethan’s pheromones were like a high-end perfume. Maybe it was because Ethan was an extreme-dominant Alpha, or maybe because he was showing Yeon Yiseo particular kindness, but there was zero discomfort—only the desire to breathe it in more.
Maybe… if he inhaled a bit more of that pheromone, the thirst might go away completely.
“I’m not very good at telling these things.”
“You’re already leaking a little.”
“…What?”
He’d let his guard down. It must’ve been the stress—he hadn’t even realized his own pheromone regulation was slipping. While he fumbled to fix it, Ethan spoke.
“It’s fine. Leave it. I already told you—your pheromones aren’t bad.”
“N-no, still…”
“In this situation, it’s better to conserve your energy than exhaust yourself trying to regulate it. Don’t you think?”
“…Yes.”
He was right. In this kind of high-stress situation, even focusing was hard. And since Ethan didn’t mind the scent, even understanding it…
Wait—he shouldn’t be sitting around like this. He needed to update Natalie. Realizing what he’d forgotten, Yeon Yiseo pulled his phone out of his pocket.
Just as he was about to call her, the ringtone suddenly blared, startling him. He flinched, shoulders jerking at the unexpected noise. Embarrassed by how jumpy he was over something so trivial, he answered the call with a sheepish smile.
It was Natalie.
—Yiseo? Where are you?
It was already past the time he should’ve been back in the office, so she must’ve called out of concern.
“Ah, I was just about to call you, but you beat me to it. I’m stuck in the elevator right now.”
—What?
Natalie sounded confused, like she didn’t quite process his calm tone.
“I was on my way down when it happened. Looks like it’ll be a bit of a wait.”
—Oh no. Did you contact the inspection team?
Understanding the situation immediately, Natalie must’ve jumped out of her seat—Yeon Yiseo could hear the commotion on her end.
“Yes. They said about 20 minutes, so I’ll have to hang tight a little longer.”
—Alright… Hmm. There’s nothing I can really do, is there? But I’m worried. Are you alone?
“No, I’m with… the CEO.”
—Wait, what? Oh. Ohh… Goodness. Okay. Just call me as soon as you get out, alright? Promise?
“Yes, I will.”
He ended the call there. Ethan had probably heard everything.
“You two seem close.”
“We are. Natalie’s helped me a lot—whoa!”
Clunk.
The elevator jolted again. Yeon Yiseo let out a startled cry and shut his eyes tight. When he opened them, he realized he had instinctively latched onto Ethan.
“Ah, sorry—sorry!”
“It’s alright.”
He tried to pull back, flustered by the realization—but then, whoosh, Ethan’s pheromone scent enveloped him.
Maybe a few seconds passed. His heartbeat, which had surged from the sudden movement, began to calm again. It was… honestly, a pretty amazing feeling.
“I tried to be careful, thinking I might make you uncomfortable, since you only just manifested. But you seemed so anxious…”
“Yeah…”
Yeon Yiseo slowly nodded.
His body was leaning gently against Ethan. The comfort he felt now was on a completely different level than before. Was this what an extreme-dominant Alpha could do? Ethan’s arm wrapped around his back, his hand so large it felt like it could hold Yeon Yiseo’s entire shoulder.
“When you smell someone’s pheromones, is it always this… calming?”
Yeon Yiseo asked, his voice dazed and dreamy.
“If you ask something like that in a voice like that, I might get the wrong idea.”
Ethan’s voice echoed low in his ear. Yeon Yiseo wanted to understand what he meant, but his brain just wasn’t functioning. It took longer than usual for the meaning to register, and even once it did, he couldn’t form a response.
It was warm. Comfortable. He didn’t want to move.
His body leaned more into Ethan, and his forehead brushed against the man’s shoulder. He could feel the smooth texture of a high-quality suit.
He stared at Ethan’s deep navy tie, and then his gaze drifted up. Ethan was already looking at him, so their eyes met immediately.
How long had he been watching? Yeon Yiseo’s eyes widened slightly. Up close, he noticed for the first time that Ethan’s blue eyes had a hint of green in them. Ethan’s breath brushed against his cheek.
His mind was hazy. Thinking was impossible. The scent of Ethan’s pheromones was far too intoxicating.
“Just a little more… pheromones…”
The words came out like a plea. Yeon Yiseo barely recognized his own voice.
The moment he finished speaking, the pheromone that had been leaking so faintly suddenly deepened—flooding the enclosed space with its rich, heady scent.
At that moment, he felt like… it didn’t matter what happened anymore. Ethan’s face moved closer.
…No. This isn’t right. I shouldn’t.
But the voice inside his head was growing fainter and fainter.
Clunk.
“Are you alright?!”
The elevator doors opened, and someone from the inspection team called out to them. It looked like they had finally arrived. The elevator was stuck between two floors, and the team could be seen from below.
Yeon Yiseo snapped out of it and turned to Ethan.
“You should go first.”
“No, Mr. Yeon—you go ahead.”
Ethan wasn’t budging. In the end, Yeon Yiseo accepted the help and was the first to be rescued from the faulty elevator.
