LM 55

“Do I need to take with me this many suppressants whenever I go out?”

“You never know what might happen out there.”

“You don’t think I’ll cause an accident, do you?”

Kwon Siyul meant it as a light joke. However, Kwon Yuwon paused to stare at Kwon Siyul’s grinning face. His glaring eyes were fierce, and the orange scent pheromones he had been consciously hiding also sharpened menacingly.

“I’m sorry.”

Not knowing exactly what had upset the other man, Kwon Siyul apologized, kneeling down. Kwon Yuwon let out a heavy sigh and stuffed a jelly into Kwon Siyul’s mouth.

“They say the chance of pregnancy for a recessive is almost zero, but…No, you shouldn’t even create the opportunity. I told you, don’t meet alphas. If you don’t meet them, there won’t be any problems coming to the surface.”

“Then why the suppressants?”

“Because when heat comes, you might lose your mind. You could end up facing situations you don’t want.”

There was deep worry in his eyes as he looked at Kwon Siyul. As Kwon Siyul tried to reassure him not to worry, that he’d handle things well, Kwon Yuwon waved his hand and changed the subject.

“Stop the useless talk and let’s practice containing your pheromones. They’re leaking again.”

“You’re going to be by my side all the time now, so why teach me so intensively? No one’s chasing us, let’s take it slow. I’m dying of sleepiness as it is.”

“Where’s the time for that? Hey, again, again! Focus!”

The shouting completely drove away Kwon Siyul’s sleepiness. Despite the neighbor’s plea to let them sleep and be quiet, Kwon Yuwon, with bloodshot eyes, kept drilling Kwon Siyul relentlessly.

And in the morning, Kwon Yuwon was gone. He left only text messages and disappeared again. It was like going underwater without actually going underwater.

Kwon Yuwon left one messages in total. ‘Sorry, I’ll contact you occasionally, don’t worry.’ Kwon Siyul couldn’t help feeling hurt and disappointed. Even though he had been an adult for quite some time, he still felt like someone Kwon Yuwon couldn’t trust.

Kwon Siyul rubbed his puffy eyes, looked at the messages, then dropped his arm with a thud. It was no wonder that Kwon Yuwon had been so strict about even small mistakes—there was a reason for it all. While grumbling that it was heartless to leave without even saying goodbye, Kwon Siyul was more worried than anything.

‘I won’t do anything more to make you sorry. So…’

As Kwon Siyul was straddling the boundary between sleep and wakefulness, Kwon Yuwon, turned away, and muttered. There was a firm resolve in his voice. Kwon Siyul wanted to ask what he meant, but having just crossed from reality into the world of sleep, the question only lingered in his mouth before fading away.

However, the sulking time didn’t last long. Kwon Siyul looked at his phone and jumped up in a hurry. The numbers on the screen already pointed to a late lunchtime. If he dawdled for just 5 more minutes, he’d definitely be late.

As Kwon Yuwon had advised, Kwon Siyul didn’t mention at work that he had differentiated. Everyone except him was beta anyway. In case a customer noticed, he would diligently contain his pheromones. Fortunately, his efforts paid off, and no one asked Kwon Siyul if he smelled strange or if he was an omega. It seemed spending the entire night being scolded by Kwon Yuwon while learning the steps to control his pheromones was worth it.

“Oh.”

It was starting to feel like he ran into Woo Taeju every time he took out the trash. Woo Taeju had given up on piano playing and switched to guitar. It got a better response overall. According to the manager, sometimes there were mistakes with the piano, but not with the guitar.

As if feeling good from all the praise he was getting, Woo Taeju boasted that he had even received a scout offer from a famous band. Then he whispered to Kwon Siyul, ‘As a guest member though,’ and giggled like a mischievous child.

When their eyes met, Woo Taeju quickly dropped his cigarette and stubbed it out with his sneaker. As he bent down to pick up the butt, Kwon Siyul, holding a garbage bag anyway, reached out his hand, saying to give it to him. Woo Taeju was startled and shook both his hands and head.

“You can just throw it in here…Give it to me.”

“No, I’ll take care of it myself.”

“It’s just one cigarette butt, come on.”

Kwon Siyul nonchalantly took the butt from Woo Taeju’s hand and stuffed it into a gap in the bag. Woo Taeju, who had been watching from the side, seemingly feeling very sorry about something, snatched the bag from Kwon Siyul’s hand. Simultaneously, he let out a short shout and threw the bag into the dumpster. The lump, larger than Kwon Siyul’s entire upper body, arched through the air before landing with a loud thud inside.

Kwon Siyul was inwardly impressed. It looked like he was strong too. Perhaps due to the difference in build despite both being men, what Kwon Siyul would throw while standing on tiptoes and grunting, Woo Taeju tossed like a basketball.

“Thank you.”

As Kwon Siyul bowed his head in gratitude, Woo Taeju waved his hand around, saying there was no need to thank him for such a small thing. As Kwon Siyul was about to turn and go inside, Woo Taeju called out, “Hey,” stopping him in his tracks. He hesitated, scratching the back of his head as if he wanted to say something, and only spoke when Kwon Siyul tilted his head to one side in curiosity.

“Do you like performances, hyung?”

“Well, I’ve never been to one.”

“Then would you like to go see one with me?”

Kwon Siyul stared at Woo Taeju. Although they had agreed to be friends, Woo Taeju had confessed to him before. Wondering if he hadn’t given up and was asking him on a date, Kwon Siyul’s expression grew serious.

“No, it’s not a date request! My cousin plays the violin. She’s having a concert and gave me tickets. She gave me two, but I don’t have anyone to go with…”

Realizing his thoughts might have been written all over his face, Woo Taeju hastily denied it. He went on to explain his reasons in rapid-fire succession, clearly trying not to burden Kwon Siyul.

“A violin solo concert?”

“Yes. It’s just like Hyena playing piano here. We just go, listen to the performance, and come back.”

“When is it?”

“The third Wednesday of this month. I think that’s your day off?”

How did he know when Kwon Siyul had a day off? Woo Taeju stared at Kwon Siyul’s lips as if desperately hoping for an acceptance to come out of them.

It was still early in the month, yet he was asking so far in advance. Kwon Siyul had no set plans, of course. He’d probably be lounging at home alone while Woo Hyunse was at work. But just as he was about to readily agree, he thought back to Woo Taeju’s confession. He worried about giving false hope when he had no intention of reciprocating those feelings.

“My cousin said if I don’t come, the audience will be empty and told me to bring a friend too. You know, playing to an empty hall is disheartening. It makes you wonder why you’re even performing in the first place. Having someone in the audience makes playing guitar even more worthwhile. It must be the same for Jihye noona…”

Woo Taeju trailed off, lowering his eyes with a bitter expression on his face. Kwon Siyul had thought it would be better to refuse, but imagining Woo Taeju’s unknown cousin playing alone to an empty hall made him waver. Surely at least one person would come. At the same time, seeing empty seats would be really discouraging to the performer.

On the other hand, Kwon Siyul realized Woo Taeju might have no ulterior motives and might have genuinely cleared his mind, simply trying to put some good use to the extra ticket. His worry might just be unnecessary caution.

“I’ll go.”

If that was the case, there was no need to refuse. When Kwon Siyul nodded willingly, Woo Taeju’s face lit up brightly. He was like a street lamp shining alone in a dark alley. He grabbed Kwon Siyul’s hand excitedly, then realized a beat later and pulled away as if burned. Still seeming unsatisfied, he clenched and unclenched his fist behind his back.

“Really? You’ll come with me? No backing out or canceling, hyung.”

“You said it’s my day off anyway. There’s no reason not to go…If the hall is empty, it would be disappointing, right? We should help fill the seats.”

When Kwon Siyul grinned, Woo Taeju’s eyes wavered for a moment. He closed them tightly, then opened them and curved his lips into a smile. His lower lip seemed to tremble slightly, but that was probably just an illusion created by the darkness around them.

“Aren’t you going in? It’s cold today.”

“Ah, yes, I should. Let’s go together, hyung.”

Woo Taeju stuck close behind Kwon Siyul. Stamping his feet from the cold, he reached his long arm over Kwon Siyul’s shoulder to open the door himself. Such kindness wasn’t necessary. Kwon Siyul looked up at him, but Woo Taeju simply smiled innocently, as if there wasn’t a trace of ulterior motive in anything he did.

* * *

[Yuwon is back.]

[I’m going back to my place.]

“…”

Woo Hyunse stared at the text message intently, as if doing so would make a new message appear or rearrange the letters into a different sentence. No matter how much he glared at it, the words didn’t change, and no new message came.

More than anything else, the word “my place” particularly bothered Woo Hyunse. Calling that shabby inn “my place.” It made it seem like the place they had been living together until now wasn’t Kwon Siyul’s “place.”

How cold-hearted.

He tossed the phone onto the desk and leaned back in his chair. It creaked, tilting back too far. Feeling a suffocating tightness around his neck, he fumbled with his collar, but he had already removed his tie and stuffed it in a drawer first thing after entering the office.

Still feeling choked, he unnecessarily unbuttoned one more button. His firm chest was inappropriately exposed, but he was alone in the office anyway. Even if someone else had been there, he probably wouldn’t have cared either.

He opened the window wide. Even as the chilly winter wind filled the office, the heat building in his body didn’t cool down. Having experienced this for half his life, he knew all too well what this symptom meant, without anyone needing to tell him what it was.