*Swooosh.*
“……”
*Swooooosh.*
“……”
*Drip.*
It had been five minutes since I’d rashly doused myself with cold water.
I turned off the faucet, feeling like I might start coughing soon.
‘…Is this working or not?’
The foul stench from that couple going at it seemed to have naturally disappeared from my body, but the amount of my own pheromones didn’t seem to have changed much.
The ice-cold water had jolted me awake, but I still felt dizzy like I had seasickness, and the heat in my stomach remained the same.
‘Is there some difference from what Seolheon did for me?’
But had he done anything special besides the cold water friction?
‘Back then, Seolheon was behind me……’
……Holding me.
Now that I thought about it, that was the first time I’d been held by Baek Seolheon like that.
Even though I’d held the four or five-year-old Baek Seolheon before……
‘Match your breathing to mine.’
And then the warm breath I felt right at the nape of my neck, and that low voice.
‘You’re doing well.’
*Thud.*
I couldn’t hold back and punched the wall.
“……?”
I looked down at my right hand, tingling from hitting the tile wall, and rubbed the back of my neck awkwardly.
I couldn’t figure out what I’d been unable to hold back, even to myself.
Embarrassment at the disgrace I’d shown in front of my younger brother?
Pathetic frustration at myself for collapsing over constitutional issues every time?
……Awkwardness about physical contact with my sibling?
All of those seemed to fit, but it felt like that wasn’t everything.
‘Don’t meet Omegas.’
The rare expression that always-expressionless Seolheon had shown.
That pitiful face, like it might crumble at any moment.
I didn’t know why, but that scene kept flickering before my eyes.
“……Achoo.”
If I stayed here any longer, I’d really catch a cold.
I figured I should stop my musings here, so I roughly dried myself off and left the bathroom.
“Yeongwoo-ya?”
Lee Yeongwoo was sitting on the edge of the bed with his neck craned at a 90-degree angle, staring at the wall.
Since one wall of the bathroom connected to the bedroom was made of half-opaque glass, he seemed to have turned his head out of embarrassment.
Lee Yeongwoo appeared to still be working hard to suppress his pheromones, so the inside of the hotel room was more comfortable than the open rooftop had been.
It was only relatively better—the sweet scent floating in the air…… the ridiculously thick smell was enough to make me frown, but I didn’t show it. As long as I didn’t get too close, it was bearable.
‘Lee Haram would probably be the least painful to share a space with.’
I was newly impressed by Lee Haram’s abilities.
“Yeongwoo-ya. I’m out.”
“Wh-what?!”
Only then noticing I’d come out, he jumped in surprise and cautiously turned his head toward me.
“Y-your hair’s wet……”
“Too lazy. It’ll dry soon anyway.”
Lee Yeongwoo stared intently at my face, swallowed once, then said:
“Th-then should I…… take a shower now?”
“Hm? Why?”
“Huh? What do you mean why?”
“Your pheromones are fine.”
“My pheromones?”
Lee Yeongwoo tilted his head.
“I took a quick shower—how is it?”
“How’s…… what?”
“Pheromones. Did they calm down a bit?”
“Huh? Maybe…… a little better? No, about the same……”
His assessment was lukewarm.
The cold shower that had shown such dramatic effects was having minimal impact.
It seemed like what Seolheon had done for me wasn’t just this emergency treatment.
‘I’ll have to ask Seolheon when I get home.’
Though somehow I was reluctant to bring up that day’s events, it couldn’t hurt to know.
“Oh, the shower was to, uh, wash off the pheromones…… Ah, I knew that! I totally knew! Hahaha……!”
While Lee Yeongwoo was awkwardly laughing and scratching the back of his head.
A notification sound came from my pocket.
I took out my phone to see a message had arrived.
[Baek Jeongwoo: I’m here]
“……Me too.”
Lee Yeongwoo also took out his phone from his pocket and opened the screen.
Both Yeongwoo and I had received the same message.
[There are 4 buildings on the rooftop, come to the biggest one]
[Room 19. Within 10 minutes.]
What was coming had come.
“Th-the biggest one means…… that place?!”
Lee Yeongwoo immediately cried out.
“Gunho-ya! You can’t go there! You’re already intoxicated!”
“I threw up earlier and washed up, so I feel better now. It’s bearable.”
“Even if you’re fine, you really can’t go there!”
Then with a flushed face, he worked his lips and shouted:
“……It’s full of people openly doing it!”
People openly doing it.
‘Doing it’ here means…… that, right?
‘There are lots of fun devices in the rooms. Like moving beds. And that thing as thick as a forearm. Yes.’
According to Yu Gojun, there were various devices…… it seemed to be a kind of love hotel.
A love hotel sitting right there on the rooftop. This fact wasn’t even known on the internet. Since it looked clean from the outside, the public just assumed it was a penthouse or a building rented out for events or seminars.
“Why are they calling Gunho to such a lowly place! It’s totally suspicious!”
If I go…… it’ll be full of that couple’s foul stench.
Normally I would just perceive it as a bad smell, but knowing the cause of that stench made it even harder to suppress my nausea.
Even though this was supposedly part of the process for improving my constitution, to have this lesson in such a situation.
The timing was truly artistic.
‘It really is the demon king’s boss room.’
A truly impossible situation.
“If you go in there, it’ll get worse! You won’t just be intoxicated, you’ll collapse! You already threw up everything just from talking briefly earlier!”
“Since there’s nothing left to throw up, won’t it be okay?”
“It’s not okay!”
Lee Yeongwoo couldn’t decide what to do and just stomped his feet, then suddenly clenched both fists and said to me:
“I’ll go instead!”
“……You, Yeongwoo?”
“If you have something to say to Baek Jeongwoo, just tell me. I can deliver it for you.”
I appreciated the sentiment, but if that was the plan, I would’ve just finished it with a phone call from the start.
If it was just to have a conversation, Baek Jeongwoo wouldn’t have called me here specifically.
[LK Hotel top floor]
[Come introduce yourself to my friends there]
That bastard said he had friends to introduce me to.
He’d called me with the goal of showing my face as completely his person, so if I sent a substitute now and bailed, it was obvious Baek Jeongwoo wouldn’t be amused.
I had no idea how that crazy bastard would react after that.
At minimum, it was certain he’d go cause trouble for Baek Seolheon with high probability.
“No. I have to go. I’m the one Baek Jeongwoo wants.”
“W-wants……?!”
Lee Yeongwoo flinched once, then spoke to me again.
“I-I don’t know what’s going on, but…… why are you going that far? What if you collapse again like before!”
I silently took out medicine from my pocket.
I’d already taken the maximum dose before leaving home.
Then one more pill in the taxi right before arriving at the hotel.
And now, I put one more in my mouth.
I didn’t know if taking more than this would improve things, or what kind of adverse effects it might have on my body, but…….
My precious family’s future was more important than my body.
“It’s not like I haven’t thought about it at all.”
From the inner pocket that held the medicine, I took out another object.
I never thought I’d actually use this emergency item I’d brought.
“I know it’s shameless to ask after already receiving so much help…… but I have a favor to ask. Yeongwoo-ya.”
One of the few people who knew about my constitution.
A good kid who, despite meeting again after more than ten years, worried about me sincerely like a friend of ten years and threw himself to save me.
“What’s this……?”
Because it was that Yeongwoo, I decided to entrust him with this.
“My lifeline.”
* * *
Baek Jeongwoo shoved his phone into his pocket and spoke.
“What’s with your face?”
Then turning around, he said to the person following behind:
“First time in a place like this? Scared?”
Baek Seolheon looked around with an indifferent face.
Doors lined a dimly lit, dark corridor. Just looking at it like this, it wasn’t different from a typical hotel scene, but the excessively flashy interior, sheer curtains blocking the view, and heels or underwear scattered over the purple velvet carpet completely changed the atmosphere.
Messy moaning sounds came from here and there through doors that weren’t properly closed.
“Pretty shameless, bringing a minor to a place like this.”
At Baek Seolheon’s voice, Baek Jeongwoo shrugged his shoulders.
“Haha, who here would care about that? A model student, just as I heard.”
“You’re exactly as I knew you to be as well.”
“……Oh. Exactly as you knew? Seems you’re not completely uninterested in our family affairs?”
Even at the suggestive gaze, Baek Seolheon answered blandly without any change in expression.
“I heard it in passing.”
“Well! You couldn’t not know. Who’s the most likely next heir of that Baekil?”
Baek Jeongwoo burst into cheerful laughter and walked on.
“There’s no place with better soundproofing and tighter security than here. It’s funny that everyone’s trembling in fear of scandals breaking out, but they leave their doors open while fucking away. Anyway, it’s perfect for adults like me to gather and have secret conversations.”
Baek Seolheon, who’d been following behind, stared intently at Baek Jeongwoo’s back.
Over his navy-blue eyes that sparkled like dark glass beads, halos of various colors were rippling.
Like this corridor they were walking through—dizzying, a mix of various colors shining unpleasantly like filth.
More than anything else…….
The dark red aura flowing from the man ahead.
Baek Seolheon had known this color even before meeting Baek Jeongwoo.
From long ago, he’d known it.
A dark shadow fell over Baek Seolheon’s consistently emotionless expression, but Baek Jeongwoo, who was leading the way, didn’t notice.
“When did you start making contact with hyung?”
“Contact? Isn’t that too stiff? You should at least ask ‘when did you meet him?'”
Baek Jeongwoo stopped walking and grinned at Baek Seolheon, showing his teeth.
“Gunho and I are friends, you see.”
