And at that, President Kim let out a booming laugh that nearly shook the walls of the shop.
“Kids these days, going down over something this small, huh?”
“President Kim. I haven’t gone down yet.”
“We’ll keep the fight going till morning!”
The drinking session reignited and went on until the early hours. Fortunately, President Kim’s wife stormed in like a raging bull, sparing them from drinking until sunrise.
Donghyeok, done settling the bill, grabbed the staggering Seowoo and hauled him out of the shop. The damp night air hit his face, but it was already too late. The alcohol had crept all the way up to the back of his neck.
“I called a designated driver. Stay standing.”
“Okay.”
He answered readily enough, but his body refused to cooperate. Seowoo leaned against the wall, then slowly slid down and sat on the ground. Even as the back of his pants soaked through from the still-damp pavement, he had no energy to spring back up. With his eyes closed, the world swayed ever so slowly.
His mind, which had gone completely dark, came back to him inside the car. He had no sense of how much time had passed. He blinked his heavy, gritty eyes, and only then registered Donghyeok shaking his shoulder and urging him on.
“We’re here. Seowoo.”
“Mm……”
“Not mm — get yourself together.”
“Home?”
“Yeah. Your home. Where Dano, your kid, is sleeping. Come on, wake up.”
Donghyeok snapped his fingers in front of Seowoo’s face to jolt him awake.
The designated driver had parked at the entrance to the familiar alley. The yellow glow of the streetlamps gleamed on the rain-wet pavement, lighting the way home.
Donghyeok got out first, took the car keys, and helped Seowoo to his feet. He glanced briefly at the driver before turning toward the path home — with every step, Seowoo’s body swayed, and Donghyeok’s shoulder bore the strain.
“Huh?”
Donghyeok made a strange sound, and Seowoo thought he must have seen a ghost. Lifting his head with a dopey grin, Seowoo let out the same sound.
Huh?
Deep in the alleyway, someone was standing in front of the gate of the hanok guesthouse.
The tall frame rising well above the low stone wall brought a spine-tingling sense of déjà vu. A small head, a long build, broad and imposing shoulders. The outline caught in the glow of the streetlamp was so distinct that even eyes clouded with alcohol recognized him at a glance.
“……Is that you?”
Seowoo murmured quietly.
The moment he registered who it was, he froze as if he’d seen a ghost. Why is he here? He had no idea, yet his heart instinctively began to pound. Without even thinking about it, Seowoo pushed Donghyeok aside and stood upright on his own.
Hyeon, without a word, strode forward until he was standing right in front of Seowoo. From his body, wrapped in the cool night air, came the scent of wet soap and thick pheromones.
The moment Seowoo breathed it in, he felt as though he was getting drunk on pheromones instead of alcohol. As Seowoo blinked his hazily unfocusing eyes, Hyeon reached out and gripped his chin.
Before Seowoo could even react, Hyeon tilted his head. He pressed deep into the side of Seowoo’s neck beneath his jaw and buried his face there. The bridge of his nose grazed the soft skin, and the warmth of his short breaths seeped into Seowoo’s flesh.
Seowoo realized he was being smelled.
“Wh-what are you doing?”
Hyeon still said nothing. Instead he inhaled from Seowoo once more. Along the line from his ear down to his neck, into the hollow above his collarbone — Hyeon kept his nose pressed there for a long while, tracing and reading his scent like an exploration. When he finally pulled back, his face was drawn into a deep scowl.
“Why did you drink this much.”
“……Sorry?”
“Your body is already a mess.”
The low, grinding tone, as if spoken through clenched teeth, made Seowoo’s shoulders instinctively shrink.
“Was there an alpha drinking with you too?”
Beside Seowoo, who was blinking with all thought suspended, Donghyeok went rigid. I’m a beta, though? He shot that truth at Hyeon with wide, earnest eyes — but Hyeon hadn’t so much as glanced in Donghyeok’s direction from the start.
What is going on with these two……
Donghyeok was so baffled the alcohol nearly evaporated out of him.
“W-well…… uh, have a good night.”
Donghyeok crab-walked out of the pair’s orbit and bolted toward his own home as if fleeing. Watching those exaggerated antics, Seowoo’s face flushed crimson with a wave of mortification.
Was President Kim an alpha? He didn’t know. But he had no reason to explain that to Hyeon. Seowoo raised both hands and pushed Hyeon back.
“Why are you so forward.”
“You’re the one who’s forward.”
Hyeon’s dark brows twitched as he set his jaw.
“You can barely stand without collapsing and you’re out drinking somewhere.”
“……”
Seowoo opened and closed his mouth like a goldfish. Part of it was that he genuinely didn’t understand why Hyeon was this angry, and part of it was that he couldn’t argue — because Hyeon wasn’t entirely wrong.
Their unblinking gazes tangled in the air between them. After a long moment, Hyeon suddenly raked a hand roughly through his hair and snapped his head away. He let out a long exhale, signaling the end of the standoff, and then asked quietly in a voice that had lost some of its edge.
“Why didn’t you answer my call?”
“……I was afraid I’d make a mistake.”
“Why. Are you not allowed to make mistakes with me?”
The question was strange.
His face in the cast of the streetlamp looked more tired than usual, sharper than usual. And yet his eyes alone were strangely clear — so clear that Seowoo felt his alcohol-blurred mind snap into focus instead.
“……That’s——”
He parted his lips to explain, but when he actually tried to find the words, there were none to be had.
It was true that he had been afraid of making a mistake. But when he asked himself what kind of mistake he had been worried about — the realization hit him all at once.
Afraid of leaning on Hyeon. Afraid that, drunk as he was, he might start acting spoiled. Afraid of letting slip the long-buried longing he would never show under ordinary circumstances.
Seowoo bit down on his lip and lowered his eyes, and Hyeon let out a short breath. Then he stepped forward and wrapped his hand around Seowoo’s shoulder. The grip that caught him as he reflexively tried to pull away was firm, but not overbearing.
“Never mind. What’s the point of talking to someone who’s drunk.”
“The alcohol’s all gone now. Because of you.”
Seowoo muttered as if wronged, and Hyeon looked down at him with an expression caught between disbelief and something else. The gaze that had stayed cold and rigid until now seemed to soften, just a little — and a strange sense of relief settled over Seowoo.
“That’s exactly what makes it worse.”
He said something incomprehensible, then half-supported, half-shoved Seowoo through the gate.
“Go inside. Your clothes are damp, you’ll catch a cold.”
Now that it was actually time to turn away, a pointless pang of reluctance caught at his heels. But there was nothing more to say. And he knew better than to try. While Seowoo lingered, Hyeon called to him one more time.
“Yoon Seowoo.”
“……Yes.”
“Let’s make sure there’s no smell of alcohol tomorrow.”
It was already a set schedule — but hearing it from Hyeon’s own lips felt like receiving the promise again. With that, Hyeon turned and left without looking back.
Seowoo stood in the courtyard for a long while after. Everywhere Hyeon’s hands had touched, his pheromones had soaked in and left their deep scent behind.
“He was worried about me……”
Seowoo pulled at the fabric of his clothes and buried his nose in it, breathing in slowly. Despite the confusion swirling inside him, the heavy, iris-like fragrance was simply — beautiful.
* * *
“Oh my goodness, Dano, it’s been so long! Teacher is so happy to see you!”
The daycare teacher greeted Dano in a bright, delighted voice.
Seowoo could see the effort being made to ease Dano into coming back, and couldn’t help feeling embarrassed. So he handed over the paper bag he’d prepared, filled with drinks and snacks.
“If Dano starts fussing too much, please give me a call. I’ll come pick him up right away.”
“Oh, no, no. Guiding them through the school day is my job. And our Dano is going to have a great time playing with his friends again after so long. Right, Dano? You’ll show Teacher how amazing you are, won’t you?”
Dano gave a small, tentative nod and let go of Seowoo’s hand. The moment he took one step through the front door holding the teacher’s hand, the expressions of the two adults watching visibly relaxed. It meant the daycare refusal — short but oh so long — had finally come to an end.
Last night.
Want to try going to daycare tomorrow? He had asked carefully, and when Dano nodded, he’d only half believed it — and yet here they were, a success! Seowoo beamed with pride. He thought the days spent with Hyeon over the past while must have had some effect, but even accounting for that — what kind of generous three-year-old existed in this world?
“Thank goodness. Our Dano is so brave.”
“I’ll stay especially close to Dano today and keep an eye on how he’s feeling. Don’t worry and go take care of your day. I’ll also make sure to check that he eats well at lunchtime.”
“Thank you so much.”
While the two exchanged their goodbyes, Dano was hanging around behind Seowoo, peering about in the yard in front of the daycare. His pale, almost translucent cheeks puffed out slightly as his eyes — dark as black glass marbles — darted here and there. He looked like he was searching for something, and Seowoo had a fleeting thought — could it be — but chose not to let it show.
