Evan, who had been cheerfully exchanging greetings with his mother, handed over the phone. Siwoo, who ended the call with his mother in a daze, tapped his thigh as he watched him. Somehow he felt like he kept getting pushed around by him.
Still, he was the one who had lived for decades, but seeing him receive Evan’s help every time and remain calm without panicking in any situation made him feel strange. While he had been asleep, Evan had silently handled everything in his own way.
“You didn’t tell me where we’re going.”
He should say thank you, but since those words didn’t come out readily, Siwoo brought up a different topic. Honestly, the current situation just felt bewildering. At first, fragmented memories were tangled together, but along with Evan’s explanation, they were being calmly organized.
“A hotel would be uncomfortable. The castle is cold in winter, so there’s a decent place to stay near the city center, so I’m going to go there.”
“Ah…”
No matter what question he asked, he gave the most ideal answer, so Siwoo raised his hand to scratch his forehead. With those words as the end, a heavy silence descended in the car.
Siwoo, who bit down hard on his lower lip, turned his head toward the car window. Even then, his gaze briefly touched Evan beside him and fell away.
After waking up and wandering around the hospital and having urgent conversations, what rushed in was embarrassment. Siwoo’s gaze, who had been rubbing his palms against his pants for no reason, touched his clothes.
These were clothes he had put in his suitcase. His favorite oversized knit and loose-fit training pants. Since he had no memory of wearing these, it must have been Evan who took care of him. Siwoo’s hand, which had been sweeping back his hair again with the hand he’d been rubbing against his pants, stopped.
The time he couldn’t properly remember was 6 days, and he precisely realized what the fluffy hair meant. He’s not a one or two-year-old child, what kind of disgraceful behavior is this?
“…Sorry.”
When an apology was heard following Evan’s touch gently wrapping around his wrist stopped in mid-air, Siwoo quickly shook his head. The one who should apologize right now was himself. They caused the accident together, but Evan handled everything…
“Hm?”
“I should have explained to you first at the music awards.”
Evan, who spoke in a low voice, was carefully touching over the bandage wrapped around Siwoo’s wrist. It was the spot where he had roughly grabbed and pulled him when they arrived at the artist seating.
“We have a lot to talk about, right?”
Even while saying those words, Siwoo couldn’t bring himself to face him.
He didn’t know where and what conversation to start with, so he couldn’t easily open his mouth.
What was the hidden Omega that Evan mentioned? Even Fayden, who was said to have authority in the Alpha and Omega field, couldn’t accurately explain Siwoo’s current state.
But Evan unhesitatingly said the words “hidden Omega” and asserted it was a heat cycle, not late manifestation. As expected, what came to mind this time too was the word ‘pair.’
“It’s definitely not a short story.”
Evan’s answer was as slow as Siwoo who couldn’t easily ask questions, and even that trailed off at the end.
Siwoo didn’t rush him, and Evan didn’t open his mouth.
Siwoo’s wrist that Evan had been caressing moved closer to him. Evan’s lips descended on the pure white bandage. Siwoo, who had been watching Evan move not knowing how he would act, had no choice but to meet Evan’s eyes.
It was like looking at a lake of beautiful color. The lake was very clear and emitted a blue light with an emerald tint. It felt like an abyss with unknowable depth, without even a gentle ripple.
Siwoo slowly closed his eyes and opened them. What he saw in the lake he faced again was a wavering. Ripples arose on the calm lake. Along with that, the cool minty scent he now instinctively chased wrapped around Siwoo like a gentle breeze.
Along with that, color came to Siwoo’s serious face. It wasn’t that the corners of his mouth rose or the corners of his eyes folded prettily. At a glance, it seemed there was no change at all in Siwoo’s expression. But Evan was definitely feeling it.
“Take care of your body first.”
The moment Evan’s hand gently swept back Siwoo’s hair and winked with a playful expression, Siwoo unknowingly shook his head slightly.
He was captivated. There was no other way to explain what he just experienced besides those words.
Before he knew it, Siwoo was in front of a small two-story house that seemed like it would appear in a movie.
And he had to endure the affectionate assault of Rush rushing toward him aggressively and Roxy, who appeared from somewhere and circled between his legs as soon as they entered the house.
“My parents are staying somewhere else, so don’t feel burdened and rest comfortably.”
Siwoo, who had picked up Roxy clinging to his leg in a daze, let out a sigh of relief at Evan’s explanation.
“The castle is cold, so I asked them to bring them when the butler comes. They said they missed them.”
At his action of taking away Roxy he’d been holding while saying, “Roxy, Siwoo is tired so come here,” Siwoo lowered his hand and stroked the head of Rush who was walking stuck right next to him.
Siwoo’s tongue briefly came out and went back in at the voice walking a bit ahead of him saying the luggage had already been brought to the room, and not knowing what he’d want to eat, he asked them to prepare both porridge and soup.
Too much. Really too much.
No matter how he thought about it, Evan was too excessive a person for him.
His background, his appearance, and even this affectionate personality.
Why on earth does this kind of person like him? He didn’t have aegyo or a warm personality. He wasn’t good at taking care of others either, and lacked consideration.
“Evana…”
“Coco, we have plenty of time. Let’s eat first. Don’t think strange thoughts. What are you thinking so much about with that small head?”
What did he think I was going to say? I just called his name, but as if reading my mind, he put Roxy down on the floor and draped his arm over my shoulder, so Siwoo quickly looked around.
They had just greeted the butler at the entrance, so he couldn’t coldly remove his arm and subtly moved his shoulder, but Evan’s hand didn’t disappear.
After finishing a quiet meal without any conversation, Siwoo, who entered the bathroom with clothes, stood blankly and looked at the mirror. There was a man with pale yellow hair and deep brown eyes. It was a face he’d seen for decades, but today it felt particularly unfamiliar.
When he raised one hand to touch his cheek, the person in the mirror was also touching their cheek. The hand that touched his cheek slowly went down and entered inside the loose knit. And where the hand touched was his lower abdomen. The very place where the ultrasound machine had moved around just a few hours ago.
Omega.
Really an Omega? That minty scent was really Evan’s pheromones, and that pain that blew away all reason was really a heat cycle?
Infinite regression aside, too many unbelievable things were happening.
From being a member of Ocean, to ranking first on music shows, to the Rookie Award at the music awards.
Siwoo, who was still touching his lower lip with one hand while keeping the other hand on his stomach, hastily moved his body and took off the knit.
“Ah…”
Siwoo’s entire body turned red as he looked at the reflection in the mirror, and finally he covered his eyes with both hands. The unfamiliar marks engraved on his neckline, collarbone, shoulders, chest, and abdomen vividly reminded him of that night. And the emotions from that time rushed in.
Among the things happening to him now, the most unbelievable was Evan.
Evan Lewis.
He endlessly whispered love in his ear, and even words too embarrassing to put in his mouth, he said so sweetly. Just retracing the memories made his body heat up.
Siwoo, who tapped both heated cheeks with the hands that had been covering his eyes, took a deep breath.
This wasn’t the time to be absorbed in such thoughts.
There were so many things he wanted to ask him. And it was time to have a truthful conversation with him.
Siwoo, who was determined to wash up quickly, organize his thoughts, and talk with Evan, entered the shower booth and was showering when he unknowingly spat out a curse.
Chest, collarbone. Okay, he’d try to understand that somehow, but seeing the countless marks left on his legs discovered while rubbing his body with a shower ball full of foam, he had nothing to say.
How are you going to explain the bite mark on the back of my calf, Evan?
I was at the hospital like this? Though the lighting was low, I even exposed my stomach during the abdominal ultrasound?
“Crazy. Who am I cursing?”
Though the first arrow was aimed at Evan, when the fragmented memories fit together one by one and he remembered himself rotating his hips on top of him, Siwoo closed his mouth.
When the butler took Roxy and Rush to the annex, leaving words to contact anytime if they needed anything, only Evan and Siwoo remained alone in the spacious area.
Winter night came quickly, and firewood was burning in the fireplace on one side of the living room.
If he’d known it would be this awkward and lonely, should he have asked them to leave at least Roxy? Siwoo, who was touching his neckline in embarrassment, sat on the sofa in front of the fireplace.
Then he took out his phone and entered the Ocean members’ group chat.
It was full of photos sent by Yechan, apparently having fun on his trip to Japan with Chan hyung.
All the members who had been busily active were spending the time they wanted.
Then what about Evan?
Siwoo, who raised his head, looked at Evan approaching with a mug.
“Why? Are you newly realizing your lover is too handsome?”
How can he say such embarrassing words so nonchalantly? Well, he was the one who suddenly asked if he liked his face.
“Yes. It’s a problem because you’re perfectly my style with nothing lacking anywhere.”
Siwoo, who received the mug he offered, conveyed his sincerity like a joke. Come to think of it, when he asked any question, it seemed he’d never honestly answered properly.
Frighteningly, he was honest in expressing his emotions.
On the other hand, he himself was busy avoiding.
Not knowing he would answer like this, Evan’s eyebrows slightly furrowed and then relaxed. Soon Evan, who turned off the stand next to the sofa, sat on the floor below the sofa rather than next to Siwoo and looked up at him.
“It’s still hot so drink slowly. If you have any questions, you can ask anything.”
Now, all that illuminated the wide living room was the fireplace making crackling sounds and emitting warm light.
