Confined Pheromone

The blue front door looked old and shabby again today. And it still seemed dangerous. Quietly pushing the door open, Siwoo stepped into the narrow courtyard with its cement floor. Soon, the lock he had installed on the foggy translucent glass door came into view. Siwoo stared at it blankly. A faint light flickered beyond the foggy glass door.

“…….”

He hesitated for a moment again. But this time, the hesitation was brief. Siwoo raised his hand and knocked on the glass door. Perhaps because the alleyway, where darkness was beginning to settle, was quite silent, the sound of the small knock echoed loudly. He noticed a shadow flickering beyond the glass door. Even though it was just a flickering shadow, he could clearly sense how startled the figure inside was by the sudden visitor, and how sharp their wariness was. Siwoo stood silently.

“Who….”

A cautious voice came through. Still, Siwoo remained silent at the door. Soon, he heard the slow sound of the lock being undone, and with a creak, the door opened slightly.

“Who are you?”

Through the gap of the door, Sanho’s pale face appeared. Holding back the urge to swing the door wide open, Siwoo tilted his head slightly.

“It’s me.”

As soon as Sanho confirmed that the unexpected visitor was Siwoo, a complex expression rose on his face in succession. Relief. Then anxiety. Followed by sorrow. Even the burning excitement underlying all those emotions. But they quickly settled down. Sanho slowly opened the door.

“…Senior.”

Seeing Sanho’s lips quiver cautiously, Siwoo felt a surge of emotions again. What kind of jerk would just open the door like that? Siwoo bit his lips and pressed his fingertips against his furrowed brow. After letting out a sigh, he finally spoke.

“Didn’t you go to school today?”

“…….”

“…….”

“…….”

“Why didn’t you go?”

Sanho closed the door behind him with a thud and lowered his gaze. Shaking his head slightly, he answered quietly.

“Just because.”

“Why.”

“Because I didn’t want to go.”

So why. Just as Siwoo was about to speak again, he looked down at Sanho for a moment. Soon, he adjusted his lips and opened his mouth.

“Sanho.”

“…Yes.”

“I’m angry.”

Sanho slowly lifted his head. Siwoo blinked slowly and continued speaking.

“That guy from yesterday.”

“…….”

“Why did you meet him?”

His tone was calm. His expression was the same. But Sanho must have known. At least that Siwoo was angry. Sanho’s eyebrows furrowed slightly.

“There was a reason.”

“What reason?”

“Is it important to you, Senior?”

“Yeah, it’s important.”

“Why?”

Siwoo closed his eyes slowly, as if to endure. He pressed his fingertips against his furrowed brow again. He barely held back the urge to chew on his lips and answered.

“Because we promised. You and I.”

“…That’s not a promise.”

“I didn’t mean it like that.”

The words he had said to Sanho not to do such things. Siwoo slowly lowered his hand and stared at Sanho. The smile that usually lingered on his lips was stiff. Sanho trembled, biting his lip hard.

“I didn’t mean to either.”

“Then why—”

“I really wanted to grant your wish, Senior.”

Just as Siwoo was about to speak, Sanho’s expression suddenly crumbled. A suppressed voice burst out.

“You’re not keeping your promise either, Senior.”

Siwoo frowned slightly. Not keeping a promise? What? Looking up at Siwoo’s face, which was filled with confusion, Sanho opened his mouth again. His voice trembled as if he was holding back the urge to shout.

“Do you know what you smell like to me right now?”

Siwoo’s expression furrowed even more.

“It smells like another Omega.”

Omega smell? There shouldn’t be any trace of an Omega… Siwoo’s previously furrowed expression slowly relaxed. Ah, a short gasp escaped him. It must be the scent of young daisies. The pheromones that Inhye had released when revealing her traits before meeting Sanho. It was a brief moment, and not a large amount, but Sanho must have been sensitive enough to detect the pheromones of another Omega. Because he was a dominant Omega. Siwoo’s expression, as if he understood Sanho’s words, was almost an acknowledgment of having met an Omega. Sanho’s face began to twist in distress.

“Why did you lie about not meeting anyone else?”

“Sanho.”

“Why did you come here smelling like another Omega?”

“…Sanho.”

“Even if you hadn’t said that….”

I wouldn’t have expected anything. Sanho glared at Siwoo, opening his tightly shut eyes sharply.

“Then why are you angry at me?”

You’re trying to drive me crazy on purpose. You’re doing this to show me. To show that I’m not special. So that I’ll cling to you even more. The words that Sanho couldn’t let out were swallowed into the darkness, thick with resentment. Looking into Sanho’s eyes filled with blame, Siwoo quietly closed his mouth.

The resentment reflected in his black eyes had a childlike innocence to it. Even though he must have known that there were unwanted variables. But Sanho’s words were not lies. It wasn’t intentional, but he had met an Omega. And it was true that he was covered in pheromones. It felt ridiculous to explain that. If he could soothe him by explaining, it wouldn’t matter if he looked foolish… but no matter what he said now, it would be an excuse. Siwoo quietly looked down at Sanho.

Why does something always happen that contradicts my feelings in front of this kid? The feeling that his once ordinary daily life was strangely twisting surged again.

After staring at Sanho for quite a while, Siwoo slowly opened his mouth.

“Sanho.”

Sanho was still looking at Siwoo with eyes full of resentment. Siwoo took a deep breath. His chest swelled and then sank again. If something is happening that contradicts my feelings, I can change the situation. I can.

“I really hate going to work. A lot.”

It was a contextless statement. It was certainly not what Sanho had expected. Sanho’s eyes widened in surprise, momentarily furrowing. A question arose faintly.

“There are no friends at work, and it’s boring. It’s suffocating.”

Could there even be time to be bored? Would the real Siwoo have time to be alone? Sanho could easily picture Siwoo surrounded by people all the time. As Sanho silently looked at Siwoo, he slowly curved his eyes.

“Do you want to go to work with me?”

“What do you mean….”

“Let’s go to work together. I won’t be boring.”

“Just suddenly talking about work….”

“There’s a college internship at the company.”

The question that had appeared on Sanho’s face deepened. Siwoo leaned slightly forward to look into Sanho’s face. As their faces got closer, the warm scent of earth wafted over. Siwoo’s brown eyes blinked softly.

“Let’s say I owe you. Since I didn’t keep my promise, I owe you.”

“…….”

“I’ll repay you, I will.”

“…….”

“So let’s go to work together. Together.”

Don’t meet those filthy jerks for money. Siwoo also swallowed the words he wanted to say and closed his mouth. Sanho looked at Siwoo’s face and opened his lips. Words that didn’t connect fell apart in his mouth without taking shape. He seemed at a loss for how to respond. Siwoo’s eyes slowly softened. A warm smile gradually spread across his face.

“Shall we consider this a debt too?”

“…….”

“I’ll repay this too. For sure.”

“…….”

“So please listen to me. Okay?”

A gentle breeze blew, tousling Siwoo’s fine hair. The hair that fell softly below his eyebrows, his long delicate eyelashes, and his warm brown eyes with beautifully curved corners. Sanho silently gazed at Siwoo’s face for a while. The only person who didn’t want anything in return from him. Sanho’s heart raced irregularly.

The erratic beating of his heart awakened something in Sanho. That small spark would soon lead to a great fire. A fire that would come quickly, frighteningly, and overwhelmingly. And it would surely engulf Sanho in an instant. Sanho sensed this vaguely. But he only sensed it. There was no way to stop it.

Finally, Sanho slowly nodded his head. At the small gesture, Siwoo’s lips curled into a round smile. His elongated eyes curved with delight. It felt as if the walls of caution surrounding Sanho had completely crumbled. Siwoo smiled, scrunching his nose slightly.

Ah, I want to hold you.

I want to hug you tightly enough to take my breath away and inhale your sweet scent.

“This time, I really mean it.”

“…….”

“Okay? I mean it.”

“…Yes.”

Of course, the day I hold you, Sanho, will never come.

Siwoo’s warm gaze gently caressed Sanho. A pleasant laugh scattered into the air.

***

After forcibly pushing Sanho into the house, Siwoo turned his body around. He glanced at the unwelcoming blue front door and then moved on. As he walked down the alley, Siwoo fiddled with his phone in his pocket. He felt anxious, but he was also slightly worried that someone might overhear his conversation in the quiet alley.

“…….”

After getting into the car and closing the door, Siwoo took out his phone. After hearing the familiar ringing tone, a neat voice came through.

– Yes, Director.

Siwoo looked out the car window at the new streetlights under construction. He slowly opened his mouth, quietly murmuring in a low voice.

“Manager Jung.”

– Yes, please go ahead.

“Please look into someone for me.”

– Yes, who?

“It’s a recruiter for Omega part-time jobs.”

Siwoo’s eyes, still looking at the new streetlights, were unexpectedly cold.

“Please filter out all the people connected to an Omega studying at H University.”

– All of them, you mean?

“Yeah. Anyone who has contacted them at least once.”

– Understood. Is this urgent?

Siwoo paused for a moment. He tapped his tightly closed lips with his fingertips before finally speaking.

“Please do it as soon as possible.”

– Yes, understood. I’ll start right away. How should I handle it?

“Don’t do anything. Just look into it.”

Because I’ll handle it myself. Swallowing the words that didn’t need to be said, Siwoo moved his lips.

“Oh, one more thing.”

His fingertips, which had been tapping his lips, slid down and pressed against his lip line.

“Keep it a secret from my father.”

Silence followed on the other end of the phone. It was a silence that lasted a bit longer than usual.

– Understood, Director.

“Thank you. Then.”

Without even glancing at the phone screen after the call ended, Siwoo placed his hand on the steering wheel.

***

After resting for about a day, Inhye felt her condition had recovered. She sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror at the front door. The impact of Siwoo’s aggressive pheromones that day in the alley had been quite significant. Just having been exposed to the heavy pheromones of a dominant Alpha for a short while had made her feel unwell for the entire day. It was something that could easily happen to Inhye, a recessive Omega.

After barely managing to get some pheromone calming medication, she had rested all day. It was unfortunate that all the supplies she had were used up, making it difficult to get more. Unlike Alphas, Omegas were reluctant to obtain pheromone products through official channels. It was almost like revealing that they were Omegas.

‘This stuff works really well. Want to try it?’

As Inhye was looking for pheromone products, the connection offered her a cigarette-type pheromone product. The cigarette-type pheromone, which mainly contained narcotic substances, was of very poor quality. Being traded illegally, it was filled with undesirable ingredients. Of course, it had visible effects, but the one offered to Inhye this time looked good enough to be mistaken for a regular cigarette.

Inhye frowned and immediately rejected it. It was already risky enough not to purchase officially, and touching something like that was extremely dangerous.

Shaking her head, Inhye slowly headed to school.

“…….”