Kiss the Stranger

It felt as though my vision washed out to white. For a moment I was utterly dazed—then Kamar shook my shoulder.

“Yohan, snap out of it! Yohan!”
His repeated calls finally pulled me back. Kamar was drenched in blood, but he wasn’t hurt. Realizing that, I let out a trembling sigh of relief. Seeing me come to, he scooped me up in his arms and stood.
“Come on, we have to get out of here.”

It took less than a minute to slip from the room while he carried me. But the image of those men sprawled in pools of blood stayed seared in my mind.
Out in the corridor I heard a meow. Overjoyed, I called,
“Rikal!”

The cat came bounding over, scrambled up Kamar’s leg, and settled on my chest, rubbing its head against me.
Rikal.
Tears welled up as Kamar said,

“If it weren’t for Rikal, I wouldn’t have found you.”
He spoke softly, glancing around as he hurried us out. Blood spattered everywhere, but I squeezed my eyes shut as we passed.
A jeep was parked outside. Kamar set me gently in the passenger seat and climbed in behind the wheel. I stared dumbly at the keychain crusted with dried blood.
“We’ll cross the desert like this. We’ll stop at an oasis to wash up, then leave again immediately.”

As if he’d prepared it in advance, water and some food lay in the back seat. The engine roared to life, and we drove away from the manor.
“When you say it was thanks to Rikal, what do you mean?”
As the manor vanished behind us, I asked. Kamar glanced over and gave a wry smile.

“I got locked up after letting my guard down, and while escape was easy, finding you wasn’t. You can’t try every door. I was stuck—until the cat scratched at the door and meowed like crazy.”
“I see…”
My chest ached again.

“Thank you, Rikal.”
I whispered and kissed Rikal’s nose. He purred and rubbed against me. Fatigue hit me then. I leaned my head against the seat and stared out the window. The cityscape shrank, then houses vanished, then patches of green faded—until finally the vast desert spread before us.
Night fell quickly. It took less than an hour to wash up and pack what we needed at the oasis. Before dawn, we were on the road again, driving without rest for fear of pursuit. Even after dark, Kamar didn’t stop until long after I’d dozed off. I woke when the jeep slowed.

Rikal was curled up, sleeping on my lap. Blinking sleepily, I turned and saw Kamar’s profile. Before I could speak, he said,
“Get out and sleep. We’ll leave again at dawn. We need to put as much distance as possible before midday.”
He parked and climbed out. Opening the rear door, he unpacked and set up a tent with practiced ease. Cradling Rikal, I stepped onto the sand and froze at the night sky. Stars rained down. The indigo heavens met the endless desert as though revealing the world’s edge. I gazed at the distant horizon, lost, until Kamar called,

“We’re all set. Come here, Yohan.”
I turned and saw him watching me. A chill made me shiver, and he hurried over to scoop me up.
“Ah…”

I couldn’t help the soft gasp. Unfazed, Kamar strode into the tent, laying me gently on the ground. He collapsed beside me and brushed my hair back with a faint smile. The world was so quiet I felt even my breathing echo. Holding my breath, I looked up at him, and he asked,
“What’s wrong?”
I spoke softly.
“…Aren’t you scared?”

“Of what?”
Lowering my voice almost to a whisper, I said,
“Of what’s to come.”

“What’s going to happen?”
“I don’t know.”
My voice dwindled to a breath.

“That’s why I’m scared.”
I curled my shoulders in. Kamar gazed down at me, then bent to press his lips to my temple.
“It’s okay. I’ll be here.”

I watched him. He smiled as if to reassure me. I nodded briefly, then reached out a hand. Kamar looked at me curiously. I whispered,
“You should lie down too.”
He chuckled and lay back, opening his arms wide to draw me in.

“……”
He buried his nose in my hair and inhaled. I lay still, listening to his rapid heartbeat beneath my ear. My fingertips trembled and my insides fluttered. Breathing /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ in carefully, I smelled sand and dust on him. Lying motionless, I felt his arms tighten around me as he spoke.

He inhaled deeply again, then exhaled and murmured,
“I wish I were an alpha.”
I drew a soft breath.
“…Me too.”

I whispered back,
“I love your scent.”
“My scent? On me?”

He sounded surprised, his voice rich and resonant. I pressed my cheek to his chest and nodded.
“Sometimes it’s so sweet. When I smell it, I… go dizzy.”
I couldn’t admit how painfully aroused it made me feel.

‘Lecherous omega.’
I shivered at the memory of that insult—then Kamar tightened his arms. He spoke from above my head.
“If I were an alpha,” he continued softly, “I’d have marked you. Then you’d be mine…and I’d lock you away at the world’s end so no one else ever sees you again. Only I could smell you, only I could see you.”

He inhaled again. As I felt him drawing in my pheromones, I asked,
“Who told you about marking?”
“That man Ghurab.”

Kamar said,
“He said since neither you nor I had a mark, we clearly weren’t bonded. He laughed and asked if I’d toyed with you—how you tasted.”
I murmured, understanding. But I felt no bitterness—such treatment almost felt inevitable.

“Don’t worry. I broke his neck.”
I blinked in surprise, but Kamar looked untroubled. I changed the subject.
“That… anyone could do that, not just an alpha.”

He paused. He and I both realized what I’d said. I’d meant that anybody could kill Ghurab—yet it sounded like I believed marking was not alpha’s sole right. Relief and guilt warred inside me. Kamar patted my back as if to say it was fine.
“Sorry for such strange talk. Let’s sleep. You must be tired.”
He was right—it had been a day full of horrors. I still couldn’t believe it all. Probably that was why I couldn’t sleep easily. Not because of the steady rhythm of his heart in my ear, not because of the warmth of his body against mine, nor the thick arms draped loosely around my waist.

No, not at all.
Even so, I lay awake for a long time before sleep finally came.