By Zephyria 
As soon as In-ho climbed into the driver’s seat, he took a suppressant from the console box and swallowed it.
It was almost the first time his pheromone levels had spiked when he wasn’t in a rut. Being a dominant Alpha, he usually wasn’t heavily affected by the pheromones of an Omega in heat.
Even if his condition was poor due to the rain, this was an incomprehensible reaction.
Steadying his ragged breathing, he rubbed his eyes and eventually searched for some headache medication. The headache was intensifying because he had forcibly suppressed the pheromones leaking from his body.
He was even more furious that his pheromones had become unstable while he was with Haon. It was a relief that Haon tended to be dull to pheromones; if he had been a typical Omega, he would have been swept away and triggered into a heat. Recessive Omegas, in particular, reacted strongly even to In-ho’s faint scent.
“Fuck….”
Thump! In-ho slammed the steering wheel violently and checked the time. He needed to get back quickly, but his breathing wouldn’t settle easily.
He crumpled the headache medicine and threw it into the console box, unleashing a string of curses. Had Haon been by his side, he would have doubted his own eyes. Alone in the car, In-ho looked like a completely different person.
“Haa—”
Only after swallowing another suppressant did the medication begin to take effect. As his breathing became a bit more comfortable, In-ho pressed his thumb firmly against his temples. As the pheromones calmed down, the headache gradually began to subside.
After about ten minutes, he wiped his face one last time and hurried out of the car.
The expression on Haon’s face, frozen in front of the escalator, kept coming back to him, making him anxious. He had only pushed him away for a brief moment, yet Haon had looked so sorrowful, as if In-ho had abandoned him.
He should have explained properly from the start.
Because the pheromones had leaked out so suddenly, he hadn’t been able to look after Haon. It bothered him that he seemed to have wounded Haon, who was as fragile in heart as he was in body.
I must never do that again. In-ho added one more behavior to the list of things he must not do in front of Haon.
* * *
Upon arriving at the ticket office, In-ho’s gaze moved busily. Haon, whom he expected to be sitting in the waiting chairs, was nowhere to be seen. He didn’t think he’d be at a nearby cafe. Did he go to the restroom for a moment?
While looking around for the restroom sign, he turned his head toward a noise echoing from a distance. Just then, he spotted the restroom sign there.
“Move aside!”
Whether an accident had occurred, someone in a security guard uniform was rushing toward the restroom.
Was there a fight?
Normally, In-ho would have passed by indifferently, but not now. His legs moved reflexively toward the restroom where the noise was spreading. His sharp intuition sparked an ominous thought.
“Why do I have to keep saying it? I told you that bastard started it first!”
As he drew closer to the restroom entrance, the voice shouting curses became clearer.
And amidst that, there was a familiar, thin voice mixed in. The moment he heard that faint voice, In-ho’s pace quickened.
As he stepped into the narrow corridor, the first thing that caught his eye was the back of a panting man. He was pointing at the floor and boasting a loud voice.
“Hey! Aren’t you going to answer? What are you going to do about my clothes!”
“Please don’t use violence. Just calm down for a moment.”
The security guard did his best to block the man’s path. This only infuriated the man further, who grabbed his shirt—soaked in cola—and shook it.
“Look at this! I’m telling you, this crazy bastard did something that deserved a beating first!”
The man stopped thrusting his wet shirt forward and looked stunned. It was because In-ho had suddenly intervened, grabbed his shoulder, and pushed him aside.
“What the hell are you!”
Already enraged, the man yelled at In-ho for abruptly pushing his shoulder. In-ho ignored him and looked down at the floor, where popcorn kernels were scattered, and slowly opened his mouth.
“…….”
However, no sound came from his parted lips. His lips merely trembled in silence, not even a breath escaping.
In-ho was speechless, staring at the sight of Haon filling his vision.
“Hey! Who do you think you are!”
The angry man’s hand flew toward In-ho, who stood as if his feet were frozen. It seemed the man was quite accustomed to swinging his fists whenever he got angry.
In-ho did not dodge and took the punch. Thud! As the fist landed not on his back but on the nape of his neck, In-ho’s upright torso tilted forward.
“You should handle this through conversation! This is going too far!”
The security guard, unable to restrain the large man, hurriedly called for backup. The man, blinded by rage, ignored him and lunged at In-ho. When the security guard blocked him, he shouted and kicked instead of punching.
Rubbing the nape of his neck, In-ho ignored the man and knelt down on the floor. Then, with a very cautious touch, he placed a hand on the shoulder of Haon, who was collapsed on the restroom floor.
“Haon-ssi.”
As In-ho’s hand touched him, Haon’s trembling shoulders jolted violently. Haon was curled up tightly, his head pressed against the floor.
And he repeated the same words as that day.
“I’m hungry….”
Blood flowed from the lips that repeated the same words like a prayer. The corners of his mouth were red and wet, as if he had been licking the cola spilled on the dirty tile floor.
In-ho forcibly lifted Haon’s upper body to check his face closely.
“I’m… hungry….”
Crushed popcorn fell one by one from between his torn lips. With one cheek swollen, Haon seemed to have lost even the strength to chew properly. Yet, he endlessly searched for food.
I’m hungry. I’m so hungry. The voice, muffled by sobbing, continued clumsily.
Before long, a nosebleed began to flow. Seeing this, In-ho closed his eyes tightly. The buzzing sounds around him felt faint, like distant rain. Only Haon’s voice pierced clearly into his ears.
“Let’s go home and eat more.”
In-ho spoke while wiping the nosebleed and sticky cola from Haon’s philtrum with his bare hand.
He took away the popcorn bucket Haon was clutching to his chest and stood up. The paper popcorn box was crumpled as if it had been stepped on. Just like Haon.
Holding the crumpled popcorn bucket, In-ho turned toward the shouting man. The man, held by the security guard, paused for a moment when his eyes met In-ho’s, then became even angrier—to avoid showing that he was afraid.
“He says he’s hungry.”
In-ho spoke in a calm voice and threw the popcorn bucket toward the man’s face.
“Why did you hit him?”
Simultaneously, he pushed the security guard aside and drove his foot into the man’s abdomen. With a choking sound, the man was sent flying backward before he could even defend himself.
In-ho strode toward the fallen man. The security guard tried to block him, but he was easily pushed aside by the hand on his shoulder. It was a strength incomparable to the other man.
“You shouldn’t beat someone just because you got some clothes dirty.”
Grabbing the fallen man by the collar, In-ho slapped his cheek hard several times with his palm. The man only clutched his stomach, unable to even resist. Seeing him limp, he seemed to have already fainted.
“Don’t you feel any pity?”
In-ho glared at the unfocused man with disapproval and asked sincerely. He couldn’t understand how anyone could see that sight and resort to violence.
How could anyone hit that face? Just touching him makes my heart ache.
Only after delivering one final punch did In-ho let go of the man’s collar. He roughly dusted off his hands, which didn’t even have a scratch, and returned to Haon while making a phone call.
Crunch, crunch. In the now silent restroom after the onlookers had disappeared, only the sound of chewing popcorn echoed. Haon was trembling, chewing on blood-soaked popcorn while thick tears streamed down his face.
The object of his fear was none other than In-ho. Even in his blurred state of consciousness, he seemed to have perceived In-ho beating the man.
“Haon-ssi.”
In-ho called his name in his usual voice, but Haon did not respond. Watching In-ho’s expression, he simply picked up the popcorn fallen on the floor and hurriedly stuffed it into his mouth.
In-ho grabbed his wrist to stop him from forcing in an amount he couldn’t even swallow. When Haon tried to shake his hand off, In-ho gripped his wrist more firmly and instead pulled him into an embrace.
“Stop eating.”
Terrified hands continued to push In-ho away. Eyes brimming with tears were directed not at In-ho, but at the popcorn on the floor.
“Please… give me that….”
“It’s dirty, so don’t eat it.”
“Please, please….”
Haon wailed, saying he wanted to eat the popcorn. The sobbing, more sorrowful than that of a child, filled In-ho’s heavy heart. His heart felt incomparably heavier than when he first saw Haon at the club.
“I’ll give you something much better when we get home.”
In-ho stroked the back of Haon, who was panting with feverish breaths. His body was as hot as his face, which was beaded with cold sweat.
“Go and eat as much as you want.”
He whispered tenderly, asking him to endure for now, but the voice did not reach Haon. Having lost his reason, Haon was in a state filled only with the desire to fill his stomach with food.
He didn’t even realize whose hand was wiping his tears and patting his back. He was just hungry. He wanted to do anything if it meant filling this hunger. Even if it was food someone else had chewed and spat out, he only hoped to fill his mouth immediately.
I’m hungry….
Haon searched for food until just before he lost consciousness. And as always, no memory of this day remained for Haon. It was only deeply engraved in In-ho’s memory.
31 – 31.
The day In-ho first met Haon, he was quite drunk. Since he was the type who didn’t show it much, those around him might not have noticed, but his consciousness was so hazy that alcohol felt like water.
It had been a particularly bad day. He had tried to erase the shadows cast over his mind with alcohol. If that didn’t work, he had intended to try something else.
“I’m hungry….”
Before he could, Haon caught him. With hands wet with tears, he clung on desperately. As if he would simply die if In-ho pushed him away.
“I… I’m hungry….”
Muttering in a slurred voice, Haon rubbed his nose against In-ho’s neck. Even though he couldn’t sense pheromones, he buried his nose against the skin and inhaled, as if trying to drink in his scent.
“We’re almost there.”
Recalling their first meeting, In-ho stroked Haon’s hair and told him to hold on just a little longer.
Sitting on his lap, Haon couldn’t stay still for a moment, his limbs twitching. The two were sitting in the back seat of a long sedan, not the sports car In-ho had arrived in. It was a car that the driver and secretary had rushed out in at a single call from In-ho.
“Haon, just bear with it a little longer.”
In-ho carefully touched a cheek bruised red, trying to meet his eyes. However, Haon’s trembling pupils bypassed In-ho and remained fixed on the window.
Whenever the car stopped briefly, Haon would burst into tears and struggle, as if seeking help from the outside. To an uninformed stranger, it would have looked like a kidnapping.
“Ugh, my stomach… it hurts so much.”
Haon sobbed, clutching his thin stomach as if pinching it. It seemed the intense hunger was now manifesting as physical pain.
“I feel like… I’m going to die….”
Heat rose to his forehead, which was beaded with cold sweat. Feeling like he needed to put something in his mouth, In-ho offered the mouth of a water bottle, but the sobbing only grew more violent.
Haon didn’t want something like water; he wanted food that could fill his stomach. Even though he couldn’t even keep it down.
Before leaving the restroom, Haon had vomited up all the popcorn that had been shoved down his throat. Having seen that, In-ho couldn’t bring himself to give him food.
“Should I give him some chocolate?”
The secretary sitting in the passenger seat asked, unable to watch Haon incessantly searching for food. He was the personal secretary to the owner’s family of the Hansung Group.
“Or perhaps a nearby restaurant—”
“That’s enough.”
At the sharp refusal, the secretary bowed his head with a stoic expression. He seemed very accustomed to In-ho’s cold demeanor. He also seemed quite used to cleaning up the messes In-ho made, as he didn’t ask for the detailed circumstances.
That didn’t mean he wasn’t curious. Though he didn’t show it outwardly, he wondered why In-ho—who had been quiet since coming to Korea—had beaten someone like a dog. Furthermore, he wondered who that Omega was for In-ho to cherish him so much.
“Ah, ngh.”
Clutching his stomach, Haon let out a feverish moan. The driver and secretary tried their best to shut their ears and avoid paying attention to the back seat.
“How much longer?”
“We will arrive within ten minutes.”
Hearing the secretary’s calm answer, In-ho sighed and took off his jacket to cover Haon’s legs.
“Turn the music up.”
The secretary immediately pressed the play button and increased the volume. The Omega’s wet moans were drowned out by the loud music.
* * *
Click. Opening the front door while holding Haon in one arm, In-ho briefly leaned the limp body against the inner door. Then, he sat on the floor and took off Haon’s shoes one by one.
Having become exhausted after stepping out of the car, Haon only moved his lips silently. Judging by the shape of his mouth, he seemed to be repeating words searching for food.
Despite having no strength to push In-ho away or hold onto him, his lower half remained rigidly erect.
“Shall we go to your room, Haon?”
In-ho asked, hoping Haon would hear his voice and meet his eyes.
“Or do you want to go up?”
The empty, vacant look in Haon’s eyes made In-ho feel distressed. It was heartbreaking to see Haon suffering from the abnormalities of his own body.
Thinking about how he had to scavenge for any random food and then survive on only liquids for days after his heat ended, In-ho couldn’t stop sighing.
“Haon.”
Forcing his expression to soften, he called Haon in a gentle tone. Those round eyes, which usually watched him even without being called, would not look at him. He was simply staring blankly into the air.
Please look at me.
“Haon-ah.”
After calling him “Haon-ssi” repeatedly, he tried calling his name intimately. It was because Haon was gripping the inner door tightly. He had called him gently because he couldn’t force a Haon who was terrified to the point of trembling any further.
Should I wait until Haon’s tension eases a bit? Or should I just… As he wiped his troubled face, he suddenly locked eyes with those deep brown pupils. Surprisingly, Haon was looking back at In-ho.
“…Yes.”
A slow response came back, as if reacting to the call. Startled, In-ho soon leaned down to match Haon’s eye level.
“Do you not want to go in?”
Haon nodded.
“Why?”
The frightened eyes fled back to the void. Trembling his lower lip and swallowing repeatedly, Haon eventually repeated the same words.
“Hungry….”
He was in no state to hold a conversation. In-ho gently stroked the back of Haon’s hand, which was tense with effort.
“Haon-ah, let’s go in.”
When he called his name again, the strength in the hand gripping the inner door slowly faded.
“I’ll give you something delicious.”
Upon hearing that he would be given food, Haon opened his mouth and reached out toward In-ho. In-ho willingly offered his embrace and easily lifted the trembling body.
Holding the feverishly hot body dearly, he walked not toward the kitchen, but into the bedroom.
* * *
“Haa, ah…!”
Haon’s thighs trembled convulsively as he came for the nth time.
Semen mixed with sweat trickled down between his tight, rounded buttocks. In-ho rubbed it wide like a lotion, gripping the pelvis even more firmly.
He continued the thrusting, giving Haon no time to even process the sensation of climax. Trembling, Haon gasped for air and gripped the blanket. In-ho reached out his hand, signaling for him to hold onto him, but Haon only gripped the blanket tighter.
With a short sigh, In-ho rested one of Haon’s legs on his shoulder and inserted himself even deeper. Simultaneously, a moan resembling a scream erupted from Haon’s wide-open mouth.
In-ho’s brow furrowed slightly at the cracked voice. However, he did not stop the act until the end.
In-ho pushed him until Haon’s strength was completely spent. Even while Haon was dry-heaving, In-ho held the thin body and thrust into the inner walls.
Only when Haon gasped as if he truly couldn’t take it anymore did In-ho briefly stop his hip movements to wipe away the tears. Stroking the swollen eyelids, he spent a long time wiping and licking the reddened corners of the eyes with his hands and mouth.
Then, before long, Haon, whose crying had subsided, moved his pelvis first. Just like now.
“More, ugh, more….”
When In-ho didn’t bury himself to the root, Haon tried to put his own hand inside his hole, as if trying to widen the entrance himself.
In-ho stopped that hand, laid his thighs overlapping, and dug deep into the inner walls. The narrow hole, already loosened to the limit, swallowed In-ho’s member to the end without needing to be forced open.
On the bed where conversation had vanished, only the erotic sound of wet flesh slapping together echoed.
Their bodies were connected without a moment’s rest, but their gazes were not. In-ho looked at Haon throughout, but Haon’s empty brown eyes only faced the ceiling or the wall.
“Haa….”
Removing the condom with sweat-soaked hands, In-ho touched his throbbing forehead. The headache that had quieted down after taking painkillers began to flare up again.
After covering the sprawled body of Haon with the blanket, he picked up all the trash on the floor. He pushed the trash into an empty condom box and left the room.
Coming out of the dark room, the bright lights hit his eyes. Outside the living room window, which had no curtains, thick raindrops were still falling.
It had been raining without cease for two days. Just like the persistent rain, Haon’s arousal would not subside.
For two days, every time Haon woke from sleep, In-ho held him until he fainted again. If his bottom wasn’t filled, Haon kept searching for food. Because he wouldn’t stop crying unless something was put inside his body, In-ho spent almost the entire day as one with Haon.
Maybe he’ll be a bit better tomorrow.
After putting on a thin gown, he sat at the kitchen table and drank water. Since his thirst wasn’t quenched, he drank a can of beer, which made the headache even more severe.
Eventually, he threw away the beer, which wasn’t even half-empty, and looked for headache medicine. Knowing it wasn’t good to take it with alcohol, he put the pill in his mouth. He had heard his doctor tell him to quit drinking until he was sick of it, but he had no intention of quitting.
Often, in the deep dawn when Haon was asleep, he would come out to the living room alone and drink. He sought alcohol almost every single day without fail.
What was it that made him rely on alcohol? If Haon had seen that, he surely would have been curious. But Haon did not know that In-ho could not fall asleep without alcohol.
He didn’t know that In-ho would sink into a deep depression upon hearing the sound of rain, or that he hated the silent stillness and thus called people or attended meaningless drinking parties.
There was still so much Haon didn’t know about In-ho. He didn’t know a single thing properly.
Thump!
While In-ho was staring blankly out the gloomy window, a loud noise came from the room where Haon was sleeping. Correcting his blurred focus, In-ho immediately headed toward the room following the sound.
He woke up again.
Haon, having fallen off the bed, was crawling toward the small refrigerator next to the nightstand. Perhaps because there was no strength in his legs, he crawled forward using only his arms.
Lifting Haon up and laying him back on the bed, In-ho checked his still hot breath. It seemed the estrus was far from over. Perhaps because he no longer had the strength to even make a sound, Haon searched for food with only his eyes.
After laying the exhausted body flat, In-ho released his pheromones. He intended to excite Haon further and then make him fall asleep from exhaustion.
“Ah….”
As he stroked the twitching entrance, parting the wet gluteal cleft, a moan erupted. Even without looking, he could feel the tender flesh was swollen. I wonder how much he’ll suffer when he wakes up.
Unaware of his concern, Haon opened his wet mouth wide, searching for the entity that would satisfy his hunger. Reading the gaze that desired a kiss, In-ho filled both the top and the bottom.
As if pouring water on a goldfish abandoned on parched land, he held him and held him again. For as long as Haon wanted, until the night was gone.