By Zephyria 
Ding-.
Having stepped into the elevator, Haon continued to fidget with his fingertips. He had shared various conversations with In-ho on the way home, but not a single detail remained in his memory.
What had they talked about? It didn’t seem like anything particularly important, so he didn’t force himself to remember. He didn’t have the luxury to do so, anyway.
“Haon-ssi.”
“Yes!”
He jumped excessively at the sound of In-ho calling his name. In-ho paused, then gave a thin smile and waved the front door key in his hand.
“You’re carrying it with you, right?”
“Ah, yes. I have it right now. Here.”
Flustered, Haon hurriedly pulled the card key out of his wallet. After confirming this, In-ho nodded as if relieved and opened the front door.
Haon was the only one acting jittery. In-ho, who had made Haon’s heart leap with his ambiguous words, was as infinitely composed as always. If anything, he seemed to be in a slightly better mood than usual.
“Do you need to eat something?”
Haon shook his head, having no particular craving. He wasn’t hungry since he’d had ice cream at the park and some of the snacks he’d brought along.
“You’ll eat something, right, In-ho-ssi?”
Now quite naturally calling In-ho by his name, he took off his shoes and crossed the inner door. He was fine since he tended to eat very little, but he hoped In-ho wouldn’t skip dinner.
“Please eat something, even if it’s just a light snack.”
“Let’s eat together tomorrow.”
However, In-ho also seemed to have no intention of eating and changed the subject.
“I’ll make you something delicious. Since Haon-ssi prepared the meal today.”
Haon had been about to insist he eat something, but at those words, he smiled as if entranced and agreed. Anything In-ho made would be wonderful.
With a languid stride, In-ho led Haon across the wide living room and escorted him to the front of his bedroom door. He treated Haon like a small child who couldn’t do anything on his own. That was how precious and dear he treated him.
“What shall we do tomorrow?”
Having opened the door for him, In-ho stood by the entrance and asked. He stepped aside to let Haon enter, waiting leisurely for an answer.
Could they be together tomorrow as well? Haon, who had been timidly fidgeting with his hands, beamed.
“Are you not going out?”
“No, I plan to stay home.”
He really is unemployed.
Since he was a wealthy unemployed person, Haon let go of his worries and rejoiced to his heart’s content. But after smiling brightly for a moment, Haon, looking at In-ho, suddenly tilted his head.
Then where had he been going every day until now? He suddenly became curious.
“How is your cheek?”
When Haon remained silent, staring blankly into his eyes, In-ho lightly tapped his left cheek where the bruise remained.
“Does it hurt?”
“It doesn’t hurt. Thanks to the ointment, the bruise has faded a lot.”
Haon thanked him again for the ointment. When he had been injured in the past, he hadn’t known such an ointment existed and had lived with deep purple bruises for a long time. If he had known sooner, it would have been much easier.
“I’ll keep using it well.”
When he spoke with sincere gratitude, In-ho knit one eyebrow slightly.
“You won’t have a need to use it.”
A soft, relaxed touch stroked Haon’s left cheek. With a light smile, he cupped Haon’s cheek broadly.
“Once the bruise is completely gone, let’s go to the aquarium. We can eat out then, right?”
At the question that carefully considered his physical condition, Haon’s chest tickled again.
“I’ll buy you something delicious.”
In exchange for the workout clothes he’d received as a gift, Haon had decided to buy the meal. Haon had carved that promise into his mind.
In-ho rolled his eyes lightly, seemed to ponder for a moment, and then smiled with his eyes, agreeing. And so, another promise between the two was added.
Haon looked at In-ho, thinking he should apply the ointment even more diligently. He wanted to go to the aquarium with him as soon as possible.
“Go wash up and sleep.”
Stepping back, In-ho waved his hand.
It seemed he was going up for the night. Haon wanted to ask if he was going to drink alone again, but he swallowed the words, fearing he was being too bothersome.
“Goodnight.”
Please don’t drink too much. He bowed his head, embedding the wish he couldn’t voice into his nightly greeting.
Click.
Haon gripped the doorknob with both hands and pulled it shut very carefully.
“Haa…”
He stared at the closed door, imagining In-ho’s back as he climbed the stairs, and let out a long sigh. He stood frozen before the door, inhaling deeply after the long exhale.
Even though he wanted to just wash up and lie down, he couldn’t bring himself to move.
Standing there blankly, he lightly touched his lips. The lips, where the scabs had disappeared, were no longer rough but soft. Fortunately.
“Wha-what…”
He felt flustered by his own relief at the softness of his lips. In that moment, the stray flow of his consciousness brought back the memory of the kiss he had shared with In-ho.
Stop, stop it!
Haon shook his head violently and climbed into bed, pulling the covers over himself. Without even the presence of mind to wash, he buried his face in the pillow and let out a hot sigh.
Why is he like this? Why does he… want to touch him so much?
He curled his body, confused by a desire he had never felt in his life. Having never been conscious of another person’s lips once in his life, these emotions felt only strange.
Until now, lips had been nothing more than a tool for eating to Haon. Except for during his estrus, he had never of his own will pressed his lips against another or entwined his tongue.
But it was different with In-ho.
Recalling the kiss he shared with In-ho, Haon felt the urge to be held by him again. Just as In-ho’s gentle touch had stroked his cheek, he wanted him to touch his lips and his body.
Thump!
He slammed his face into the pillow to cut off the erotic thoughts. Wanting to be touched. That was the kind of thought one would have when a heat hit.
“I can’t…”
Surely the symptoms weren’t about to appear again.
Anxious, he gripped his stomach as if pinching it, focusing on the sensations of his body. If he felt even a slight hunger, he would have to take measures.
What measures?
The strength left his grip as a sudden question occurred to him, his stomach aching from how hard he’d squeezed. Since he couldn’t take suppressants, there was nothing Haon could do on his own.
But why wasn’t he as anxious as usual?
‘Even if heat symptoms appear, I’m here with you.’
In-ho’s calm voice, etched into Haon’s memory, brought a sense of relief. Recalling the touch that had caressed him on the sofa, Haon began to writhe his body slightly.
If I’m struggling… would he really touch me again?
Even though he knew it was certainly a bothersome and uncomfortable task for In-ho, he felt a longing to lean on him.
Exhaling hot breaths, Haon imagined a night with In-ho that didn’t exist in his memory and slid his hand inside his underwear. He wasn’t hungry. He didn’t feel any thirst at all.
“Ah…”
Nevertheless, he touched himself below while thinking of In-ho.
Having never been interested in sex, Haon had never masturbated before. It was only after becoming an Omega that he looked up how to do it and searched for related videos. This, too, had been purely to prepare for any possible situation.
“Ugh.”
But why was he like this now?
Haon glanced at his hardened member and awkwardly wrapped his hand around it. With his other hand clutching the pillow, he covered his mouth and stifled his moans. The sounds leaking through his lips were uncomfortable to hear.
“Haa…”
Haon’s first attempt at masturbation was incredibly clumsy. Because the strength in his hand kept failing, he couldn’t even grip and shake it properly.
Closing his eyes tightly and panting, he slowly pressed his body firmly against the sheets. As his erect member touched the sheets, it provided stimulation of its own.
Haon moved his pelvis just like that, rubbing himself against the bed. Without even taking off his underwear, he continued to masturbate as if possessed. Every time his member was pressed against the sheets, a terrible sound echoed in his throat.
Biting the pillow to swallow his moans, heat gathered around Haon’s eyes. Breathing only through his nose, he soon ran out of breath.
“Haa-ugh…”
Before long, the hot heat that had filled him erupted beneath his underwear. The trembling of his body, the sensation of the damp cotton, and the twitching of his lower half felt unpleasant.
Reason returned late, bringing Haon a great sense of guilt. Biting his lower lip, Haon tried to shake off the sensation of ejaculation that had spread through his entire body.
The fact that he had done such a thing while imagining In-ho felt like a great sin. How dare he masturbate while thinking of that man.
“I’m crazy…”
Even though it was a perfectly normal thing to do, the inexperienced and immature Haon could not understand himself. It was because such acts still fell into the category of things that were frightening and unwanted for Haon.
Knock, knock.
Haon, who had been sobbing under the covers, froze at the sudden sound of knocking.
“Haon-ssi, are you asleep?”
When he heard In-ho’s voice, his exhausted heart began to thumping again. This was bad.
“N-no. Not yet…!”
Fearing that In-ho would open the door if there was no answer, he shouted urgently.
“Can I come in?”
“No!”
His locked voice cracked. Flustered, he scrambled up from the bed, intending to flee to the bathroom first. So preoccupied with his damp underwear that he didn’t even think to lock the door.
He stepped forward hurriedly, intending to hide his underwear first. However, he happened to step on the blanket that had slid onto the floor, lost his balance, and fell flat.
With a thud as his body hit the floor, In-ho flung the door open.
“Haon-ssi, are you okay?”
He was holding a plate of fruit. Having skipped dinner, he had brought it in case Haon got hungry later.
“D-don’t come over here.”
Haon, speaking in a crawling voice, covered his legs with the blanket. As the wet underwear clung to his skin, his face flushed deep red. He was so embarrassed he wanted to just pass out right then and there.
“What’s wrong? Are you sick somewhere?”
In-ho touched Haon’s bright red face, checking his temperature first.
He didn’t seem to have a fever. But seeing how he was panting and repeatedly trying to lie on the floor, his condition certainly looked bad.
“Look at me. Haon-ssi, is it hard to get up?”
It was when In-ho grabbed his hand to help him sit on the bed. An even more startled Haon jumped, shouting that he was fine, and shook off the hand.
“Ah…”
However, white semen had already smeared onto In-ho’s hand. He should have hidden his hand along with his legs.