By Zephyria 
When facеd with а moment оf crisis, pеорlе mаkе different сhоiсes. Somе strive to resоlve thе situatiоn, somе lash оut in аngеr, and othеrs simplу turn a blind eyе and pretеnd not to notiсe. Аmоng them, Woo-yeоn belonged tо thе tуре who would аvoid thе situаtion by аnу means necеssarу.
Until thе moment hе dоwnеd thе сhamраgne in оne shot, his head was filled with nоthing but these thоughts: ‘I want to run аway.’ ‘I want tо turn into dust аnd disapреar.’ ‘I wish therе were а mousе hоle I соuld hide in.’ ‘I wаnt tо go bасk tо the pаst аnd makе it аs if nоnе of this ever happened.’
Naturally, Woo-yeon chose the most feasible option: ‘I want to run away.’ Like a lizard cutting off its own tail to escape, he threw himself into it without thinking of the consequences. Even if it was reckless, it was better than enduring a conversation with Do-hyun while sober.
He didn’t know what intention Do-hyun had in bringing up such a topic. He didn’t want to know, and he didn’t think anything would change even if he did. However, he felt that the last face he saw before blacking out seemed to have a somewhat hollow expression.
At dawn, as the dim light of daybreak filtered in, Woo-yeon woke up feeling a throbbing headache. His dreams throughout the night had been excessively turbulent, and he didn’t feel refreshed upon waking. Just as he curled his body up, resolving to sleep more, he felt an unfamiliar warmth beside him.
“…….”
Woo-yeon lifted his eyelids very slowly. His eyes, stiff from the morning, gradually found their focus. A familiar room, a familiar blanket, a familiar ceiling, and familiar fingers. Or rather, specifically, two right hands clasped together.
Wriggling his fingers, Woo-yeon moved. One was his own, but the other was not. The straight fingers and neatly trimmed nails were a sight he had seen many times before. Just as he wondered whose hand this was and tried to let go—
“Are you awake?”
A low voice sounded from beside his head. The soft voice with its lingering ends was one Woo-yeon knew well. Unless his ears were deceiving him, the owner of the voice was definitely Teacher.
Woo-yeon lifted his head, feeling as if his heart might stop. Through his creaking field of vision, he saw that same neat appearance. Do-hyun, who had been looking at his phone while leaning against the headboard, looked down at him languidly.
“Are you conscious?”
“……!”
The sleepiness vanished instantly. His pupils dilated, and his entire body froze. It wasn’t just because Do-hyun was in front of him. It was because Do-hyun, while holding his hand and his phone, was wearing nothing on his upper body.
The shoulders extending below the prominent neckline were broad and straight. He had felt it even when Do-hyun was dressed, but his firm upper body was clearly that of someone who exercised quite a bit. Woo-yeon unconsciously lowered his gaze toward the chest, and upon discovering the undulating abdominal muscles, he startled and bolted upright.
“Why… why, why are you like that?”
His round eyes were filled with wariness. Fumbling, Woo-yeon let go of the hand and scrambled to the edge of the bed, as if afraid Do-hyun might grab him. Do-hyun asked back, looking bewildered by a reaction that made him seem like a molester.
“Are you really saying that in that outfit?”
“…….”
Only then did Woo-yeon realize that the area between his legs felt excessively empty. Not just his legs, but his neck and shoulders were the same. Looking down blankly, he saw his own body wearing nothing but a robe.
“Wh-why am I like this?”
Hurriedly closing his legs, Woo-yeon fumbled to pull the lapels of the robe together. The belt was half-undone, but he couldn’t even think of tying it properly. Watching him, Do-hyun curled the corners of his lips mysteriously.
“Right, this is the reaction of someone who doesn’t remember.”
He reached out slowly so as not to startle Woo-yeon. He untangled the twisted waist tie and tied the ribbon himself. Woo-yeon remained curled up with his eyes wide open, and only after Do-hyun moved away did he shift his gaze awkwardly.
“…….”
“…….”
An erotic silence seeped precariously into the air. Ambiguously mixed pheromones were tactlessly lingering between them. While neither opened their mouth, Woo-yeon realized one more new fact.
‘Crazy…’
He wasn’t wearing any underwear. The sensation of the robe touching between his legs was definitely that of raw, bare skin. Just why was he like this? His dizzy head quickly retraced his memories.
‘What were you thinking about while watching the movie?’
Yesterday, after hearing those words, Woo-yeon had resolved to faint immediately. That was why he drank the champagne, and that was why he lost consciousness as desired. It was an action taken without considering the aftermath, but he never imagined he would wake up in bed in this state.
“Why… no, I mean, what is this situation?”
Woo-yeon asked in a stuttering voice that barely came out. Because his voice was so sunken, it sounded as if he were half-crying. Do-hyun, who had narrowed his eyes, brushed back his hair and pulled away the blanket covering him.
“What do you think the situation is?”
Unlike Woo-yeon, Do-hyun was properly dressed from the waist down.
Turning his back and stepping down from the bed, he lightly loosened his shoulders. Seeing the finely sculpted muscles, Woo-yeon blankly stared at his back for a moment.
Though not overly bulky, it was a moderately firm body. Every time he moved, the back muscles became prominent, and Woo-yeon blushed as he recalled the memory of being carried on that back. Then, he suddenly narrowed his eyes upon discovering something written on his back.
“……A tattoo?”
A long tattoo was engraved from the shoulder to the shoulder blade. It wasn’t a pattern but seemed to be some kind of phrase; seeing as Woo-yeon, who was proficient in English, couldn’t read it, it was likely another foreign language.
Do-hyun unconsciously touched his shoulder and let his voice trail off ambiguously.
“Ah, this……”
His thick-jointed fingers traced the tattoo softly. It was clearly a trivial touch, but watching it felt embarrassing. Woo-yeon quietly averted his gaze, then, realizing it wasn’t the time to be surprised by a tattoo, he hesitantly parted his lips.
“I… since I don’t know what the situation is… I’m asking…”
His mind spun. The reason he was in a robe, the reason Do-hyun was like that, and the reason the two of them were lying in one bed. No matter how much he racked his brain, only a few reasons came to mind.
So, Woo-yeon decided to ask about the part he was most worried about first.
“I… I didn’t do that again, did I?”
“Again?”
Do-hyun asked back, staring at Woo-yeon. His pitch-black eyes held an unreadable glint. After frowning slightly for a moment, Do-hyun let out a thin laugh.
“What do you think you did again?”
“…….”
After circling around, it came back to that question. Realizing there was no champagne this time, Woo-yeon lowered his head in despair.
Alcohol was the enemy; how could it produce a new past he wanted to forget every single time he drank? Next time he drank, he felt he should be ‘Sun Woo-yeon’ instead of ‘Seon Woo-yeon’ [Note: a play on words regarding his name and the act of being ‘good/virtuous’].
“You insist on hearing it in words……”
Woo-yeon mumbled with a face that had turned bright red. Because the embarrassment was too much, he now even felt a sense of resentment. Knowing full well what he would say, what was the point of pretending not to know until now?
However, Do-hyun replied in a firm voice.
“You should hear it in words.”
His face still held a smile, but his gaze had sunk slightly. Pressing the space between his brows as if tired, Do-hyun looked down at Woo-yeon obliquely. The hand that had clearly been holding Woo-yeon’s all night had prominent veins bulging.
“There might be a reason for not saying it, but if you don’t say it in words, you won’t know anything.”
“…….”
“Just like how you don’t know what we did last night.”
At those words, Woo-yeon felt a stinging sensation around his chest. While the secrets he hadn’t told came to mind, the things Do-hyun hadn’t told him also surfaced. Because Do-hyun hadn’t revealed that he was an Alpha, hadn’t Woo-yeon misunderstood him for four years?
Sigh, a breath escaped him. It was something closer to a determined resolve than a lament. After steadying his breathing once, twice, Woo-yeon faced Do-hyun with a serious expression.
“……Did we sleep together?”
While he hoped it wasn’t so, he had no certainty that it definitely wasn’t. Do-hyun was an Alpha, he was an Omega, and they already had a history of doing something similar once. Moreover, waking up naked in one bed—the logic could only flow in this direction.
“…….”
Do-hyun tilted his head with narrowed eyes. Under the piercing gaze, Woo-yeon lowered his head and fiddled with his earlobe. The other person was half-naked while he was clumsily covered, yet he felt more embarrassed.
“I thought you wouldn’t remember, but……”
The small mutter somehow felt like an affirmation. His head cooled instantly, and his heart sank. Could it be that something really happened? Had he committed another unspeakable mistake while drunk?
“Looking at your physical condition……”
Do-hyun started to speak, then stopped and covered his mouth. The exclamation that followed seemed to be a realization. He shifted his gaze for a moment and then looked at Woo-yeon ambiguously.
“You can tell by your physical condition, right?”
It was a random question. Woo-yeon asked back with a blank face, “What?” It was at that moment that Do-hyun curled the corners of his lips.
“I mean the muscle soreness.”
“……Muscle soreness?”
It took a very long time for him to understand those words. Woo-yeon, who had been spacing out with his mouth open, belatedly realized the implication and let out a gasp. Simultaneously, his pale face turned even more ghostly.
“…….”
Now that he heard it, his whole body felt stiff. Especially in areas that didn’t usually hurt, like his waist and pelvis. It wasn’t to the point of interfering with daily life, but if you called it muscle soreness, it was muscle soreness.
“Really……”
Woo-yeon couldn’t bring himself to say the rest and shut his mouth. Circumstantially, it was certain they had slept together, but if he heard it directly from the man, there would be absolutely no room left to avoid the truth.
While he was anxiously choosing his words, Do-hyun picked something up from the floor with a nonchalant face.
“It’s better if you don’t hear it from my mouth.”
A white t-shirt was held in Do-hyun’s hand. If Woo-yeon’s memory was correct, that was the t-shirt he had been wearing last night. This time, Woo-yeon felt as if he might actually faint and widened his eyes.
“I’m leaving. Get some proper rest today.”
With those words, Do-hyun left Woo-yeon’s room. There was no explicit answer as to whether they had slept together or not.
He had asked back, ‘Can’t you tell by your physical condition?’, but unfortunately, Woo-yeon had no point of comparison.