17 – Cypress Mosaic

A ​brief ​twitch ​flickered ​under Lorenz’s eye. ​His ​pale ​knuckles ​bulged ​as he gripped the ​armrest ​of the lounge ​chair.

While listening to ​music, ​he ​didn’t ​want ​to ​conjure any images. ​He ​wanted ​to immerse himself ​solely in the order ​of the ​notes on ​the score, ​executed with ​perfect ​precision.

However, ​Elian Bellotti’s face ​was interfering ​with that appreciation.

Yes, it ​was because he happened ​to be listening to ​this particular ​piece ​at that exact moment.

The moment he ​first discovered him, he ​happened ​to ​be ​listening ​to this piece.

Lorenz ​stopped following ​the ​score with his ​eyes ​and sank deep into thought.

While ​greeting Lorenz ​upon ​his return from ​work, ​Margaret ​had ​once ​again suggested ​that ​he invite ​Elian Bellotti to dinner. She wanted them ​to reconcile.

“He is ​doing his best ​for Lucas. I believe ​even you, ​Mr. Lorenz, cannot ​deny ​that Mr. Bellotti ​is an excellent ​counselor.”

A few ​days ​had passed ​since ​the first ​consultation, ​but during ​that ​time, ​Lorenz had not ​encountered ​Elian Bellotti ​at ​all. ​Even ​if they stayed in the same house, they were not family. There was no obligation for Elian to see him off or greet him every time he left for or returned from work.

“Then tell him to come down to the dining room by 8 o’clock.”

Lorenz spoke as if he were conceding, visit our siteand unauthorized copyattempted to return to his [visit our site]room. However, Margaret’s voice caught his ankle.

“That won’t do.”

“Why now?”

“You must extend the dinner invitation personally. Surely you haven’t been asking for dates that way until now?”

“This isn’t a… date.”

Lorenz’s answer, which had been confident, somehow became less so. His eyes narrowed, as if he were doubting himself.

It’s not a date.

Of course, it’s not a date.

“It’s not a date, but it is a seat for reconciliation. Therefore, you must invite him yourself. Otherwise, the meaning is diminished. If he hears through someone else that he is to come down to the dining room by 8, anyone would perceive it as an order.”

After standing in thought for a moment, Lorenz rubbed his chin with his large palm and shrugged.

“I don’t know. I don’t want to disappoint you, Margaret, but even if I invite him to dinner, we will surely fight again.”

That had been an hour ago, after he had spoken bluntly and left the scene.

A cooperative relationship, not an employment relationship.

A partner company, not a subcontractor.

As he chewed over Margaret’s words in his head, his focus grew increasingly scattered.

To be unable to even concentrate on music—it was nothing short of hell within hell.

Damn it.

Ultimately, Lorenz stopped the music without finishing the piece. It was an extremely rare occurrence.

Abruptly standing up, he left the room with rough, hurried strides, like a man possessed by anger.

The bedroom prepared for Elian by Lockhart was very pleasant. It was at least three times larger than Elian’s room in Brooklyn and came with a luxurious private bathroom. Of course, the furniture and bedding were also top-of-the-line. Sitting at the desk in front of the window, one could look down upon a beautiful courtyard. Elian often wrote his reports on Lucas there.

The sound of water pouring into the bathtub was somewhat loud. Elian, walking out of the bathroom in a robe, went to the window and picked up his phone. While relaxing the day’s tension with a bath, he intended to watch videos related to child psychological counseling. Video sharing platforms were very useful, as he could access various lectures from famous counselors.

However, a video entirely different from his original purpose caught Elian’s eye.

<Pheromone Dependency Syndrome: For Them, It Was Luck and Happiness>

It was a title that no one suffering from Pheromone Dependency Syndrome could possibly ignore. The thumbnail featured a couple facing each other affectionately with bright smiles.

Playing the video, Elian fixed his [visit our site]gaze [Read on Read BL Novels]on the screen and moved hesitantly to [stolen content]perch on the edge of the bed.

The video began with a journey to a small-to-medium-sized city in Colorado.

[Emma, diagnosed with Pheromone Dependency Syndrome, married as soon as she turned eighteen. It was right after she finished high school. Ryan, her childhood friend and boyfriend since she was fifteen, had proposed after learning about her illness.]

An interview with the man introduced as Ryan followed.

He was a healthy-looking young man with a good complexion and glowing cheeks. With a shy smile, he shared their story.

[As soon as I heard about Emma’s condition, I couldn’t think of anything else. Everyone opposed it, saying it was too early for marriage, but Emma and I were certain. Rather, because of that illness, we realized it. Going to college, dating for a few more years… we realized such a waste of time was unnecessary for us. I instinctively knew that I would end up marrying Emma. Whether it was five years later, ten years later, or right now, I was going to marry Emma eventually, so there was no need to delay it.]

The video showed the couple’s ordinary daily life.

Walking hand-in-hand, grocery shopping together, stopping by a flower shop to smell fresh roses, and cooking happily in a cozy kitchen—they were no different from any other couple.

Ryan’s interview continued.

[It’s a disease where there’s no problem as long as you periodically exchange Pheromones with your partner. There’s no need to keep taking expensive stabilizers, and no need to suffer from side effects. There was absolutely no reason to hesitate about marriage. Emma is healthier than anyone right now. Even healthier than I am.]

This time, the screen changed to show Ryan and Emma sitting side by side. As if proving her health, Emma’s face was full of vitality.

[It’s just as Ryan says. I’ve never taken a stabilizer in my life, and there are no problems or inconveniences in my daily living. Pheromone Dependency Syndrome isn’t as dangerous a disease as people think. As long as you are with the person you love.]

Emma looked back at Ryan with a warm gaze, and Ryan gently enveloped Emma’s hand in his.

[Emma and I call that illness our luck and happiness. Because it allowed us to realize early on that we were destined for each other, without having to take a long detour.]

Pheromone Dependency Syndrome.

A rare disease that occurs in Alphas and Omegas.

If they are not periodically exposed to the Pheromones of the opposite gender, the autonomic nervous system becomes unstable, causing anxiety, hyperventilation, and seizures in succession. In the case of Omegas, a Heat may occur, and for Alphas, a Rut may occur, without any warning signs. If symptoms intensify, they may lose consciousness, which can lead to fatal brain damage.

However, as long as they receive a regular supply of the opposite gender’s Pheromones, they can live as perfectly normal people. Like Emma.

Elian had been diagnosed with this disease about three years ago and had been taking stabilizers ever since.

Taking stabilizers can prevent the symptoms of the disease, but as a side effect, the sense of smell gradually weakens. It is said that the sense of smell returns if one stops the medication and undergoes Pheromone exposure, but for the current Elian, stopping the stabilizers was impossible. Unless he found an Alpha boyfriend or girlfriend, taking stabilizers was essential.

To be able to manage the disease by marrying someone he truly loved and exchanging Pheromones… Emma and Ryan in the video were an extremely lucky case. However, not everyone’s life unfolded that way.

Among patients with Pheromone Dependency Syndrome, many rushed into marriage at a young age, conscious of the disease. And the majority of those marriages ended in unhappiness. Since they were marriages rushed for reasons other than love, perhaps it was a natural result.

Stopping the video, Elian stood up with a heavy sigh. It seemed it would be better to listen to music while bathing.

He flipped through a few of the records he had brought from his home in Brooklyn.

Debussy’s Rêverie.

It was a piece his mother also loved, so she had often played it as a lullaby since he was a child. Perhaps because of that, he felt a sense of comfort, as if returning to childhood, whenever he heard this piece.

A peaceful smile lingered briefly on Elian’s face as he stroked the surface of the old record cover. Objects touched by his mother’s hands were precious memories in themselves.

He carefully placed the record on the turntable and lowered the needle into the groove. Along with a faint crackle, familiar and tender tones spread out.

Elian opened a bottle of wine purchased from a boutique and filled a glass. It was an Argentine Malbec he used to drink often with his mother. After swirling the glass a few times to let the aroma open up, he tilted the glass and brought his nose close. However, he could not perceive the flavor of the red wine at all. Only the faint, sharp sting characteristic of alcohol brushed past.