“I wasn’t bringing it up because of what your father said earlier, but I’ve been thinking about it since I saw your test results. We’ve already agreed to have separate partners anyway, so wouldn’t it be better to meet someone we can both trust?”
Is this some kind of final test?
Does he think I still have feelings for him, that it’s obvious I still like him?
It wouldn’t make sense otherwise. Suggesting a sex partner, not just an acquaintance, to the person you’re going to marry…
“I’m asking because I think you have a somewhat impulsive nature, just to be sure.”
Seo Baek-han counted off a few things on his fingers.
From the small matter of transferring to Pyongyang University, to the big one of touching the Dirty Switch because he was curious about sex, and even proposing to him to solve that problem…
“No matter how it started, I chose you as my spouse, and while we’re married, your problems are no longer just your own.”
It wasn’t just some idle probing. Seo Baek-han was being completely sincere. He genuinely wanted this marriage to be successful, and he was making this suggestion out of consideration for his young spouse, whom he suspected of taking suspicious drugs and having affairs with bodyguards.
“I haven’t interfered so far because it didn’t seem like a problem, but… I suddenly wondered if it would be a problem if things continued like this after the marriage.”
So, he was suggesting that he gradually reduce his drug use and sleep with someone he could monitor.
Seo Baek-han’s proposal was rational, and very much like him.
He had come up with a way to achieve maximum efficiency with minimal effort, so it would be strange if he didn’t try it from his perspective.
“Of course, I’m not forcing you.”
Seo Baek-han glanced at Joo Tae-hyun’s frozen face, who hadn’t said a word, and closed the half-open window with a long sigh. Only after the wind, which had been rushing freely through the wide-open space, stopped did Joo Tae-hyun realize he was trembling slightly.
“…Um, hyung. I—”
“I just asked because there’s someone who seems to like you, so don’t worry about it if you’re not interested.”
Perhaps because it had been sufficiently diluted by the incoming wind, the two people’s Pheromones, which had been swirling around chaotically, no longer felt as stimulating as they had at first.
Joo Tae-hyun closed his eyes deeply, as Seo Baek-han had done a moment ago, and then opened them. Perhaps it was thanks to the faint peach scent that remained, but the trembling gradually subsided.
A sex partner introduced by the person you like, your future spouse. It was shocking to think about, but on the other hand, it seemed possible because he had become a little closer to Seo Baek-han. He could interpret it as having taken a step closer to him, to the point where he could comfortably bring up a somewhat awkward topic.
“Yes, thank you for thinking of me. But I’m seeing someone.”
However, apart from that, the fact that he was seeing someone was, of course, a lie.
If Seo Baek-han made the same suggestion again, he wasn’t sure he could remain indifferent. So, it would be better to make it clear here so that this conversation wouldn’t come up again. Joo Tae-hyun rubbed his arms as if he were cold and tilted his head.
“We’re not exactly dating yet, but I think we will be soon.”
“Is it Chun Seung-pil?”
“…Pardon?”
“The grandson of the Yoonra Foundation. I heard you two hang out a lot in the States.”
Who? Chun Seung-pil? Perhaps it was because such an unexpected name had popped up. Joo Tae-hyun didn’t say anything and just touched his forehead.
I told you I used to like hyung. So you know I have high standards. Do you really think I’d sleep with Chun Seung-pil because I have no one else?
“Hyung, I… I hate Chun Seung-pil’s type. And I only like Alphas. Men, Alphas.”
“So, if you like insertive sex—”
“No! I, well, how should I put it? Yes, I like the unique Pheromones of Alphas!”
Chun Seung-pil… Joo Tae-hyun, unable to escape from the shock, began to ramble on about anything. After hearing Seo Baek-han ask if he was seeing Chun Seung-pil, he really couldn’t see straight anymore.
“It’s true that their Pheromones feel a little more aggressive when they’re with an Omega than when they’re with another Alpha. It feels like my body instinctively rejects the same type? But I like that about it.”
“Hmm.”
“Betas and Omegas are too predictable. It’s like, I like that sharp feeling. And, also… Yes. Alphas can knot… That’s right, knotting.”
What am I even saying? Joo Tae-hyun desperately hoped that Seo Baek-han was right about his Pheromones not fluctuating much. He hoped his eyes weren’t red, that he looked as sullen and sulky as always.
“I’m taller and bigger than most people my age. So, I need knotting to go deep, to get deeper, that kind of thing…”
Words were pouring out without going through his brain, and Joo Tae-hyun wondered if he should cover his mouth right now. In fact, that lewd talk was what Seo Baek-han’s hallucination had told him when he took the Dirty Switch.
“So, yes, I like Alphas.”
“Hmm. If you enjoy that kind of sex, you’ll have to be even more careful in the future… Okay, I understand for now.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Seo Baek-han said, nodding briefly. It would be less embarrassing if he clicked his tongue and said, “You have such strange tastes…” Seo Baek-han was just acting as if he now completely understood what kind of sex the young man he was going to marry enjoyed.
“But who is this guy you’re seeing besides Chun Seung-pil… Oh, are you talking about someone from the lab? Was he an Alpha?”
“Ah, yes.”
Joo Tae-hyun had no idea who Seo Baek-han was talking about, but he decided that as soon as he got back, he would have to find an Alpha, whether from the same lab or another. It would be enough to invite them to his house a few times under the pretext of finishing up the handover or study before returning home.
“Geez. I never thought I’d hear about Joo Tae-hyun’s sex preferences.”
Seo Baek-han smiled as he got up from his seat.
“Shall we go downstairs? The adults must be worried.”
“…Yes.”
It felt like a lie that he had been briefly elated just a moment ago, feeling like he had been recognized as a real spouse. Of course, in a way, this could also be seen as respecting him as an official couple…
Joo Tae-hyun bit his lower lip hard, as he always did, but then he remembered that Seo Baek-han had told him not to do that, so he composed his face.
Not only had he suggested a sex partner, but he had also made an outrageous remark about him dating Chun Seung-pil, and he had babbled on and on, unable to distinguish between what he should and shouldn’t say.
But still, still…
Now hyung is at least aware of my Pheromones.
I’ve gotten close enough that he said with his own mouth that he never thought he’d hear about Joo Tae-hyun’s sex preferences.
“…Um, hyung.”
“Hmm?”
“It would be better to dry your hair before going downstairs.”
So Joo Tae-hyun decided to be brave.
“It’s still wet.”
He reached out and lightly grabbed Seo Baek-han’s damp hair, then let go.
It was a very timid rebellion against Seo Baek-han, who had said something about a sex partner without any malice, and it was also a childish feeling of wanting to get some kind of compensation from him because he was a little hurt.
He also wanted to get Seo Baek-han’s permission that this level of closeness was okay, and on the other hand, he wanted to see him a little flustered by the sudden touch of a perverted kid who had been spouting nonsense about liking sex with Alphas.
“Hmm, is that so?”
But Seo Baek-han brushed his hair back as if nothing was wrong, and Joo Tae-hyun’s hand naturally fell away.
It was an ambiguous gesture, and he couldn’t tell if it was a polite refusal to touch him, or if he was just acting comfortably because he didn’t mind this level of familiarity.
“I’ll go to the bathroom. Wait a little.”
Perhaps he had quickly become familiar with the way, Seo Baek-han strode off alone in the direction they had come. Even though this was his space, he was left alone to watch his back, as he always had been.
A sex partner…
Would it have been less upsetting if hyung had said he was seeing someone?
Joo Tae-hyun tried to pull himself together, as he was constantly becoming depressed.
He had lied because he wanted to hold onto Seo Baek-han somehow. No one had pushed him to do so, so it was ridiculous to be upset.
Joo Tae-hyun straightened his drooping shoulders and counted only the positive aspects.
Anyway, he had gotten one step closer to Seo Baek-han than before. If he took one step, two steps like this, wouldn’t many things change someday?
He didn’t expect him to look back at him. He just wanted to become the best of friends, someone he could confide in everything, the most reliable partner in life… It would be enough if he could occupy even that position.
Because they were getting married soon.
After that, and after living together, many things would change.
Just like how so many things had happened just from staying here for one night.
January 31st, twenty-six years old.
Before he knew it, their fourth wedding anniversary had arrived.
“Congratulations, young master. The director is too busy today, so I came in his place.”
Seo Baek-han’s secretary handed over a bouquet of flowers so full that even an adult man would have trouble holding it with both hands.
“…Thank you.”
Last year, and the year before that. Since getting married, Joo Tae-hyun had heard the exact same congratulatory words from Seo Baek-han’s secretary, without missing a single syllable, and had received a bouquet of flowers of the same size and a gift of a similar price.