By Zephyria 
“He’s more proactive than I thought.”
The muttered words were spoken quietly.
“You don’t like it?”
Haon asked back, his eyes widening.
“You’re the one who said let’s go.”
“That’s right.”
Cha Jeong-won gave a short laugh.
As the corners of his mouth lifted, the look in his eyes softened too.
“Then I’ll make it clear.”
He took a moment to steady his breath and spoke.
“I’m good with going to a hotel right now. I’m good with being with you, sunbae. And I’m good with sticking together more, since we only have two days left.”
He could feel his face gradually heating up as he spoke.
Maybe it was because the pheromones he’d inhaled deeply while secretly rummaging through Cha Jeong-won’s bedroom still hadn’t dissipated.
Wiping his hot face with the back of his hand, Haon acted as if nothing was wrong.
“So hurry up and make a reservation.”
“Got it.”
Cha Jeong-won replied softly.
＊ ＊ ＊
The car was warm, almost hot.
Haon took a deep breath in and then let it out.
Even though he’d just showered, his own pheromones hadn’t faded.
He was bewildered by the stubborn scent that refused to dissipate, and on top of that, Cha Jeong-won’s pheromones were now added to the mix.
‘Maybe I should have taken the suppressant after all.’
He had taken it last week, but it couldn’t suppress the hot sensation currently swirling in his stomach.
It seemed his cycle was being disrupted, likely triggered by Cha Jeong-won’s pheromones.
Feeling the Alpha’s scent enveloping him from the passenger seat, Haon exhaled deeply.
“It’s hot.”
He felt his voice crack as he spoke.
“And stuffy too.”
At Haon’s words, Cha Jeong-won also took a deep breath.
It looked less like a simple breath and more like one meant to steady himself.
“We’ll be there soon.”
“Okay. This time, let’s… really enjoy the hotel stay properly.”
Even as he said it wasn’t for any other reason, the feeling of their pheromones mingling grew even more distinct.
“But to really suggest going to a hotel… That’s unexpected.”
It was funny that they were going simply because Cha Jeong-won wanted to, but it was also a very sudden situation.
“That day was good.”
At Cha Jeong-won’s words, Haon’s smiling face stiffened.
“So I wanted to spend that time again.”
He was talking about the time they spent together in the sweet room.
It was probably something said because the week they’d agreed to date was almost over, but it struck a deep chord in Haon’s heart.
In a few days, Cha Jeong-won would no longer be his Alpha.
When they parked the car in the hotel’s underground garage and got out, the air changed once.
Still, the scents of the Alpha and Omega didn’t peel away.
Even during the short wait for the elevator, the heartbeat pounding inside his chest didn’t slow down.
‘It’s okay. Once we go up, we can open a window and rest.’
Even as he told himself that, he thought it probably wouldn’t help.
“What floor?”
“Here.”
The light illuminated a high floor number.
As the doors closed and the elevator began to move, the noise from outside was no longer audible. The small space was filled only with their breaths and scents.
Haon tried to lean against the elevator wall, but he couldn’t seem to stand properly.
At that moment, Cha Jeong-won’s hand from beside him lightly supported him near his waist.
“Careful.”
The warmth from the fingertips felt strangely vivid.
The hand left his waist and returned to his side, but a lingering heat remained in its place.
“Sunbae.”
Haon called out cautiously.
“Yeah.”
“I’m… a bit… My condition right now…”
Before he could finish his sentence, the elevator stopped.
A bell chimed, and as the doors opened, the corridor lighting flooded their vision.
“Let’s talk inside.”
Cha Jeong-won naturally raised his hand and took out the card key.
His walking pace was steady, but it seemed like he was holding his breath somewhere.
As the door opened and they stepped inside, a cool air seeped in along with a faint scent.
Under the soft lighting, a wide bed, a sofa, and curtains leading to the window came into view.
The moment the sound of the door closing behind them was heard, Haon swallowed a dry gulp.
The sensation traveling down his throat didn’t just linger in his mouth; it felt like it was descending deep into his chest.
“Want some water?”
“I’m okay.”
The answer came out without him realizing.
He definitely felt thirsty, but what his lips truly desired wasn’t water, but something else.
“It’s gotten stronger than before.”
Cha Jeong-won turned around and said quietly.
The Alpha’s pheromones had also lightly spread through the room.
With each synchronized breath, it felt like their scents were overlapping, one on top of the other.
“Sorry.”
Haon spoke first. An apology came out of habit.
“It’s not on purpose, it’s just that since earlier, I’ve been a bit…”
As Haon was choosing his words, Cha Jeong-won approached. He stopped walking right in front of where Haon was standing and met his eyes.
His gaze was heavy. And hot.
“Sunbae.”
He wanted to say it properly, if only because there was so little time left.
“After today passes, will we ever have another moment like this again?”
Almost as soon as the words ended, Cha Jeong-won’s hand moved.
A hand cupped his jawline, carefully rising to caress the side of his cheek and tilt his head.
Their lips drew close.
It was a kiss so light it was almost a brush.
A contact closer to a confirmation.
“Right now, will you be okay?”
Right after their lips parted, Cha Jeong-won asked in a low voice.
The distance was close enough for their breaths to mingle.
“If it’s too much, it might be right not to do it.”
At the unexpected words, Haon paused.
The Alpha’s pheromones had already filled the room. He had never imagined that an Alpha in this state would say it was okay to back off now.
But that didn’t mean he wanted to miss this opportunity.
“You know we don’t have much time left now, right?”
Haon pressed his lips together and then released them as he answered.
His face was burning, but he didn’t avoid Cha Jeong-won’s gaze.
“So why are you hesitating?”
Maybe because heat was rising all the way to his head, bold words came out without him realizing.
With those words, as he wrapped his arms around Cha Jeong-won’s waist, the distance between their bodies drastically decreased.
Heat transmitted directly through the single layer of fabric.
Their lips met again, kissing longer than before.
It wasn’t deep enough to be breathless, but it was a kiss that seemed to confirm each other’s temperature while slowly mingling their breaths. His chest seemed to throb in rhythm with their lips meeting and parting.
Their lips parted once more. They lightly rested their foreheads against each other.
Both slowly steadied their breathing as they looked at each other.
“Tell me right away if it’s hard.”
“Okay.”
He felt nervous, but also expectant.
Cha Jeong-won held Haon for a moment longer, then slowly turned his body.
He took his hand and led him toward the bed, but didn’t rush the pace.
Under the lowered lighting, their shadows lengthened side by side.
Haon, unsure what to do with the lingering heat in his hand, repeatedly clenched and unclenched a corner of the sheet for no reason.
Cha Jeong-won was within reach if he just stretched out his hand.
“Yoon Haon.”
As if those words were a signal, the two began to entwine.
To Haon, everything right now felt completely unfamiliar.
When they kissed, his heart still pounded fiercely, but it wasn’t mortifyingly awkward. However, the touch of Cha Jeong-won’s hands now entering his clothes was utterly foreign.
It felt as if desire was dripping from those fingertips. As if that desire was leaving trails on his body like paint…
“Just a little slower…”
He thought that if this continued, his heart would give out before they even reached the end.
Then, Cha Jeong-won lifted Haon and sat him on his own lap.
Haon instinctively stretched out his arms and wrapped them around his back.
The firm muscles hidden beneath the fabric moved with each inhale and exhale. That vivid sensation transmitted to his palms. Feeling just how solid this person’s body was made his head spin even more.
“Lean on me.”
Cha Jeong-won cupped Haon’s face, making him look at him.
“Relax your body. If you just accept it as it is, I think you at least won’t faint.”
“Whether that’s really true or not remains to be seen…”
As Cha Jeong-won’s hand brushed against his front, Haon’s lips parted and then closed.
“Okay. I’ll relax.”
Cha Jeong-won pressed his lips firmly against his forehead as if to say ‘good job.’ The playful touch momentarily shifted back into an intense caress, starting from the nape of Haon’s neck and slowly exploring.
The hand that traveled down his neck slid slowly over his collarbone and chest, along his side. As the hand that had slipped inside his clothes traced his waistline and lightly pinched his flesh, his weakened body naturally leaned more toward him.
‘This is really right.’
A kiss alone wasn’t enough to satisfy him. A kiss was insufficient.
Before, he thought that since he was close to Cha Jeong-won at least during the moments they kissed, he could accept a moment like today with a bit more composure. That was a mistaken thought.
‘I underestimated it.’
He could never be composed, and he could never get used to it.
When Cha Jeong-won’s hand inside his clothes brushed against his chest and then fondled his nipple, Haon unconsciously rubbed his lower body against Cha Jeong-won.