By Zephyria Lee-eum looked at his body reflected in the mirror and clenched his teeth. His wrist was red from the pressure of the handcuffs, and his chest had multiple bite marks from how much it had been sucked and kissed. Moreover, the pain between his buttocks constantly reminded him of what had happened last night.
Son of a bitch. How dare he shove a dick as thick as his forearm into my ass without permission.
Lee-eum took a shower, scrubbing his body raw, and then came out. Choi Won-joon’s cell phone and wallet were on the table. Lee-eum, who had woken up early, sent a message to General manager Lee using Choi Won-joon’s cell phone.
【Take the kids and go home. Don’t call me until I contact you.】
He received a reply saying he understood, and when he came outside, General manager Lee and his subordinates were gone. Afterwards, even at home, Choi Won-joon’s cell phone rang incessantly, and surprisingly, most of it was work-related.
I thought he was just coasting at the company, but I guess not.
Lee-eum switched the cell phone to vibrate and tossed it aside. I wonder if Choi Won-joon is awake. Surely he hasn’t unlocked the handcuffs. No matter how strong he is, there’s no way he could unlock those. If I had beaten him to a pulp, I would have felt better.
Lee-eum came out to the living room, made coffee, and sat on the sofa, turning on his cell phone, which was fully charged. As soon as it turned on, a message from Yoo Seol-ah came in.
【Come to the hospital as soon as you wake up in the morning.】
There were many other unread messages, and Lee-eum, who was looking through them in order from the top, stopped in the middle.
That is important.】
What is this?
It seems like it means to come now, but the recipient is Choi Won-joon. Before losing his mind, he had tried to contact Jeong Dae-han but stopped, and he doesn’t remember much after that. But I was trying to send a message to Choi Won-joon? Why? And how did he know and come looking for me even though it wasn’t sent? Did he put surveillance on me again?
His head became complicated, and Lee-eum sighed, changed into his going-out clothes, and left the house. While taking public transportation to the hospital, he mingled with people, but it was no different from usual. If he had craved Alpha pheromones like a blood-seeking vampire last night, he was now an ordinary Beta to anyone who looked at him.
Arriving at the hospital, Lee-eum hesitated for a long time at the entrance. As soon as he was about to see Yoo Seol-ah, even as a close friend, embarrassment washed over him. He sat on a chair for a long time before finally opening the door to the examination room and entering.
Yoo Seol-ah greeted him with a smile, and Lee-eum rubbed the back of his neck with an awkward expression.
“Are you feeling a little better? Did you sleep?”
“I’m okay… I’m sorry about yesterday. Thank you.”
Lee-eum sat in the chair, and Seol-ah visually examined Lee-eum’s condition.
“Do you know how surprised I was when I saw the message? It’s a good thing your Darling was by your side.”
Lee-eum tilted his head. Who?
“Choi Won-joon. He said you two are lovers.”
Lee-eum grimaced in disgust.
“What? No way.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Really not?”
“Yeah.”
“Then introduce him to me.”
At the unexpected words, Lee-eum paused without realizing it.
“Are you crazy? Have you finally lowered your standards after only working?”
“Let’s be honest. Choi Won-joon is top-tier. There are probably a lot of people who are dying to meet him.”
“That kind of scoundrel?”
“That scoundrel was fidgeting because of you, though?”
“It’s all an act. He’s completely different on the inside.”
Yoo Seol-ah narrowed her eyes and stared intently at Lee-eum.
“Is Choi Won-joon the person you mentioned before? The Alpha you slept with when I went to New York.”
When Lee-eum didn’t answer, Yoo Seol-ah smiled meaningfully.
“So you two have gotten closer in the meantime?”
“Absolutely not, there’s actually a situation.”
“What situation?”
Lee-eum hesitated and then told her what had happened, though not everything. The more Yoo Seol-ah heard, the wider her eyes became.
“So all the other Alphas are disgusting, but only he’s okay? And he has insomnia, but he can only sleep when he’s next to you? That’s amazing. Other people would call this a match made in heaven, but I won’t say that to you because you’ll get angry.”
“……”
So why only Choi Won-joon? Even in the fragmented memories, his pheromones definitely felt good. A refreshing and clear scent that evoked a blue sky and forest, a scent that didn’t suit that man at all.
“As a doctor, it’s not really appropriate to say this, but people have compatibility. There are people whose pheromones are especially compatible. But this is a very rare case.”
Lee-eum’s face hardened, and Yoo Seol-ah rolled a pen in her hand before suddenly stopping.
“Why don’t you use him?”
“Who?”
“Choi Won-joon. Unstable pheromones can also be seen as a process of stabilization. Usually, even ordinary Omegas or Alphas experience growing pains for the first year or so after their presentation. It’s late, but that period has come for you too. On the contrary, if an Alpha is by your side, the time to stabilize may be faster. And the other person is a dominant Alpha.”
“No way.”
“What if it happens again like yesterday? The medicine you take doesn’t even work anymore. I can’t run over to give you a shot every time.”
“……”
“Think about it seriously. This is advice from a doctor, not a friend. It’s better than hooking up with a strange guy whose face you don’t even know when you lose your mind. What if you get pregnant?”
Ugh, how awful. Yoo Seol-ah shuddered, not knowing how far she had imagined, and Lee-eum opened his mouth after much deliberation.
“Then… will I get better if I have a relationship with Choi Won-joon?”
“That’s the best way. At least you can do it with prior consent. Of course, if you really don’t want to, just have some contact. Hugs or kisses are good too.”
Lee-eum frowned. Hugs or kisses are more awkward and uncomfortable than imagining sex with Choi Won-joon. As he rolled his eyes with a confused expression, Yoo Seol-ah took Lee-eum’s hand.
“Now you have to prepare. You’ve always said you’re okay, but your body and mind are under a lot of stress. You could become a time bomb that could explode at any time.”
Lee-eum couldn’t argue. He had his first heat cycle in his mid-twenties and learned that he was an Omega, not a Beta. He thought he could hide it, but as time went on, that secret kept squeezing his breath.
“You can still be a police officer, even if you’re not a violent crimes detective. Your family will understand. They’re good people.”
Lee-eum wasn’t sure. Especially about his father. His father was secretly upset that Lee-eum wasn’t an Alpha, and if he found out that he was a half-baked Omega, not even a proper one, he would be more than disappointed.
After talking with Yoo Seol-ah, he came out of the hospital, and Lee-eum sat at the bus stop for a long time. He was looking at the passing buses when Choi Won-joon’s cell phone vibrated.
【Joon-ah. Are you coming today?】
Joon-ah? Is that the nickname his mother calls Choi Won-joon? It doesn’t suit him at all. It seems like he was supposed to meet his family. Lee-eum sighed and put the phone back in his pocket. Several buses heading home passed in front of his eyes, but he didn’t move from his spot.
Then, he made up his mind, grabbed a taxi, and headed to the motel where he had confined Choi Won-joon. As he entered the entrance, the employee at the desk recognized his face, nodded, and went back to his work.
Lee-eum went to the third floor, used the key, and opened the door. The pheromones that had filled the room were gone, and only a musty and humid smell remained. Choi Won-joon was lying on the bed as if dead, and Lee-eum stared at him with his arms crossed.
He should have heard someone coming, but he doesn’t even budge. Even when he got closer, he had his eyes closed and didn’t move like a corpse.
“Don’t pretend to be asleep.”
His eyelids lifted, and dark eyes appeared.
“You came?”
He was so nonchalant in his greeting that Lee-eum was at a loss for words. Lee-eum took the key out of his pocket to unlock the handcuffs. Then, Choi Won-joon grabbed his hand.
“Leave them on.”
“Why? Did you find that it suits you since you saw the car? Should I dress you in a prison uniform while I’m at it?”
“I tried to understand your feelings while lying here.”
“Ha, as if.”
“So, as if. I guess I’m just hopeless from the start, it didn’t work out well. I tried to understand how much pride you have in your job as a police officer and how afraid you are of losing what you’ve built up until now. But it’s not working. Damn, can a person really have such a lack of empathy?”
What a crazy bastard. Who is he complaining to? Even in the midst of all this, what Yoo Seol-ah had said lingered in his mind.
【Why don’t you use that person?】
When their eyes met, Choi Won-joon lowered his eyebrows in a pathetic way.
“I’m sorry.”
“……”
“I didn’t know you.”
Lee-eum looked at Choi Won-joon without saying a word.
“I didn’t understand your feelings and acted as I pleased.”
【It’s better than hooking up with a strange guy whose face you don’t even know when you lose your mind.】
“Actually, I still don’t know you well. I may never know you.”
When you think about it, Yoo Seol-ah’s words make sense. Wouldn’t it be better to be with someone you know than a complete stranger? Since he’s an infinitely frivolous person, he’ll get tired of me easily, and there won’t be any problems when we break up.
“But I’m sincere about being sorry.”
Lee-eum, who had been listening quietly, unlocked his handcuffs. There was a click as the handcuffs were unlocked, and a red line appeared on Choi Won-joon’s wrist. As he put the handcuffs in his back pocket, Choi Won-joon sat on the bed and closed his eyes tightly.
“What are you doing?”
“Hit me.”
Lee-eum scoffed in disbelief.
“I messed up, so hit me as much as you need to feel better.”
“Are you serious…?”
“Yeah.”
“Are you really going to hit me?”
“As much as you want. I’ll take your hits,”
Before he could finish speaking, Lee-eum threw a punch. With a thud! Won-joon fell onto the bed, clutching his face and groaning, and Lee-eum nonchalantly went to the sofa and sat down. Won-joon got up, licked the inside of his cheek with his tongue, and smiled.
“Is that it? Aren’t you going to hit me more?”
Lee-eum paused for a moment and then called out to Choi Won-joon.
“Come and sit down… I have something serious to talk about.”