Kwon Tae-hee had Chief Jung take care of closing the flower shop and headed to Seo Jeong-won’s house.
The youthful face that had fallen asleep leaning against his chest looked nothing but serene.
Each time a sigh-like breath escaped from his slightly parted lips, the faint, sweet scent of lingering alcohol drifted out.
It took less than ten minutes to get from the flower shop to the villa where Seo Jeong-won lived.
After smoothly pulling over, the chauffeur asked if he should wait or return the next morning to pick him up.
“Wait here.”
“Yes, sir.”
The chauffeur stepped out of the driver’s seat and opened the back door, giving a polite bow.
Kwon Tae-hee lifted Seo Jeong-won into his arms.
Holding the limp body, he climbed the stairs.
At the top of the short flight, he paused in front of the door and gently shook Seo Jeong-won.
“The password… Oh, guess not.”
He hadn’t paid much attention the first time he came here.
The building was old and the hygiene awful, so he’d been too busy looking around to check the front door.
He had assumed Seo Jeong-won’s fidgeting was to hide the door code—but now it seemed he’d been inserting a key instead.
Kwon Tae-hee reached into Seo Jeong-won’s pants pocket.
It was awkward since he was still carrying him.
Would he even be able to stand if he put him down?
He shifted Seo Jeong-won over his shoulder and began rummaging more comfortably.
There was a lot of random stuff: receipts, crumpled bills, and coins.
Mixed in was a key with a chipped dolphin pendant.
“Why the hell are you still carrying this?”
Maybe the sensor light was broken, because aside from when he came up, the stairway was completely dark.
With an irritated expression, Kwon Tae-hee jammed the key into the lock and finally managed to open the door.
He laid the peacefully sleeping Seo Jeong-won on the bed and slowly scanned the room, which looked no different than yesterday.
It was small and sparsely furnished, giving the impression that it was tidy.
In other words, it felt bare.
Bringing a glass of water back into the room, Kwon Tae-hee gently tapped Seo Jeong-won’s cheek.
His closed eyelids twitched slightly but didn’t open.
He placed the water on the desk so he could drink it when he woke, then pulled the blanket back over him.
He briefly considered changing his clothes—but if he used that as an excuse to touch him, he wasn’t sure he could stop himself.
Seo Jeong-won should really know how deeply Kwon Tae-hee cared about him.
Stroking the now-cooler cheek, Tae-hee habitually released his pheromones.
He drenched Seo Jeong-won with his scent before standing up.
If he stayed a moment longer, he feared he wouldn’t want to leave at all.
He looked around the desk, found a pen and notepad, and wrote a short note.
He placed it visibly beneath the water bottle and approached the bed again.
Staring quietly at Seo Jeong-won’s sleeping face, he impulsively leaned in and kissed him.
Soft, moist kisses, like stamping a seal, pressed against his lips repeatedly.
He released his pheromones again. If only his body could sense them already…
Pretending not to notice how impatient he was becoming, Kwon Tae-hee left the room, satisfied with the heavy scent he’d left behind.
That morning, the moment Seo Jeong-won opened his eyes, he instinctively felt something was seriously wrong.
When he read the neatly written note, he worried he might’ve made some mistake.
But gradually, that worry turned into a sinking despair.
This wasn’t the time to leisurely reread the note.
He couldn’t remember clearly, but if he had done something wrong, he needed to apologize.
He immediately sent a message thanking Tae-hee, but the short reply—“It’s fine”—was the end of the conversation.
Contrary to his expectations, Tae-hee didn’t even ask if he was okay out of courtesy.
When he later messaged, “You must be busy. Please make sure you’re eating well,” he didn’t get a reply at all.
Seo Jeong-won couldn’t bring himself to reach out again and let the days pass.
On Friday, just as he was closing the flower shop early, he received a message—not from Tae-hee, but from his secretary.
It said there was a schedule this week and he didn’t need to come.
That’s when he became sure something was wrong.
Tae-hee had told him to get some rest, but Seo Jeong-won couldn’t relax for even a minute.
An unexplained anxiety clouded his mood.
He felt completely lost.
Even with a new week starting, his phone stayed silent.
No calls, no messages—nothing.
As promised, he went early to Kang Da-hyun’s farm and had breakfast with him.
He spent hours picking apples, but couldn’t focus solely on the task.
His thoughts kept drifting.
He was convinced he must’ve messed up while drunk.
Unless… something happened with Tae-hee that night.
That seemed more likely.
After all, Tae-hee was the ideal match for someone like him.
With the yellow basket full of apples, Seo Jeong-won sat down for a moment and let out a long sigh.
He was exhausted.
Afraid he’d miss a message, he hadn’t slept soundly even once.
As he yawned, rubbing his aching eyes, Kang Da-hyun suddenly tapped him on the shoulder.
“Slacking off?”
“Ah—oh, geez, you scared me.”
Startled, Seo Jeong-won’s shoulders jumped.
He quickly showed the full yellow basket to defend himself, and Kang Da-hyun gave an awkward grin.
Ever since that drunken incident, things between them had felt off.
Da-hyun clearly remembered something, but kept insisting he didn’t, which only made it worse.
“You didn’t eat properly this morning. How about pork belly and soju after work?”
“Soju?”
“Or… maybe beer?”
At his quick shift in tone, Seo Jeong-won burst out laughing.
Shaking his head, he muttered he didn’t understand why someone with such a weak tolerance kept suggesting drinks.
“You gonna propose to me again when you’re drunk?”
“What?! I seriously don’t remember that! I proposed to you? Come on. I mean, marriage is something people talk about, but me, to you? That’s absurd. Then again… huh? I mean, it’s not that absurd, right? It’s not that bad? I’m good-looking, aren’t I? Look closely.”
“What’s looks got to do with marriage? Do you even like me?”
Seo Jeong-won teased with a grin, his tone full of playful disbelief.
“And I’m a beta. You’re an alpha.”
“Well, yeah, but—”
“Find someone nice. Date. Get married. But don’t joke like that with me. What if someone hears? That’d be terrifying.”
“What’s so terrifying? I could fall for a beta. What’s so scary about that?”
Seo Jeong-won ran his hand down his exposed forearm under his short sleeves.
Taking off his work gloves, he wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand.
Kang Da-hyun’s eyes lingered on his face shining under the sun.
When he was younger, people often mistook him for an omega, which led him into dangerous situations.
And each time, it was always Kang Da-hyun who protected him.
At first out of kindness.
The second time, curiosity.
From the third time on—it was affection.
After all, he had the kind of appearance anyone could be drawn to.
The kind that stirred something dark, hidden inside.
“What’s so scary about someone overhearing? Marriage isn’t some huge deal. If both people like each other, that’s enough.”
“Isn’t the problem that we don’t like each other?”
At that dead-on comment, Kang Da-hyun’s face crumpled.
Without realizing it, he released his pheromones.
He felt humiliated by the act of unilaterally claiming ownership over something one didn’t even possess—but the person involved wouldn’t know anyway.
The unfamiliar pheromones coming from Seo Jeong-won were certainly strong, but he felt like he could leave at least a faint trace of his own scent on him.
A light and fresh fragrance, different in texture from Seo Jeong-won’s luxurious scent, began to subtly blend in.
The innocent and clueless eyes curved gently.
“Anyway. The neighborhood’s small. If a rumor spreads, your parents might collapse.”
“Collapse? That’s ridiculous. If I say I like him, they’ll give their blessing. My parents aren’t that uptight.”
Seo Jeong-won fell silent at the unexpectedly serious response.
He turned his head to avoid the gaze that felt a little too heavy.
Still, he couldn’t just ignore it, so he awkwardly smiled and reached out for the apple in apology.
“So, are we eating dinner or not?”
“You said no alcohol while picking apples.”
“Well yeah, but… you know how a drink hits different after labor. Don’t you get that?”
“What are you even talking about?”
As the rambling went on, Seo Jeong-won scratched his cheek.
There weren’t any apples left to pick, and after chatting for a bit, he felt like they’d rested enough, so he tried to move—but Kang Da-hyun blocked his way.
“Want some makgeolli for a snack? The menu is cold soybean noodles.”
“No thanks. Why do you keep suggesting drinks while we’re working?”
“I mean… what’s the harm? It’s not like we’re picking all day. After the snack, just pick for another hour or two and we’re done.”
“Are you the owner of the field or something?”