Chapter 12: An Unwanted Scent

The living room was dim. When he rubbed his eyes, his vision finally sharpened. He hadn’t even noticed how tousled his hair was. Haejun looked around with a half-dazed mind.

The curtain was wide open, revealing the city nightscape. A large TV, a floor lamp with the light off, a quiet speaker, a wool rug in warm tones, a leather sofa warmed by body heat. It was Sijin’s living room, a sight he’d grown used to.

The only noise was the rustling of Haejun waking up. He yawned away the last of his drowsiness and grabbed the phone buried deep in the rug. It was already past nine at night.

“……”

The house was quiet, so Sijin still hadn’t come back. He’d said he’d be right there. And no message had come through either.

Nothing happened to him, right?

Worrying about accidents and other unexpected events, he called Sijin, but it just rang and rang. He called once more—same thing. Haejun’s face scrunched up a little, worried about Sijin, who hadn’t contacted him at all this late. His eyebrows drew together and his lips pushed out in a pout.

Then he thought that his hyung wasn’t a kid, and maybe he was too busy to text. He’d seemed to be handling something important when he left, so maybe the work just ran late. Haejun decided not to think any deeper.

Right now, more urgent than no call from his hyung was the fact that Haejun’s pheromones were mixed into the air. He gave his body a quick shudder and staggered up to dig a suppressant out of his bag. He’d been taking one or two every time he saw Sijin, and he was already on his third bottle.

Since he’d never built up a tolerance, he thought even one pill would last a while, but that wasn’t quite true. He’d never been exposed to Alpha pheromones this continuously before, so the effect on his body was considerable.

Haejun swallowed the bitter pill on his tongue. He found himself swallowing it down easily without struggling as much as the first time, which made him feel a bit like an adult.

Anyway, maybe I should stop coming to hyung’s house from now on…

Of course, his hyung would shoot that down in one go. His recent joy seemed to be cooking food for Haejun. Watching him cook was fun in an unexpected way, and honestly, most things Sijin made were dishes Haejun had never seen before, so they were novel too. Sorry, Grandmother.

He’d even gone and told Haejun the passcode to his door lock. And asked, “Want a card key too?”

Actually, even if Haejun slept over and ran into him in the morning, Sijin wouldn’t be surprised. That had to be why he’d given the passcode.

A wide, soft bed, a fridge full of ingredients, hot water that flows out right away without waiting. All that was enough to loosen Haejun’s nerves. But he didn’t linger anymore. He slung his bag over his shoulder. Before leaving, he remembered to turn on the air purifier.

The elevator lights seemed especially bright since it was so dark outside. Haejun tidied his messy hair in the mirror on the wall. Then he noticed his cheeks were slightly flushed. Under the harsh lighting, his reddened cheekbones looked shiny.

He rubbed his warm cheeks with dry hands, then glanced at his phone. Still no reply from Sijin. As he left a quick message saying he was heading home, the elevator doors opened on the first floor.

It was the time of year that felt like summer in the day but let you feel autumn at night. Shivering in the cold wind that crept into his clothes, Haejun hurried out of the building in quick steps.

– You should have slept over.

The next day, Sijin said calmly over the phone. Apparently he’d only gotten home an hour or two after Haejun left.

“No, it’s fine. Grandmother would worry.”

Even though Sijin couldn’t see it, Haejun shook his head slowly.

That was the biggest reason he’d decided to go home, even with the comfortable bed, the full fridge, and the endless hot water. When he came home late and let her know in advance she didn’t mind much, but if there was no word past ten o’clock she’d stay up waiting for him.

Well, these days it seemed like if he said he was with “that pretty lad,” she’d let it slide—as if she trusted that Sijin would take care of things and get him home in time. And that was true.

Haejun scratched his cheek. He wanted to ask what had kept his hyung out late yesterday. But his lips just moved and no sound came out.

Hyung has his own life, so it’s normal for him to be late. Wouldn’t it be weird to ask in detail? And Haejun couldn’t even be sure he was inside the circle of people who could ask without worrying about that.

Just as Haejun was feeling deflated, loud laughter erupted not far away. It was a particularly loud group of students clustered in scattered spots along the straight hallway. One guy stood in the middle, drawing attention, and Haejun knew him well.

He was a classmate, a few years older even though they were in the same year. After he’d shown interest in Haejun at the start of the semester and been rejected, he’d been especially and openly nasty. Every time they crossed paths, he’d pick a fight over some trivial thing. If Haejun answered, he’d climb all over him; if he ignored it, he’d throw a fit about being ignored.

It was awkward enough just being on the same campus, and the guy had always shown off about his age and drinking capacity since he entered. Which was precisely the thing Haejun found hardest to stomach.

Haejun moved the phone to his other ear. He pretended to focus on the call and walked faster. If he was unlucky enough to meet eyes, he was almost guaranteed to pick another fight.

– By the way, you left a book at my place.

“Really? Which one?”

– Basic Statistics. …I wasn’t looking on purpose, but are you weak at statistics, Haejun?

“Ugh, no… I’m only a first-year.”

– Okay, fine.

He heard Sijin laughing happily. Being a lot sharper than Haejun, he’d probably already recalled how Haejun had been bad at math from a young age.

Haejun remembered the book he’d left on the living room floor while studying yesterday, not making it back into his bag. He could go pick it up today or tomorrow, or ask his hyung to bring it. That was what he was thinking when…

“This is a perfume made by mixing real altered pheromones, they say.”

“Omega? Alpha? But how do you know if it’s real? Spray it in front of an Alpha?”

“If it’s Omega pheromones you’d get… damn, you begging for trouble? If you’re gonna spray to check, do it on an Omega…”

Among the guys giggling and joking, the one Haejun was most wary of spotted someone passing right in front of him and thrust the bottle out. The problem was, that someone was Haejun.

As soon as the anomalous movement entered his vision, Haejun’s eyes reflexively turned. There was a translucent perfume bottle. The next movement of the index finger looked like pulling the pin of a grenade.

“Ah…!”

Startled by the mist-like particles spraying toward his face, Haejun let out a short scream and yanked his head away. But the scent spread through the air faster.

– What happened? Haejun! What’s going on?

Sijin, who had been on his way anyway and said he’d bring the book over, was startled by the scream and shouted urgently. Unfortunately, it didn’t quite reach Haejun’s ears.

Haejun sucked in a breath. A faint but unfamiliar, and because unfamiliar, unpleasant pheromone clung to the mucosa of his nose. A tickling sensation that couldn’t be scratched spread all the way inside. His stomach felt bloated. He could clearly feel the cheap pheromone sticking stubbornly to his clothes’ fibers, not just his skin.

“Whoa, that smells damn good.”

“What? It’s Haejun?”

“Crazy bastard, why are you spraying that on a Beta?”

“What’s it matter? For a Beta it’s just perfume anyway.”

The men’s voices buzzed like a swarm of bees. He seemed to have just sprayed the perfume without even knowing who anyone was. Haejun twisted his face in annoyance and stumbled in place. On the other end of the phone, Sijin was anxiously calling his name.

“Haejun. Are you okay?”

Other classmates nearby threw him worried words. Haejun couldn’t even say he was fine with a lie. The guy who actually sprayed it was playing dumb, which was infuriating.

Particles must have gotten in his eyes, because they stung. Haejun scrubbed his eyes with his sleeve, then glared at them with half-bloodshot eyes. No matter how he looked at it, it was intentional.

“Sorry, man. I was just trying it, and you happened to walk right past.”

When Haejun visibly hardened his expression, the guy finally mumbled an apology in a groveling way, which was completely infuriating. Spraying pheromone perfume on another type was beyond rude, but Haejun had never revealed his type at school, and these guys naturally knew him as a Beta. If he showed any more disgust here, he’d risk planting suspicion instead.

Haejun bit his lower lip hard, then released it.

“…It’s fine.”

“Alright. Your eyes are red right now. Go wash your face.”

They gestured toward the direction of the bathroom, trying to usher him off. Passing by their awkward faces, Haejun gave the guy one last look. He shrugged. It came off like “so what are you gonna do about it,” and Haejun’s stomach churned.

Haejun frowned slightly at the unfamiliar pheromone clinging to his own body. Since it was mixed with artificial scent, the only way to get rid of it was to shower and wash his clothes.

Haejun started for the bathroom, then remembered he’d been on the phone with Sijin until just now. The call was still going. His Adam’s apple trembled as he held back a sigh that wanted to escape.

He quickly racked his brain for an excuse and cleared his throat.

“Hyung, sorry. I almost tripped while walking.”

– You’re at the management building now, right? I’m coming. Stay there.

He heard Sijin moving on the other end of the line. Haejun’s heart started racing on its own. The anxiety hit him that if he met Sijin in this state, the pheromones might be found out. Even if it wasn’t his own pheromone, the fact remained that any pheromone scent would make Sijin uncomfortable.

“…Why? I’m fine. I didn’t get hurt.”

– Okay, understood. I’m bringing your book. I’ll be there in ten minutes.

“Ah…! Hyung! The book, tomorrow…!”

The call ended before he could finish.

Haejun felt cold sweat starting to bead at the back of his neck.

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