Chapter 16: The Scent of Wildflowers.

Was omega pheromone always supposed to smell like this?

It was clearly different from any omega pheromone he had encountered before—a completely ordinary, almost bland scent of wildflowers.

Yet unlike the pheromones of most dominant omegas, it wasn’t unpleasant enough to provoke a sense of territorial discomfort.

It was probably because the concentration was so faint—so faint it was almost imperceptible.

If the pheromones he emitted unconsciously were only at this level, then Jin Yooha must be a recessive omega. Having reached that conclusion, Shin Joowon flicked his hand away as if tossing something aside.

Dominant or recessive, an omega was still an omega, and Shin Joowon had no real desire to get involved with one.

For now, he just wanted to have a bit of fun and satisfaction by tormenting Jin Yooha—at least enough to make up for the price of his shoes.

He’d drive toward Sanyeong-dong for now, and if Yooha still didn’t wake up by then, he’d just slap his cheek to rouse him.

As Shin Joowon was about to change gears, entertaining a slightly vicious thought while looking at Yooha, who showed no signs of waking, a phone began to vibrate somewhere.

Thinking it might be Chairman Shin again, he quickly glanced down at the console box, but his own phone lay there in silence.

Then the vibration had to be coming from Jin Yooha’s phone.

Watching Yooha sleep on, breathing evenly without a care in the world, Shin Joowon clicked his tongue and rummaged through Yooha’s clothes. Luckily, the phone was in the pocket of his coat.

“…Wootae?”

The name on the screen alone didn’t tell him much.

After glancing once more at Yooha, who still showed no intention of waking, Shin Joowon answered the call. Before he could even speak, the other person launched into rapid speech.

“Hyung! I just saw your message. Did you eat dinner? Are you going to be late?”

The voice was so loud it made his ears ring.

Shin Joowon frowned and pulled the phone slightly away from his ear.

Being called “hyung” suggested the caller was younger than Yooha, and asking whether he’d be late implied… family? Someone he lived with?

Sorting through his thoughts, Shin Joowon decided this worked out nicely and spoke in a calm tone.

“Yooha drank too much and fell asleep. I’m taking him home—are you a family member?”

“…What? Hyung drank alcohol? Wait—who are you?”

“I’m his senior from school. Could you give me the home address?”

The caller snapped back with a voice thick with suspicion.

Shin Joowon’s expression twisted briefly in irritation, but he masked it with a smoothly polite tone as he asked again.

Silence followed on the other end. Shin Joowon tapped the steering wheel lightly with his fingernails, exercising his patience.

Thankfully, the silence didn’t last long.

“Could you wake him up and put him on the phone? My brother isn’t someone who goes around drinking like this…”

Instead of just giving the address, why was he making demands?

Shin Joowon clenched the steering wheel so hard it looked like it might crack, his jaw tightening until his teeth ground audibly.

He wanted to throw the phone away on the spot—but he chose to endure it one more time.

“Yooha. Jin Yooha.”

“……”

“Wake up.”

“…Mm… yeah……”

Shin Joowon brought the phone close to Yooha’s face and shook his shoulder several more times.

Yooha only let out faint, drowsy groans, on the verge of waking but never quite getting there, before slipping back into sleep.

With a small sigh, Shin Joowon ran a hand through his hair and shot Yooha an annoyed look.

If the caller told him to wake him up again, he might actually explode.

“No matter how much I try, he won’t wake up. I’m leaving the school now, so please give me the address.”

“…Ah. Okay. It’s 19, Sanyeong-ro 36-gil, Bukdong District.”

At least he finally gave the address.

There was still some unease in his voice, but he seemed to accept that there was no other option.

When Shin Joowon reset the destination, the estimated arrival time changed to 9:53 p.m.

“ETA is 9:53. Please come out in front of the house around then.”

After saying his piece, Shin Joowon ended the call and slipped the phone back into Yooha’s pocket.

Casting one last glance at Yooha, who still showed no signs of waking, he followed the navigation and started driving.

The only sound in the car was Yooha’s quiet breathing.

Every time the car stopped at a signal, Shin Joowon tapped the steering wheel with his fingertips, glanced at Yooha, then returned his gaze to the road.

As time passed, the faint wildflower scent slowly spread through the enclosed space, drawing a dry chuckle from him.

An omega with pheromones this weak was something he’d never encountered before.

Even when Yooha deliberately released pheromones under stimulation, Shin Joowon had barely sensed anything—he’d only inferred Yooha was an omega from his reactions.

If even a dominant alpha who was sensitive to pheromones found them this faint, then lesser alphas would never realize Jin Yooha was an omega.

Scoffing at the barely perceptible pheromones that accompanied each of Yooha’s breaths, Shin Joowon pressed the accelerator again.

Unlike the unusual, rare scents of dominant omegas, this one didn’t grate on his nerves, allowing him to focus on driving.

As the shrinking distance indicated they were nearing Yooha’s home, a narrow alley appeared—barely wide enough for a single car.

Following the navigation and slowing down, Shin Joowon frowned as he looked around.

The neighborhood was desolate, poorly lit, and run-down, giving off a gloomy atmosphere.

Can people really live in a place like this?

At this point, he wondered if that worn-out, cheap wallet of Yooha’s might not have been a “concept” after all.

Just then, the navigation announced they had arrived and shut off. Checking the time, it was just past 9:40.

Traffic must have cleared up, since they’d arrived earlier than expected. Shin Joowon turned on the interior light.

“Jin Yooha.”

This time, he shook Yooha’s shoulder far more forcefully than before. Yooha’s eyelids fluttered. Shin Joowon called him again.

“Yooha, wake up.”

Despite the gentler voice, the rough handling made Yooha’s body sway like a leaf in the wind.

Only after bumping his head lightly against the window did Yooha regain half his senses and slowly lift his eyelids.

His alcohol-fogged head spun from the sudden impact.

“…Sunbae…?”

Turning sluggishly toward the sound, Yooha found Shin Joowon staring straight at him.

Seeing Yooha look at him with no clue what was going on, Shin Joowon let out a small laugh.

He’d heard “sunbae” plenty of times before, but tonight, it sounded oddly fresh.

“Feeling better now?”

“Uh… I’m not sure… my head still feels kind of…….”

Yooha lowered his head and pressed his temples tightly, squeezing his eyes shut before opening them again.

He couldn’t remember where this was, why he was with Shin Joowon, or how things had ended up like this.

He remembered Min Gihwan showing up and forcing him to drink a couple more shots—but after that, his memory cut off completely.

Having never drunk enough to reveal any real drinking habits, Yooha stole cautious glances at Shin Joowon.

Worried he might have caused trouble again, his mouth opened before his thoughts could catch up.

“Um… sunbae, I don’t really remember much, but… did I maybe mess up while drunk, or cause you trouble… or anything like that…?”

“Hmm… not really. You fell asleep, so moving you into the car took a bit of effort, though.”

“Ah… I-I’m sorry….”

“I’m joking. You didn’t cause any trouble.”

“Really…?”

“Yeah.”

Only then did Yooha finally relax. The tension drained from his shoulders, and a long sigh slipped out on its own.

While Shin Joowon was looking at Yooha with a faint smile, a knock on the driver’s window made him turn his head.

He lowered the window, and a unfamiliar face slowly came into view.

Judging by the circumstances, it had to be Wootae—the one he’d spoken to on the phone.

“Are you Yooha hyung’s sunbae—oh! Hyung!”

Spotting Yooha in the passenger seat through the open window, Wootae exclaimed brightly.

Yooha tilted his head, confused by Wootae’s sudden appearance.

Shin Joowon got out of the car at once, walked around the hood, and headed for the passenger side.

Wootae, only now noticing the car’s imposing presence, stood there dumbfounded with his mouth hanging open.

“Get out, Yooha. We’re home.”

“M-my house…?”

“Yeah.”

Opening the passenger door like an escort, Shin Joowon answered lightly and pulled Yooha out by the arm.

While Wootae supported the unsteady Yooha, Shin Joowon retrieved Yooha’s bag from the back seat and placed it into his arms.

All the while, Wootae stared at Shin Joowon with open admiration. Even among his friends, Wootae had never lost in height—yet Shin Joowon was taller still.

Shin Joowon scanned him briefly with an expressionless face, then smiled warmly as if nothing had happened and gave a casual nod.

“See you next time, Yooha. Have a good weekend.”

“…Y-yes… goodbye….”

Without a shred of hesitation, Shin Joowon turned back and got into the driver’s seat.

As the luxury foreign car—utterly out of place in this shabby neighborhood—disappeared down the road, Wootae stared after it in a daze and muttered,

“That’s f*cking insane……”

Yooha stood there too, just like Wootae, blankly watching the car fade into the distance—clutching the bag Shin Joowon had handed him as if it were a lifeline.