RACA 59

No matter how you look at it, Pyo Jaebeom seems unaware of his own emotions. Or perhaps he knows but can’t find a reason to care about them.

Whatever the case, one thing was certain.

“Don’t go testing the waters. You never know what might happen later.”

The flu must have messed with his head. His true feelings just spilled out like that. Eunsol let out a sigh and closed his eyes.

Honestly, he just hope this cold passes without incident. Once he’s better, he’ll have to figure out how to win over Pyo Jaebeom, who’s been keeping his distance.

If everything in life went exactly as planned, could you even call it living? Of course, some people manage to achieve everything they desire, but Eunsol knew for certain he wasn’t one of them.

If he’d been born lucky, he wouldn’t have spent years stuck in minor roles, hearing people say he was a terrible actor.

“Haah…”

“Oh, is it cold? Shall I wrap it in a towel one more time?”

Jaebeom, who had been placing the ice pack on his forehead, asked immediately as he exhaled a sigh. Eunsol, his eyes half-closed, shook his head.

Even though it was just that, somehow the dizziness seemed to be getting worse. It hadn’t been this bad earlier, but as time passed, he felt his physical condition gradually deteriorating.

“No… Cough… Cough. Cough.”

As he opened his mouth to refuse, a cough erupted immediately. A small cough mingled with the breath he exhaled. Seeing this, Jaebeom frowned and wiped Eunsol’s neck and face with a damp towel.

“This is serious. Why don’t you go to the hospital instead?”

“It’s not that bad.”

The measures they take there won’t be much different from what they’re doing now anyway. Unless the hospital’s characteristic bustle prevents you from getting proper rest, that is.

“I wish your fever would break a little…”

Listening to Pyo Jaebeom’s mutterings, Eunsol closed his eyes. It lessened the dizziness a bit, making him feel slightly better.

“Sleep. I’ll be right here beside you.”

“I can’t sleep…”

If only he felt sleepy, that would be nice. But his consciousness was crystal clear. That made it even worse. His whole body was burning up, but his nerves were completely focused on the touch on his forehead.

‘Why, of all things….’

What bothered him more than his hand was the faint scent that seeped out from Pyo Jaebeom.

At first, he thought it was just body odor, but the peculiar sensation in the scent made him realize it wasn’t simple body odor, it was pheromones.

‘Ah, why is he acting like that?’

Why could he smell it so distinctly today, when he never noticed it before? Earlier, Pyo Jaebeom said his scent was lingering in the air, could he have released pheromones to drive it away? That thought even crossed Eunsol’s mind.

“Is it because you’re cold? Just bear with it a little longer. They say this is how the fever breaks.”

Pyo Jaebeom seemed to have misunderstood the reason for his sigh. Unable to tell him the truth, Eunsol could only bite his lip weakly.

If it were just cold, that would be fine. The problem was that instead of his body temperature dropping, a strange heat seemed to be building up.

‘What is this? I’m going crazy.’

Even the throbbing sensation seemed more than just muscle pain from a cold, leaving Eunsol bewildered.

“Eunsol-ssi.”

How long had it been? Pyo Jaebeom called his name softly.

“…Huh? Ahem, yes?”

His voice cracked, making an odd sound, so Eunsol cleared his throat and answered again. But Pyo Jaebeom didn’t say anything.

Wondering why, Eunsol opened his eyes and their gazes met instantly.

“Are you doing this on purpose?”

“What?”

“Your pheromones are getting stronger than before. This is a problem. You need to rein it in quickly.”

“Pheromones?”

Eunsol took a deep breath, trying to smell it. But all he could detect was not his own pheromones, but only Pyo Jaebeom’s pheromones, slightly bitter.

“Then you should tone down your pheromones a bit.”

Who’s the one making things awkward now? The nerve! But to Eunsol’s rebuke, Pyo Jaebeom wore a bewildered expression.

“What do you mean?”

“Your pheromones, sir. They’ve been emanating from you since earlier.”

The look in Pyo Jaebeom’s eyes as he stared at him was filled with indignation. That only made Eunsol feel more flustered.

“My pheromones? That’s ridiculous.”

He sniffed hurriedly, he was genuinely unaware. Then, realizing he had faintly released pheromones, his eyes widened.

“What on earth is going on?”

“Well… cough, how should I know?”

I’m the victim here. Of all times, he had to smell an Alpha’s scent when his whole body was burning up with fever, causing this bizarre reaction.

Eunsol gnawed on the inside of his cheek. Fortunately, he was covered by the blanket; otherwise, his arousal might have been immediately obvious.

“Hurry up and get yourself together.”

Eunsol clenched his fists tightly under the covers. His gaze moved to his wrist, veins bulging, and his straightened neck.

He wanted to bury his nose there and inhale the pheromones even deeper. More than that, he craved an even more explicit act.

“Ah…”

Just imagining it seemed to be stimulating enough. Feeling himself getting damp down below, Eunsol closed his eyes.

“Eunsol-ssi? Are you feeling dizzy?”

Once again, Pyo Jaebeom made a splendid mistake and asked a completely irrelevant question. Honestly, it was enough to drive Eunsol crazy and make him jump up and down.

“No. Just, I want to be alone, so leave that there.”

He felt that staying like this would lead to trouble. But Jaebeom, who he thought would leave immediately, sat still, wearing a troubled expression.

“Why aren’t you leaving?”

Please just go. Once the source of this provocation is gone, he’ll be able to calm down a bit. Eunsol chanted a prayer to himself as he looked at Pyo Jaebeom.

He could only do this because he was certain he didn’t know his situation. But he stared down at Eunsol, his brow furrowed, not budging an inch.

“Even so, how could I leave someone who’s sick all alone?”

That’s what they call pointless kindness.

“I’ll just put it on my forehead. I can’t sleep anyway, so I’ll manage on my own.”

“No, you can’t. I’ll change it for you later.”

“Then you can come back later, right?”

“But if I do that, you’ll have to raise your voice to call me, and won’t that be even harder?”

The real problem is that you’re here! Eunsol lamented his situation and looked at him again.

“I’m sorry. I’m arguing with someone who’s sick. I get it now, so you don’t have to look at me like that. I’ll be here on time.”

Perhaps seeing his teary eyes, fortunately, Jaebeom showed no sign of further insistence and began to back down. Eunsol didn’t relax his guard until the moment he turned, opened the door, and stepped outside.

“Huuuuu…”

Finally alone, he let out an odd, zombie-like sound and stared at the ceiling for a moment. His forehead was numb from the ice pack, but his body still felt hot and flushed.

Well, you could say that’s because of the flu and body aches.

Unfortunately, there was something else that made Eunsol feel awkward.

“Why won’t it go away?!”

His voice trembled with frustration. As Pyo Jaebeom left, the alpha pheromones he had subtly exuded gradually faded.

That much was fine. The problem was that his lower body began to grow increasingly powerful as time passed.

Eunsol glared at the ceiling with wide eyes.

“Ssangssang, Ddungddung. Don’t misunderstand. Your dad isn’t that kind of lecherous person, you know?”

In fact, Eunsol had once seriously wondered if he might be asexual. To be honest, even when he realized his feelings for Pyo Jaebeom went beyond mere liking, he never even imagined a physical relationship.

What Eunsol had hoped for was simply to try acting alongside him.

“I swear that’s what I wanted…”

But why has the situation changed now?

‘It’s definitely the pheromones.’

That’s the root cause. Becoming an Omega after he transmigrated.

Because of that, Pyo Jaebeom claimed he needed a child and dragged him into bed nearly every night, and because of the pheromones, he couldn’t resist the temptation and fell completely for it.

‘Grandma, no matter how worried you are about me, this is too much. Why on earth did you create this situation?’

In the end, Eunsol reached the point of resentfully blaming his own maternal grandmother. He tried to shift his thoughts elsewhere, but it didn’t really help much.

“Haa…”

Eunsol exhaled once more. He squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them and glanced toward the door.

Fortunately, the door was completely shut. He would be fine as long as he was careful.

After all, Pyo Jaebeom wouldn’t come in unless he called him.