NAME 8

‘I’m really not in my right mind…’

Although he didn’t want to go as far as kissing at the company, given the situation, Seowon obediently opened his mouth.

A thick tongue that had slipped into his mouth moved greedily. A burning hot palm covered his eyelids. As his vision was completely blocked, all his senses became concentrated on his lips and tongue.

“Hng…”

Without even realizing a nasal sound was leaking out, Seowon became absorbed in the kiss. Intoxicated by a hazy sensation as if his whole body were floating, he fumbled and clung to the other person. Like meeting water while wandering a desert, the saliva sliding down his throat and the Alpha pheromones were wickedly sweet. The tongue that had persistently rubbed the inside of his mouth slowly pulled away. Seowon, feeling disappointed by that, slightly poked his lips out, only to have his lips and tongue roughly devoured again.

Even while thinking that Jaehwan was acting persistent today and that it felt different from before, he couldn’t stop the act. His lower lip was pulled out long before returning to its original state. Seowon’s lips, letting out a short groan, were hurriedly bitten.

His body stiffened for a moment at the desire-filled touch rubbing over his shirt. However, Seowon once again did not push him away and stayed still. The fever had subsided, but a pink desire was wriggling. Even though his head knew where this place was, his body was anxious because it couldn’t touch the other person more.

“Ahng…”

Firm hands fumbled over his back before slowly moving to the front. After stroking his shoulders and feeling his chest, they eventually moved slowly down to his stomach and stayed there. While he was worried that his pants might get damp, a hand suddenly touched his crotch. Ugh, ugh, he restrained the other person, muttering that he shouldn’t do that.

“You don’t have to… go that far.”

“…”

It felt like he had taken a highly effective painkiller; his cells were cheering, saying they could finally live now. The sweet scent that had been vibrating enough to make his teeth ache gradually faded, and the intermittent tremors also stopped. Seowon collapsed to the side like he had been shot and let out a long, deep exhale. Now that the fever was down, he felt like he could breathe. Seowon chuckled to himself with his eyes closed.

“You’re a bit strange today. Anyway, thanks to you, I survived.”

Seowon muttered softly.

“…”

“I’ll rest just a little longer before heading out. You can go first. It’s your precious lunch break, after all.”

Jaehwan was unusually quiet today. He thought the man would at least say something, but why was he acting so taciturn? It might not be that he wasn’t speaking, but that Seowon couldn’t hear him. His ears had been muffled for a while now.

Through his narrowly opened eyes, he saw dark fabric. He’s still in front of me. Seowon lightly tapped what he presumed to be the man’s leg. It was a sign for him to go. At that, the person who had been staying silent finally turned around.

Listening to the receding footsteps, Seowon closed his eyelids. Drowsiness swarmed over his body now that the fever had subsided. Though the situation was a bit ridiculous, he intended to catch some shut-eye here, even if just for a moment.

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟

“Jeong Seowon, Jeong Seowon!”

Someone shook his body. Seowon looked around dizzily and, spotting someone right in front of him, pulled his body back.

“…Lee Jaehwan?”

“Yeah, it’s me. What are you doing here?”

“I slept a bit.”

Because he had slept while crouching on the cold stairs, his body felt very stiff. However, the state of his head was “very clear.” Seeing as a rumbling sound even came from his stomach, it seemed his lost appetite had returned as well. Seowon rubbed his eyes and stretched out.

“What time is it?”

“A little past 1:00. Have you been here the whole time? Why didn’t you answer my calls?”

“Calls? What calls?”

“Your phone? You don’t have it?”

Seowon rummaged through his pockets and shook his head. Only then did he remember leaving it in the office.

“I was going to come out exactly at the start of lunch break, but the Section Chief suddenly called me. So I texted you saying I’d be about 30 minutes late, but you didn’t reply.”

“Was that so? Still, you came early.”

Seowon replied nonchalantly and stood up. Since he had started exchanging pheromones with Jaehwan, this was the first time his body felt this light.

“I’ll release some pheromones for you first.”

But then, Jaehwan charged at him with a determined expression and arms wide open. Seowon lightly pushed his chest back and neatly tied his disheveled necktie.

“Release what? You already did it earlier.”

From hugging to kissing, he had released more than enough to the point of excess. At first, the pheromones were so thick they were stinging, but later they wrapped smoothly around his skin. If he had received any more, his underwear might have even gotten wet.

“I released them?”

“I really wasn’t in my right mind earlier. If it hadn’t been for you, things could have been really bad…”

“Jeong Seowon, tell me properly.”

Both Jaehwan’s tone and expression were quite serious. Noticing the strangeness in that, Seowon’s face also hardened. Seeing Seowon turn pale, Jaehwan sensed something was wrong and explained the situation.

“I just got here. When I walked in, you were alone. But you’re saying someone released pheromones for you and left?”

“What…?”

Seowon covered his mouth and shook his head. He felt like he was being possessed by a ghost. The person who released pheromones for him earlier, the one who kissed him and fumbled over his body, wasn’t Jaehwan? Then who on earth was it? If his words were true, it meant he had begged a total stranger to release pheromones for him.

Gratitude transformed into horror, and refreshment into displeasure. Seowon leaned his swaying body against the wall.

“How could this happen…”

He couldn’t believe he had given his lips to a complete stranger and even stayed still while his body was being touched. No matter how desperate he was for pheromones, he wasn’t an animal, so how did this make sense? What was even more unbelievable was the fact that he had felt joy and relief while receiving the pheromones of a nameless Alpha.

“You didn’t see who it was? How could you mistake them for someone else? It’s not like you don’t know my pheromones?!”

At Jaehwan’s accusing tone, Seowon’s eyes flared sharply. If you look at it, wasn’t it Jaehwan who failed to keep the promise? He was saying that contacting him at the promised time to say he’d be late was inherently wrong. Seowon, showing his discomfort through his expression without filtering, stood up straight. Then, glaring at Jaehwan, he spoke.

“I told you my condition was really bad. It was to the point I couldn’t even open my eyes properly. I was on the verge of fainting. If I had the energy to distinguish pheromones, would I… But why do I have to be making excuses like this to you?”

“Seowon, I didn’t mean it like that. I just…”

“And you keep going ‘Seowon, Seowon.’ Assistant Manager Lee Jaehwan, didn’t we agree to use proper titles at work? Why do you keep crossing the line?!”

It was a vent of pointless anger. Jaehwan had only been trying to help him, after all. Even the questioning about the mysterious Alpha was, if you think about it, because he was worried about him. His head knew it, but his heart didn’t want to accept it.

“Sorry, Seowon… no, Mr. Assistant Manager Jeong. I made a mistake.”

Jaehwan cautiously grabbed his fingertips. The trembling transmitted through his fingers reached his heart.

He was the person who had put up with various troublesome things for as long as three years. Regardless of whether it was a weekday or weekend, whenever Seowon said he needed him, he would come running without a second thought to release pheromones. He shouldn’t treat him so carelessly just because he called him by his name.

“I’m sorry. Mr. Assistant Manager Lee—no, Jaehwan, I know you worry about me. I just got too emotional. To make an excuse, I really wasn’t feeling well. Some things happened.”

“Yeah, how are you now? You okay?”

A dejected Jaehwan looked exactly like a Golden Retriever craving affection. Like the kind of dog that shoves its head forward and licks fingers just to win its owner’s favor.

“I’m fine. I’m a bit hungry, though.”

Rumble, a loud stomach growl occurred right on cue, reversing the atmosphere. Jaehwan began to snicker first, and Seowon followed suit. He set aside the question about the strange Alpha who had released pheromones and vanished into thin air for a moment.

“I guess I do need to eat something first. If I’m going to work this afternoon.”

“Should I go buy you a sandwich or something?”

“I can just go to the first-floor cafe and grab something quick.”

“Then let’s go together. I need to drink coffee too.”

The two stood side by side in front of the elevator. Jaehwan stood at a distance that was neither too close nor too far from Seowon. It was exactly the distance Seowon wanted.

‘But who on earth was that earlier?’

While the elevator was going down, Seowon thought about the mysterious Alpha. Looking only at the result, it was something to be grateful for, but it could have easily become a dangerous situation. He remembered the hand that had tried to fumble under him. How did someone else end up there?

‘Did they follow me, perhaps?’

The door leading to the emergency stairs was on the exact opposite side from the elevator, so unless someone went there on purpose, the probability of meeting someone by chance was extremely low. He briefly considered the assumption that the mysterious Alpha might have been there from the start, but he dismissed it. Even while in a daze, his memory of hearing the door open was vivid.

“Assistant Manager Jeong, aren’t you getting off?”

At Jaehwan’s urging, Seowon got off the elevator. His mood was uneasy, but his physical condition was light as if he could fly. Even Jaehwan’s pheromones weren’t this fast-acting… Throughout the time he spent eating the sandwich Jaehwan had brought, Seowon couldn’t erase the thoughts of the mysterious Alpha.