PAO 8

“I’m going to take a shower.”

“Okay. You can come out with it all dangling, I don’t mind.”

“I will be fully clothed.”

At Seowon’s reply that he would never show any vulnerability, Junghoo opened one eye, a smile still on his lips.

“What’s that?”

Seowon pointed at one spot on the object in his hand with his index finger.

“Shampoo.”

“There’s shampoo in this house too.”

“I can’t use anything else but this shampoo.”

Seowon gently shook the bottles in his hand. He couldn’t possibly use anything else when this was the shampoo he chose to suppress his pheromones.

*

Seowon, who came out with a towel around his neck, looked around for Junghoo while ruffling his hair. He had been sitting on the sofa before he went into the bathroom, but he was nowhere to be seen.

“Did he go to his room to sleep?”

He was worried he might pull a stunt like waiting for him and asking to sleep in his room, so this was a relief. Seowon massaged his heavy shoulders, finding it hard to believe everything that had happened throughout the day. The day had been too long, and he was tired.

“Then I’ll go to sleep too…”

As Seowon turned towards his room, something fell behind him, making a dull thud. Seowon, who reflexively turned around, confirmed a tall figure who had been about to come out of the kitchen and saw a phone rolling at his feet.

He had only looked around the living room, so he hadn’t thought that he might be in the kitchen.

“You were there? Why are you standing there like a ghost? I was wondering where you were.”

At Seowon’s words, Junghoo, who had been staring at the phone, slowly lifted his head. His unfocused eyes and parted lips made him look somewhat dazed. Could it be that what he said earlier about his head hurting was true?

“…To surprise you.”

Along with his slick words, Junghoo gave a sly smile as if to ask when he had ever been dazed.

“You’re not a kid, why were you hiding to surprise me?”

“I was going to hug you from behind.”

“Your phone saved you.”

Seowon lowered his eyes and pointed at the phone with an I-knew-it expression. The screen seemed to have fallen face down; he hoped it had cracked.

Seowon turned back around while continuing to dry his hair. It was an action that said he had no more business with him now that he knew where Junghoo was.

“But, Seowon.”

As Junghoo strode over with his long legs, the distance between them closed in an instant.

Junghoo put his hand into Seowon’s damp hair. A gentleness was present in the touch that separated the clumped strands of hair. Liking the feeling, Seowon couldn’t bring himself to smack Junghoo’s hand away immediately.

“You’re not a kid, what’s with this shampoo scent?”

“What about my scent?”

Seowon tightened his relaxed lips. He must have shown Junghoo too much of a relaxed side just now.

“The scent is too sweet.”

“…What?”

At Junghoo’s following words, Seowon stopped his attempt to remove his hand and asked again. While Seowon was frozen and unable to do anything, Junghoo buried his nose in his hair and inhaled.

“Your shampoo smells sweet.”

The frozen Seowon only rolled his eyes to look at the slightly ajar bathroom door. He could see the shampoo bottle he had just used. White musk. An alluring scent that spreads with a sharp kick.

Perhaps thinking Seowon was still because he was embarrassed, Junghoo didn’t back away and pressed his body even closer. Then he tilted his head and brought his nose down to the nape of Seowon’s neck, where his hair rested.

“Our Seowon has a baby-like side to him.”

At Junghoo’s words, Seowon was completely frozen and couldn’t answer. His heart was pounding so hard it felt like it would jump up to his throat, and his fingertips grew cold.

The scent Junghoo smelled seems to be my pheromones…

When describing pheromones, people would often use similar things to make them easier to understand. Someone had once said Seowon’s pheromones were like syrup. They had compared the sweet scent Seowon had to syrup. Though his preference was for cool or refreshing scents. No matter how much you couldn’t choose your own pheromone scent, he wondered how it could have turned out so opposite to his tastes.

“What did you just say…”

“You didn’t pour syrup on your head instead of shampoo, did you?”

Surprised, Seowon barely managed to rein in his pheromones, which were about to be released. His heart was still pounding loudly, but since he couldn’t control an involuntary muscle, he let it be and composed his expression.

“Since you say I’m baby-like, I’ll have to change my shampoo.”

“But I like it.”

“All the more reason to change it then.”

Seowon subtly turned his body away from Junghoo and bit his lip before letting it go. What on earth was going on? He hadn’t particularly released his pheromones, but his heart shook violently at Junghoo’s reaction, who acted as if he had smelled them. That’s why it made even less sense.

‘How could Yoo Junghoo smell my pheromones?’

He was a recessive.

“More importantly, either go back to sleep, or…”

Seowon trailed off as he was pushing Junghoo away, the heat radiating from him transmitting to his palm.

“You…”

Seowon suddenly placed his hand on Junghoo’s forehead. Even though his hand wasn’t large, Junghoo’s face was so small that it was enough to cover his forehead.

“Do you have a fever? Why are you so hot?”

“Your hand is cool.”

While Junghoo closed his eyes and felt the temperature, Seowon pulled him toward the sofa. Only after seating Junghoo down did Seowon let out a sigh of relief, feeling as though he had managed to brush off the pheromone scent he had smelled from his hair.

“Did you catch a cold?”

“Mm…”

Instead of answering, Junghoo rubbed his forehead against Seowon’s hand. His body moved closer into Seowon’s embrace, nuzzling against him as if being held. His hand slyly reached around his back, and though he considered pushing it away, he left it for now.

He knew all too well that he had a soft spot for people who were sick. It wasn’t something he could change just by knowing it, so he had just lived with it, and now he was about to get a soft spot for Junghoo.

Instead of pushing Junghoo away, Seowon measured his temperature, touching from his forehead to the nape of his neck.

“You should have told me if you were sick. Go lie down. Do you want some water?”

“I’ll stay like this.”

“Your body will hurt more if you stay in such an uncomfortable position.”

“I’m not sick.”

At Junghoo’s mumble, Seowon grabbed his chin and lifted it. Junghoo’s clear face was revealed. He scanned the double eyelid line on only one side, then his gaze traveled down the straight nose to his lips. The color of his lips was pale, and his skin was still white.

“If you’re not sick, then what is it?”

As he caressed Junghoo’s smooth cheek, he tilted his head into Seowon’s hand as if asking to be touched more.

“It’s because I’m with you.”

“What about me?”

“The thought of being in the same house with you gets me excited, so…”

“Go to sleep.”

Seowon immediately pulled his hand away from Junghoo’s cheek and stepped back.

That mouth of his is the problem.

“I’m tired, so I’m going to sleep.”

“What about food?”

“Not interested.”

As if taking care of business before bed, Seowon went into the bathroom, wrapped the shampoo in a towel, came out, and went straight back to his room. Leaning his back against the door, Seowon listened for any signs of Junghoo on the other side of the wall. There was no sign of movement. Only then did his heart, which had been pounding painfully hard, calm down.

‘How did he smell my pheromones?’

Seowon lifted his wrist and sniffed it. He couldn’t understand how he could have smelled a scent that was so faint it could be considered nonexistent. Especially Yoo Junghoo, who was a recessive and couldn’t smell others’ pheromones well.

‘It must have been a coincidence.’

He must have let his guard down because pheromones get washed away during a shower. Seowon decided not to take this incident too seriously. There was nothing to be gained by making a fuss about how he couldn’t live with Junghoo just because he had smelled it once when he never had before.

‘I just have to be more careful.’

From now on, he would have to meticulously wash off his pheromones even when showering and check one more time before leaving the bathroom. It was a moment that made him truly realize he was living with Junghoo.

*

At the time Seowon locked his door and went to bed, Junghoo was leaning his head against the sofa.

‘Try living without the shot for a few days.’

Thanks to Yoo Taeha’s firm prescription, the pheromones that had been forcibly suppressed and scattered were reacting as if they had been waiting. His nerves became sharp and sensitive, as if to make him feel every pheromone in the world. As a result, a headache naturally set in, and Junghoo pressed the bridge of his nose firmly with his hand.

“Ah, fuck. How am I supposed to endure for a few days?”

It was only the first day, and his head felt like it was going to split open. A few days my ass.

He tried not to show it in front of Seowon, but it was difficult to suppress the impulses that surged up from time to time. Junghoo mumbled to himself, leaning his head against whatever was convenient.

“Seowon, I’m really in pain.”

Not from a cold, but because of the pheromones.

“But holding you gets me so fucking turned on that it doesn’t hurt.”

It seemed that for men, any pain subsided in the face of arousal. Junghoo, who had felt his headache subside when he held Seowon, glared at the door. Should he just break it down? Then he could watch Seowon sleep and, when their eyes subtly met, ask him for a hug.

At the scent of Seowon that seemed to still linger, Junghoo licked his lips. But that was short-lived; the pain, which pricked him like a needle again, made him stretch out on the sofa as if dead.

*

The next morning, Seowon, who was coming out of his room rubbing his eyes, flinched upon discovering something. After scanning the large lump stuck very tenaciously to the sofa, he looked at the window.

The curtains weren’t drawn, so sunlight was pouring in. Doesn’t it hurt his eyes? Should I wake him up and tell him to go to his room and sleep?

After pondering what to do, Seowon ended up closing the curtains instead of laying a hand on Junghoo. Considering his body was feverish yesterday, it would be better to let him sleep a little longer.

After confirming that Junghoo’s expression became much more relaxed once the sunlight was gone, Seowon went into the bathroom. Even while he was washing up, changing his clothes, and packing his bag, no sound came from the living room.

Seeing Junghoo not waking up the entire time he was getting ready made him think he had no intention of waking up yet, but his uncomfortable posture kept bothering him.