"Seonwoo... why haven't you been answering your phone? We were worried."
"...Come in first."
He opened the door wide.
As expected, the moment Nam Junwoo stepped inside, he immediately began looking around before trying the closed bedroom door.
Click.
"Why won't this one open?"
"That's my roommate's room. Don't go in there."
"You have a roommate? Is he a ski instructor too? Wait... don't tell me he's actually in there right now?"
"No. He's out teaching."
"Ugh, but seriously, you guys don't clean, do you? The pheromones are overwhelming... Your roommate must be something else."
"I keep telling you, you're just overly sensitive."
Carrying drinks over to the sofa, Seonwoo suddenly froze when he spotted the can Hyeonchae had been drinking from and hadn't had a chance to put away. He quietly hid it behind his back.
"Seonwoo, sit down."
"Okay."
Sitting together in the living room, Seonwoo quietly listened as his family talked.
While he'd shut himself off from everything and run away, quite a lot had happened.
"That Hwang Dongjin is unbelievably stubborn too. You told him to just fire you, but since he's the owner, he..."
Feeling apologetic toward Dongjin, who kept getting dragged into the conversation simply because he and Nam Junwoo had been classmates, Seonwoo looked at the three family members sitting across from him.
"I'm not going back. They'll have no problem running the ski camp without me, and I've already talked things through with Choi Iwon."
"You think this is some childish argument between friends? Is this really how you deal with something like this? Iwon collapsed, and I can't even face Chairman Choi anymore. Chairman Choi even asked me privately whether something had happened to you."
"This isn't just between the two of you anymore. Iwon's sick. Are you really going to be this cold?"
Keeping an appropriately troubled expression while listening to his parents try to persuade him, Seonwoo sighed inwardly.
This was the first time things had gone this badly between him and Iwon, but he'd never imagined his father would come all the way here in person.
At this rate, they'd keep bothering him all winter.
Rubbing his throbbing temple, he finally spoke.
"Iwon didn't tell you why he suddenly collapsed, did he?"
"Why? Did something happen?"
"...I think it happened because of me."
All three of them stared at him in surprise.
Composing himself, Seonwoo continued.
"We fell asleep after having drinks together the other day, and all of a sudden he couldn't control his pheromones. At first I thought it was because he'd been drinking, but... he got just as agitated as before."
"Seonwoo... are you saying Iwon's illness has relapsed?"
His mother asked in a trembling voice.
Seonwoo nodded.
Nam Junwoo looked completely confused.
"I thought Choi Iwon had fully recovered years ago."
"He only got better temporarily. It was an incurable illness from the beginning. They always said it wouldn't be strange if the attacks came back someday."
"But why is that your fault?"
How was he supposed to explain it?
That Choi Iwon had found out Seonwoo loved him?
Or that Choi Iwon...
Momentarily caught off guard by Nam Junwoo's question, Seonwoo moistened his dry lips before calmly continuing the lie.
"He's always been sensitive around Alphas. He says that's not the reason, but the problems only happen when he's with me. How could I just ignore that?
"...So I stayed away.
"I didn't think it would be good for either of us if people found out."
"That definitely is something you need to be careful about."
"Exactly. It's not even certain it's Seonwoo's fault. What if strange rumors start because of this...? Still, Seonwoo, you should've told us beforehand."
"I didn't because Nam Junwoo can't keep his mouth shut."
"Hey, what was that?"
"Junwoo, if you go around telling anyone about this, you'll be in serious trouble."
"When have I ever gone around telling people things like that? Damn it, that's so unfair!"
"What are you planning to do from now on?"
Looking at his family, who had almost completely accepted his explanation, Seonwoo smiled with narrowed eyes.
"...I'm thinking maybe things will improve if he finds his Imprinted Omega.
"I'll meet with him after the engagement ceremony."
That should do it.
At least now they wouldn't keep coming all the way here every time Iwon made a fuss.
After seeing his parents and Nam Junwoo off while pretending everything was fine, Seonwoo hurried back inside.
He knocked on the closed bedroom door.
A moment later, the lock clicked.
The door opened to reveal Eun Hyeonchae, whose cheeks and even the tips of his ears were bright red.
Startled by how flushed he looked, Seonwoo reached out.
Tilting his head, Hyeonchae rubbed his cheek against Seonwoo's hand.
His skin felt burning hot beneath Seonwoo's cool fingertips.
"Not really...
"...Your pheromones were just too strong, Senior."
"...Ah."
Only then did Seonwoo realize his mistake.
He lived here alone, so he never bothered suppressing his pheromones.
On top of that, he'd only just gotten out of bed.
The bedroom had practically been saturated with nothing but his scent.
And he'd shut another Alpha inside it.
"That must've been rough. You didn't have to endure it. You could've at least opened a window."
"...I didn't dislike it."
"If you didn't dislike it...
"...don't tell me you got yourself off using my pheromones."
It had only been a casual joke because Hyeonchae looked so adorable standing there with his neck flushed red.
But there was no answer.
The playful smile slowly disappeared from Seonwoo's face.
"...You didn't?"
"...Yes."
"'Yes' to not doing it, or 'yes' to actually doing it?"
Hyeonchae's lips parted slightly.
Instead of answering, he looked away and quietly walked into the living room to avoid Seonwoo.
The faint smile visible on his face made it impossible for Seonwoo to step into the bedroom.
He simply covered his face with one hand.
* * *
Putting on the greasiest expression she could manage, Hanna swirled the hot chocolate in her hand and wiggled her short eyebrows.
"Hey there, handsome mister. Wanna grab some hot chocolate with us?"
"Where did you even learn to talk like that?"
"It's what's popular these days."
"How to become a dominant Alpha."
"Like talking to people you're interested in first, asserting dominance whenever you see another Alpha, and then..."
Just what in the world were kids into these days?
Unable to understand it at all, Seonwoo laughed in disbelief as he flicked the helmet with its soft silicone cat ears.
"Doing things like that won't change your secondary gender."
"We know that!"
"We're going to become dominant Alphas even without doing that!"
"Really? Impressive."
"It's true. Dr. Hwang said that since our dad's a dominant Alpha, there's a good chance we'll be one too. We're identical twins, so we'll have the same secondary gender."
"Ina and I definitely aren't Omegas."
Other than knowing their other father worked in Busan, Seonwoo had never once met him.
So he was a dominant Alpha.
No wonder Hanna and Ina were such natural athletes.
As Seonwoo absentmindedly played with the silicone cat ears on the helmet, his phone vibrated in his pocket.
Seeing Choi Iwon's name on the screen, he hesitated briefly before standing up and speaking gently to the twins.
"...Teacher needs to take a phone call for a minute. Stay here."
After gesturing to Seorin to keep an eye on the children, he walked behind the building and answered.
"So you're using me as an excuse?"
The sharp voice hit him the instant the call connected.
Seonwoo laughed silently.
His parents had left only yesterday.
If word had reached Choi Iwon within a single day, it had to have been Nam Junwoo.
"...Then why did you keep pushing me like that? You didn't exactly leave me with anything else to say."
An awkward silence followed.
Between it, Seonwoo could faintly hear Iwon's rough breathing as though he were trying to suppress his anger.
Letting out a quiet sigh, Seonwoo was about to end the call when Iwon suddenly spoke.
"Let's just say what happened that day was my mistake."
"..."
"You and I aren't so insignificant to each other that we'd end things over something like this.
"So come back.
"We can go back to how things were."
Did he even understand what "how things were" meant to Seonwoo?
Feeling as though they were forever traveling on parallel lines, Seonwoo swallowed his bitter smile.
"Ahhh!!"
The call ended first from the other side.
Iwon cursed under his breath and hurled his phone away.
He'd already thought something had been off lately.
Now there was no longer any room for doubt.
Nam Seonwoo had changed.
And the one who'd started it all was obviously that bastard.
Eun Hyeonchae.
"Fuck... that goddamn piece of shit..."
He didn't know exactly what Hyeonchae had done to shake Seonwoo like this.
But he was certain that if he went there himself, Seonwoo would come back.
Once Seonwoo saw his face, there was no way he'd stay this stubborn.
It wasn't merely intuition.
It was a certainty built over a lifetime.
The problem was that Schuphur had him tied down.
He couldn't just leave whenever he wanted.
He couldn't throw away four years of hard work over something like this.
And Nam Seonwoo, knowing that better than anyone, had run away to Mighty Town—the closest place that was somehow the farthest away.
Even though he knew there was nothing he could do right now, he couldn't just sit there.
He violently yanked the IV out of his arm and stood up.
The secretary entering the room hurried over in alarm.
"Young Master, are you feeling unwell? I'll call a nurse."
"I'm being discharged. Handle the paperwork."
"...Pardon?"
"Are your ears blocked? I said I'm getting the fuck out of this miserable place!!"
Iwon shouted as he violently tore off his hospital gown.
The secretary quickly composed himself, bowed, and hurried out of the room.
A little while later, he returned carrying Iwon's clothes and belongings.
Handing over a paper shopping bag, he quietly said,
"We've just received a call from Executive Director Choi Iri."
"Choi Iri?"
"Yes. She asked that you call her when you have time."
"What does she want now?"
The unwelcome name immediately made Iwon frown.
Still, since this wasn't something that normally happened, he couldn't simply ignore it.
He dialed Choi Iri's number.
"What made you decide to call me?"
"I heard your club asked for accommodations in Mighty Town and got turned down."
"...So?
"Did you call just to rub it in? You must have a lot of free time these days."
Making no effort to hide his irritation, Iwon spoke coldly.
Iri let out a thoughtful hum.
"Not really.
"A friend of mine happens to be in charge over there.
"Oh, you've met her before, right? Uyeon."
"Get to the point."
"They asked whether your club wanted to use a place that hasn't opened yet.
"I was going to decline, but your club is one Grandfather treasures so much.
"It kept bothering me, so I called."
What a joke.
He knew perfectly well she'd always resented the club she'd never been able to have.
The whole thing was such an obvious lie.
As Iwon tried to figure out what scheme lay behind an offer that was clearly not made out of kindness, her teasing voice floated through the phone.
"If you don't need it, forget it."
Normally, he would've ignored her and hung up.
But right now...
It was an offer he couldn't refuse.
If he could just bring Schuphur to Mighty Town...
Damn it, Nam Seonwoo.
With a terrifying expression, Iwon clenched his trembling fist and ground out the words through his teeth.
"...Send me the contact information."