For a moment, Yeonwoo’s mind went completely blank. He couldn’t believe what he had just heard. His mouth opened, but no sound came out until several seconds had passed.
“...To Mr. Pittman’s house?”
The voice that rang in his ears didn’t even sound like his own. Was that really what his voice sounded like? He blinked, stunned. Keith ran a hand through his hair irritably. His damp lips caught Yeonwoo’s gaze without warning.
“There’s no place safer than my home. Isn’t that good enough?”
“B-but...”
Yeonwoo couldn’t understand why the conversation had taken such a turn—but an answer came quickly.
“Steward said exposure’s one way to overcome fear.”
Keith pulled out a cigarette as he spoke.
“For you, that means pheromones.”
Of course. He meant Apex Alpha pheromones—the kind emitted by the men who had tried to rape him. And yet, the only man who would never lust after him. The man who had no idea how much Yeonwoo longed for him.
Keith.
And just as Keith had said, Yeonwoo realized that his mind was no longer filled with the memories of that day. The only thing left was the man sitting in front of him.
“Why are you going that far... for me?”
The unsteady question trailed off, and Keith snapped his lighter with irritation.
“Compared to five percent equity, it’s a bargain.”
He didn’t know whether to feel proud or disgusted that he was apparently such a useful secretary.
“So what—are you going to keep flooding me with your pheromones until I recover?”
His voice trembled faintly. Had Keith noticed? Anxiously, he watched as Keith inhaled, then exhaled a long stream of smoke with a sneer.
“Why wouldn’t I?”
The corners of Yeonwoo’s lips throbbed again. He could faintly taste blood. When he licked instinctively, his tongue slid over something that wasn’t saliva. He thought, maybe, Keith’s gaze flicked to his mouth. Maybe it was just his imagination. Keith’s face hadn’t changed at all.
“...The kiss. Why?”
Yeonwoo asked, unable to stop himself. Would Keith blame it on his pheromones again? He had taken more than the standard dose of suppressants—there shouldn’t have been any scent. Worried, he waited for the answer. Keith frowned, clearly irritated.
“I was testing Steward’s prescription.”
Ah. Yeonwoo understood.
The fastest and most effective way to administer pheromones was through sex. Keith had simply chosen to kiss him instead. Just to calm him down. Probably to test Steward’s theory, too.
The doctor’s method had worked. Yeonwoo could breathe again. His mind was clearer than it had been earlier. And the source of his turmoil—was still Keith.
The sweetness of the pheromones still hurt. But because they were Keith’s, he could endure it. The only reason it was hard to bear was because he was an Omega. The only thing that had kept him from going into heat was the overdose of suppressants. If he had been fully exposed... he didn’t even want to imagine what would’ve happened.
And Keith would’ve fired him on the spot.
The thought was so realistic that it sobered him instantly. His mind turned to something practical. This was a matter of choice. He couldn’t go on like this. One way or another, he needed to get treated—he had to get rid of the symptoms.
“Isn’t it strange that I’m okay with your pheromones?”
The question was a dangerous one. He managed to voice it anyway. Keith glanced at him—but showed no sign of surprise.
“You know I’ll never touch you.”
It was the right answer. And it left Yeonwoo feeling like someone had punched a hole in his chest.
“...Right.”
He acknowledged it, barely, and fell silent again. Keith didn’t say another word either, as if giving him space to think.
Keith’s proposal was flawless. He would receive treatment from the best doctor, and didn’t have to worry about work. He could live in Keith’s mansion—on paper, it was the perfect offer.
But that was exactly the problem.
Could he really hide his feelings while living under the same roof as Keith?
He’d have to take even more suppressants than usual. He had no idea what kind of side effects might come from constant overdose. There were cases—rare, but real—of people losing all control, stuck in an endless heat cycle, eventually losing their minds. The idea of going insane was terrifying. Infertility would almost be preferable.
The former was rare. Most ended up with the latter. But there was no clear data on how much, or how long, it would take. If he moved into Keith’s home, the odds were high—he would either go mad, or become infertile. Maybe both. After all, he had mutated into an Omega under Keith’s pheromones.
Even so—
Yeonwoo bit down on his lip.
Could he really refuse this poisoned chalice?
The car came to a stop. On his lap, his hands clenched tightly.
“Understood.”
He finally spoke without stuttering.
“I’ll accept Mr. Pittman’s offer. Thank you for your... consideration.”
The moment the words left his mouth, all the tension drained away. Without thinking, he cracked a joke.
“Mr. Pittman kissing a man—don’t worry. I’ll take it to my grave.”
A reckless attempt at a smile. Keith didn’t laugh. He took a deep drag, exhaled slowly, and muttered with a sneer:
“Your face is my type. If you were a woman, I’d have slept with you.”
And then what? How long would it have taken for him to discard Yeonwoo?
Suddenly, Annabelle’s face flashed through his mind. What was the shortest time again? He dredged up the meaningless memory.
Keith tapped the driver’s panel with the hand holding his cigarette. The car began to move again.
“My things...”
Yeonwoo started hesitantly, and Keith cut in with a scoff.
“You think you can even get out of the car?”
Yeonwoo didn’t answer. Because it was true. There was no strength left in his legs. Even sitting up was hard. He was using everything he had just to keep from collapsing onto the floor. Keith, as if unsurprised, lifted his cigarette back to his lips.
And so, Yeonwoo remained in Keith’s car and headed to his mansion.
He sat with his fingers laced tightly in his lap, staring blankly down at them.
The air was thick with pheromones. He was afraid of going into heat. But as time passed, something strange happened—he felt calm.
Ah. These are Keith’s pheromones.
He closed his eyes, inhaled deeply, and slowly exhaled. As the scent filled his lungs, his body slowly relaxed. Before long, his breath deepened, and he drifted off to sleep.
***
A slight jolt stirred him awake. His blurry vision moved several times before aligning properly. Still dazed, he felt like his entire body was floating. Was he still asleep? Or was he half-asleep with his eyes open?
He looked up blankly—and froze.
Keith’s face was in his field of view.
...Huh?
Yeonwoo stared up at him, dazed. It was the first time he’d seen this man from this angle. Was he lying down?
Keith seemed to notice his gaze and lowered his head. Their eyes met. Yeonwoo stared stupidly back. A laugh bubbled up from his throat. He thought he laughed. Maybe he didn’t. All he knew was that Keith was looking down at him—intently—and that simple fact etched itself into his mind.
Ah.
He inhaled instinctively. Alongside the pheromones, he picked up a faint skin scent. Crisp citrus. So this was Keith’s natural scent.
Yeonwoo closed his eyes and turned his face toward Keith’s shoulder, resting his cheek against it. He inhaled deeply, then exhaled slowly. His body was still swaying gently, as if being carried by someone.
Something cold yet soft touched his back, and he began drifting off again. Someone was speaking nearby, but the words didn’t register. He only vaguely understood: there were two people.
And then, he fell into deep sleep.
***
Knock knock.
He woke to the sound of knocking. His eyes opened, but he was disoriented for a while. Where was he?
He sat up awkwardly in the unfamiliar room, and then the door opened. A familiar face entered.
“You’re awake. How are you feeling?”
It was Charles, the butler. Yeonwoo struggled to piece his memory together. Slowly, the previous day came back to him. Charles spoke again.
“You lost consciousness on the ride here in Mr. Pittman’s car. It was likely from pheromone intoxication. I’ve prepared a detox tea to help clear your head.”
Only then did Yeonwoo finally understand. Ah, he thought. No wonder his mind had gone so hazy earlier. It wasn’t just exhaustion—his brain had felt like it had completely melted.
Just like it had that day.
His heart turned ice cold, and his breathing grew shallow. He quickly tried to steady it. No, not that, he told himself reflexively. The scent had been different. In that sickly sweet aroma, there had been another faint layer—one that wasn’t present now.
He forced himself to remember. But it only circled in his mind, refusing to form clearly.
“If you drink the tea, your head will feel clearer,” Charles said, gently pushing a steaming teacup toward him.
Yeonwoo hesitated before picking it up from the small table.
“...Ah.”
The unexpectedly fresh taste made him blink. Just as Charles had said, the fog in his mind lifted, and clarity returned. Charles, having observed his reaction, spoke again.
“Your clothes have been cleaned. Will you be going to retrieve your things personally? Mr. Pittman instructed us to prepare separately if needed.”
“Pardon?”
Yeonwoo repeated without thinking and belatedly looked down at what he was wearing. The clothes were unfamiliar—pajamas he’d never seen before. Charles addressed his widened eyes.
“They’re guest pajamas we had prepared. I was the one who helped you change. I apologize, you were unconscious.”
“Ah... no, I’m the one who should apologize. I’m sorry for the trouble.”
His memory was beginning to return, little by little. He could now grasp what had happened. Charles must have carried him here, changed his clothes. Embarrassed but also grateful, Yeonwoo forced an awkward smile. Charles stood with a neutral expression, waiting silently as Yeonwoo drank the tea.
“There’s still plenty of time,” Charles added, as if reading his thoughts.
“Mr. Pittman has likely just woken. You can begin getting ready after you finish your tea, Yeonwoo.”
“Thank you.”
Yeonwoo bowed politely, then continued after a short pause.
“I’m sorry for the sudden inconvenience... I didn’t have much choice…”
“It’s fine. This is Mr. Pittman’s home, and I am his employee. I only follow his decisions.”
Charles cut off his apology with the same professional detachment. That made Yeonwoo feel even more awkward. Silently, he raised the cup to his lips.
Charles had trained at a specialized school in Switzerland and had spent his entire life as a butler. A man like that didn’t often reveal his inner thoughts. Even now, Charles treated him without any sign of emotional shift. When Yeonwoo finished the tea, Charles collected the empty cup onto the tray and asked,
“Do you have enough medication?”
It was the only question Charles asked him. As a Beta, he too technically carried the risk of mutation. But when Yeonwoo had once asked, Charles had answered without expression:
“I’m long past the age where secondary gender mutation is possible. Besides, Mr. Pittman is a man worthy of serving.”
“He treats me very well,” he had added, effectively ending Yeonwoo’s curiosity.
Yeonwoo had often seen Charles pop a candy in his mouth. That, apparently, was the extent of his precautions. Realistically, if someone over fifty mutated, it would probably make world news.
His medication had been placed neatly on the side table with the rest of his belongings. Charles scanned the quantity at a glance and continued in the same even tone:
“I’ll have some extra prepared just in case. If you run low or need more while staying here, don’t hesitate to say so. We’ll get it ready immediately.”
Before Yeonwoo could say anything, Charles added,
“By Mr. Pittman’s order.”
All Yeonwoo could do was thank him. Perhaps, like Yeonwoo as a secretary, Charles—dutiful to the last—was simply trying to prevent any situation that might become troublesome for Keith. Especially when it came to medication. Either way, it was reassuring.
After the thanks, Charles left the room without a word.
Hoo.
Alone, Yeonwoo let out a deep sigh. The room was silent. If it weren’t for the unfamiliar scenery stretching out before him, he wouldn’t have believed this was real. He was afraid that if he blinked, all of this would vanish like sand through his fingers.
But eventually, he couldn’t resist. His eyes stung from keeping them open. When he finally blinked, and the scene around him remained unchanged, the weight of reality settled in.
It hit him.
He was in Keith’s mansion—he had taken over one of the bedrooms.
Keith’s mansion was located on the complete opposite side of town from where Yeonwoo had lived. Though he had visited before for work-related reasons, each time he’d been overwhelmed by the atmosphere and had fled as soon as the task was done. That was partly because of the faint trace of pheromones that lingered even when Keith wasn’t home. On those days, he always ended up masturbating afterward.
And yet now, even under emergency circumstances, he had entered this place willingly. Rationally, it should have been impossible. But he had done it anyway. Because he had convinced himself—insisted to himself—that this was the only way to stop the panic attacks.
A sudden chill ran down his spine. His body shivered.
This is real.
His thoughts tangled instantly. He had come this far, blinded by Keith—but the real cause was something else entirely.
Keith had simply made the only choice available to him.
It was he who—
He had lost his mind.
Yeonwoo clung desperately to his fading consciousness. He tried to seize control of his ragged breathing and forced himself to think. Something else. Think of something else. Anything that can overwrite that memory.
What came to mind wasn’t the disgusting foreign sensation of a man’s genitals—but the lingering feel of a skilled tongue stirring inside his mouth. Pheromones thick in the air, a tongue that curled with his, that massaged the soft flesh inside his mouth, that mixed saliva as it devoured him.
Haa...
He shut his eyes. What remained wasn’t revulsion anymore. The taste in his mouth wasn’t of fear—but of a scent that had been overwhelmingly sweet. Soft lips. That merciless tongue.
He was terrified he might go into heat. He quickly reached for the pills and swallowed them dry. From now on, every day would be like this. He’d absorb Keith’s pheromones through his skin like a fallen leaf soaking in rain.
And yet, even as he waited for the drugs to kick in, he kept taking slow, deliberate breaths. Just a little deeper. Just a little longer. He wanted to draw them in further, into his lungs, into his bloodstream.
At some point, he ended up lying flat on the carpet. His heartbeat slowed, and finally, silence returned. He shut his eyes.
Keith’s scent drifted through the room.
Yeonwoo came, overwhelmed by the sense that he had just been defiled.
***
Knock knock.
The sound snapped him out of it. His eyes opened. He blinked several times in confusion, still dazed. After a moment, he scrambled to sit on the edge of the bed and pretended to check his phone. Just then, the door opened and Charles entered, carrying the clothes Yeonwoo had worn the day before draped over his arm.
“Yeonwoo. Breakfast will be served soon. Would you like it brought up, or will you be coming downstairs?”
At the sound of Charles’s deep, professional voice, Yeonwoo quickly answered,
“Ah, I… I’ll come down.”
At his response, Charles explained in his usual neutral tone.
“Please go to the tearoom at the end of the second-floor hall. Mr. Pittman always takes breakfast there. But if you would prefer a private setting, we can arrange that as well.”
“N-no. That’s fine. I’ll go to the tearoom. Thank you.”
Yeonwoo bowed quickly. Charles gave a short nod, set the clothes on the back of the chair, and quietly left. The door clicked shut behind him. As soon as he was gone, Yeonwoo rushed to get ready. Making Keith wait was unthinkable. He needed to arrive at the tearoom first.
Creak.
As he opened the door, the stale, pheromone-heavy air was replaced by a rush of fresh morning wind. Unfortunately, Keith was already there. Sitting with a cup of tea in one hand, eyes on his laptop.
Yeonwoo stood frozen for a second. Swallowed dryly.
This—this would be his daily routine now. He’d stare at this man in a daze. Breathe deeply just to draw in the scent of his pheromones.
But he wouldn’t make a mistake. He never had. He could hide everything perfectly—so long as his heat-ridden hormones didn’t betray him.
To prove it, he lifted his head and offered Keith his usual professional smile.
“Good morning.”
Just an ordinary greeting.
Sunlight spilled behind Keith. Trees swayed in the wind. The sweet scent in the air made Yeonwoo feel like he might float away.