* * *

As Sejun glanced sideways, he realized Juwan had moved closer—so close it felt unnatural.

Though the table was small, there had been a gap between them earlier.

Now, Juwan was leaning in so much that their breaths nearly mingled.

Sejun froze, his whole body tensing.

Before he could react, Juwan stopped moving and lightly brushed something off Sejun’s cheek.

“There was something on your face. Maybe because of all the plants.”

“Oh… okay.”

Both their voices sounded off.

Sejun tried to relax as he sipped his now-cold coffee.

Juwan also drank his with an air of detachment.

Under normal circumstances, Sejun might have joked about Juwan’s upload frequency or viewer reactions, but the strange tension had stifled his usual banter.

Even on the drive back to Juwan’s neighborhood, the mood remained heavy.

Traffic was still backed up, leaving them stuck on the road for a while.

Yet all Sejun could manage was a single comment: “Traffic’s bad, huh?”

“Do you… think I’m weird?”

They were almost at Juwan’s stop when he unbuckled his seatbelt and asked this out of the blue.

“Huh?”

Caught off guard, Sejun quickly composed himself.

“About the videos?”

“Yeah.”

“No, lots of people do that.”

“Really? So, do you…?”

“No, I don’t. But it’s not weird. If you want to film yourself and upload it, who cares? It’s your business.”

“Talking to you always makes me feel strange.”

“I hope that’s a good thing.”

“…See you later.”

Good thing?

What did that even mean? Tell me!

Juwan closed the car door with a cryptic expression and stood by the curb, watching as Sejun drove off.

He lingered long enough that Sejun kept glancing in the rearview mirror until Juwan was out of sight.

Only then did Sejun let out a yell.

“A kiss! Was that a kiss?”

At the café, had Juwan been about to kiss him?

No way, right?

Or had he stopped himself?

Or was it just an excuse to brush something off his face?

But who gets that close just to do that?

If they’d locked eyes for even a second longer, Sejun’s pheromones—already notoriously reactive—might have betrayed him.

The fact that alpha pheromones were as revealing as they were intoxicating could be a pain.

It wasn’t something he’d thought much about until moments like this.

This was why his time with Juwan felt so precious—and strangely calming.

“I hate falling first.”

It felt like I was losing out.

Well, I suppose I just wanted to toy around a little.

My palms were damp with cold sweat, slipping off the steering wheel repeatedly.

It wasn’t a long drive, but I had no memory of how I made it home.

My feet felt weightless, like I was drunk, and my entire body wobbled unsteadily—even though I hadn’t had a drop to drink.

All this, just because our faces got a little close? How ridiculous.

No, it wasn’t that.

It was Beta Kwon Juwan’s unexpected words—words that came out of nowhere—that left me stunned.

‘Is his head… full of flowers?’

Still, it wasn’t entirely bad.

Jin Sejun had never found know-it-all types attractive.

He was the kind of person who believed that an Omega’s greatest charm was a touch of naivety.

And since meeting Omegas was no longer an option, Juwan could pass as a stand-in for his ideal type.

Maybe that’s why Juwan sometimes felt like he was younger.

It was an impression that started to make sense, especially now.

A Beta who lacked assertiveness but was unexpectedly free-spirited when it came to sex.

Usually, people like that carried a hint of emotional deprivation.

That was the updated image of Kwon Juwan that day.

Could their relationship develop further?

Did Juwan have genuine interest in him?

Were his actions truly meaningful?

Sejun wanted to ask someone, anyone.

But he wasn’t exactly the type to give advice about relationships, having never had a proper one himself.

And discussing this with his older brother or sister-in-law?

Absolutely not.

Lately, instead of messaging Juwan late at night or watching Beta-related videos, Sejun found himself doing less of both.

Perhaps Juwan had noticed the awkward air between them when they last parted, as even his usual silly messages stopped coming.

Sejun didn’t watch Beta videos, nor did he send Juwan messages.

Instead, he decided to hit the apartment fitness center and exhaust himself with every workout he could think of.

Afterward, he collapsed in bed, completely drained, and fell asleep without a single thought.

Juwan: Hey, with everything going on—and this cold—I don’t think I’ll be able to eat together for a few days.
Juwan: (photo)

Juwan’s message arrived at an odd time, unlike usual.

They sometimes had lunch or dinner together, so receiving this message after lunch hours wasn’t particularly strange.

But Sejun’s reaction to it felt different.

Sejun: A lot of people around me seem to be catching colds lately. Eat well and rest up so you can recover quickly.

Juwan: You too, Sejun.

Juwan: (emoji)

The emoji was unexpectedly cute, not quite matching Juwan’s usual demeanor.

Sejun stared at his phone for a moment before preparing for his next counseling session.

For the next few days, there really was no word from Juwan.

And wasn’t the second day of a cold always worse than the first?

Concerned, Sejun even thought about visiting him.

Unfortunately, Juwan’s address was only listed up to his neighborhood in the charts.

“I get it, privacy is important, but still…”

As another day or two passed, Sejun started to wonder if Juwan was trying to pull away from him, creating distance on purpose.

Really?

In the same neighborhood?

Did he think Sejun wouldn’t notice?

If he wanted to, Sejun could quit his job and search every gym in the area to find him.

That’s the advantage of being someone with too much time, persistence, and money.

Juwan: (photo)

Juwan: Wow, this cold is really tough. Since you meet a lot of people, make sure to wear a mask.

“Hm?”

Just when he was about to curse him out, that message arrived, and his mood softened.

It seemed Juwan really had been sick.

For someone as reserved as him to ramble on like this—it was oddly endearing.

“Haha…”

Why was he so affected by a single Beta’s message? His mood was clearly off.

A few days later, Juwan even called him.

“Juwan? Are you feeling any better?”

—I don’t need to lose any more weight now.

“Wow, congratulations.”

—Are you free? Let me treat you to something good. Let’s grab a drink in your neighborhood.

It was already 10 p.m.

Sejun didn’t have any late-night hobbies to dive into, and ever since Juwan mentioned his ‘self-sufficient’ tendencies, even browsing certain forums felt awkward.

These days, he’d settled into a virtuous cycle of exercising and sleeping well.

But the thought of talking to Juwan about these small, silly changes—about how they had brought him peaceful sleep—made his heart race.

“Where? What time should I be ready?”

—You always came to pick me up, so today, I’ll pick you up.

“Alright.”

Unlike Juwan, who kept many things to himself, Sejun wasn’t like that.

He sent his apartment complex address without hesitation and hurried to change clothes.

He didn’t have much time, so his outfit was more casual than usual, but he still looked polished enough to hold his own anywhere. He even styled his hair.

Soon after, Juwan called again.

—Are you ready?

“Yes, I’ll come down now.”

—I’ve parked out front.

‘He drove?’

Sejun vaguely remembered him mentioning a work van before.

Juwan had said it was for his academy, but Sejun still didn’t know what he taught.

He assumed it was taekwondo but wasn’t entirely sure.

An odd certainty struck him: Juwan hadn’t called before arriving.

* * *