Love Me More

Chapter 20

It was a rare day off. Rather than going out, Si-yul’s way of spending holidays was lying around at home playing mobile games. Besides Kwon Yuwon, he didn’t really have anyone to contact, so he was comfortably lying down with his phone, focusing on breaking blocks. That’s when a message notification popped up at the top of the screen with a ding.

[Isn’t it your day off today?]

[What are you doing?]

I should correct myself. Recently, there was one more person besides Kwon Yuwon that Si-yul exchanged messages with.

“At home, just hanging out.”

Si-yul sent the message while saying it out loud stiffly, as if Woo Hyun-se was right next to him.

[Aren’t you bored?]

[No, I’m playing a game]

[Want to meet up for dinner later?]

At this point, Si-yul hesitated to reply. The fact that Woo Hyun-se was an alpha bothered him. He remembered Hyun-se’s playful grin as he jokingly said, “What if I’m an omega?”

No matter how he thought about it, meeting Woo Hyun-se seemed dangerous. Even though Hyun-se had loosely claimed to be an omega, Si-yul didn’t believe it. Woo Hyun-se was an alpha. If he had really been an omega, he would have laughed it off from the start, saying there was nothing to worry about. Although they hadn’t known each other long, based on what Si-yul had seen of his personality so far, Hyun-se didn’t seem like the type to hide things.

But does life ever go the way we want it to? First of all, the place where Si-yul worked was introduced by Woo Hyun-se. There was still a debt to repay. Hyun-se had his phone number and even his ID card, which Si-yul had momentarily forgotten about.

“Right, my ID card.”

He had been putting off getting a new one issued since he hadn’t felt much inconvenience without it. Getting a new photo taken and going to the welfare center to have it issued was no small hassle. While he should avoid Woo Hyun-se as much as possible, he had no choice if he wanted to get his ID card back.

[What time?]

So Si-yul replied to Woo Hyun-se’s message. He repeatedly emphasized to himself that it was ‘only to get the ID card back’ and for no other reason.

Lying on his stomach, Si-yul wiggled his toes. A friendly reply arrived asking what time would be good. Si-yul glanced at the clock. 5 PM. It was almost dinner time. This time, he typed aggressively on his phone, insisting that he would definitely pay.

[Is 7 o’clock okay?]

[I’ll pick you up]

“Every day he offers to pick me up and drop me off. What a strange person…”

Si-yul muttered, chuckling. Then, startled by his own laughter, he composed himself and pressed the keyboard. To his somewhat stiff message saying he would go by himself, only two ‘ㅋ’ characters flew back. Kwon Yuwon would usually send so many ‘ㅋ’ characters that Si-yul had to scroll down to see them all.

There was plenty of time until the appointment, but somehow it felt short. It might be tight to shower, comb his hair, and choose clothes. Si-yul plugged his phone into the charger and hurriedly stripped off his clothes.

He arrived earlier than expected after rushing out. Feeling bored just standing on the street, he entered a nearby drugstore. He wasn’t planning to buy anything in particular, just to kill some time. As he looked around, a large perfume corner occupying an entire wall caught his eye.

As if someone was beckoning him over, Si-yul awkwardly walked towards it. They were all unfamiliar brands. Well, neither he nor Kwon Yuwon had much to do with perfumes. Kwon Yuwon thought his pheromones were terrible enough without adding perfume, and Si-yul wasn’t particularly interested in fragrances. The only scent Si-yul had was from whatever fabric softener was on the biggest discount at the supermarket that month.

“Excuse me, are you looking for anything in particular?”

As Si-yul picked up the nearest perfume and brought it to his nose, a staff member who had been watching closely approached with a bright smile. Si-yul looked around, startled. He wasn’t used to such excessive friendliness.

“No, I’m just looking around.”

“Alright. Please let me know if you need anything.”

As the staff member walked away, Si-yul turned his attention back to the perfume display. Blue glass bottles, bottles wrapped in straw, bottles with large flower shapes on top – each had its own strong personality.

Si-yul scanned them and picked up the most ordinary-looking perfume. It said it was a wisteria scent. Observing how others did it, this time he sprayed it on a test strip and smelled it.

The scent was sweet like wisteria flowers in full bloom. It evoked a light purple color. He had wanted to find a scent similar to birch, but his interest had wandered.

Si-yul carefully rubbed the damp test strip on his bare wrist. Glancing at the person next to him, he rubbed that wrist behind his ear like a cat washing its face. He brought it close to his nose once more to smell it, then scrunched up his face until only half his eyes were visible and grinned widely. He really liked the sweet yet light fragrance.

As he took out his phone from his pocket to check the time, there was a knocking sound on the glass window in front. He looked up and met eyes with Woo Hyun-se.

The other man tapped the window with his index finger, smiling brightly. As Si-yul stared blankly, forgetting even to blink, Hyun-se tilted his head slightly and held up his own phone. Soon, the phone in Si-yul’s hand rang loudly.

With a gasp, Si-yul threw his phone up as if he had touched a hot stone, then quickly caught it. Everyone’s attention turned to him. Some looked out the window and whispered to the person next to them. Having never been the main character and not wanting to be, Si-yul hurriedly left the store as if escaping.

“Why did you call? You clearly saw me inside.”

Having rushed out, Si-yul found Woo Hyun-se with an amused smile on his face. Feeling upset, Si-yul grabbed the hem of Hyun-se’s coat and pulled.

“Kwon Si-yul was just standing there. I thought you hadn’t recognized me.”

“Huh,” Si-yul let out a laugh of disbelief. He could recognize Woo Hyun-se even from over 100 meters away. Wasn’t he a head taller than others and with shoulders a span wider? He could tell just by looking at the back of his head, and even if his face was covered with paper, showing only his eyebrows, forehead, and hair, Si-yul would recognize him.

“That’s not possible…”

He was about to say, but noticing the onlookers still watching from inside the glass window, he quickly let go of the coat. Uncomfortable with being exposed to others’ gazes, Si-yul hurried his steps. He thought it would be fine once they got away from here.

Woo Hyun-se followed behind Si-yul. Walking side by side, he seemed to notice something and leaned his head towards Si-yul’s nape. His prominent nose brushed against Si-yul’s earlobe. The soft exhale tickled Si-yul’s cheek. The fine hairs that had been lying there all stood up at once.

“Did you put on perfume?”

Si-yul startled with a ‘hik’ sound, covering his ear with his palm and stepping back abruptly. His face turned as red as if it had been dipped in ripe cherry wine. His earlobe, where Hyun-se’s nose had touched, was even redder.

“Why are you suddenly smelling me? Are you a dog or something?”

“I smelled something nice, that’s all. A dog? Isn’t that a bit harsh?”

Pretending to be hurt, Woo Hyun-se pouted his lips glumly. Such an expression on that large frame, from someone older than him, was unfair. Si-yul let out a deep sigh and rubbed his hot face vigorously with both hands.

“The scent suits you well.”

“Don’t you dislike sweet smells, CEO? You didn’t like that drink last time.”

“I don’t particularly like them. But…”

Woo Hyun-se brought his nose close to Si-yul’s nape once more and inhaled deeply. This time, Si-yul didn’t avoid it. He just awkwardly rubbed the opposite side of his neck with his hand.

“It suits Kwon Si-yul well.”

“…”

Si-yul bit his lip, trying hard to suppress the corners of his mouth from rising. Still, his lips twitched. Hadn’t he applied the perfume at just the right time? At least he received a compliment.

Si-yul scratched the skin where Woo Hyun-se’s breath seemed to linger. Lacking the courage to put his nose to the other’s nape and smell as Hyun-se had done, he took a deep breath under the guise of sighing. Unlike that drunken night when he had been buried in the other’s clothes, the scent didn’t fill his nostrils as strongly. Still, it was similar to the scent he had smelled before. The scent of a cold winter sea.

It wasn’t like the scent of birch trees submerged in snow that Kwon Yuwon had described. Si-yul felt a little, just a little bit bitter about that.

Once again, Si-yul couldn’t treat Woo Hyun-se to a meal. The place Hyun-se took him to was a fine dining restaurant far beyond Si-yul’s expected price range. He had never even thought of setting foot in such a place, let alone actually going, so Si-yul just blinked his eyes like a country bumpkin visiting the city for the first time and secretly glanced at Woo Hyun-se’s fingertips.

He awkwardly held the cutlery, mimicking how he had seen others sample fragrances at the drugstore. Fortunately, the food came in small portions, and the chef came out personally to explain how to eat each dish, so it wasn’t as difficult as he had feared.

“Does it suit your taste?”

“Yes, it’s delicious.”

In truth, Si-yul wasn’t sure if the food was going into his mouth or his nose. It certainly tasted good, but he wasn’t in his right mind enough to fully appreciate it. Worry clouded his thoughts about how much the bill would be.

“I’ll be right back, just going to the restroom.”

Using that excuse, he stopped by the counter. He wanted to pay in advance without Woo Hyun-se knowing. Hadn’t he heard that a man’s word is his bond? The orphanage director had always emphasized that if you’re born male, you must keep your word once given. Si-yul hoped there was enough money left in his account, deciding that if not, he’d have to take on a day job.

“Your companion has already settled the bill.”

No matter how many times Si-yul asked if that was true or if they had the right table, the staff member’s answer didn’t change. Si-yul returned to the table with his cheeks puffed out in frustration. Despite his difficult circumstances, he had really wanted to treat Woo Hyun-se to at least one meal. Now he was even more determined to somehow feed Woo Hyun-se food bought with his own money.