AP CH 4

The fact that Choi Lee-won had started dating again must have been a serious shock. It explained why he’d lost his senses enough to go flirting with an alpha.

Anyway, since he was the one who started it all, Seon-woo figured he should take responsibility. With an effort, he curved his lips into a smile.

“Oh, I remember now. That lighter… You really came back that night?”

A nod.

Despite his impassive face, which had a hint of coldness, the light in those half-shadowed eyes was far from indifferent.

There had never been a good outcome from engaging in conversation at a time like this, but…

Still, the storm of emotion stirring within those light-colored eyes was so intense, it was impossible to pretend not to see it. Exhaling softly, Seon-woo finally asked the question he had tried to leave unspoken.

“Did you bring me home that night?”

“…”

He had barely gotten the words out, but something was clearly bothering the other man. His lips jutted out in a slight, almost sulky pout, and the sight of that expression on such a beautiful face left Seon-woo momentarily doubting his own eyes.

Wait… is he actually disappointed?

“It’s Hyeon-chae. Eun Hyeon-chae. That’s my name. And you said we wouldn’t talk formally.”

He found himself entranced, listening to that calm, measured voice carefully pointed things out, only to suddenly snap back to his senses.

“Oh, right. Now I remember. Hyeon-chae, I never got to thank you for that night.”

“You did.”

“What?”

“You thanked me… for bringing you home.”

Why did it even matter? Trying to look away from those lips that just kept on talking, Seon-woo rubbed his forehead. Get a grip, Nam Seon-woo. Since when was there anything cute about someone of his size?

“Well, that’s a relief. But listen, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t show up like this again.”

“…Why?”

“That night was a mistake, and I don’t plan on meeting you again.”

Alright, it was really time to go. As he glanced down to check the time, a hint of hurt in Hyeon-chae’s voice made him pause.

“A mistake? What was the mistake, exactly?”

“…”

“After all… you did start it.”

Seon-woo looked at Hyeon-chae with a faint smile.

“I don’t date alphas. Guess I got mixed up because you’re just too pretty.”

Leaving Eun Hyeon-chae behind in the empty classroom, Seon-woo went up to his lecture. Midway through class, while the professor was speaking, his phone buzzed. Glancing at the unknown number’s message, Seon-woo stifled a laugh in disbelief.

Looks like this innocent-looking guy’s actually a bit of a handful.

[You said you’d buy me a drink.]

Seon-woo, making sure the professor wasn’t looking, quickly replied.

[I don’t buy drinks for alphas I don’t know.]

With that, he blocked the number and looked ahead, putting on the face of a model student. And thus, the minor incident came to an end.

                                *****

For Seon-woo, who rarely showed up at club gatherings, the freshman welcome party was nothing more than a hassle. And this year, there was an added layer of discomfort due to someone new among the first-years.

“Sunbae, you’re coming to the welcome party, right?”

“I’ll come if I have time.”

“Wow, that’s a polite way of saying no.”

“You’re trying to dodge it again, aren’t you! We rented out the 3rd event hall this time, so there’s plenty of room. Please come, okay?”

“Haha… I’ll come if I have time.”

Despite his juniors’ insistence, Seon-woo only offered a vague smile. He’d already tipped off Jin-hyeong, the coordinator, to take his name off the attendance list.

Yet, when the day arrived, a simple “See you later” from Lee-won during a brief encounter had Seon-woo cancel his plans and head to the 3rd event hall.

“Seon-woo sunbae!!”

“Nam Seon-woo, what’s gotten into you?”

Arriving a bit early, Seon-woo was greeted enthusiastically by the members already busy setting up. Dropping his bag in a corner, Seon-woo watched them as they bustled around and casually asked,

“What should I do?”

“Ooh, a ready and willing helper! Can you go to the club room and bring us the banner?”

“Sunbae, there’s a waiting room in the back. You can leave your bag there!”

“Eun-jae, I think we might run out of pens. Could you go buy some?”

“Oh, unnie^[1], I haven’t finished printing yet, so I don’t have time…”

“I’ll go get them. Pens and the banner—anything else?”

“One more box of drinks, please!”

Taking in all the requests called out around him, Seon-woo tossed his bag in the waiting room and decided to start with the farthest task first, heading to the club room. Since most clubs, except for Schuphur, only recruited new members in the second semester, the building where the club rooms were was nearly deserted.

As he walked, Seon-woo checked his messages to see if Lee-won had responded yet. But as he reached the club room door, he froze in place.

It seemed that the quiet building wasn’t something only he had noticed at the start of the semester. Through the slightly open door, Seon-woo heard heavy breathing and caught a chaotic mix of pheromones drifting out. He quickly moved to hide behind the wall, holding his breath.

“…”

It wasn’t his pheromone, yet somehow it felt disturbingly familiar.

Though he’d seen countless people linked to him in the past, he had never encountered a moment like this. His heart, hardened over years and thought to be numb, was now pounding furiously, as if it might burst.

This was one thing he’d never been immune to. Rubbing his lips anxiously until they nearly bled, unsure of what to do, Seon-woo finally clenched his fist.

“…Are you having a hard time? Don’t worry, no one’s coming.”

At the sound of that familiar, low voice, Seon-woo turned on his heel and fled, slipping out of the building in a hurry.

                                 *****

“Here. Pens, drinks, and some ice cream. Have it while you work.”

“Wow! Everyone, Seon-woo sunbae brought ice cream! Take one each!”

As Seon-woo set down the box, everyone crowded around eagerly. Rifling through the box, Hyeong-jun gave Seon-woo a puzzled look.

“Nam Seon-woo, where’s the banner?”

“Sorry, totally forgot.”

“Hey! You probably just skipped it because it was far away. How’d you come back with everything but the banner?! You’re just helping out the juniors to keep up your image, huh… If you’d taken the time you spent buying ice cream to bring back the banner, you’d have saved us all at least three—”

Seon-woo silenced Hyeong-jun by sticking an ice cream in his mouth.

“I thought it might melt. I’ll bring it before we start later.”

“…Hmph, but you’re putting it up.”

“Alright.”

As Seon-woo nodded dismissively, Hyeong-jun glanced over his shoulder, saying, “Huh?” Seon-woo turned his head as well, only to see Lee-won entering the hall, holding the long banner at his side.

“Hyeong-jun sunbae! The president brought the banner!”

“Hyeong-jun, better hang it quickly!”

“This guy, Nam Seon-woo!”

With everyone calling for him, Hyeong-jun had no choice but to head to the podium and set up the banner. Seon-woo laughed as he watched him leave, but then someone stepped in front of him……He wasn’t quite ready to face Choi Lee-won yet.

Above him, Lee-won’s familiar, gentle voice asked, “When did you get here?”

Seon-woo took a sharp breath. He was pretty sure he’d composed himself by now, but somehow, he could still catch the faintest trace of Lee-won’s and Hee-jun’s pheromones lingering in his senses.

He wasn’t usually like this. What would he have done if someone had seen them…? Did he really like Hee-joon that much?

“Nam Seon-woo. What happened to your lip?”

Lee-won reached out to touch his lip, and Seon-woo instinctively brushed his hand away. Finally composed, Seon-woo looked up and met Lee-won’s gaze.

“Oh, yeah. What did you say?”

“It’s bleeding. I told you to carry some lip balm since your lips crack so easily. Did you come right after class? What were you up to?”

“What else would I be doing? Just got here to help with errands. Choi Lee-won, you should grab some ice cream before it melts too.”

Seon-woo smoothly shifted the conversation and slipped away. As president, Lee-won had plenty to keep him busy, so the awkwardness went mostly unnoticed.

The joint efforts of the dozens preparing had really paid off, and the event hall looked well put-together. As the scheduled time for the welcome event approached, new students trickled in and started filling the seats.

As the crowd grew, Seon-woo quietly slipped up to the second floor, positioning himself in the shadows as he gazed down. Lee-won and Jin Hee-jun hadn’t shown up yet.

He idly tapped his finger on the railing, debating the best time to make his exit.

Since he’d already shown his face, it wouldn’t be an issue to leave now. But if Lee-won found out, he’d likely fuss over it. It’d probably be better to sneak out after the event wrapped up, just before the after-party kicked off.

In any case, he had no intention of sticking around for the after-party. Joining a big, loosened-up crowd of people laughing and chatting was the last thing he wanted—and it was definitely better than watching Lee-won fuss over Hee-jun again. Liberty sounded like a far better destination.

Unknowingly, Seon-woo’s expression soured. He let out a weary sigh, pressing his fingers to his temples to ease his frown. Brooding over something that hadn’t even happened yet was utterly pathetic.

Thinking he’d best leave before anyone picked up on his sour mood, Seon-woo shifted his gaze away from the first floor, just as a commotion broke out below.

It wasn’t the usual cheering. Startled by the murmuring, Seon-woo looked down—and spotted an unexpected face.

Eun Hyeon-chae, wearing a blue name tag for new students, had just walked into the hall.

“What…? Why is he here…?”

Hyeon-chae paused and took in the room with wide eyes. As though searching for something, he scanned the space before finally looking up—and met Seon-woo’s gaze on the second floor.

Eun Hyeon-chae turned away immediately. Watching his retreating figure as he headed out of the hall, a sense of unease flickered through Seon-woo. Just as he feared, the door swung open a few seconds later.

Hyeon-chae, catching his breath in silence as if he’d run, finally spoke—his greeting barely a whisper.

“…Hello.”

“…Yeah, hi.”

Thud. The door closed behind Hyeon-chae as he fully entered the second floor. The bright light from the hallway disappeared, leaving the two of them in the dim lighting of the event hall.

Unable to bear the brief silence, Seon-woo raised a corner of his mouth, feigning composure.

“Didn’t think I’d run into you here… You interested in skiing or something?”

“No.”

Hyeon-chae replied immediately. The answer was short, but Seon-woo could easily guess what other interest had drawn him here, even if it wasn’t skiing.

Ignoring it, Seon-woo casually changed the subject.

“You don’t have to join if you’re not interested. The training camps are tougher than you’d think.”

“You blocked me, didn’t you?”

“Uh…”

It had been a while since someone had left him at such a loss for words. Seon-woo, caught off guard, pressed his lips together briefly. Hyeon-chae continued, eyes steady on him.

“You won’t buy me a drink, you won’t meet up with me, and you’ll keep avoiding me, won’t you? Because I’m just some random Alpha to you.”

“…Yeah.”

“That’s why I’m going to join.”

Before he could respond, a bright light flooded the once-dim room. Standing behind the open door was Lee-won, his face a mask of surprise.

“Eun Hyeon-chae, what are you doing here?”

The one most shocked by Lee-won saying Eun Hyeon-chae’s name was Seon-woo. While he was still trying to make sense of the situation, Eun Hyeon-chae walked past him without even glancing at Lee-won, whispering as he passed.

“Now that I’m not just some stranger Alpha, please unblock me.”

It’s not about being a stranger, it’s about you being an Alpha, he muttered to himself, watching the door close in disbelief.

As soon as Hyeon-chae left, Lee-won rushed over and demanded, “Nam Seon-woo, are you and Eun Hyeon-chae close?”

“…Well, now I know him. He’s a junior.”

“What?”

What he had once dismissed as a minor incident now revealed itself as a lapse in his own judgment.

---