MM 131

“It’s… okay, you can just… do it.”

Yu-young spoke, his eyes slightly reddened. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t done this before, and the world wouldn’t turn upside down just because he was caught in a rut.

And although he was barely holding himself together, Yu-young was also burning up inside. His body ached with heat, and the dampness beneath him was undeniable. The overwhelming presence of Do-won’s pheromones was almost impossible to resist, making his body’s reaction uncontrollable.

But Do-won gritted his teeth and shook his head.

“It’s not just about being a little rough. An Alpha in rut is nothing more than a beast. You could kick and punch him, and he’d still come at you. And if things go wrong… you might end up with exactly what you wanted to avoid.”

His voice was ragged, his breath coming in gasps. Do-won looked like a man barely holding on, a wild animal struggling against his own nature.

Suddenly, Yu-young understood what he meant. The way Do-won looked at him was so different from his usual composed demeanor. Now, it was clear why he had stabbed himself in the thigh with a fountain pen. His eyes were fully those of a dominant Alpha, clouded with raw instinct.

So were the pheromones that surrounded him. The comforting presence Yu-young had once found in them was gone, replaced by something aggressive and overpowering. Even as a dominant Omega, it was too much to handle—forcing his body to respond in ways he couldn’t control. If he had been anyone else, he might have already pounced on Do-won without a second thought.

But the worst part was the truth behind Do-won’s words. This wasn’t something he could take lightly.

The possibility of pregnancy.

Yu-young paused, the thought running through his mind like a whisper.

Of course, now that he and Do-won had acknowledged their feelings for each other, it felt different. If he could spend the rest of his life with Do-won, even the idea of marriage didn’t seem so bad. But that was only marriage—he hadn’t yet considered what came after.

Could he really handle getting pregnant?

Yu-young hesitated.

“…So come with me to the hospital. No, just call the hired help and get out of here. I… can only hold back for so long.”

Red-faced and drenched in sweat, Do-won was at his limit. Yu-young knew he should listen and leave. He could tell himself that it was fine, that he would be okay, but the truth was, he had never been with an Alpha in full rut before.

“…Quickly.”

But despite everything, Yu-young didn’t move.

Sweat dripped from Do-won’s jaw, splashing onto the floor. His entire body was trembling, muscles strained as he fought against the primal instincts tearing through him. He clenched his fists, pressing a shaking hand against his lower stomach as though trying to suppress the aching heat inside him.

Seeing him like this—his face twisted with barely contained desire and pain—Yu-young bit his lip. He was afraid.

Just one step closer, and everything Do-won warned him about might come true.

And yet, despite the fear clawing at his chest, Yu-young found himself moving toward him, as if drawn by an invisible force. One step. Then another.

With each step, his resolve solidified.

Stopping just in front of Do-won, Yu-young exhaled slowly. Then, he began to remove his clothes, releasing his pheromones in a steady wave.

“Han Yu-young…!”

Do-won’s eyes widened, his voice low and strained. A growl rumbled from his throat, thick with warning. But Yu-young’s expression remained calm as he finished undressing. One by one, his garments slipped to the floor.

Taking a deep breath, Yu-young parted his lips, flushed red from the heat.

“I like you, Team Leader. I really like you… a lot.”

And then, fully bare, he slowly sank onto Do-won’s lap.

“…I love you.”

With those words, Do-won’s self-restraint shattered.

A powerful hand gripped Yu-young’s waist, and in the next moment, he was thrown onto the bed. A heavier body pressed down against his. The air in the room thickened with their mingling pheromones, their fevered breaths crashing into each other.

The hunger between them was endless. Yu-young laughed and gasped beneath Do-won’s touch, the rough and desperate hands exploring his body with reckless abandon. Do-won gritted his teeth, his every movement trembling with restraint—afraid of hurting him, even though he craved him so badly. But Yu-young, in turn, only held Do-won’s hands and kissed them softly, guiding him.

And every time he did, Do-won would break.

It was an endless cycle. Their bodies moved in a desperate, consuming rhythm, as if trying to fill the void within each other.

The hours—perhaps days—blurred together.

When Yu-young collapsed in exhaustion, Do-won would lift his limp body into a warm bath, washing him gently. Afterward, food would be delivered to their room, but before Yu-young could eat, Do-won would capture his lips again, pulling him back into bed.

Like dry earth greedily drinking up rain, Do-won never seemed to tire of Yu-young. The fever never cooled, the fire never dulled. Again and again, Yu-young cried out, laughed, begged, and surrendered, only to be consumed once more.

Eventually, they had no choice but to take leave from work. Fortunately, Yu-young had already scheduled time off for his cycle, so it wasn’t difficult.

And so, he slept. Over and over, he dozed off in Do-won’s embrace, too drained to do anything else. Do-won wouldn’t even let him step outside, let alone think about returning to work.

Sometimes, Yu-young would wake up just enough to hear Do-won’s voice on the phone. The same deep, commanding tone he always used at work—giving orders, receiving reports. But the moment he hung up, he would turn back to Yu-young, his strong arms wrapping around him once more.

He would kiss the curve of Yu-young’s waist, stroke his thighs, and do it all over again.

“…Team Leader.”

Yu-young’s voice was hoarse, his throat dry. Just speaking took effort.

Do-won, who had been nuzzling against Yu-young’s warm skin, let out a low chuckle.

“Yes, Yu-young?”

“What… was that call you made earlier?”

“Ah. That.”

So he heard. Saying that, Do-won lifted his head from where he had been nestled against Yu-young’s stomach. He raised a hand to caress Yu-young’s face and slowly opened his mouth.

“My father is returning to Korea earlier than planned.”

“…What?! Don’t tell me it’s because of us….”

“That’s right.”

Do-won gave a faint smile.

“I suppose you already heard from Sun-hyung. He was absolutely furious.”

“Ha, that guy, seriously—what did he do so well that he’s acting like this till the very end…!”

“My thoughts exactly. Maybe he’s giving a last struggle.”

When Yu-young, face full of anger, suddenly tried to sit up, Do-won gently held him down and pressed a kiss to his forehead. Looking at Do-won’s handsome face gazing at him, Yu-young had no choice but to let his furrowed eyebrows relax. Damn, his face is exactly my type…. The surge of anger he had felt a moment ago subsided almost instantly.

Yu-young, his tone much calmer, asked,

“Then, what happens to Sun-hyung now?”

“He has to pay for daring to pull something this big. It’s already been filed as a criminal case and is in progress. They’ll obviously fight back hard, but the lawyer says the evidence is overwhelming, so there’s nothing to worry about. He’ll have to serve at least a year or two before he gets out.”

“But… didn’t you say the families were deeply connected?”

“That’s over now. My father may be furious with me, but he’s also cutting ties with their family.”

So it’s finally come to this. Thinking that, Yu-young blankly recalled Sun-hyung’s face. He pictured him fawning over Mrs. Lee, picking out a watch with an excited face just because Do-won liked it. For some reason, it made him feel a little strange. Sun-hyung’s feelings had been anything but small.

But even that feeling soon faded. Unlike when he thought of Yoon-seok, there was no lingering regret. Just because emotions were strong didn’t mean they were right.

Sun-hyung had loved the wrong way. If he truly loved Do-won, he shouldn’t have resorted to those methods. Like Yoon-seok, who, because he truly loved him, let him go without hesitation—though it hurt, he wished for his happiness.

Sun-hyung, for too long, tormented Do-won in a way he despised most. And in the end, he committed the worst crime. There was no sympathy left for him.

“Anyway… what about us? Your father. If he’s coming back earlier than planned, he must be seriously angry….”

“Don’t worry.”

Do-won spoke gently, pressing another kiss to Yu-young’s forehead.

“I’ll handle it so that my beautiful Yu-young won’t have to suffer.”

“You’re… already always doing so well.”

Soft words flowed between them. Just looking at each other made happiness overflow. Yu-young kept kissing Do-won’s lips and smiling again and again.

Despite the huge ordeal awaiting them in just a couple of days, he couldn’t feel anxious. He just kept smiling. No matter what happened, as long as he was with this person—his greatest source of strength—he believed everything would be fine.

Even as that thought settled, Do-won once again tried to pull him into an embrace, making Yu-young hurriedly stop him.

“S-Stop! I want coffee, Team Leader. Let’s at least go up to the lounge.”

“Shall we?”

But Do-won, speaking in a languid tone, unfortunately seemed entirely uninterested in coffee. With a soft sound, he pressed a kiss to Yu-young’s lips and smiled with crinkled eyes.

“How could I go drink coffee when I have something this beautiful right in front of me?”

“If—if we do it again, I’ll seriously die!”

“You won’t die. You think I’d let you?”

“Wait… wait—ah, that tickles, Team Leader!”

Yu-young tried to push Do-won away with weak hands a few times, but in the end, he gave in to the snake-like embrace. Even though his rut had completely passed, Do-won still desired him so earnestly. Yielding to those hands as if he had no choice, Yu-young thought, Fine… I can have coffee later.

Because the face of his lover, gazing only at him, was a hundred—no, a thousand times sweeter than any coffee.