TSG 123

Se-hyun summarized the situation while rubbing his full stomach. Now that the meal was over, it seemed like it was time to say goodbye.

While Se-hyun and his parents were staying at this hotel and didn’t need to go far, it was different for Shin Tae-oh and his parents. So it was time to create an atmosphere for wrapping up the gathering.

“We haven’t had a proper conversation while feeding the kids,” Jeong Min-jung was quicker than Se-hyun.

Feeding the kids…

Where were there any kids close to 30 years old? Well, they might not look grown up in the adults’ eyes. Still, saying “feeding” was a bit…

‘Then again… Is that right?’

Se-hyun had been putting every side dish Jeong Min-jung handed him into his mouth throughout the meal. Soon, his thoughts leaned towards ‘she’s not wrong.’

“How about a drink, if that’s alright?” 

Se-hyun was startled by Jeong Min-jung’s suggestion and tried to call out to her, but he was too late again. Shin Tae-oh was shaking his head at Se-hyun. And as he mouthed words silently, Se-hyun narrowed his eyes to guess Shin Tae-oh’s pronunciation.

No. Use. 

It probably meant there was no use trying to stop her.

Kim Hye-soon looked at her husband with a troubled expression.

“I’m not sure if he should drink alcohol yet, since his body hasn’t fully recovered.”

“I’m all better now.”

“You be quiet.”

Ahn Baek-cheon, who didn’t want to miss out on alcohol, was already fidgeting in his seat before being forcibly restrained by Kim Hye-soon.

“I’ll prepare some medicinal alcohol that’s good for the body.”

Although she could have argued that medicinal alcohol was still alcohol, Kim Hye-soon couldn’t refuse. She understood the underlying meaning of Jeong Min-jung’s words to have a conversation.

“Alright then.”

“Shall we go up to the room? I checked in while we were having dinner.”

Se-hyun couldn’t get a word in edgewise due to Jeong Min-jung’s drive. It was just as Shin Tae-oh had said. They couldn’t stop Jeong Min-jung who had already made up her mind.

In an instant, the two families left the restaurant together and stood in front of the elevator.

“Do you two want to come along?” 

Jeong Min-jung turned and asked, but Shin Tae-oh shook his head.

“We still have something to do, so we won’t be able to join you. Have a good time.”

“Alright then.”

With Jeong Min-jung in the lead, the parents boarded the elevator and went up, soon leaving just Se-hyun and Shin Tae-oh behind.

“Shall we go for a drink too?”

Shin Tae-oh subtly tempted Se-hyun.

So the remaining business was a date?

“We’ve been with our parents all this time. Now I want to spend some cozy time with just the two of us.”

As Shin Tae-oh explained his reason for wanting to go separately while subtly tempting him, Se-hyun found it hard to refuse. He had been secretly drawn to the idea ever since the parents started talking about alcohol.

“I’ll go get the car.”

Seeing Se-hyun taking initiative, Shin Tae-oh leisurely followed behind him.

They had met the parents. Their stomachs were full.

“After we have a good drink, many things will be different.”

Now he just had to catch one more person.

***

Their glasses were emptied as quickly as they were filled. They filled each other’s glasses, sat side by side drinking bottled beer, consuming alcohol like it was food.

Only when Se-hyun felt full from alcohol instead of food did he stop drinking and stare blankly at his glass.

“Why is it like this…”

He shook his head to clear the dizziness. Se-hyun strained his eyes and tried to think clearly.

He could drink anytime. It wasn’t like he thought it had to be today. There was no one interfering or rushing them. Even knowing they could drink leisurely, the pace was strangely fast.

It was even stranger considering he wasn’t a lightweight.

This feeling—it was oddly familiar.

“Is there something special …”

Se-hyun’s words trailed off, but Shin Tae-oh understood well.

“It is a special day. We solidified our relationship through the family meeting.”

Even though he said it wasn’t a family meeting.

Se-hyun glared at Shin Tae-oh, but his eyes were so relaxed that forcing them open had little effect.

“Are you trying to seduce me?”

Se-hyun asked suspiciously.

Se-hyun leaned back on the sofa and tilted his head back. He closed his eyes against the bright lights that seemed to pierce them and relaxed his body.

He felt languid from drinking so much. Judging by how his body felt more relaxed than usual, it seemed he had been tense during the time spent with their parents.

If he had drunk alcohol with the parents too, would he have even known where the alcohol was going?

‘Suggesting we drink separately…’

Did he think of all this too?

“When you look at me like that, I can’t resist.”

When Se-hyun looked at him suspiciously, Shin Tae-oh immediately exuded strong pheromones.

“You’ve been strange lately anyway. Your gaze looks like it’s going to imprint on me.”

Imprint… Imprint?

Se-hyun sat up suddenly, startling Shin Tae-oh.

“Don’t suddenly jump up like that. Someone’s going to get hurt!”

Shin Tae-oh scolded, saying they didn’t collide thanks to his quick dodge, but Tae-oh acted as if he had already forgotten the shocking words he had just said.

“Imprint?”

Se-hyun narrowed his eyes and looked at Shin Tae-oh. His face looked the same as usual. He looked relaxed and comfortable.

That’s why it was even more unbelievable. Is this what it feels like when thunder suddenly strikes out of nowhere?

“I’ve been thinking about it lately.”

Shin Tae-oh leaned in close to Se-hyun with a serious expression.

“Even when I’m not trying to release a lot of pheromones, they keep flowing out intensely when I’m with you.”

“If you release a lot, of course, it’ll become intense.”

Isn’t that just obvious logic?

Pheromones were easiest to understand when compared to perfume. There was no need to ask which had a stronger scent when sprayed once or twice on the body.

What Shin Tae-oh was saying was that even spraying once was as strong as spraying twice.

‘Does that… make sense?’

Just like perfumes vary in intensity, pheromones differ as well, and they aren’t constant—they can be influenced by one’s mood. So, while what Shin Tae-oh said wasn’t completely absurd, it still felt unusual.

Se-hyun, who had become as serious as Shin Tae-oh without realizing it, began to ponder.

Having only heard about imprinting in theory without experiencing it, there was nothing he could be certain about.

“Do you really think it’s imprinting?”

“My instincts are telling me it is.”

Shin Tae-oh whispered, looking at Se-hyun’s nape.

“Why would pheromones change? If you think about it, there’s only one reason they could change.”

As if saying that he was the cause, Se-hyun scratched his neck, which felt strangely itchy.

“My feelings are getting deeper.”

“Is that the reason? Even urine gets stronger if you hold it in again and again.”

“I haven’t been holding back pheromones like that.”

Shin Tae-oh responded more seriously than Se-hyun had expected. Now Se-hyun couldn’t brush it off as a joke either.

Sitting up straight facing Shin Tae-oh, Se-hyun stared intently at his face.

“It wouldn’t be bad to check.”

And if Shin Tae-oh was right, he’d have to acknowledge it.

“First…”

Se-hyun cupped Shin Tae-oh’s face. Then he pressed his lips firmly against various spots on Shin Tae-oh’s face. Seeming to like Se-hyun’s confirmation, Shin Tae-oh grabbed his waist.

“Thank you for being considerate of our parents.”

Se-hyun felt a bit guilty for not being able to do as Shin Tae-oh had. He felt ashamed to face his parents today. Shin Tae-oh had warmly taken care of Se-hyun’s parents on his behalf, sensing Se-hyun’s feelings without him saying anything.

“You don’t need to feel sorry towards your parents.”

Shin Tae-oh gently pressed his lips to Se-hyun’s forehead.

“Taking care of them doesn’t just mean visiting. You’re doing plenty well.”

So he knew after all.

Despite Shin Tae-oh’s soothing words, Se-hyun couldn’t raise his head.

“The reason they can be so at ease is all because of you.”

Shin Tae-oh’s voice tickled Se-hyun’s ear. Actually speaking with his lips against Se-hyun’s ear felt like brushing a feather against it.

It was as if someone had thrown a log onto the heat already rising from the alcohol.

“I’m the one who should be grateful.”

Se-hyun, who had been squeezing his eyes shut trying to endure the ticklish sensation, tried to turn to look at Shin Tae-oh. But as Shin Tae-oh burrowed in closer to Se-hyun, it became difficult to see him.

“Even though she’s my mother, she’s the chairwoman and quite an unpredictable person, so it must have been difficult, but you didn’t avoid her.”

If it was as Shin Tae-oh said, there were indeed many reasons it could have been difficult.

Because she was his lover’s mother. Because she was the chairwoman. Because of her unrestrained personality.

But none of that mattered.

“It used to be difficult, but now… She makes it so I can’t help but contact her first.”

It wasn’t Se-hyun bravely approaching Jeong Min-jung. She had opened her arms to Se-hyun first. So for Se-hyun, the various reasons Jeong Min-jung had weren’t any obstacle at all.

“I wonder what kind of conversation our parents will have today.”

“What about you, Se-hyun?”

Se-hyun leaned back to look into Shin Tae-oh’s eyes. In contrast to their plain conversation, his eyes were full of lust. Staring intently into them, Se-hyun released his own pheromones.

“What about you?”

Even though he looked like he might pounce at any moment, Shin Tae-oh held back well.

“People at the company know now, and now our parents know too. How do you feel?”

Before, Se-hyun was known as Shin Tae-oh’s secretary, but now he was known as Shin Tae-oh’s lover. If that’s what he was asking about…

“I like it so much that I regret not saying it from the beginning.”

Se-hyun wrapped his arms around Shin Tae-oh’s neck.

“We should have dated openly from the start.”

Shin Tae-oh laughed and stroked Se-hyun’s back.

“But we didn’t really hide it either.”

They didn’t?