Pink Flavor Omega

#36

“I told you we should have taken the train. Why did you insist on driving, making it tiring?”

“We need the car for what we planned, and the train is absolutely not an option.”

Annoyed by Jaeha’s teasing, Eunhong leaned his head against the passenger window. With his sulky mood, he also crossed his arms. It was his own defensive posture.

“Why is it absolutely not an option? Why? What’s wrong with the train?”

“Because you’re emitting pheromones.”

With those words, the window made a buzzing sound as it lowered. The biting cold winter wind flowed in through the gap. Eunhong unnecessarily grabbed and fluttered his clothes.

Whenever he thought he had forgotten about it, the topic of pheromones would come up. It subtly bothered him that Jaeha was seeing him as an omega. It was something he couldn’t have imagined when he was a beta. Jaeha said he liked him even when he was a beta, but he thought it was only as a friend. Of course, there were events like kisses where the boundaries weren’t clear!

After becoming an omega, Jaeha’s behavior had undeniably changed to be more overt. Eunhong hesitated awkwardly, like someone who didn’t know what position to take. He felt like he didn’t know where to sit. No, where did he want to sit?

“To be honest, I’m kind of dying here, Eunhong.”

“Please don’t say things like that…”

Eunhong muttered again that they should have taken the train. Whether others cursed at him for emitting pheromones or not, this subtle situation was more embarrassing and made him not know what to do with himself.

At Eunhong’s muttering, Jaeha narrowed his eyes.

The train was absolutely out of the question. Even a plane wouldn’t do unless it was a private jet.

He didn’t want to share Eunhong’s pheromones with others. Eunhong would never understand how sexually charged that sweet scent was. On top of that, those large round eyes looking at him with flushed cheeks and those prim lips kept stimulating the monster deep inside him.

He didn’t like others seeing that face even when Eunhong was a beta. Now that he had become an omega, it was even worse. Jaeha knew well that he himself was in a severe state. Nevertheless, as sexually charged pheromones leaked from Eunhong, his worries only deepened.

He couldn’t just turn off Eunhong’s pheromones like a faucet. If he had his way, he’d prevent him from going to work, and he was worried about what would happen after their vacation ended.

Jaeha imagined a stranger alpha on the train sensing Eunhong’s pheromones, looking him up and down, and licking his lips. His brow furrowed involuntarily.

“The train is absolutely out of the question.”

Jaeha gritted his molars.

If I end up killing someone in a fit of rage, I won’t be able to date you, Bunhong.

Swallowing the embarrassing words that would make Eunhong freak out if spoken aloud, he stepped on the accelerator.

***

When they arrived at the family home, it was already getting dark. Partly because it was winter and the sun set early, and partly due to the atmosphere of the neighborhood.

Eunhong’s family home was inside a large temple, situated in the inner part of a hillside neighborhood overlooking the distant sea with a small mountain behind it. This is where Kyunghee had returned with Eunhong when she could no longer manage in Seoul after Jaeha left for his studies abroad. It was also where her mother-in-law and young second child were living, and Kyunghee had no other option at the time. With no money left after her husband’s long illness, she ended up settling there. It was from when Eunhong was entering high school.

After parking the car in a corner of the road, the two of them carried gifts in both hands as they climbed the narrow, winding stairs. They stacked the square boxes wrapped in cloth in front of the red-brown painted main gate. Just as they were almost done moving everything, they heard the sound of the door opening from inside, and Eunhong’s mother, Kyunghee, came out. She was startled by the sudden appearance of her eldest son as she came out to check on the commotion.

“What’s this, coming without any notice?”

“Mom, I’m here.”

Overjoyed, Kyunghee immediately hugged Eunhong tightly, then belatedly noticed Jaeha standing behind. Her eyes widened in surprise.

“Oh my, Jaeha, it’s been a while. Come here, come here.”

At Kyunghee’s gesture, Jaeha hesitated slightly before bowing and offering his shoulder. Although he had occasionally visited Busan, this was the first time he had come to the house, so Kyunghee was a bit puzzled. Nevertheless, she was happy to see him. She was too small to hug them both at once, but she spread her arms wide and embraced them tightly.

“Oh my, you drove all that way? You must be tired. What’s all this? My goodness. When did you leave? Have you had dinner?” As his mother asked questions, Eunhong’s whiny responses followed, which Jaeha watched with warm eyes.

The three of them moved inside the gate. Behind the main building where Buddha was enshrined, on the right side of the spacious backyard, was a separate building where Kyunghee lived. After moving all the gifts they had brought in several trips and closing the door, a delicious smell finally hit their noses.

It seemed they were about to have dinner. Seeing two sets of chopsticks on the small dining table modestly set in the living room, Eunhong asked with a puzzled face.

“Mom, who were you going to have dinner with?”

Eunhong’s face turned uncomfortable, wondering if Woohyun’s mother might be in the house, but Kyunghee replied,

“Sunhong went out to smoke on the main road. Didn’t you see him on your way in?”

Come to think of it, there had been a large black shoe in the shoe rack. Eunhong’s eyes widened.

“Why is he at home?”

“He’s been discharged.”

“Really?”

“You don’t even know when your brother was discharged? It’s been about a month.”

Kyunghee brought out a large table and moved the side dishes. When Jaeha tried to help, she waved him off. Eunhong grumbled as he scooped rice for himself and Jaeha.

“Why hasn’t this brat called his brother?”

“I knew about it.”

“What? How do you know? Didn’t I tell you not to give Sunhong pocket money?”

As Eunhong bristled, Jaeha chuckled softly, and just then, the door opened and Sunhong’s husky voice was heard.

“I saw your car coming up the alley while I was on the phone outside. What brings you all the way down to Busan?”

Hearing her brother’s voice after a long time, Eunhong’s eyebrows furrowed vertically. He put down the bowl on the table and rushed to the entrance.

“Who were you talking to on the phone? If you saw us, you should have come in right away.”

“Who else but my girlfriend? I’m not a lifelong single like you, bro.”

Dodging Eunhong’s kick, Sunhong bowed slightly to Jaeha.

“How are you, Jaeha hyung?”

Sunhong, four years younger than Eunhong, had mostly lived with his grandmother in Busan, so he had only met Jaeha during occasional trips to Seoul. Thanks to his quick-witted personality, he knew Jaeha was generous to him, and acting cute had become a habit. As a result, Sunhong liked Jaeha. Of course, it wasn’t just because of the pocket money Jaeha secretly gave him. Jaeha clasped Sunhong’s thick hand and looked him over with kind eyes.

“Sunhong, you seem to have grown taller.”

“I grew 2 cm in the military. I’m almost as tall as you now, right? You’re 188 cm, aren’t you? I’m 186 cm. Hehe.”

Taller than Eunhong, Sunhong smiled gently while rubbing his still prickly hair. His face, similar to Eunhong’s, had been tanned from military life and had strong features. Moreover, due to his Busan native-like accent, Sunhong seemed even more like the older brother. So when the three stood side by side, Eunhong looked like the youngest. Kyunghee, who was grilling more pre-marinated bulgogi in the kitchen, called out to her three sons.

“Hurry up and sit down. Let’s eat.”

“Wow, what’s all this? Why did you bring so much?”

Sunhong’s long legs stepped over the gifts filling the space from the entrance to the living room. Midway, he mentally claimed the sparkling ginseng liquor as his own.

Meat kept piling up on Jaeha’s spoon. As soon as his spoon emptied, more meat was added. Kyunghee took care of Jaeha as if her eldest son had returned home emaciated.

“Jaeha is becoming more handsome day by day.”

Kyunghee looked at Jaeha with fond eyes. He was handsome and ate well. It was a look that suggested she wanted to adopt another son when she already had two. Eunhong mumbled with his cheeks full of rice.

“I’m handsome too, Mom.”

“That’s not true. Bro, you should have some conscience.”

When Sunhong retorted with an incredulous expression, Eunhong glared at him. Amidst the coldness, Kyunghee took Sunhong’s side.

“Eunhong is more delicate than handsome. He has a pretty face. He takes after me.”

Busy chewing meat, Jaeha nodded repeatedly, adding his agreement through gestures.

“That’s right. Bro has always been, what do you call it… what was it… Ah! An invasive species! That’s it! He looked just like an omega, and how much did the kids in middle school like him? They were always hanging around in front of our house… Mom always complained about not being able to live because of the cigarette butts left by the alpha kids, right?”

“Keck! Cough! Keck keck!”

As Sunhong was ranting, Eunhong choked on the soup he was drinking. As he coughed violently, the atmosphere suddenly became tense. The quick-witted Kyunghee rolled her eyes and put down her chopsticks. She carefully examined her eldest son’s face, who had come down without notice. Eunhong knew this was the moment to speak up.

***

Eunhong sat on the porch of the main building where the Buddha statue was enshrined, patting his full stomach. In the distance, the sea was visible, and the lights of ships twinkled like scattered dots, creating a peaceful scene. He pulled the padded jacket draped over his shoulders tighter, gathering the white steam coming from his mouth. Sunhong appeared, dragging his slippers as if he wasn’t cold, and handed over an opened beer. The sound of their bottles clinking in a light toast was welcome.

Sunhong asked, uncharacteristically cautiously,

“So, bro, does this mean you’ve become an omega forever now? You can’t go back?”

Eunhong got upset again at the sheer stupidity of the question.