Even without seeing his face, he could tell. As far as he knew, there was only one person with such a tender voice. Soft and kind, the person he had dreamed of.
“Te…”
He couldn’t address him as a teacher. Emotions overwhelmed him, blocking his words. His eyes were watery, and his throat heated up. His irregularly beating heart grew louder like a warning.
“…Senior.”
The slight calling was the last break he could offer. If it was an irreparable feeling, at least let it not pour out. Instead, let it seep in little by little, avoiding a collapse.
“…”
Dohyun looked at Wooyeon with an expressionless face. One hand in his pocket, the other holding an umbrella, he quietly watched the falling snow. Due to the transparent umbrella tilted towards Wooyeon, his shoulder gradually got wet.
“Sometimes.”
It was a sigh-like voice. The silent gaze held an indescribable light. He slowly turned his head and whispered in a very small voice.
“It’s not easy.”
Wooyeon didn’t ask what he meant by that. Instead, he placed his hand on his knee and rested his chin on it.
The following words shook Wooyeon’s heart to its core.
“Want me to carry you?”
“…”
Drip, a raindrop fell. The thickened raindrops rhythmically tapped on the umbrella. Dohyun looked at Wooyeon again and casually spoke.
“I was already feeling uneasy.”
He offered a digestive medicine in a glass bottle. The bottle felt tiny in Wooyeon’s hands, who stared blankly at it. Dohyun whispered softly to Wooyeon, who seemed lost in thought.
“I’ll take you home.”
There was no room for refusal. Dohyun handed the digestive medicine to Wooyeon and then passed him the umbrella. When Wooyeon came to his senses, Dohyun had already knelt in front of him with one knee and his back facing him.
“Senior!”
Wooyeon, flustered, tilted the umbrella towards Dohyun. the rain wasn’t heavy but it wasn’t the kind of rain to be caught bare-bodied. ‘Senior, you’re getting wet.’ When he said that, Dohyun chuckled as if asking what it meant.
“I’ve already been soaked.”
“No, senior. But still…”
“Now you’re good at calling me senior.”
It was clear what those words meant. Stop calling him that and get up. Wooyeon bit his lip and examined the hem of the coat being dragged on the ground. Dohyun urged him again.
“Hurry up, my pants are getting wet.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Unable to do anything, Wooyeon placed his hand on Dohyun’s shoulder. Carefully shifting his weight, Dohyun supported him by lifting his leg slightly. He wished he hadn’t worn shorts; the fingers touching bare skin felt terribly ticklish.
“I’m heavy…”
Except for when he was very young, memories of being carried by someone were rare. There was no one who had asked so gently, and he wasn’t someone whose weight could be easily carried. Perhaps that’s why the act of being lifted itself felt unfamiliar and awkward.
“Someone like you shouldn’t be heavy.”
Dohyun responded and adjusted his posture. As if trying to gauge the weight, he bent his upper body, then lifted him without hesitation. The moment he stood up, Wooyeon hugged him tightly.
“Scared?”
His voice was mixed with laughter for some reason. Wooyeon clung to him like a child and replied firmly.
“No, not at all.”
To anyone, he seemed scared. Perhaps Dohyun had a similar thought, as he swallowed his laughter silently. Wooyeon adjusted the umbrella and awkwardly changed the subject.
“So, where are we going?”
“You really can’t lie.”
“…Just let me down.”
“Where? There’s no bench here.”
Although Wooyeon hadn’t injured his legs, Dohyun treated him like someone who couldn’t walk. Naturally, saying he was fine now wouldn’t make a damn difference. Dohyun, who adjusted his posture and told him to stay still, replied casually.
“We’re going to the parking lot. I brought the car because it’s raining.”
“What about our study session?”
“We can do it next time.”
Dohyun said that Garam and Seongyu had said not to worry about them. They commented that studying doesn’t matter when you’re in pain and added that Wooyeon worries about everything. Wooyeon, who had been silent, suddenly felt a familiar discomfort from Dohyun.
“…I’ve been curious for a while.”
It felt similar to what he had sensed in the club room last time. Even though they were this close, Wooyeon couldn’t sense any pheromones from Dohyun. He was undoubtedly an Alpha, but he seemed to resemble a Beta rather than an Alpha.
“Why do you suppress your pheromones?”
Dohyun rarely emitted pheromones unless it was an exceptional situation. Even the faint remaining scent was merely a trace that accidentally stuck to his clothes. If he were a typical Alpha, pheromones would seep out even in ordinary situations, but he seemed to deliberately restrain himself.
“If you’re an Alpha, it must be hard to endure.”
Wooyeon knew this because of his peculiar trait. Suppressing pheromones was akin to wearing uncomfortable clothes and having a meal with a stranger. While Wooyeon had unavoidable circumstances, he didn’t think Dohyun had such circumstances.
“You…”
Dohyun took a very slow breath. He furrowed the corner of his double-eyelids and tilted his head slightly. Finally, when Dohyun turned to look at Wooyeon, he casually spoke.
“You dislike Alphas.”
“…”
The tone was very matter-of-fact. It also had a puzzled expression, as if asking if a reason was needed. Before Wooyeon could ask how he knew, Dohyun decisively added.
“It’s obvious.”
“…”
“Quite a bit too.”
It felt unlikely, but such thoughts occurred. It wasn’t a particular secret, but he hadn’t shown it overtly. He hadn’t told anyone, and he couldn’t recall ever insulting Alphas or mentioning it. Moreover, Dohyun had been suppressing pheromones even before joining the club.
“I’m observant.”
The chain of thoughts that Wooyeon had been spinning in his mind came to an abrupt halt. Because Dohyun, who had slowly exhaled, continued speaking with a sweet voice.
“When Moon Garam confessed to being an Alpha, your reaction was hard to miss. You said you don’t like being touched, but it seemed like nothing when it was with Seongyu.”
Come to think of it, it did seem that way. Considering the reaction Wooyeon had shown to Garam, it wasn’t unreasonable for Dohyun to notice. Moreover, if he personally claimed to be observant, then he must be.
“…Senior, your pheromones are fine.”
Wooyeon spoke like that while leaning comfortably. Dohyun didn’t respond, but Wooyeon meant it sincerely. If all Alphas were like Dohyun, there wouldn’t be a reason for him to dislike Alpha pheromones.
“How did you know I’m here?”
“I registered your classes for you.”
Even amid the rain, Dohyun’s voice was clear. Maybe it was because of his low tone or his calm manner of speaking. Listening quietly, all the tension in Wooyeon’s body seemed to dissipate. Even though he hadn’t taken the digestive medicine, it felt like his stomach had settled.
“I know where you attend classes.”
“…”
It seemed like he was implying that Wooyeon hadn’t come here by chance. The voice that said he didn’t accidentally stumble upon this, but walked to the building after buying the digestive medicine, made Wooyeon tightly grip the umbrella.
“…Why didn’t you ask why I was doing this?”
The rain showed no signs of stopping. Just as the cherry blossoms were in full bloom, they might fall tomorrow. Dohyun didn’t turn to look at Wooyeon and nonchalantly asked.
“Do you want me to ask?”
Honestly, if it weren’t for the awkwardness, it would be a lie. He was filled with the desire to lay everything out to him and receive comfort, just like before. However, Wooyeon also knew the fact that not everything would go as he wanted.
“…No.”
He tightened his arms around Dohyun. He lowered his head and buried his face in his shoulder. The rain-drenched pheromones were faint and indistinct.
“I just did it because it hurt.”
Regret lingered in his words. Dohyun waited silently for Wooyeon to continue. Wooyeon, holding onto Dohyun, spoke hesitantly as if acting foolish.
“After eating the hamburger earlier, my stomach started hurting a lot. Except for when I was young, I’ve never had indigestion before, but my stomach was churning… It hurt like being stabbed with needles… But I didn’t throw up…”
The more he spoke, the deeper the sense of sorrow intensified. If Dohyun had mocked him, he might have held back, but Dohyun was calmly listening. After Wooyeon mentioned five times that he was in pain, he finally took a deep breath and trailed off.
“So, it’s just that…”
Truly, he couldn’t say anything other than that it hurt. Various reasons and resentment. All of it was encapsulated in the word ‘hurt.’ It hurt, and because it hurt, he hadn’t realized that it was okay now.
“Did it?”
Dohyun responded gently as if soothing a child. While looking back at Wooyeon, who had his head deeply bowed, Dohyun continued speaking tenderly.
“It must have been tough for you.”
It was an exceptionally affectionate comfort. Of course, it wasn’t the right response to the statement that he was in pain. Feeling a fluttering in his chest, Wooyeon bit down hard on his lower lip.
“Let’s go home, take the medicine, and get some rest.”
“…”
“Then, you’ll be fine.”
It felt like tears might fall. Not because he was sad, but due to something else. His heart was fluttering, and his mood was lifted.
“Senior.”
Wooyeon lifted his regretful face. Dohyun momentarily flinched at the breath-mixed voice. Wooyeon, not realizing the faint hesitation, spoke with a precarious voice.
“Why do you treat me so well?”
He knew that Dohyun was kind to everyone. The teacher Wooyeon knew was kind even to people he saw for the first time. However, no matter how kind a person was, they might hesitate before lifting a soaked junior unless there was a particular reason.
“…”
For some reason, Dohyun hesitated to answer. He stared straight ahead, slowly licked his lips, and spoke with a measured voice. His gentle voice was somewhat like a sigh.
“I just want to treat you well.”
Wooyeon bit his lip instead of asking, ‘Why?’ He buried his face in Dohyun’s neck and exhaled lightly.
After a while, Wooyeon, sounding like he might cry, pleaded.
“…Then, please continue to treat me well.”
The raindrops weakened. The umbrella tilted, but no one pointed that out. Thump, thump, the repetitive beats of a pounding heart were transmitted through their touching backs.
Perhaps, from the beginning, it was an irresolvable attachment. When Dohyun rejected him, when he silently cut off their private tutoring, even while crying and resenting him, he couldn’t bring himself to truly hate Dohyun. The thought of giving up on his feelings was arrogant and conceited.
“I missed you.”
Wooyeon casually uttered in a light voice. He also playfully packaged it as a joke so that Dohyun wouldn’t misunderstand, saying he had various thoughts because he was in pain. Dohyun stayed silent for a while, then replied with that courteous and affectionate tone.
“…I’m glad.”
That day, it rained in Wooyeon’s heart as well. It was a downpour of cherry blossoms.
This was literally everything I could’ve asked for. My heart feels like it has been melted. You can tell that the ML cares for the MC in a way that’s not superficial.
Thanks for the update!
couldn’t have said it better T.T
One of the reasons that I like this novel is because of how everything is just subtly added and it makes my heart melt😭💛
and ur welcomeee~😆💛
My heart 😭😭😭
I swear to god this time ” HE REMEMBERS HIM ” 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍
This chapter was so sweet and full with emotions 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺
Thank u so much for the update
ur welcomeee~😁💛
They’re my roman empire 😭😭🤍🤍 thanks for the update !
glad you’re enjoying this~😆💛
they’re so cute,,, im crying
Caring but not reciprocating the feelings, should it continue, it’ll hurt more later.. Stay strong kid..
Ack I love this so much, I love your translation also, I’m sorry for the words in the early chapters, I really did not understand those chapters, but it’s getting better. Thank you for the hard work