Pink Flavor Omega

#24

It only took about 30 minutes by subway to reach the theater. Luckily, when transferring, a seat became available and Eunhong was able to sit down. He inwardly rejoiced. Having taken both fever reducer and energy boosters, along with the warm seat, he felt drowsy.

When he came to his senses, he had already passed his stop by three stations. Eunhong hurriedly jumped off between the closing doors. Perhaps due to the sudden awakening and rushed movement, his heart was racing and his stomach was churning. The fever that had been suppressed by the medication seemed to be rising again.

“Oh, why is this happening? Really.”

His body felt so weak that even climbing the stairs to catch the subway in the opposite direction was challenging. He wanted to take a taxi, but knowing it would be terribly congested at this hour, he reluctantly got back on the subway. He already felt exhausted to his limit.

When he finally got off at his destination and felt the cold air, he seemed to feel a bit better. As he approached the musical theater, posters lining the street became more frequent.

The theater entrance was lavishly decorated. The photo spot was crowded with people. Somehow, this made Eunhong feel on edge. His vision became blurry and kept blurring, so he kept rubbing his eyes.

Intending to rest at the cafeteria until the show started, he was heading there when he collided hard with a man’s shoulder. Even as he stumbled, Eunhong tried to apologize first.

“Ah shit, what a beggar-like bastard!”

But the man started cursing right away. Covering his mouth and brushing off his shoulder with exaggerated gestures, he moved away as if avoiding a bug. Eunhong felt upset but didn’t have the energy to chase after him and confront him.

After some struggle, he reached the cafe but didn’t even have the strength to order a drink. His fever was rising more and more. Oh, what should I do? Eunhong sat with his forehead on the table, worrying. He had been looking forward to this performance for so long, but his body wasn’t cooperating, and tears welled up from frustration.

Unlike him, everyone else seemed excited. Groups of people were sitting together, talking about the lead actor and the events planned for today. There were even rumors that a celebrity had come to see the show and had already taken pictures. People were gossiping, saying the celebrity rudely refused to take pictures with fans and was acting arrogantly expensive. Eunhong, still slumped on the table, chuckled. It sounded just like Jaeha.

There wasn’t much time left until the show started. Eunhong sniffled, wiped his nose, and headed to the restroom. He thought washing his face might help him feel better. As he was drying his face with a hand towel, someone grabbed his arm. Turning around, he saw a neatly dressed man.

“Excuse me, it seems like you’re not able to control your pheromones right now. Are you aware of this?”

The man’s expression, looking at Eunhong with cautious eyes, was filled with concern. His thin face looked like that of an omega. Eunhong lifted his arm and sniffed it.

Seeing Eunhong’s action, the man tilted his head in confusion. The fact that he was sniffing made it seem like he wasn’t a secondary sex trait carrier. Pheromones were supposed to be felt through the skin rather than smelled. Moreover, the strong pheromones the man had sensed seemed to disappear like a mirage the moment he spoke to Eunhong.

The man, looking around the bathroom with a somewhat bewildered expression, turned his head at the sound of someone calling him from a distance. A look of embarrassment flashed across his face.

“I must have mistaken it for another omega’s pheromones. I’m sorry.”

Eunhong blankly watched as the man bowed his head and rushed to his partner. The gaze of the partner, clearly an alpha, briefly fell on Eunhong. Because Eunhong’s mind wasn’t working well, he couldn’t even respond that it was okay, so he just bowed his head slightly.

He took out the ticket from his wallet. Come to think of it, everyone around seemed to be in couples. Eunhong felt somewhat awkward and scratched the back of his head. He remembered Jaeha, who had flatly refused to come, saying he didn’t like the content when Eunhong had asked him to watch together.

The musical happened to be about friends falling in love. Two protagonists who had been living like siblings overcome hardships in their twisted fate and finally achieve love.

Eunhong muttered softly while looking at the messages Jaeha had left in his phone:

“If you liked it, you should have come with me.”

Awkwardness was awkwardness, and disappointment was disappointment.

Lost in thought for a moment, the ticket check and entrance guidance began. Eunhong turned off his phone, put it in his pocket, and tucked the program into his bag. When he showed his ticket to the usher and confirmed his seat number, the staff member, with a kind smile, directed him to the VIP section.

As he entered the theater, stepping on the thick carpet, his vision suddenly blurred. Eunhong shook his head and blinked. The enclosed structure that absorbed noise suddenly made it hard to breathe. His ears felt muffled as if he was underwater, and a buzzing wind sound started ringing. The sound of his own heartbeat echoed loudly.

As Eunhong staggered and grabbed the back of a seat, someone entering behind him let out a weak cry. He barely managed to turn around and say he was fine, but in reality, he wasn’t. Everyone entering to find their seats glanced at Eunhong as they passed by. Eunhong looked up to find his seat, thinking he might calm down once he sat down.

It wasn’t far. There was someone sitting next to where he was supposed to sit. Even as his body swayed, Eunhong had the idle thought of wondering if that person had come alone too.

As he stumbled to take a step, someone came to support him. He must have been staggering severely, though he thought he was walking straight. He turned his head to look at the hand holding his arm. The expression of the person supporting him was strange.

“Are you alright?”

“Someone call a staff member. Hey!”

In an instant, people gathered around Eunhong. Eunhong squeezed his eyes shut and then opened them slowly. His eyeballs felt like they were about to pop out.

It felt like a fire was rising in his stomach. His face was burning hot, and it was difficult to breathe. When someone’s hand brushed against him, it felt like a sharp, burning pain as if cut by something keen.

Suddenly feeling nauseous, Eunhong violently shook off the hand holding him. He hurriedly turned around and ran out of the theater, almost crawling.

As soon as he opened the door and stepped into the bright area, his legs tangled and he fell with a crash. His vision was blurry, and he couldn’t see well in front of him. A staff member saw Eunhong and ran over in surprise, but Eunhong got up faster and tried to run away. Or at least he tried to.

Eunhong thought he was walking, but in reality, he was crawling. Everything around him seemed full of something. The smell seemed to take on a physical form and was unbearable, as if it was scraping his skin.

“Eunhong!”

In the midst of his heart feeling like it was about to jump out of his throat, he thought he heard Jaeha’s voice. He barely managed to lift his heavy head, but his vision was blurry and he couldn’t see anything. The legs rushing towards him looked like six instead of two.

Eunhong! Ban Eunhong! Amidst what seemed like auditory hallucinations, Eunhong closed his eyes. He seemed to have fallen hard on the marble floor, but it didn’t hurt. As he lost consciousness, he felt a dizzying sense of falling, followed by a blackout.

“Ban Eunhong!”

***

In his intermittent consciousness, Eunhong thought he saw Jaeha. Although he wasn’t sure because his vision was all blurry, there was a body temperature that somehow made him feel at ease. The lighting in the hall was too bright and glaring, so Eunhong closed his eyes. His face was so hot that it felt like his eyeballs would fall out.

“Eunhong, what, what’s going on? Try to come to your senses.”

“Mmm…”

At the anxious voice, Eunhong burrowed into that embrace. When he buried his face in the chest and mumbled, the owner of the body seemed to flinch and stiffen. Suddenly, a cool scent poured over his face. Ah, so refreshing. Eunhong relaxed his body’s tension and leaned on Jaeha. It was because his body felt momentarily comfortable as the heat washed away, as if ice water had been poured from his head down.

Conversely, his stomach was on fire. His lower body was burning, and sweat was pouring out all over his body, making him damp. Eunhong burrowed in more, seeking the cool scent. More. Cover me completely. He mumbled without even being fully conscious. Jaeha held the trembling Eunhong tightly.

“Eunhong. Eunhong.”

The usually cool and rational Lee Jaeha was not here. Jaeha had been unable to think straight since he found Eunhong collapsed. Moreover, unfamiliar pheromones were overflowing from Eunhong. It was almost like… an omega’s manifestation. Jaeha furrowed his brow as much as he could, looking down at his friend’s flushed face as he lay collapsed, entrusting his whole body to Jaeha.

An omega’s manifestation fever.

“What, what am I supposed to do with this… I… Eunhong…”

Jaeha, sitting on the floor holding Eunhong and endlessly patting his cheeks, suddenly raised his head at the gaze of people. Without realizing it, everyone in the hall had gathered around. A black mass of people was looking down at him and Eunhong. Amidst the murmuring sounds, some words stood out clearly, grating on his ears.

“Did someone collapse? Shouldn’t we call 911?”

“Who is it? A celebrity? An actor?”

“It looks like Lee Jaeha.”

“Hey, don’t take pictures! You’ll get sued.”

“Oh my, it really seems to be Lee Jaeha. The grandson of the Han Jung Group.”

“The person who collapsed seems to be an omega.”

At the sound of someone pointing out Eunhong, Jaeha suddenly came to his senses. He took off his jacket to cover Eunhong’s face and picked him up. As Lee Jaeha stood up, people started openly taking pictures. The theater security guards, who arrived belatedly, parted the gathered crowd to make way.