Alpha Trauma Novel (Completed) - Chapter 105. Side Story 7. Guardian (7)

His eyes narrowed. The corners of his mouth turned into a straight line, and deep wrinkles formed between his brows.

Wooyeon fiddled with his earlobe, avoiding Dohyun’s gaze. He didn’t offer any excuses, nor could he readily reply. He just awkwardly frowned and shook his head.

“There’s something like that.”

“Something like that…”

Where?

He couldn’t utter the rest of the sentence. Just then, Daniel, who had looked up, met his gaze head-on. Dohyun closed his trembling lips and covered his mouth with one hand.

He almost put Wooyeon in an awkward position in front of so many people. It wasn’t right to press him to answer when he was trying to avoid it. Perhaps later, when they were alone, he could gently coax him.

Dohyun tried to suppress the impulse and calmly gathered his thoughts. Memories of the days Wooyeon was drunk surfaced one by one. One day, he clung to Dohyun, saying he was cold; another day, he tried to take off his clothes, saying he was hot; and another day, he insisted on washing himself despite being unable to stand properly. Generally, he was cute and lovable, but if he had been with someone else, Dohyun would have lost his mind.

Jealousy surged, burning his throat. The audacious words Wooyeon had uttered, asking to be hugged or kissed, were still vivid in his mind. It felt like yesterday when he held such a cute doll in his arms and smiled softly, but which of these drinking habits had developed because of Daniel?

“…Yeon ah.”

Dohyun tried to compose himself, raising his voice gently. Wooyeon, who had been bickering with Daniel, turned to Dohyun, asking what was wrong. Even then, the shoulders of the two, pressed closely together, bothered him immensely.

“If you want to drink, drink comfortably. If you get drunk, I’ll take you home safely.”

He didn’t smile kindly. Wooyeon would instantly recognize his twisted feelings if he made such a face. Instead, he tried to act as nonchalant as possible, opening a beer can and placing it on the table.

“It’s been a while since you saw your friend, you should have a drink.”

“Still… Hyung can’t drink, can he?”

“It’s fine. If the worst comes to worst, I can just abandon the car and go.”

When Dohyun said this much, Wooyeon also seemed to hesitate. A desire to drink was clearly visible in his smooth, pretty eyes. His pale hand slowly reached for the beer can Dohyun had offered.

“Then just a little…”

“Oh, you’re going to drink?”

It wasn’t a forced drinking session, nor was he drinking out of sadness, so if he wanted to drink, Dohyun would let him. Anyway, only he and Garam were Alphas, so if pheromones came out, he would just cover them with his own.

“Kids, raise your glasses. Hey, Daniel! Cheers, okay?”

Starting with a clear voice, beer cans and paper cups clinked. It wasn’t the clear clinking of glass, but it was enough to liven up the atmosphere. Dohyun took a sip from the paper cup filled with juice, suppressing the churning in his stomach.

He would find out what drinking habit Wooyeon was talking about once he got drunk.

Three hours passed.

Until Seonkyu was completely disoriented and Garam became an English genius, no more, no less, just three hours.

“Listen, Dan. I really hate English.”

“Really? But you’re speaking in English?”

“No, no. I can’t speak English.”

Perhaps having found confidence in his tipsiness, Garam started trying to converse with Daniel when he was half-drunk. His pronunciation was clumsy and his vocabulary limited, but there was no problem communicating. He even thought he would have gotten a good grade on last year’s oral exam if he had brought soju in a tumbler.

“Ah, Noona, why do you keep speaking English…”

Conversely, as time passed, Seonkyu understood Daniel less and less. At first, he somewhat understood, but now he was completely deaf to English. No, seeing that he couldn’t understand either English or Korean, it seemed he was just slow on the uptake.

Even in this chaotic situation, Dohyun only watched Wooyeon. He wanted to make sure to take care of him in case he got drunk and fell, spilled his drink, or leaned on Daniel. Fortunately, Wooyeon made no mistakes and just sipped his beer.

“Hey, baby. Don’t just drink, eat some snacks too.”

“…”

Twitch, Wooyeon’s brows furrowed. Despite drinking quite a lot, Wooyeon’s complexion was quite normal. He was a little more expressionless than usual, and his eyes were just a bit hazy. To others, he might seem like he had a high tolerance for alcohol, but Dohyun came to only one conclusion watching him.

‘He’s drunk.’

“Why am I a baby?”

His pronunciation was accurate, but the speed at which he spoke slowed down. His voice was calm, but his tone was low, and he blinked and tilted his head. He was clearly drunk, but his face didn’t show it. This was exactly why Dohyun repeatedly told him, “You shouldn’t drink.”

“Anyone smaller than me is a baby.”

“I’m taller than Noona.”

“Oh, talking back, are we?”

Perhaps others wouldn’t know. The fact that Wooyeon, who spoke so boldly with such a normal face, wouldn’t remember anything the next day. He seemed fine for now, controlling his pheromones well, but Dohyun needed to stop him soon.

“How tall are you, Noona?”

“Noona is tall. Just under 2m.”

“…Me too.”

Whether he was tall or not, whether he was a baby or not, Dohyun unconsciously let out a giggle. Perhaps because both were drunk, they were having a serious discussion about such trivial topics. The funniest part was that Wooyeon was stubbornly insisting, unlike his usual self.

“I don’t like being called that.”

“It’s a habit, a habit.”

“I still don’t like it.”

Garam’s ‘baby’ nickname was just a drunken habit, but Wooyeon seemed to dislike the cute nuance of it. Finally, Dohyun, unable to watch any longer, reached out and caressed the back of Wooyeon’s head.

“He calls everyone ‘baby’ when he’s drunk.”

‘He probably has about fifteen babies.’ When Dohyun added that, Wooyeon’s expression softened considerably. Perhaps it was also due to the hand gently caressing the back of his head. Either way, it was quite unfair to Garam.

“Wow, he doesn’t listen when I say it. How can I live with this unfairness?”

Wooyeon, disregarding Garam’s words, held onto Dohyun with both hands. He rubbed his face against Dohyun’s palm like a spoiled child, as if asking to be petted. The meaning was actually similar, so Dohyun freely caressed his soft cheek.

“Your face is hot.”

“I know.”

His unpleasant feelings melted away like snow. Just being in contact with Wooyeon brought an astonishing sense of peace. Goodness, it wasn’t even separation anxiety. His mood fluctuated with every little thing.

“Wooyeon, are you okay? Are you drunk now?”

“I’m fine. I’m not drunk.”

“Look at me. Are you really okay?”

“I said I’m fine.”

Daniel, finding Wooyeon’s docile behavior strange, even turned his upper body to watch him. He had drunk with him before, but this seemed to be the first time he had seen him drunk. Or perhaps it was the first time he had seen him acting so cute.

‘This wasn’t something he learned from Daniel, it seems.’

Dohyun calmly retraced his memories, letting out gentle pheromones. He had been blinded by jealousy earlier and forgotten, but didn’t Wooyeon have another drinking habit besides physical contact?

Foolishly, rational thought was only possible after the overflowing jealousy subsided. He had ruined his mood with unnecessary assumptions, even though he knew it was unlikely. Wooyeon hadn’t even thought of swaying, but Dohyun had fluttered like a flag in the wind.

“…Let’s clean up and go.”

Dohyun let out a small, self-deprecating laugh and took his hand away from Wooyeon. He noticed Wooyeon’s disappointed face, but he could pet him at home too. It was just that he wasn’t confident he would only pet him.

Dohyun began tidying up the table, replacing the heavily drunk ones. The alcohol had finished a long time ago, and Seonkyu was already asleep leaning on the sofa. Garam got drunk quickly but never completely, so it was fine to leave him be.

“Hey, just leave it. I’ll clean up and take care of Seonkyu.”

Thud, Garam pushed Dohyun’s hand away and mumbled. Then he tilted his head towards Wooyeon, signaling him to take Wooyeon and go quickly. Since he was a quick-witted guy, he seemed to have noticed that Dohyun had been acting strange throughout the drinking session.

“Then I’ll leave it to you. Yeon ah, can you walk?”

“Yes.”

Wooyeon confidently stood up. And then he quickly stumbled and settled into Dohyun’s arms. It was less about truly losing his balance and more about collapsing freely because there was somewhere to lean. That sight was so cute that Dohyun let out a ticklish laugh.

“You said you could walk.”

“I can walk.”

“…My goodness.”

Daniel looked at them with a shocked expression. First Wooyeon, then Dohyun. The alternating gaze was excessively burdensome. Daniel exhaled with a huh, then sighed again.

“My goodness…”

‘He’s a bit drunk too.’

Seeing him repeat the same words over and over, he was clearly tipsy as well. Well, he had drunk so much beer, saying he liked Korean alcohol. No matter how low the alcohol content, if you drank that much, it was bound to make you drunk.

“Yeon ah, put some strength in your legs.”

Dohyun first wrapped his arm around Wooyeon’s waist, supporting him firmly. He also didn’t forget to block Garam from getting pheromones with his body. Wooyeon, seemingly happy to be close to Dohyun, exuded pleasant pheromones.

“Damn it, Kwon Seonkyu won’t wake up. I want to go smoke.”

“Just you dare smoke here.”

“I won’t, you idiot. Go quickly. Danny, you too, goodbye!”

“Goodbye!” Garam shouted, then sprawled out on the sofa. Daniel, who had been watching Wooyeon until then, finally moved his feet after meeting Dohyun’s eyes. His gaze, following Dohyun and Wooyeon, seemed somehow forlorn.

August, when the midday sun lingered. A season where the red light stretching across the window at sunset was especially beautiful. A boundless space embroidered with sheep-like clouds, and a surreal landscape as if dyed with pigment.

Daniel, with that sky as a backdrop, gazed blankly down from the balcony. His gently fluttering hair shimmered like golden threads in the sunset light. Even at such a picturesque scene, Dohyun’s lips parted without much emotion.

“Danny.”

Daniel’s gaze slowly returned. It was a sudden call, but he showed no surprise at all. He simply smiled brightly with his usual innocent face.

“Wooyeon? Is he sleeping?”