Alpha Trauma Novel - Chapter 37. Rock (6)

Wooyeon remained in Dohyun’s embrace for a long time. The dry pheromones and the faintly permeating scent of fabric softener gently melted the lump that had formed in his heart. Dohyun slowly stroked his back, occasionally hesitating when he tried to touch Wooyeon’s head.

When they returned to the club room, much more time had passed than he thought. Wooyeon was surprised that he had been embraced for so long, then flushed when he realized his pheromones had been erased by Dohyun’s. His ears turned crimson, too, so he habitually had to press his earlobes.

“Anyway, the festival will be like that. Don’t think about a pub, try planning something else.”

The assistant instructor conveyed various announcements regarding the festival in May. It had been a long time since alcohol sales were prohibited at universities, but this year, they said the inspections would be more thorough. Garam expressed his disappointment louder than anyone else at the news that they couldn’t open a pub.

“Oh, Wooyeon.”

“Yes?”

Wooyeon, who had been blankly sitting on the sofa, suddenly lifted his head. His cheeks were still tinged with pink from the aftermath of the earlier embrace. The assistant instructor spoke to Wooyeon as if nothing was amiss.

“You did well on your exam.”

“Oh, oppa…”

Garam glanced at Wooyeon with an awkward expression. He probably remembered Wooyeon looking depressed after failing the English Phonology exam. Wooyeon also recalled his promise with Dohyun, but to avoid showing his disappointment, he awkwardly nodded.

“I worked hard.”

“Yeah, if you do just as well on your finals, you might even be eligible for a scholarship.”

The assistant instructor said that and then stood up, saying he had to go. Seeing his faintly smiling face, Wooyeon managed to quell his somewhat disheartened feelings. Even though he’d messed up one subject, if he was saying that, his grades must not be bad.

Click. As soon as the door closed, Garam plopped down opposite Wooyeon as if he had been waiting. A subtly heavy air hung between the four people on the sofa. No one spoke, but the person who needed to speak was decided.

“…First.”

Wooyeon quietly began, looking at the three in turn. Unlike Dohyun, who remained silent, Garam and Seongyu looked extremely nervous. Their expressions made him smile, just a little.

“The presentation went well. The professor even praised us for doing a good job.”

They can be this proactive for something that isn’t even their own work. After entering university and meeting them, Wooyeon learned that there were many kinds of human kindness.

“Kang Junseong probably won’t get any points. The professor told us to agree among ourselves and come together, but I’m not going back.”

“Did he say anything special?”

“He was angry… but that’s all. Anyway, there’s nothing he can do.”

“Ah… that’s a relief.”

The two truly seemed relieved, exhaling a deep sigh. Watching them both pat their chests, Wooyeon lowered his gaze to the table. He could feel Dohyun observing him with his usual calm eyes.

“It’s all thanks to your help. Thank you.”

In just two days, they had completed an assignment that the professor had highly praised. It would have been impossible without Dohyun, as well as Garam and Seongyu. If Wooyeon were in their shoes, would he have actively helped them? Thinking about how troublesome it would be, he couldn’t help but feel grateful.

“Oh, gratitude, what for.”

“Yeah, we just did what was natural.”

Garam openly waved his hand with a happy face. Seongyu also awkwardly rubbed the tip of his nose. Only Dohyun nodded and quietly spoke.

“You worked hard.”

“…”

Wooyeon bit the inside of his cheek, his head still bowed deeply. Just like when he received messages from his group members, his throat felt hot and surged. He had clearly let go of a lump in Dohyun’s arms earlier. But now, a small, soft mass of feelings began to form again.

“Yeah, you worked hard. Group projects are truly the worst thing in the world.”

“They really are. I have a group project too…”

He couldn’t even hear what they were saying. At some point, the overwhelming emotions swelled up without Wooyeon being able to stop them. From his sternum to his throat, from his throat to his nose, and finally, from his nose to his eyes. At the same time, something plopped onto his clenched fist.

“…”

“…”

Wooyeon gritted his teeth, feeling the surroundings fall silent. He squeezed his eyes shut and even held his breath, but there was no way to stop the feelings that had already begun to flow. Drip, drip, silent tears wet his hands and then his thighs.

“Just a moment…”

Wooyeon slowly began to speak, then awkwardly rose from his seat. He intended to escape to a place where no one could see him while he was still somewhat okay. But before he could fully stand, a gentle voice called him back.

“Come here.”

Wooyeon looked towards Dohyun, his eyes reddened. Just like in the hallway earlier, Dohyun extended one hand and gazed at Wooyeon. He calmly waited for Wooyeon, then, as if realizing it wouldn’t do, lightly wiggled his fingers.

“Quickly.”

Wooyeon collapsed into Dohyun’s embrace. As he knelt on the sofa and buried his face in Dohyun’s shoulder, he heard a faint sigh. Dohyun firmly supported Wooyeon’s body and slowly patted his dry back.

“Where are you going, crying like that?”

The low voice wrapped around his ear. Like a fuse igniting, sorrow surged within him in an instant. The tears he had suppressed burst forth in the blink of an eye, and Wooyeon unconsciously clutched Dohyun’s clothes.

“Hmph…”

He didn’t want to sob, but his shoulders heaved. His vision blurred, and his breath caught in his throat. While he was struggling to sob out his tears, Garam, who had regained his senses, sprang up from his seat.

“Why, why are you crying, Wooyeon!”

Garam wandered around, flustered and unsure what to do. Saying things like, “Did that bastard bother you that much? I’ll go scold him, just calm down.” He was the one who needed to calm down the most, yet he couldn’t bring himself to even touch Wooyeon.

Meanwhile, Seongyu, who had been fidgeting, brought tissues and handed them to Dohyun. Dohyun subtly gestured towards the table and held the small body tighter. Waaaah, Wooyeon, crying like a child, squirmed and burrowed deeper into his embrace.

“What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

Seongyu asked in a worried voice, but Wooyeon couldn’t answer. Wooyeon himself didn’t know why he was crying. Was it because the struggle with Junseong was painful? Had he been stressed without realizing it? Or had the three people’s comfort softened his hardened heart?

One thing was certain: this time, the hot lump had definitely subsided further. Receiving the worried gazes of the three, Wooyeon cried freely in Dohyun’s arms, just like he had at sixteen.

After a very long time, Wooyeon finally managed to stop crying. When he lifted his head, his pale face was all blotchy and red. Dohyun wiped his tears with his thumb, tidied his disheveled bangs, then asked just one question, “Are you done crying?”

Naturally, the study session that everyone had forgotten was postponed indefinitely. Only Dohyun remembered it, but he said it would be good to take a day off now that midterms were over. He packed his bag, saying he had to go, and then, like that one time, held Wooyeon’s bag hostage.

‘I’ll take you home.’

“You must have a headache.”

“My head’s fine, but my eyes hurt.”

Wooyeon sat in the passenger seat of Dohyun’s car, leaning his head against the window. His eyes felt dry and stinging from crying so unexpectedly and profusely. It was a good thing it was afternoon; if it were night, a goldfish would probably be trying to befriend him tomorrow morning.

“It’s a relief only one of them hurts.”

Dohyun said playfully as he turned the car towards Wooyeon’s apartment. Thanks to having come for a study session once, he found his way without asking for directions. Wooyeon lightly touched his warm eyes and then quietly spoke.

“…I heard it from Garam Noona last time.”

From the moment he got in the car, what Garam had told him during the MT came to mind. The story about being scolded just for sitting in the passenger seat. Wooyeon looked at Dohyun’s profile and asked as if something had just occurred to him.

“They say you don’t like having just anyone in the passenger seat.”

Dohyun faintly curled the corners of his lips, staring straight ahead. Conversely, his eyes were slightly furrowed, creating an ambiguous expression that was neither quite a smile nor not. With a subtly ambiguous pause, Dohyun slowly spoke.

“I don’t let just anyone in.”

Did that mean he, at least, wasn’t “just anyone”? Wooyeon felt disappointed that he couldn’t look at Dohyun directly since he was driving. If he had carefully observed his expression, he might have been able to confirm what those words meant. Of course, even if he did confirm, the possibility of it turning out as he wished was slim.

“So…”

Dohyun quietly began, then glanced at Wooyeon. Wooyeon, who had been observing Dohyun until then, flushed vividly the moment their gazes met. He wondered how long this would continue; his heart pounded every time their eyes met.

“Is there a movie you want to see?”

Dohyun brought up a new topic in a casual tone. Wooyeon blinked blankly. A movie? This was such an abrupt topic after just talking about the passenger seat. Whether he knew Wooyeon’s bewilderment or not, Dohyun merely curved his eyes into a soft smile.

“Yunwoo hyung said.”

Wooyeon’s eyes widened, as if he couldn’t believe it. His eyes were still red and swollen from crying. Dohyun stopped the car at the traffic light, rested his wrist on the steering wheel, and tilted his head slightly.

“He said you did well on your exam.”

It was a voice so sweet it felt like it would melt. Wooyeon, who heard those words directly, was swept away by a ticklish feeling, as if he had eaten a spoonful of honey.

Just as Wooyeon was filled with anticipation, Dohyun delightfully curled the corners of his lips.

“I’ll show you a movie.”

All the previous sadness seemed to wash away. Failing English Phonology, struggling with the group project—it all melted away as if it had never happened. When Dohyun kindly asked when would be a good time, Wooyeon answered without much hesitation.

Right away, even now.

Tomorrow, the day after, it didn’t matter when.