Alpha Trauma Novel - Chapter 9. Late Winter (8)

The cafe was close enough to walk to. After parking the car, the two arrived at the cafe and spent a long time deliberating over the displayed cakes. No, to be precise, it was just Wooyeon alone.

“…”

Chocolate, strawberry, cheese, cookies, and even dazzling cakes whose ingredients were unknown. Wooyeon’s eyes sparkled as he scanned beyond the display case. It was unsettling that the cafe was unverified, but he couldn’t collect himself at the sight, which he hadn’t seen in a long time.

“Just one…”

“You can pick as many as you want.”

Despite the savior-like words, Wooyeon couldn’t bring himself to rejoice. His round head seemed somewhat downcast.

“I’ll gain weight if I eat them all.”

In middle school, the reason he joined the ranks of the obese was those very desserts. At that age, he couldn’t drink or smoke, and the only way to relieve stress was “sweet food,” so it was natural for him to gain weight. His steadily increasing weight peaked when he turned sixteen.

“…Weight?”

Dohyun looked Wooyeon up and down as if incredulous. His expression seemed to say, I’ve heard it all, but Wooyeon, preoccupied with the cakes, didn’t notice. His small face, which could be covered by one hand, was more serious than ever.

“Then pick three. We can share them.”

At the light suggestion, Wooyeon’s face brightened. He had just been thinking that two was too many, but if they ate three between the two of them, it would be 1.5 each. Wasn’t that a reasonably conscientious number?

“Can I really pick all three?”

Wooyeon gazed at Dohyun, unaware of how desperate his expression was. His downturned eyes softened, becoming as gentle as Dohyun’s. Dohyun, who had been looking at the cakes without much emotion, let out a small laugh.

“You can even have four.”

His gently curved eyes were soft. The sight of him curling his hand to cover his mouth felt embarrassingly ticklish. Wooyeon’s face flushed red as he frantically pointed at the display case. “That one, and that one, and that one.” Even with such vague instructions, Dohyun understood perfectly.

The cafe was structured so you chose your cake on the first floor and then went up to the second. They waited for their drinks and cakes to arrive before settling into a secluded corner on the second floor. Large windows on all sides kept the corner from feeling stuffy.

“Thank you for the meal.”

Wooyeon meticulously ate the cake with a tiny fork. He hesitated for a moment when touching the strawberry on top of the whipped cream, but when Dohyun said nothing, he readily picked it up and ate it. Dohyun also gave Wooyeon decorated chocolates and cherries.

“You eat better than you eat regular meals.”

His voice was surprisingly amazed. Dohyun, with the end of the straw in his mouth and his chin resting on his hand, pushed the cake closer. The cheese cake with cookie crumbs and the rich chocolate crepe looked so sweet they could melt your tongue just by looking at them.

“Isn’t it sweet?”

“It is.”

Wooyeon promptly answered and reached for his drink. For someone who said it was sweet, even his drink was a sweet ade. Wooyeon rolled up a crepe, saying that these were meant to be eaten for their sweetness.

“Aren’t you having any?”

“I am.”

That was a lie. He’d only taken a tiny bite and immediately put his fork down. He’d clearly seen him drinking only coffee (without even syrup) since earlier.

“Should I buy you another one?”

“No, this is enough.”

“Then how about chocolate?”

“…”

Wooyeon’s eyes sparkled reflexively. Hadn’t he said chocolate was the best among sweets? He was eating sweet, sweet, sweet things, but he still thought of sweet food. The cake was delicious, but how would the chocolate be? It hadn’t even been 30 minutes since he said he couldn’t gain weight, but his resolve fluttered like a piece of paper.

“They sell handmade chocolates here. Someone who doesn’t eat cheap stuff like you enjoyed them.”

“That was a joke.”

“I’ll take it as such.”

Dohyun replied lightly and got up from his seat. He rummaged through his coat, pulled out his wallet, told Wooyeon to keep eating, and went downstairs. Wooyeon watched Dohyun’s retreating figure and slowly put down his fork.

“…Why are you so nice to me?”

Come to think of it, Dohyun had bought him chocolate once. Was it around the time of the final exams? When he boasted that his English score had gone up, Dohyun bought him chocolate. The handmade chocolate tied with a white ribbon was as delicious as something a professional patissier would make, and Dohyun promised to buy him more if he did well on the next test.

‘But that was the end of it.’

It was such a short period. The season changed once, and it didn’t rain for even ten days. In less than half a year, Wooyeon fell deeper than ever for him. That brief encounter was now becoming another connection. Spending the day with his sunbaenim felt strangely unreal.

“Why weren’t you eating?”

Dohyun returned to the second floor not long after. Seeing the untouched cake, he looked puzzled as he sat across from Wooyeon and offered him chocolate. Wooyeon felt like crying just looking at the chocolate he held out.

“Take it and eat it later.”

It was a package tied with a white ribbon. Several round chocolates were in a palm-sized plastic bag, and a sticker with the cafe’s name was in the center. He didn’t need to ask who “someone who doesn’t eat cheap stuff like you” was; he already knew.

“I thought… you’d buy them individually.”

Wooyeon muttered, crushing the end of the plastic bag. Every now and then, encountering traces of the past brought an inexpressible feeling. It was welcoming, bitter, sorrowful, and yet empty. Even the rustling sensation of the plastic felt somehow alien.

“They don’t sell those individually.”

He clearly thought he could forget. He believed everything would be okay and vowed to be content with this light relationship. But all that ambition, it seemed, was ultimately overconfidence.

He had to say thank you. It felt like a lump of stone was stuck in his throat. Wooyeon crushed the end of the ribbon, suppressing the surge of emotion. Only after swallowing a few more lumps did a laugh finally escape him.

“Thank you. I’ll enjoy them.”

The two spent quite a long time at the cafe. They exchanged meaningless chatter, received advice about university life, and heard explanations about clubs. Still having two hours until their next lecture, they moved to an arcade to look around.

“This break is really long.”

During that time, Wooyeon tried hard not to emit pheromones. In the car, he opened the window before Dohyun and didn’t even glance at the driver’s seat. It was a thoroughly bristled reaction, but Dohyun seemed oblivious and spoke casually.

“Have you thought about what you’ll do?”

Indeed, what should he do? What good would it do to rekindle feelings that had already been rejected once?

“I’ll just… try to talk to the professors as much as possible.”

Just one chocolate had made him feel as if he had gone back to the past. The emotions he felt then resurfaced vividly in his chest. Wooyeon had liked his sunbaenim, was drawn to these aspects of him, was comforted, and was hurt just as much as he was comforted. Yet, unable to erase those feelings, he was now riding in the same car beside him.

“Anyway, I have classes on Monday, so I’ll go see them then. If not…”

“Will you drop out?”

“I want to.”

Wooyeon sighed sadly. He buried his face in his hands and slumped his shoulders, feeling Dohyun’s gaze on his profile. If he had known this, he would have just calmly gone to university in America. He regretted not listening to Daniel.

“Hmm…”

Dohyun hummed faintly and stopped the car at the crosswalk. The traffic light soon turned red, beeping. Dohyun turned his head slightly and rested his wrist on the steering wheel.

“Should I help you?”

“How?”

Wooyeon asked back without much expectation. He didn’t think a mere third-year, not even a teaching assistant, would be of much help. But Dohyun shifted gears and nonchalantly said,

“I’m close with the professors.”

The teaching assistant had definitely said it. Dohyun was the top of his class and would be helpful for exams. Remembering that fact, Wooyeon’s eyes widened, and he turned to Dohyun.

“I can’t do anything directly, but I can ask them together with you.”

“…”

“Well… I can’t guarantee it will be effective, though.”

A slight smile lifted his lips. His double-lidded eyes twinkled. Instead of answering immediately, Wooyeon checked in a bewildered voice.

“Are you being nice to me because of what happened earlier?”

“What happened?”

“In the club room.”

“Ah, ah,” Dohyun replied, his voice calm.

“That’s something Moon Garam should be nice about, not me.”

It was a firm answer. Wooyeon, who had been momentarily speechless, finally spoke what he had initially thought.

“I thought you were taking his side.”

“Why would I?”

He felt a little relieved. If Dohyun had mentioned what happened earlier, he would have felt terrible. It was a relief not to realize again that he was just another Alpha.

“…Please help me with the course registration correction.”

Wooyeon pondered for a moment before asking, as if grasping at straws. His uneasy feelings aside, he had to somehow attend university. Only by safely completing four years could Wooyeon achieve what he desired.

“I’ll buy you a meal. …Not a cheap one.”

“Not a cheap one?”

Dohyun laughed idly and turned the steering wheel. Their destination, the university’s main gate, was visible in the distance.

“Tomorrow’s the weekend, so come to the club room after class on Monday. I’ll be there in the morning, so if you’re going to drop your morning class, just skip it and come.”

Wooyeon nodded and pulled out his phone. It was 4:40 PM. Thanks to Dohyun, the cosmic break had passed in an instant.

“Sun… sunbaenim, when’s your next class?”

Only then did Wooyeon worry about Dohyun’s other classes. Five hours had already passed since his morning class ended, but Dohyun hadn’t once mentioned going to another lecture.

“Me?”

Perhaps this class also overlapped? Dohyun smiled gently at him, who was thinking something impossible.

“Wednesday at 11 AM, I think.”

“What?”

The car passed through the main gate and entered the humanities college area. Dohyun headed towards the building Wooyeon needed to go to without even asking where he should drop him off.

“I had a break this afternoon. I crammed all my classes into Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday to get two days off, so I only have one online class on Tuesday.”

The car stopped silently. Wooyeon stared at Dohyun with a foolish expression. Click, Dohyun opened the car door for him and even unbuckled his seatbelt.

“See you on Monday.”

Wooyeon couldn’t say anything and got out of the car. The car, leaving without regret, receded from his sight. It was a slow speed, like late winter departing.