Falling for the Omega Idol-Chapter 203: ANOTHER INCIDENT (II)

THE scent filled the surrounding air. It had a noticeable sweetness to it, mixed with a woody base and a clear spicy edge. It was a strong, familiar smell that cut right through the other awful scent. He looked up, following the source of the smell, and saw Taeyang. The other’s face was set in a dark, angry expression as he looked down at Choi Yujin.

It was only then that Haneul realized that the smell slowly enveloping him was Taeyang’s pheromones.

The heavy pressure on his body faded. The more he breathed in Taeyang’s pheromones, the more the weight pushing him down lifted. The awful, sweet smell that was making him weak slowly disappeared, pushed out by Taeyang’s stronger scent.

He felt the deep tiredness in his muscles loosen. His chest, which had felt tight, could now expand for a proper breath. His legs, which had felt like they might give way, felt steady again. He was still leaning on Taeyang, but the feeling of being crushed by something heavy had now disappeared.

Haneul lifted his head and saw Taeyang still glaring at Choi Yujin. He realized then that if he could smell Taeyang’s strong pheromones, Choi Yujin must be smelling them too. That idea hit him hard with a strong and possessive feeling of reluctance. He didn’t want Choi Yujin to smell that scent. In fact, he didn’t want any other person to smell Taeyang’s pheromones at all.

He didn’t know if it was because he was still feeling weak from what happened, but before his brain could think it through, he mumbled the words almost without sound, "Don’t let them smell you."

Taeyang’s insides were shaking with rage. When he saw Haneul almost fall, he immediately moved to support him. At first, he wasn’t sure what was happening. But when he saw the other contestants near them recoil and even cover their noses, he suddenly understood. It became even clearer when he saw Han Seojun looking like he’d drunk some kind of aphrodisiac, his entire face red and heaving for breath.

This bastard, Choi Yujin, was releasing his pheromones. The way Haneul was being affected showed that Choi Yujin was focusing his attack directly on him. He was trying to dominate Haneul with his scent, to weaken him and force him to submit. Taeyang had read about this when he first discovered how different this world was from the one he came from. It was a known phenomenon, a type of aggression where someone with a much stronger dominant pheromone would try to overwhelm and hurt someone with a much weaker one.

This kind of act was heavily frowned upon in today’s society. It was usually something aggressive Alphas would do. Sometimes an Omega might do it in a true emergency to protect themselves from real danger. But there was no danger around Choi Yujin right now. Nothing was threatening him. He was doing this simply because he wanted to hurt Haneul and make him suffer.

Taeyang’s hands clenched into tight fists at his sides, his knuckles turning white. The muscles in his jaw locked, making his teeth grind together. He could feel a hot, hard knot of anger burning in the pit of his stomach. Seeing Haneul get singled out and attacked made that knot twist tighter and burn even hotter. It made his vision narrow in on Choi Yujin, blocking out everything else in the room. All he could think about was hurting the other back.

Then, he heard Haneul say...

"Don’t let them smell you."

The sound of Haneul’s voice jolted him out of his angry focus. It was just a weak mumble, but Taeyang was sure of what he’d heard. Haneul had just told him not to let others smell him. He was certain of it. He looked down at Haneul sharply. He saw the slight red blush on the other’s cheeks, and was that a small pout he was seeing? That was all the proof he needed. What he’d heard was definitely not just something he’d imagined.

’Does he not want other people to smell my pheromones?’

That simple thought made his rage cool down a bit. It didn’t go away completely. But the intense, hot anger that made him want to do something terrible to Choi Yujin, like throwing him off board and feeding him to the sharks, lost some of its sharp edge.

So, as soon as he heard Haneul’s words, he pulled his own pheromones back. He drew the scent in close, making it wrap tightly around just the two of them instead of letting it fill the air.

When Haneul smelled Taeyang’s pheromones surround him like a warm blanket, he knew the other had heard him. He should have been embarrassed for saying something so childish. But he was not. Instead, he just felt safe. The heavy pressure he had felt earlier was completely gone. He took a slow, deep breath and felt his shoulders relax. The tightness in his chest loosened, and the trembling in his legs finally stopped. His head felt clearer, and the sick feeling in his stomach faded away.

He looked up and found Taeyang already looking down at him. Their eyes locked. At that moment, a simple wish filled him. He wanted to lean in closer, rest his head against Taeyang’s shoulder, and stay right there.

But then a familiar voice suddenly shouted, breaking the quiet moment completely. Haneul forced himself to pull his gaze away from Taeyang and turned to look at the person who had just spoken.

"What the fuck are you doing?"

Haneul saw Robin rushing toward them. He moved quickly, stepping right in front of Choi Yujin and shoving him back.

Yujin stumbled backward and almost fell, only catching himself at the last second. He glared at Robin with pure anger. "How dare you push me?" 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

Robin rolled his eyes. "Of course I dare. You’re trying to hurt my friend! Did you think I’d just sit here and watch? Especially when you’re spreading your nasty pheromones around. Are you trying to cause a bunch of unexpected heats and ruts on this ship?"