Chapter 53

The moment they arrived home, Rian vanished straight into his bedroom. Yu-gyeom shoved the door open and marched in right behind him.

During the entire car ride home, neither Yu-gyeom nor Kwon Rian had uttered a single word. That suffocating silence had begun the moment Rian stubbornly proclaimed his intention to go on the trip over dinner with Seon-woo.

Both Rian and Yu-gyeom had suffered through a dinner so wretched they couldn’t even taste their food. In the end, they had practically abandoned Seon-woo like a stranded duck before rushing home.

“Kwon Rian,” Yu-gyeom snapped.

Yu-gyeom stood over Rian, who was curled up on the bed with the duvet pulled completely over his head.

“Get up,” Yu-gyeom commanded.

Despite Yu-gyeom’s sharp order, Rian remained frozen under the covers.

“I told you to get up. Don’t make me say it a third time. If you keep this up, there’s no reason for me to stay in this house, is there?” Yu-gyeom warned.

“What?!” Rian shouted, throwing back the covers.

Again! He’s doing it again!

Kwon Rian’s glare turned triangular with fury as he locked eyes with Yu-gyeom. Yu-gyeom cocked his head slightly, stunned by his younger brother’s bizarre defiance.

“Hah…” Yu-gyeom let out an incredulous breath.

It was utterly bewildering. Rian had never rebelled against him like this before, let alone yelled at the top of his lungs.

“What’s this about going on a trip? Explain yourself properly. And where on earth did you learn to just issue a declaration instead of asking?” Yu-gyeom demanded.

“I’m twenty-one years old! Do I really have to report every single trip with my friends to you, hyung?” Rian argued back.

“Whether you’re twenty or thirty, that’s basic courtesy to the person you live with,” Yu-gyeom retorted coldly.

Pouting childishly, Rian insisted, “That’s why I told you! I’m going.”

“You’re not going,” Yu-gyeom said in an unyielding voice.

Yu-gyeom’s tone was absolute. He hadn’t wanted to push things this far, but Kwon Rian’s reckless, obstinate defiance twisted his gut into knots. Besides, if he meant his ‘friends,’ that had to refer to those wretched bastards.

There was no telling what Kim Taeju would do if Yu-gyeom let Rian—who still couldn’t even control his own pheromones properly—go on an overnight trip with him.

Rian gripped his arm, asking frantically, “Hy-Hyung! Is this because of Taeju?” He scrambled up and caught Yu-gyeom’s wrist as Yu-gyeom turned toward the door with fury carved into his face. Yu-gyeom looked down through chilling, narrowed eyes at Rian, who now stood trembling before him.

Even now, Rian dripped pheromones whenever he stood right in front of him—where on earth did he think he was daring to go?

The sheer audacity left Yu-gyeom dumbfounded.

Yu-gyeom demanded coldly, “Did that bastard ask you to go?”

“Yeah, that’s true,” Rian admitted, shrinking back slightly under the heavy glare. “But why are you always so touchy about him, hyung?”

Yu-gyeom’s voice dropped to a low, warning register. “Rian.” He grabbed Rian by the shoulders and stared straight into the boy’s wide eyes.

“Being completely ignorant of how the world works isn’t something to be proud of,” Yu-gyeom said, his tone icy.

Hurt and flustered, Rian protested, “What…? Why are you talking to me like that?”

Yu-gyeom scoffed with cutting disdain. “Do you honestly think Kim Taeju asked you out of innocent intentions? Alpha bastards are all—”

“…” Rian could only stare back in stunned, suffocating silence.

Yu-gyeom drove on ruthlessly, “They’re all the same. Every single one of them just wants to find a way to fuck you.”

“F-Fuck me…?” Rian gasped, his face draining of color. “Are you like that too, then, hyung? You’re an Alpha too!”

Rian stared at Yu-gyeom with profound shock written across his pale features. Exhaling a long, weary sigh, Yu-gyeom gathered Rian into his arms and patted his trembling back with practiced gentleness.

Yu-gyeom whispered against his temple, “Where else in this world would you find someone who loves you as much as I do? What you and I have is love, Rian. True love.”

“…” Rian remained frozen in the embrace, unable to find his voice.

Yu-gyeom smoothed a hand down Rian’s hair and asked softly, “If I only wanted to relieve my physical urges, would I have stayed by your side for all this time? When we don’t share a single drop of blood?”

“…Hyung…” Rian breathed weakly, clinging to Yu-gyeom’s shirt.

Yu-gyeom murmured, “I could have abandoned you a hundred times over. After that accident, I clung to you with sheer tenacity and took full responsibility for raising you. Do you really think that was mere lust?”

Rian pulled back from the embrace and looked up into Yu-gyeom’s eyes. Seeing tears stream down Rian’s fair cheeks, Yu-gyeom released a wave of comforting pheromones to soothe him.

“I know,” Rian choked out, sniffling as the familiar scent enveloped him. “I know you didn’t abandon me, hyung, and that you’ve protected me all this time. When I manifested… you were the only one by my side.”

Yu-gyeom stroked his cheek fondly. “That’s it. That’s my good Rian.”

Inwardly, Yu-gyeom cheered in quiet triumph. This was the proven result of having spent years conditioning and taming Kwon Rian.

“Still, hyung…” Rian hesitated, looking up with wet, uncertain eyes.

Yu-gyeom tilted his head, smiling gently. “Yes?”

“I’m going on this trip,” Rian said, swallowing hard to gather his resolve. “I really want to go.”

Yu-gyeom’s gentle facade instantly evaporated. “No. It’s dangerous.”

Rian hesitated, his fingers twisting anxiously in the hem of his shirt.

“You have hard times too, hyung,” Rian pleaded softly. “That’s why I wanted to give you a day to rest. A break away from me…”

Yu-gyeom cut in coldly, “Did I ever say I wanted to get away from you?” His eyes chilled to a frosty glare. The fact that Rian had taken his occasional mentions of being tired and interpreted them in such an absurd fashion was infuriating.

Just stay put, fuck. That’s all you have to do, Rian.

Just stay tucked away in this house, eating the meals I provide, fucking me, and spreading your hole.

That is all I ever want from you.

Deep inside him, a pitch-black desire reared its head, its crimson eyes gleaming with possessive hunger.

Yet Yu-gyeom showed none of it on his face; swallowing down his boiling rage was something he had long perfected.

Flustered by the icy chill in the air, Rian stammered, “Th-That’s not what I meant! I just thought if I showed you that I could be independent step by step, you’d be able to put your mind at ease, hyung…”

“…” Yu-gyeom maintained a chilling silence, offering no response.

“I don’t want to be such a heavy burden on you anymore either,” Rian murmured, looking up at him with earnest worry.

Rian failed to catch the faint, venomous twitch distorting Yu-gyeom’s expression. He let out a soft, mocking hum. “Is that so…?”

“Yeah.” Rian nodded hurriedly, hoping his sincerity had reached him.

Yu-gyeom sneered, his voice dropping into pure cruelty. “It’s not because you want to fool around with another Alpha? Because you want to spread that hole of yours? Huh? To take whatever cock comes along?”

“What…? H-How could you say that? No, that’s not true!” Rian gasped in sheer horror, his eyes widening in shock.

Stunned by the sudden venom in his brother’s voice, Rian recoiled. Yu-gyeom lowered a frigid gaze to Rian’s hand clutching desperately at his wrist, then shook it off with a sharp, dismissive jerk.

“Hyung…” Rian whimpered, reaching back out into empty air.

Yu-gyeom turned his face away and muttered flatly, “Do whatever you want.”

“…” Rian stood frozen, utterly crushed by the sudden coldness.

Yu-gyeom added with detached indifference, “Just like you said, you’re all grown up now. It actually works out nicely, since I had a business trip scheduled for that day anyway.”

Rian’s heart sank as he asked, “What business trip?”

“You saw him earlier,” Yu-gyeom replied casually. “Sun-woo from my team. We have an out-of-town trip to go on together.”

Ah. That man.

The image of that colleague who had clung so tightly to Yu-gyeom’s side, striving to monopolize his every glance, flashed across Rian’s mind. At the thought of them spending time alone together, Rian’s head drooped in gloom.

“All right,” Rian whispered dejectedly.

Walking toward the bedroom door without looking back, Yu-gyeom said, “Sleep well, Rian.”

“You too, hyung…” Rian breathed to the closing door.

In the end, unable to stop Yu-gyeom from walking out, Rian stood alone in the center of the quiet, empty room.

He felt as though he had wronged his brother, yet he had no desire to retract the words he had summoned the courage to utter. Telling himself that this might simply be a necessary transition, a period of growth between him and Yu-gyeom, Rian tried hard to shake off the gnawing anxiety.

Picturing the upcoming trip with his friends helped lift the gloom a little. Slipping into bed, Rian pulled the duvet over his body.

Rian touched the back of his heated neck, murmuring to himself in the stillness, “Did hyung release too much pheromone earlier…?”

Sensations of warm moisture soaking through his underwear prickled his skin, prompting Rian to slide a hand down into his trousers.

“Hngh…” A muffled moan slipped from his lips.

Parting the slick folds of flesh with a wet, squelching sound, Rian exposed the nectar pooling at his entrance, located the tight hole, and thrust a slender finger deep inside.

“Haa… Ahhn…” Rian whimpered, his back arching off the sheets.

Yu-gyeom’s scent still drifted thick through the air, and drawing comfort from the heavy Alpha pheromones, Rian began to rhythmically rub his weeping pussy.