Chapter 5: Primal Heat (Not That Kind...)

In the morning, Park Hyun-So wakes up alone on the strangely new bed.

He was too lost last night to realize that he was, in fact, upstairs.

"Morning," Kim Do-Jin was trying to prepare breakfast.

Park Hun-So walked towards the counter. "Oh, so that's where the burnt smell was coming from."

Do-Jin groaned, "The helping lady is on leave today. You can starve; your choice." He was pissed at Hyun-So.

It was surely his first time trying cooking, as normally he would just eat outside. Hyun-So chuckled at the reactions.

"I thought I wasn't allowed in your bedroom," Hyun-So said suddenly, remembering the night.

"Were you that desperate to go in there?" Do-Jin said without looking up.

"Nope, no fucking way." Hyun-So tried to explain himself, then stopped after something got his attention. A box? With a bow wrapped around it too? "What's that for? Are you getting someone a gift?"

Kim Do-Jin slid it towards Hyun-So. "For you. It's a fake pheromone."

Hyun-So was confused. "For me, did you really need to wrap it up so pretty?" But still, it didn't stop him from making a statement on Do-Jin.

"The cashier lady packed it up, as people normally get it for their partners." He mumbled the last line, embarrassed for some reason.

Still, the words hit Hyun-So's ears nice and clear. "Oh, anyway, why do I need this?" Hyun-So finally unwrapped the bottle, which looked like a perfume if anything.

Kim signed, "To hide yourself. It works like a scent blocker, but in your case, they will give you a scent instead, so you won't stand out."

Hyun-So, still confused, said, "Ah, I thought it was a perfume?"

Do-Jin laughed like it was so funny. "You can take it like that too, I guess."

Hyun-So took it and looked at the name, Primal Heat, written on it in big words.

"You having your fun?" he said.

"What? I'm just trying to help you out." Do-Jin laughed before walking toward the other side of the counter. "Anyway, let me show you how to use it properly."

He took the bottle from Hyun-So's hand and reached for his collar. Hyun-So backed away a little, but then got the look, I won't eat you,' from Do-jin and stood in his place.

Do-Jin unbuttoned a few of his buttons, revealing his neck and collarbone.

"You can't use it like a perfume, as every one of us tries to control our scents." Do-Jin lifted Hyun-So's neck up and sprayed the perfume on over the revealed part of his body. "So use it before wearing any clothes after a shower. Only a little amount on the neck and chest."

Hyun-So could feel his cheeks heating up. He was too close. Why wasn't it affecting Do-Jin?

He snatched the bottle out of Do-Jin's hand. "Alright, I got it." Fixing his shirt, he walked away towards his room. "Could've just told me; didn't need the whole tutorial."

* * *

In the lab

Han Byung-Chul was in the break room preparing his coffee as both of them walked in. He looked back, stirring the spoon in the cup. "Oh, finally got the time to get here."

He sits down on the nearby chair around the big table separating him from both of them. Hyun-So too sat down on the opposite side of Han, staring at the coffee desperately.

"Did something happen when I was gone?" Do-Jin walked towards the window.

"Not much; we got a new visitor." Han was finally annoyed with Hyun-So's continuous staring and got up to get him a coffee as well.

"w…what? What do you mean, a new visitor?" Kim Do-Jin finally looked back and walked to the table.

"Before answering that, I want to ask a question of this gentleman here." He handed the coffee cup to Hyun-So, who took it eagerly.

"What?" Hyun-So finally realized the stares were at him.

"You said you were with a cat that day, right?" Byung-chul said, leaning over the table to cover the space between him and Hyung-So.

"Y...yeah, I was about to feed it something." He felt like it was an interrogation.

"So can you describe it?" Han smiled like a madman, making Hyun-So a little nervous.

"It was a black kitten with two different colored eyes," he finally said.

"It's called heterochromia." Byung-chul corrected him.

"Yeah, whatever, dude. Anyway, it's one of its front paws that was white." Hyun-So finished.

"It was left one." Byung-chul said while sipping on his coffee.

"You... How did you know?" Hyun-so pointed his finger at the calm man sitting on the other side.

Do-Jin, who was listening quietly, finally understood who that new visitor was. "You turned it on last night?"

"Yeah, I mean, you were the one who told me to." Byung said.

"It was a cat now?" Do-Jin asked.

"Like Park said, a kitten," Han said sarcastically.

"That's not the point..." Do-Jin was annoyed, but before he could finish, Hyun-So interrupted.

"Is it hurt?"

"No, we put down a safety cushion this time; we don't want another human almost dying like last time." Han said, remembering the sight of Hyun-So falling in the dome. "I still sent him to the pet clinic."

"Oh," Hyun- So he was disappointed that he couldn't see the cat yet.

"So, you really don't have pheromones then." Han finally got to the main point.

"I guess," Kim Do-Jin answered instead.

"So you found out about it too." Han raised a brow at Kim.

"Yeah, because this idiot decided to run out like a crazy dog and got kidnapped instead. Kim pointed at the man sitting down sipping on coffee.

"Oh," that was all Han could say before Hyun-So stamped back at Do-Jin.

"And who was the reason behind that?"

"I saved you." Do-Jin tried to defend himself.

"You told me to strip. Hyun's words made Byung spit out his coffee in surprise.

"What, you told him to strip off completely?" Han looked at Do-Jin with a shocked face and then at Hyun-So. "And you got kidnapped?"

Han Byung-chul was in disbelief but amazed at the same time. "That's a lot to happen within 8 hours, don't you think?" He continued without waiting for an answer.

"let me put this straight." Do-Jin took a deep breath before talking. Hyun-So just watched all the drama unfold between them without saying any words. He was still angry about Do-Jin's words last night, now that he had remembered them again.

(after telling Han the whole story)

"Oh, just to make it clear, when I sent you the article last night, this was not what I meant." Han tried to clear himself of the obvious misunderstanding.

"Then how was I supposed to clear this out?" Do-Jin asked.

"You could've asked him instead of...well, that." Han suggested, like the genius he was.

"Yeah, that makes perfect sense. If you think someone is a secret agent spying on you, just go and ask them." Do-Jin rolled his eyes sarcastically. "and they will tell you like the honest person they are."

Hyun-So hummed in agreement, finding both of their ideas dumb. Not like he had a better plan for that kind of situation, but at least his was rational. "let's stop this here now. I forgive you both for being idiots."

They both looked at him, but then neither of them said anything and let it slide.

"We've got another problem anyway," Do-Jin said with concern in his eyes.