Some say a life in the limelight is painful. Because you have to prove yourself constantly. If a life spent on the chopping block isn't painful, it's not because one's mind has been tempered, but because they are a different breed altogether. When the majority of people stumble right before the summit, they alone sprinted effortlessly to the top.

“Get set…”

The overhead lights beat down like the sun. A faint ripple stirred on the water, waiting for the leap. Soon, a sleek body with sculpted muscles took its place at the edge of the pool. The tall man, assuming his position, drew in a breath.

Bang-!

Sang-yeon’s arms, as he dived in with a splash, had been a span longer than others since his middle school days. After a powerful kick-off, Sang-yeon flipped to turn, and the 100-meter mark was reached in no time. Everyone anticipated a flawless finish.

But the moment he reached out, Sang-yeon inevitably felt his timing slip.

His pale face popped up at the sound of the whistle. Pah. As soon as he caught his breath, Sang-yeon’s brow furrowed.

“Baek Sang-yeon. You okay?”

His heart slowly regained its rhythm. Stepping out of the water, Sang-yeon irritably pulled off his swim cap. As he brushed back his closely cropped, blood-red hair, the coach muttered Sang-yeon’s record.

“51 seconds……”

Irritation seeped into every step Sang-yeon took as he dried himself off. He had been in a foul mood for several days due to his poor performance.

Just a few months ago, his record on the same course at the World Championships was 47. Thanks to beating second place by a one-second margin, Sang-yeon succeeded in proving himself. This year alone, he had won two gold medals and one silver.

It was a remarkable achievement, building on the first gold medal he won at the Asian Games last year at age nineteen. As the years went by, public expectations for the conspicuous young athlete steadily rose.

And yet, for several days now, he hadn't even been able to break into the damn 50s in practice. He didn't want to run the 200 or 400 meters anymore.

Sang-yeon sat on a folding chair on one side of the pool, catching his breath for a long moment. The coach, approaching tentatively with an awkward smile, said, “It’s not like you’re sick or anything; you’ve just been in a bit of a slump for a few days.”

“…….”

“It happens to everyone.”

Easy for you to say when it’s not your problem, even though you know full well that my success is your success. Sang-yeon’s jawline tensed. He gritted his teeth so hard that a vein seemed about to bulge.

“Being too stressed is worse in the long run. Go in and rest for today.”

“……Understood.”

If he could just brush it off as a ‘slump,’ it would be better. A mental victory is the simplest defense mechanism for a strong animal. Rising from his seat, Sang-yeon moved inside. The air around him grew slightly warmer with every step.

Sang-yeon was a dominant alpha, one even his coach walked on eggshells around, never knowing when he might snap. It was in his nature that his intimidating presence intensified the moment his nerves grew sharp from being unable to control his temper.

Most betas cannot directly sense pheromones, but they do get the feeling that they should keep their distance. On the other hand, it was common for omegas to experience difficulty breathing when sensing such an alpha.

Whether it was because he was a rising swimming star or a dominant alpha, he lived a life under constant scrutiny, yet he himself remained unconcerned with what others thought. As he was quietly heading to the locker room, Sang-yeon ran into a man who had just entered the pool to practice next.

“Oh, Baek Sang-yeon. It’s been a while.”

He was a senior, a year older, who had recently been hot on his heels. Was his last 100-meter record 50 seconds? A number that was no longer special to Sang-yeon was a peak for him.

“Did you get a good time today? I heard you’ve been sluggish all week.”

The audacity to snicker was the privilege of a dull beta.

Sang-yeon, the water on his face now dry, looked at the man with narrowed eyes. He knew the guy’s name, but he didn't feel like using it.

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Seeing how sensitive you are, it must’ve been bad.”

The man muttered as he adjusted his swim cap. Sang-yeon finally turned toward him. He had been fuming until just a moment ago, but hearing such a trivial provocation actually made him feel calm.

Despite their similar heights and matching eye levels, Sang-yeon deliberately lifted his chin and looked down his nose at him.

“You’d better work hard while my scores are bad.”

“What?”

“So you don’t end up cursing your luck after getting trashed when it actually matters…….”

The corner of the man’s mouth twitched as he fell silent. Sang-yeon turned away from him and headed toward the shower.

While standing under the shower spray, he soon missed being in the water that made his whole body float. This was what they called an addiction. Simply remaining still in that state for a long while, his heartbeat regained its rhythm.

At the intersection of all his rage and peace, a familiar face surfaced. The reason for the days that hadn't been going his way lately.

It wasn't that he was acting this way because the tension had drained from his body after finishing a major event like the World Championships. Sang-yeon knew exactly why he kept acting like a child.

It had been about a week now. While it was a short time, he had endured it for as long as he possibly could while the month turned over.

Sang-yeon’s steps were much lighter after he finished dressing. He hadn't forgotten the frustration he felt at the pool. He had simply steeled himself, believing that through his next destination he would be able to leap as high as he wanted again tomorrow.

A pitch-black car was already waiting for Sang-yeon outside the building. A chauffeur dressed in a suit greeted him. Because of his mother, who forbade him from even dreaming of driving, saying he’d only invite unwanted attention, Sang-yeon always traveled with a driver rather than owning a car himself.

“I will take you straight home.”

The scent coming from the old, frail omega was faint. Without paying it much mind, he climbed into the back seat.

“Is Gi-seok hyung not coming home today either?”

“Yes. These days, he finishes work very late and usually goes straight to his officetel.”

The busy days of the nag were a benefit to him. Because that meant he could enjoy today and Yoon Hae-gyeom within it to his heart's content.

“Step on it. I’m dying to lie down.”

Making himself comfortable, Sang-yeon shoved his hands into his jersey pockets and closed his eyes. Though they had only just departed, he was already tapping his feet, gauging the time. They still had at least 30 minutes to go.

As a man who lived acutely attuned to every passing second, he felt as though he could hear the sound of a second hand ticking in his ears even while sitting still. Still, it was only 30 minutes. Not three hours, not three days, but 30 minutes.

“I can’t see me loving nobody but you, for all my life……”

Having caught his breath, he let out a hum. Time passed slowly as the smoothly connected notes followed one after another.

Eventually, the car stopped before the gates of a massive house. Sang-yeon, who had zipped his jersey up to his chin, practically sprang from the car and pushed through the gates.

The house, which occupied the vast grounds all by itself, had walls wide enough to encircle a typical school. Climbing the sleek stone steps, a magnificent garden and a three-story mansion greeted him straight ahead, but he headed toward a single-story building off to the right.

Without hesitation, Sang-yeon moved toward the annex, prepared solely for him, on the vast plot of land.

In the corner of the annex, which featured a huge swimming pool, was a small room. Walking briskly toward it, Sang-yeon opened the door, which looked somewhat like a storage room, without knocking.

The first thing that caught his attention was the open window and the man engrossed in a book on the bed below it. Then, naturally, came the incredibly intoxicating smell.

“You should’ve thought about coming out to meet me. You’re quite relaxed just because I gave you some downtime.”

As he deliberately inhaled, the fragrant scent tickled his skin. Savoring the subtle aroma, Sang-yeon gathered his saliva and swallowed heavily.

Even though he had made his presence known, the other man’s head remained tilted downward. It was because his body had recently been pushed to the limit. Truly fragile, through and through.

After being briefly distracted by a few strands of hair fluttering atop his head, Sang-yeon stepped closer and reached out. Then he snatched the book monopolizing the man’s attention and threw it away.

“Hey, Yoon Hae-gyeom.”

The book flew in an arc and fell helplessly to the floor. Only then did his eyes meet the man’s. Now that he looked, he saw earphones in his ears. They weren't his. It seemed like a pair Jo Gi-seok used to use a long time ago had been tucked away somewhere in this room.

Glancing at the archaic MP3 player, Sang-yeon pulled the earphone cord and added bluntly, “I’m here.”

"Sorry. I didn't hear you.”

“You’ve gotten bold.”

Pitch-black eyes. Every time he saw that bloodless face, it felt surreal. He was truly beautiful. Sang-yeon stared silently at the lips, always pale until he bit into them.

The fact that those dry, chapped lips could move his heart was a Yoon Hae-gyeom cheat code.

Seeing them made his throat tighten instantly. Stooping down, Sang-yeon fixed his gaze intently on the face he had longed for. Just looking at those parted lips was pushing his patience to the limit.

Grabbing Hae-gyeom’s hair, Sang-yeon kissed him abruptly. Perhaps surprised by the tongue entering without warning, Hae-gyeom pushed against Sang-yeon’s broad shoulders. Their lips had barely touched for three seconds. Though it looked as if he were tightly gripping the hair wrapped around his hand, Sang-yeon was actually stroking it slowly as he whispered.

“Stay still. You’ve regained some of your energy by now.”

“…….”

“I messed up practice today because of you.”

After throwing someone else’s days into disarray, putting on a vacant, blank-eyed look won’t buy any more patience. Hae-gyeom, who hesitated to answer, quickly closed his parted lips.

It was a wonder that no artificial smell came from that broad tongue, even though he must have eaten nothing but medicine while huddled up for the past few days. All that radiated was a warm sweetness. To the point that he already had a reaction below from just those three seconds.

“Because I couldn't even touch you while you were holed up for days, things that usually work didn't. At this point, I don't know who's more pathetic. It's definitely not you, who's been lazing around in luxury.”

He had been laid up in bed for the past week, barely managing to eat, all because of a little sex. Seeing him like that, no matter how much his blood boiled, he couldn't pounce on him.

In other words, anyone would be appalled to learn that the cause of his poor practice results was simply that he couldn't hold this man.

How he had missed the scent of his skin during that week, a mere week. There was a time when he thought it was disgusting, but now, the farther it was from him, the more it only harmed him.

“Since you made me like this, you have to take responsibility.”

Sang-yeon, placing his knee on the bed, easily pinned Hae-gyeom down. He pulled down the zipper of his jersey and stripped off his top in one go. Following that, the hand digging inside Hae-gyeom’s T-shirt without delay was rough.

The thin body was so bony he could feel the skeletal structure, making it feel hard. As soon as Sang-yeon’s skin touched his, Hae-gyeom’s chest heaved as his breathing quickened instinctively. It felt as though time, which had stopped, was moving again as his fingers stroked Hae-gyeom’s stomach and then moved up to tease his nipple.

When he twisted and tormented him before stooping again to find his lips, Hae-gyeom turned his head away.

“Today, not yet……”

Sang-yeon ignored him, grabbing his chin and turning it toward himself. As he stuck out his tongue and licked the chapped lips, Hae-gyeom’s shoulders flinched. His grip, as he tried to hold onto the sturdy wrists, was no stronger than a child’s.

“I might end it quickly again.”

“It’s not like it’s the first time, is it?”

Since he had endured those agonizing days, he had to be given a fitting reward. That way, he could break through that shitty 50-second mark again starting tomorrow.

Resigned to his fate, Hae-gyeom eventually fell quiet. The sweet scent that made him want to press his tongue against the skin and suck pierced Sang-yeon’s nose without hesitation.

Sang-yeon, having planted a firm kiss on the plump lips, straightened his waist once more. He could feel the heat radiating from Hae-gyeom, who was looking up at him. As he slid down his thin trousers, Sang-yeon spoke.

“Let’s do it twice.”

‘Just for today,’ that is.

His heart pounded just from spreading his legs and settling into position. Sure enough, the greatest bliss to be found on land was having Yun Hae-gyeom right before his eyes.