"Should we take a break?" Arthur said after writing down three final candidates for what Jude's pheromone might sound like, glancing at the clock.
"Sure," Eugene nodded in agreement, stretching out his arms and arching his back like a cat. All he did at home was stare at the screen while translating, so it was tiring his eyes to still look at a screen in this other job. "I need some fresh air--need to look at some nature."
"Uhh..." Arthur diverted his gaze away from the omega's arching back, thinking about what nature could be found in the middle of a business district. Was there a park or something like that nearby? The answer was none. "The sky?"
Eugene snickered at the sad truth and nodded. "Sure," he looked up, staring at the ceiling, and recalled that the company had a rooftop. "Are we allowed to go to the rooftop?"
He heard it was used as the executive's smoking area — basically an open-air lounge for the bosses. Naturally, a normal employee — an outsourced resource, no less — didn't have the clearance to go there.
But he forgot who he was with at that moment.
"This is the kind of moment when I can use my nepo card," Arthur shrugged.
Eugene laughed, making the team members outside the meeting room gasp in surprise. Had their relationship mended that much? Were they truly the people who kept shooting nasty glares at each other for the past three weeks?
Their eyes were darting here and there to look at their colleagues, but they pretended to be busy with their own work when the door of the meeting room opened. Thank God they had restrained the nosy senior scriptwriter in the director's office, otherwise she would already spouting some nonsense ex-lovers theory again.
They watched silently from the periphery of their vision as Eugene took his coat and Arthur opened the office door, waiting for him to step out. Somehow, they looked even more cordial than before, more relaxed. It was as if the cold war from before never happened.
Was their effort to separate them actually useless? The team members lamented.
Meanwhile, Arthur asked the omega as they walked to the emergency stairs. "Should we grab some coffee from the cafe first?"
"No need. Just get it from the break room," Eugene said like a habit. "There's always a vending machine too..."
Eugene paused, remembering that the vending machine was located near the den of gossipers. Certainly, bringing one of the gossip sources to that place wouldn't end well.
When Eugene stopped talking abruptly, Arthur tilted his head, looking back at the omega. "What's wrong?"
"...maybe the cafe is not that bad," Eugene sighed inwardly. He really didn't like making unnecessary expenses, but...maybe it was alright if he restrained himself and didn't buy more coffee until next week when his paycheck came.
As if to seal the deal, Arthur added with a grin. "The cafe also has a rooftop, in case you still want to stare at the sky."
"Sure," Eugene shrugged, feeling better after deciding he would splurge that day.
They walked down through the emergency stairs and headed to the coffee shop next door. Eugene had been there a few times before with the other team members--usually taking advantage of the company card to purchase refreshment for their meeting. He had never been to its rooftop, though; and certainly, he had never been there with Arthur.
Strangely enough, there was no awkwardness. Perhaps because they had been talking a lot before, including the time they conversed in the mall. They talked about the process Arthur went through while making his sound library, and Eugene couldn't help but marvel when he found out the alpha played all the instruments himself.
Damn. To be able to play all of those instruments, including the digital one, meant that Arthur was either very talented or very...rich. Eugene cursed inwardly as he listened to the alpha.
Why would an alpha pursue a career in art, which was omega's field? Eugene grumbled childishly, before realizing he was the one who told Arthur to just find whatever he wanted to do six years ago.
Very hypocritical of you, Eugene Kim--the omega scolded himself inwardly.
Feeling aggrieved with the quality of his soul, Eugene decided to nourish himself with a bittersweet, double-shot mocha frappe, extra whipped cream, and a drizzle of butterscotch caramel sauce. So what if it was winter? He also chose a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie with a sprinkle of coarse sea salt, which Hannah banned him from making before. Two of them!
What a splurge--Eugene nodded in satisfaction at his indulgent spending.
"I'll pay," Arthur gave the cashier his card before Eugene could take out his wallet. When Eugene gave him an inquisitive look and an arch brow, Arthur just shrugged. "Still owe you."
For what? Eugene wondered. Perhaps an extension of that apology? Honestly, Eugene thought he himself had stated some stuff that might be sensitive to the alpha--like indirectly calling him a nepo baby even while knowing that was what his 'enemy' used against him.
Still, refusing a good gesture was unkind. Right? Especially a good gesture related to food!
"Thanks," Eugene nodded with a light heart.
With the spirit of one looking for 'nature', they brought their orders to the cafe's rooftop and sat down on one of the benches overlooking the railing and the distant sky. Thankfully, the sky was clear enough for Eugene to recover his tired eyes. It would be better if it were a non-smoking area, but nothing was perfect in this world.
At that moment, Eugene realized the alpha beside him was taking out a cigarette pack with one hand and pulled one out with his lips. Eugene widened his eyes slightly, gaze stuck on a nostalgic, familiar brand of the cigarette--down to the type, even. His eyes moved to the stick between the alpha's lips, intrigued.
If memory served him right, Arthur Crowley did not smoke six years ago. The guy was hacking and wheezing from unconsciously smoking Eugene's cigarette.
Hmm...a lot of things could happen to someone in six years. Perhaps when he was studying abroad.
Sensing the gaze on him, Arthur looked at Eugene and raised the pack toward the omega, offering it.
"No, I stopped," Eugene shook his head and averted his eyes from the temptation.
Arthur arched his brow, staring at his pack for a second before gasping inwardly. "Oh, sorry," he said immediately, returning the one between his lips to the pack before stuffing it inside his coat.
How rude of him! He shouldn't offer a cigarette to someone with a womb!
"No, you can keep smoking--this is a smoking area anyway," Eugene said with a light chuckle.
"Nah, I shouldn't do it near someone who doesn't smoke," Arthur shook his head. Inside, his mind repeatedly churned. See? Gin smoked, so Eugene wasn't Gin!
"Eh, it's probably too late for me," Eugene chuckled again, leaning back while sipping his half-drank frappe. "I do appreciate that line of thought, though."
He doesn't really mind hanging around smokers, but he also didn't want to bring the scent of tobacco to his house because of Hannah.
Which made him wonder...
"Are you fine with tobacco scent? I thought you had a sensitive nose," Eugene asked curiously.
"It's not that irritating if it's not pheromones or something sharp--like heavy perfumes. Ah, perfume made to mimic pheromones is also bad for me, so I think it has something to do with the chemical structure or whatever," Arthur said.
"Huh..."
Arthur chuckled and shrugged. "I don't know, man--I'm from liberal arts."
"Same," Eugene nodded.
They laughed quietly to not disturb the other customers--and got kicked out again--before eating their cakes and cookies. Arthur only ordered a reasonable amount this time; just a choux cream that instantly disappeared in one bite and a warm apple pie that he ate more slowly while giving Eugene more explanation.
"Rather, tobacco is like...coffee, I guess? You know how they had coffee beans in a perfume shop to combat olfactory fatigue?" Arthur tapped his nose.
"Isn't that because coffee could absorb scent?"
"Nah--it's just to provide a neutral scent so our brain resets our senses," Arthur paused as he chewed the pie and swallowed it. "In other words, it's psychological."
Eugene raised his brow. So, Arthur set the 'reset' with tobacco? Anyway, this guy was pretty knowledgeable in this kind of thing. Might be useful for Hannah somewhat; perhaps they should look for a 'neutral' scent for Hannah, something that could trigger a psychological reset--Eugene nodded in secret gratitude.
"Still, something like this doesn't help much against pheromones," Arthur pursed his lips.
"Do you bring a neutralizer?"
"A ton of them," Arthur chuckled, telling Eugene about the many places he put them--including his car, his office, and his right pocket all the time.
Suddenly, Arthur realized something: they wouldn't be seeing each other much after this. Ashley would return as the producer, and the filming would start soon, so Eugene wouldn't be coming to the company anymore unless there was something urgent that needed his presence.
Arthur bit the inside of his cheek in contemplation before making his choice. "Ahem," he cleared his throat. "Talking about scent, yours is softer than I thought."
Eugene froze, the half-eaten cookie almost fell from his hand.
"...what?"
Arthur looked up as if reminiscing about the moment. "Flowery, powdery...like a field of flowers--"
"What are you talking about?" Eugene frowned, trying hard to keep his voice from trembling. "My scent?"
Arthur's heart stuttered at the unexpectedly intense reaction. "Yeah...?"
He didn't actually mean the scent belonged to Eugene. He just wanted to bait the omega and determine if the scent belonged to him or someone else.
But this reaction...it kind of worried him.
"I don't--" Eugene stopped, pressing his lips before speaking again in a doubtful tone. "When did you smell my scent?"
"Uhh...at the mall?" Arthur replied cautiously. "Remember when you caught me on the escalator?"
"Scent?" Eugene swallowed with his dry throat, gripping his cup tightly. "I was wearing a patch, though?"
"Oh, you did?" Arthur feigned ignorance so he could ask the next question. "Then...was it someone else's scent? Like..." he paused for a second, calming his heart. "Your partner, or something?"