032

032
The doctor nodded and dropped his note.

“Nothing seems wrong with you physically… For now.” He spoke. “However, you did not heed my advice, and now you cannot fight your biology. Your body is like a vegan dog that has tasted meat and desires more, even at the cost of its life. You were celibate, suppressed your rut for seven years, then took an omega after such long deprivation. Your primitive instincts will never allow you to return to such abstinence, even if it kills you.”

He took off his glasses, his expression growing grave.

“Have you told him? Your omega? That he imprinted on you?”

“He will know with time. All I need is more medicine.”

“As your doctor, your wellbeing is my priority.” Doctor Elsworth stated firmly. “If I give you any more medicine, it is the same as killing you. You could turn feral and be locked in a mental institute or suffer a stroke or die. Worse, your pheromone and body will collapse. It’s a state no alpha or omega should ever endure. It’s a fate worse than death. I’ve practiced for twenty years, and I can tell you; your omega will struggle to realise recognise the imprint because your pheromone is unfamiliar to him.”

“I do not want Sarang to love me because he must. He was a child.”

“Yet you latched onto him, and he onto you. It has been eight years, and the imprint remains intense.”

“Then what is your advice?”

“As your doctor or your friend?”

“Both.”

“As your doctor, spend your next rut with another omega. It will be difficult, but it is possible, and it will be a start to break the imprint.”

“No.”

The doctor sighed. “Then as your friend, an omega imprint is extremely rare. Omegas only imprint on whom they share a deep emotional bond with. An omega experiencing their first heat doesn’t imprint, especially on an alpha they haven’t been sexually intimate with. But yours did. Which means he has always held a deep affection for you. And again, he is your fated mate. You are the first person I know to consciously resist a fated bond because of an age gap. Fate plays cruel tricks when I think of it. You’ve tried Lucian, but Sarang is no longer a child. He was no longer a child the day he experienced his first heat. You should tell him… or let him go.”

Doctor Elsworth glanced upstairs and lowered his head, lips trembling.

“You’ve seen my husband’s state.” He said softly. “He can’t communicate with me or our children anymore. For years, Owen struggled with his identity as an omega. I knew that as his husband and a specialist doctor, but I pressured him to keep the twins. I should have helped him, encouraged him, but I failed him. Only on a few rare, unpredictable days do I get my Owen. And for the rest of my life, I must live with that guilt and burden, and I take full responsibility. Which is why I can’t allow the same thing to happen to you because there is no cure.”

Tears streamed down the doctor’s face. Sebastian offered him a handkerchief.

“Thank you.” The doctor murmured, wiping his eyes.

Lucian sat in. He had two months until his next rut to make a choice.

To break the imprint… or to confess the truth.

The cold chill seeping into Sarang’s bones jolted him awake. He wiped the drool from his cheek and surveyed the room, his new greenhouse in the mansion.

He had been testing a new formula he created for the garden, one meant to keep the plants from freezing during winter without damaging the soil or roots. So far, the only flower that survived the experiment were the white roses. He mourned the batch of dead hydrangeas and spent the entire day researching on another solution before he would begin planting his own garden in Linfield during spring.

Sarang closed his notes, stretched his stiff muscles with a yawn, and shut the windows. He smiled at his plants before leaving the room.

On his way to the kitchen, he stopped short when Sebastian appeared, walking toward him with a steady gait. Sarang stepped aside for the old butler, but his gaze caught the bowl containing a dark green brew on top the tray.

“Mr. Sebastian,” Sarang called softly. Sebastian stopped. “Is Master unwell?”

Sebastian turned slowly. The cold scowl on his face made Sarang’s chest tighten. It was unusual, Sebastian was difficult to read. His mannerisms were calm, his tone always measured, and his face rarely betraying emotion. Sarang could count on one hand the times he had seen him laugh or frown, yet this expression… this sharp, cold disapproval was new.

“The day you were brought into this household, I was displeased.” Sebastian began, his tone cutting yet composed. “A foreigner, scrawny, poorly spoken, whose only notable quality was possessing enough intelligence to sharpen the young master’s wits. But then you turned out to be an omega, and your purpose fell short. Master Lucian always knew, yet he spent a fortune to save you, abandoning the intention for a slave. You could have been replaced, but you were more than enough in his eyes. I was only in support because this family needed you. So, I ensured your education was impeccable. You became my family as well, even if I am not very fond of you.”

Sarang swallowed, squeezing his arm to ease the anxiety rising in his chest. He stayed silent, listening.

“Instead, you repay his kindness with betrayal, expecting him to give you more than he already has, knowing fully well that you are his weakness. You are fortunate child. Ignorance is bliss when one bears no burden. You’ve lived a life of comfort; sheltered, educated, and loved in a way that stirs envy in the hearts of nobles, slaves, and commoners alike. Encouraged to pursue your gardening, a skill I admire, and fluent in your tongue and mine.”

He paused, his voice softening with frustration. “However, you are indecisive. You still perceive yourself as a slave, even though you have never lived as one. I beg you, do not concern yourself with the master. Distance yourself from him if you must, lest his attachments linger… for everyone’s sake."

Sebastian’s eyes flicked to the ring on Sarang’s finger. “Congratulations,” he said flatly. “It is a lovely ring.”

Then he walked away, leaving the young omega in a haze of confusion. His words had quelled Sarang’s hunger more effectively than any meal could.

Hours later, the distance between Lucian and Sarang was reduced to a single door. Sarang paced before it, hovering his hands over the knob only to withdraw each time cowardice crept in. After what felt like an eternity of hesitation, he gave up and returned to his room in the omega wing

He dropped onto his bed, hugging his pillow tightly and burying his face in its softness.