From Now On, A Marriage Proposal Is The Only Way To Survive - Chapter 75

When everyone shouted the chant together, the student council president downed an entire bottle of soju without stopping.

“Woooah—! Amazing!”

As people clapped and cheered, the vice president also stood up, introduced himself, and then drained a bottle of soju in one go.

“Ugh… Is it really okay to drink like that?”

Shin-Yeon asked a senior with a shocked expression at the one-shot.

“They’re all alphas and heavy drinkers, something like that won’t even get them drunk.”

“Wow… but still, how can anyone down a whole bottle of soju like that?”

While Shin-Yeon was watching the bottle-shots in amazement, other seniors came in carrying a large pitcher.

“The Business School’s Golden-Ratio Loyalty Drink has arrived!”

The seniors went around filling everyone’s beer glasses to the brim.

Shin-Yeon stared intently at the pale lemon-colored liquid sloshing in his glass.

“Senior, is this loyalty drink… mixed alcohol?”

“Business School loyalty~!”

Just as Shin-Yeon, flustered by what looked like a bomb-shot, asked, the student council president shouted loudly.

“Loyalty!!!”

The seniors cheered and downed their beer glasses in one go, and before he knew it, Shin-Yeon followed suit and drank it all.

“Haa… That’s good!”

“…Ugh, really?”

Though it didn’t have the sharp alcohol burn of straight soju, the deadly ratio was overwhelming for a beginner like Shin-Yeon.

“Ah, that’s nine parts soju, one part beer. It’s rough at first, but later you’ll be mixing your own soju-beer and saying it tastes good.”

A senior urged Shin-Yeon, who had just one-shotted his glass, to eat some side dishes.

Trying to wash the taste out of his mouth, Shin-Yeon stuffed himself with meat and drank plenty of water until his stomach was uncomfortably full.

“I need the restroom…”

“Oh, inside there. If it’s crowded, there’s another one outside down the alley.”

Getting up, Shin-Yeon felt a faint dizziness and walked outside.

“Haa…”

Stepping into the cold early-spring night air, the alcohol made him feel pleasantly warm.

“Shin-Yeon~!”

Park Kyung-Joo stumbled up behind him and wrapped him in a hug.

“Kyung-Joo, did you drink a lot?”

“Mm… one beer, two soju, four somaek?”

The mix of drinks had hit Kyung-Joo hard, and she clung to Shin-Yeon. At that moment, Hwang Bo-Yoon came outside.

Even though he’d said he wouldn’t drink, the flush of alcohol was on him too as he rolled up his shirt sleeves.

“Ah, damn. They really force the drinks.”

“Didn’t you say you were driving?”

“They said they’d pay for a chauffeur. And as an Alpha they just kept pouring me soju, I thought I’d die.”

Still, he wasn’t that drunk, just red in the face and heated.

Slightly tipsy, Bo-Yoon steadied the wobbling Kyung-Joo.

“Is Kyung-Joo really drunk?”

“A little? Just a liiittle?”

“Yeah, drunk. What about you, Shin-Yeon?”

“I had two beers and one loyalty drink, so I’m okay. Bo-Yoon, I’ll go buy hangover cures. Stay with Kyung-Joo.”

“Me, me, chocolate milk! Chocolate milk!”

Checking quickly on Kyung-Joo’s condition, Shin-Yeon rushed off to find a pharmacy and convenience store.

Luckily, both were nearby, so he went to the pharmacy first.

“Please give me… ten hangover remedies. The strongest ones you have.”

After buying them, he went to the convenience store and asked the clerk:

“Um, what drinks are good for hangovers?”

“Pear juice or aloe juice? We also have a bunch of hangover drinks here.”

Shin-Yeon bought everything the clerk recommended, plus chocolate milk, and left the store.

“Ugh… heavy. Did I buy too much? It’s all just drinks.”

Looking down at the heavy bags in his hands, bought in a tipsy daze, he suddenly felt the weight lighten.

A large hand had appeared behind him and taken the bags.

“Huh?”

Surprised, Shin-Yeon turned his head.

Behind him stood a man in a charcoal-gray suit with a black coat draped over it, exuding a cool elegance.

When Shin-Yeon looked up, he met dark eyes with a bluish gleam.

“It’s my husband!”

“My baby, you’re drunk.”

“I’m not!”

Throwing his arms around Kyo-Shin, Shin-Yeon buried his head against his chest, rubbing into him.

The familiar acacia scent calmed him, and the dizziness grew stronger.

When he felt Kyo-Shin kiss his hair, he lifted his head, and the alcohol hit him harder all at once.

“My baby’s face is blooming like a camellia.”

Blinking, Shin-Yeon smiled shyly, his lips flushed.

“A baby camellia… is that just a smaller camellia?”

“No, it’s its own variety. Camellia blossoms fall off whole, but baby camellias shed their petals one by one.”

One by one, the fallen petals dyed the ground beneath the tree red, leaving no escape.

Lowering his head toward Shin-Yeon’s freesia-scented aura, Kyo-Shin kissed him softly.

“Mmh…”

Then, nibbling lightly on his lips, he deepened the kiss.

“Ah…”

Letting out a faint moan, Shin-Yeon finished the kiss and then planted playful pecks on Kyo-Shin’s jaw and cheeks.

“I missed you.”

“I missed you too. Now let’s go home. Drinking is only fun if you stop while you’re feeling good.”

“Mm, you’re right.”

Nodding, Shin-Yeon followed Kyo-Shin back toward the restaurant. Kyo-Shin handed him the bags and stopped at the side alley.

At the front, Shin-Yeon handed out the hangover remedies and drinks to his friends, smiling brightly.

“Kyung-Joo, take this first. And drink the pear juice too.”

“Mm, mm… Shin-Yeon, you shouldn’t seduce me with your face, we’re both omegas…”

Kyung-Joo scolded him lightly, cheeks red as she looked at Shin-Yeon’s radiant smile.

Meanwhile, Bo-Yoon’s face and neck flushed bright red from the freesia scent wafting off Shin-Yeon.

“Wow… I’m losing it. Why are your pheromones so sweet?”

Feeling happy to be going home with his husband, Shin-Yeon couldn’t quite control his pheromones in his tipsy state.

“Ah… do I smell?”

“Just give me the bag and wait here. I’ll bring your stuff, so don’t come in—just stay put.”

With a face burning red, Hwang Bo-Yoon rushed back into the restaurant, retrieved Shin-Yeon’s bag, and handed it to him.

“I already explained things to the seniors, so go on. I’ll call you a taxi—”

“No need. Someone came to pick me up. See you Monday, bye!”

Shin-Yeon said goodbye to Hwang Bo-Yoon and Park Kyung-Joo, then turned around.

At the entrance of a nearby alley, Kyo-Shin was waiting with a charming smile, holding out his arm.

Shin-Yeon ran into his embrace and looked up.

“Kiss me.”

Noise, smoke drifting from the barbecue restaurant, and the flashing lights of the college town at night surrounded them.

The breeze, softer now with the coming of spring, brushed past their sides.

In their locked gazes flickered a strange mix of excitement and heat.

Kyo-Shin glanced briefly toward the dark alley.

A sudden urge rose in him, to hide there, to kiss and indulge in sticky touches.

He wanted to push his omega, crushed under the thrill of being seen, into tears of pleasure.

He wanted to take him like a beast, lose himself in lust and thrill as reason abandoned him.

But he had no intention of acting on it.

This was Shin-Yeon’s campus neighborhood, here, his safety and dignity must be protected.

Smack.

Instead, Kyo-Shin kissed Shin-Yeon’s forehead, rubbing his moist lips against it as he whispered:

“Shall we save the rest for home, so you won’t be scared?”

“…Yes!”

Grinning, Kyo-Shin held his delighted Shin-Yeon in his arms as they walked toward the parking lot.

As they made their way there, some college students smoking nearby noticed them.

“Huh? Isn’t that guy from our department?”

“Who? I can’t see.”

Peering around as the couple vanished into the crowd, one student tilted his head.

“Looked like someone from our class with a really rich-looking guy. Did I see wrong…?”

“Did you see the guy’s face?”

“No, but he was huge. Like, easily two meters tall.”

Clamping a cigarette between his lips, he exaggerated, and his friends laughed.

“You’re drunk, man. It’s not like giant alphas are rare. Probably just some guy out drinking.”

The student scratched his head and shrugged.

Meanwhile, on the way home, Shin-Yeon popped a hangover-cure stick and spoke.

“Honey, what do people usually crave when they’re drunk?”

“What do you want? I’ve never been drunk, so I don’t know.”

Kyo-Shin watched his flushed-faced lover fidgeting with the stick, lips wrapped around it.

What’s making him think so hard about food?

Shin-Yeon, brow furrowed in concentration, spat out the wrapper and answered:

“Well… chicken, for one. But there’s something I want even more. I’ll tell you once we’re home.”

“Alright.”

Finding him adorable, Kyo-Shin drove not to the penthouse but to the mansion.

When they arrived, he parked in the indoor garage, and they entered the house together.

Shin-Yeon slipped off his jacket and tossed it into the laundry basket before heading to the dressing room.

As Kyo-Shin put his coat and suit into the clothing care machine, he was left in just his shirt and drawers.

Thick, muscular thighs strained under the black shirt garter belts that wrapped around them.

And most strikingly—between the parted shirttails, the navy drawers were so swollen it looked almost frightening.

Gulp.

Shin-Yeon swallowed hard at the sight of Kyo-Shin in black socks reaching mid-calf, garters strapped in place.

Ah… now I know what I really want to eat.