It was nine when a sharp ringtone cut through Arthur's studio apartment. The alpha, who had been waiting the whole afternoon, slid across the room so fast he almost tripped as he grabbed his phone.
With one hand holding a tong, he pressed the phone to his ear. "Hello?"
Eugene did say he would call later, but Arthur wasn't sure whether the omega really meant it or if it was just a figure of speech because they were supposed to 'talk later'. He tried not to hope too much because Egene didn't look good earlier, but...well, he also couldn't help but hope.
[Crowley...]
The voice had become more familiar to Arthur now. A little low, but also smooth like a lullaby. He still remembered how that voice guided him into calmness like no neutralizer could, and every time he did, heat crept to his face.
He knew he shouldn't, but he couldn't help it.
"Eugene? Are you alright?" he asked while walking back to the kitchen and salvaging his late-night snack. "Is your...is your emergency solved, now?"
[Yeah, thank you for asking] Eugene said quietly. There was a sliding sound that seemed to indicate that he was moving to the balcony. [Are you...free to talk now?]
Arthur glanced at his pan and turned off the stove without hesitation. "Yes, of course," he said, taking his half-drank warm cocoa to the couch and settling down. "Is there something you want to ask me?"
[How do you know?]
Arthur heard a chuckle. How couldn't he? Eugene only talked to him first if the omega had a question for him.
Soon, the chuckle ended, and Eugene's voice turned serious. [I need advice regarding, umm...the sensitivity] he sounded rather hesitant at first. [I want to know how to overcome it]
"Overcome it..."
[Or, just...you know, general stuff about how you lived with it] Eugene sighed softly. [I want to know more from someone who has it rather than the doctors...]
Well, that wasn't a difficult request. He was curious about the identity of the person with the hypersensitivity--Eugene did say he had been in the same situation before, having to soothe someone who got sick by someone's pheromone--but he had a good guess on who it was.
The problem with this request was...
He couldn't talk about it without talking about the condition leading to that hypersensitivity. After all, this hypersensitivity wasn't something he was born with. And well...it wasn't something that could be talked through a phone call.
"I don't mind, but I think it'll be better for us to meet that talking on the phone," Arthur said. "It's a rather...sensitive topic."
[Ah, right...] thankfully, Eugene seemed to be quite understanding. [Okay, where would you like to meet?]
They spent about five minutes discussing where they would meet before ending the phone with Eugene said he should be working on his translation. Arthur stared at the blank screen that reflected his smiling face.
And then he sighed.
Haa...he hoped Eugene would start calling him 'Arthur' soon.
* * *
With Eugene still having to finish his current work and Arthur still having other projects to do, they ended up making an appointment for three days later. This time, it wasn't in a cafe or restaurant despite them meeting during lunch break, but at a botanical garden.
They had to pay a small fee to enter, but it was still cheaper than a glass of lemon tea in a cafe. It was well spent on spreads of plants from all over the country--and some even came from abroad--meticulously placed within well-cared areas flanking the narrow paved road Eugene was taking. There was a field of grass for children to run around, a flower garden, and even green house for rare and tropical plants. A pretty good deal for the low price.
He had once come to this botanical garden with Hannah, hoping to introduce his little girl to more nature. The girl had been enthusiastic at first until she gave up halfway through the massive garden and Eugene had to carry her all the way through.
Who needed a gym when you could do weight lifting for an hour without any break?
It'd be nice to come here again once Hannah was older and could read all of those plaques explaining the plants all over the garden.
Opening the pamphlet he received at the entrance, Eugene followed the path toward the lakeside bungalow where several rotundas were built around an artificial lake. He crossed the bridge to where the rotundas were to look for Arthur. It wasn't hard, since the alpha wasn't exactly conspicuous. The man was staring at the lake and the sky reflected on it, probably listening to the melody of nature.
Since it was almost lunchtime, some of the rotundas were already filled by the visitors who wished to rest in the middle of their exploration after buying some refreshment from the two cafes inside the garden. If it wasn't the weekday--and the middle of February--it would probably be hard to find an empty one.
Each of these rotundas had a table in the middle, perfect for eating and snacking. Even from afar, Eugene could see the familiar picnic basket on the table behind Arthur.
"You're always early, huh?" Eugene commented when he was in the alpha's hearing range. Eugene was already five minutes early, but this guy was already there, looking like he had been sunbathing for a while.
Arthur turned his head and gave a beaming smile. "Because it's easier for me if someone approaches me than looking for someone in the crowd."
Eugene remembered how confused the alpha was while looking for him at the park in front of the mall that time, and nodded. "That's why you asked to meet in this place?" he returned the smile as he stepped beneath the canopy. "To avoid the crowd?"
"More or less," Arthur shrugged.
Actually, it was because he wanted to avoid cafes--lest this might end badly like the other two. Sure, Eugene was the one who asked for a meeting this time, but between them, the situation tended to flip out of nowhere.
"It has real good nature anyway, not just the sky," he added. "Also, I'm on a diet right now."
"Pfft--what?" Eugene stifled a laugh before sitting down, shifting his gaze between Arthur and the big picnic basket. "Can you even..."
"I had to finish this one project before the Invisible Scent's crank-in, so I had been holing up in the editing room eating snacks with no time to hit the gym," Arthur sighed and lamented at the sedentary life he had to live these days while opening the bulging picnic basket.
Seemed like the 'diet' wasn't about the amount, but the kind of food he consumed. Instead of high-calorie and high-sodium stuff he ate before, the alpha had to be satisfied with low-fibre noodles and a mountain of chicken breast salad.
"Sounds rough," Eugene winced at the pale-looking dishes.
Arthur chuckled and took out a paper bag, putting it down in front of Eugene. "Don't worry, I didn't put your portion through the tasteless wringer."
"I'm actually curious about it," Eugene stared at the bright orange dressing that Arthur poured over his salad. It smelled sweet and citrusy, making his mouth water. "Allen said you learned how to cook because you hate the diet food?"
"Yeah," Arthur laughed at the curious glint flashing in Eugene's eyes. It was just like that time he examined the butterfly-pea madeleines. "Well, you're always welcome to try."
With that permission, Eugene ended up testing Arthur's diet food aside from his own--which was a nice meaty salad wrap, a meat pie with cheese and peas, as well as two pieces of canales for dessert. His verdict was not bad for the salad--he liked the orange dressing--but he didn't think he could eat the noodles unless he was really, truly hungry and there was nothing else to eat.
Since Arthur had yet to find a way to make a healthy, low-calorie, but delicious dessert, he abstain for it during his diet. Despite that, he still slid over a bag of cute, colorful macaron cookies for Eugene, who raised his brows inquisitively.
"A souvenir," Arthur said with a grin. "Baking is my therapy, but I can't eat them right now, so..."
How kind. How convenient! Eugene looked at the colorful macaron cookies with mixed feelings. He knew Hannah would love them, but why did he end up getting treated to lunch and a souvenir dessert when he was the one who asked for help?
Shouldn't he be the one to treat the alpha instead?
"So..." amidst Eugene's confusion, Arthur spoke after gulping a bottle of lightly sweetened lemonade. "I have to ask something first."
Oh, they were finally going for the serious talk? Eugene shifted his gaze from the paper bag to the alpha, waiting for the question.
"This person who has the same condition as me..."
Eugene swallowed dryly, his heart suddenly beating hard and fast at the anticipation. Arthur couldn't be guessing about it already, right?
"Do they have it since birth?"
"Uhh..." Eugene let out a subtle breath of relief. "Probably?"
He recalled that Hannah always calmed down when he hugged her. Wouldn't it mean that she could smell Eugene's scant scent since she was a newborn?
"I see..." Arthur nodded while playing with the lid of his lemonade. "That's different from me."
"Oh?"
Eugene couldn't help but raise his brows in surprise. Since he thought it was a genetic condition, he had assumed that Arthur also had it since birth. But...that wasn't the case? So Arthur had it later and since it seemed hormonal, their child ended up inheriting it too?
"That's why I'm not sure if my experience could be of any help," Arthur said with a wry, guilty smile. "It's not like I completely find a way to 'overcome' it either. You see how I became with a strong pheromone lashing around."
"Well...that was an extreme situation, right?" Eugene said. "Even if it's not how to overcome it, I want to know what...uhh..." he bit his lips, feeling hesitant that it might be a sensitive topic. No--it was a sensitive topic. "It might be useful to know how much worse it could be."
Recalling how Ashley said Arthur was sent to the hospital one time, Eugene couldn't help but sigh in worry. What if the same thing befell Hannah? He should know the worst to prepare for the worst.
Arthur nodded at Eugene's words--thankfully. "Ah, that makes sense."
"But...is it possible to develop hypersensitivity later on?" Eugene asked cautiously--but also curiously.
Arthur smiled; a little bitter, a little sad. "In my case, it was intentionally developed."