The first date with Lee Seunghoon was great. Yes, Lee Seunghoon is a firecracker. Easy to rile up. Wears his heart on his sleeve. But Jinwoo could catch a glimpse of his soft edges from time to time.

From his smile. From his laughter. From those crow-feet lines at the corner of his eyes. A kind Omega behind that fiery exterior.

Easy to please too, so long as Jinwoo feeds him good food. It takes Jinwoo two dates to figure out Lee Seunghoon is a foodie despite his occupation as a supermodel. Has no restraint when it comes to eating. It's almost like watching a vacuum everything in, and leaves Jinwoo pondering how the Seunghoon can maintain that lean built.

"Gosh," Seunghoon says around a mouthful of chicken, "This is ing divine. How can I—" he rolls his eyes dramatically, chewing as he speaks, ", I've been missing out a lot."

Jinwoo chuckles. He takes a spoonful of the yellowish broth. "Here, here, try the broth."

Seunghoon slurps it noisily, so loud it draws attention from a neighbouring customer. Pauses for a second. Then gasps, ", I think I just saw the universe. You know the Milky Way? This broth is better than that, like stars everywhere," and steals more spoonfuls of the broth.

"That's one way to describe the taste," Jinwoo swigs at his soju, pleased to see the bright light in Seunghoon's eyes. Even the sleepy Alpha inside him is entertained by his antics.

"The only way," Seunghoon agrees, snatching kimchi from Jinwoo's plate.

"For a supermodel, you sure eat a lot," Jinwoo points out at Seunghoon's empty rice bowl. "Wouldn't you be worried about the calories?"

Seunghoon shakes his pink fringes off his face, then slicks it to the back, with his pretty fingers. The small metal collar around his neck stands out against his slightly tanned skin. It's like a statement to the world.

"Eating less isn't the secret," he smirks.

Wow, even a simple gesture can make Jinwoo's Alpha amused. A man with confidence, Jinwoo realizes. He can respect that. "Then what's the secret?"

"It wouldn't be a secret if I told you." A light of mischievousness twinkles in Seunghoon's piercing eyes.

"Fair enough." Jinwoo shakes his head, laughing.

"Chasing Hana around the house every weekend might have helped a bit."

"Hana," Jinwoo pauses, tearing the chicken flesh off the bone, "Kang Hana? Kang Seungyoon's daughter?"

"Yep."

"She's a quiet girl."

Seunghoon bites the chicken flesh off the bone, uncaring about his image even though the neighbouring customer makes a face at him for being such a loud eater. "She had been raised in a quiet household."

"Ah." Judging from Kang Seungyoon's personality that he picked up on so far, Jinwoo wouldn't be surprised if she prefers to keep everything to herself. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, after all.

The conversation steers to another topic, then. Jinwoo finds himself listening to Seunghoon's stories. Like "That damn truck the other day, almost gave me a heart attack," and "Escargot, so, this reminds me of this movie I watched." Complete with exaggerated expressions and hand gestures as though he's telling an adventure tale.

Fascinating. Mesmerizing. Jinwoo's Alpha is amused, and that's a surprise since it prefers to stay asleep rather than witnessing human interactions.

When the waiter presents them with the bill, Seunghoon fishes out his wallet. Wide-eyed, Jinwoo stops him, "I suggested this place. I should be paying."

"Nonsense." Seunghoon slides his card, arms folded on the counter.

The waiter gives him a look from bottom to top, pausing at the collar, before she notices Seunghoon's smirk. The one that conveys 'No judging, and please do your ing job.'

"But Alphas should be paying—"

"Don't go Alpha chivalry on me. It's a turn-off," Seunghoon snaps.

Oh, right. Jinwoo shoves his hands into his pockets. Not dejected, just respecting Seunghoon's decision. He watches in silence as the waiter tears off the receipt and hands it over to Seunghoon. Then he walks Seunghoon out of the restaurant.

All without uttering a word. Well. He might have ruined his chances.

It's when they pass the third block that Seunghoon speaks again, "That was very harsh of me. I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it," Jinwoo reassures.

"No, it's just—" Seunghoon pauses, scratching the nape of his neck. The metal collar glints in the dark, "I've been told what to do and what not to do for my entire life just because I'm an Omega—and that was—"

Jinwoo remains quiet, encouraging him to carry on.

"I mean, when you said you offered to pay because of our dynamics, I kind of snapped," Seunghoon explains. "I'm sorry."

Enlightenment dawns on Jinwoo. He's an Alpha since as far as he could remember, blending with Alphas and Betas, so it never crosses his mind it'd be an issue. For a fiery, independent Omega like Lee Seunghoon, it would