"Whenever I see an omega, I have a little tickling sensation in my chest. Of course, I can't just grab his hand and say, "Hey, you're an omega?" so you can't be 100% sure.

"You mentioned earlier that you felt something similar when we first met.

"yes. The more I saw you, the more my interest grew.

The reason why Jihong remembered their dialogue was not only because of the novelty of the wording, but also because the situation itself looked incredible. It was discovered despite the effectively working chip. But now, if Jihong lived this moment again, he wouldn't be surprised. After all, any alpha will react even to a small amount of pheromones, besides, the sensitivity and degree of secretion are different for everyone.

In fact, Jihon has never seen himself as an omega, and he is not the only one. Unlike in the past, when people had their first heat at the same time as secondary gender manifestation, today everyone is tested from elementary school. And the child is defined as an omega, then he is forced to wear a chip that prevents the release of pheromones. Thanks to this, no alpha will come up to you, sniffing everything and asking: "You're an omega, aren't you?"

In addition, it is impossible to check the presence of the uterus inside the abdomen. And if someone, like him, was also unaware of his secondary sex, but later found a partner or got married by removing the chip, then the first heat will come one way or another. A statistical study was carried out, which showed that the consequences of the first heat in our time are more serious than in the past. This happened because the level of education and awareness increased. Often, a person who was aware of the symptoms did not put up with his own belonging. The more he thought, "Is this going to happen to me? I don't know about others, but I can definitely do it," the more he felt ashamed when he experienced "a state in which logic disappeared, leaving only instinct."

Especially, the later the first estrus occurred, the stronger the shock, and in severe cases even led to depression. This also explains the sharp increase in the number of professional consulting clinics in recent years. In any case, Jihon had no intention of having children, which is why he saw no reason to remove the chip. Thus, he will never survive heat in his life and will never truly feel like an omega until he dies. Moreover, his appearance is far from the usual image of an omega, and thus will not become the object of uncivilized discrimination. That's why he lived believing that he was "not much different from a beta."

However, the moment he heard the girl's words, he realized that his confidence was nothing more than an illusion. And alpha will easily identify omega regardless of drugs or chips. Is it possible that an omega remains an omega, no matter how hard it tries to hide it? Even in the era of highly developed medicine, is it really impossible to avoid sexual attraction to alpha, akin to the forces of gravity, which no one has ever been able to conquer? [1]

The gloomy thoughts that come to mind are like an eternal maelstrom from which Jihon is unable to escape. He hadn't attached any importance to his status for a long time. But when faced with reality, he got scared. And now it became difficult for him to treat his girlfriend the way he used to, and in the end, they broke up.

And the shock was replaced by a peculiar feeling of disgust. And each time he questioned one fundamental rule: "Is it true that alpha and omega should feel attracted to each other independently of pheromones?" Around the same time, he started hanging out in bars and clubs. He refused a serious relationship and spent nights with unknown people. He did not refuse anyone who was interested in him, but after intercourse he constantly asked about the partner's secondary sex. Most of them turned out to be betas, some omegas, and only a few alphas. And he did not notice a noticeable difference in sex.

Oh, there was one person who kept saying things like, "How amazing, I've never felt so good before, I'm going crazy." However, most likely, the stranger was just experiencing great pleasure and was riding on everyone's ears like that. As a result, through his experience, Jihong learned one thing: he definitely enjoyed being on the bottom better.

                                                                                                ***

As a member of Kwon Jaekyung's exclusive management team, one of the most important tasks assigned to Jihon was to work as an assistant. You need to perform various tasks so that the athlete can focus exclusively on training. In fact, an errand boy.

Usually, this is assigned to new employees or junior team members. However, he is alone, and Spoin did everything in a hurry. Of course, Jaekyung didn't burden him with numerous tasks, and Jihong just gave him a ride every time. In the morning, the athlete was engaged in weightlifting with a personal trainer. On the first day, Jihong watched from the sidelines for about 15 minutes, but fortunately, the coach became uncomfortable with such close attention: "Mr. Jeong, I'm nervous that you're watching like that. I feel like I'm under a microscope. Let you just join Jaekyung. Let's try to build muscle mass for you."

The man's enthusiasm prompted Jihong to leave the gym, and he never went up to the third floor again, allowing him to work comfortably on his laptop in the lobby every morning. And after classes, the three of them had lunch. There aren't many good restaurants around the gym, and they frequented the nearest fast food establishment. Jaekyung didn't hesitate to take dishes made entirely of sugar and fat, such as Oreo shakes and ice cream, ignoring the trainer's burning gaze.

They probably had a prior agreement not to interfere with Jaekyung's diet. In general, diet did not matter much to him. Not only him, most swimmers are like that. Swimming burned so many calories that they had to eat a lot without calculating the carbohydrate ratio. Even if Jaekyung consumes 78,000 calories a day, he will lose weight, not gain weight. But he should enter the water two hours after eating, so he usually had a light dinner and ate a lot in the evening.

By "light" we mean two meals: a Big Mac, one spicy chicken burger, ten McNuggets, and a shake or ice cream, depending on the mood of the athlete. However, Jaekyung gave up soda and half of the fries, so it seems that he paid attention to carbohydrate intake. But all his efforts were wasted when he ordered ice cream and cocktails. After lunch, the guy takes a short break before the afternoon training in the pool from 3 o'clock. Jihon's role during the day's training session was not much different. Except for measuring lap times at the request of the guy.

A glass wall has been installed in the waiting room, allowing guardians to monitor the situation in the pool during school hours. As a result, Jihong involuntarily stared at the pool, reluctantly. With only a month and a half left before the competition, Jaekyung didn't stay in the water for long. This is called pre-competition rest, in which athletes drastically reduced their training to maintain their condition as the championships approached. And a week before the event, Jaekyung mainly focuses on starts and turns, maintaining his stamina as much as possible.

That's why Jaekyung has never been in the water for more than two hours a day. However, since there was still a month and a half left before the competition, he said that he would move at an easy pace once every two to three days to maintain his muscle tension. But his "aerobic moderation" [2] is a different story. Jihon found such training not at all "moderation", but "work for wear".

Endurance training involves performing moderate to vigorous intensity exercise for an extended period of time. Jaekyung often swam about 3000 meters freestyle, and of course, but that's not all. Every time he reached 100 meters, he got out of the water and dived back from the starting block. In fact, this approach is a traditional method of teaching. Most swimmers probably go through this. There is a possibility that this difficult and painful training session is more like a punishment for a coach's reprimand.

It was the first time Jihon had been subjected to such a brutal punishment in high school. Of course, then it was not 3000 meters, but 1000. And when he reached 50 meters, he had to get out of the water and dive back. So he overcame the first 500 meters. But at a distance of 600 meters, he began to suffocate. At 800 m, my legs trembled, which made it impossible to get out of the water. As soon as he reached 1000 m, he barely got out of the water, falling on the tiled floor. It seemed to him that his heart would explode. Unable to move a finger, he lay gasping and feeling pain, as if his lungs were about to burst apart.

Jaekyung, on the other hand, calmly crossed 3000 meters. Not 1000 or 2000, but as many as 3000. The mere sight of Jihong frowned and broke out in a cold sweat. After 2000, everything became like a fog for him. The pain of that time was imprinted in his memory. As if he was the only one who suffered. Jaekyung himself seemed completely indifferent. He was breathing a little heavily, but he remained strong until the end. In fact, he managed to achieve the "moderate" pace he had hoped for. The athlete's friend and rival, Noah, once called him a water man in an interview. Now Jihong understood why. Jaekyung's endurance is incredible and went beyond human capabilities.

                                                                                                   ***

[1] I remembered a phrase from The Big Bang Theory: Ah, gravity, you heartless bitch :D D

[2] Aerobic moderation in swimming refers to a training approach that involves performing moderate-intensity exercise aimed at improving cardiorespiratory endurance. During aerobic training, swimmers maintain an easy swimming pace where they can maintain prolonged activity without excessive fatigue. It is important to note that aerobic moderation in swimming can be achieved by swimming long distances at an average speed.