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Mydei never envisioned his wedding day being held during his pre-heat, with someone he barely knew, surrounded by people he thought he knew.
Of course, behind closed doors, nothing is left to chance. His fate was set in stone the moment Castrum Kremnos was caught up in the aftermath of a war, leaving his people at risk of sinking into poverty. Mydei adored his people more than he cared about himself, turning his devotion into both his strength and his weakness. The moment an alpha prince from a distant kingdom showed up with a smile that didn't reach his eyes, he knew what those bland proposals really meant.
In those eyes, he saw his reflection, not the one of a prince or a future lover—but an omega to claim, and a kingdom to own. He knew, but his reason was flooded with the thought of his people, and after false flattery and a public kneeling, the marriage proposal slipped out of lips that tasted like poison.
And Mydei, blinded by duty, drank it.
Even if it was all a lie. He couldn't tell the difference anyway.
The books of Castrum Kremnos never described the word love, leaving a young prince to grow up without knowing how to find it or what it felt like.
Until one day, he met it.
Behind the window of his chambers, under the blazing midday sun. He looked like the moon, with silver locks and light blue eyes. He worked every day to the sound of a faint humming, carrying calloused hands not from wielding a weapon, but from working on the royal garden.
Those hands didn't kill—they created life.
Mydei got curious.
He began opening his window at the same time every day, just to watch the man below working in his garden. One day, he saw him trimming the bushes, the other watering the flowers… Even talking to them. Until, on another ordinary day, their eyes finally met. The man lifted his chin toward his window, noticing him leaning on the window stool. Mydei's body tensed, feeling caught in his little indulgence. He quickly placed his hands on the edges of the curtain, ready to make himself disappear.
But then, a raised hand waved in his direction. Mydei stared at it, used to awkward bowing rather than the simplicity of an earnest greeting. He felt his hand go stiff when he raised it to wave back at the stranger, earning a smile in return.
That ended up changing his routine forever.
𖤣.𖥧.𖡼.⚘
"I'm Phainon, of Aedes Elysiae." The stranger introduced himself.
A common worker from a distant village. A beta that carried a strong floral scent with him.
It happened naturally, like a seed planted in his chest that grew with the drop of every conversation.
One day, Mydei decided to take a walk to the garden—after too many days watching it from above—deciding to reach down to touch the soil that the gardener, Phainon, had been working on.
However, a hand stopped him by grabbing his wrist.
"I'm not done yet," Phainon said, his fingers gently leaving his skin as soon as he turned his face to him. It was the first time someone dared to touch him. "I assume Your Highness doesn't know how to amend the soil." In a pause, Mydei easily caught the hint of teasing when he added, "Do you?"
"Of course I know." Mydei huffed, amused by the impertinence and lack of etiquette. He allowed a pride he didn't know he had in him to lie in his next words. "I can do this faster than you."
"Is that so?" Phainon raised his brows with a smile, bright like the sun melting his body. "Forgive my assumption. How about we see who can finish the work earlier?"
Mydei cast his gaze at the dirty hands of the gardener. He should disagree. A prince doing the work of a commoner was almost a taboo. And yet. "Fine by me."
Phainon's smile grew at his response. "Great! What do you want in exchange?"
Mydei blinked. "Exchange?"
"Every win has a reward!"
…
What did he want? No one had ever asked him that.
Mydei didn't know.
"What do you want?" He ended by asking back.
Phainon, contrary to him, seemed to know it already, blurting out the words in a breath. "I want you to tell me more about you."
"About me?" Mydei's expression frowned, confused. "I believe you already know everything about the royal family of Castrum Kremnos if you are here."
"No, you misunderstood me," Phainon shook his head, wetting his lips as if he was hesitating to continue. "I want to know about Mydeimos. The person, not the title."
Oh.
Mydei's stomach suddenly felt a tingle, odd yet not unpleasant. What was that?
"… Alright."
Phainon beamed a smile, oddly pleased. "Do you mean it?"
"Do you doubt your prince's word?"
"I wouldn't dare," Phainon said amid a faint chuckle.
"Then let's not waste more time. I would announce my reward after my victory."
"I will do my best, so Your Highness doesn't need to think too much."
Bold. Yet Phainon meant it.
Regardless of the disadvantage, Mydei was still confident, having observed him work enough behind that window to catch up with his rhythm. Between faint laughs and taunting words, it ended up being a tie. Mydei cast his gaze to his own hands stained with dirt, feeling a sense of realization that he thought he had lost long ago. Fun—he had fun.
A smile appeared on his face at the same time he heard Phainon sigh at his side.
"It seems that neither of us is winning anything."
Mydei noticed the look of disappointment on his face, despite the smile he wore.
He stared, the words coming out on their own. "What do you want to know?"
𖤣.𖥧.𖡼.⚘
After that, love grew roots without his knowledge.
He was resting under the shadow of a tree when the man at his side spoke.
"What is your favorite flower?" Phainon suddenly asked.
Mydei diverted his attention from the leaves moving above him, turning his head to rest his cheek on the fresh grass. "I don't have one."
"Really?" Phainon moved to his side, his body facing him.
"You sound disappointed."
"I am. You are boring."
Mydei knew he didn't mean it.
"Pick one for me," he said.
Phainon blinked. "Me?"
"You asked."
Phainon remained still for a moment before crawling toward him, leaning down to place his nose just a touch away from his scent gland. Mydei's breath quivered, feeling silver locks of hair tickle his chin. He trusted Phainon, didn't question him even when his hand rested there, calloused fingers brushing it. "I've heard your scent smells like a pomegranate flower. Sweet, like honey, with a hint of citrus. It suits you."
Mydei inhaled slowly, catching the strong, flowery scent coming from the gardener's hand on his neck. "Where have you heard that?"
"Your fiancé was talking about it."
Of course.
"It's a shame I can't smell it," Phainon confessed, moving away enough to meet his gaze. They were close enough for Mydei to catch the faint sunburn on the other man's face. "Perhaps I should plant one, I know you like to drink pomegranate juice."
"You remember that?"
Phainon smiled, fondness flooding his eyes. "About you? Everything."
Mydei felt his face grow hot. "What about you?"
"I like lilies." Phainon answered, "They are easy to grow."
"The ones you recently planted?"
"Do you like them? This kind has a strong scent."
"They smell sweet."
"Some people find it pleasant," Phainon said, fingers caressing the skin of his neck one last time before slowly dropping his hand. "While others might find it overwhelming."
𖤣.𖥧.𖡼.⚘
Later that day, he met his fiancé in the halls, visibly unpleased. "What is that smell?"
"I'm back from the garden."
The man reeked of alcohol, his pheromones weighing the air. Mydei could smell the arrogance, the aggression, all getting stuck in his throat, forcing him to swallow.
Disgusting. He felt nauseous.
"You should bathe," the alpha said.
Mydei frowned, passing him by. "You should drink less."
He returned to his chambers, closing the door behind him before letting out a loud exhale. Should he bathe? Shameless words coming from a drunk. He sniffed his garments, merely catching a faint whiff of grass. Of course. What did he expect? The intoxication must have made the alpha delirious.
It was then, as he ran his hand over his neck, that he sensed it after a sniff.
It wasn't his clothes, but his skin that exuded a strong floral scent, the same one of those hands that had caressed him as if he were a petal to break, carefully. He brushed his hand over his neck, bringing it to his nose to inhale his palm. It smelled sweet, a calm aroma that blended several flowers in one. Phainon's scent. He remembered the way he touched his neck, how his fingers persisted there as the conversation carried on.
This was not a coincidence. Phainon has tried to scent him. Not with pheromones… But with flowers.
Why?
Mydei should feel offended, ashamed that a beta, who was not even royalty, had tried to leave a scent on him so effortlessly. And yet, as he closed his eyes, he found himself sniffing again. A thought cried at the back of his mind, the voice of his instincts taking over his reason.
If those lips could mark him, if only Phainon said he wanted him—loved him—claiming him as his. Mydei's legs trembled on the spot, his body pleading irrationally to be touched by those calloused fingers.
Titans forgive him. He wanted that.
Even if he knew he couldn't.
𖤣.𖥧.𖡼.⚘
"Your father wants me to return to Aedes Elysiae."
Phainon almost whispered the words, yet they rang too loud in his ears.
Mydei felt a lump in his throat, unable to utter a word. His mind got drowned in countless responses, all silenced by acceptance. Phainon would leave before his wedding, unaware that his skin had the rest scent of an omega in pre-heat. Mydei's pheromones. Perhaps that's why his father wanted him gone.
Even without an answer, Phainon still smiled at him. "I wish you happiness in your marriage."
Mydei barely nodded. "Thank you."
Silence dropped like a ripple.
Is this what love was like? Planting itself in one's heart without permission, taking root, with the promise to bloom. Then that stem grows thorns, digging in the heart until it bleeds.
Mydei knew. He knew from the beginning.
And yet—
"I'll miss you."
Mydei raised his head, his heart betraying him by rising on his chest. He met blue eyes that tried to hide his sorrow, eyebrows pinched together with an almost faded smile. It felt as if the sun had set.
"I'll miss you so much," Phainon repeated.
He slowly raised a hand, cupping that face that tilted to seek the touch of his palm. Phainon left a kiss there, and Mydei felt jealous of his hand.
"I have a wedding gift for you."
"Don't." Mydei's fingers moved until they got lost in silver hair, pushing him to come closer.
"Mydei," Phainon whispered, like a prayer.
Mydei was no god, yet he knew the meaning of his plea. For when their lips finally met, he also granted his own.
"Mydei…" Phainon said again against his lips. "I—"
"Don't speak," Mydei commanded.
Phainon did not speak, at least not with words. When he kissed him again, and again, and again, Mydei understood his message.
𖤣.𖥧.𖡼.⚘
"You're not in condition to get married."
Mydei turned his head, eyeing the person standing at his door. "Cipher, we've talked about this."
"Don't give me that tone! I'm the older one here."
Mydei sighed. "You know why I'm doing this."
"Yes, and I told you it was the worst decision."
"Cipher—"
"I could smell your pheromones from behind the door! You know why they want you to get married while you're in this state."
Mydei exhaled slowly. "So my heat manifests on the honeymoon."
"If you know, why—"
"Because I won't allow my father to destroy my kingdom!" He shouted without meaning to.
Cipher pressed her lips together.
…
"Forgive me, I didn't mean to—"
"Yes, yes, I know." She sighed. "What about that gardener?"
"How—"
"You should see what he has prepared for you." Cipher stepped inside the room, moving closer until she placed a hand on his chest, right where his heart beat. "Look at it with this, not with your reason." After that, she pulled away. "Alright! See you at the ceremony."
"Cipher."
"Hm?"
Mydei gave it all to try to smile for her. "Thank you."
"Hah. Feeling sentimental now?" She smiled back at him, turning around with a wink. "Thank me by being happy!"
Shortly after, Mydei found himself alone again.
𖤣.𖥧.𖡼.⚘
His walk to the throne room felt like walking into dense fog, his mind echoing Cipher's words over and over like a chant. Phainon has prepared something for him. What? Why? Rather than a blessing, Mydei felt that it would end up haunting him.
As his footsteps drew closer, his response welcomed him.
A strong, sweet smell began to linger in the air, filling the halls with no windows. Mydei, confused, gradually recognized the origin of that scent with only a faint sniff. It was the same scent that entered his room every day, coming from the garden. The fresh, intense aroma of stargazer lilies.
Some people find it pleasant, while others might find it overwhelming.
He remembered Phainon's words.
I could smell your pheromones from behind the door!
Cipher words continued.
His steps halted in front of the door.
Through the open gap, he could catch a glimpse of the crimson landscape enveloping the entire room, with flower arrangements placed everywhere.
That's when Mydei understood.
His pulse buzzed in his ears, raising a hand to try to ease his beating heart. Until he felt something beneath his clothes.
A letter.
When…?
Mydei envisioned his friend's feline smile as soon as he asked himself that question.
Of course.
Unfolding the paper, he began to read.
My dear Mydei,
I know you will read this letter after seeing my gift.
If all has gone well, your friend will have given this to you. I know I have no right to write this, yet I couldn't bear to run away from what I felt for you.
I know you thought I knew nothing about your situation with your heat. I apologize, for the gardens do face many windows with mouths.
I'm not as kind as you believe I am. Not a day goes by that I don't have nightmares imagining you in that man's embrace.
Loving you was easier than breathing. Faster than planting all those lilies. They are for you, so no one can catch your pheromones when you are vulnerable.
You don't deserve to be treated with only your omega traits in mind.
Mydei.
Mydeimos.
My adoration and love for you go beyond wanting to be with you. I'm desirous. I want you to be mine. I want you by my side every day. From dawn until dusk.
I know I have no right to say this to you like this, but forgive me, for being afraid is human.
I have a selfish request.
I want you to be selfish.
If you feel the same way, please, come find me behind the walls of Castrum Kremnos.
I will be waiting there for you. Then, I will say all of this again.
I love you. I will say it as many times as you want.
Forever yours,
Phainon.
Mydei's finger crumbled the paper.
He stood there, only hearing the sound of his own heart.
One, two, three seconds later, he slowly turned around. He saw the confused glances of his guards behind him as he placed the letter into one of his hands.
"Tell the king Castrum Kremnos no longer has a prince."
After that, Mydei began to run.