Dolls Chapter 2.6

As Noah gazed at Joy, his face soon flushed with a soft blush. Joy’s brow furrowed slightly at the sight of Noah’s shy expression, which he had never seen before. To think that someone who had pressed him so fiercely could show such a shy face. Joy bit his lip unconsciously.

“Are you… hungry?”

“……”

“I’ll tell Lionel to prepare some food.”

“Um…”

“Yes?”

“Are… AE70 hyung and… OE70 hyung… doing well?”

“They’re doing fine, of course.”

“……”

Feeling an inexplicable sense of unease in Noah’s responding expression, Joy closed his eyes again. His entire body felt as though it had been beaten. His body, pushed to its limits, was now screaming for relief.

“Haa…”

Joy let out a deep sigh unconsciously and closed his eyes again. Noah, who had been watching him, quietly picked up a damp cloth and left the room. When the sound of the door closing reached him, Joy opened his eyes again and stared into the void. An unfamiliar ceiling. But soon, it would become familiar.

“Dad…”

A tear rolled down his cheek.

“Seems like he’s awake?”

Behind Noah, who was carrying a tray with a damp cloth, another Noah spoke. The Noah holding the tray turned his head to confirm the speaker and said with a slightly flustered expression,

“Master…”

The Noah holding the tray was AE70. Having shed the clothes he wore at the lab and donned the same indoor attire as Noah, the two were indistinguishable in appearance.

Noah’s mind grew complicated as he looked at AE70. The fact that someone looked so identical to him was unsettling. The hobbies of the elite were truly incomprehensible. Though he himself was part of the elite, their abnormal self-obsession led them to create beings identical to themselves and have them mate to produce yet another version of themselves.

—Disgusting.

Noah thought as he watched AE70 approach him. The way AE70 raised one eyebrow and stared at him intently was irritating. He was probably trying to gauge what Noah was thinking. When their eyes met, AE70 gave a bland smile. But his eyes didn’t smile. Noah knew that expression all too well—the kind where only the corners of the mouth turned up, like a conditioned reflex.

“Thank you for allowing us to move around.”

AE70 said with a smile, and Noah nodded lightly. As the 70s began to eat small amounts of food and adjusted to the mansion, Noah had permitted them to leave their rooms and roam the estate. The space they could move in was limited, and he had set specific times so AE70 and OE70 wouldn’t cross paths, but the 70s were delighted with even that much.

“OE01 still seems tired.”

Noah smirked at AE70’s words. Tired… The word “tired” coming from AE70, who had seen Joy’s condition, felt strangely out of place. As an alpha born for “breeding,” AE70 must have known what had happened the previous night. He knew better than anyone that Joy wasn’t simply “tired” and lying there exhausted, yet he spoke cautiously, gauging Noah’s reaction.

“Not as stupid as I thought.”

Noah muttered under his breath, and AE70’s face stiffened for a moment.

It was strange. The master was supposed to be an object of admiration, an absolute being to follow no matter what. Yet every time Noah treated them with indifference, AE70 felt the urge to prove his worth. He wanted to say that he wasn’t someone Noah could dismiss as “stupid.”

Such a thing was unimaginable at the lab. The core of everything they had been taught since birth was “absolute loyalty to the master.” So why did he want to surpass his master? Why was he having such thoughts?

AE70 was confused. At first, he thought this feeling was a desire to be recognized by his master. But as time passed, he realized that wasn’t it. Appearance, voice, gait, expressions—everything about Noah was the same as his own. Looking at Noah, AE70 imagined erasing Noah’s face and superimposing his own.

With the same face, but in the place of the “real” one instead of the “fake,” it felt surprisingly fitting. From that moment, AE70 began observing Noah more closely, down to his smallest habits. Though they didn’t meet often, every time they did, AE70 studied him intently, practicing in front of a mirror to become more like Noah Saifried.

There was still one thing AE70 couldn’t understand. The master, Noah Saifried, was an ordinary person. So why did he carry the same pheromone scent as AE70? He wanted to ask, but there was never a chance.

AE70 took another step toward Noah. Seeing AE70 approach so boldly, unlike usual, Noah suppressed his confusion and asked calmly,

“What’s the matter?”

“…Master.”

“Yes.”

“Master… you’re an ordinary person, right?”

“And?”

“……”

“……?”

“Then why… do I keep smelling lavender?”

“What?”

“The same… pheromone scent as mine keeps coming from you.”

“……?”

“Offensively.”

At AE70’s words, Noah’s face hardened. It was shocking enough that he was told he carried a pheromone scent, but what did this alpha just say? Offensively?

“What’s with that tone?”

At Noah’s cold words, AE70 reverted to his usual docile expression. Looking flustered and rolling his eyes, AE70 bowed his head and said,

“I’m sorry, Master. I didn’t mean to…”

Noah glared at him with icy eyes before entering the room where Joy was. AE70’s hands, clutching the tray, trembled slightly.

“Offensive… pheromones…”

AE70 stared at the door Noah had entered before turning away.

Sitting beside Joy, who was sleeping with steady breaths, Noah reached out and gently brushed the brown hair falling over Joy’s forehead. The fine strands rustled between Noah’s pale, slender fingers.

Each time Joy breathed heavily, a faint osmanthus fragrance wafted out. Entranced by the scent, Noah buried his face in Joy’s chest. The steady thumping of Joy’s heart calmed Noah’s mind. Noah slipped under the covers, pulled Joy into his arms, and lay down.

As he stroked the hair brushing against his nose, Noah couldn’t help but smile, feeling as though he were holding a large puppy. When he tightened his embrace, Joy let out an “mm” and squirmed, burrowing deeper into Noah’s arms. Noah lifted his arm to gently rub Joy’s back. Closing his eyes and savoring the osmanthus scent, he continued to stroke Joy’s back for a long time. Joy’s heart, which had been beating steadily, began to quicken.

When Noah opened his eyes, he saw Joy’s face flushed red, his eyes darting around in confusion.

“Did you… sleep well?”

“…Yes.”

At Joy’s faint reply, Noah chuckled, and Joy, seeing him, trembled slightly again.

“You look like a wet puppy.”

Noah said in a calm voice, releasing Joy from his embrace. Joy froze, then realized he was wearing nothing and began looking around for his clothes. Watching him, Noah picked up the intercom in the room and gave some instructions. Servants entered with clothes and potato soup, placed them on the bedside table, and left.

“Put them on.”

Noah handed the clothes to Joy, who took them but only stared with a look of uncertainty.

“What’s wrong? Don’t you like the clothes?”

“It’s not that…”

When Noah pressed for an answer with a steady gaze, Joy spoke in a faint voice.

“I’ve never worn clothes like these before…”

“Ha!”

Noah laughed as if he found it absurd. Of course, he knew Joy had been wearing those white sack-like clothes. But since the researchers at the lab wore proper clothes, he assumed Joy would have some knowledge about them…

“You’ve seen them before.”

“……”

“If you’ve seen them, just put them on. Why are you hesitating? My alpha and omega wore them without complaint.”

At Noah’s words, Joy bit his lip. After staring at the clothes for a while, he finally slipped his legs into the pants. He trembled slightly at the unfamiliar pressure of the fabric against his legs, something he never felt with the loose, dress-like clothes from the lab. As he put his arms through the shirt and buttoned it up one by one, the trembling in his hands gradually subsided. Only after fully dressing did Joy let out a sigh of relief.

Watching him, Noah was reminded of someone familiar with the same face.

—Is it because of Joy Green’s genes?

Joy Green feared making mistakes as much as she prided herself on her high self-esteem. Or rather, she feared being caught making mistakes. Her temperament was evident in her dislike for challenges and her preference for proven paths. That was why her decision to actively participate in the genetic mutation experiment had surprised everyone.

This omega was surely nervous about making a mistake while wearing unfamiliar clothes. If Noah hadn’t been in the room, he probably would have tried them on without hesitation, even if he didn’t know how.

Noah smirked and handed Joy the soup. After staring at Noah’s hand for a while, Joy spoke as if something had just occurred to him.

“Is this ‘food’ something you eat with this?”

“With this?”

At Noah’s words, Joy waved the spoon in his hand. When Noah nodded, Joy scooped a spoonful of soup and put it in his mouth.

“It’s delicious.”

A tear fell from Joy’s smiling eyes.

Noah sat quietly, watching Joy until he finished the soup. Seeing Joy cry while eating the soup made Noah’s heart uneasy.

“Why are you crying?”

“……”

“You’ll get sick if you cry while eating.”

“…I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s not about apologizing to me. You’ll be the one hurting later.”

At Noah’s words, Joy stopped and looked up.

“Why are you crying, anyway?”

“……”

“Rest when you’re done eating. I’ll come back around evening.”

Noah took the bowl from Joy and left the room. Seeing Joy cry while eating the soup reminded him of Joy Green’s final moments. Memories of that day, which he thought he had forgotten, came rushing back like waves, and Noah’s blue eyes wavered.

[I’m sorry, Noah. Please… take care of Jay.]