⸻

In this world, power isn't just written in shares, contracts, or inheritance.

It lies in the breath between words.
In the silence before a command.
And sometimes—
In a nameless scent only few can sense, and fewer can control.

Pheromones.

A biological marker.
A primal instinct.
An invisible weapon used by Alphas to rule this world.

Joss Wayar was one of those Alphas.

He didn't need to shout.
Didn't need to assert dominance with theatrics.

Just one breath escaped from beneath his collar.
One cold glance under sterile boardroom lighting—
And the scent of amber laced with black pepper would be enough to freeze the room.

The air tightened.
People shifted in their seats without knowing why.
Avoided his eyes without realizing.

They just... felt fear.

Fear of something they couldn't name.

A scent both rich and suffocating.
Alluring.
Deadly.

That was Joss's pheromone.
The reason he was a predator perched at the very top of the food chain.

⸻

The First Encounter

Gawin stepped out of the elevator. His gaze landed on the glass doors etched with the golden WONGTHEP GROUP logo.

Top floor.

The seat of power.
Where every decision was made.
Where the one man he hated most was waiting.

He took a deep breath, straightened his tie, relaxed his shoulders—

And walked in.

The game had officially begun.

⸻

The room was cold. Pressurized.
One wall made entirely of glass looked out over Bangkok.
A long black conference table stood at the center, with a few neatly stacked folders at one end.

And Joss Wayar.

He sat at the head of the table, relaxed—
Yet radiating an overwhelming authority.

The lighting hit him just right, sculpting every sharp line of his face.
A face every finance magazine had dubbed "Thailand's youngest and most devastatingly handsome CEO."

But to Gawin, he was nothing but a shadow of the past.

Ten years.
More than ten years since he'd seen Joss this close again.

And Joss didn't recognize him.

Gawin smirked.
Good.

⸻

Joss skimmed through the résumé, voice slow and unhurried.

"Fluke Wichit Kittiwattanakul. Studied in the U.S., worked at Goldman Sachs, now back in Thailand. What made you apply to my company?"

Gawin stayed calm. Eyes steady.

"I wanted to challenge myself in my home country.
And I believe Wongthep is the most fitting place for that."

Joss arched a brow. "That sounds like a textbook answer."

Gawin didn't flinch.

"Doesn't mean I'm not serious."

Joss tapped his fingers on the table.

"You say you wanted a challenge in your homeland.
But with your background, you could've gone anywhere.
Why Wongthep?"

Gawin's reply was instant.

"Because I want to work under the best."

A pause.

Joss tilted his head slightly, something amused flickering in his eyes.

"And what makes someone 'the best'?"

Gawin met his gaze. Unwavering.

"I've followed your career since I was still in the States.
Your acquisition of Hansa last year—
Turning a doomed deal into a growth lever—
Proved your decisiveness.
I want to learn from someone like that."

A faint smile crossed Joss's lips.

Sharp.
Cocky.
Fearless.

This one was more interesting than he expected.

⸻

First Crack In The Mask

Joss leaned back, his stare probing—like he was trying to dissect Gawin's very structure.

"You have an MBA from Wharton?
Let's say I want to expand into fintech in Southeast Asia.
What would your approach be?"

No hesitation.

Analyze regional fintech trends.
Emphasize Wongthep Group's strengths.
Recommend acquiring a small but promising fintech firm rather than building from scratch.

Joss said nothing.

That answer was too perfect.
Suspiciously so.

⸻

The Moment of Doubt

The interview continued smoothly.
Too smoothly.

Joss stared at Gawin, eyes narrowing.

"This your first time applying to Wongthep?"

Gawin didn't blink.

"Yes."

Joss smirked.

"Funny. I feel like we've met before."

Beneath the table, Gawin's hand tightened.
But his smile didn't falter.

"I must have one of those faces."

Joss didn't reply.

This feeling was strange.

⸻

The Handshake – A Collision of Memory

Joss stood, extending a hand.

"That'll be all. You did well."

Gawin hesitated for half a second.

But there was no other choice.

He reached out—
Letting his hand meet Joss's.

⸻

At that moment—Joss froze.

A strange tremor ran through his body.

This feeling...

Too familiar.

As if he had held this hand before.

As if he had once gripped it tightly—
With a promise he never kept.

He didn't let go right away.

He gripped tighter.
His eyes darkened.

Gawin felt the heat radiating from Joss's palm—
But didn't pull away.

After a few seconds, Joss smirked, voice low.

"Well done, Fluke Wichit."

Gawin withdrew the second he could.

The game had officially begun.

⸻

The Decision – Joss's Final Call

An hour later, his secretary entered the room.

"Would you like to review the candidate list again?"

Joss was still staring at his hand.
The one that had just shaken Gawin's.

Just moments ago,
He had almost remembered something.

But it slipped away.
Like a ghost refusing to show its face.

He glanced down at the list.
His eyes landed on the name:

Fluke Wichit Kittiwattanakul.

He smirked.

"No need.
Hire him."

⸻

Wongthep Group – The New Assistant

The morning briefing ended.
Joss walked out of the boardroom, casually unbuttoning the top of his shirt as if brushing off some lingering dust of power plays.

Just another day.
Except today... was different.

The new assistant.

The man with the name Fluke Wichit Kittiwattanakul stood quietly outside the executive office, waiting to be shown in by the secretary.

Joss glanced at him—sharp, unreadable.
But deep inside, something stirred.

Was he really a Beta?

His scent was nearly nonexistent.
Barely even traceable.
A faint whiff of green tea—so light it dissolved into the sterile air of office walls and printer paper.

But then—

As Joss walked past him,
Something flickered.

Something deeper.

A warmth.
Sandalwood?
Ambergris?

Scents that didn't belong to a Beta.

He paused.

Just one second.

Gawin bowed politely. Calm. Perfectly composed.
Professional to the point of erasure.

Joss turned away and kept walking.

But something had started to shift.

⸻

The Subtle Unease

Gawin adjusted to his new role with lightning precision.
Within a week, he'd handled reports, financials, and partnership documents that would overwhelm three other people—and didn't complain once.

Joss noticed.

He noticed everything.

The way Gawin never entered the room without being called—
Yet always appeared the moment he was needed.

The way he avoided company parties with too many Alphas.
Avoid sitting too close to Omegas.
Avoid alcohol—the fastest trigger for exposed pheromones.

He kept a perfect distance.
Not warm. Not cold.
Left no scent behind,
And yet...
Made people want to sniff again—just to make sure they didn't miss something.

More than once, as evening shadows dimmed the office lights,
Joss stood behind his desk, watching Gawin organize files near the shelves.

And sometimes, a breeze from the air conditioner would pass between them.

And with it—
A scent.

Soft.
Fleeting.
Cold, like lavender in the rain.
Familiar, like a memory just out of reach.

He frowned.

No. Probably imagined it.

⸻

Breath Apart

One late evening, long after the office had emptied,
Joss stepped into the elevator.

Just before the doors closed, Gawin stepped in too.

Just the two of them.
Trapped in steel and silence.

No words.
No sound.

Just pheromones.

Joss didn't mean to release his.
But a trace of amber slipped out—reflexively, instinctively.

And then—
He saw it.

Gawin flinched.
Only slightly.
Only for a second.

He inhaled—slow, controlled.

Like holding something back.

And for a heartbeat—
The green tea vanished.

Replaced by something faint.

Ambergris.
Sharp rain.
A scent hidden deep beneath layers of nothingness.

Joss's eyes narrowed.

Like a predator sensing blood beneath a bandage.

"Betas don't respond to Alphas, do they?"
His voice low. Unhurried.

Gawin turned his head. Eyes met eyes.

"Are you questioning something already proven, sir?"

Joss didn't answer.

The elevator doors opened.

Cold air swept in.
And carried out a doubt that had yet to find its name.

⸻