Chapter Text
“Shift”
“Huh?” Jisung and Hyunjin both nervously snapped their eyes away from Minho at the door to look into Chan’s direction when the alpha addressed them over his shoulder.
“Shift” Chan ordered again, his voice hushed with a level of urgency threading through his tone “He seems to have an opinion about alphas. Which, quite frankly, I do not blame him for. But we don’t mean any harm and I would like for him to at least see that. So shift, shut up and sit down.”
“I’m not an alpha though” Hyunjin said softly but the death glare his alpha sent him over his shoulder was enough for the beta to gulp thickly, the elder’s gaze leaving no room for argument.
“Shut up and sit, yes sir.” the beta murmured softly.
Chan turned back around with an exasperated sigh and promptly lowered himself to sit cross legged on the floor, his posture relaxed and his eyes never leaving the omega who’s looming form was now approaching them as fast as his feet could carry him.
Jisung and Hyunjin quickly followed their leader’s example, shifting and sitting down close to him. The beta subconsciously pressed himself into Jisung’s side, a low tremor running under his skin as he watched Minho get closer. And when he felt Jisung’s arm snake around his waist, the young alpha’s calming sandalwood infiltrating his senses and overshadowing the white rose briefly, he felt himself relax into the gentle embrace. Even more so when he spotted his favourite mop of caramel hair eagerly trailing behind the approaching omega.
“What the hell are they doing here!?” Minho seethed as he skidded to a halt in front of them, the beta behind him holding onto his arm in an almost futile attempt to keep him somewhat grounded “You thought ‘oh, they’ve got their guard down so now’s the time to strike’? Because I promise you, pine , one fucking hair out of line and I will tear you and your lot to pieces and send you all down to hell where you and your kind belong. If you think me weak, I would highly suggest you take another look at your reflection!”
Wow. Jisung blinked, his eyes wide as he watched the omega speak in ways he had never even heard Hyunjin speak. The words coming out of his mouth, the tone in which he spoke, even his demeanour. All of it dripped of highly lethal venom and there was no doubt in his mind that the brunette meant every single word he was saying. Which on its own was terrifying.
But even with the poison slowly seeping into Jisung’s skin, the alpha was distracted by what he was looking at. Because there was absolutely no way that this… being… was from the same universe as him, let alone planet earth.
The way his eyes glittered like icicles as the sunrays illuminated his face. The way his wet hair hung in strands over his face, making him almost look ethereal with how the sun complimented the colour. And how every single inch of his face seemed like it had been sculpted by the delicate hands of the gods surrounding the galaxy.
The alpha was having a hard time comprehending how this was the same wolf that permanently scarred Chan’s face, the same wolf who was the reason Hyunjin was currently shaking beside him and the same wolf who could make such a beautiful flower smell so inherently dangerous.
“Hyung…” the caramel haired omega who was standing next to Minho, hesitantly grabbed the man’s wrist and pulled on it lightly “Please…”
“We’re not here to hurt you or any of your pack, roses ” Chan said calmly, his firm gaze on Minho never wavering “We’re here because, just like you, we’re worried about our own. Who, may I remind you, is inside of a cottage in an unknown territory which is housed by a very hostile omega. We don’t mean any harm”
“Then why did they come here?” Minho hissed as his head nodded into the direction of Jisung and Hyunjin “Not capable enough to watch over one measly pack member on your own?”
“Because I too have wolves in my pack who don’t know how to listen” Chan all but growled the words dangerously as he briefly glared at the duo behind him “I told them to stay in our territory, but they brought it upon themselves to disobey. They came in peace, bearing clothes. So that Changbin and I don’t go cold. In this sweltering heat. Isn’t that sweet?”
“Tight ship you run” Minho scowled.
“I don’t think you are in any position to lecture me about how I run my ship” Chan raised a mocking eyebrow “Lest we forget what has transpired the past couple of months, including today?”
Jisung saw Minho’s jaw pop with how hard he was clenching it and for some unexplainable reason he felt himself shift in his seat, wanting nothing more than to ease the tension the omega was feeling.
He blinked at the foreign and alarming thought, tearing his eyes away from the brunette and looking down to where he hadn’t realised that Hyunjin was all but squeezing the life out of his hand. He released a little more of his sandalwood scent, trying to keep it as warm and calm as he possibly could during this situation in an attempt to ease the beta before making the mistake of looking back up to where Minho was still standing.
Minho, whose hypnotising eyes were now fully zeroed in on him.
Jisung froze, feeling like the gaze he was under had shackled him to the ground, his body tensing as he cowered under the daggers that were being sent his way. And yet he couldn’t bring himself to look away from the icy gems staring him down. Unfiltered hostility aside, Minho was absolutely, breathtakingly and earth shatteringly beautiful to look at. And all Jisung found himself able to do was, indeed, look.
“Hyung…” the boy that was still holding onto the omega’s wrist spoke up again, slightly pulling on the man’s arm again to catch his attention.
“What?” Minho finally and begrudgingly shifted his gaze away from Jisung to look at him, releasing Jisung from the spell he had been under and causing him to exhale a breath he hadn’t even noticed he had been holding.
The boy looked from Minho to Hyunjin nervously and back, swallowing thickly.
“You’re scaring Hyunjin again…”
Minho glared at him for a few seconds before closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose and letting out a long and tired sigh.
“Go on then” he grumbled as he turned to look at Chan, his gaze unimpressed and the previous anger now simmering in the background and waiting to be unleashed.
“You’re going to have to be more specific” Chan smirked, fixing the omega with the same unimpressed death glare.
“You said they brought you clothes. Get dressed then” Minho scowled “I thought alphas were supposed to be smart? You’re not doing a great job at proving it”
Jisung could almost see the veins in Chan’s neck popping as the alpha tried to keep his cool, and who blamed him. Even Jisung felt a little offended by the statement, and he wasn’t even the one being scorched right now.
“If you think I’ll be turning my back to you, you’re gravely mistaken” Chan sneered coldly.
“He won’t do anything” The beta spoke up softly from where he was still firmly holding onto Minho’s arm who rolled his eyes at the words “We won’t let him, rest assured”
“I would love to take you for your word, but I don’t know you.” Chan said calmly, the coldness in his voice in which he had addressed Minho, briefly making way for a warmth that felt almost like whiplash “Respectfully”
“I understand that. Believe me, I do” the beta said again, a small awkward smile present on his lips as one of his hands found its way to his nape where he scratched the blonde strands at the underside of his hair “And you don’t have to turn around if you don’t want to. But I think maybe some clothes might be good even in the sun. You wouldn’t want to get burned just for waiting for your friend”
Jisung blinked, surprised at the kindness behind the beta’s words. He sounded sweet… which, for some reason, left the young alpha’s mind reeling. Because how, if Minho seemed so very cold, did he have pack members that seemed as warm as the sun was? Especially with how the both of them were so extremely comfortable and relaxed around him.
Jisung watched the omega carefully, his thoughts running rampant as he again found it hard to look away and tried with all his might to see something, anything, that would make any of it make sense.
“Chan…sir” The caramel haired omega spoke next, his mismatched eyes glittering in the sunlight as he eyed Chan carefully and his gaze flitting from the alpha to Hyunjin nervously.
“Please. Jeongin? Stop calling me sir” Chan chuckled softly “I am no sir and I am but a humble stray currently under your mercy. So please, just Chan is fine”
“Okay. uhm, Chan…?” Jeongin smiled sweetly as he shuffled a little closer to Minho shyly, pulling on the elder’s wrist to get his attention “So… If you can get dressed, maybe we can all sit and just talk? Clear the air?”
“I’m not sitting anywhere, Innie” Minho almost growled as he looked at the young omega from the corner of his eyes.
“God, you are stubborn” Chan sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
“And you are unwelcome, yet here we are” Minho snapped, his lip curling up into a silent and manic snarl.
“Hyung, please…” Jeongin urged again “Maybe Changbin will also like his clothes, for when Lix wakes up?”
Minho continued to look at Chan for a couple of silent seconds, dismay dripping off of his face before he finally sighed and rolled his eyes.
“Just get dressed” He waved his hand into the trio’s direction “I’m not going to do anything, but I’m also not going to take my eyes off you. Face me or don’t, whatever helps you sleep at night, just get it over with”
Jisung watched as Minho addressed them, his unrelenting and distrustful eyes flitting between Chan and him like a hawk on a mission. And it was then that he realised the meaning of what Chan had said when the omega had walked out of the cottage earlier.
‘He seems to have an opinion about alphas’
The words rang true as he noticed that the omega was paying Hyunjin a lot less mind then he was the two alphas. Which sparked a newfound curiosity with Jisung’s core. That going paired with the fact that Minho also looked downright exhausted underneath all the hostility that was exuding from his frame.
The bags under his eyes were painfully prominent and despite the fire in his eyes, he looked like he hadn’t properly slept in days. And for some inexplicable reason, the mere idea sent an uncomfortable pang to shoot through Jisung’s heart. Sympathy spreading under his skin like wildfire. Because how much stress would Minho have to be under for him to look so tired? Had Hyunjin been right all along for defending him the way that he had?
Was there more to him than what they were led to believe this whole time?
“Sungie”
Jisung blinked, realising he had been staring at Minho for far too long with the omega in question staring right back at him, ice blue eyes filled with defiance burning a hole through his skull.
He swallowed thickly and tore his eyes away from him to face Hyunjin who had bumped him on the shoulder, humming in response to whatever it was that had been said which he had so blatantly missed.
“Come on, let’s get dressed…” Hyunjin said again and Jisung noticed that in front of him, Chan had already gotten up and was slowly dressing himself whilst still facing Minho. And the tension that hung in the air was so high strung that Jisung could almost see the sparks flying, ready to ignite a blazing fire that would take down the entire world.
He quickly reached for his pouch, fumbling with the strings as he felt Hyunjin stand up to get himself dressed as well before finally managing to get his own clothes and standing up awkwardly.
He felt like a bird in a cage with the way he could feel Minho’s eyes burning onto his skin, watching him almost like he was waiting for the other shoe to drop. And for some reason it made him feel extremely self conscious about how he looked. But the alpha believed that anyone who would be granted the time of day by someone who looked like Minho, would become very self aware. Not that Jisung believed that he looked bad at all, especially with all the love and confidence building compliments he received from his pack. But when one grew up with parents like Jisung’s, thoughts like these were sometimes unavoidable no matter how hard you tried to shake them.
He tried swallowing away the feeling of blood rushing to his face, hoping furiously that it wouldn’t reflect in his cheeks and when he looked up and consequently met the omega’s eyes, he knew that he had failed.
Minho was looking at him with an unreadable expression, his eyebrows drawn together ever so lightly and yet again Jisung found himself looking away nervously. The trio got dressed rather quickly, considering the fact that they didn’t have a lot of clothes to begin with and when they were done, the level of awkward tension reached a new high with how they just stood around each other. Mainly thanks to the fact that Minho’s attention was back on Chan and the two pack leaders were glaring daggers at each other and trying to see who would drop dead first.
Quite frankly, Jisung was a little tired of the animosity. And it had only been a few minutes since the omega had reached them. He knew Chan was stubborn, but this was something else entirely.
Granted, if Jisung were to face a person who maimed his face in the way Minho did Chan’s, he wouldn’t be as calm as his pack alpha was at the moment. It was quite impressive.
The young alpha’s eyes wandered around, trying his best to avoid looking at Minho, as he finally allowed himself to take in the clearing and the cottage. The area Minho’s pack lived in was, for a lack of better words, quite spectacular. Both the clearing and cottage were bigger than their own, with a select few sporadic trees decorating the grounds which was entirely covered in grass and beautiful flowers which cast an almost magical hue over the area with how the sun illuminated the area.
It looked peaceful. Like something worth protecting.
His eyes then found the two remaining wolves that were standing behind the omega. The brown and blond haired beta, who was still gripping onto Minho’s arm as his twinkling black eyes continued to curiously look between the three of them before landing on Chan somewhat nervously. And then there was Jeongin, who Jisung found staring right past everyone else and right at Hyunjin with something akin to longing and desperation in his eyes.
He looked like he was itching to let go of his pack leader. And Hyunjin wasn’t faring much better with how tightly he was holding onto Jisung’s hand as he too continued to look at Jeongin in the same way.
It hurt a little to see how obvious they were being.
“Innie” The beta spoke up after what felt like aeons, tearing his eyes away from Chan and looking past Minho to his friend “Can you, like, I don’t know. Introduce us? I think you might know the most out of all of us.”
At the words, Minho’s jaw clenched so unbearably hard that Jisung was scared the man was going to break his teeth and he noticed how hard the omega was trying not to bite his tongue clean off. But even Minho must have been aware that an introduction was unavoidable in this situation, no matter how much he most obviously despised the idea.
And with how Jeongin didn’t waste a beat before jumping into action, led Jisung to believe that the young omega had been waiting for someone to ask this exact thing of him. He finally let go of Minho’s wrist and before the latter could even react or try to stop him, the younger was already standing next to Hyunjin and slipping his hand into the beta’s free one with the cutest hopeful smile on his face as he nodded at the elder reassuringly.
Hyunjin allowed Jeongin to carefully pull him forwards until the both of them were standing in between the two packs, hands firmly intertwined as Hyunjin pressed himself into the omega’s side the closer they got to Minho. And it was very unnerving to see the usually feisty and stubborn Hyunjin reduced to a scared, nervous wreck. All because of one omega. An omega who’s eyes were now glaring daggers at Jeongin and Hyunjin’s locked hands like if he willed it hard enough, the two of them would let go of each other.
But Jeongin seemed at least almost as stubborn as Hyunjin’s usual self, and he wasn’t scared of Minho. Not even a little. There was definitely respect there, and love and admiration. But in this moment there was no fear, and Jisung reckoned that even with his own pack Minho had the capacity to be scary much like Chan was with them.
Though, what surprised the young alpha the most was that Jeongin also didn’t seem scared of Chan who, contrary to Minho, was looking at the two with an amused and fond glint in his eyes. The contrast was almost comical with how uncomfortable Minho was and how Chan was taking everything and everyone by stride except for whenever his eyes landed on the other pack leader.
Jisung slowly stepped forward as well, staying close to his alpha and sending the brunette beta next to Minho a shy little smile when their eyes met. And when the beta smiled back, it was like the sun reflected in the boy’s face. His smile was beautiful. So warm and welcoming even with his nerves still visible under the surface. And for some reason, the boy reminded Jisung of a little puppy.
“Okay, so. I’m Jeongin, our pack’s youngest…” Jeongin’s voice pulled Jisung’s attention back to the duo standing in the middle of them, the boy gesturing towards Minho as he continued his introductions “And you all already know Minho hyung, I assume. He’s our leader and I promise he’s not as scary as he looks”
At the words, Minho’s lip trembled into a silent snarl as he stared down Jeongin disapprovingly before averting his eyes with a displeased huff.
“And this is our beta, Seungmin hyung” Jeongin smiled happily as he pointed towards the beta who offered a shy little wave, his other hand still firmly on Minho’s arm “And then there is Felix who’s inside with Changbin. Maybe when his heat is over he can introduce himself too”
Jeongin turned to face Hyunjin, eyes twinkling happily as he gave him another little encouraging nod after which the beta seemed to relax ever so lightly as he watched Jeongin with a small smile before finally turning to face Minho and Seungmin.
“Hi, it is nice to finally meet you. Innie and Lixie have told us a lot about you” He said shyly as he nervously played with Jeongin’s fingers “Uhm. I’m Hyunjin, Jeongin’s friend from the orchard, which you probably all know about by now. And this is out pack leader Chan and youngest alpha, Jisung”
Jisung bowed his head in greeting shyly, his eyes coming back up to meet Minho’s who was again staring right back at him. He swallowed thickly and tried offering a little smile but somewhere in his brain he could only imagine it looking more like a grimace with how his nerves just wouldn’t shut up and leave him alone.
“It is nice to finally meet you too” Seungmin spoke up “I know the circumstances are not the most ideal but I think it’s progress”
The beta said the last few words whilst facing Minho who sent him an unimpressed glare before rolling his eyes again. The omega definitely wasn’t trying to hide the fact that he absolutely did not want any of them here and it was obvious that he was ‘tolerating’ their presence because of Felix.
“It is nice to meet you, Seungmin” Chan said kindly as he sent the beta a gentle smile. Seungmin nodded bashfully and looked down at the ground, a little frown present on his face. And for a split second, Jisung found the beta extremely endearing. He wondered if he was always like this or if it was because of the fact that there were strangers around.
“Shall we all sit?” Jeongin asked carefully as he eyed Minho with that same hopeful glint in his eyes. But before Minho could protest again, Seungmin was already pulling him down with a stern and pleading look on his face.
“Nothing is going to happen or change if you sit, hyung” He said softly as a grumbling Minho allowed the beta to lead him into a seating position “Let’s all just talk it out and clear the air? One step at a time”
And once they did, both Hyunjin, Jeongin and Chan quickly followed, leaving Jisung to look around awkwardly as he held onto the pouch which still held Changbin’s clothes.
“Uhm…” Jisung swallowed when everyone shifted their attention to him. Everyone except Minho and Chan who’s glaring competition was about to ignite an electrical storm “What about Changbin hyung’s clothes?”
“Oh, uhm. Hyung?” Seungmin blinked before looking at Minho with a questioning gaze.
“You bring them. Jeongin stays here where I can see him” he said sternly and Seungmin nodded in response before quickly getting back up to his feet to take the pouch from Jisung.
“It’s not like I’m going to run off. Where would I even go?” the caramel haired omega rolled his eyes.
“You should have asked yourself that 4 months ago” Minho growled and Jeongin flinched, a little whimper accompanying the pout on his lips as he snuggled a little closer to Hyunjin.
“Sorry…” he said softly.
Minho sighed deeply and rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly as Jisung handed over the pouch to Seungmin with a little bow, sending him another small smile when the beta thanked him before turning and hurrying towards the cottage.
“Is he always this high strung?” Chan asked Jeongin with an amused glint in his eyes as he motioned his head into Minho’s direction.
“Do you want a matching scar, pine?” Minho sneered “Don’t tempt me”
“Meow” Chan smirked devilishly and Jisung could have sworn that Minho’s eyes flashed red for the briefest of seconds, sending a shiver down the young alpha’s spine before he finally decided to sit down and join the rest in silence. His eyes never leaving the omega who he had heard so much about and who was finally in front of him, burnt white rose penetrating the area dangerously and face mesmerizingly beautiful in a way Jisung never would have expected from the man.
Unnerving was an understatement.
--
Rain. Morning dew. The river running behind the cottage. The soft ocean waves which always reminded him of lemon, oranges and tangerines. The colour blue that carried along so much peace and warmth.
All of it was enveloping Felix like a warm blanket in the darkness he had found himself in, the pain in his stomach but a soft whisper in the back of his being and the turmoil in his heart no longer suffocating him as he allowed the soft dewy rain scent to submerge him into bliss.
Whatever dream it was that was blessing him in this moment, was one he wished not to wake up from. Strong arms carefully holding onto him, soft warmth radiating into his already overheated body and a lullaby so soft that it threatened to lul the omega into a deeper sleep.
And due to not wanting to wake up, not wanting the lovely rain scent to dissipate, the warmth to leave him cold and the waves to stop rolling into the shore, Felix took longer than he should have to realise the lullaby wasn’t one he recognized. It wasn’t his mother’s song that Minho always hummed for him. It wasn’t even Minho’s voice that was surrounding him. And yet the voice was so familiar, so soft and so comforting that he found himself snuggling closer to it.
And then the voice abruptly halted mid melody.
A soft, involuntary whine escaped Felix’s lips when the lullaby fell away and before he could stop himself, he let his eyes crack open just the tiniest bit. Which he instantly came to regret due to the harsh sunlight illuminating the area brightly enough to temporarily obscure his view. He quickly squeezed his eyes shut again and turned his face away from the light, burying it deeper into something firm and warm. The same thing that had been enveloping him in his dream. The same thing that smelled so very much like the rain.
“Felix?”
Felix found himself relaxing into the warmth when Changbin’s voice hit his ears, vibrating through his entire frame as they were spoken. The alpha had come for him just like in his last dream. And this time he didn’t want to wake up from it. He didn’t want him to disappear.
“Lix, can you hear me?”
Felix hummed softly, his eyebrows furrowing together ever so lightly.
“Don’t wake me up… I don’t want you to leave again” he croaked softly, his voice grating against the walls of his throat like sandpaper. And it hurt. But dreams weren’t supposed to hurt like this, were they?
He swallowed painfully and wormed himself closer into the embrace when a pair of strong arms tightened their grip around his body and he sighed contently.
“Lix, I’m not going anywhere” Changbin said again, his lips pressing into Felix’s hair. And Felix hummed again, a soft smile decorating his face as he leaned into the touch ever so lightly.
“But Lix, if you can hear me, I need you to wake up” Changbin said softly “I won’t go anywhere, I promise. I’m never letting you out of my sight ever again…”
Felix let out a soft whine, feeling his eyes burn as he shook his head weakly.
“Lix” Changbin whispered, one of his hands coming up to gently card through the pink locks on Felix’s head, threatening to lul the younger back to sleep “Look at me”
Felix shook his head again, feeling the tears rise up his throat and constrict his lungs. He didn’t want to wake up. Last time he did, all that awaited him was pain and emptiness and sorrow. The only difference between the dream on the beach and now was that in this dream he was already in pain. His throat hurt and he could feel the soft simmer of cramps radiating through his stomach like a fire that had been extinguished and only the tiny embers remained. Nothing even remotely nears as bad as it had been during the morning when Minho had held onto him much like Changbin was doing now, but there nonetheless.
“Felix, I need you to look at me” Changbin urged again, his lips and nose briefly pressing into Felix’s hair again as he spoke before he leaned back to try and catch a glimpse of the younger’s face. And Felix whined at the loss of contact. He sniffled lightly before inhaling the warm and soft dewy rain scent deeply, fearing that it too would disappear as soon as he allowed his senses to return to him, and carefully blinked his eyes open after a couple of seconds.
He slowly let his eyes adjust to the light, sun rays filtering through and allowing the young omega to take in his surroundings. He noticed that he hadn’t been on the beach at all, instead he found himself in his room. But he was still surrounded by the ocean. Still enveloped in warmth and still being held onto like he was made out of glass.
His eyebrows furrowed together lightly and he slowly tilted his head upwards, only to be met by the most breathtaking black eyes to ever grace planet earth looking back at him fondly. He swallowed again, his throat protesting against the dryness as he took in every inch of Changbin’s face, his bottom lip trembling ever so lightly.
“See” the alpha spoke softly as he reached out to wipe the tears that had started running down Felix's face “I’m still here. And I’m not going anywhere”
“Am I dead…?” The omega whispered softly, the words burning as he tried to comprehend what he was seeing.
“You better not be” Changbin chuckled lightly “Or else I am too. I don’t think anyone wants that. Maybe Minho but I think he’ll come around eventually… I’d like to believe that me being here is progress”
The alpha let out a small sigh, his gaze softening as he gently ran his hand over the omega’s cheek and forehead in an attempt to push some of the younger’s hair away from his face. And for a split second, Felix was at a loss. What did he mean by ‘being here’. The omega refused to believe that Changbin was actually here, holding him and talking to him like he had been on that beach. That his delirious and pain riddled mind wasn’t playing tricks on him just to have him fall back into hell after being fooled.
“Don’t you remember what happened?” Changbin asked as he searched Felix’s eyes for a few seconds, noting the confusion that had taken over his features and the omega could see the worry swirling around in his eyes.
“Remember…?” Felix frowned lightly and when he opened his mouth again to ask what the elder meant, images of him all but forcing Seungmin to take him outside flashed through his brain. Images of how Seungmin had tried to bring him back inside after a while of Felix’s condition just getting worse and then images of the massive aegean wolf breaking into the clearing and Felix barreling into him before the world around him fell away.
Felix had gone outside because in his dream on the beach, Changbin had told him to go to him if he wanted to have him. And then Changbin had actually shown up. It hadn’t been a mirage. It hadn’t been a figment of his imagination and it hadn’t been a dream. When that thunderstorm rolled in and Felix had buried his nose into the scent gland only to be met by the scent the had been missing at that beach, he knew that it was real. Changbin had managed to find him and right now, Felix wasn’t dreaming either. The alpha was really here, holding onto him and looking at him and touching him in ways Felix had believed the man never would. Drowning him in that petrichor that he had come to love so much, that he had come to rely on too much.
Like the ocean waves glittering like aegean jewels in the sun, Changbin’s light was shining at him and the alpha was within reach.
When the realisation hit, a soft sob escaped Felix’s lips and he scrambled to wrap his arms around the elder desperately. Ignoring how his hands tried to grab onto every inch of the alpha’s bare skin. Ignoring how he himself was drenched from top to bottom in sweat. Even ignoring the pain that the sobs, which were now freely tearing through his frame, were causing his throat to burn even worse. The only thing that mattered right now was the fact, the undeniable fact, that Changbin was here. With him, surrounding him, seeping into Felix’s every pore.
“Hey hey, shhh. It’s okay” Changbin said softly as he allowed Felix to climb closer, holding onto him gently with one hand cradling the back of the younger’s head “You’re okay. I’m not leaving you, Lix. I’m so sorry I ever left you in the first place”
Felix continued to cry, allowing Changbin to gently rock him back and forth until the sobs finally quieted down enough and he was but a sniffling bundle of sweat and dried tears in the alpha’s arms.
“How are you feeling?” Changbin asked after a couple of minutes, his hand gently carding through the younger’s hair. And Felix sighed deeply, his whole body heaving with the movement before he raised his hand to his throat.
“Water…” he said softly before trying to swallow again, a pained wince following the movement.
“Ofcourse” Changbin breathed before leaning over, his grip on the omega never faltering as one of his arms reached to grab the cup of water on the bedside table before slowly lifting the cup up to the omega’s mouth.
“Drink slowly, okay?” He said softly and Felix complied obediently, allowing Changbin to help him drink as his arms continued to rest around the elder’s torso lazily. And to both his and Changbin’s surprise, Felix emptied the whole cup with careful sips as his body refused the idea to stop drinking. Almost like it had been begging for the liquid.
“You feeling okay?” Changbin asked carefully as he placed the empty cup back on the table “How’s your stomach? If it starts hurting, try to let me know yeah? Minho left the pail right here next to the bed”
“I’m okay” Felix said softly, revelling in how much better his throat already felt after drinking the water “Thank you, hyung”
“Don’t thank me” Changbin shook his head lightly, his eyebrows pulled together into a small frown “I haven't done anything”
“You’re here…” Felix smiled, his eyes fluttering shut happily as he snuggled a little closer into the alpha’s chest “That’s more than enough”
And as he inhaled another lungfull of soft dewy petrichor, allowing himself to relax into the alpha’s embrace, something in his brain abruptly clicked into place as he realised the position he was currently in.
Felix’s eyes shot open, his heart rate speeding up dangerously as he felt the blood rush to his face. He let out a shaky breath before slowly pushing himself away from the alpha, turning to face him and letting his eyes roam the man’s figure and face in confusion.
“Wha--how.. How are you… what are” he stammered as he tried to scoot away shyly, mentally berating himself for being so out of it that he hadn’t even fully grasped the fact that not only was Changbin with him in his room. But he was as naked as a newborn foal and Felix had been curled up against him like a lost pup, sweaty and shameless and without a single care in the world. No matter how close he believed to have gotten to the alpha, this was crossing so many so many undiscussed borders at it sent his mind reeling.
Felix could feel his heartbeat thumping in his ears when the sudden movement caused him to sway ever so lightly, something that of course didn’t go unnoticed by the alpha who’s already worried face gained a whole new level of concern as he reached out to hold onto the omega’s arm, his other hand coming around the younger’s waist again.
“Don’t move” he chided gently “You are in no position to move, just… stay? I’ll explain everything that I can, okay? But just don’t move, your body’s been through enough already. Give it some rest.”
And maybe it was because he indeed felt too weak to protest or because there was nothing else in the world he wanted more than to stay within the comfortable confines of Changbin’s arms, but when the alpha carefully pulled him back, Felix allowed him to be guided back into Changbin’s chest quietly. He could feel the blood pumping violently fast through his veins, his face heating up when he made contact with the firm frame he had been previously curled up against as he nervously balled his hands into fists.
“Please don’t be so shy around me, Lix” Changbin’s hand found the younger’s cheek, tilting his head until he was facing him “You, of all people, don’t have to be shy around me. Ever. Okay?”
Felix met the alpha’s gaze, feeling himself slipping, falling deeper and deeper into the ocean that was Changbin as he allowed himself to drown in those beautiful gemstone black eyes before nodding slowly.
“I’m sorry… I just--” The omega bit his lip nervously “I don’t understand. How are you here? How did you find me”
“Actually. It’s Innie and Minho that found me” Changbin said with a gentle smile and Felix’s face must have shown his confusion for the alpha chuckled lightly.
“It’s a little complicated and a lot to explain” He smiled guiltily, a shade of pink dusted across his cheeks “And I promise I want to explain, but I think Chan hyung might be better equipped to do so, maybe even Minho since he seems to understand more than I do. But before that…”
Changbin ran his hand over Felix’s face, brushing away some strands of hair as worry took over his deep dark eyes again.
“I need to know how you’re feeling” He said softly “Because Lix, you scared the crap out of all of us. You collapsed like a sack of potatoes in my arms and I swear, I have never felt fear like that in my life. And then Minho told me that you haven’t been able to eat properly in days… He’s worried sick about you--”
A knock at the door interrupted the alpha’s words and the way Felix’s mind had been spinning in circles at the spoken words as he tried to comprehend any of it. Because Felix knew how the past two days had gone for him. How he had been missing Changbin so much that his body refused to keep anything down and then how his heat hit and he got so blinded by the pain that the events of the morning were nothing but a jumbled memory of excruciating torture. Agony which was now nowhere to be found, reduced to a light buzz in the bottom of his stomach. There but barely. Comfortable in a way that made it seem almost comical and made Felix almost feel like he had been imagining the pain in the first place.
If it hadn’t been for the vivid memories of his stomach convulsing at the mere idea of food and water, the omega would have thought that he was going insane with how the water he had just downed like a parched cat was not bothering him in the slightest. And to make matters worse, when the soft scent of cinnamon reached his nose after the door was carefully pushed open, his stomach rumbled and then growled loudly, embarrassingly so, and made everyone in the room freeze.
Felix let out a soft and embarrassed whine and turned his face to hide it in the crook of Changbin’s neck, feeling his face heat up again as he heard Seungmin’s footsteps walk into the room.
“Please tell me that that was Felix…” the beta spoke carefully and when Felix felt Changbin nod softly, the beta let out a relieved sigh “For the love of… You have no idea how glad I am to hear that commign front you, Lix”
Felix grumbled lightly, turning his face ever so lightly to send Seungmin a one eyed glare. But seeing the beta standing a few feet away from the bed, a pouch firmly grasped in his hand, sent a rush of guilt to wash over the younger as he remembered the events that had transpired in the clearing and the days prior.
“Minnie…” He whimpered softly as he reached out his hand, refusing to let go of Changbin but also wanting the oh so comfortable and oh so familiar cinnamon closer. And the beta didn’t hesitate to step closer, his free hand wrapping around Felix’s carefully “Minnie, I’m so sorry”
“Hey, no” Seungmin said softly “No apologising. Though, I don’t really know what you are apologising for. But I don’t want to hear it”
“But you fell because of me…” Felix pouted.
“Yeah, because I was scared and didn’t listen” Seungmin confessed, his eyes nervously flitting to Changbin “I didn’t understand what was happening and didn’t listen. So I’m the one that should be sorry”
Felix shook his head as he frowned up at the beta disapprovingly.
“Can’t you just let me apologise in peace?” he quipped heatedly “It’s not just about that, it’s everything of the past two days… I’m really sorry for pushing you away”
Seungmin looked between him and Changbin again before letting out a soft sigh and shaking his head.
“You shouldn’t blame yourself for any of that, Lix” he said fondly as he gently squeezed the younger’s hand “You are allowed to want what you want and feel what you feel, especially during your heat. Your wants are more important than anybody else's feelings, you hear me? Plus, none of it bothered me anyway. The only thing that broke my heart was seeing you in so much pain and not being able to do anything about it or help you in whatever way you needed. But you seem to be doing a lot better now. At least you’re no longer crying and that’s a relief”
“I am feeling better for some reason” Felix nodded softly as he sent Seungmin a soft smile “The pain is less than what I am usually used to. I don’t understand why it had gotten so bad in the first place…”
“And you are not to blame for that because you couldn’t have known” Seungmin said softly, his thumb caressing the back of the younger’s hand as he moved to carefully sit down on the edge of the bed “Hyung will explain everything when you are feeling better, okay?”
“Where is he? I want--” Felix breathed, feeling a lump form in his throat as his hand instinctively found his neck, vaguely remembering how Minho’s teeth had put him under and allowed him to dream of the beach “I want Minho…”
He let out a soft and heartbreaking whimper, causing both Seungmin and Changbin to shift in their spots lightly. The alpha tightening his grip around his waist as his nose and lips pressed comfortingly into Felix’s hair and Seungmin’s hand coming up to wipe away a stray tear that had run down the omega’s cheek.
“I’ll go get him for you” Seungmin nodded with a warm smile on his face “Do you want me to tell him to bring some food too?”
“Uhm” Felix pondered the question for a little bit. While he was undeniably feeling hungry, which is more than he could have said the past two days, he also felt extremely sticky and wanted nothing more than a bath to clean the sweat off of his skin and to get himself out of these clothes. But the idea of leaving Changbin’s side didn’t sit well with him either for some reason. All embarrassment and confusion of the comfortable proximity aside, the way the alpha was bringing him so much peace in this moment was something he wouldn’t trade for the world.
“It’s okay, Lix” Changbin said softly, his hand running through the younger’s hair “Anything that you want, we’ll get. You are the number one priority right now”
Felix found himself smiling shyly, snuggling a little closer to Changbin as he looked at Seungmin who nodded in agreement to the elder’s words.
“I think…” He spoke up shyly after a few seconds “I think I want to take a bath first, I feel disgusting”
“Okay” Seungmin smiled sweetly “I’ll get Minho for you and then I’ll run a bath. Just don’t go outside, okay?”
“I won’t let him” Changbin smiled at the beta reassuringly and Felix frowned, leaning back to look up at the alpha and then back to Seungmin.
“If I want to go outside, I’ll go outside” he grumbled defiantly. Who were they to tell him what he was or wasn’t allowed to do? Not in this day and age and definitely not in Minho’s house.
“No, you won’t. Unless you want Minho to murder our guests” Seungmin chuckled lightly.
“I’m sorry… what?” Felix blinked. Guests? What guests? What the hell was going on?
“Did you really think I came here alone?” Changbin smiled down at him lovingly, his fingertips gently brushing over the younger’s cheek.
“You… what?” Felix frowned and let out a frustrated huff “Okay. Someone needs to start explaining things right the fuck now”
“When we came here, Chan was with us” Changbin said softly, a guilty little smile on his face “He’s probably downstairs because knowing him, he would never leave me here on my own”
“Chan is here!?” Felix exclaimed as he shot up right and stared at the alpha in disbelief before turning to Seungmin for confirmation. He could already imagine the bloodbath happening just at the mere idea “Is he okay? What about Minho? Did anyone die?”
“Nobody’s dead, yet. And actually…” the beta spoke up with a small chuckle “They’re all here. Hyunjin and Jisung? I think their names were? They just arrived too. Everyone is outside and it’s all civil for now. Or as civil as can be, at least”
“Wait, what?” Changbin frowned “Seriously?”
“Jinnie hyung is here!?” Felix gaped before trying to move away from Changbin and Seungmin to try and get out of the bed “I wanna see him!”
“Oh absolutely fucking not” Changbin pulled him back and held him down against his chest “Need I remind you that you are an unmated omega in heat? What’s the plan here, Lix? Go out there and have them get territorial over you? I don’t know about you but I am not in the mood to fight my own alpha over you. You are too pretty and he is too strong.”
'Because I don’t want him around any other alphas, Felix is way too pretty for anyone else’s eyes'
Changbin’s words from that night echoed through Felix’s brain as if on que and immediately he felt his face flush dangerously as he allowed Changbin to hold him down against his chest, all fight and protest leaving his body and wafting up into the air. He swallowed thickly and settled down, his eyes finding Seungmin’s face who was looking at the alpha with poorly concealed disgust and a hint of amusement.
“That was… wauw” The beta breathed as he rolled his eyes playfully. And for a second it looked like he wanted to say something else but he clamped his mouth shut and flared his nostrils before deflecting “I am going to go now. Changbin-ssi, Jisung and Hyunjin brought you some clothes. Which is why I came up here in the first place”
He waved around the pouch in his hands and placed it down on the floor next to the bed as Changbin gave him a small thanks before turning to face Felix again, reaching out to brush the back of his fingers over the younger’s cheek.
“I’ll go and get Minho for you so you can go and take that bath” he said fondly “and then we’ll try to finally get some food into you, okay?”
Felix nodded shyly, a soft smile on his face as he leaned into the elder’s touch.
“Thank you hyung” he said softly.
“No. Thank you for coming back to us” Seungmin smiled before getting up and dusting his hands on his pants. He walked towards the door and paused, turning back to face the duo on the bed who were all but melted into each other, the alpha gently caressing Felix’s face who was looking up at him fondly. And at the sight, a grateful smile made its way onto the beta’s face.
“For what it’s worth. It is really nice to meet you, Changbin-ssi” he said with a soft bow to the head “Thank you for coming here”
“It’s nice to finally meet you too, Seungmin-ssi” Changbin smiled back at him, mirroring the bow as much as his position allowed him to.
With the words, the beta turned and left the room, Felix watching him go and letting out a little sigh before melting deeper into Changbin’s chest.
“I’m really glad you’re here” he spoke up after a couple of silent minutes “even though I don’t really understand how you managed to get Minho to agree to any of this, I’m still glad that you are. I really missed you, you know. You and Jinnie hyung”
“I know” Changbin answered as he continued to run his hand over the younger’s hair comfortingly “Believe me I know. I missed you too, Lix. More than you probably understand right now”
Felix smiled happily, his face heating up again as he allowed the warm petricor surrounding him to relax him, a low and steady purr radiating through his chest. And in response, he heard that same rumbling sound coming from Changbin as he had heard on the night they had eaten the strawberry pie, the two sounds mixing together like a peaceful melody and threatening to lul Felix back to sleep.
“You’re so warm” the omega sighed contently after a while “Thank you for keeping me company”
“Thank you for letting me” Changbin replied sweetly “I’m already glad that your own temperature has significantly lowered in comparison to what it was when I came here. I swear, I thought your blood had turned into lava”
“You tend to have that effect on me…” Felix blurted out softly, not realising what he had said until the words had already been spoken. But before he could react to his own embarrassment, Changbin beat him to the punch.
“That makes two of us…” the alpha said softly and Felix felt his heartbeat speed up at the words, suddenly reminding him of that night 2 months ago when Changbin had hugged him and almost scented him. About how he had decided that he was going to try and be brave and tell him how he felt about the alpha.
None of that resolve had changed, since Felix still felt the same way. But for some reason, the nerves had come back full force after spending so much time away from Changbin. The fear of the alpha rejecting him had taken the forefront of his mind, especially with how Felix was quite enjoying being in the man’s arms.
Though, staying like this didn’t feel right. It made Felix feel like he was taking advantage of the alpha whilst being in such a vulnerable state. And that was the absolute last thing he wanted.
“Hyung, I--”
“Lix, I--”
They both paused before erupting into a fit of shy giggles, Felix letting out a soft sigh and pushing himself away from Changbin’s chest in order to face him properly.
“Is that what our friendship is going to be like, constantly talking at the same time?” he chuckled and all but melted at the sweet smile Changbin was giving him in return.
“You go first” The alpha encouraged as he too sat up and reached out to take Felix’s cheek in his hand, the younger instinctively leaning into the touch as he collected the courage from every corner of his being.
“There is something…” Felix started, his hands curling into fists on his lap nervously “There is something I need to tell you. I wanted to tell you that day when we played in the river and then the next day before Minho found us. And I don’t want you to think I kept it a secret to mess with you! I was just… nervous. And scared”
He looked up at Changbin with a small pout, the alpha shaking his head ever so lightly and encouraging Felix to continue. The younger briefly bit his lip and swallowed thickly.
“The thing is” he continued carefully, his eyes falling down and focusing on his hands “I think that I-- No. I know that I, uhm. Jeez. This is a lot harder that I thought”
He chuckled nervously and shook his head to try and clear his jumbled thoughts, his heart beating so loud in his ears that he could barely hear himself think and both Changbin’s soft dewy rain scent spiking and the tug in his chest suddenly pulling at his heart didn’t help the situation at all. In all honesty, Felix wanted nothing more than to just lean back in and drift away into the ocean but he couldn’t in good conscience do that. And if anything, he learned in the past two months that time and chances were things that were not promised and that could be taken away at any given moment in time.
“Lix--”
“No wait! Please…” Felix said quickly, interrupting the alpha before his nerves got the better of him as he felt tears well up behind his eyes. Because he knew that if he didn’t say this now, the more it would be dragged out and the longer it would eat away at the pieces of his sanity. “I am… For a while now, I have… you uhm--”
“I’m in love with you too, Lix…”