Work Text:
1)
Yeonjun is quiet as he enters the dorm, softly toeing his sneakers off and shrugging his jacket off his shoulders, careful not to disturb his sleeping pack.
Or, at least they should all be sleeping - it's three in the morning and they have to be up by eight to start their day. The four of them had left hours ago, hesitantly leaving Yeonjun behind in his studio to continue working. Something the alpha is now slightly regretting, exhaustion penetrating deep into his bones.
There's three bedrooms, and while they're technically assigned to specific people, they rarely follow the assignments. Yeonjun peeks his head into the front bedroom, belonging to Taehyun, and isn't surprised to see that he isn't alone. Beomgyu and Kai are fast asleep with him. Kai, sandwiched between the two alphas, twitches in his sleep and lets out a little hum. Yeonjun shuts the door. He doesn't want to disturb them.
Instead, he makes his way down the hall, towards his and Beomgyu's bedroom in the back, where he already knows he'll find Soobin.
Soobin. Yeonjun's heart swells at the thought of their omega leader.
Yeonjun gently pushes the door to his bedroom open, and is surprised to find Soobin not sleeping, but awake, sitting on the edge of Yeonjun's bed as he runs one hand through his hair and cradles his stomach with the other one. He's frowning, and the alpha in Yeonjun twitches. He doesn't like to see any of his packmates upset, of course, but especially Soobin.
“Soobin? You alright?”
“I'm nauseous again.”
Yeonjun makes his way to the omega. Even through the scent blocker Soobin is wearing, Yeonjun still catches a sour tinge seeping through, disturbing his alpha even farther. He sits down next to Soobin and wraps a protective arm around his waist, pulling him close.
“Again?” he repeats. “Was it something you ate?” Food poisoning doesn't seem right though - they'd all eaten the same thing for lunch today, and Yeonjun feels fine. The same for the other times Soobin has been nauseous this week. There doesn't seem to be a clear reason as to why.
“Maybe?” Soobin sighs. “I don't know. I made a cup of ginger tea, but it hasn't helped at all.”
Yeonjun coos. “My poor Soobin-ah.”
He rubs slow, gentle circles onto Soobin's stomach as they lay together, hopefully soothing some of his discomfort. At least, Soobin is very obviously enjoying it, borderline purring as he nuzzles his face against the scent gland beneath Yeonjun's ear. The two of them eventually fall asleep in this position.
Morning comes way too fast. As expected, Yeonjun is regretting staying up and working so late.
“You should have come with us, hyung,” Taehyun scolds when he sees the dark circles surrounding Yeonjun's eyes. He stands over the stove, frying sausage.
Yeonjun wordlessly grumbles, knowing Taehyun is right - as he usually is.
He brushes his fingers through Kai's hair as he sits down at the table, a plate of food already waiting for him. Kai hums, leaning into the touch as he chews his cereal. He's always extra affectionate the week or so after his heats.
Once they're all seated, Soobin goes over the schedule for the day. They each have individual practice before a long group session, followed by a brief promotional shoot for an upcoming event.
Yeonjun isn't focused on any of that. He's more concerned about how Soobin keeps pausing to take deep breaths.
He's not the only one who notices. “You okay, Soobin-hyung?” Beomgyu asks, frowning.
“Sick again?” Taehyun's big eyes are even wider with worry.
“I'm fine, just nauseous,” Soobin answers, pressing a hand against his stomach.
“You've been getting like this a lot lately, though,” Kai says.
Soobin waves his hand dismissively, but doesn't say anything else. He quickly gets up from the table. Yeonjun is right behind him, following as Soobin makes a beeline for the bathroom.
Yeonjun stays by Soobin's side as he empties the contents of his stomach into the toilet, petting his hair and comforting him. The rest of the pack hovers outside the door, the air thick with the smell of burning firewood - Taehyun, whose scent has a tendency to be too strong to conceal with blockers, especially when his alpha is disturbed.
Despite Soobin's meek protesting, Yeonjun wipes his mouth clean once he's finished.
“You're staying home today,” he says, firm. It's rare he pulls out his ‘alpha voice’ towards their leader, but it leaves no room for Soobin to argue.
They all crowd around Soobin when the two of them exit the bathroom, but it's Taehyun he decides to cling to. Soobin shrinks himself in their youngest alpha's arms, burying his face into Taehyun's shoulder as he's held. Warm, crackling firewood fills the air, replacing the burnt scent and soothing them all.
“Take it easy today, hyung,” Taehyun tells him. “Just get some rest.”
Soobin nods. “Sorry, I don't know what's up with me,” he mumbles.
“It's just a stomach bug,” Yeonjun comforts, placing a hand on Soobin's back. “You'll be okay after resting."
2)
Kai yawns, arms stretching above his head as he does so, and settles himself even farther into the couch. He leans his head against Beomgyu's shoulder. The alpha has put on some movie that Kai really has no interest in - a superhero one with lots of yelling, explosions, and destruction. Beomgyu's pleading for Kai to watch it with him had been too pitiful to turn down, though.
For once, it's a lazy Sunday. Yeonjun is sleeping. Taehyun is at the gym. Soobin is in their bedroom playing League of Legends. Every now and then, they had been hearing an occasional shout of frustration, or excited cheering, but it's gone quiet.
Maybe he's fallen asleep, too. He's still not entirely over that stomach bug he had last week.
Kai can feel his own eyes drooping.
Just as he's about to doze off, a door opens down the hall and Soobin comes walking in, seemingly a bit frazzled as he approaches.
“Beomgyu-yah, give me that hoodie,” he demands.
“Huh?” Beomgyu blinks away from the television screen to look up at Soobin.
“Your hoodie. Give it.”
Kai is awake now, watching the two of them with poorly concealed amusement.
“But hyung,” Beomgyu whines, wrapping his arms around himself and holding on tightly to the hoodie he's wearing. “I've already given you two other hoodies, and my favorite pair of joggers - ack!”
Beomgyu shouts as Soobin forcefully tugs on the hood, lifting it up and over his head. Kai cackles as the two of them struggle over the hoodie, until Soobin finally manages to wiggle it completely off Beomgyu. He smiles, content with victory, burying his face into the fabric and taking a deep inhale.
Beomgyu pouts. “Who's supposed to be the alpha around here?”
Soobin ignores him. “Hyuka, come with me. And grab that pillow.”
“Okay, hyung.” Kai happily obeys, grabbing the throw pillow that lays on the couch next to him and shrugging apologetically at Beomgyu as he follows the older omega towards their shared bedroom.
It's in a mess, particularly Soobin's side.
Soobin lets out a low, distressed whine. “I need help, Kai,” he says. “Nothing is right.”
Kai looks at the pitiful state of Soobin's bed and his attempt at nesting. Other than during his heats, he's not usually a big nester. Especially compared to Kai and his neatly organized nest of plushies and pillows. Soobin's is jumbled and strewn, a chaotic mess of clothing and blankets. He's been at it for a couple of nights now.
“Your heat isn't due for another month, isn't it?” Kai asks.
Soobin shakes his head. “No, but.. I just need it. I need a nest. It feels like I'm going crazy. I just want to be safe, and I can't be without my nest -”
He takes a deep breath. Kai wraps an arm around his shoulder and pulls him in close.
“It's okay, Soobin-hyung,” Kai reassures, despite not entirely understanding Soobin's panic. “I can help.”
They start by completely stripping the bed, other than the sheets. Kai always likes to do pillows first, so that's what he guides Soobin to do as well. Together, they make a nice border along all edges of the bed before taking the giant comforter and covering it all, securing it by tucking underneath the edges. Once they have that basic structure, it seems to get a bit easier for Soobin. He picks through the clothing he's gathered and starts arranging them.
“I need more of Taehyun,” he tells Kai, who makes a quick trip to Taehyun's bedroom and steals a soft knit sweater out of his wardrobe.
“More Yeonjun,” Soobin says next.
This goes on for a bit, Kai going around and stealing various pieces of clothing from his hyungs’ rooms - and a few from his own closet when Soobin demands it - until Soobin seems satisfied. He lays in the middle of his nest, chest happily rumbling, rubbing his cheek against one of Beomgyu's hoodies.
He reaches over and pulls Kai in, wrapping his arms around the younger omega as he lays next to him. “Thanks for your help, Kai,” he says. “I feel so much better.”
Kai nuzzles his nose against Soobin's scent gland. He can't smell much because of the blockers, but he still manages to catch a vague whiff of Soobin's lavender. Soft, floral, a tinge of sweetness causing Kai to relax farther into the nest he just helped his hyung build.
There's a knock at the door, before it's slowly being pushed open. Yeonjun pokes his head in.
The growl Soobin lets out is low and quiet, no true malice in it, but still quite uncharacteristic of him. Yeonjun blinks in surprise.
“No alphas in my nest,” Soobin says, snuggling closer to Kai, who shrugs at Yeonjun's questioning glance.
“He's taken like, all my clothes!” Beomgyu wails dramatically from somewhere out in the hall.
Yeonjun ignores him. “Soobin-ah, you good? Your heat isn't early, is it?” He tries to step inside the room, but he's stopped by another growl - this time a bit louder.
“No alphas,” he snaps. Kai can't hold back his giggling. He presses a kiss against Soobin's temple in an effort to calm him down. It works. Soobin melts against Kai, humming with content.
“Okay, okay, I'm leaving.” Yeonjun mumbles, retreating out the room and making sure to close the door behind him.
3)
Taehyun's eyes have been dragging over the same few paragraphs for the past five minutes, not comprehending the words on the page at all. This book, one that was recommended to him by a friend, is probably the most boring book he's read in recent years, but he keeps going in hopes that it eventually gets better.
He's a third of the way in now, and it hasn't.
He shuts the book and tosses it onto the side table next to him. He turns his attention towards Soobin instead, who's entranced by some kind of mobile game he's playing.
Soobin has been spending a lot of time in his nest lately, not allowing any of the alphas to get near it, so Taehyun feels a sense of pride at the fact that tonight Soobin decided to spend time with him in his bed. The alpha does think Soobin's behavior has been sort of bizarre lately, but he figures it's just stress. They've been busy these past few weeks.
Taehyun watches Soobin's game on the screen, not really understanding anything that's going on but still just enjoying their time together.
Eventually, Soobin turns it off. “Taehyun-ah,” he says. “I'm really hungry.”
“Hungry?” Taehyun repeats. They'd just eaten dinner a couple hours ago.
“I want something sweet,” Soobin continues. “Like ice cream. Let's order some ice cream.”
Taehyun hums, chewing on his bottom lip in careful thought. He can't lie, the sound of ice cream is enticing, but... “Well hyung, you know the company wants us to be dieting right now…”
Soobin's face falls. “Ah, right,” he mumbles.
Taehyun would have never expected what happens next. When he looks over at Soobin, he's surprised to see the omega's eyes glistening with tears, a single teardrop sliding down his face as he takes a shuddering breath.
“Soobin-hyung?” Taehyun pulls Soobin in close to him, rubbing his arm - albeit awkwardly, because he's never been good at comforting people when they're crying. “What's wrong?”
Soobin wipes his eyes. “Sorry,” he sniffs. “I'm sorry. I don't get why I'm crying. It's so stupid.”
“Hey, no it isn't. Is it the ice cream?”
“I just want it so bad.”
“We can order some, then,” Taehyun instantly folds. His alpha is roaring, unable to stand seeing Soobin so upset. “It won't hurt. And no one has to know, anyway.”
Soobin nods, face already brightening as Taehyun pulls up the delivery app. Taehyun goes simple, some chocolate ice cream with chocolate syrup and nuts, while Soobin is completely indecisive, playing around with different combos but unable to settle on one.
“Get two scoops, hyung,” Taehyun encourages.
So he does - one chocolate and one pistachio, topped with just about every topping they offer. Then he adds a scoop of chocolate chip cookie dough on the side.
“You really have no idea how much I'm craving this,” Soobin tells Taehyun as he places the order. “It's like I'll die if I don't get anything sweet.”
Taehyun giggles. “Well, we've been working hard. We deserve it.”
He's quiet as he goes to the front door to meet the delivery man, carefully walking on socked tiptoes. Kai is stretched out on the couch, console controller still in hand and the television frozen on the pause screen of his game as he snoozes. Taehyun takes the time to throw a blanket over him and softly press a kiss on top of his head.
Taehyun manages to grab the ice cream, thinking they've gotten away with it until he turns around. He jumps at the sight of Beomgyu standing behind him, arms crossed in front of his chest as he shakes his head in disappointment.
“Caught red handed, Taehyunnie,” he tsks. “What's this? Ordering ice cream?”
Taehyun sighs. “It's for Soobin-hyung,” he explains. “I couldn't say no - he was literally crying for it.”
“Crying?” Beomgyu frowns, all the playful teasing wiping from his face. “Is he okay?”
“Yeah, he just wanted ice cream.”
“Enough to cry for it?”
Taehyun shrugs. “It's probably stress.”
Beomgyu hums, not entirely convinced, but the grin returns to his face nonetheless. “If you share, I won't say anything.”
Taehyun rolls his eyes. “You're a menace,” he says, unable to keep the words from coming out as fond as they do.
4)
Beomgyu lays on the hard wooden floor of the practice room, limbs splayed out like a starfish as he stares up at the ceiling. The fluorescents hurt his eyes, but it's nowhere near as bad as the pain in his feet, after having danced for a couple hours straight. He graciously welcomes the break they've been given.
Yeonjun reaches down and pats his leg. His hair is drenched with sweat. “You're doing great, Beom,” he encourages before moving onto the next member - which happens to be Kai, who's chugging a water bottle down in one go.
Eventually, Beomgyu gets up and drags himself over to the corner of the room, where Soobin sits against the wall. His head is slumped over, gentle snores coming out his open mouth. Beomgyu feels a pang of pity, a disturbance in his alpha, and when he sits down he arranges Soobin's head to fall onto his shoulder instead.
Soobin stirs. “Huh?” he mumbles sleepily.
Beomgyu smiles. He brushes a strand of hair out of Soobin's eyes. “Fifteen minutes left, hyung,” he tells him. “Sleep while you can.”
Soobin does.
Beomgyu hates to bother him when it's time to get back to work. He knows Soobin has been different lately, including having a severe lack of energy, as evident during practice. His movements are dull and sluggish, and though none of the pack can bring themselves to say anything, the choreographer they're working with scolds him.
It's not common for Beomgyu to get overtly protective or angry, especially when they're at work, but he has to hold back a snarl as he watches Soobin's face fall.
Taehyun's burnt firewood fills the air, and when Beomgyu glances over at him he sees his fists clenched at his sides.
Yeonjun steps in. “Can we have another fifteen?” he asks, and the choreographer, sensing the tension, readily agrees. He steps out the room.
“Sorry, I'm slowing everyone down,” Soobin mumbles. “I'm just really tired.”
Beomgyu shakes his head. “You're fine, hyung,” he says, making his way over to Soobin and pulling him in for a hug. The omega shrinks himself in Beomgyu's arms, hiding his face in Beomgyu's shoulder as he sulks.
“Maybe sit out for the rest of the day?” Yeonjun suggests, rubbing comforting circles onto the small of Soobin's back.
“That wouldn't be fair.”
“We don't want you to push yourself, hyung,” Kai says. “None of us will be upset.”
There's nods and murmurs of agreement from all three of the alphas. Beomgyu cards his fingers through the sweat damp strands of Soobin's hair, and then rubs his cheek against the top of his head. He's satisfied when he eventually hears Soobin begin to purr.
“Maybe if I just rest for a bit,” Soobin says.
“Whatever you need,” Beomgyu reassures.
They make a spot in the corner of the room, as comfortable as they can, for Soobin to rest. Taehyun lays a blanket over the omega, and lends him an eye mask to block out the lights. Yeonjun strips his t-shirt off, chuckling when Soobin happily buries his face into it.
They turn the volume of the music down, and continue to practice.
Soobin sleeps through the entire thing.
None of them have the heart to wake him up when he's sleeping so well. Some of the staff aren't too happy with it, but they too leave Soobin alone when Yeonjun puts his alpha face on - as Beomgyu calls it. Beomgyu's never been good at that. Taehyun always says he looks more like a pleading puppy.
“I think hyung's heat is going to be early,” Kai whispers at the end of practice, as they all chug water and wipe the sweat from their faces.
Taehyun nods in agreement. “That's what I'm thinking too.”
“It's the only explanation,” Yeonjun says.
Beomgyu hums, acknowledging their thoughts though he doesn't really share the same opinion. Sure, Soobin usually becomes clingier and moody in the week leading up to his heats, and it's really the only time he ever nests.
Even still… all of this feels different to Beomgyu. It doesn't seem like just a heat.
+1)
Soobin has never felt more ready for a break before.
They have three full days off to do whatever they want. Some of them choose to stay at the dorm, while others decide to take this rare time to visit family - which is what Soobin does, despite how exhausted he's felt lately. Yeonjun tried to get him to stay at home and to spend his three days catching up on rest.
Admittedly, Soobin was tempted, but the thought of seeing his mom and playing with the family dogs was even better.
They end up not doing anything too exciting, anyway, so his trip to his hometown is quite relaxing enough. Soobin plays with the dogs, eats a ton of his mother's cooking - happy to have his appetite back after the stomach bug he had - and cuddles with his nephews when his sister brings them over.
As he watches them head back home on clumsy, toddling feet, Soobin feels an odd sort of emptiness. A dull ache in his heart. He wipes the tears from his eyes before they can fall, not understanding where all these sudden emotions are coming from.
On the third and final day, when he hugs his mother goodbye, she says, “Oh, you smell sweet, honey.”
“I'm not wearing my blockers,” Soobin tells her. None of them usually do during breaks, giving their scents a rare chance to shine.
It's why when he walks through the front door of the dorm, he's met with the most beautiful blend of smells. Kai's peaches and cream meet him first, mixing with Yeonjun's earthy pinecone and freshly damp soil, his strong scent almost overshadowing Beomgyu's soft cinnamon and ginger. Taehyun's warm firewood is there too, of course, even more powerful without the blockers.
“Hyung!” Kai greets him first, jumping up from his spot on the couch. “I missed -”
He pauses, his smile replaced by a quizzical frown as he looks at Soobin.
Soobin blinks. “Is something wrong, Hyuka?”
Kai doesn't answer. Instead, he approaches Soobin, burying his face into his neck and nuzzling his nose against the scent gland. Soobin instantly melts, a soft rumble forming in his chest as he begins to purr. He grabs on to Kai and returns the gesture, brushing his face against the younger omega's own scent gland and bathing himself in peaches.
“Hyung,” Kai says, causing Soobin to shiver when his lips brush against his skin. “Have you always smelled this sweet?”
“Sweet?” Soobin repeats.
At that moment, Yeonjun comes down the hall, his face still puffy from sleep but his eyes wide open. “Soobin-ah,” he says. “Is that you that smells like that?”
“Huh?” As much as he hates to, Soobin pulls away from Kai, though the younger man still clings to him. “Like what?”
“You don't smell yourself?” Taehyun asks, seemingly coming out of nowhere, with Beomgyu following close behind.
Soobin feels like a lamb in the middle of a pack of wolves as the alphas surround him, taking in the floral, lavender scent. It takes Soobin a moment, closing his eyes and taking a few deep breaths of his own before it hits him.
He does smell sweet.
And not only just that, but if Soobin really focuses, underneath all the sweetness is a slight tinge of creamy milk.
Soobin lets out a soft gasp.
In that same moment, Yeonjun asks, “Soobin, are you…?”
He doesn't finish. He doesn't have to. They all know what he means.
Thirty minutes later, after a quick trip to the corner store, Soobin sits on the closed seat of the toilet as he waits on results for the test he just took. Kai is in the bathroom with him, his hand tightly gripping Soobin's as they count down the seconds.
Soobin doesn't know what to feel. He's excited, he's nervous, he's scared, all at once.
“Would you be ready for a pup?” he asks Kai, who smiles.
“We all would, hyung. Don't worry.”
There's a knock on the door. “Anything yet?” Beomgyu asks.
“There's still another minute,” Soobin answers. Everyone's scents are going haywire, a mix of anxiety and excitement, and a spike of comfort here and there as Taehyun fruitlessly tries to calm them all down.
When that minute is up, the alarm on Kai's phone goes off.
“Can you look?” Soobin asks, passing the test over to his fellow omega. His heart pounds in his chest, and he wipes sweaty palms against the fabric of his pants.
Without hesitation, Kai flips the test over.
He gasps.
“Hyung,” he says. “Oh, my gosh.”
He turns it towards Soobin, who blinks in disbelief at the pink little plus sign flashing on screen.
The hug Kai wraps him in is crushing, though he's careful to not squeeze around Soobin's middle. Soobin hugs back just as tightly, his vision blurring with tears.
He's really pregnant.
He's having a pup.
Soobin lets out a sob, but not one of sorrow or fear - but of joy. The greatest, most intense joy he has ever experienced in his life.
As soon as they step out of the bathroom, the alphas can already tell. There's gasps, excited exclamations, and Yeonjun's eyes instantly start to water.
Beomgyu gets to Soobin first. “A pup!” he shouts, wrapping his arms around Soobin and lifting his feet off the ground as they twirl.
“Beomgyu, careful!” Taehyun scolds, causing Soobin to laugh fondly at their youngest alpha immediately becoming protective. He pries Soobin out of Beomgyu's grip, and gives him the softest kiss on the cheek. “Are you okay, hyung?”
“I've never been better, Taehyun-ah,” Soobin reassures, relaxing the alpha.
“I knew something was up,” Yeonjun says, his eyes still shining with tears. “I can't believe none of us caught it sooner.”
When he holds Soobin, he does so carefully, as if he could break at any moment. He runs his hand along Soobin's tummy. He's far from showing, but still, even just knowing there's a pup inside causes Yeonjun to take a shuddering breath.
“This is really happening,” he says, breaking out in a smile so wide his face may split in two.
They spend the rest of the day piled in Taehyun's bed - which is far too small for five grown men, but none of them care. Limbs tangle together, bodies flush against one another. Kai accidentally elbows Beomgyu in the groin, and it has them all laughing for a good ten minutes.
Soobin lies in the center, happily sandwiched between his packmates and quietly listening as they ramble off baby names and gender guesses.