Warming Up To You

by fairilui

Summary:

In the midst of a chaotic time, in the apartment Jimin and Jeongguk are forced to share, bickering and denial slowly give way to something else.

Notes:

• In response to a prompt by Anonymous in the Jikook Omegaverse Fest S3 collection.

BIG thank you to the lovely monkery737 for beta-reading this! And to the mod of the Jikook Omegaverse Fest: It's the best fest ever, in my opinion, and I’m happy to participate as a writer for the second time. Thank you!

I hope you enjoy the (precisely!) 35,000-word saga of these two idiots<3 It was a joy to bring them to life.

 

 

── 𓍢ִ໋.ೀ 

 

 

“Do you mind?” his flatmate snaps when Jeongguk uses his cup to push some papers away from the corner of their coffee table so he can set it down.

Jeongguk doesn't flinch. “Do you?” he retorts, just as sharp, eyebrows pinched together. “Fuck, you would think I’m just some stray you let in out of pity. I pay half the rent—I should get to use a few damn inches of the coffee table.”

Jeongguk doesn’t like messes. 

His charging cables are never tangled, his bookshelves are arranged by size and color, he plans out his laundry days like it’s a business meeting, and he especially dislikes clutter. 

Unfortunately, his flatmate is not only the exact opposite, but proudly so, and all too happy to disrupt Jeongguk’s peace. 

“Then ask me to move over, don’t stain my papers with your stupid herb blends.”

Jeongguk slowly counts to five in his head, taking a needed sip of his evening tea. “As if you ever tidy up when I ask you to,” he then says as calmly as he can manage.

Jimin is the embodiment of mess.  

He places the toilet paper roll under and not over when he changes it, he can’t seem to understand the point of a shoe-rack, he puts condiments in the fridge with their backs facing outward, never reorganizes the kitchen after cooking, and his stuff is all over the apartment at all times. 

It’s been over a year, and Jeongguk really doesn’t know how he hasn’t gone completely insane yet. Maybe it’s because of the fact that he isn’t in a position to move, and neither is Jimin. God knows they both want to. 

Jimin just mimics him under his breath, continuing to tap away on his computer and scribble notes. 

Jeongguk rolls his eyes, sinking into the armchair with his book.

As much as he despises the mess Jimin leaves after himself when he studies, the sounds of his keyboard tapping and pen scribbling create calming background noise. Just as long as he keeps his mouth shut.

It’s one of Jeongguk’s favorite parts of the day; reading in his armchair with Jimin’s small sounds and faint, soothing apricot scent in the background. 

Those are two of the few things he likes about Jimin—he’s not very loud, and he has a nice scent. 

Jeongguk is sensitive to messiness and change, but also to strong scents. Jimin is messy and he is a hazard for Jeongguk’s comfort, but at least he’s not noisy and his scent is pleasant—it goes well with Jeongguk’s own and it’s not overbearing at all. He didn’t even need time to get used to it when they first met, like he usually does with new things.

It just barely makes up for how utterly hopeless Jimin is at keeping the apartment organized.

“God, it’s cold,” Jimin mutters after a while of blissful silence. 

Jeongguk glances up to see him fold his knees to his chest and put his feet up on the couch, resembling a round ball of fuzz as he tucks the edges of his fluffy blanket under himself. 

It’s almost October, so the temperature outside is sinking by the day. Their apartment doesn’t have the best heating, something Jeongguk wouldn’t have noticed—he’s naturally warm as an alpha—unless Jimin hadn’t constantly complained about it last year. Apparently it’s that time again.

Jimin drags the table closer to the couch so he can reach his computer from his new curled-up position, and the motion makes Jeongguk’s tea slosh around in the cup, some spilling over the rim.

“Fuck,” Jimin hisses, snatching up the damaged paper to attempt to save it.

“Karma,” Jeongguk says under his breath, earning a dramatic roll of Jimin’s eyes. 

“Just shut up and read your make-believe fantasy crap.”

Ouch. 

Jeongguk doesn’t understand how Jimin can be such a nerd when it comes to his fancy law studies but can’t enjoy a good book about knights and dragons. Instead, the beta thinks he’s so much better than Jeongguk because he’s ‘living in the real world’.

“Are you pouting?” 

Jeongguk snaps his eyes back up to Jimin, schooling his expression. Was he?

“I’m grieving your lack of an open mind.”

Jimin cracks up a little, smiling in amusement. “I didn’t mean to hurt your alpha pride by pointing out your soft spot for fairytales. I’m sure there is still some hope left for your masculinity, somewhere deep inside.”

Jeongguk grumbles. “At least I don’t get cold as soon as the first dead leaf hits the ground.”

He waits for Jimin’s sharp glare and smiles a little when he gets it. 

“‘S not funny… I’m cold as shit. It’s way worse than last year. You need to tell the landlord to check it out.”

Jeongguk scowls. “I’m not the one whining though, am I? Do it yourself.”

Jimin pouts, eyebrows furrowed as he glares at Jeongguk.

“I’m not whining. And you have to do it! She hates me,” Jimin all but whines. 

Jeongguk smirks a little, because that’s true. 

“For some unfathomable reason she loves you, though,” Jimin continues, mocking Jeongguk. “So just tell her to fix the damn heating, before winter comes and I freeze to death in my sleep.”

A smile tugs at Jeongguk’s lips. He quite likes Jimin needing him for something. 

“I might consider it if you ask nicely for once.”

Jimin stares at him with his mouth open. His scent faintly shifts to something less pleasant.

“You’re such a dick,” he mumbles, as if more to himself than to Jeongguk. Then, louder, he says, “Forget it.”

“Okay.” Jeongguk shrugs, turning back to his ‘make-believe fantasy crap’.

Jimin continues to grumble insults under his breath for a few more minutes, his scent tart and sour. 

As much as Jeongguk likes getting under Jimin’s skin once in a while to just slightly make up for all the times Jimin gets under his, he is relieved when the beta calms down and his scent returns to its default. 

He gets swallowed up in the world of his book, and only snaps out of it when Jimin shuts his laptop and stands. 

Familiar annoyance bubbles up in Jeongguk when Jimin just takes his computer and waddles away to his room, still wrapped up in the blanket.

The beta throws a casual, “Goodnight,” over his shoulder before he disappears into his bedroom.

Jeongguk desperately tries not to look at the mess on the coffee table, takes a deep breath and goes back to his book. Ten more minutes. 

Jeongguk wakes up with a groan. There is a stabbing pain in his neck when he tries to move it and his body—which was already sore from an especially intense work out the other day—is stiff and achy.

“You really need to stop doing that.” His flatmate’s unhelpful comment comes only a moment later. As if Jeongguk doesn’t already know his habit of falling asleep in the chair is bad. 

Jeongguk slowly tilts his head from side to side to stretch the locked muscles, throwing a glance at Jimin who is sitting on the couch, judging him, eating toast and… is that–

“Is that my tea?” Jeongguk accuses, nostrils flaring as he tries to identify what Jimin has in his cup. It’s hard to differentiate the aroma of the expensive tea he drinks from his own scent. 

Jimin innocently looks at him over the rim as he takes a sip. 

“Maybe.” 

Jeongguk scowls, watching Jimin lick his lips with a pleased little hum. His wolf makes a noise inside him, beyond happy that Jimin is enjoying something that tastes the same as their scent. He squashes the instinct.

“Do you know how much I pay for that?” Jeongguk snaps, voice rough from sleep. He can’t believe Jimin is already testing his patience. He just woke up.

“Surely it can't be that much if you can also afford ten new books a month.”

“Stop stealing my stuff.” 

“Bite me.”

While Jeongguk mentally strangles Jimin, the beta just calmly takes another sip of the tea, holding eye-contact.

“Maybe if you called Ms. Kim, I wouldn't be craving a hot drink. Because maybe then, it wouldn’t be freezing cold in here,” Jimin keeps going, matter-of-factly. 

”Maybe you should stop being such a kid and just ask me nicely. But of course you go and help yourself to my things instead, as if that will get you what you want.” 

Jeongguk shakes his head in disbelief and Jimin’s attitude falters a little, much to the alpha’s satisfaction.

Jimin should know how much Jeongguk dislikes it when he takes his stuff. He still chastises Jimin at least once a week for continuously using Jeongguk’s shampoo. The beta should know that it will only get him further away from getting Jeongguk to call their landlord.

Sure, Jeongguk might feel like a jerk for not just doing it, but Jimin has been pissing him off more than usual the last couple of weeks and he needs a bit of payback.

“Who are you calling a kid? I’m older than you, asshole,” Jimin huffs. “Show some respect.”

“Sure, as soon as you grow up and stop acting like a little brat. Any day now.”

Jimin gasps, shooting daggers at him with his slanted eyes. They are a little puffy in the morning, and his hair is a mess on his head. If he wasn’t such a menace, Jeongguk would think he’s cute.

“You little–”

Jeongguk sees the attack coming and puts a foot up to keep Jimin away from him, letting the beta struggle to reach.

“You’re the most annoying person I’ve ever met, I can’t believe I’m forced to live with you! You’re so– So…”

Jimin quickly runs out of energy and stops fighting with a deep frown and a pout on his full lips. 

Yeah, if he wasn’t a giant pain in the ass, Jeongguk would definitely find him adorable.

“So… What? So right?”

Jimin hisses at him, and Jeongguk is a little surprised because he’s never done that before. He’s never heard a beta hiss in general.

Jimin is certainly not your general beta, though.

“God, you’re so infuriating. I’m going to suffer from high blood pressure when I’m older because of you.”

“At least then you’ll be warmer.”

“Fuck off! God, I can’t stand you!”

“Then why are you so close to me?"

“I– What?” Jimin pauses, and Jeongguk watches as he registers how he’s still leaning far into the alpha’s space. 

Jimin surges back with a red hue deepening the color of his cheeks and stomps his way to the kitchen. 

“Just so you know, I’m pouring your tea down the drain!” Jimin shouts, and loudly clatters around in there for a while before the sound of his bedroom door slamming shut is heard.

Jeongguk rolls his eyes and gets up from the armchair to start his morning routine. 

Because of Jimin and his childishness, Jeongguk is running late to class. 

“Oh, hey, Gguk.”

Jeongguk looks up to see Taehyung standing right in front of him on the train. He’s so stressed he forgot to take in his surroundings when he stepped on.

“Hey, hyung, you good? How was the date yesterday?”

“Yeah, I’m all good!”  Taehyung pulls a face as he continues, “The date was meh. The sex was a highlight, though.”

Jeongguk just hums, not wanting to question that matter any further on the train. Taehyung is a notorious over-sharer, with no regard for who might involuntarily overhear.

“Are you good? Usually you take, like, two trains earlier than this one.”

“Yeah… Jimin was getting on my nerves this morning.”

“More than usual?”

Jeongguk chuckles with a shake of his head. 

“Fuck, I swear he wants to piss me off. Everything he does seems like a scheme to push me to insanity.”

“I don’t get why you two clash so bad. It seems like you would get along just fine when I talk to you individually. You’re super chill for an alpha and Jimin is a cutie.”

Jeongguk pulls a face.

“Jimin is a demon.”

Taehyung just laughs, amused. 

They get off the train and walk to class. Jeongguk has to force Taehyung to walk faster the whole way since they are running late and the older man is like a giant sloth.

Two hours of scribbling notes about collection management crawl by—and then another two about information technology. Jeongguk wouldn’t say he enjoys school, but it’s all going to be worth it when he graduates and gets a job at a library. 

Jeongguk stops at the convenience store on his way back to the train. Taehyung meets up with  him again, continuing to ramble about his most recent date, and Jeongguk silently listens to him while picking out ingredients for dinner. 

When Jeongguk gets home, Jimin is nowhere to be found in the common areas and the door to his room is shut. It’s only when the stew Jeongguk is making has been simmering for a while that the beta emerges, like a wolf sniffing out its prey. He comes to a stop by the stove next to Jeongguk, sniffing a little.

“Tofu and kimchi?”

Jeongguk hums in affirmation, giving the stew a little stir.

“Spicy?”

Another hum.

Jimin’s stomach growls loudly.

Jeongguk side-eyes him. Jimin gives a sheepish little purse of his lips.

“I didn’t have lunch.”

“Me neither.”

“So…”

Jeongguk quirks an eyebrow. Jimin really needs to learn to swallow his pride.

“Yeah?”

Jimin huffs out a breath, looking a little defeated. 

“Can I have some, please?” 

Jeongguk is pleasantly surprised. 

“Wow, a please. I’m proud of you, Jimin-ssi.”

Jimin rolls his eyes, but his cheeks turn a little pink and the corners of his lips tug up just enough to be visible for someone who pays attention. 

Not that Jeongguk is.  

“Shut up, Jeongguk-ssi. Can I have some or not?”

Jeongguk chuckles, amused and—God forbid—a little endeared.

“Of course. You always eat my food, anyways.”

Jimin smiles then, not coming with any other snide remarks. 

They manage to stay civilized through the meal until Jimin just has to go against the dishwasher rules again, and they are back to squabbling. 

── 𓍢ִ໋.ೀ 

Jimin is freezing to death. 

He’s going to turn into an icicle and it’s all Jeon Jeongguk’s fault for not calling their stupid landlord and using his stupid alpha charm to get her to fix the stupid heating. 

Jimin is currently sitting on the couch, shooting daggers with his eyes at Jeongguk’s oblivious frame. 

The alpha is just sitting there, completely unbothered by the arctic climate in the room. Stupid Jeongguk with his stupid natural warmth. Must be so nice to cuddle up to him, snuggle into his warm chest and breathe in the scent of hot, black tea…

Not that Jimin would ever want to do that. Not in a million years, no matter how cold he gets. Frankly, he’d rather die from frostbite. The thought only crossed his mind because he’s in a weak state right now. His fingers and toes are aching no matter how many layers he puts on. His teeth are chattering, even.

It’s been a week since he first brought it up. He’s this close to giving in and begging Jeongguk on his knees but, since he has already refused to do that, it would hurt his pride too much.

“Do you really have time to glare at me between all the superiorly advanced and important essays you have to write?” 

Jeongguk glances up from his book only after he’s finished the question. 

Jimin tries to look intimidating, but it’s kind of hard when his jaw is about to dislocate from the repetitive quivers and he feels so pitiful.

Jimin tries not to sound whiny when he answers.

“I can’t focus.”

“Yeah, me neither, ‘cause you keep making all that noise,” Jeongguk has the audacity to say.

“Who’s fault is that?” Jimin snaps—can’t help but sound whiny this time.

Jeongguk looks at him and Jimin looks back with a quickly faltering facade of strength. The stare-off only lasts about ten seconds.

“Fine. I’ll call Ms. Kim tomorrow.”

Jimin’s eyes widen in surprise, a smile quickly spreading on his lips. He can’t believe Jeongguk gave in first. 

Maybe he should go for the pitiful approach more often. 

“Great.”

Jeongguk scowls. 

“This is the part where you say ‘thank you, Jeongguk’.”

“Thank you, Jeongguk, for showing some human decency.”

Jeongguk rolls his eyes. Jimin giggles a little.

God, Jimin hates Ms. Kim. 

Of course, as soon as Jeongguk called her, she just had to come over and take a look for herself. As if she knows anything at all about heating systems. It’s all just a front so she can flirt with Jeongguk. Meanwhile, she ignores Jimin’s existence. Not that Jimin would want her attention, anyway. It’s just…

Jimin glares at the two of them from a corner of the couch—watches the way Jeongguk talks and smiles and the way Ms. Kim leaves unnecessary touches on his arm.

Jimin has always disliked the woman, but today he despises her with a passion. 

Without giving much thought to his actions, he stomps over and squeezes in between them, leaning in to look at the heater.

“So, Ms. Kim, you know how to fix this?” 

He turns to her, plastering on a fake smile.

Ms. Kim pins him down with an annoyed glare. 

“Well, I’ll have to call the electrician to be sure.”

“Ah, so you’re just here for some company, then. Is it lonely back home?” 

Ms. Kim’s mouth opens in offense and her already unbearable scent sours. Jimin can hear the subtle start of a laugh before Jeongguk coughs awkwardly.

“Not at all, though I do quite enjoy Jeonggukie’s company.” Ms. Kim plasters on a smile similar to Jimin’s before she directs her gaze back to Jeongguk and her expression softens to seductive again. “On that note, I’m making dirty martinis at my place tonight…”

“Jeonggukie doesn’t drink alcohol,” Jimin answers before Jeongguk can reply. “You should try Mr. Yun next door, though,” he suggests—referring to their elderly neighbor, quite known in the neighborhood for over-endulging in drinks.

Ms. Kim seethes, surely about to unleash a storm on Jimin.

“Thank you for the offer, noona,” Jeongguk cuts in just in time, moving around Jimin to guide Ms. Kim to the door. “Maybe another time. I’ve got a lot of schoolwork to do at the moment.”

“Ah, that’s alright, Jeonggukie. My door is always open for you.”

Jimin scrunches his face up in disgust, mockingly repeating her words under his breath. The sound of the door shutting after Ms. Kim is music to his ears.

“Since when are you on noona-terms with our landlord? She’s more the age of an aunt.” 

Jeongguk runs a hand over his face with a sigh.

“She asked me to call her noona, what do you expect me to do? I have to stay on her good side so you can get your damn heating on, so stop whining.”

Jimin just continues sulking, unable to focus on his assignment now. 

“You’re not actually going to go to her place, right?”

Jeongguk gives him a questioning look. 

“Not planning on it. Why?”

“She obviously just wants to fuck you.”

“Yeah, obviously. So why do you care?”

Jimin splutters. 

“I don’t, obviously!”

He doesn’t have any good excuse for being so snappy about the matter, and he wants to die when Jeongguk fixes him with a curious look, one eyebrow raised. 

“Obviously.”

Jimin exhales, stressed.

“I just hate her even more than I hate you, so I don’t want her to get what she wants. Alright?”

God, what a pathetic excuse.

Jeongguk puts his hands up in surrender, making Jimin feel even more frustrated.

“Alright. For a minute there I was worried you actually cared about me.”

Jeongguk smiles in an infuriating way. 

Jimin scoffs.

"In your dreams."

It’s a little awkward after that. Jimin tries to lock in and study and Jeongguk goes back to his laptop, probably to study as well, but neither of them can seem to maintain focus. 

Jimin glances at Jeongguk from time to time and their eyes meet more than once, making them quickly look away again. 

What makes it worse for Jimin is the way Ms. Kim’s scent lingers in the apartment. And even worse is the fact that it’s coming from Jeongguk. 

The sneaky bitch probably rubbed her scent on him on purpose. 

After many long, excruciating minutes, Jimin finally breaks.

“Can you, like, shower?”

Jeongguk looks up. The eye-contact feels too intense after the way they have been stealing fleeting glances at each other.

“What? Are you saying I smell bad?”

“You smell like Ms. Kim, so, yeah. I’m saying you stink.”

Jeongguk lets out a laugh. 

“Her scent is not very nice, is it? Too strong.”

Even though Jimin doesn’t really feel bothered by strong scents, he hums in affirmation. He knows that Jeongguk has a sensitive sense of smell—that’s why the alpha surrounds himself with betas. 

Jimin still feels satisfied hearing Jeongguk say it. 

He doesn’t know what’s up with him lately. Scenting has never been something he’s given much thought to—but lately he finds himself hating it when Jeongguk comes home from uni with unfamiliar scents still clinging to him. 

And currently he kind of wants Jeongguk to smell like him.

“You can use my bodywash, if you want,” Jimin offers casually, trying to be sneaky with it. 

Jeongguk pauses, though, making Jimin want to groan out loud in frustration. Can’t the alpha be a little less observant, just once?

“Your bodywash is apricot-scented.”

Jeongguk just says it like a statement. Like it perfectly explains why he would not use it.

Jimin pouts. 

“So? You’re always complaining about how I steal your shampoo. We’ll be even.”

Jeongguk stares at him. 

“You’ve been stealing my shampoo since you moved in here. We’ll never be even.”

“Ugh, just do it, okay?!”

Jimin glares at the alpha, while Jeongguk looks genuinely lost.

He’s not going to drop this, is he?

“You want me to smell like you?”

Jimin feels heat rapidly rise up to his cheeks—doesn’t know what to say. 

“Forget it. Just go shower. Please.”

Jimin turns away and pretends to read a random passage in his law book to put a full stop to the conversation, humiliated by his own doing.

“Alright,” Jeongguk mumbles.

Jimin drops the book when he hears the door to the bathroom close and flings his body back on the couch. He grabs a cushion and groans into it. What’s wrong with him?

Sure, he’s never liked other scents on Jeongguk, but he’s never been possessive like this. He’s never wanted to actually scent him, or anyone for that matter. Being a beta kind of dulls the experience since his scent isn’t strong enough to really stick. 

But just the prospect of Jeongguk smelling—if even just slightly—like him… it suddenly does something to Jimin. It almost feels like a sexual kind of need, but that’s highly unlikely. Another charming aspect of being a beta: unwaveringly low sex drive. 

Or maybe that’s just Jimin—he hasn’t actually asked another beta about it, so he can’t know for sure. Jeongguk’s friend Taehyung is a beta and every time he’s over at the apartment he’s oversharing about his latest one night stand. 

So maybe it’s a Jimin thing.

But when Jeongguk comes back from his shower smelling nothing like Ms. Kim and everything like Jimin, he feels tell-tale signs of desire. His heart rate increases, something hot drags down his core and pools in his gut, and there is even a little stir of emotion from his wolf side—an extremely rare occurrence—all because of Jeongguk.

Jesus Christ, he should go see a doctor. He must be dying.

Jimin doesn’t let Jeongguk get a word in, he just grabs his book and laptop and makes a b-line for his room. He’s beyond embarrassed for asking Jeongguk to use his bodywash, and even more now that Jeongguk actually did it. 

There is no way in hell he is thirsting after his arch nemesis. Maybe he needs to get laid. Maybe there is a limit for how long he can go without sex until his weak libido decides to actually work for once. 

Jimin has a lecture the next day, and he begs Hoseok to hang out afterwards. He doesn’t want to face Jeongguk alone, preferably ever again.

“Why don’t you just tell him you like him already?” Hoseok asks, oblivious.

Jimin stares at him, scandalized. 

“Because I do not? I hate him and his constant nagging. Coffee table-space this, dishwasher-rules that.”

“You got jealous and practically scented him, though,” Hoseok deadpans. “And you find his neat-freak tendencies cute, admit it.”

Jimin is at a loss for words. Where did he go wrong?

“Why would you even think that?”

“You talk about him all the time. It may always be about how much you hate him, but there are hearts in your eyes while you say it.” Hoseok shrugs as if it’s obvious. “You like him, so it’s normal that you get jealous when some omega flirts with him in front of you.”

Jimin gapes at Hoseok. 

“You– I– I don’t have hearts in my eyes! I didn’t get jealous, I just…”

Hoseok raises his eyebrows. Jimin hates him.

“You just kicked her out and told him to wear your scent instead of hers.”

Jimin whines. “God, it’s so humiliating! Why would I do that?” 

“‘Cause you were jealous.”

Jimin pushes the omega with a scowl. “Why would I be? I hate him. He can do whatever he wants. I don’t care.”

A bitter taste appears in his mouth as he says the words. 

“Sure…” Hoseok drawls, unconvinced and unimpressed. “But did you think about the fact that Jeongguk actually did use a bodywash that smells like you?”

Jimin stops in his tracks right in the middle of the sidewalk. 

“What do you mean?”

Hoseok apologizes to a couple of annoyed pedestrians and pulls on Jimin’s arm to get him to move along.

“Jeongguk is an alpha, yeah? One with a sensitive nose, at that.”

Hoseok looks at him pointedly. Jimin looks back, void of emotions.

“I really have to spell it out for you, don’t I?” The omega sighs. “His wolf likes you. Which means Jeongguk probably does, as well.” 

“What.”

“He probably wanted to use that bodywash even before you asked him to. If he really hated you, he’d never do it. It’s simple logic. I can’t believe you got into law school.”

“Okay, stop talking.”

Hoseok chuckles, and Jimin shoots him a glare.

“I’m serious. This can’t be happening.”

“What, you wanting to have hate-sex with your hot flatmate, except it’s not really hate?”

Jimin pushes Hoseok hard enough that the omega falls half-way into a bush. 

── 𓍢ִ໋.ೀ 

Ever since Jeongguk used Jimin’s bodywash, as per Jimin’s request, the beta has been acting strange.

That is, when Jeongguk actually sees him. The apartment has been very quiet since it happened. Jimin gets home late and goes straight to bed and eats breakfast in his room or on the way to class.

However, when they do bump into each other, Jimin doesn’t even reply to Jeongguk’s greetings. 

Jeongguk should be glad that Jimin isn’t around to litter his things over every available surface or disorganize the kitchen, and he should enjoy the peace and quiet—the pause from their constant bickering. 

But, honestly? He kind of misses it. 

Jeongguk has an itch inside of him and, in order for it to go away, he needs to see Jimin’s scowling face as he snaps something snarky in Jeongguk’s direction. He wants to wake up and see Jimin curled up on the couch with his puffy face and fluffy hair. He misses their evening study-sessions.

So the next time Jeongguk catches Jimin making a b-line from the front door to his bedroom, approximately four days after the change, he confronts him.

“Are you going to avoid me forever?”

Jimin halts.

“I’m not avoiding you.”

Jeongguk shakes his head in disbelief.

“You need to practice that.”

“Huh?”

“Telling lies. You’re terrible.”

Jimin snaps his mouth shut, scowling.

“Is this about me using your bodywash? Because I recall you quite aggressively urging me to, so I don’t see the issue.”

Jimin presses his lips together, shifting from one foot to the other, looking very uncomfortable. 

Or, maybe… 

“Unless you’re embarrassed.”

That would explain it.

Jimin gasps like he’s deeply offended Jeongguk would accuse him of such a thing. His cheeks are already a deep shade of pink, though.

“I am not.”

Jeongguk can’t help the chuckle that escapes him. 

“You really are a terrible liar, Jimin hyung. Why are you so embarrassed? It’s just bodywash. It’s not like you actually scented me.”

Jeongguk tries to sound casual about it, but he has to admit that he was quite eager to smell like Jimin. He wouldn’t mind being properly scented by him. 

But that’s only because Jimin has a pleasant scent. Nothing emotional about it.

Jimin just turns even redder after Jeongguk’s words, incoherently stuttering for a few seconds before he gets any real words out.

“Right! So I’m not embarrassed and I’m not avoiding you. You’re just so full of yourself that you think everything is about you!”

With that, Jimin promptly turns on his heel and disappears into his room, the door slamming shut.

Well, that was a failure. 

Jeongguk sighs and goes back to the essay he has due at midnight. The hours will pass painfully slowly without Jimin doing the same next to him.

It’s only a day later that it hits Jeongguk.

He’s just come home from a night out with his classmates and catches Jimin red-handed, sitting on the couch just because Jeongguk wasn’t home, proving that he is avoiding him.

But that’s not what makes Jeongguk’s head spin. 

It’s the way Jimin’s nostrils flare when Jeongguk throws himself in the armchair, and the way his face scrunches up afterward. 

Jeongguk knows it’s not alcohol he’s smelling on him, because Jeongguk doesn’t drink any—he’s perfectly fine with his tea—so it must be the omega that had been trying to go home with him all night. 

It hits him then. 

Jimin is not avoiding him because he’s embarrassed by the fact that Jeongguk used his bodywash. He’s embarrassed about the fact that he actually asked Jeongguk to do so. 

The request genuinely surprised Jeongguk at first, but then he was so eager to smell like Jimin that he didn’t reflect on it any further. But it makes sense. Jimin feels possessive over him, and he’s embarrassed that he let it show in such a way. 

Jeongguk wants to tease Jimin about it, wants to ask if he has feelings for him or something, but a small detail stops him. 

He enjoys it. 

Jeongguk wants Jimin to feel possessive. He wants to shower away the scent of that persistent omega and he wants to use Jimin’s bodywash so he smells like Jimin instead. 

That same scent makes Jeongguk snap out of his thoughts. Jimin is not looking at him. Rather, he is glaring at his laptop as if it has severely wronged him. But his scent. 

It’s different. 

Jeongguk inhales deeply through his nose. 

It’s bitter and acidic, like the taste of an immature fruit. It’s so detailed that Jeongguk feels almost impressed. Jimin must be feeling very strongly for his beta genes to muster up such a scent. 

Is it stronger, too? 

Jeongguk is bewildered, staring at Jimin’s profile. He speaks up, needing some sort of attention from the beta. Any kind of reaction other than this hostility. 

“Has the electrician been by?”

Jimin glances at him, schooling his expression. 

“No.”

“Must have a lot to do this time of year.”

Jimin gives a shrug.

Jeongguk nibbles on his lip, wondering if he should bring it up or not.

In the end, he can’t get himself to do it. 

“Um, I’ll just… I’ll head to bed.”

Jimin doesn’t give him anything other than a nod, not even looking up. 

The next day, as if he’s trying to prove a point, Jimin plops down on the couch with his laptop and books, huffing under his breath. 

Jeongguk raises an eyebrow as he watches him get set up, but Jimin doesn’t spare him a single glance. 

Jeongguk shrugs it off and enjoys the normalcy. The faint smell of apricots and the calming sounds of Jimin typing on his keyboard. 

It takes about half an hour before another sound joins the harmony, ruining the flow. 

Jeongguk looks up to see Jimin slowly start to move around restlessly, teeth clattering softly to start, and then it just gets worse from the moment the sun sets outside the big windows. 

“The electrician is taking longer to get here than I thought,” Jeongguk says, feeling bad. “I should've called earlier…”

Jimin meets his eyes for the first time that day and puffs out a shaky breath, body trembling. “‘S fine.” 

Then, with a scoff, Jimin adds, “Bet Ms. Kim hasn't even called anyone yet. She’s probably waiting for you to contact her again and ask about it, so she has an excuse to flirt.”

Jeongguk’s stomach twists, can’t help scrunching his nose a little. “You really think so?”

Jimin shrugs, smiling a little despite the tremors going through his body.

“Wouldn’t be surprised.”

Jeongguk sighs, rubbing a hand over his forehead. “Maybe I’ll just text her,” he mumbles.

“Don’t,” Jimin insists. “She wouldn’t want to look that irresponsible, so she’ll give up eventually and send someone.”

“Right.” Jeongguk nods a little, though he doesn’t understand why Jimin wouldn’t want him to hurry it up. It’s not Jimin who’s going to be pursued by a sleazy older woman, it’s Jeongguk.

They’re silent for a while, and Jeongguk can’t fully immerse himself in his book when Jimin is shaking like a leaf in the corner of his eye.

“Could you maybe just… sit over here?”

Jeongguk looks up when he hears the soft but grumbly words. 

Jimin is avoiding his eyes, only glancing at him for a quick moment when Jeongguk takes too long to react.

“Huh?”

Jimin groans quietly under his breath, meeting Jeongguk's gaze properly. 

“Don’t make me repeat it.”

He looks even more vulnerable than that night Jeongguk gave in and promised to call their landlord. It moves something inside of Jeongguk. He gets soft, and it’s not the way he’s learned to act around Jimin.

But inevitably it happens, so Jeongguk slowly moves, getting out of his seat to sit down next to Jimin on the two-seat sofa. 

He shifts around and moves a throw pillow behind him to get comfortable and Jimin trembles next to him, waiting for him to be done. Then, Jimin picks his laptop up and continues typing like nothing happened, hunched over it on the very end of the sofa.

Jeongguk observes him from the corner of his eye for a moment, but then he just continues reading his book. 

The story carries him away and time blurs but after a while Jeongguk notices that Jimin is definitely a lot closer to him than before, and he’s stopped shaking as much. 

A smile tugs at Jeongguk’s lips when Jimin uses the excuse of rising up to reach for a paper on the table just to sit down even closer to him. 

He must be really cold to willingly withstand being this close to Jeongguk. 

Without thinking much, Jeongguk manspreads a little, pressing his thigh to Jimin’s. The beta tenses up slightly, but he doesn’t speak up or move away. Instead, he seems to be subtly leaning into the touch. 

Jeongguk can feel how cold he is even through their clothes and the blanket Jimin has around him. He can only imagine how much worse his fingers and toes must be faring. 

So he doesn’t bring it up, either. 

They end up sitting with the sides of their bodies pressed together for the rest of the evening, until eventually Jimin swiftly slips away, uttering a quick goodnight, but not before jeongguk catches the blush on his cheeks.

The day after that, Jimin only has to shiver once and utter a quiet, “Can you…” for Jeongguk to stand from his armchair and join him on the couch. They sit close from the get-go this time, and neither of them mention it. 

Jeongguk is still hyper-aware of it, though. He can smell Jimin better from this close, and his scent really is nice. Beautiful, even. Jeongguk finds himself wishing it was stronger. He can also sense every time Jimin shivers from the cold—their shoulders and thighs pressing together isn’t enough to fully warm Jimin up—and the way his hands tremble as he types and jots down notes.

When Jimin flexes his fingers for the umpteenth time to try and get some blood-flow in them, Jeongguk can’t take it anymore. 

He drops his book on his lap and reaches for one of Jimin’s hands, almost flinching when he comes in contact with the ice-cold skin. 

“Hey, what do you think you’re–”

Jimin’s words die down when Jeongguk envelops his hand in both his own warm ones, a little sound of contentment replacing the rest of the sentence. 

“Your hands were shaking,” Jeongguk still replies, squeezing Jimin’s hand slightly before he reaches out and does the same to the other one. “How can you even sleep when you’re this cold?”

Jimin just stares at their hands for a few dragging seconds before he answers, looking away.

“Not well.”

Jeongguk clicks his tongue, feeling even more guilt crashing into his chest.

“I’ll just call Ms. Kim. The electrician should’ve–”

“No. Just…” Jimin huffs, still not looking at him, still with his hand in Jeongguk’s. “We’ll wait a few more days.”

Jeongguk feels torn. Jimin could get sick if he’s cold like this all the time, so why is he being so stubborn?

“If that’s what you really want. Just let me know when.”

Jimin nods, glancing at him with his lip caught between his teeth. 

“They’re warmer now, thank you,” he rushes out, and slips his hand out of Jeongguk’s hold.

Jeongguk hums in response, swallowing down a thick feeling in his throat as Jimin goes back to his studies. 

He can’t quite focus on his book after that, and it’s got everything to do with how his scent is sticking faintly to Jimin’s wrists. 

The next evening, Jeongguk sits down next to Jimin without any words needing to be exchanged, and he wordlessly warms Jimin’s hands up now and then. If Jimin notices him discreetly brushing a thumb over the scent glands on his wrists, he doesn’t comment on it. 

When Jeongguk gets home from uni the next day, tired from a full day of classes, the apartment is full of noise.

He realizes pretty quickly why, because he comes in right in the middle of a dramatic remediation of the happy birthday-song.

Jeongguk is aware that it’s Jimin’s birthday—the beta’s parents sent Jeongguk money so he could surprise Jimin with flowers—but Jimin forgot to mention that there would be people over. 

So now Jeongguk is watching the commotion from the hallway, like a fool, standing with a big bouquet of light orange flowers in his arms.

Jimin is sitting at the end of their kitchen table with a cake in front of him, a singular candle in the centre. Five people Jeongguk barely recognizes are standing around him, finishing up the song. 

That’s not what Jeongguk focuses on, though. 

Jimin has a big, bright smile on his face and a party-hat on his head, swaying along to the singing. He looks happier than Jeongguk has probably ever seen him. It looks good on him.

Honestly, Jimin is really pretty. 

Jeongguk almost flinches when the beta looks up and finds him with his gaze. The song is over and the candle is blown out already and, oh, everyone is looking at him.

“Um, happy birthday, hyung,” Jeongguk awkwardly says, hoping to hurry up and escape the attention of the people in the room. He walks forward with the flowers. “These are from your parents.”

Jimin smiles widely, standing up to take care of the bouquet. “Thank you, Jeongguk.”

“I’ll just, uh…” Jeongguk points a thumb to his room. 

Jimin nods, but one of his friends, who Jeongguk knows a bit better than the rest, speaks up before Jeongguk can flee.

“Jeonggukie, have some cake!” Hoseok exclaims, coming to pull Jeongguk into the group of people. 

“I shouldn’t…”

Jeongguk looks at Jimin, and the beta just rolls his eyes with an easy smile. He must be in a very good mood today.

“Don’t be so uptight. It’s my birthday, just have some cake.”

Jeongguk tries to relax and nod along to the conversations around him, but it’s hard to be normal when this is so far from it. They don’t do these things together, he and Jimin. It’s odd to see the beta be anything other than a snappy brat.

The longer he sits there, the more Jeongguk realizes that he’s been missing out on a whole other side of Jimin. The side that’s unintentionally funny and even a bit sweet. Jimin is carefree and giggly with his friends, and it’s a stark contrast to how he is with Jeongguk. 

He slowly starts to wonder where they went wrong. 

Right when Jimin moved in, they hit it off pretty well. When Jimin started showing his messy side, Jeongguk may have been very hard on him to begin with, but he’s gotten a lot better at tolerating it with time. He barely even comments on it these days if Jimin doesn’t bring it up before him. There is really no reason for them to be enemies anymore. 

Maybe they just got too used to keeping a harsh tone with each other. It’s exhausting to live in a constant air of animosity, so why else do they keep it up? 

Jeongguk would really prefer the side of Jimin that he’s seeing right now, maybe with a pinch of the feisty side. He’d miss bickering with Jimin too much if it disappeared completely. 

Jimin catches him staring a few times and just looks away, almost shyly, each time. But Jeongguk can’t stop. Jimin’s cheeks are a little flushed from all the smiling and the hat is slowly sliding off, but it just makes him look prettier. 

Fuck, maybe Jeongguk is going crazy. It’s still the same beta who makes fun of his fiction books and steals all his stuff. Jimin’s beauty is probably pulling tricks on his mind. 

That must be it.

Jeongguk excuses himself when an appropriate amount of time has passed to go study in his room.

He only emerges from his room again when the noise has died down and it’s just him and Jimin left in the apartment. 

It’s pretty late, but he wants to have his evening tea and read a few pages in his book. It’s a well-integrated step in his nightly routine that eases his mind and helps him sleep.

“Oh, you’re still up,” Jimin says when Jeongguk comes into the kitchen.

The beta is cleaning up after the celebration, happiness radiating off of him. 

“Yeah.” Jeongguk holds his book up as a quick explanation. 

Jimin hums. “I think I’ll stay up for a while, too. Have a case brief I need to finish reading.”

When Jeongguk has finished making his tea, Jimin is sitting on the sofa already, curled up on what has become his side of it, cocooned in a blanket, glasses perched on his nose, with a thin bundle of papers in his hands. 

Jeongguk sits down and opens his book, a sense of calm washing over him when it’s just them—the silence and their scents slowly filtering out any other, lingering ones. 

Jimin yawns and burrows further into the couch, his shoulder bumping Jeongguk’s arm, head very close to leaning on the alpha’s shoulder.

Without realizing, like so many nights before, Jeongguk is slowly lulled to sleep by the calming effects of his tea and the way Jimin’s scent curls around his own, the book sliding out of his hands.

It’s dark and silent the next time Jeongguk wakes up. The city is sleeping outside the windows, and there is a pressure against his side. 

He has moved a lot in his sleep, now flat on his back on the sofa with his legs hanging off the armrest semi-uncomfortably. 

The scent of apricot is heavy around him.

Jimin has followed him down, fast asleep, pressed between the back of the couch and Jeongguk’s side, body turned to the alpha. His hands are burrowed under Jeongguk’s back, surely in search of the warmth there. 

Jeongguk can feel Jimin’s breath on the side of his neck, unsettlingly close to his scent gland, and the tip of his nose touches the skin right under his jawline. 

Jeongguk should move away—go and sleep in his own bed.

Yet, he doesn’t move a muscle.

Jimin is warm, no sign of coldness anymore, and his breathing is slow, probably sleeping deeper than he has in a couple weeks now. Jeongguk can’t get himself to interrupt it. It’s still Jimin’s birthday, after all. That’s what he tells himself when he closes his eyes again; that's the only reason he stays. 

Jeongguk is alone on the couch when he wakes up, and light is filtering in through the windows.

The smell of Jimin making his weekly Sunday-pancakes for breakfast reaches his nose and Jeongguk smiles a little to himself. 

He can’t even get himself to feel annoyed about the mess Jimin is orchestrating in the kitchen. He’s just relieved that something is like it always has been. 

“Do you want some?” Jimin asks when Jeongguk enters the room. 

“Sure.”

They both act like last night didn’t happen.

Jeongguk moves around Jimin to make his morning tea. Their shoulders and arms brush as Jeongguk puts his pot of water on the stove top next to the one Jimin is using, and Jeongguk swears Jimin’s scent gets a little sweeter.

Jeongguk subtly breathes in more of it, standing close to Jimin with the excuse of waiting for the water to boil. 

Seriously, what happened to the Jimin who lived here just a couple weeks ago? The feisty one who hated his guts, and whose scent was weak but stable—unchanging.

“Are you not going to get the tea?” 

Jeongguk snaps out of it, realizing that he has been too busy thinking about Jimin’s scent to notice that he poured the hot water in his mug without any tea, and is now uselessly stirring it like that.

“Oh, yeah.”

He moves to the corner of the counter where he keeps his containers of tea and prepares it properly, cheeks getting a bit hot from embarrassment. 

“So, um. Did you have a good birthday?”

Jimin nods, glancing at Jeongguk with a happy little smile on his lips. He seems to still be in an unusually good mood. 

“Yeah, really good.”

Jeongguk hums, not knowing how to reply—not really used to having such a normal, civilized conversation with his flatmate, whose scent is currently clinging to his clothes and skin. It feels weird. Domestic in a brand new type of way.

“By the way, when you went out with your class the other night… did you have fun?” Jimin asks then, all of a sudden.

Jeongguk nods, even though it’s odd of Jimin to bring that up. “Sure, it was interesting. Tae spilled his drink all over a stranger while he was giving her a totally unprompted lapdance.”

Jimin snorts out a laugh. 

They are silent for a moment before Jimin continues.

“What about you?”

Jeongguk turns his head to look at Jimin, but the beta just looks down at the pancake he’s poking around with a spatula Jeongguk stole from his parents’ house when he moved out.

“What about me?”

Jimin isn’t usually this interested in what Jeongguk gets up to in his free-time.

“Did you… I don’t know, maybe you also give out random lapdances?”

Jeongguk laughs out loud. 

“Do you know me at all?”

Jimin finally looks at him, and he has a small smile on his lips.

“Hm, yeah, I didn’t think so. But I don’t really know you in that setting.”

Jeongguk raises an eyebrow. 

“You wanna know?”

Jimin shrugs, schooling his expression to one of indifference.

“It’s whatever.”

Jeongguk chuckles. “I’m not very different. You know I don’t drink, so.”

Jimin scrunches his nose.

“God, so you just… go around telling the bartenders to fix bottles that aren’t standing in a perfect row? You bring a book about a knight saving a damsel in distress to read while your friends dance? I don’t know why I was expecting you to, by some miracle, actually be fun on a night out.”

Jeongguk can’t stop chuckling, even though he should find Jimin’s rant offensive. The beta is shaking his head in disapproval, long since turned back to his cooking.

“Is that really the only impression you have of me?”

“It’s literally all you do.”

“Not true. Maybe it’s mostly what I do here because you make me do it, but I can have fun.”

“I don’t make you do anything.”

“Jimin. This apartment would look like actual hell on earth if I didn’t live here.”

“I clean!”

“Only after I’ve told you at least five times.”

Jimin keeps his mouth shut for a few beats and Jeongguk smiles a little.

“Whatever. So you danced, then?”

Jeongguk hums in affirmation.

“Surely not a pretty sight,” Jimin mumbles under his breath, making Jeongguk scowl at him, before, louder, he says, “And, okay, maybe not a lapdance, but perhaps you dance with someone? Anyone in your class that you fancy?”

Jeongguk watches Jimin cringe after the last word leaves his mouth, as if he hates to be saying it but forces himself to anyway, for whatever reason. 

“Not really. Why?” Jeongguk asks, just to understand better why this conversation is happening. 

“It smelled like someone scented you when you got home, though.”

Ah.

Jimin presses his lips together after he says it. The bowl with pancake batter is empty, the pancakes done, but he’s not moving an inch, just stares at the stack of pancakes while Jeongguk stares at him.

Jeongguk gets a strong urge to comfort and reassure him.

“No one scented me, don’t worry,” he says softly.

Jimin snaps his head in his direction, eyes wide for a second before he narrows them.

“I don’t worry.”

Jeongguk puts his hands up, as if trying to calm a wild animal. But he doesn’t know what else to do to make Jimin see that it’s okay to feel possessive. 

He can’t really admit that he likes it. That would only make Jimin freak out.

“Okay. Just telling you, then. No one scented me. There is a girl in my research methods class who likes to flirt with me, but I’m not interested.”

The tension in Jimin’s shoulders disappears. 

“Alright. Whatever.”

Jeongguk resists the urge to smile. Jimin really needs to expand his vocabulary for when he wants to seem unbothered.

“Let’s eat,” Jimin says with a firm nod.

Halfway through their breakfast, the electrician comes. 

Somehow, neither one of the flatmates are very happy to see him.

Jimin’s odd behavior continues over the next week, and it escalates to other things in addition to the sudden possessiveness and defensiveness. 

First, Jeongguk notices Jimin sleeping considerably longer, and more often. He thought perhaps Jimin was just catching up on the sleep he lost when the heating didn’t work, but it’s more than that.

It starts with him sleeping through his alarms and Jeongguk, annoyed with the beeping sound, has to knock on Jimin’s door in order for him to wake up in time for his morning classes. Then, Jimin takes an occasional nap on the couch between studying. The occasional nap turns into a daily nap, and then two.

When Jeongguk asks, Jimin just says that the workload from school is taking a toll on him and he will be fine as soon as Christmas break comes. But it’s getting concerning, and Jeongguk is trying to get him to see a doctor. 

“Why do you keep insisting? Mind your own business.”

“I’m the only one who sees you every day, I feel a responsibility to make sure you’re not sick.”

“Well you can take your sense of responsibility and shove it, Jeongguk. I’m fine.”

Jeongguk sighs for the umphteenth time, frustrated and annoyed.

“Seriously, Jimin. Your parents–”

“My parents aren’t any of your business.”

“They kind of are, though.”

Jeongguk has met Jimin’s parents more than a few times over the year they have lived together. He made a promise to them to make sure Jimin is healthy.

“The amount of time you’re sleeping is not normal for someone in their twenties. Have you even mentioned it to them?”

Jimin glares at him, and his scent is one of unripe apricots. Sour and tangy. 

That’s another thing that has escalated. Jimin’s scent is getting stronger and way more dynamic. 

“Maybe you’re having a hormonal imbalance of some kind. It’s serious and you have to check it out–”

“Don’t tell me what I have to do. Dumb alpha… I don’t have to do anything. I feel fine, so I’m not going to worry my parents in vain.” Jimin fixes him with a deadly glare, looking almost wild. “And if you dare to even think about contacting them, I’ll… I’ll–” Jimin fishes for something that will hurt him, surely. “I’ll put wrong labels on the spice jars.” 

Jeongguk can’t help the laugh that comes out of him, making Jimin fume even more.

“And I’ll throw your tea out into the street!”

Jeongguk purses his lips to contain his amusement, shaking his head. 

“Your health is more important than spice labels and tea, idiot.”

Jimin opens and closes his mouth a few times before he slumps back into the kitchen chair. His eyelids suddenly look heavy when he’s not glaring daggers at Jeongguk anymore.

“See? You’re exhausted and it’s not even six o’clock in the evening.”

“You’re making me exhausted. I’m fine.”

Jimin mutters a ‘thank you’ under his breath for the dinner Jeongguk made and then he goes back to his room, probably to nap yet again. 

Next, Jimin starts to make even more of a mess of the apartment. 

In the span of another week, Jimin’s things are everywhere, and so is his scent. 

Jeongguk tries not to go crazy, but it’s hard when he can barely access his favorite reading chair because Jimin has started to rearrange the furniture as well. Nothing is in its rightful place.

The sofa is in a corner instead of the middle of the living room where it usually is. Jeongguk’s armchair and the coffee table are barricaded like a fort around the couch along with the huge Monstera Jeongguk usually keeps by the window.

The kitchen is a mess Jeongguk can't even begin to describe , and the only thing he can do to keep sane is shut himself in his own room to meditate at random points of the day.

Of course, he tries to reason with Jimin. He tells him every so often that he needs him to stop destroying their apartment. 

Jimin, however, is a monster.

He’s snappier than ever, like a thunderstorm, in one moment and happy the next. And when he’s happy Jeongguk doesn’t dare to say anything about the mess in fear of the inevitable strike of lightning from a blue sky.

So, meditating it is.

His wolf is surprisingly calm despite the chaos. It just wants Jimin to feel comfortable. If a hot mess is the way to go—it’s fine with his alpha. Ridiculous, Jeongguk thinks, but he’s also glad. If his wolf side started freaking out as much as his human side is, he might actually go into cardiac arrest.

The third thing that happens is Jimin’s newfound awkwardness around Jeongguk at times. 

For example, Jimin tenses up every time Jeongguk comes home after working out and barely says a word to him. But the most obvious example is how he gets all flustered and stiff when Jeongguk eats food Jimin has made. 

“Am I eating too much? Were you going to make lunch boxes?”

Jimin shakes his head in small motions, already having finished his own portion. He just watches on as Jeongguk eats, lips a little parted.

“You– You’re eating well.”

Jeongguk raises an eyebrow, nostrils flaring to take in the gust of fresh scent coming from Jimin. It’s sweet, happy. Jimin’s appearance, however, is screaming ‘awkward’. 

“It’s good,” Jeongguk praises, referring to the meal.

Jimin goes bright red and his scent turns even sweeter, making Jeongguk’s alpha perk up in interest, releasing pheromones of his own, scent already strong from working out a while ago.

“Okay,” Jimin squeaks, grabbing his plate and standing. “Please enjoy as much as you want. I need to study now.”

Jeongguk just nods, following Jimin with his gaze as the beta fumbles to put his plate in the dishwasher.

Instances like that are a stark contrast to when Jimin throws insults at him for trying to move the armchair or gather up random objects Jimin has placed on ‘appointed’ spots on the floor. 

It’s like Jimin has become Jeongguk, except he’s obsessively trying to maintain a mess while Jeongguk obsessively tries to prevent one. It’s less than ideal. 

Although Jeongguk is frustrated from irritation over the disorganized apartment, he is even more frustrated over how Jimin is disregarding the fact that something is obviously wrong. 

He is worried, simply put. 

That is, until the fourth escalation happens.

Jeongguk is very serious about laundry. He keeps track of every piece of fabric he uses during the week, and his laundry day on Sundays can only be compared to a religious ritual of some sort. 

So when he notices that several things from his laundry basket are missing, he immediately draws the conclusion that there is a thief in his household. Better yet—since said household consists of only himself and one other person—he draws the conclusion that Jimin is a thief.

Rage can only describe what Jeongguk is feeling. The demon had the audacity to not only use up all his shampoo and swipe expensive tea from his collection, but also shamelessly take the handmade blanket Jeongguk’s grandma gifted him on Christmas years ago, Jeongguk’s favorite hoodie, and even a pair of gym shorts. Who the hell does he think he is, turning their living space upside down, expecting Jeongguk to be okay with it, and then stealing Jeongguk’s possessions? Jeongguk will show him how not okay he really is with–

Jeongguk’s train of thought derails when he storms into Jimin’s room.

Jimin is sleeping, but that’s nothing out of the ordinary. It’s what he is sleeping on.

His bed is a mess of things—bedding, clothes, pillows, plushies and blankets—and Jimin is curled up in the mess of it all. Yet, it’s not a mess at all. The pillows and stuffed animals are stacked around him like a fort, and the clothes and blankets are carefully weaved through and around them. On top of Jimin is Jeongguk’s grandma’s handmade quilt. 

It looks like a nest. 

Jimin has made a nest. He’s nesting. 

And suddenly all of the changes make sense, if only–

If only Jimin was an omega, but that can’t be. Jimin cannot have hidden a whole subgender from him for an entire year living in the same apartment. It’s impossible. He’s a beta. 

Jeongguk quietly steps back and closes the door again, leaving Jimin to his nap. 

He moves on autopilot through the mess in the living room and sits in his armchair, staring into space as he thinks for a long while. 

It hits him that Jimin doesn’t seem to understand his sudden omegan tendencies either. So maybe Jimin doesn’t know? But know what exactly? One can’t not know what one's subgender is. Aside from betas, it’s made very clear the day you present. Jimin should definitely–

The day you present.

Jimin hasn’t presented yet, but he’s about to and he has no idea.

Fuck, this is too much at once. Jeongguk feels dizzy, and he’s not even the one whose life is about to be turned upside down. 

He remembers his own presentation. He was moody, not nearly as much as Jimin but still, and his senses were going crazy. It was confusing and overwhelming. Painful, too. But Jeongguk was expecting it. Almost everyone presents at the age of eighteen, and there are usually signs even before that. 

He can’t imagine what Jimin is going through. It’s been six years since he should have presented. Six years of believing he’s a beta. He must be so confused, and probably in denial of the signs he’s experiencing now.

At the same time, Jeongguk can’t help but feel a little relieved. Presenting late sucks, yes, but it’s not fatal in any way. Just minutes ago, Jeongguk thought that Jimin was seriously ill. 

He sits there thinking for an undetermined amount of time and eventually Jimin comes out of his room, hair a mess on top of his head.

"Aren't you supposed to be in the basement doing your laundry? It’s late.”

Jeongguk is put on the spot. Should he tell Jimin and, if so, how? He needs more time to think.

“I’m skipping it this week.”

Jimin sends him an odd look before shrugging.

“Alright. Wanna watch a movie?”

Jeongguk nods mindlessly. That will give him time to think.

He watches Jimin make himself comfortable on the couch in a way he never did before, putting the cushions the way he wants them. The way he frowns in concentration as he sets everything just right screams omega so loud that Jeongguk has no doubts anymore. 

“What?”

Jeongguk blinks, realizing that he has been watching Jimin for too long, and that an endeared smile had formed on his face. He quickly looks away, turning to the TV.

“Nothing.”

Jimin finally settles down and picks a movie. Apparently movies are alright to him, but fiction books aren’t. 

Jeongguk accidentally gets swept up by the film. He bickers with Jimin about the characters’ actions and forgets about the pondering he was supposed to be doing. It’ll have to wait until tomorrow.

Jeongguk thinks and thinks, and he decides that he needs to put Jimin in a good mood before they have that conversation, or else the older man won’t hear him out—he’ll just snap at him and call him crazy.

He gets started as soon as he comes home from uni the next day, carrying a full bag of groceries and one bottle of sweet white wine.

Jimin has two afternoon classes on Mondays, so Jeongguk has plenty of time to prepare dinner and dessert especially customized to Jimin. 

Jeongguk slings on an apron Jimin uses when he bakes and gets Jimin’s favorite stew started, letting it simmer while he makes dessert. 

He grabs the big net of apricots he bought and starts carefully cutting them in halves and removing pits. He caramelizes sugar and adds wine and vanilla, then he puts as many apricot-halves in the mixture as possible without everything overflowing.

The recipe said to let the fruit marinate for twenty minutes, and it smells so good that Jeongguk has to do a little taste-test on the apricots that didn’t make it into the pan.

He leans back on the counter and accidentally does more than a little taste-test. He’s dug into his fifth one when an even more delicious scent hits his nose. 

He pauses with the half-eaten fruit close to his mouth and looks over to the stove, thinking the apricots must be all poached already, but instead his gaze catches Jimin in the doorway.

Jeongguk flinches a little in surprise, putting the apricot down on the cutting board.

“Hyung. You’re home early.”

Jimin looks between Jeongguk and the cutting board and the stove, back to Jeongguk, eyeing his apron.

“I–I didn’t feel well, uh–”

“Are you hungry? I’m making you food. And dessert.”

Jeongguk notices the tickling sensation of fruit juice sliding down his wrist and quickly licks it off.

Jimin’s chest heaves a little, gripping the doorframe in his hand as he leans his weight on it.

“For me?”

Jeongguk nods once. “You’ve been stressed, I wanted to help. And we kind of need to talk about something–”

“Thank you, but I-I don’t feel good.” 

“That’s okay. Do you want this, at least? I accidentally ate all of them, so it’s just this left,” Jeongguk sheepishly offers the half-eaten apricot. “They’re sweet.”

Jimin makes a noise like he’s in pain, but then there is a scent so strong and sweet that Jeongguk drops the apricot on the floor with a wet thud. 

Jimin stares at him with wide eyes and Jeongguk stares right back, shocked. 

“I-I–”

Jimin squirms, eyes cast down in shame. 

Jeongguk can’t have that. His alpha is howling in delight at smelling Jimin’s slick for the first time, clawing at the edges of his mind to do something. A stupid mutt, that’s what his alpha is at the moment. Jimin is obviously in distress, frozen in the doorway, cheeks dark pink. He smells absolutely divine but, underneath the thick scent of slick, there is also anxiety and fear.

Before Jeongguk can get any words of reassurement out, the presenting omega turns on his heel and disappears around the corner, the sound of his door slamming shut coming only a second later. 

Jeongguk gnaws on his lips, quickly moving to turn the stove off. 

He thinks fast, what’s the logical thing to do in this situation? He should probably leave the apartment, give Jimin space. That’s what Jeongguk does during his ruts—he spends them in a hotel room. For omegas it’s different, they need their nests and the familiarity of their own home. 

So he should go, but he can’t leave Jimin all alone while he experiences his first heat. He might mindlessly wander outside in a delirious state and get assaulted.

The best solution he can come up with is calling Jimin’s best friend. Hoseok comes over sometimes, he’s an omega, and Jimin seems to trust him. He’ll know what to do.

Jeongguk doesn’t have Hoseok’s number, but he has him on social media, so he calls him there.

“Hello?”

“Hey, it’s Jeongguk, Jimin’s flatmate.”

“Jeonggukie! It’s been a while.”

“Yeah, um, I’m actually not calling to catch up.”

“Is Jimin alright?”

“I don’t know. He, uh, he’s presenting. As an omega.”

“What?” Hoseok screeches, making Jeongguk flinch away from the hand holding his phone. “Right now?!”

“Yeah, right now. He’s in his room. I feel like I should leave, but I don’t want to leave him alone.”

“I’m on my way.”

Jeongguk breathes out in relief. 

“Okay, thanks.”

Hoseok hangs up and Jeongguk paces around for a while, unable to concentrate. 

Jimin’s scent still hangs heavy in the air, he realizes, and that’s probably why he can’t think straight. He opens a window in the kitchen and one in the living room, letting the freezing and, more importantly, fresh air in. Immediately he feels more in touch with the rational part of his brain, patting himself on the back for calling Hoseok. That was definitely the right thing to do. 

He also realizes that Jimin might be freaking out right now, so he hesitantly walks over to his door and knocks. 

A frightened squeak is heard through the door. 

“Sorry, just letting you know that Hoseok is coming. I’ll crash at Taehyung’s for a few days, alright?”

“Yep, thanks!”

Jimin sounds positively freaked out, but also like he definitely does not want Jeongguk to keep talking to him. So Jeongguk retreats to the living room and anxiously waits for Hoseok to show up. 

── 𓍢ִ໋.ೀ 

Jimin is burning up. His whole body feels like it will light on fire at any moment, inside and out. His brain is splitting in half and he’s leaking so much slick he could fill a bucket at this point. The scent of it is making the air feel thick. 

Most of all: he feels horny in a way he’s never experienced before. 

Worst of all: Jeon Jeongguk. Jimin wants him. Bad. He has been wanting him, deep down, but now the feeling is ten-fold. 

He wants that stupid, neat-freak alpha. That perfect body and those big, brown eyes. He can’t understand it but, God, how he wants him. Desperately. Wants those arms to frame him in. Needs to roam his hands over that small waist. Holy fuck, seeing him in that apron literally made Jimin’s omega jump forward out of pure lust. And the way he was licking apricot juice off those long fingers–

Jimin jumps a foot into the air when someone knocks on his door for the second time since he hid away.

“Jiminie? It’s me. Can I come in?”

Only Hoseok. Jimin looks at the state of himself, slick leaking through his clothes, dick tenting his pants obscenely. He pulls the nearest blanket over his lower half, realizing with lust-mixed horror that it’s the one he snuck from Jeongguk’s laundry.

“Come in.”

Hoseok bursts through the door with big eyes and closes it after himself. He stares at Jimin in shock.

“Jeongguk wasn’t wrong, you’re actually presenting.” 

Hoseok goes to open the window. Jimin breathes in fresh air, the cold soothing his burning skin.

“Is he gone?” 

Hoseok nods. Jimin doesn’t know whether to feel relieved or distraught. 

“How could he be wrong? I leaked slick right in front of him.”

Jimin hides in his hands with a groan. Hoseok kneels down by the edge of the bed and pats his knee comfortingly.

“It’s not your fault. This is all natural, you can’t control it.”

“No, but apparently he could,” Jimin mutters, mostly to himself. 

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing.” Jimin shakes out of it, looking at Hoseok. “What the hell do I do?”

Hoseok smiles.

“Glad you asked. I brought these.”

Jimin watches on in horror as Hoseok pulls out two sex toy packages from his bag, laying them in front of him on the bed.

His friend looks quite proud.

“I managed to get my hands on them right before the shop closed. You owe me a hundred bucks.”

Jimin gapes at the omega, not believing his ears.

“You bought me dildos for a hundred dollars?”

“Duh,” Hoseok dead-pans. “It’ll be worth every penny, you’ll see. Make sure you disinfect them before use, though. This one vibrates!”

“This is not real life.”

“You’re an omega, Jiminie, it’s a miracle! After all this, you and I are gonna celebrate. I knew I felt a special connection to you! We’re omega soulmates.”

Jimin groans and laughs at the same time and, just then, a painful sensation curls in his belly.

“Smells like it’s really starting, so I’ll just be in the kitchen eating the delicious food Jeongguk made.”

A sharp hiss sounds through the room, and Jimin belatedly realizes that it’s coming from himself. 

“Or not! I’ll just be in the living room blasting the Wicked soundtrack, don’t mind me!”

Hoseok slinks out of the room like a frightened mouse before Jimin can backtrack and apologize, but Jimin still relaxes knowing no one will touch the food Jeongguk spent time and energy making for him.

The thought makes slick start to come out of him again, and Jimin quickly peels his pants and underwear off. 

He touches his inner thigh, feeling the slippery, warm substance beneath his fingers. He’s been with an omega or two before, so it’s not entirely new, but this is coming from him. 

As a result of an intrusive thought, he brings his fingers to his mouth and licks one of his fingertips clean.

It’s sweet, and feels a little odd in his mouth. Maybe because it tastes like him. Maybe because it tastes like a fertile omega and like him, and he’s not really come to terms with that yet.

Right now, though, he just needs release. So he grabs the simple one of the sex toys and disinfects it like instructed with the wipes Hoseok generously brought from home before putting it to use.

Everything is a bit of a blur after that. It melts together like drops of water landing in a puddle; the drops being moments where Hoseok comes in to make sure he’s hydrated and fed, and the puddle being all the time he spends impaled on a dildo like a momentary sex-addict. Jimin is very unused to it and very unhappy about it.

On the evening of the third day, the dense cloud of lust finally clears. 

Jimin takes a long-awaited shower. The warm water on his sore body feels like he’s ascending to heaven for approximately sixteen minutes. Hoseok heats up a bowl of the stew Jeongguk made for him when he limps into the living room. Jimin devours it, sitting on the couch, and Hoseok just watches him in rare silence, probably waiting for Jimin to start talking.

He slumps back on the couch when he’s finished the bowl.

“God, I just can’t believe you go through that every three months. I’ve seriously underestimated you.” 

Hoseok chuckles, delighted.

“Damn right you have. It’s easier with a partner, though.”

“I feel bad for everyone that has to be involved, including the partner.”

“No, really, it’s not so bad,” Hoseok insists. “Alphas especially love it, trust me. It’s in their nature.”

Jimin grimaces as Hoseok wiggles his eyebrows.

“Alphas are creeps, then. I was practically fighting for my life.”

Hoseok clicks his tongue. 

“Not like that. If they like it just for the sex, then, yes, they are a creep.” Hoseok makes a face that Jimin returns in agreement. “But the good ones love it because they get to take care of you. Feed you, hold you, clean you up, ease the pain… That part.”

Jimin feels a little better. That actually sounds quite nice. Too bad his new omega is dumb and wants that with the most annoying alpha in existence.

“You should tell Jeongguk you like him, so he can help you next time. He’s definitely a very good one,” Hoseok says, as if he’s read his mind. Jimin’s defenses rise. 

“I don’t like Jeongguk.”

"Uh, yes, you do. You’ve been moaning his name all through your heat.”

Jimin gasps in offense. Heat crawls up his neck to his ears.

“You said you’d play music and not listen in!”

“You were the one interrupting me while I was defying gravity, not the other way around. I was trying to be respectful, and you were super loud.”

The heat reaches Jimin’s face.

“Well– You know what? It doesn’t matter. It was my omega, not me. I hate the guy. He’s… annoying.”

“That’s either the only insult in your vocabulary or you actually don’t find him that annoying.”

“He’s also–! He-he likes to read fiction, about kingdoms and dragons and alpha knights and omega princesses.”

“So? That just tells me he’s a romantic, and even more of a good alpha. He made you a fancy dessert made out of apricots. Do I need to say more?”

“You’re annoying.”

“Don’t tell me you’re in love with me, as well.”

Jimin rolls his eyes hard, but a smile still tugs at his lips when Hoseok giggles at his own words.  

“I’m choosing to ignore that. Thank you for staying here for three days, really. I don’t know what I would’ve done without you.”

Hoseok coos and throws himself at Jimin. Jimin freezes when Hoseok rubs their cheeks together. That feeling is new. Hoseok’s scent invades his senses. It’s subtle, since it’s just their cheeks, but new all the same.

It’s comforting, Hoseok’s sugary omega scent.

“You smell super good now, by the way,” Hoseok says, as if he’s reading Jimin’s mind again. Maybe they really are omega soulmates. 

“What do you mean now? Are you saying you didn’t like my scent before?”

Hoseok smiles at Jimin’s feigned offense, slaps his arm.

“I’m saying it’s even better like this. It’s magnified, and a little vanilla-y underneath the apricot.”

Hoseok gives a pleased nod after sniffing him to make a full scent-profile.

“Thanks.” Jimin mumbles, a little overwhelmed. “I’m exhausted. Do you want to stay another night?”

Hoseok immediately stands up. 

“Thanks but no thanks. I miss my nest.”

Jimin hums. “Is that not just for heats?”

“Depends on the omega. I like to keep mine, it’s cozy.”

Jimin nods and disregards any other questions he has so Hoseok can go home, and so Jimin can pass out in his bed—preferably for several days.

After seeing Hoseok out, he realizes that his bed is a ruin of slick-stained sheets and other nesting materials.

He shoves everything to the floor—a little hesitantly since his omega is being emotional about it—and forces the sheets down into his laundry basket before he redoes everything with clean bedding and makes a little nest with anything that can be saved from the pile of soft objects on the floor. 

He winches when he finds Jeongguk’s blanket is not one of those things and pushes that down next to the soiled sheets. A problem for future Jimin.

It does remind him of the fact that Jeongguk has been forced away from his own home for three days straight, though, and he immediately locates his phone to send the alpha a message and let him know that it’s okay to come back.

He doesn’t have the energy to wait for a reply, falling asleep mere seconds after hitting send.

── 𓍢ִ໋.ೀ 

Jeongguk has had a rough couple of days. 

He’s thankful that Taehyung has let him stay with him, but it’s uncomfortable for him to be away from all his stuff—he only threw in the most important things into a bag before he left home—and, as much as he likes Taehyung, the beta never stops talking. 

On top of that, Jeongguk is constantly thinking about Jimin and worrying about how he is doing. 

When he finally gets a text from Jimin on the third day, he doesn’t hesitate to grab his stuff and thank Taehyung a final time before heading home.

Stepping inside the apartment feels like a breath of fresh air, his muscles finally relax and his brain shuts up for a moment, before he realizes that that air is filled with omega scent and heat pheromones. That wouldn’t have been enough to drive him crazy on its own, but the fact that it’s Jimin’s somehow makes it the biggest deal.

And, fuck, it’s a lot. His heart-rate doubles and his alpha drinks it up like they’re starving. Just like that, his body is on edge again. 

With his senses on high alert, he quickly figures out that Jimin is in his room—sleeping, if his currently neutral scent is any indication. Jeongguk wants to check on him, his instincts scream at him to properly make sure Jimin is safe and comfortable, but he doesn’t want to wake him up or intrude. 

Jeongguk forces himself away from Jimin’s door and into his own room to try and sleep until Jimin is up. 

When Jeongguk wakes up with a jolt for the eighth time, eyes snapping open wide to assess his surroundings, he accepts the fact that it’s useless to sleep peacefully in his state.

It’s only six in the morning when the alpha gets up and makes himself tea out of his most calming herb blend, hoping it will soothe his tense body and mind. 

Hours later, the sound of a door opening suddenly reaches his perked ears and Jeongguk’s gaze quickly lands on Jimin coming out of his room.

The alpha is on his feet in a second, moving closer. Jimin’s hair is tousled and his cheeks are puffy and pink. Jeongguk’s heart does a weird flip, chest squeezing . 

“Is everything okay?” Jeongguk asks, searching Jimin for any discomfort. 

Jimin looks at him, expression morphing to slight confusion. He smells heavenly. Jeongguk’s wolf thoroughly approves of Jimin’s omega scent.

“Um, I was just going to have breakfast.”

Jeongguk breathes out, nodding. “I’ll make some.”

Jimin hums, giving him a once-over with a little nibble on his lip, averting his eyes to the ground after. 

“Sorry for keeping you away from home.”

Jeongguk almost growls in protest. “Don’t apologize. I was fine.”

Jimin looks up at him and Jeongguk feels a surge of something in his chest. 

“Okay.”

A tense pause. 

“At least Taehyung let you use the coffee table, right?” Jimin jokes—an attempt to break the charged atmosphere.

“I dunno, I kind of missed your messiness,” Jeongguk says, only half-joking.

Jimin’s lips part slightly, and there is a hint of panic in his eyes.

“Yeah, right.” The omega laughs nervously. “Stop messing around and make me breakfast.”

Jeongguk gets on the job immediately. He stands in the kitchen and makes a big nutritious breakfast for Jimin, hoping it will help restore some energy that was taken by his sudden heat.

Jimin sits on the counter and watches him, keeping quiet. Only his scent is not. It’s sweetening in waves as if Jimin is trying it out, letting it roam free before controlling it and repeating that. It makes Jeongguk form an addiction, missing the pheromones as soon as they are pulled in and then feeling a rush of dopamine whenever they reach his nose again.

Jeongguk makes himself his morning tea only after Jimin has been served four plates of different breakfast options, and watches the omega eat. 

“Can I have a cup too?” Jimin suddenly asks through a mouthful of granola, looking at Jeongguk with an odd pinch of desperation in his eyes.

Jeongguk blinks at Jimin, his brain buffering for a moment, before he nods jerkily.

He tries not to listen to his wolf as he carefully crafts the cup of tea, but it’s kind of hard to ignore the sense of satisfaction that burns through him.

“Thanks,” Jimin says when Jeongguk hands him the cup.

“Careful, it’s hot.”

Jimin doesn’t seem to mind. He disregards the rest of the food and just holds the cup in both his small hands, brings it up to his face and blows on the beverage, in no rush. 

He looks unbearably cute and it doesn’t help his case at all when Jeongguk realizes that Jimin’s inhales through his nose are a little deeper than his exhales. He’s mainly just smelling the tea. Jeongguk’s black tea. Which is also what Jeongguk smells like. 

Jesus, this is getting out of hand. 

“How, uhm, how do you feel?” 

Jimin pauses, looking up at Jeongguk. 

“Like my life just got turned upside down.”

Jeongguk winches. “Yeah… I could tell that you had no idea.”

Jimin furrows his eyebrows.

“You knew?”

Jeongguk hurries to explain. “It only clicked the day before you presented. I was going to talk to you about it that evening, when you…”

Jimin splutters a little, turning pink. “Don’t.”

Jeongguk looks at the omega with big, sincere eyes. “It’s really nothing to be embarrassed about, hyung. It was going to happen one way or the other. I’m just happy you were at home, safe.”

“Mhm!”

Jimin is looking anywhere but at Jeongguk, and the alpha feels a little defeated. He doesn’t want to make Jimin uncomfortable. His scent is sweet, but Jeongguk doesn’t know if he can trust it this close after his heat.

“I can go have breakfast in my room, if…”

Jimin finally looks at him, and his scent spikes with a hint of anxiety.

Maybe his scent is reliable, after all.

“No, here is fine.”

“Then…?” Jeongguk looks at him questioningly.

Jimin sighs, a little defeated. “Fine, I’m embarrassed. I know it’s natural and everything. That doesn’t help.” 

Jeongguk nods slowly. “What will help, then? We live together, so it’d be nice if we could work this out.”

“You still want me to live here?” Jimin blurts out.

Jeongguk is taken aback. “What? Why would you ask that?”

Jimin shrugs, taking a little sip of the tea. 

“You don’t like omegas, right? The scent’s too strong. I didn’t exactly plan on presenting, but I don’t want to make you uncomfortable in your own home, so I can start looking for other–”

“Slow down,” Jeongguk cuts in, putting a stop to Jimin’s rambling. “You thought I’d kick you out?”

“Well, no, not kick me out exactly, but I know you wanted to live with a beta specifically for the weak scent, so–”

“Yeah, I said that, I know, but… Just– Your scent is fine.”

Jimin looks at him sceptically. “But–”

“Just trust me, okay? I would tell you if I had a problem with you being an omega. There is none. Your scent is fine, I like it. It’s a nice… scent.”

Jimin is beet-red by the time Jeongguk has stopped talking, and his scent fills the room in a wild sort of way, uncontrolled and mouth-wateringly sweet.

“Yes. Okay. Good,” Jimin says shortly, sounding a bit like a cave man.

Jeongguk can’t help but smile a little, hiding it behind his own cup of tea. 

The next day, Hoseok comes over and he has a big duffle bag with him. Jeongguk watches Jimin let him in from his spot in the armchair. 

When Hoseok notices him, he bounds over. “Jeongguk, hey!”

“Hey, Hoseok hyung. Thanks for coming over the other day.”

“No, thank you for calling me and leaving the apartment on such short notice. Jimin was super grateful.”

Jeongguk smiles, nodding. Jimin hovers in the back, smiling awkwardly.

Hoseok looks between them once, before he turns to Jeongguk with big eyes.

“Hey, we’re going out tonight to celebrate that Jimin is an omega, you should come!”

Jeongguk blinks. This escalated. 

“Oh, uh…”

Jimin steps in, pulling on Hoseok’s arm. “You really don’t have to.”

Hoseok doesn’t budge, shooting Jimin a dramatic look before he looks back at the alpha. 

“Yeah, you do. You can bring a friend, too. A group of four is perfect, it’ll be fun!”

Jeongguk looks between the two omegas unsurely, lingering on Jimin. 

The new omega sighs. “Fine, you can come if you promise not to bring a book.”

Jeongguk rolls his eyes, tempted to just turn them down and not go. But Jimin presenting as an omega is a big deal and he doesn’t want to seem unsupportive. In front of Hoseok, that is. Yeah, that’s why he wants to go.

“When are you going?”

Hoseok claps his hands in delight. 

Three hours later Jeongguk is showered and dressed in his nicest informal shirt and a pair of baggy jeans that hang low on his hips. If he puts in a bit more effort than usual in his jewelry and hairstyle, nobody needs to know.

“Congratulations, Jiminie! I’m jealous,” Taehyung exclaims when he arrives at their four-seat on the bus. He was happy to join when Jeongguk asked, always up for a night out. On top of that, he is very fond of Jimin.

“Thank you, Tae,” Jimin giggles in Taehyung’s embrace. “I wouldn’t be jealous if I were you. You don’t know what you’re asking for.”

Taehyung pulls away to look at him with a grimace. “That bad?”

Jimin nods. “The worst.”

Hoseok cuts in with a scandalised expression. “Hello? This is supposed to be a celebration?”

Jimin and Taehyung side-eye each other before exaggeratedly switching up their attitude. 

“Omegas rule!”

Jeongguk watches in amusement, sure that all three of them already are tipsy from pre-gaming. 

Jeongguk has never been good with alcohol. It’s a shame, because sometimes he wishes he could rely on it to loosen up in social settings, being the introvert he is. Still, he can’t complain too much. At least his health is better off this way.

“I wanna make a toast to Jimin and his late, but awesome, omega-ness,” Taehyung says as ceremoniously as he can with a slight slur. “I wish him lots of omega-privilege and unlimited days of fertility.”

Jimin hides his face behind his hand as they clink their glasses together over the middle of the table. Jeongguk regrets asking Taehyung to join them, just slightly. 

“Jiminie needs to try out his new powers as an omega! Better yet, he needs a knot,” Hoseok says with a gasp, as if he was enlightened by Taehyung’s speech. 

Jeongguk runs a little hot and Jimin almost pushes Hoseok all the way out of the booth they’re occupying. 

“I absolutely do not.” 

Taehyung, being who he is, is of no help to the omega. 

“You totally do. From what I heard, that’s why us betas rarely get a chance with omegas—we just can’t compete with alphas and their damn knots.”

“It’s true,” Hoseok gleefully confirms Taehyung’s theory. “It’s just in our nature, and now Jiminie’s too. It’s inevitable. The knot is inevitable.”

Jimin looks like he is going to spontaneously combust. 

“If I hear the word ‘knot’ one more time, I swear to God…”

“What? You’ll do it?”

“No! If you all just shut up, I might consider it.”

Hoseok and Taehyung press their lips together with big, sparkling eyes full of mirth. Jeongguk chuckles under his breath. 

Jimin turns to him with narrowed eyes. “Are you finding this funny?”

Jeongguk puts his hands up to show his innocence, masking his amusement. 

“Jeongguk, you tell him to do it. You’d know,” Taehyung says mischievously.

Jeongguk huffs out an amused breath. “What do you want me to say? If he doesn’t want to, that’s fine.”

Hoseok groans. “Oh, stop being such a gentleman and tell us why alpha-omega sex is superior.”

“God, kill me now,” Jimin mutters. 

“I guess because it feels right in the most primal parts of our brains, since that’s how we procreate, but compatibility and emotional connection is more–”

Hoseok cuts him off. “Okay! That’s all I wanted to hear. You could have said it in a sexier way, but I’ll take it.”

Jimin is laughing now, hiding his mouth behind his hand, and Jeongguk takes that as a win. 

“You’re such a nerd.”

Jeongguk smiles a little, mostly because Jimin’s giggles are contagious. 

“I believe in romance.”

Jimin shakes his head, looking beyond amused. “Like I said. Nerd.”

“Okay,” Taehyung draws out the word, and Jeongguk looks away from Jimin’s smiling eyes to see the other two looking between him and Jimin pointedly. 

Taehyung then turns to look at Hoseok mischievously. “Hoseok-ssi, would you like to dance?”

Hoseok takes his outstretched hand and they disappear in a mess of uncontrolled laughter. 

“Did they just ditch us?” 

Jeongguk looks at Jimin, who is blinking back at him, looking offended on one hand and amused on the other. 

“I think so,” Jeongguk says, nodding slightly. 

“So…” Jimin drawls, “you didn’t bring a book.”

Jeongguk huffs. “I’m not that much of a nerd.”

“Could’ve fooled me.”

Jeongguk rolls his eyes in the face of Jimin’s smirk. 

“I like to go out once in a while, especially if there is a special occasion.”

“And you think me being an omega is?”

“Of course.”

Jimin is not looking so smug anymore. A confused frown slowly replaces his smile.

“But you… I got the feeling you wouldn’t approve, let alone come with us to celebrate. I thought you would avoid me.”

Jeongguk mirrors Jimin’s expression. 

“Why would you think that?”

“It makes the most sense, doesn’t it? The only thing you ever tolerated about me was my beta scent, and now there’s not even that.”

Jeongguk feels as if something cold and wet drapes over him. Like an invisible cloud of damp, icy fog of dread.

“That’s not true.” 

Jimin raises his eyebrows.  “What?”

“I like your scent, yes, but it’s not like I hate everything else about you.”

Jimin just stares at him for a while, and then he laughs forcibly, grabbing his drink to take a large mouthful.

“Yeah, you do. We don’t get along.” 

“And that’s all on me? Because I ‘don’t like anything about you but your scent’?” 

“No, that’s just– You started it. You started it by criticizing my every move in my own home.”

“You started it by not making an effort to keep our shared spaces a bit neater.” 

“That apartment would look like an IKEA showroom without me. I make it feel lived in, you should be grateful.”

“Lived in? The week before you presented, I meditated so much that I was one dirty mug away from a spiritual awakening.” 

Jimin’s mouth twitches in a way that makes it look like he’s going to laugh, but then he fixes Jeongguk with an even sharper glare. He crosses his forearms on the table, his glass sliding over it with a faint scraping sound when he leans a little closer.

“Maybe that would’ve been for the best. There must be some god out there who can save you from getting heart palpitations every time a fork ends up in the wrong kitchen drawer.” 

They maintain eye-contact in some sort of stare-off, and the fire between them eventually slows to a steady crackle. Familiar and sort of… satisfying. 

It slows time and drowns out the noise of the bustling club. 

They are sitting across from each other, but the table between them is small and so is the space. Jeongguk can smell Jimin well like this—can sense every change in his scent. Jimin is enjoying this, too.

“You’re staring,” Jimin says, just as his own gaze momentarily falls to Jeongguk’s lips.

“So are you.”

Jimin looks up into his eyes. He’s breathing a little heavier, eyes a bit lidded in a way that makes the younger man’s heart beat faster. The omega’s scent is strong and appealing, as if his wolf is trying to pull Jeongguk in. Jeongguk is sure his scent is growing stronger as well.

It’s new, and it’s not what they do. 

Yet, somehow, it doesn’t feel wrong at all.

Jimin closes his eyes on his next deep inhale and shakes his head a little. Jeongguk watches him lean back and down the rest of his drink.

“I’m gonna, um… go dance.”

Jimin doesn’t meet Jeongguk’s eyes again and he’s soon disappearing in the crowd on the dancefloor. 

Jeongguk looks at the empty booth and exhales. With a final sip of his mocktail, he stands up to do the same as the others, mildly afraid Hoseok might catch him sitting around by himself when they should be celebrating. 

Jeongguk actually enjoys dancing. Though he might seem stiff in a ‘bulky alpha’ kind of way at first glance, he knows a few dance styles pretty well from taking classes all through middle and high school. 

Taehyung finds him after just a few minutes, shouting over the music about how he’s found someone hot to hook up with and how Jeongguk shouldn’t worry if he disappears. Only a few minutes after that, an omega is asking Jeongguk if he can dance with him. 

Jeongguk agrees only because it’s better than doing it alone, and the stranger seems lighthearted and fun. 

“I’m Mingi,” the omega leans close to Jeongguk’s ear to say, nodding for Jeongguk to tell him his name. 

“Jeongguk.”

“Jeongguk,” Mingi repeats, flashing an easy smile. “You’re probably the only alpha here who can actually dance.”

He’s handsome, with cat-like eyes and a sharp jawline. Tall, too—almost as tall as Jeongguk. His features don't give away his sub-gender at all, but his strong floral scent definitely does. It’s not particularly pleasant, but neither is the mess of the other scents in the room. Jeongguk can usually endure it for a couple hours before he gets too overstimulated. 

Mingi turns out to be a good dancer, too. Jeongguk can tell he’s practiced some of the same styles, and they have fun showing off for a while. 

“At what studio did you dance?” Mingi asks when they take a break to get something to drink. 

“Ah, you wouldn’t know it. I grew up in Busan.”

Mingi makes a sound of acknowledgement. He looks at Jeongguk with raised eyebrows when the alpha orders ice water.

“Let me get you something stronger.”

Jeongguk shakes his head. “Thanks, but I don’t drink alcohol.”

“At all?”

“No, I…” Jeongguk trails off, distracted by a commotion happening by the end of the bar. 

When he catches a glimpse of Jimin’s blond hair, he doesn’t hesitate to push off of the counter to get a better understanding of what’s going on. 

“Don’t be a fuckin’ tease,” an alpha, caging Jimin against the wall, is saying.

“Fuck off!” Jimin hisses and struggles to push him off. He sounds terribly overwhelmed, and nothing like when he uses those words towards Jeongguk. He sounds tired and afraid—but still putting up a brave face.

Without thinking, Jeongguk is moving. He pulls the alpha off of Jimin by his shoulder and gets between them.

The other alpha looks at him in confusion for a moment, obviously drunk and disoriented, before he narrows his eyes.

“The hell?”

“You heard him,” Jeongguk says, trying to ignore his agitated alpha and stay calm. People have already turned to look. “Get out of here.” 

The other alpha makes a low noise and steps closer to Jeongguk, trying to intimidate him. 

“Mind your own business, man.” He gives Jeongguk’s chest a push before pointing over his shoulder. “That whore owes me.”

Jeongguk growls, anger getting to his head, and suddenly he and his wolf are on the same page. 

He doesn’t say anything, but his body moves on instinct. He pushes the alpha back, hard, and dodges when the guy aimlessly swings at him. 

Now, Jeongguk is not a fighter. He likes to box at the gym, but he would never imagine a face on the punching bag. So he tries to just steer the alpha away from Jimin, dodging his uncoordinated fists as he goes. 

Thankfully someone told security and soon they’re dragging the loudly raging alpha to the door. 

Jeongguk turns and his eyes search for Jimin, immediately spotting him surrounded by a few concerned witnesses, eyes focused on Jeongguk. 

“Are you alright?” Jeongguk asks when he reaches Jimin, scanning over him with his eyes. He seems unharmed physically but Jeongguk’s wolf is still on overdrive with urges to protect and take care of.

Jimin reaches for him and hesitates while his nostrils flare, pulling his hand back. 

“I’m okay, I–”

“That was so impressive. You didn’t even have to hit him.”

Jeongguk looks to the side where Mingi has approached, offering him his glass of water, his other hand resting on Jeongguk’s arm. 

Jeongguk pauses for a second of confusion, having almost forgotten about Mingi’s existence, and registers the way Jimin’s eyes tiredly narrow on Mingi. He automatically takes a step away, making Mingi’s hand fall from his arm.

“Oh, you know him?” Mingi asks then, catching up. 

“Yes, so I’m gonna…” 

Jeongguk gestures to Jimin and Mingi nods, looking mildly disappointed. 

“Ah, of course. Well, I’m here pretty much every weekend, so maybe I’ll see you…”

The people next to Jimin move out of the way when Jeongguk comes forward, and he wraps his arm around Jimin’s waist. 

Jeongguk shoots an apologetic glance at Mingi before he starts walking Jimin to the exit. “Probably not. Sorry.”

Jimin leans into his side as Jeongguk guides him through the club, head turned into his chest, fully trusting Jeongguk to take care of him. 

Jeongguk looks down at him every other second, worried. “Let’s go home, okay?”

In the uber, Jeongguk wants to reach out to Jimin, make sure he’s really okay, but Jimin seems in deep thought, head turned to look out the window.

When they get inside their apartment, Jimin speaks up.

“Thank you, Jeongguk,” he says quietly. 

There is something vulnerable in his voice that is new to Jeongguk. Their eyes meet in the tiny hallway. 

“Please don’t thank me. I just did what any decent person would do,” Jeongguk brushes it off, frowning. He’s frustrated, and his wolf is still angry. “I’m sorry that was your first experience with an alpha after…”

Jimin chuckles humorlessly. “I didn’t even… He danced with me, I only tried to get away to find Hobi or– …or you.”

Jeongguk feels a pang of guilt in his chest, adding to the frustration. Jimin looks so small and so perturbed by the evening’s events. 

Unable to resist the insistent urge, Jeongguk closes the two steps worth of space between them and envelops Jimin in a hug.

Jimin freezes for a moment. Then, like a slow exhale, he melts against Jeongguk’s chest, hands coming up to rest against his back. 

“I’m so sorry.”

Jimin doesn’t reply, only presses a little closer, cheek rubbing against Jeongguk’s collarbone. The action makes Jeongguk relax, his wolf finally settling down a bit. 

The embrace lingers for longer than what should be comfortable between sworn enemies, but it’s the opposite of unpleasant. It’s easy. Secure and warm. Like coming home. 

── 𓍢ִ໋.ೀ 

Things are weird for Jimin the next few days. Jeongguk is different, walking on eggshells around him.

It makes his chest feel tight. Jimin has already pretty much forgotten about the guy who cornered him at the club, but Jeongguk still seems to feel guilty about it for some reason.

When Jeongguk apologizes for just coming into the kitchen when Jimin was already in there, Jimin breaks. 

“Jeongguk. Can you stop?”

The alpha pauses on his way out from the room, turning back to him with big eyes. 

“Just because I’m an omega now doesn’t mean I’m weak. Stop tip-toeing around me like I’m some fragile baby bird.”

Jeongguk opens and closes his mouth a few times like a fish out of water. It’s kind of ridiculous, but Jimin finds it endearing how caught and sorry he looks.

“I just thought you might need some space after… From alphas.”

“You thought I needed space from you after some douche at the club said a few rude things to me?”

Jeongguk gives a weak shrug and a nod. 

“I’ve already forgotten what that guy even looked like. You could've just asked me what I needed.”

Jeongguk’s shoulders slump. “I’m sorry. I just felt guilty.”

“For what? You didn’t have anything to do with it.”

Jeongguk’s reply is instant. “For not coming to find you immediately after you left the booth. For dancing with another omega. For not punching that alpha in the face.”

Jimin’s stomach flips, gasping in a little breath.

“I-I’m not your responsibility.”

Jeongguk sighs a little like he’s frustrated. “I know that, you don’t have to remind me. I just wish the night would’ve ended differently.”

“Me too, but.. I’m glad you didn’t punch him. And I’m glad it was you who brought me home.”

Jeongguk looks at him, searching his eyes with his own. Jimin glances away, feeling a bit flustered and exposed. 

“So don’t feel bad.”

“Okay,” Jeongguk says, straightening his back again. “If you promise you’ll let me know if you ever feel uncomfortable around me.”

“Does that include the times you’re being a pain in the ass with your cleaning sprees?” Jimin jokes. He can’t stand the heavy air any longer. 

To his relief, Jeongguk smiles a little. 

“Sure.”

Jimin gives a nod, and that’s that. 

Things slowly go back to normal, except the conversation they had makes Jimin aware of how he doesn’t have to tell Jeongguk and his cleanliness off and, when he thinks about it, he hasn’t had to in a long time. Jeongguk has been way more lenient with him and his messiness for months now.

Recently they’ve just been arguing because Jeongguk has been worried about his pre-presenting symptoms. Because Jeongguk has cared.

This realization makes feelings Jimin thought he had under control rise to the surface. He wants to blame it on his omega, but if he’s honest he has felt like this for longer than he’d like to admit. 

When he first met Jeongguk, he instantly felt attracted to him. Who wouldn’t? Jeongguk is all soft words, bambi eyes and biceps. Then, their lifestyles clashed and Jimin buried his feelings before they could manifest properly.

In hindsight, Jimin has probably been the one to initiate most of their fights. Arguing has been an easy route, because then he can pretend Jeongguk is a pretentious asshole and not a hard-to-find sweet and soft alpha who also happens to be nerdy-cute and fratboy-hot. 

Now that Jeongguk has pretty much adapted to Jimin’s messiness, there is nothing to stop Jimin from falling for him. Except maybe the fear of being hurt and rejected, but– 

They’ve had moments, right? Where there is that spark of mutual attraction. Even moments where they have been vulnerable and provided comfort for each other. At least Jeongguk has, toward Jimin. Like the times he offered Jimin his warmth when the apartment was freezing, and that hug after the incident at the club. The alpha has even comforted him every time Jimin has been unwarrantedly possessive. Hell, he even used Jimin’s bodywash with his scent to get rid of their landlord’s. 

So, just maybe…

One thing Jimin quickly grows to dislike about being an omega: slick. Paired with the absurd increase in sexdrive, it’s extremely inconvenient. 

Jimin is used to maybe getting off once a month, and it’s never a big deal in any way. Just a plain, mediocre jerk-off by himself. Quiet. Easily hidden and forgotten.

Slick is now everywhere as soon as he gives into the urge to get off. It’s syrupy and slippery and there is always too much to just ignore and wipe away with a tissue after. His body just produces a steady flow of it and refuses to keep it in no matter how much Jimin tries to hold back. 

Not only is it a whole ordeal to masturbate now, but he gets pent up again after just a few hours. There is some kind of insatiable tension in his belly that just won't give. His omega is all whiny and sad in a horny way, because apparently Jimin can be bred now and that’s the main thing the wolf inside him wants.

When he texts Hoseok about it and, more importantly, when it will stop, the other omega just tells him to go get a knot in all caps and with an unhealthy amount of exclamation marks. Very unhelpful. 

Sure, he can see the appeal. Fingering himself has never felt so good and if the slick is good for something it’s definitely penetration, but it can’t be that life-changing. 

Still, his omega is hellbent on getting knotted and it just so happens that it absolutely loves Jeongguk. 

The more he grows accustomed to his omega, the more Jimin finds his mind drifting off to dangerous territory whenever he so much as gets a whiff of Jeongguk’s scent. 

The alpha is very private when it comes to his sexlife—so much that Jimin has never really wondered about Jeongguk and sex in the same train of thought before. He has never overheard him jerking off, never caught him with a one night stand, and never even smelled arousal on him. 

But now it’s on his mind.

Jimin thinks about how Jeongguk would look when he’s turned on. He wonders how it would feel to be scented by him, and what his sex pheromones smell like. When Jimin is caught in the throes of pleasure, he even goes as far as picturing the alpha naked, imagining Jeongguk touching himself in his room or in the shower, keeping quiet so Jimin can’t hear him. 

Because Jimin is sure Jeongguk gets off regularly, without a doubt. His hormones seem perfectly balanced, judging by how calm and collected he always is. Alphas have a high sexdrive like omegas, so he’d definitely get moody if he didn’t take care of it. Considering Jeongguk’s overall personality, he definitely has a perfectly timed schedule for his jerk-off sessions.

The big downside of all of this is that Jimin is not as controlled as Jeongguk is. He’s not good at schedules and planning, and he’s not used to the sheer amount of orgasms his body now craves.

You can bet that this creates quite a few awkward situations.

For instance:

“Hyung, did you finish my shampoo without letting me know?”

Jimin looks up from the million papers he has spread out over the coffee table and twists around to meet Jeongguk’s expectant eyes. 

Except the alpha was obviously half-way into the shower when he realized Jimin had used up his shampoo, standing in the doorframe with just joggers on, his upper body all bare. 

It’s a very rare sight. Jimin can count the times he’s seen Jeongguk shirtless with the fingers of one hand. 

It’s always been worthy of a double-take and subtle ogling, but now Jimin also has a lust-driven wolf and a crush that is expanding like a hot air balloon, ready to just take off at any moment and force him to jump the alpha. 

“Uh.”

Jeongguk is probably wondering what’s wrong with him, but Jimin is non-verbal at the moment. He’s pretty sure he’s looking into Jeongguk’s nipples instead of his eyes when he finally gets a coherent word out.

“Maybe.”

Jeongguk huffs, taking a few steps closer, and his scent reaches Jimin’s nose. The alpha has been working out. That makes this a thousand times worse. 

The thought of whether Jeongguk would smell like that after sex, too, enters Jimin’s mind without a filter and heat flares up in his cheeks and his belly.

“How many times have I told you to start getting your own? Or at least tell me when you finish it.”

Jeongguk crosses his big arms over his big chest and Jimin can’t help the way his scent changes, curls and twists around the room to reach Jeongguk and let him know of his attraction. Stupid omega, embarrassing him like this.

Jeongguk’s chest expands with a particularly deep inhale, but his eyebrows stay set in place, still fixing Jimin with a look of disapproval.

“How do you expect me to wash my hair? The shops are closed.”

Jimin squirms, sucking his lower lip into his mouth. He tries to stop thinking indecent thoughts, but the arousal pulses in his groin no matter how hard he focuses on what Jeongguk is saying and not on how he looks and sounds and smells like while he’s saying it. 

“I-I don’t know. You usually notice it immediately. I didn’t realize that you were off your game today.”

A muscle in Jeongguk’s jaw twitches. 

“Don’t turn it around on me.”

Jimin shrugs. He might be lusting for Jeongguk’s knot, but he’s not going to give in when he’s attacking him with accusations–

…no matter how right the alpha may or may not be.

“Maybe I should stop spoiling you by always letting you get away with these things, maybe then you’ll stop acting like a brat.”

Jimin scowls, narrowing his eyes. “I don’t act like a brat.”

Jeongguk lets out a humorless laugh. “Right, you don't need to act when you already are one.”

Jimin’s mouth drops open in offense, but the rest of his body betrays him, apparently even more turned on from getting bested by Jeongguk.

Jeongguk’s nostrils flare and his teeth are gritted when he mutters his next words.

“Guess I’ll just use soap.”

With that he turns and retreats into the bathroom much to Jimin’s relief, because the second the door closes, he starts leaking. 

Even when Jeongguk is just being nice, Jimin can’t stop wanting him. 

Like when he apologizes the next day.

“I was just stressed because I always wash my hair after I work out. I didn’t mean to go that far.”

Jimin groans inwardly. Jeongguk really shouldn’t be the one apologizing—he was completely in the right.

“It’s fine, Jeongguk. We’ve gone further than that before.”

Jeongguk still looks torn. 

“Still. We’ve been doing better lately. I’m sorry for lashing out. You can use my shampoo, it’s no big deal.”

Jimin’s omega preens and his heart skips a beat. Simultaneously, that familiar arousal pools in his gut. 

Jimin doesn’t care whether the alpha is lecturing him about manners or uttering soft words of affection. He just wants Jeongguk so bad. 

“Thanks,” he says plainly, despite his inner emotional turmoil. 

Jeongguk nods, moving around Jimin to prepare his breakfast, and Jimin is sure he can sense his scent sweetening by the second. 

“Your scent is strong these days,” Jeongguk comments, as if he can hear Jimin’s thoughts. God, Jimin is so grateful that that’s not the case, otherwise he would probably just have to move countries.

“Sorry.” 

Jeongguk shakes his head, looking at him earnestly. “No, it’s not bad. It’s… I’m just wondering why that is, I guess.”

Jimin’s cheeks heat up, heart rate picking up.

“Um. Just… My body is probably catching up on lost time, you know… Hormones and stuff.”

Jeongguk shuts up at that, awkwardly looking away from him. 

“Ah.”

Jimin turns away as well, but the tension is suffocating. 

After a moment of charged silence, Jeongguk clears his throat. 

“But… you’re okay though, right? You’re adapting well?”

Jimin doesn’t know if helplessly thirsting for his flatmate could be described as adapting well, but there is no way he’s admitting that.

“Yeah, kind of. I don’t have much of a choice.”

“Still, I know how it is and… I’m here if you want to talk.”

Jimin’s knees physically go weak. He leans back on the counter for support. 

“I appreciate that, Jeongguk. Though I’m not sure you could really relate to the specific issues I’m experiencing. Different subgender and all.”

Jimin can tell that Jeongguk gets the implication by the blush that dusts his cheeks. 

“Right. Well.”

Jimin lets out a chuckle when Jeongguk struggles to reply. 

“I think it’s better if I talk to Hoseok. Sometimes he’s actually helpful, even though his solution to just about everything is a knot.”

Jimin snaps his head up when Jeongguk’s scent changes in an instant. Something darker spikes it, a bit bitter, like the taste of tea when you’ve left the herbs in for a bit too long. 

“What– You– How is that helpful? Have you…”

Jimin’s eyes widen at the muttered, half-finished question. He eyes the alpha, who is just narrowing his eyes at his morning tea. 

“Have I what?” 

Jeongguk shakes his head, seemingly snapping out of it, but his scent doesn’t go back to normal. 

“Nothing. I’m glad you have someone to talk to,” he says, words clipped. 

Jimin watches the alpha sit at the kitchen table, putting an end to the conversation. 

── 𓍢ִ໋.ೀ 

It gets to a point where Jimin wants Jeongguk to get annoyed with him, just to experience some type of normalcy. 

It may also be because Jeongguk’s scent gets deliciously spicy when he does and the way he handles Jimin’s defiance is admittedly sexy.

Regardless, Jimin starts to deliberately put dishes into the washer in a way he knows Jeongguk hates. 

It takes longer than he thought it would for the alpha to break but, inevitably, he eventually does.

“Are you fucking with me?”

Jimin smiles a little to himself where he is sitting at their kitchen table, back turned to the alpha.

“Huh?”

Jeongguk walks over to stand in front of him. Jimin quickly schools his expression to one of indifference. 

“You’ve got to be fucking with me, right?”

“You said that already. Could you use a few more elaborate words, or is that too much to ask? I hear alpha brains develop slower.”

Jimin smirks a little when Jeongguk’s scent spikes and he visibly restrains himself, taking a slow breath with his gaze directed at the ceiling. 

He doesn’t want Jeongguk to restrain anything. Except maybe Jimin, to a bed. But that’s besides the point.

“The dishwasher, Jimin.”

“Jimin hyung,” Jimin corrects him.

“Yeah, I’ll call you that whenever you act like it.”

Jeongguk’s low voice drips like honey down Jimin’s spine. His omega immediately wants to roll over and submit.

“What was that about the dishwasher?”

Jeongguk looks at him in disbelief. 

“You’re serious?”

Jimin looks at him with his best innocent eyes. 

Jeongguk grabs his wrist and pulls him out of the chair. 

“Hey–!”

“I can’t believe this is my life,” Jeongguk grumbles under his breath, opening the dishwasher. 

He turns to Jimin and forces him even closer to the kitchen appliance, pointing at a part of it. “See this? This is where we put the cutlery. This here? Bowls. Not plates or cutting boards, okay? This up here? The tall glasses, and no–”

Jimin rips his wrists from where Jeongguk is still holding him. “I’m not a child!”

Jeongguk corners Jimin against the counter when the omega tries to get away. 

“Really? Explain how you fail at doing something this simple, then. Are you just doing it to piss me off?”

“The real question here is why it’s such a big fucking deal. You act like I insulted your entire family tree.”

Jeongguk growls and the sound goes straight to Jimin’s belly, morphing into tingly heat. 

“And you act like it’s so fucking hard to just put your stuff where they are supposed to be. You know how much I hate it. Are you really so messy that you can’t even do this right? Is it so fucking hard, Jimin?”

Jimin tries to keep his glare up, but the arousal in his core is making it increasingly harder. He feels his eyelids slowly start to sink.

“Who made you the dishwasher tyrant, huh? Maybe you need to stop being such a perfectionist and so afraid of a little mess–” 

He’s cut off by Jeongguk’s mouth crashing into his, hard and angry.

Jimin responds after a fleeting moment of pure shock, parting his lips to mold with Jeongguk’s, moaning when Jeongguk wastes no time before pushing his tongue into his mouth, overpowering him in an instant. He only realizes that Jeongguk’s hand is in his hair when the alpha uses the grip to angle him the way he wants, exposing his throat and pouring his annoyance into the way he kisses him. The counter digs into Jimin’s lower back, Jeongguk’s warm, sturdy body pressing him against it, and it hurts so good—he never wants the alpha to stop, as long as he’s taking Jimin’s mouth like this.

Of all scenarios he had imagined when he started his little scheme of annoying Jeongguk, he never even thought of this one as a possibility.

Jeongguk loses all his perfectly neat mannerisms when he kisses. Perhaps it’s because Jimin riled him up, but the way he roams Jimin’s mouth and tugs his lips between his teeth is anything but tidy. It’s hungry. Urgent.

Messy.

Their aroused pheromones quickly fill up the room, mixing in a wholly mouthwatering way. Spicy herbs, ripe apricot, sweet vanilla. 

Jimin is putty in Jeongguk’s hands, all lax against him, and his omega is too—giving up all control and trust to Jeongguk.

Jeongguk moans lowly into his mouth, sending shivers down Jimin’s spine. He detached his lips from Jimin’s with a wet noise, a string of saliva between them quickly breaking when Jeongguk wastes no time to move to his neck.

Jimin tilts his head willingly, giving him space to mouth over the skin. His fingers curl tightly around the edge of the counter.

“Can’t believe this is all it takes to shut you up,” Jeongguk murmurs in a growl, attaching his mouth to Jimin’s scent gland next. 

Jimin’s knees buckle and he whines high in his throat, black tea clouding all his senses as the sensitive spot is ruthlessly sucked on. His body burns and slick quickly starts dampening his underwear.

Suddenly the sensation is gone, and so is Jeongguk’s warmth against his body. 

Jimin blinks his eyes open, trying to focus them on the alpha.

Jeongguk’s chest heaves with fast breaths and his pupils are blown wide, scent heavy with deliciously aroused pheromones, but he’s not touching Jimin. Why is he not touching him–

“Shit, sorry– Hyung, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.”

Oh. 

Jimin blinks some more, trying to snap out of it like Jeongguk seems to have. He pulls himself upright with the death-grip he has on the counter and wracks his brain for any rationality.

“Are you okay?”

Jimin manages a nod, confusion and shock coming back to him when the fog of arousal slowly thins out. 

“Yeah, what, uh–”

Jeongguk winches. “Fuck, I’m so sorry. You just… I was just so frustrated, and you… I’m sorry, please can we just forget this ever happened? You can load the dishwasher however you want, I won’t mention it again.”

Jimin opens and closes his mouth, his brain slowly catching up on the fact that he just made out with Jeongguk. 

He wants to do it again. Immediately.

“Okay. Whatever.”

Jeongguk breathes out, shifting from one foot to the other, looking way too embarrassed and guilty. Jimin can’t believe he’s the same Jeongguk who just demolished his mouth like it was his favorite dish for dinner.

“I’m gonna… go to my room,” Jimin says hoarsely, clearing his throat. “Got stuff to do.” 

Jeongguk nods, avoiding his eyes. 

Jimin pretends his boxers are not sticking uncomfortably to his skin when he walks out of the kitchen to his room. 

The first thing he does is grab his trusted dildo and jump into his nest, then he makes himself come twice with the taste of Jeongguk still on his tongue and the alpha’s aroused pheromones covering his scent gland. 

For the first time since he presented, he feels somewhat sated.

The next few days are suffocatingly tense. They barely say a word to each other, but their scents do enough talking. 

At least enough for Jimin to know that Jeongguk feels a mix of shame and guilt whenever he sees Jimin, and enough to let Jeongguk know that Jimin feels a mix of shame and confusion whenever he sees Jeongguk. 

In addition to that, there is a painfully obvious sexual tension between them ever since the incident in the kitchen. The attraction is almost palpable. However, the awkwardness and plain weirdness of the situation drowns it out.

It’s just so absurd, knowing the two of them did something like that. They’ve always just been flatmates who can’t stand each other, and they still sort of are… Except now they’ve kissed, and it’s messing up their carefully built up dynamic as sworn enemies. 

Enemies would rather cut a limb off than kiss each other, not go at it like animals in the middle of the kitchen. Most of all, enemies would never want more. 

Jimin can only take Jeongguk’s guilt for about half a week before he breaks. It’s just like the time after the incident at the club, except now Jeongguk’s guilt is tenfold. 

“Can you stop?”

Jeongguk whips his head up from his book, eyebrows raising. 

“I’m not doing anything.”

“Yes you are. You’re feeling guilty, ever since we…”

Realization dawns too quickly on Jeongguk’s face, along with that familiar guilt in his eyes.

Jimin powers through. “And I need you to stop. It’s making your scent all weird, I don’t like it.”

Jeongguk doesn’t say anything for a moment. Then–

“I can’t stop. I didn’t ask you for consent or… or anything. I just…”

Jimin bites the inside of his cheeks hard, because he knows what he needs to say now. 

“Oh my god, you didn’t assault me.” He rolls his eyes, playing it off as if Jeongguk is being dramatic. “I didn’t push you away, did I? I… I didn’t not want it. Alright?”

It’s not perfect. Not a full confession. But it’s all Jimin can get himself to admit out loud at the moment. 

His cheeks burn up and he keeps his gaze on his papers, pretending to search for something, but his full attention is on Jeongguk.

“Alright.” 

Short, but soft. 

Jimin breathes out slowly, feeling his heart pound against his ribcage.

The first snow comes two weeks into December. 

Jimin is just about to enter his apartment building when he quite literally runs into Jeongguk.

“Hey,” he says, a bit breathless from colliding with the alpha. “You going out?”

Obviously he’s going out. Jimin mentally facepalms. 

Jeongguk lets go of Jimin’s forearms when the omega is steady on his feet again. 

“Yeah, a guy from my class turned 25 the other day… Surprise party.”

Jimin nods, feeling a bit awkward standing in front of Jeongguk like this—they usually don’t stand so close and Jimin didn’t really have time to process it when they made out because– Well, they were making out. 

The alpha is tall, and Jimin has to tilt his head quite a bit to meet his eyes. 

“Cool. I, um, got you a bottle of shampoo.”

Jimin raises his hand holding a bag of groceries, looking down at it to avoid Jeongguk’s big, soft eyes.

“Oh.”

Jimin snaps his head back up when he feels Jeongguk touch his hair, eyes wide. 

“Snow,” Jeongguk continues.

Jimin looks up and realizes that it is, indeed, snowing. He watches the small flakes float slowly to the ground, focusing on one that lands in Jeongguk’s hair, and another one on his eyelashes. 

Jesus, what business does an alpha have being this pretty?

“You didn’t have to get me anything.”

“I mean, I’ll still use it, too.” Jimin chuckles nervously. He has a hard time holding Jeongguk’s eye-contact and the increasing snow that gathers in his dark hair is making him look too romantic for Jimin’s wellbeing. 

“That’s true.” Jeongguk smiles and his gaze flickers from Jimin’s eyes, lower. It’s just a fraction of a second, but Jimin’s heartbeat stutters dramatically in his chest. 

Jeongguk clears his throat, pointing a thumb in the direction he was heading. “So, I’m gonna…”

Jimin nods quickly. “Yeah, yep. I have finals next week, so I also need to…”

They awkwardly round each other and, with a tense nod goodbye, Jimin power-walks the rest of the way to the apartment. 

“Are you going to your parents’ for Christmas?” 

Jeongguk looks up from his laptop. 

“Yeah, that’s the plan.”

“Wanna carpool?”

Jeongguk raises his eyebrows, looking surprised by the question. Jimin doesn’t blame him. 

“Um, sure. I plan to drive down on the 23rd and stay until after New Year’s.”

“Sounds good.” Jimin nods. He was planning on doing the same thing, and their parents’ houses are only about half an hour away from each other back in Busan. It’s both cheaper and better for the environment.

… And maybe he’s afraid he’ll actually miss Jeongguk over the holidays. This way he gets a few more hours with him, even if it’s a silent roadtrip.

Jimin aces his finals, of course, and a few chaotic Christmas shopping trips with Hoseok later, it's time for him and Jeongguk to drive down to Busan.

However, since neither of them ever really watch the news—or ever turn on the TV, really—they aren’t expecting there to be a full fledged snowstorm somewhere between Daejeon and Cheongju. 

It makes both of them tense. Jeongguk’s anxious scent filling up the car doesn’t help.

“I can’t see shit. Fuck, I knew there was a reason traffic was so light today. Why didn’t you check the weather?”

“You didn't check it either, smartass!” Jimin quickly checks the forecast, grumbling under his breath. “It’s not gonna let up until tomorrow morning. What the hell do we do?”

“Need to get off the road, obviously,” Jeongguk says, his knuckles white around the steering wheel. “We’ll have to wait it out.”

Jimin opens the map on his phone, jaw clenched. He’s on edge and tired and his ass hurts from sitting in this damn car for so long. “Take the next exit.”

There is a thick silence where Jeongguk tries not to veer off the road and Jimin tries not to make any snide remarks because he doesn’t want to distract the alpha and die. 

So he focuses on the map, trying to find a destination since they will need to sleep somewhere.

“There’s a motel in the… Jochiwon neighborhood.”

Jeongguk’s scent gets even denser and Jimin is about to crawl out of his own skin. He despises the anxious pheromones so much. It makes his own wolf scratch at the corners of his mind and urge him to do anything to ease the other’s discomfort. 

Jimin practically bursts out of the car when it comes to a stop outside a dingy motel. The neon sign is blinking like it’s on crack and there is a homeless man outside who seems like he’s actually on crack. Great.

“This was the best you could find?”

Jimin musters up his best glare when he looks over at the alpha. 

“You try finding a five star hotel while under time pressure and suffocating in distressed pheromones.”

Jeongguk huffs out a breath. The freezing air creates a white cloud in front of his mouth. 

Jimin goes inside and marches up to the reception. 

“Excuse me,” he says, and the young girl behind the counter looks up boredly. “I’d like to book two rooms for tonight.”

The girl eyes him and then Jeongguk who’s standing a few steps behind him, eyes full of judgement. 

“Sorry, only one room left. You’re, like, the seventh couple to be stupid enough to drive home for Christmas today.”

Jimin’s jaw drops and he can only splutter for a while. 

“We are not a couple and who are you calling stupid, you–”

“We’ll take the room,” Jeongguk cuts in, stepping up next to Jimin. 

The girl sends Jimin a half-smirk. “Lucky you that it’s a double, then.”

Jimin ignores her, but inside he cheers that it wasn’t a single. Then he’d be forced to sleep on the floor and who knows what lives under the floorboards at a place like this.

“Not so lucky that the power went out in half the building a while ago, your room included.”

“Are you kidding me?” Jimin exclaims. “I’ll freeze to death.”

The girl just shrugs indifferently. “Take it or leave it.”

Jeongguk does take it without another word and Jimin groans loudly. 

He keeps complaining on the way back to the car where they get their bags and as they venture to the tiny room where they are supposed to sleep.

“I’m giving this shithole zero stars on their website. Let’s see who’s unlucky then.”

Jimin eyes the tiny beds and throws his bag on the one furthest from the door. If the crackhead from outside manages to break in, Jeongguk better take him down before he reaches Jimin’s side of the room.

“It’s just one night,” Jeongguk says, taking out some clothes from one of his bags and putting them in a neatly folded pile on the bed along with a towel. 

“One night of freezing my ass off while bed bugs feed on my blood like it’s iced coffee. Sounds perfectly bearable, Jeongguk.”

Jeongguk shoots him a look that’s not entirely unamused, eyes holding a little mirthful glimmer. Jimin rolls his eyes at him, turning away.

“I’m taking a shower.” 

“Water is probably either freezing cold or scalding hot, have fun,” Jimin mumbles, digging around his bag to find a pair of sweats and a hoodie to try to sleep in.

While Jeongguk is in the bathroom, Jimin changes clothes and sceptically inspects the bed for any stains or anything that moves. When he has decided that it’s safe, he burrows under the cover, trying to warm up his hands that are already cold and stiff.

Jeongguk comes out of the bathroom with damp hair and glowing skin, seemingly unaffected by the temperature in his t-shirt and joggers—as always. 

Jimin grumbles incoherently as he quickly goes to brush his teeth and toughs it out when he has to wash his face with freezing water.

Jeongguk is in bed when he gets back out and Jimin quickly slips back into his own. 

“Let’s try to sleep and hopefully when we wake up the storm has passed,” Jeongguk says with a little sigh, putting his phone on the floor. They haven’t even invested in bedside tables at this place.

Jimin hums in response, already covered from his nose to his toes, phone securely zipped away in his bag.

Time passes excruciatingly slowly. 

Jimin is shaking like a leaf, trying to grit his teeth and not make much noise, but it’s kind of hopeless. He’s pretty sure he’s woken Jeongguk up several times. 

“Can I do anything?” Jeongguk eventually mumbles into the dark.

“N-no.”

“Jimin.”

It sounds almost like a warning, and Jimin wants to whine. He can’t help that he’s one degree away from having the same fate as princess Anna before love thaws her.

He doesn’t have that same luxury here. Not love, but maybe… 

Desperate times.

“Can you just lie here for a minute?” Jimin bites back a groan after the words have left his mouth, hating himself, but he needs to survive the night. “Just until my bed gets a little warmer.”

Jeongguk gets up like he was waiting for permission. 

Jimin scoots back until he’s pressed against the wall, watching Jeongguk climb into his bed. 

The alpha’s broad shoulders take up the entire rest of the space, and his weight makes the bed dip in a way that has Jimin struggling to keep himself pressed to the wall. 

But what makes Jimin struggle the most is the warmth. Jeongguk is so goddamn warm that it needs to be not only an alpha thing but a Jeongguk thing. Jimin suddenly can’t think of anything else than the urge to press himself against that heat instead of the freezing wall.

“You should put the cover over both of us. Use me to warm up, I don’t mind.”

The way he puts it… A shudder runs through Jimin's body, and it isn’t cold this time. He reluctantly unwraps the cover around him and meekly throws an edge over the alpha’s chest.

Jeongguk hums, pulling on the fabric and, with it, Jimin. 

Jimin’s breath stutters when he realizes he’s touching Jeongguk’s arm to resist being pulled on top of the alpha, and quickly takes it off when Jeongguk releases his grip on the duvet.

Jeongguk exhales, eyeing Jimin’s panicked expression. 

“We’ve done this before, remember? You don’t have to be so tense.”

Jimin stares at Jeongguk with wide eyes. 

“Y-you were asleep…”

“I woke up in the middle of the night.” Jeongguk’s lips curve into a small smile. “Besides, you think I wouldn’t realize? Your scent was still pretty weak then, but it was stuck on my whole body that morning.”

Jimin feels blood rush to his face at an alarming rate, ears burning.

“It’s fine. I know you just need my warmth. You can touch me.”

Well, fuck. Jimin’s body doesn’t know where to send more blood—his face or his groin. 

He really shouldn’t want to, and he blames his omega when he slowly stops pressing his weight against the wall and inches closer to Jeongguk instead. 

His hand hovers awkwardly, and eventually Jeongguk just grabs it and puts it right on his stomach. Jimin doesn’t have time to process it before Jeongguk tugs on the covers again, this time fully pulling it over both of them. 

Then, the alpha just looks at Jimin with a placating expression in his eyes, prompting him to relax, before getting comfy and closing his eyes.

Jimin realizes his mouth is open and quickly snaps it shut, face burning as he lies frozen for a while. 

Even through the shirt, Jeongguk’s abdominal muscles feel firm under Jimin’s palm. Warm and sturdy. The heat radiates from his hand up his arm and his other hand feels unbearably cold all of a sudden.

He moves in slow motion, watching Jeongguk’s closed eyes, and inches his other hand along the sheets until it's wedged between the mattress and the alpha. Jeongguk doesn’t even flinch, just adjusts a little so Jimin’s hand is fully pressed against his heated back. 

They lie still, and should be going to sleep, but the air is buzzing with energy. 

It’s so good, the warmth. Jimin feels greedy—he wants it everywhere, not just on his hands. 

He inches closer, and closer, until his chest is pressed to Jeongguk’s arm. It reminds him of the times he tried to be subtle about sitting close to Jeongguk on their sofa back home.

Since then, Jimin has presented as an omega, and the two of them have kissed. 

Jimin bites down on his lower lip when he feels it tingle with the memory of Jeongguk’s mouth on his, how expertly he kissed Jimin until he was completely brainless. 

The omega’s scent sweetens without his permission. 

Jeongguk doesn’t move, but his stomach rises and falls a bit slower and deeper under Jimin’s palm and there is a responding spike to his rich scent. 

Jimin breathes it in, craning his neck forward a little, and his chin brushes the alpha’s shoulder in his eagerness to get closer to his scent gland. 

Jeongguk moves, turning his head just slightly in Jimin’s direction, eyes opening to catch him in the act. Jimin’s cheeks burn, but so does his whole body. He craves it—the depth of Jeongguk’s scent and the heat of his body. 

Jeongguk’s eyes study him and Jimin is afraid he can see right through him.

Then, the alpha tilts his head just slightly away from Jimin, baring more of his neck—his scent gland. 

Jimin’s breath hitches and his mouth waters. He doesn’t know what comes over him, but he closes the distance without even a second of hesitation.

Jimin nudges his nose against Jeongguk’s throat, slowly trailing it down. He exhales shakily and swallows audibly when it registers in his mind that he’s about to scent Jeongguk—scent anyone—for the first time. 

Jeongguk seems to realize it, too, judging by how he holds his breath, only to release it in a little sigh when Jimin finally presses his nose against his scent gland. 

It’s an explosion of sensation, and Jimin closes his eyes to savor it. The feeling of Jeongguk’s heated skin against his cold nose, the way his warm scent fills every pore of his body, the way Jimin’s own scent blooms on the alpha’s skin and, most of all, the way their scents blend so naturally and so beautifully. It’s like Jeongguk’s warm, herbal scent was made to meet Jimin’s tart, nectar-sweet one.

His fingers curl into the fabric of Jeongguk’s shirt, breathing in a deep lungful of the addicting mix before he rubs his nose over the gland again, ears catching the stutter in Jeongguk’s breathing when his lips brush the skin just beneath. 

Jimin pulls back, his mind feeling fuzzy around the edges, meeting Jeongguk’s gaze when he turns his head to look at him. 

“You can… more. If you want,” the alpha breathes out, his tongue darting out to wet his lips in a nervous manner. 

Jimin bites his lip to hide a smile, nodding once. 

Jeongguk quickly gives him space when he leans in again. Jimin trails his nose from the scent gland up to the edge of Jeongguk’s jaw, arousal speeding down his spine when it draws a small gasp from the alpha. 

Slowly, Jimin brushes his lips over Jeongguk’s jugular and down to his scent gland where he gives a firmer press. 

“Fuck,” Jeongguk exhales out into the silence. 

Jimin responds by licking his lips before pressing them back against the heated gland. The scent is richer, slowly growing stronger. His omega is crying of joy, finally getting to scent the alpha it’s fixated on. 

“You smell good,” Jimin whispers against Jeongguk’s sensitive skin. He’s craving to have that scent on himself, as well—wants Jeongguk to reciprocate. “Can you… Will you scent me back? Please.”

After a second of processing the words, Jeongguk moves. 

Jimin is on his back before he knows it, with Jeongguk on his side next to him, leaning on his elbow to hover over Jimin. 

Their eyes meet and Jimin’s breath is stolen from his lungs at the raw emotions in Jeongguk’s dark irises.

“You sure?”

Jimin nods, using a hand to pull on the side of Jeongguk’s shirt uselessly. But then he tilts his head to the side and Jeongguk’s chest rumbles with a noise of approval, finally leaning down to scent Jimin back. 

The alpha starts just like Jimin did, trailing his nose up and down his neck a few times before he scents him properly. 

Jimin doesn’t really know what to do with his hands and swallows back several embarrassing noises, only a small one slipping out when Jeongguk brushes his lips over the sensitive spot. 

Jeongguk pulls back shortly after. 

They look at each other for a few long, dragging seconds. It’s enough to sober up slightly and reflect on what they’re doing.

They’re sharing a tiny bed in a double room at a dingy motel in the middle of nowhere, covered in each other’s scents. 

Jimin nervously fidgets with the fabric of Jeongguk’s shirt, then realizes what he’s doing and draws both hands back completely, pressing them to his own chest. He feels his heartbeat pulse against his palm, unhelpfully reminding him of the effect the alpha has on him.

“I– Um,” Jimin stutters, avoiding Jeongguk’s gaze. “I’m warm now.”

“Want me to go?”

Jimin meets Jeongguk’s eyes and swears his heart skips five beats when it hits him how good Jeongguk looks, leaning over him like this. He’s so broad, smells so good, looks so handsome with his hair falling into his galaxy-filled eyes. To think that his pretty nose and soft lips were just on Jimin’s scent gland makes his whole body feel warm and tingly.

Jimin swallows thickly, but his voice still betrays him when he tries to brush it off.

“It-it’s whatever.”

Jeongguk’s lips curl upward just slightly before his expression smooths out again, as if he’s trying not to laugh at Jimin. The audacity. 

“You know…” Jeongguk begins saying, as if they aren't inches apart, “I used to think that if I could take away the word whatever, I would have a much easier time with you.”

Jimin blushes more—he swears his ears are about to catch fire—but the rude jab at his sometimes lacking vocabulary makes him scowl with the urge to bicker.

The soft, vulnerable air between them fades easily, because Jimin still isn’t ready to fully give in and bare his feelings.

“It’s a perfectly functioning expression,” he retorts as testily as he can under the circumstances—under Jeongguk, that is.

“Sure, but you have an opinion about everything. So when you say ‘whatever’, it’s never actually true.”

Jimin sniffs defiantly. “What’s your point?”

“After you presented, it’s even more obvious. I can smell you, and it’s not whatever.”

“What is it, then?”

Jeongguk just looks at him for a few long seconds, as if he’s deciding whether he should answer that question or not. Unfortunately for Jimin, in the end he does. 

“You want me to stay right here.”

Jimin gapes. Then, when he snaps out of the shame of getting called out, he promptly scoots back to his spot against the wall, leaving Jeongguk to shift his weight back on his elbow, turning to him.

“I do not want that.”

Jeongguk gives him a long look and Jimin refuses to look away or soften his glare.

“Fine, then I’ll just…”

Jeongguk starts getting out of the bed and before Jimin’s brain can coincide with his body, his hand shoots out to grab Jeongguk’s wrist. 

“Wait, I… It’s cold again– The wall, it’s cold.”

Jimin inwardly groans at the fumbly excuses. 

Jeongguk seems to agree that they are just that—excuses. He slowly lies back down and gives Jimin an unamused look. 

Jimin sighs, breaking only because it’s so obvious.

“Fine, I guess I wouldn’t mind if you stayed.”

Jeongguk gives a hum, smiling a little as he settles back down on the mattress.

“Shut up,” Jimin grumbles. 

“Didn’t say anything.”

“You’re all smug.”

Jeongguk is silent for a beat before he replies, and his voice has gone all serious again. 

“Of course I am. You smell like me.”

Jimin’s heart does a flip at the soft but admittedly possessive words—dare Jimin say intimate. It sounds dangerously much like a confession. 

Jimin wants to match that energy and respond with something equally as soft and possessive, because Jeongguk smells like him, too, and Jimin feels over the moon about it, but his defenses are still up—although severely weakened by Jeongguk’s charm. 

So he doesn’t say anything, just hopes that Jeongguk can somehow interpret Jimin’s silence as what it is; the fear of showing himself vulnerable and getting hurt.

They lie like that, facing each other, until sleep takes them.

Jimin wakes up alone in bed, hugging a pillow with Jeongguk’s scent to his chest. A feeling of arms around him lingers in his bones, memories of leaning his head against a steady heartbeat, but Jeongguk isn’t in the room.

Still, the way honeyed apricot tea is filling the room in a calm, unhurried way is proof that it happened.

With a quick look behind the curtains, Jimin notes that the storm has passed. He kind of hoped they’d be stuck for a little longer, but Christmas with his family is more pressing right now.

Before Jimin can even begin to wonder, Jeongguk comes back with two convenience store sandwiches, and they both stop and stare at each other for a beat before Jeongguk offers Jimin the breakfast. The events of last night are so evident in the way they smell like each other.

Jimin’s sleepy scent still sweetens when he accepts the food, and Jeongguk’s scent follows suit. 

It’s the same girl from the night before in the reception when they leave the motel, and she gives them a disbelieving-slash-unamused look when they walk by her smelling like each other. 

“If the bed’s ruined, a bill is coming your way. Just saying,” she calls after them.

While Jeongguk ignores it, Jimin makes sure to send her a look that could kill before he proceeds to turn the shade of a beet and power walks to the car.

The start of the drive is mostly silent, save for humming along to the radio and Jimin pointing out a few things that stand out in the scenery they drive by. 

About half-way, Jimin gets restless. There is only so much to do in a car, so eventually he targets Jeongguk with his attention.

“So, what are your holiday plans?”

Jeongguk drums his fingers against the steering wheel, shrugging slightly.

“Just the usual, hanging out, eating food, exchanging gifts. What about you?”

“Yeah, same,” Jimin says with a little sigh. “Probably going to MELT on New Year’s, meet up with some childhood friends.”

Jeongguk nods in acknowledgement. It’s common to go clubbing on New Year’s, and MELT is one of the only decent ones in Busan. 

“I used to go there in high school.”

Jimin’s eyebrows shoot up, giving Jeongguk a sceptical stare that the alpha can’t really return since he’s driving.

“Really?”

“Fake-ID and all.”

A little giggle escapes Jimin. Jeongguk glances at him with a growing smile.

“I didn’t know you had it in you, nerd.”

Jeongguk shrugs again, looking a bit bashful.

“My friends from the dance studio were all older. Naturally, going out to dance was the main thing we did for fun."

Jimin feels a bit speechless. He had no idea that Jeongguk used to be cool. 

Maybe he still is, and Jimin just doesn’t really know him at all.

“Is that why you don’t drink? Had too many bad hangovers at seventeen?”

Jeongguk chuckles good-naturedly. 

“Something like that.”

Jimin frowns, unsatisfied with that answer.

“I want to know, though.”

He blushes a little when the words are out and Jeongguk sends him a curious glance.

“It’s not that exciting. Either I got a headache as soon as I finished the first drink, or I felt good for a while and then completely blacked out.”

“Oh… That must’ve sucked.”

“I kept trying to build tolerance for a decent part of junior year, but it just got worse. My friends had to fill me in on my first kiss.”

“No,” Jimin gasps. 

Jeongguk nods with a laugh. “It was a… special experience for sure.”

Jimin chuckles. “I hereby respect your decision not to drink.”

Jeongguk glances at him with a grin so genuine and cute Jimin loses his breath for a second.

“Thanks… I appreciate that.”

Jimin looks away—not wanting Jeongguk to look over and see him blush like a schoolgirl.

“So, um, how come your family doesn’t visit Seoul much?”

“Money, mostly. It’s all good though. We talk on the phone a couple times a week until I have time to drive down.”

Jimin hums in understanding.

“Are you moving back when you graduate?”

“Not sure. I’ve grown to like Seoul.” He glances at Jimin. “What about you?”

“Me too. Besides, there are a lot more opportunities for me in Seoul if I pass the bar.”

“If you pass it? When have you ever failed a test? I haven’t put up with all that mess you make when you study just for you to stumble at the finish line, have I?”

Jimin smiles, looking out at a frozen lake they are passing by. 

“I’ll pass it.”

“That’s the spirit.”

Jimin glances at Jeongguk to see that his smile matches Jimin’s, and it doesn't fade for the rest of the trip. The more he talks to Jeongguk without any rude comments or jabs at each other, the more butterflies are added to the small swarm in his belly. 

Maybe he underestimated their compatibility all that time ago—or at least their ability to accept and overcome their differences—and he just made it worse by pushing Jeongguk away. Maybe he should have pulled him closer instead. 

── 𓍢ִ໋.ೀ 

The winter holidays are more or less the same for Jimin every year. He always comes home to Busan to spend Christmas day with his family, and he always goes to MELT to ring in the new year with his steadfast friends from his childhood. 

“How is it possible you got even prettier?” Seokjin shouts over the music after they manage to find each other in the chaos, pulling back from a tight hug. “And you smell incredible.”

“Says you. You’re glowing! Show me the ring.”

Seokjin holds up his hand with a grin so wide his eyes disappear. 

“Ah, he hasn’t stopped showing it off since he got here. You’re happy, we get it.”

“Hyung!” Jimin tackles Yoongi in a hug, which the beta returns with a little yelp since he was holding a tray of shots for them.

The three of them find a corner table where they catch up for a bit and it’s all the usual until Jimin catches sight of a very familiar back. 

“What? Who are we seeing?”

“What’s that face he’s making? I’ve never seen that face before.”

“I think that’s shock. Or lust. Or both.”

Jimin snaps out of it to push Yoongi, but his eyes don’t stray from that familiar back. “Shut up.”

“So lust, then. You never lust over anyone. Which one of them are we looking at?” Seokjin asks with apparent excitement in his voice. 

Jimin finally manages to tear his eyes back to his friends to give Seokjin a look. “We are not looking at anyone. You’re engaged.”

Seokjin waves him off. “I’m not looking like that.”

“Yeah, now spill. The tall guy with dimples?” Yoongi wonders. “He’s not really your type, though.”

Jimin looks back over at the group of both guys and girls standing by the bar, only now noticing the one Yoongi described. 

“No, and I’m not lusting. I’m pretty sure one of them is my flatmate, though.”

Seokjin gasps. “Then you’re definitely lusting. You’ve had a hate-boner for him since you moved in together. Let’s go say hi!”

Jimin grabs Seokjin and pulls him further back against the wall.

“We are not saying hi. Stop staring.”

Yoongi chuckles. “You’re the one staring, Jimin-ah.”

Jimin’s cheeks heat up and he promptly turns his back to where Jeongguk is definitely standing. That’s totally fine. Jimin is chill about it.

“We’re really just gonna ignore that the one person you see, like, every day is standing right over there?” Seokjin asks incredulously. “You even drove down here with him, right? It’s a bit rude not to say hi.”

Jimin groans. “Fine, I might be lusting a little bit. And we had to stay at a motel together on the way here and… stuff happened. It’s gonna be awkward if I just go up and say hi.”

“What stuff?” Yoongi asks. Seokjin stares at Jimin with big, expectant eyes.

“Like… Scenting, sleeping in the same bed stuff.”

“Oh my god, now we have to meet him,” Seokjin exclaims. 

“You’re telling me you just scented and slept in the same bed? You? With someone you say you hate?” Yoongi says with a teasing smile. “You’re not just lusting, you have feelings for him.”

Jimin hides his face behind his hands and groans as his friends continue to tease him. 

“So what if I have a few feelings?” he eventually bursts out, reemerging from his hands to look at his friends. 

They don’t say anything for a moment of shock, before both their faces break into smiles so proud you could think Jimin just won a gold medal. Seokjin hugs him tightly.

“That’s amazing, Jiminie. I’m sure he’s really great, seeing as he managed to steal your heart. That’s no small feat.”

Yoongi nods in agreement and ruffles Jimin’s perfectly styled hair. 

“I hope it works out. You deserve it, Jimin-ah.”

Jimin tries not to evaporate from embarrassment and accept the affectionate words.

“Yeah, thanks guys.”

“So…” Seokjin smiles widely. “Will he be the first, you know… after you presented?”

Jimin goes straight back to wanting to evaporate. “Jinnie hyung…”

“Don’t be all secretive, indulge me! I told you guys all about my first time after I presented!”

Yoongi nods solemnly. “That you did. Unprompted.”

Jimin laughs. “Fine, yes. But I don’t even know if that’ll happen. We live together—if it doesn’t work out, it’ll be weird.” Jimin then waves it off. “Enough about that, I haven’t even told him how I feel yet.”

Yoongi looks at him pointedly. “You’ve got a perfect opportunity to. He’s here somewhere and you look amazing. I say go for it.”

“Me and hyung can be your wingmen,” Seokjin offers enthusiastically. “We’ll make sure he knows just how great you are.”

Jimin shudders dramatically. “God no, that sounds like a nightmare.” 

“Then what?”

“Let’s have fun. Wanna dance?” Jimin offers his hands. 

“I need another drink before that,” Yoongi answers, taking his hand to pull him to the bar instead. 

Jimin panics for a moment before he sees that Jeongguk isn’t by the bar anymore. While waiting for their drinks, he subtly looks around. 

Spotting Jeongguk is easy this time. The rest of the crowd have left a little space between them and Jeongguk’s friendgroup. They are the ones dancing the hardest, surely the friends Jeongguk mentioned from the dance studio he used to go to. 

Jimin thinks he forgets to close his mouth as he watches Jeongguk have fun with his friends and still manage to move like that—like the music goes straight into his lungs and out into his bloodstream.

“Ah, now I see him.”

Jimin flinches when Yoongi speaks from right next to him, leaning close to follow Jimin’s gaze.

“Big eyes, pretty nose, cute smile… somehow still hot. I see the appeal.”

Jimin has half a mind to get possessive—and his omega definitely hisses somewhere in the back of his mind—but he knows Yoongi better than that.

“Oh shit, you’re right. That’s your flatmate, Jimin? You’ve lived with him for over a year and never, like, climbed him like a tree?”

Jimin can’t help but laugh at Seokjin’s scandalized expression, turning back to the bar and taking a sip of his drink.

“Yeah, well, I’ve convinced myself to hate him.”

“And what changed, exactly? You being an omega?” Seokjin wonders. 

“Kind of, but that in itself didn’t change my feelings for him. It just helped me realize we’ve been fighting over nothing and then I started to really get to know him. He’s sweet… and he smells like home.”

“Awe,” Seokjin coos loudly. Jimin waves his hands away when he tries to pinch his cheeks.

“Promise we’ll get to meet him in the summer,” Yoongi requests.

“Stop jinxing it,” Jimin complains. “We’ve been enemies for a year. I don’t know for sure if he likes me back.”

“Oop, well, his friends just pushed him in our direction and he’s coming over here, so I guess we’ll see.” 

Jimin whips his head around to find that Jeongguk is, indeed, approaching them.

“Jimin hyung,” he says over the music with a growing smile. 

Jimin can’t help but smile back. “Hi, Jeongguk-ah. You didn’t mention you were gonna be here.”

“Yeah, some people from the studio arranged a reunion here for old time's sake.”

Jeongguk points a thumb over his shoulder toward his friends who are unsubtly checking up on him every other second, all laughing and joking around amongst themselves as they dance.

“Hm,” Jimin smiles, “but no fake-ID this time, then?”

Jeongguk chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck, eyes flickering over Jimin’s face with a sparkle in them.

“No, no fake-ID this time.”

Jimin bites his lip to stop grinning like a maniac and then clears his throat, gesturing to his friends who are doing a terrible job at pretending not to eavesdrop.

“These are my friends, Seokjin and Yoongi.”

Jeongguk shakes hands with both of them. “Nice to meet you. I’m Jeongguk, Jimin’s flatmate.”

“We know,” Seokjin blurts and Jimin does his best not to openly facepalm. “I mean, nice to meet you, Jeongguk.”

“Yeah, Jimin has told us about you. You know, since you live together.” Yoongi attempts to do some damage control. Bless him. 

Jeongguk chuckles. “I can only imagine the horror stories he told you. Please don’t believe everything he says, several sides to a story and all.”

Seokjin raises a finger. “Actually he–”

“I don’t tell them much!” Jimin cuts Seokjin off. He really overestimated the guy’s filter when he’s had a few drinks. “Just… you know, that you like to clean.”

Yoongi huffs out a laugh. “Can’t be easy living with Jimin-ah. Props to you, man.”

Jeongguk seems pleasantly surprised. Jimin hates his friends.

“Thanks. He’s not too bad, though. Gotten a lot better.”

Oh. Jimin smiles, trying not to openly preen at the way Jeongguk defends him to his own friends. 

Seokjin looks about to burst with words that are surely going to embarrass both Jimin and Jeongguk, so Jimin quickly finds a diversion.

“Right, well, we were just about to go dance. Nice to see you, Jeongguk-ah.”

“I haven’t finished my drink, though,” Yoongi complains. Jimin sends him a discreet glare. “...but I guess I could bring it with me.”

“Um, actually,” Jeongguk speaks up, suddenly looking a bit nervous, eyes locked on Jimin. “I came here to ask if you and your friends wanted to join us, hyung. The more the merrier.”

“Really?” Seokjin says, grinning. “Anything else you came here to ask, perhaps?”

Yoongi makes a face. “I need ten more drinks before I start to dance like those guys.” 

“That’s really nice of you to ask, but I don’t think we could keep up with you and your friends out there,” Jimin says, wanting to put a divider between his friends and Jeongguk. There’s too much going on right now.

Jeongguk waves him off, looking more determined. “Who cares? It’s New Year’s, not a dance competition. Just for a little while? Since you were going to dance either way.”

Jimin sighs. How has he ever managed to say no to those eyes?

“As long as it’s okay with your friends.”

Jeongguk nods eagerly. Jimin hides his smile behind a hand and follows Jeongguk to the group of dancers, making sure his friends are right behind him.

When they merge with the rest of the group, Jimin catches one of the girls saying, “Holy shit, he did it,” with a laugh. Someone else gets a pat on the back as they hand over ten bucks to the dimpled one. Seems like they really doubted that they would join.

A series of introductions follow, and Jimin barely catches half of the names over the music, but it doesn’t really matter. The atmosphere is warm and fun, and it’s easy to just jump into the random short conversations going on and move to the music. 

Jeongguk never strays from his side, dancing and laughing like everyone else. Jimin feels happy just looking at him. He must have really missed these people… or maybe this is the kind of person Jeongguk is when he’s hanging out with people who aren’t always trying to pick a fight. Maybe this is another side of the alpha which Jimin has missed out on during their year of mutual hostility. All his friends seem to adore him. Jimin is starting to see why.

After a while, when his skin is starting to get dewy with the beginnings of sweat, Jimin shouts to no one in particular that he’s getting another drink. 

“I’ll come with you,” Jeongguk offers, following Jimin to the bar.

“You really know how to dance, who could’ve guessed?” Jimin teases after ordering his favorite drink.

Jeongguk chuckles, leaning closer to avoid shouting. 

“I told you. You’re good, too.”

Jimin tries to control his smile.

“It was kind of hard to believe such a rigid person could relax enough to be a good dancer.” 

Jeongguk narrows his eyes slightly.

“Are you trying to pick a fight with me right now, Park? On New Year’s, really?”

“It wouldn’t feel right ending the year any other way.”

Jeongguk hums, nodding reluctantly. “What about the start of the new year?”

Jimin bites his lip, watching Jeongguk’s eyes flicker between his before swiftly slipping down to his mouth, like he can’t resist. 

 “We’ll see… New year, new possibilities,” Jimin hums, smiling in a way he hopes is secretive and doesn’t give away how badly he wants to switch out the fighting with kissing next year.

Jeongguk licks his lips and gives a nod. “I’ll take that.”

Jimin’s drink arrives and he takes a slow sip while Jeongguk asks for a glass of water, taking the opportunity to watch him. The alpha has styled his hair in a new way—it’s a bit messy but it fits him devastatingly well. He looks handsome in the loose button up shirt he’s wearing, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, hem tucked into his slacks. It perfectly showcases that small waist Jimin has been longing to get his hands on.

He quickly turns his head away when realizes that Jeongguk already got his water and is sipping on it with a smile very similar to a smirk, meeting Jimin’s eyes right away when he looks back up.

To hide his embarrassment, Jimin looks over to check on his friends. Sadly, they don’t seem to need him. Seokjin’s fiance has arrived and Yoongi is in a conversation with the dimpled guy. 

“I think Namjoon hyung is interested in your friend.”

Jimin flinches slightly at the words spoken so close to his ear, turning his head to find Jeongguk much closer than a moment ago.

He doesn’t back off, though, just lets his gaze trace the lines of Jeongguk’s face so close up.

“Good luck to your friend. Yoongi hyung is a disaster of a boyfriend."

Jeongguk’s eyebrows shoot up. “You can say that? Isn’t he your friend?”

Jimin smiles, amused. He turns around to set his glass down on the bar counter before crossing his forearms on it. Jeongguk copies him.

“I say it with love. Besides, he owns it—and he’ll ramble about it to anyone who’s willing to listen.”

Jeongguk grins and nods in acknowledgement, head turned to watch Jimin speak. 

“Sounds like he has good self-preception. Namjoon hyung does too, but he’s great at relationships. Maybe they’ll compliment each other.”

Jimin snorts. “You believe in the whole ‘opposites attract’ concept?”

Jeongguk studies Jimin’s face, his starry eyes full of energy. “Yeah, I’m starting to believe in it. You don’t?”

Jimin smiles and has to break eye contact for a second when the flutter of the butterflies reaches his heart. He takes a breath and collects himself but it’s futile. The moment he looks at Jeongguk he loses it again. 

“What do I know? You’re the romance book guy,” Jimin says, a bit breathless. 

“True. What would you know about romance when all you do is read about crime and punishment?”

Jimin chuckles, shrugging his shoulders with a playful smirk on his lips. “What’s more romantic than someone willing to break the law for you?”

“Wow, so… you would actually have preferred if I punched the guy that one time?” Jeongguk asks then, teasing—but there is also genuine curiosity in his expression. “That’s romantic to you?”

“I…” Jimin trails off, blinking at the alpha. Is Jeongguk actually trying to figure out how to romance him? “No, that was sarcasm. Punching him would’ve been way less romantic than keeping to your values and still managing to protect me. You did everything right.”

Jimin finishes the ramble with an awkward laugh, but Jeongguk just smiles and continues to look at him in a way that screams interest. It’s making Jimin nervous and excited all at the same time. 

“So you do know something about romance.”

Jimin just laughs and pushes Jeongguk’s shoulder at the teasing words, but a blush dusts his cheeks at the hints of affection underneath.

“Are you saying you were doing it intentionally?” he asks then, copying Jeongguk’s teasing tone. He studies the younger man’s face, lingering on his lips and eyes. He loses control of his mouth when he adds, “To romance me?”

Jeongguk’s expression kind of freezes for a second. Jimin does, too—afraid he misunderstood friendliness for flirting or took it too far—but then Jeongguk’s gaze melts into something more intimate than just interest.

“Honestly, I was just acting on instinct.” 

Jimin nods in understanding, looking down at his drink in embarrassment. 

“But,” Jeongguk quickly continues, using two fingers under his chin to guide Jimin’s head back to face him, “if I somehow managed to romance you along the way, I’d take that as a big win.”

“Oh,” Jimin breathes out, probably not audible over the music. 

Jeongguk smiles a bit timidly, giving a small nod.

The sounds of the club suddenly get unbearable and the air is too crowded with other scents. Jimin wants to be back home at the apartment, alone with Jeongguk.

The alpha seems to feel the same.

“Want to go get some air?”

Jimin nods. He follows Jeongguk to the staircase leading up to the club's roof terrace but gets blocked by a group of drunk girls on the way. Jeongguk notices immediately when he’s not following closely behind him anymore, offering his hand. Jimin takes it. The butterflies go crazy.

The terrace is decorated with balloons, glitter garlands and fairy lights. It’s littered with happy celebrators, but the air is lighter and the music is muffled.

Jeongguk lets go of his hand only when they have stopped in a free corner where the wall meets the railing. The view is nice, but Jimin has seen that view a hundred times and his head and heart are busy with the alpha in front of him—the one who used to look at him with annoyance mixed with amusement, and is now looking at him with slight insecurity but so much hope and affection. 

There is so much Jimin wants to say and ask, but the words get stuck in his throat. He helplessly reaches out and closes his hand around Jeongguk’s wrist, pulling the alpha closer as Jimin backs up against the wall. 

Jimin is happy to be paying such close attention that he catches the way Jeongguk’s eyes widen just a fraction while he willingly steps forward, hands carefully settling on the omega’s waist before more confidently making a home just above his hipbones.

Jimin smiles, partly because his heart is racing and partly because Jeongguk is cute when he’s caught off guard. He lets go of Jeongguk’s wrist and grabs the fabric of his shirt to pull him even closer, gaze falling to his lips. 

Jeongguk exhales shakily. “Oh.”

Jimin looks up just in time to watch Jeongguk’s gaze shoot down to the place Jimin is desperate for the alpha to kiss him again. 

He doesn’t have to ask. Jeongguk closes the space between them and he’s just as desperate as Jimin feels. 

This kiss is different from the one they shared in the kitchen. It’s urgent, yes, but there is no trace of anger or annoyance. It’s just pure attraction and interest, and that’s so much better. 

Jimin curls his arms around Jeongguk’s neck to be even closer, and Jeongguk doesn’t disappoint. The alpha tilts his head and deepens the kiss between hot breaths, one hand coming up to brace himself against the wall behind Jimin as their bodies meet.

Jeongguk makes a pretty sound when Jimin slips a bit of tongue and his scent blooms around them, warming Jimin up. 

“What drink did you have?” the alpha pulls back just enough to ask right against Jimin’s lips. 

“Apricot sour. I probably taste like alcohol, sorry.”

Jimin begins to lean his head back against the wall to put more distance between them. However, Jeongguk follows him and slides his lips between Jimin’s again, a hand coming up to hold his head in place as he gives an insistent flick of his tongue over Jimin’s lips. Jimin parts them, kissing back with a little moan when Jeongguk assertively licks into his mouth to get another taste.

“Mmh, miss the taste of that.”

Jeongguk’s raspy voice sends goosebumps racing across Jimin’s skin for another reason than the cold air. He opens his eyes to meet the alpha’s heated gaze.

“You won’t black out on me now, will you?” Jimin tries to tease, but his vocal chords are not faring better than his knees—weak, wobbly, and ready to just melt into a puddle of want.

Jeongguk chuckles, eyes only leaving Jimin’s to look at his mouth every now and then. It’s obvious that he can’t wait to kiss him again, and that makes the mess of flutters in Jimin’s belly grow even wilder.

“No. That’s the best part.”

Jimin huffs. “That’s the best part? Tasting alcohol without blacking out? Here I thought…”

Jimin trails off with a spreading blush. Jeongguk grins, a cute laugh slipping from his red-kissed lips. 

“I meant that the best part is that I’ll remember every second of this tomorrow.”

Jimin’s smile slips away when Jeongguk leans in again, ready to feed his growing addiction to kissing this nerdy alpha, but just before their lips touch everyone around them starts counting down to the new year.

Jeongguk leans back and looks around. 

“Shit, already? My friends…” Jimin trails off when he spots Yoongi coming up onto the terrace, Jeongguk’s tall friend trailing after him like a puppy on a leash with his short hair sticking out in every direction.

“I guess I was right. Opposites,” Jeongguk comments with a chuckle, spotting them as well.

Jimin rolls his eyes when he realizes that Seokjin and his fiance are also out on the rooftop with the rest of Jeongguk’s friends—as well as most of the club to catch the fireworks—and most of the familiar faces are very obviously witnesses to what happened in Jimin and Jeongguk’s corner just minutes ago, sending them teasing looks even in the midst of counting down the seconds of the last minute of the year.

Jeongguk turns back to him, easily reclaiming Jimin’s full attention. 

“So… did you decide how you want to start off the new year?”

Jimin responds by grabbing Jeongguk’s face to pull him back in and connect their lips. Fireworks explode in the sky and everyone around them cheers. Compared to what’s happening inside Jimin’s head, it feels pretty fitting. 

── 𓍢ִ໋.ೀ 

Jimin can’t seem to stop rambling about anything and everything during the drive back to Seoul. He seems almost nervous, and Jeongguk knows it’s all because of what happened on New Year’s so he is endlessly endeared by it.

The younger man can’t really comprehend how the last few months have turned into this, but he’s not in any rush to figure it out. He quite enjoys falling into place with Jimin, slowly but surely understanding how he thinks and who he really is. 

All along, Jeongguk perceived Jimin as prickly and bratty for a simple reason like: he has a short temper or he was spoiled growing up, but Jimin is way more complex than that. He’s fiery, yes, but he’s also sensitive and just trying his best to guard his feelings. 

Since realizing this, Jeongguk has been doing his best to give Jimin space to open up. At the same time, he’s shown a bit more of his own personality in hopes that his soft side will rub off on the omega.

It has paid off. He loves every new thing he discovers about Jimin. 

Only when the apartment door closes behind them does Jimin stop talking. 

They put their bags down and take their shoes and jackets off in silence, but Jimin’s scent is strong with jumbled emotions. 

Jeongguk grabs the older man’s hand when he kind of just freezes in the middle of the hallway, turning him around to face him.

“What’s wrong?”

Jimin looks at their hands before he blinks at the alpha. 

“Nothing.”

Jeongguk raises his eyebrows. It’s too obvious for Jimin to deny.

The omega exhales and starts wording his thoughts with visible difficulty.

“Just… What now? We’re… home, at our apartment we’ve shared for over a year, but now we… We’ve kissed and… I don’t know how to act.”

Even through the worry, Jeongguk can’t help but smile a little because Jimin is finally expressing what he’s actually feeling instead of just throwing out a ‘whatever’ with feigned indifference.

“We don’t have to act any differently if you don’t want to,” Jeongguk reassures him. He slowly lets go of Jimin’s hand and rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. “Sorry if I made you feel like we have to be friends or… something more than friends, now. It’s totally fine if you don’t feel that way.”

Jimin just looks at him for a while, eyes bouncing between Jeongguk’s own. He looks like he is in a battle with himself. Jeongguk feels his heart sink further down each second that passes. 

“Fuck,” Jimin eventually says in a desperate exhale. The dam breaks. “I do feel that way. I only let you kiss me because I’ve felt that way for ages and ever since I presented my omega hasn’t wanted anyone but you.”

Jeongguk blinks—hadn’t expected that much. “Oh, that’s…” 

Jimin meets his eyes expectantly, fidgeting with his sleeves between his fingers. 

Jeongguk takes a step forward and closes the distance between them, kissing Jimin gently but intently. 

“I feel that way, too.” 

Jimin’s smile mirrors his own when they part. “Cool,” he replies. 

Jeongguk laughs a little, shaking his head. 

“Cool.”

“So… Wanna have another go on that dinner you tried to make me?”

“Are you asking me out?”

“Fuck off.” Jimin pushes his shoulder, but a pink blush dusts his cheeks which are bunched by his wide smile. Jeongguk’s chest fills with warmth.

“I’d love to cook you dinner,” Jeongguk says, softer, “as a date this time.”

Jimin ducks his head, but Jeongguk can see that he’s smiling either way. His apricot scent is sweet and soft around them.

“Sure, whatever.”

Jeongguk laughs so hard it brings tears to his eyes. Jimin complains and has to put a hand over his mouth for the alpha to stop.

The first date and the coming few weeks go better than Jeongguk could have imagined. 

Now that they both feel comfortable to be themselves; they click. 

Somehow, after they both confessed, the bickering has turned into their own kind of flirting and there is not a dull moment between them. Even when they are just doing their own things in the living room. They now sit together on the couch, occasionally peeking at what the other is doing and making little comments which sometimes turn into conversations or playful fights. 

There has always been a steady tension of attraction between them, but it’s not somewhere in the background anymore—it’s been released out to the forefront, making every glance and every word feel colorful. 

Even their wolves are a perfect pair. Their scents move around the apartment as if they are their own living, breathing beings, seeking each other out and intertwining leisurely. Completely enamored. Jeongguk’s alpha has never felt so strongly for someone before, ever since Jimin’s omega finally blossomed. 

But, most of all, Jimin being messy would have never stopped Jeongguk from adoring the person he is apart from that, if only Jimin had shown him sooner.

With that said, they haven’t really done much more than flirt and get to know each other, and Jeongguk really wants to kiss Jimin again. 

He feels the urge hit him at the most random times—like when Jimin is just making breakfast next to him in the kitchen, or when Jeongguk makes him laugh so hard his cheeks turn pink—but he doesn’t know if it’s too soon. They kissed before, yeah, but that was before they started properly dating and maybe Jimin wants to take it slow.

So Jeongguk tries not to be obvious whenever he in reality just wants to grab Jimin and kiss him breathless and it seems to be working well. 

Maybe too well. 

So well that it backfires, in fact.

── 𓍢ִ໋.ೀ

Jimin nibbles on his lip anxiously, throwing a glance at Jeongguk. The alpha is reading next to him and they were joking around just a minute ago—something about a line in Jeongguk’s book that made the alpha blush—flirting and teasing as usual. Jimin loves it so much; their new relationship is comfortable and fun. 

At least Jimin thinks it is. 

He really enjoys hanging out and going on dates but… he wants more. 

Being around Jeongguk and his charm so much is making Jimin’s hormones go even crazier than they were before, and he really just wants Jeongguk to pin him down and keep him on his knot for hours. 

Thing is, Jeongguk hasn’t even tried to initiate a simple kiss since the day they got back from Busan and Jimin is going a little insane. Did he change his mind about them?

“Hey, Gguk…”

Jeongguk looks up and a confused frown forms on his face at seeing Jimin’s sudden fidgety state. Jimin’s gaze flickers around the room.

“Yeah?”

“Why haven’t you kissed me since we got back?”

Jimin looks at Jeongguk when the alpha goes quiet for a moment, only to see him look back at him blankly, as if the words failed to register in his brain.

“What?”

“You still like me, right? I feel like we’re doing well… but maybe I just assumed and you don’t want this anymph–”

Jimin is cut off when the alpha suddenly surges forward and presses their lips together. The shock only lasts a second before Jimin kisses back, hands coming up to gently cup Jeongguk’s jaw.

Jeongguk breaks the kiss just as suddenly and hurries to explain, “I thought you wanted to take it slow.” 

“Oh.” Jimin smiles, feeling relief flood his chest. “That’s sweet, but we already had a year of painful, enemies-to-lovers slowburn. I don’t wanna take it slow at all.”

“Ah, careful,” Jeongguk warns, a grin forming on his lips. “You’re starting to sound like someone who reads books. Fictional ones.”

Jimin gasps. “You mean I sound like a nerd? Like you?”

“You’re getting there.” 

“Then maybe you shouldn’t sit so close to me…” Jimin says but, contrary to his words, he leans closer to Jeongguk, until they’re nose to nose. Jeongguk visibly fights to keep his eyes aligned with Jimin’s, but it’s all in vain when the omega’s lips are so close to his. “So I don’t get curious about what’s making you smile in there.”

Jimin takes Jeongguk’s book and puts it to the side while he closes the distance between their lips. 

Jeongguk pulls Jimin closer, grabbing his hip to easily pull him into his lap. Jimin hums happily against his lips at the display of strength and the nice lap to sit on, deepening the kiss. The omega’s fingers tangle in the hair at Jeongguk’s nape and he feels a shudder run through the younger man’s body. Finally.

“If it was unclear, I think we’ve been doing well, too,” Jeongguk breaks the kiss to round back to where this conversation started. Jimin appreciates that Jeongguk wants to properly erase any insecurities he might have had. “Not fighting has been amazing.”

“Hm, I miss it, though.”

Jeongguk abruptly leans back to search Jimin’s expression, huffing when he sees the older man’s eyes gleaming with mischief.

“Don’t even start, Park.”

“Fine~ I promise not to pick unnecessary fights,” Jimin says earnestly. Then, as an afterthought, he adds, “Except for when I want you to go all dominant neat-freak alpha on me. It’d be a crime for him to be lost forever.” 

“For me to go…” Jeongguk’s jaw drops. He looks up at the man in his lap in disbelief. “When you suddenly forgot how to load the dishwasher. That was on purpose.”

Jimin shrugs and bites his lip, attempting to stop a smile. 

“I knew you were fucking with me. I felt bad about that for weeks, and now you’re telling me you were exactly where you wanted to be.”

“Can you really blame me?” Jimin asks, fingers playing with the hairs in the back of Jeongguk’s neck. “My omega was pining after you and you’re hot when you’re mad.”

Jeongguk holds Jimin’s gaze for all but three seconds before he exhales in defeat. Jimin grins.

“You’re a menace,” Jeongguk says, but pulls Jimin closer. “Could’ve just told me what you wanted.”

“Yeah? You would’ve pinned me against the counter like that if I’d asked?”

Jeongguk’s eyes shoot down to watch Jimin’s teeth sink into his full bottom lip, subconsciously copying the action and nodding mindlessly. Jimin can practically see how the alpha replays that day in his mind, eyes getting a bit hazy, and his hands move, splaying over Jimin’s thighs and giving the thick muscle a squeeze. 

Jimin inhales sharply, looking down at the way Jeongguk’s fingers dig into his thighs and then up into the alpha’s eyes. 

“What else would you do if I asked?”

Jeongguk’s throat moves with a swallow, subtly spreading his thighs under Jimin, his scent growing richer and spicier. Jimin’s mouth waters.

“Ask and find out.”

Jimin’s eyes light up with a twinkle, fingers growing a bit more daring, caressing and tracing down, down until he just barely thumbs over Jeongguk’s scentglands. He knows it makes the alpha feel even more of Jimin’s own scent—which is sweet and thick with want.

“Can’t,” Jimin breathes out. 

Jeongguk blinks and he seems to snap out of it slightly at the possibility of dissent. Jimin feels himself fall a bit harder. 

“Can’t what?” 

Jimin gives a small, reassuring smile. “Can’t tell you what I want,” he clarifies matter-of-factly, hands cupping the sides of Jeongguk’s neck comfortably. “I’ll scare you off.”

Jeongguk relaxes back against the cushion again. “Unless it’s got something to do with our cleaning schedule, you’re good.”

Jimin fully smiles this time, a little chuckle escaping his mouth. He leans in to press a kiss to Jeongguk’s lips before moving along to his jaw.

“I’m not out to destroy any more of your cleaning routines,” Jimin assures him, pressing his lips to a spot just beneath Jeongguk’s ear. “Another one. Involving you, naked, alone… but, from now on, maybe you can add me in.”

Jeongguk shudders at the words purred against his ear, gripping Jimin’s thigh firmer in one of his hands while the other comes up to grab his chin and align their lips. 

Jimin moans when Jeongguk wastes no time before sliding his tongue into his mouth. Jeongguk swallows his sounds eagerly. 

“That’s supposed to scare me off?” he asks roughly against Jimin’s lips. “You’ll have to try harder, baby.”

Jimin bites his tongue, fully aware he was just about to moan because of a petname. Would’ve been embarrassing.

“Good, because I wasn’t done.”

Jeongguk leans his head back just enough to meet Jimin’s gaze, tilting his head to the side just a fraction. 

Fuck, he’s hot. 

The sight of Jeongguk’s exposed throat distracts Jimin for a moment, feels forced to duck down to breathe in the strong pheromones straight from the source. The alpha hums in approval and instantly does the same, nosing along Jimin’s neck. 

“Mmh,” Jimin moans when Jeongguk presses the flat of his tongue against his scent gland and licks it roughly. He can’t even scent Jeongguk back, head filling up to the brim with thick herbs and spices and so much want.

“Your knot,” he blurts out, chest rising and falling quickly. “Wanna be knotted.” 

Jeongguk pauses with his lips on his collarbone, but Jimin can’t feel embarrassed anymore. He wants it so much he could get down on his knees and beg, for once. 

“Want you to fuck me and keep me on your knot ‘til your seed takes. I want it so bad, wanna be bred, I can’t think about anything else–”

Jimin snaps his mouth shut when Jeongguk’s chest rumbles with a deep growl. Teeth scrape against his scent gland and two firm hands yank Jimin closer, until he feels the hard outline of the alpha’s cock under him. Jimin’s head swims, a whimper falling from his lips, slick pooling in his underwear.

He mindlessly grinds down, lips parted and eyes closed in euphoria. He’s wanted this for so long.

“Fuck– Oh, fuck, Jimin–” Jeongguk gasps and groans into his shoulder, and a new scent suddenly hits Jimin’s nose.

“Oh,” Jimin breathes out, only to inhale more of that musky, dark scent. “Jeonggukie, that’s… Is that…”

“Yeah,” Jeongguk moans, mouthing aimlessly over Jimin’s skin.

Jimin gasps breathlessly. It’s kind of funny, because Jeongguk pulled his heat out when he presented, and now Jimin is making Jeongguk go into pre-rut early, but the scent paired with the thick arousal makes Jimin incapable of doing anything but bare his neck and moan wantonly. His omega responds to the rut pheromones by getting him wetter—slick leaks steadily from his hole, getting him ready for a knot.

“Fuck,” Jeongguk curses with a deep inhale. “Can’t just tell me to give you pups,” he groans, sounding a bit like he’s in pain. “My alpha takes it seriously.”

Jimin laughs, feeling a bit delirious with lust. He pulls back to assess the alpha’s face, finding that his eyes are dark and his cheeks are a bit flushed with heat, but otherwise he looks like himself. 

“How does your pre-rut work?” Jimin asks, trying to ignore the burning heat in his abdomen, needing to know if Jeongguk is still able to consent during it. The alpha has always left their apartment before even the slightest trace of his pre-rut begins to show, so Jimin knows nothing.

“Just a light fever, lasts for about five days before my rut starts,” Jeongguk explains, fingers dipping beneath the hem of Jimin’s shirt, shamelessly hiking it up to feel his bare waist. “I stay lucid the whole time, just with a higher sexdrive than usual.”

“Oh.” Jimin licks his lips, belly clenching with arousal. Jeongguk’s scent is making his thoughts foggy, and it’s a bit hard to listen to what the alpha is saying and not just stare at the way his lips move. 

“I can still go to a hotel first thing in the morning. We just started dating, so you shouldn’t feel pressured to–”

Jimin efficiently shuts Jeongguk up by kissing him hard. His omega whines loudly at the prospect of not spending Jeongguk’s rut with him. It’s essentially their dream.

“You’re spending it with me,” Jimin demands. Then—because consent is important—he reluctantly adds, “Please?”

Jeongguk breathes out a short laugh. “Do you even know what you’re signing up for? Ever been with an alpha in rut before?”

Jimin bites his lip with a shake of his head. Jeongguk hums, caressing up and down his waist, the gentle but possessive touch sending tingles all the way to Jimin’s toes. 

“Haven’t been with anyone since I presented… Never had a knot before,” Jimin admits, cheeks heating up. 

Jeongguk’s gaze darkens slightly, hands coming down to give Jimin’s hips a rough squeeze. 

“Never taken a knot and you’re offering to spend a rut with me… begging for it.”

Jimin nods with just a pinch of shame, because he wants that knot so bad. It’s the first time he doesn’t feel dignified about something, willing to let go of every sliver of pride just to get it. He squirms in Jeongguk’s lap just thinking about it.

“Will you… Can we do it now, please? Need– Been waiting for so long. Need you.”

Jimin’s eyes even tear up a bit—and that does it. Jeongguk really is weak for when he is being pitiful.

Cursing under his breath, Jeongguk grabs his thighs and stands up.

Jimin melts a bit when the alpha walks them into Jimin’s room rather than Jeongguk’s own, beyond happy that Jeongguk considers that Jimin may want the comfort of his nest when it’s so soon after his presentation. 

“Am I allowed in your nest, pretty?”

Jimin nods. “Please.”

“Mmh, being so good,” Jeongguk murmurs as he kneels on the bed and lowers Jimin down on the mattress. Jimin preens at the praise, cock giving a happy twitch. Apparently he loves being praised even more than getting scolded.

Jeongguk kisses him slow and deep, pressing their hips together for some friction. 

Jimin runs his hands over the alpha’s chest, giving a tug at the bottom of his shirt. “Off,” he demands between kisses.

As soon as Jeongguk’s shirt is on the floor, Jimin pushes the alpha off of him and down into the mattress, straddling his hips. The omega’s hands roam his naked torso, giving his chest an appreciative squeeze. 

“You look good in my nest.” 

Jeongguk seems to want to reply but Jimin takes his own shirt off before he can, and the alpha’s eyes go round and thoughtless.

“Fuck, you’re so beautiful,” he murmurs, hands coming up to carefully touch Jimin’s torso as if he’s touching something sacred. Jimin smiles, trying to sit prettily while Jeongguk’s hands explore.

Jimin whines softly when Jeongguk brushes a thumb over a perky nipple. The alpha’s cock twitches, trapped under his weight. Jimin moans at that, as well, and slowly grinds his hips. 

“O-oh, fuck–” Jeongguk grabs a hold of Jimin’s hips in a desperate way, feeling them move as Jimin rubs down against him—too many layers between them. 

Jimin bites his lip, taking in the sight of the pretty alpha in his nest. His omega is wagging its tail in excitement. Jeongguk touches him so gently, palms feeling over his ribs, waist, hips and thighs. It makes goosebumps follow the touch, spreading over Jimin’s skin.

“Are you sure about this?” 

Jimin nods, figuring it’s obvious by now. “So sure. I trust you.”

Jeongguk sits up to kiss him, and it’s full of warmth and affection. He pulls Jimin with him when he lays back down again and rolls them around. 

Jeongguk pecks his lips one more time before he leaves a trail of kisses down his chest and belly. Jimin squirms under the ministrations and eagerly lifts his hips when Jeongguk tugs his pants and underwear down and off.

His cock springs up against his stomach, and slick immediately starts dripping down on the sheets without the fabric of his underwear to restrain it. 

Jimin peers down, and the alpha between his legs seem to be in a trance as he holds Jimin’s thighs apart and inhales right by his groin, growling quietly. 

“I’m gonna eat you out, okay?” he says raggedly—sounds like he’s restraining himself a whole lot.

“O-okay.” Jimin’s chest rises and falls quickly as Jeongguk practically dives mouth-first between his legs. “Oh, that feels–” 

Jimin’s hand flies down to Jeongguk’s hair when he feels a soft, warm tongue flick right against his hole, back arching and eyes fluttering shut when Jeongguk laps and sucks on it, filthy slurping noises and deep moans of satisfaction coming from the alpha. 

“Nngh, J-Jeongguk–” Jimin gasps when the muscle pushes past his rim, licking inside as if it isn’t enough.

He fists Jeongguk’s hair in his hand and meets his tongue with desperate bucks of his hips, moans and whimpers falling from his mouth at the intense feeling, gasping at the tight grip the alpha has around the backs of his thighs. 

He manages to lift his head and look down and gets a full-body shiver at the sight, toes curling. Jeongguk is working his mouth on him with his eyes closed in bliss, broad shoulders narrowing down to that pretty waist, hips rutting against the mattress like he can’t help it, like eating Jimin out is the hottest thing he’s experienced. It makes Jimin’s head spin, arousal spreading further than just his groin.

He fleetingly wonders how the hell Jeongguk isn’t suffocating down there, but it’s quickly replaced by euphoric pleasure when the tongue pushes in faster and deeper, joined by one of Jeongguk’s long fingers.

“Oh, fuck– God– Alpha, I’m… Ah, I’m gonna–”

Jeongguk vigorously eats him out with a deep growl. Jimin gasps when another finger presses inside and right into his sweet spot, white filling his vision as the intense arousal zips and spreads through his limbs like electricity and explodes. He comes and comes—Jeongguk keeps the pressure on his prostate and catches every drop of gushing slick with his tongue. 

He twitches through the aftershocks and Jeongguk gently licks over his hole to soften the descent. The feeling eventually simmers out into a pleasant fizzle and Jimin pants to catch his breath, head fuzzy, catching Jeongguk suck slick off of his fingers with dark eyes and heaving chest. 

The arousal is back immediately when the alpha crawls over him with the lower half of his face glistening with Jimin’s fluids.

“Good?”

Jimin nods, swallowing harshly. 

“You taste incredible,” Jeongguk says, making Jimin blush hotly. “Sound even better.” 

Jimin can't form words yet so he puts a hand on the back of Jeongguk’s neck to pull him down, kissing him burningly. He tastes himself on Jeongguk’s tongue, and for once feels good about his own taste and his subgender—desirable and fortunate. 

“Please,” he whispers between kisses, feeling slick leak out of him even faster than before. He just needs Jeongguk to fuck him so bad nothing else will satiate him. 

“I just need to make sure I won’t hurt you,” Jeongguk says softly after he pulls away. 

Jimin almost whines out loud. He’s not patient and Jeongguk is taking far too long. How hard can it be?

Before Jeongguk can start putting more fingers in him—when that’s not at all what Jimin aches for—Jimin quickly reaches for the alpha’s button and zipper to distract him.

“At least take these off first.” 

Jeongguk looks from where Jimin is opening his pants to the omega’s face, blinking. Jimin suppresses an impatient sigh and sits up to press the alpha down against the mattress again.

He covers Jeongguk’s mouth with his own, bites his lip and tugs it between his teeth while he works his pants open.

Jimin falters a bit when he splays his hand over Jeongguk’s cock over his underwear, slowly feeling from the base to the tip. 

Jeongguk grunts into his mouth, lifting his hips slightly in a needy way, pressing his erection into Jimin’s palm. 

Jimin pulls back from the kiss when he realizes he’s stopped moving his lips, brain full of static. He moves down on shaky knees to pull Jeongguk’s pants and underwear down and the alpha’s cock springs free, landing heavily against his tan stomach. The musky scent clouds Jimin’s senses and his hole clenches, empty and wet. He can’t believe the younger man has managed to hide the fact that he’s this hung for so long. His knot must be massive. 

Jimin snaps out of his trance when Jeongguk touches the underside of his chin, making him look at him.

“Are you going to let me prepare you for my knot now, omega?”

Jimin shudders, licking his lips. Jeongguk’s gaze flicks down to follow the action. His big cock twitches where it’s laying so close to Jimin’s mouth, giving away his desires.

Jimin breathes heavily, pressing his thighs together in arousal at just the thought of having Jeongguk in his mouth, down his throat, numbing his brain. 

He shuffles back slightly on his knees and splays his hands over Jeongguk’s big thighs for support, leaning down. 

“Fucking– Jesus, Jimin, your lips–” Jeongguk chokes out, chest heaving in an almost alarming way. 

Jimin brushes his lips against the soft glans, flicking his tongue out to taste the precum beading in the slit, rich with alpha musk. He moans in bliss, mouthing down the throbbing length to breathe in the strong scent right at the base, opening his mouth wider against the heavy ballsack, feeling his slick trickle fast down his own thighs, imagining how much cum his alpha will be able to fill him with. 

Jeongguk moans and growls relentlessly above him, one of his hands curling into Jimin’s hair with just the right firmness as Jimin frenziedly licks and sucks at his balls. 

“I’ll give it to you, baby, fuck— Don’t worry.”

Jimin moans needily, curling a hand around the girth and angling it to his lips, opening his mouth and pressing the flat of his tongue against the head. He meets Jeongguk’s eyes and sees all rationality and restraint leave the alpha’s eyes. Good.

Jeongguk uses his grip in Jimin’s hair to keep him in place as he thrusts into his mouth, slow at first and faster as he loses more control. 

Jimin drools and moans around the thick girth, gagging when it penetrates his throat. His mind goes blank on anything but pleasure, hot tears streaming down his flushed cheeks, eyes connected with Jeongguk’s dazed ones, glazed over with lust.

“Mouth was made f’me,” the alpha grunts, barely coherently, “You’re so good, so wet from having my cock down your throat, so damn pretty when y’cry.”

Jimin spreads his knees apart on the bed and arches his back, pressing his head down to take Jeongguk further into his mouth with a garbled moan. The cock in his mouth twitches heavily.

“Oh fuck, baby, presenting for me– Such a fucking good omega,” the alpha groans.

Jimin didn’t realize that was what he’s doing—he can physically feel his wolf creep further forward, taking more control of his body. It feels so good he can barely function, just elatedly swallow around Jeongguk’s cock and receive the praise like it’s physical pleasure. 

He’s a bit dazed when Jeongguk pulls out of his mouth, whining in protest. Jeongguk pulls him up against his body, placating him with a deep kiss.

“Gonna knot me?” Jimin asks hopefully, voice raspy and throat raw. 

“Yeah,” Jeongguk says, somehow sounding almost as fucked out as Jimin. “Was about to pop a knot from your mouth alone.”

Jimin preens, happy knowing he made Jeongguk feel that good. He moves off of Jeongguk and lets his omega take control again, presenting for the alpha, pressing his cheek to the mattress.

Jeongguk makes a deep noise of appreciation as he gets behind him, one hand caressing Jimin’s spine while the other gathers some of his abundant slick. Jimin jolts in sensitivity when fingertips gently rub over his entrance, so aroused and on edge that he’s feeling everything ten-fold.

“You okay?” Jeongguk asks, moving to massage the fingers into his perineum instead. 

Jimin trembles, so impatient he could explode. He lifts his head and tucks his chin over his shoulder to look back at the alpha, saliva pooling in his mouth when he runs his gaze down his body in all its glory, so smooth and tan and muscly, that big cock so close to where Jimin needs it. 

“Please, Gguk. I need it so bad.”

Jeongguk moves his fingers back up and presses three in without any resistance. Jimin’s body opens for the penetration like he’s made for it—and he is, now. His body is made to take a knot, especially if it’s Jeongguk’s. The alpha has made his body so desperate and horny for it that he can take it comfortably.

The alpha seems to realize the same thing, thank God, and lubes his cock with Jimin’s slick in an urgent way.

“How come you’re so fucking good at letting go of your pride when you want a knot, huh? Gonna fuck you anytime you’re being a brat from now on.”

“Ahh, please,” Jimin begs loudly, feeling the blunt head of Jeongguk’s cock kiss his pulsing hole.

Jeongguk groans, pressing forward until the head is sucked inside. Jimin mewls, clenching around the intrusion, trying to get more inside.

“Shit. Gonna fuck you, hyung.”

“Yes, yes,” Jimin chants, gripping the sheets in anticipation as Jeongguk slowly pushes inside. 

It feels like minutes until Jeongguk is all the way in, filling Jimin up so perfectly it feels like he's suffocating in the best way, gasping for air while his omega rejoices.

“Fuck, looks so obscene, taking me all the way,” Jeongguk breathlessly murmurs. Jimin feels him twitch inside. “You feel so fucking good around me. So wet, Jimin–”

Jimin moans, body burning, clenching around Jeongguk even tighter. 

The alpha curses and moans, almost whimpering as he pulls out slightly and pushes back in, incoherently repeating how good it feels. 

“Not gonna last long.”

Jimin eagerly moves back against Jeongguk at that, making the younger man gasp and curse even more, wet noises filling the room. 

“Okay, ahh fuck,” Jeongguk moans in defeat, and Jimin almost shouts in relief when the alpha finally starts fucking him.

The pace Jeongguk sets is almost punishing, and exactly what Jimin needed—hips pounding hard, fingers digging bruisingly into his hips as he buries his cock in Jimin over and over, slick everywhere. The bed thuds into the wall and Jimin’s skin burns where Jeongguk’s skin slam into his, surely blooming red. His mind and body dissolve into pleasure, shocks of it tingling over his skin. 

His thighs give in at some point, too weak with pleasure to hold him up, but Jeongguk just follows him down and fucks him even harder, the new angle making him strike Jimin’s prostate with every stroke.

Jimin has no control over the sounds he’s making, whimpering and gasping and wailing. His cock gets rubbed raw against the sheets, body rocking down with Jeongguks every snap of his hips and every roll of his body against him. 

He moans especially loud when the alpha buries his nose in his neck and kisses the back of his shoulder messily, sobbing in relief when he feels the beginnings of a quickly forming knot catch on his rim. 

“Mmh fuck, gonna knot,” Jeongguk gasps, a whiny lilt to his tone, moaning and rutting into Jimin messily, losing rhythm. His knot grows and grows until it’s too big to pull out, just grinding deeper until Jimin can feel the head of his cock pressing against his belly.

“Oh my god, nghh feels so good. Please, Gguk. Alpha, please, your cum– Need it.”

Jimin is already coming when Jeongguk starts filling him up, body thrumming with blissful release, white heat taking over every cell of his being. Jeongguk bites into the nape of his neck and it just makes his orgasm last longer, feeling something primal about the possessive action. 

Jeongguk keeps coming, groaning breathily, cock throbbing inside him, filling Jimin up until he feels bloated with it. 

Jimin’s orgasm leaves him in a state of pure ecstasy. For once, he and his wolf are on the same page. His omega is finally, finally, completely and utterly satiated, just bathing in the feeling of being knotted and full to the brim with their alpha’s seed. 

“You okay?” Jeongguk asks after both of them have calmed down and melted into each other. “Are you hurting anywhere?”

Jeongguk kisses the spot he was biting and carefully hugs Jimin’s body to his chest before he turns them on their sides, spooning him comfortably while he catches his breath. 

Jimin smiles, tired and cozy and so so happy.

“I’ve never felt better. Thank you.”

Jeongguk lets out half a chuckle, sounding happily tired like Jimin. “Did you just thank me? What have you done to the Park Jimin I know, hm?”

Jimin smiles wider, feeling his cheeks heat up slightly. He intertwines his hand with one of Jeongguk’s.  

“If you fuck me this well more often, maybe I’ll turn into an angel.”

“Mmh.” Jeongguk nips at his shoulder, and Jimin feels the cock inside him give a weak twitch. “Don’t say that while I’m still knotting you.”

Jimin moans quietly at the verbal reminder, involuntarily clenching around it. “Such a big knot.”

Jeongguk’s hips stutter forward, pressing in deeper. “Fuck, stop. Can’t fuck you again ‘til it goes down.”

Jimin bites his lip with a smile, turning his head back to look at Jeongguk. The alpha props himself up on an elbow to meet his gaze. 

“Sorry. We’ll have your whole rut to do that, right?” 

Jeongguk groans and leans down to kiss Jimin, their tongues meeting softly. 

“Fuck yes,” he replies. Then he shakes his head slightly. “Can’t believe I went into pre-rut.”

Jimin hooks a hand around Jeongguk’s neck to pull him down into a more heated kiss. “Payback for wearing that slutty apron and forcing me to go into heat in front of you,” he retorts against Jeongguk’s mouth.

The alpha blinks at him, and then he just slots their lips together again, kissing him earnestly.

They make out until Jeongguk can pull out, only to fuck his cum right back into Jimin and knot him the second time of many. 

── 𓍢ִ໋.ೀ 

Jeongguk wakes up with Jimin in his arms. 

His rut must have relented during the night, because his head is clear and he isn’t aching to mount and knot. The last few days have been a blur, but nothing like all those ruts he has spent alone. He’s usually bad at forcing himself to eat and rehydrate, but with Jimin those moments almost beat the moments where he was filling the omega up with his knot. Eating instant noodles while Jimin was caressing his back or idly massaging his scalp, or even warming his cock, was something he never knew he needed. 

The omega is chest to chest with him, sleeping with his cheek pressed against Jeongguk’s clavicle and his arms around the younger one’s waist. He’s almost completely covered by the duvet, just his hair peeking out, but Jeongguk can feel every inch of him. Their legs are intertwined just like their scents. 

Jeongguk feels a deep-rooted happiness. The kind where you wish you could freeze time and space and just stay. 

He closes his eyes and savors it for as long as time and space allows him to. 

But then—even as Jimin stirs awake and rasps out a sleepy ‘good morning’, rolling over and stretching his arms over his head—the feeling stays.

“You look better,” Jimin says when he rolls back into Jeongguk embrace, lifting a hand to feel his forehead. “Fever is gone.”

Jeongguk smiles softly. “Yeah, my rut is over.”

Jimin presses a chaste kiss to his lips. “You been awake long? Why didn’t you wake me?”

“I was just thinking about something…”

Jimin raises his eyebrows in question. Jeongguk barely conceals a smile.

“Were you planning on giving back my grandma’s quilt?”

Jimin’s eyes widen with immediate recognition and then he groans in embarrassment, but Jeongguk catches the smile on his flushed face before the omega hides in his hands. 

Jeongguk laughs in endearment and gently pulls on Jimin’s wrists, heart stuttering at the sight of Jimin’s smiling eyes and rosy cheeks. The feeling grows.

Jeongguk might be warming up to messes—and Jimin is his favorite one.

 

── 𓍢ִ໋.ೀ the end

 

Notes:

Thank you for reading :)))

I'm actually really proud of this one. I was kind of exploring a new way of writing where I focus more on dialogue than anything else, and I think I really like how it turned out! It feels like my writing has improved a lot while working on this.

If you had a good time, please don't be a silent reader. Kudos and a comment would make my day c:

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