Lone Wolves Don't Court

Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at http://archiveofourown.org/works/40127664.

Rating: Explicit
Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply
Category: M/M
Fandom: 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Relationship: Jeon Jungkook/Park Jimin
Character: Park Jimin (BTS), Jeon Jungkook, Min Yoongi | Suga, Jung Hoseok | J-
Hope, Kim Taehyung | V, Kim Namjoon | RM, Kim Seokjin | Jin
Additional Tags: Strangers to Lovers, Inspired by Dirty Dancing (1987), Alternate
Universe - College/University, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Omega
Jeon Jungkook, Alpha Park Jimin (BTS), Lone Wolf Park Jimin, Dancer
Park Jimin (BTS), Lone Wolf Kim Taehyung, Art Student Kim Taehyung
| V, Music Student Min Yoongi | Suga, Min Yoongi calls his car 'The
King', Dancer & Choreographer Jung Hoseok, Assistant Professor Kim
Namjoon, Stock trader Kim Seokjin, I promise Jin will show up
eventually (he is a key character), Modern Pack Dynamics, lone wolves,
Park Jimin Is a Little Shit, Park Jimin is doing his best, Jeon Jungkook
is a Sweetheart, Jeon Jungkook is also a badass, Scenting, courting
gifts, or 'Thank-you' gifts?, Lots of Swan Lake and Dirty Dancing
references, Detailed dancing scenes, Found Family, or as I like to call it
'Extended Pack', Yes there is a Dancing Lift scene at a lake, Nobody
puts Kookie in the corner, Mating Cycles/In Rut, Detailed smut,
Jungkook's torso chains, Nesting, Switching
Language: English
Stats: Published: 2022-07-06 Completed: 2023-02-23 Words: 82,132
Chapters: 8/8

Lone Wolves Don't Court

by SUGAohYoongiYoongi

Summary

The showcase was his best chance, and Jimin did not get many chances in life. Nobody like
him ever did. It was this fucked up society’s dirty little secret, hidden in plain sight: if you
don’t have a pack, you’re nobody. So don’t blame him if he doesn’t bother to try and find
out if the ‘little prince’ from the party on Saturday was worth his time. Jimin didn’t get
many chances in life and he certainly doesn’t give many of them either.

:::

It was his first act of rebellion. Well, Jungkook knew it was just a pair of black boots. But
to him, they were tokens of freedom. Wearing his new black stomper boots to the charity
frat party his parents were making him attend was the only thing that kept him going. If he
had a choice, he would be in his apartment playing Overwatch. But Jungkook didn’t get to
make many choices in life.

--------------------
 When Jimin's dance partner has an injury right before the University showcase and Tae
cannot fill in, he has no choice but to accept Kookie's help.

OR A Dirty Dancing a/b/o college au prompt originally for jikook a/b/o fest which I could
not resist.

Notes

Hey, hello! Welcome to my most self-indulgent story so far!

First of all, I want to say you don't need to have watched the movie Dirty Dancing in order
to read this fic at all. But if you did, I hope you enjoy all the plot references. Besides the
love relationship, I tried to also focus on the social criticism part of the movie. There will
be a lot of dance (and other stuff) references in this one - I'll try to leave links and notes in
case anyone is curious.

I also want to thank the original prompter who inspired this whole story. I hope it is
what you imagined and that you'll like the result.

I will not make this beginning note long, but I NEED to say something before I leave you to
it: my dear beta, muse and solace , thank you for always helping me with encouraging
comments, cheerful messages, careful corrections and well, for your existence. I cannot
stress enough how much I love her writing and the way she pours poetry in every single
paragraph of her fics. Go check her works and fall in love with her scenes too: PoeticRoses

Ok, this is it. I'm-nervous-please-be-nice , but most of all, have a good time!
 ‘I carried a watermelon’
Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

“Absolutely not!”

It has got to be a joke. And Jimin thought it was not even a funny one.

“Why not?” Yoongi asks him as if it was not the most ridiculous thing he had ever suggested.

“Yeah, Jimin-ah. I mean, you are such a strong partner and a great instructor. You can teach
anyone.” Hoseok indulges in the absurd idea.

“Why not? Well, let’s see.” Jimin answers rather aggressively. He doesn’t have time for this. “He’s
stompy, he is surely not flexible enough, he’s too sturdy and he probably can’t tell a chaîné from a
tour piqué .”

“Oh, come on, Chimchim. I’m sure mommy must have made prince-omega take ballet lessons
when he was little.” Taehyung comments mockingly. Jimin is thankful that at least his best friend
doesn’t seem to be directly against him like the others.

“Well, he can move.” Yoongi insists, and honestly Jimin is losing his patience.

“Just because he can twerk, it doesn’t mean he can dance, hyung.”

Jimin knows the other can hear him. He’s not that far, sitting in the empty audience with his
cloying expensive scent. Plus, it is not like Jimin is trying to hide his annoyance. Maybe he wants
him to hear it all. Maybe then he will go back to his little fairy tale world and leave Jimin be.

“You know what? This discussion is over. I’m sure our little prince will easily find some other
distraction from his perfect boring life.” Jimin turns his back and heads to the stage where he has
spent the last hour rehearsing. “Come on, Tae, let’s do it from the top one more time”.
Being a lone wolf trying to make it among the rich kids at the most prestigious University in the
country was not an easy feat. Jimin did not have the time to pretend to be nice to some snob
Business Major omega whom he would probably never have to meet again. The alpha has to focus
on his performance, he has not much more than two months to perfect it.

Now that Taemin got injured, he would probably have to rethink most parts of the routine to make
it a solo. It sucked. Jimin had spent countless nights choreographing it to perfection and now he is
not sure if it is gonna work without a partner.

Only it has to. It has to work. He is gonna make it work. He’s been through much worse. He just
needs a few more sleepless nights and he’s gonna make it. He has a point to prove here and he
won’t give up.

Taehyung was doing his best to help, of course. He always has, since they met back in middle
school. The beta was also a lone wolf, only had his grandmother, and Jimin and he have been
inseparable ever since.

The beta has been helping Jimin with rehearsals since Taemin’s injury, even took the other’s place
in dance presentations they had scheduled, like the one last Saturday at the stupid frat party. But
Taehyung had his own things going on, and Jimin could not ask him to help any more than he
already was. There is his grandmother’s surgery and also the Fine Arts scholarship interviews the
same week of the end-of-year showcase. Jimin will have to make do some other way.

The showcase is a big deal, especially to Jimin. All the big ballet academies and dance companies
will be there watching, and it is his best chance to be recruited and maybe finally be able to leave
his part time job and pay off some debts.

The showcase is his best chance, and Jimin does not get many chances in life. Nobody like him
ever did. It is this fucked up society’s dirty little secret, hidden in plain sight: if you don’t have a
pack, you’re nobody.

Sure, there are governmental programs to care for all orphans, and there are the lone wolves
camps, always coincidently far from the big cities where the richest packs live. Then there is
financial aid and Jimin’s favorite: the special scholarships to integrate lone wolves.

It was all bullshit. Do you want to rent an apartment or apply for a salary job? No problem, but you
need to provide at least two blood-relative contact information – you know, for safety reasons.
Security checks at the subway station or in traffic? For some reason, it was always lone wolves
being randomly selected. And don’t even get him started on the scholarship programs and their
conditions.

Everybody knew that. Well, anybody who bothered to pay attention. Not many people bothered at
all, though.

So don’t blame Jimin if he doesn’t bother to try and find out if the ‘little prince’ from the party on
Saturday was worth his time. Jimin doesn’t get many chances and he certainly doesn’t give many
of them either.

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━━
It was his first act of rebellion.

Well, Jungkook knew it was just a pair of black boots. But to him, they were tokens of freedom.
Wearing his new black stomper boots to the charity frat party his parents were making him attend
was the only thing that kept him going.

“You look hot in these tight black jeans, Kookie.” Hyeji, one of his friends from the Business
course, compliments him as soon as they meet at the gateway of Alpha Rho Alpha.

“Yeah, who knew you had these thighs hidden under those long shirts you wear all the time.”
Jiwon, another of his classmates adds.

He didn’t know the two of them too well, just that they were also omegas, also from rich families,
who had also just started their Business Major for no apparent reason other than someday in the
future (pretend to) help their alpha or maybe beta partner whom their parents will choose to run the
family business.

The fraternity is a big white colonial house surrounded by infinities of grass. Exactly like his own
and every other pack house he has ever visited. They are not even inside and Jungkook is already
bored.

Inside, there is an impressive amount of people. But one closer look and Jungkook quickly realizes
there doesn’t seem to be anything impressive about the crowd: just your usual gathering of higher-
class students. Of course, there is a lot of alcohol and no parents around, but other than that, it is
the same as every party Jungkook had ever attended.

If he had a choice, he would be in his apartment playing Overwatch. But Jungkook doesn’t get to
make many choices in life.

So there he is at Alpha Rho Alpha’s charity event. His first college party and it could not be any
more disappointing. But that’s fine. All he has to do is be seen and make the donation in his
family’s name. That’s it. Then he is free to leave.

Having successfully resisted all of Hyeji and Jiwon’s attempts to get him to the dancefloor and
after making his round to greet the familiar faces, Jungkook decides to go get some fresh air before
the donations are officially open.

He leaves through the back door hoping to find a quieter place, but all he gets is more people
around the pool area. He spots a small wooden gate at the back and heads towards it, dodging a
group of already drunk alphas who were sure to end up in the water sooner or later.

Following a stone path, he gets to a poorly lit open area surrounded by high pine trees. When he
thinks he will finally be left alone, he hears voices coming from what looked like a shed. He
carefully approaches the building, his curiosity getting the best of him.

“Taemin is injured. He can’t dance. Taehyung will be taking his place.”

“Whatever. I don’t have time for your lame excuses. I just hope this one can dance.”

“Of course I can dance.”

Jungkook can’t see who is inside, but it seems like it is three people talking. Their tone is not very
amiable, but it still sounds civil. He thinks one of the voices might be familiar, so he tries to listen
closer.
“Are you sure you’ve even taken your scent blockers? I swear I can still smell your stench.”

There is a low growl, covered by a loud and vulgar laughter.

“Ah, but then again it could be from all the toilets you must have had to clean today. How
insensitive of me.”

Oh. Jungkook recognizes the voice now. It is definitely Doyun. One of the most obnoxious alphas
he knew. Unfortunately also one of the alphas he was most often forced to meet, thanks to both
their families’ close relationship.

He made sure to treat the omega well and always look like a gentleman, but Jungkook swore that
every other sentence that came out of that disgusting mouth had some condescending connotation.
He doesn’t know who Doyun is talking to right now, but he sure sounds openly vile and it was
making Jungkook sick in the stomach.

“Can we finish getting dressed now?” The other voice speaks – it sounds smooth, almost sweet to
Jungkook’s ears, but it also has a harsh tone, determined.

“Yeah, sure. You’re on in fifteen. Don’t be late.”

“We won’t. Now, can we have our pay?” The same voice asks, in a tone that sounds careful but
commanding at the same time.

“Ha! Do you think I’m some kind of an idiot to pay you in advance so you can leave with our
money? Nice try, cur.”

It is Jungkook almost growling this time. He cannot believe Doyun is using that word. Sure it was
barely used these days and some people might not even know its original meaning anymore, but he
knows what it meant to lone wolves, especially when said by someone like Doyun.

Jungkook doesn’t even know who the alpha is talking to, but he feels disgusted. He ponders
barging into the shed to intervene.

But what could he even do?

It was hopeless.

“Hey, kid. What do you think you’re doing?”

Jungkook gasps and turns around startled. A shorter blond omega gazes at him with intimidating
cat eyes. His scent is a citrusy one, like lemon verbena. He looks older. Probably a junior or a
senior.

“I-I was… Nothing. I was j-just looking for my friend,” he manages to reply before darting back to
the frat house. He surely didn’t want to face a questioning from the unknown omega and most
definitely didn’t want to bump into Doyun there.

“Where were you, Kookie? The ceremony has already started. Come on!”

Jiwon and Hyeji pull him closer to the stage area where Kang Soyong, the junior alpha president of
the fraternity and daughter to one of the biggest logistics enterprises in the continent, was opening
the charity ceremony.
When she finishes her speech and announces the dancing act, the whole hall goes dark and a
spotlight draws everyone’s attention to a guy on his knees, head down. The room becomes
completely silent.

River - Bishop Briggs

When the first beat hits, the guy raises his hands above his head. His wrists are tied, and not with
some silk fabric, but a raw and rather thick rope. At the second beat, he is up on his feet, facing the
audience with empty eyes. His arms are now farther apart, still above his head, making the rope
tension sharper, harder around his wrists.

Keeping the tension on both the rope and the audience, he refocuses his gaze, licks his lower lip.
His hip starts moving in something Jungkook thinks is a kind of belly dance, or maybe just a
sophisticated body roll.

The dancer is wearing thin black loose sweatpants with a very tight tank top, also black,
completely torn apart. His bright orange hair stands out against the dark set. His skin is covered in
black smudges and makeup bruises and Jungkook can’t take his eyes off of him.

He breaks himself free in a horizontal corkscrew spin just as the first verse ends and throws one
end of the rope to the right corner of the stage. Another spotlight reveals a second dancer, with the
same smudges over beautiful golden skin, wearing black tights and a thin black top, just as torn.
The second dancer skillfully grabs the rope that was thrown his way and lets himself drop to the
floor falling on his left side, still holding his end of the cord.

The first dancer proceeds to pull the rope to the rhythm of the beat, bringing the other one closer
and closer, dragging the other body along the stage. As soon as the second one reaches the center,
still on the floor, he turns to lay on his stomach and grabs the first dancer’s ankles, then starts to
entangle them with the rope. The one standing up steps back to rid himself of the cord, but still
finds himself constrained by the grip of long hands around each of his ankles.

It is all done swiftly, following the beat. Jungkook is hypnotized.

With one seemingly effortless pull, the second dancer is up on his feet, facing the first one. They
just face each other for a few beats, panting and holding the tension. Jungkook then notices how
the second one is taller, has wider shoulders. Judging by both the muscular build and the ease with
which he had dragged and pulled the other around, Jungkook is guessing the shorter one must be
an alpha.

The duo proceeds to move in a dance of pulls and pushes, leaps and falls. The rope laces wrists and
waists and necks, in an endless struggle to bring bodies together, only to then force them apart. It is
both a very sexy and emotionally intense routine, almost rabid. It's entrancing, and judging by the
excited hisses and ‘oh’s coming from the audience, the guests seem to be enjoying the dance just as
much.

Jungkook’s focus is interrupted by a familiar disgusting smell of musk.

“Ugh, I told them to do something fun this time. Now they’re just showing off.” The omega hears
Doyun’s voice speak annoyingly close to his neck. His friends beside him giggle at the alpha’s
remark.

Jungkook chooses to ignore it and keeps watching the performance. Right after tying the taller’s
wrist together, the alpha dancer raises his arms and pulls the rope in one go, as the other spins
around like a whipping top toy. It’s a brilliant move.
“Do you like it this much, Kookie? Maybe I should make them give me a couple of lessons so I
can learn how to dance like that too?”

A suggestive and heavy hand on Jungkook’s shoulder makes it hard to keep giving the silent
treatment.

“Hey, Doyun-ssi.” He greets the alpha and sways his body to the side, trying to get rid of the
uninvited hand. “I think it would take more than a couple of lessons for you to learn something like
that,” he can’t resist adding. Jungkook lives for the little things, like the discreet spike of
annoyance in the other’s scent.

The few seconds of silence only allow him to see the final moments of the dance, when the taller’s
left leg – his amazingly long leg – is pulled up to rest right on the alpha’s right shoulder. Jungkook
notices how the rope is tied around the left ankle, and the shorter dancer swings the cord around
the back of his neck and pulls it down, making the other’s air split stretch impossibly wider. The
alpha wraps his arm around the other’s waist, keeping the rope tightened and supporting the taller’s
weight while he arches his torso in a deep angle, long arms dangling behind. The shorter dancer
then walks rearwards, dragging the other by the leg still laced close to his neck.

The choreo ends with the taller adjusting his posture and quickly twisting the rope in circles around
the alpha’s neck and bringing him to the floor with a kick to the chest and a single pull down on
the rope. He then disentangles his ankle and throws the other end of the cord over the other’s
unmoving body, leaving him behind and exiting the stage.

Jungkook claps and cheers loudly with the crowd. It was just amazing. It would have been perfect
if not for the lingering presence still behind him.

“I’m gonna have to go give those two their paychecks, but I’ll be right back, Kookie.” Doyun
informs him and Jiwon raises her eyebrow twice, suggestively. “I don’t even know why we even
have to pay these leeches. I thought this was a beneficiary event. Shouldn’t they be giving back to
society too?” The alpha adds with a grin, thankfully already leaving.

Jungkook tries to ignore the sour taste in his mouth begging him to react, say something back, still
recalling the vile words he heard back by the shed. He takes a deep breath in and lets it go. He is
used to that, he tells himself. It should be fine. Just ignore it.

He tells his friends he is going to fill in his donation at the charity counter and catch up with them
later. He really is not in the mood.

After almost fifteen minutes filling out forms and taking pictures, Jungkook is finally free. He
looks back at the main hall full of excited students drinking and dancing. He sighs, and a part of
him wishes he would be able to just enjoy the party and have a good time. Instead, he leaves.

Not wanting to call a driver to return to his apartment immediately, he starts walking down the
empty road full of parked cars where most frat and sorority houses are located. He texts some lame
excuse about not feeling well to Hyeji and he is free to enjoy the rest of his night in peace.

It is not a very wide road, pine trees adorning both sides. There seemed to be no need for a
sidewalk, since nobody ever walked here, Jungkook thinks. The night is chill and if he were to look
up, he would see an eerie kind of fog surrounding the few streetlights.

About fifteen minutes into his walk, he spots a car parked down the road with an open hood.
Getting closer, he smells a spiked scent of verbena with a lemon undertone and recognizes the
omega from before, grumbling in frustration at the vehicle. Jungkook approaches carefully, unsure
of what the other wolf’s reaction to him would be.

“Fucking piece of sh-” The other omega moves his gaze from the car to Jungkook, narrowing his
cat-like eyes.

Jungkook keeps walking, trying not to look too suspicious. He is just starting to think he will
manage to go by unscathed when the low voice speaks again.

“Hey, kid! What are you doing here all alone in the middle of nowhere?”

He turns around but keeps his distance, trying to keep his cool as well.

“Me? Just taking a walk.”

“You know there are much better ways to get a night workout.” The citrusy omega comments with
a grin. Jungkook just rolls his eyes and decides to leave.

“Hey, wait. Sorry, sorry.” The other jogs his way to Jungkook’s wrist and holds it – gently, just to
get his attention. “Do you mind- uh, helping me with the car?”

So there Jungkook was: in the middle of nowhere, pushing a broken down Hyundai Azera that
looked straight out of the 1990’s. At least he is not wearing one of those pointed dress shoes his
mother always wants him to, but it's all still far from what he pictured for his first University night-
out.

After two or three attempts, the engine comes back to life.

“Come on. Quick. Get in.” The omega shouts from the driver’s seat.

Jungkook doesn’t question and does as he is told. Even the bouncing movement of the seat screams
‘three decades ago’. He buckles up and is relieved to see that at least the seatbelt seems to be
working fine. Despite its old age, the car looks pretty clean and well-cared for on the inside. There
is a little crown charm hanging from the rearview-mirror – cute, Jungkook thinks.

“Min Yoongi.”

Jungkook turns his head to the driver, confused.

“That’s me. Min Yoongi.”

“Jeon Jungkook. But everybody calls me Kookie,” he replies almost automatically.

“Oooh... A Jeon!”

Jungkook knew his family name was well known. Any family that owned so many shares of the
biggest companies in the country would be. That’s why he preferred his nickname.

“Just Kookie is fine.”

Yoongi seems to get his message.

“Ok, Kookie. So, freshman?”

“Yeah.”
Was it that obvious?

“Thought so. First Uni party?”

“Yeah…” Jungkook says, indifferently.

The other omega chuckles, seeming to catch on that too. “That exciting, huh?”

Jungkook does not reply this time, choosing to just turn his head to the right and watch the city
lights approaching. Their University was located in a small city not too far from the capital, but far
enough to allow Jungkook some room to breathe. There was the campus, the city center with a
couple of decent shopping malls and many restaurants and bars all around. Then the dorms and frat
houses in the vicinity.

That was pretty much all. Jungkook’s family rented him an apartment downtown and he was happy
for the privacy and peace of mind it gave him for a change.

“So, uhm, would you like to see a real Uni party?”

That catches Jungkook’s attention. He turns his head back to the driver, knowing he had his round
eyes wide open in surprise. What kind of proposition was that? He knows he should not be
accepting rides or invitations from strangers, but Jungkook felt weirdly comfortable and safe
around this omega.

And he really wanted to see a ‘real’ University party. You know, the kind you see in movies or TV
dramas. All he wanted was the feeling of normalcy he never got around the always affected events
his parents took him to. He wanted real parties, real people, real friends.

“I need words, kid. If you want to, I’m headed there. If not, tell me now so I can make a turn and
drop you at your place.”

“Yes.” He replied on the spur of the moment. “I’d like to.”

It turns out his second University party was nothing like the first one. For starters, it was in the
middle of nowhere, equally far from both downtown and the campus. If Jungkook were in his right
mind, he would have been at least cautious of being taken to such a remote area by an almost
complete stranger.

It is the government-funded scholarship dorms, Jungkook learns. Just a lot of log cabins up the hill,
where the poorer students and mostly lone wolves live.

The party itself is at Yoongi’s house, which he shares with a beta called Jung Hoseok. “A senior at
the Performing Arts Departments”, Yoongi informs him, pointing at a slim guy wearing some
colorful streetwear.

It is just an open studio, farther from the main dorm area. There is little to no furniture. Well, it is
so crowded that there really is no room for anything but people. But that’s not what catches
Jungkook’s attention. And that is where the second main difference comes: everybody was
dancing. I mean like ‘dancing’ dancing.

“Finally, Yoongi-hyung! There’s just so much we can do with a playlist.” The other host says as
soon as he spots the omega.
The beta smells like rainwater and eucalyptus and his smile is the brightest Jungkook has ever
seen.

“Oh, hello new face!” Hoseok says as soon as he notices him.

“Ah, right. This is uhm, Kookie.”

“Hey, Kookie. You can call me Hobi… ‘hyung’, I’m sure. Enjoy the party.”

“Uhm, thanks.” He does not get to say much more, since the other soon leaves, apparently busy
hosting.

“So, I’m gonna go set up for DJ-ing. You wanna come along or go enjoy the party?” Yoongi asks.

Jungkook takes a quick glance at his surroundings and all the unknown moving bodies on the
dancefloor and quickly makes his decision: “I’ll come along.”

So now, as Yoongi is setting up his equipment, Jungkook can pay proper attention to the second
difference. That everybody was dancing. Like dancing dancing.

It is completely different from the small circles of people just bouncing around, bopping their
heads or occasionally swaying their hips like was going on at the frat party before. Here, there is no
personal space. Hips touch hips, chests brush chests, palms hold waists (and backs and, well, butts
too). One closer look and Jungkook notices how there’s alphas pairing up with other alphas,
omegas too, and then there are also trios or larger sets of dancers sandwiched in very enthusiastic
body rolls and grinding movements.

“Not something you’re likely to see at a fancy charity, huh?” Yoongi shouts from behind the DJ
booth (which is just a set of waist-high bookcases and lots of electronic equipment he was not too
familiar with).

Jungkook just smiles sheepishly and nods.

There is a clear shift in the atmosphere when Yoongi puts his headphones on and starts his mixing.
The crowd notices it immediately and greets him with excited shouts and jumps.

The omega mostly samples famous k-pop songs, adding sometimes Latin, sometimes Afro beats.
The dance movements grow even more vigorous, dirtier… sexier. Jungkook can’t stop looking. At
some point, Yoongi gets the mic and starts rapping over something that sounds like a Brazilian
funk and the dancefloor is absolutely lit.

Jungkook has never seen anything like that and he loves every minute. There is almost a tingling
feeling in his belly that makes him want to grab the mic and start singing too.

He thinks he can’t get any more enthralled by it all. That is, until they arrive.

The first thing Jungkook notices is the vibrant red hair, followed again by the same tall and slender
wolf, two of the most gorgeous creatures Jungkook has ever seen. They have changed and cleaned
their make-up from the performance before. The gorgeous slender wolf is now wearing black pants
and a loose shirt with what looks like a black & white flower-and-leaves print. The open buttons on
his shirt and the leopard print bandana make him look positively deadly.

Jungkook starts to feel a tingling kind of jealousy, and not because of how hot the other man was,
but because of the hand he is holding. The alpha’s hand.
The alpha is wearing something simple: black tight jeans, a very thin white shirt and a black leather
jacket. He has the right side of his hair combed back and a pair of fucking aviators on. Jungkook
wants to think it was the typical stupid alpha thing to wear sunglasses in the dark of the night, but
the wolf looks so absolutely sinful that he could not process thoughts at that moment.

The duo enters the cabin with the same dominance they had on the stage almost two hours before.
Immediately they lock their bodies together and join the others on the dance floor.

The way they dance is just criminal, Jungkook decides. The alpha has his thigh in between the
other’s, palms on his lower back and their foreheads touch. The taller moves his hips and shoulders
in sensual circles and body rolls, crotch swinging viciously against the alpha’s hips.

Jungkook thinks their bodies fit together like the teeth on two cogwheels, like all they have been
doing since they first met is dance in each other’s arms.

“You’d think they’re a thing, huh?” Yoongi comments, as if reading Jungkook’s thoughts.

“They aren’t?”

“No. Not since they were kids.”

Something inside Jungkook’s stomach swerves at the confirmation.

“That’s Jimin, by the way. The beta is Taehyung.” The omega adds and Jungkook takes mental
notes of the names. Jimin.

He remembers hearing the other wolf’s name earlier that evening, the beta’s. The missing puzzles
from the conversation he had overheard at the shed start to come together in his head. He
remembers another name – Taemin – but decides not to ask about that for now.

“Are they also from the Performing Arts Department?”

“Jimin is. Not Tae. He is in Visual Arts.”

“But he dances so well…”

“Well, he did use to be a trainee at MG.”

Oh. That explains it. MG was one of the biggest idol companies in the country. Just passing an
audition there was harder than getting in most of the courses at their University.

“Did he give up?” Jungkook can’t fathom the idea of someone who danced like he did failing.

“That’s not my story to tell.” Yoongi replies in a firm tone, and Jungkook guesses it is his cue to
shut up.

He is not given too much time to chew on all the information Yoongi had just given him, because
when he looks up he is beelining towards them. Jungkook nervously turns his head left and right,
looking over his own shoulders for anywhere else the alpha could be headed. Why was Jungkook
so fucking nervous?

The alpha – ‘Jimin’. Just say his name, damn it. It’s not like a name can hurt you or anything, the
rational part of his brain tries to reason with his inner wolf. Jimin leans on the counter where some
of Yoongi’s equipment lies. He stares at Jungkook up and down – intensely, thoroughly – then
turns his gaze back to the DJ.
“Hyung, what’s this one doing here?” Jimin asks, stunning and unruffled.

“He’s with me.” Yoongi replies, even more unfazed. Jungkook wishes he could someday be as
cool as that omega.

Jimin then turns his head to Jungkook, as if waiting for his own explanation. He feels a shivering
thrill down his spine under the alpha’s attention and finds his breath hitching.

“I-I helped push the car.” Jungkook barely manages to utter, stammering over each syllable.

The alpha’s chuckle probably makes him blush.

I helped push the car?! Is this the best you could come up with?

His brain seems to malfunction, words and lights fogging up his brain. And then he notices the
strong scent of… white lilies? No. Plumeria. Definitely Plumeria. It is just so sweet and addictive,
it takes over all his senses. Jungkook loses the ability to speak or move.

He nods before the alpha’s words stop whirling in circles inside his brain and settle. When he
finally realizes he has accepted the invitation to dance, he is already being taken by the hand to the
dance floor.

“Can we dance closer, like uhm-,” the alpha finishes his question pointing at other pairs beside
them, who are basically locked against each other by the hips.

Jungkook apparently doesn’t know any motion other than shy-but-overly-eager nods.

Wicked Game (Bachata Version)

Before he is even remotely ready, a thick thigh is placed close to his crotch, and his torso is held
close to the alpha’s by a firm hand on his lower back. Jungkook turns his head and suddenly his
face is very close to the other’s and he is sure his cheeks must be completely pink. He lowers his
gaze and finds a very low v-neck covered by chained necklaces, which doesn’t help at all.
Suddenly all he wants in life is lap at the other wolf’s neck like he would at a creamy vanilla
popsicle.

“What’s your name, omega?”

Jungkook swears he almost gets wet by the unfaltering voice that addresses him. Maybe he gets a
bit wetter than ‘almost’.

“K-Kookie.”

A raised brow with a cheeky smirk, and Jungkook hates himself for being so affected by the stupid
alpha’s scent. It must be the scent.

“Kookie, I’m gonna hold you by the hips to show you how to move, okay?” The alpha – Jimin,
Jungkook repeats the name in his head – instructs in an assured tone, almost authoritative, as if
only declaring his intention would necessarily lead to Jungkook instantly knowing what to do.

Well, he still had no idea what to do. His brain makes him nod anyway.

“Relax and follow my lead.”

Yeah, sure it would work with such detailed instructions.

Jungkook can’t even follow the first one – his whole body tenses up as Jimin grabs his hips tight
and tries to push them into a gentle swaying motion.

“Here, place your arms over mine and try just to follow the way they move.”

Jungkook does as he is told, but it still feels weird. When the next pull and push comes, he has
loosened up a little, but clearly not enough. He tries to move his hips along but ends up doing some
weird sharp motion he can’t even describe.

The alpha lets out a frustrated breath.

“Look, this is not supposed to be twerking. You’re too stiff.” The alpha sounds almost patronizing.

He moves even closer to the omega and starts to swing both their bodies together, in exaggerated
movements, so that Jungkook can understand it. “Here, use your legs. Big circles, round
motions…”

Jungkook thinks he is finally starting to get the feel of this. With Jimin’s limbs wrapped around
him, his muscles start to relax and he allows his eyes to close. He visualizes his body swaying back
and forth like sea waves and lets the alpha determine the rhythm, barely listening to the music. He
is so lost in his own mind that he thinks he starts to smell the ocean.

Then he definitely starts to smell the ocean and it is coming from the alpha. It is all sea waves and
plumeria flowers. It's all he sees and hears. If he didn’t know better, he would think he was being
scented by the alpha in the middle of the dance floor. (Maybe Jungkook really didn’t know better,
because that is exactly what the alpha was doing, consciously or not.)

Jungkook’s body goes completely pliant and he lets his hips and shoulders be guided by Jimin’s
slender muscular arms. The alpha’s body is all movement, pure rhythm, as if he was music himself.
And Jungkook lets himself be engulfed by his lead.

Before he can realize though, the song ends. Replaced by a different beat, Jungkook opens his eyes
to find his body colder and the alpha stepping back and leaving.

No! Don’t go.

Those are the words Jungkook will forever deny whispering inside his head. He wants to blame his
inner omega for the ridiculous neediness, but the wolf is too lost in the thrill from the dance just
seconds ago, cloaked under a fog of ocean and warm embraces. He takes a deep breath and the sea
salt that lingers on his skin surprisingly helps calm him down.

Trying to get rid of the awkward feeling of having been ditched, he decides to get a beer from what
looked like a small bar in the kitchen counter, instead of facing Yoongi’s gaze closer to his booth.
Jungkook stays there for the following fifteen-or-so minutes, maybe hoping to spot the alpha –
Jimin – from afar, but he seems to be gone. Something whimpers inside of him at the thought, and
Jungkook is getting annoyed at all his misplaced reactions to the dancer. He does his best to shut
his inner wolf up for now.

It turns out Jungkook’s omega does not stay quiet for too long.

“Yoongi hyung, you’re the one who brought him here,” Jimin says in an unamused tone. He has a
tinge of respectful brattiness in his voice, though – the kind you use when trying to plead with an
older brother.
The party was basically over. Jungkook was once again impressed to see how the guests
themselves had helped clean up and organize everything back to place. Hoseok and Yoongi’s cabin
suddenly looked like a place to live in again, after only twenty minutes of people walking around
with trash bags and brooms, then moving a few pieces of furniture, while Jungkook emptied bottles
on the sink, awkward but wanting to help as well.

Now it was only the two hosts there, besides Jimin (who had come back to help clean up) and
himself, standing by the porch. Taehyung hadn’t even bothered to address Jungkook in any way
except shooting him an indifferent glance, and was now talking to some girl inside.

“You know The King is having a bad day, Jimin-ah.”

“Aish, Hyung! I already told you it is really weird to keep addressing your car like that.” Jimin
whines and Jungkook is taken aback by how cute the alpha actually sounds.

“And I already told you I don’t care what you think about it.”

“Come on, Jiminie. Just take the boy home, huh?” Hoseok intervenes gently. There is something
about the way he says it that sounds absolutely compelling, like a suggestion you wouldn’t dare to
ignore.

“Fine, hyung. I’ll do it.” Jimin sighs, resigned. But there is a curl in his lips that is directed to both
his hyungs, and it says something in the lines of Don’t I always do as you tell me?

The alpha then turns to Jungkook, all playfulness gone from his eyes. “Let’s go.”

Jungkook hadn’t said a word throughout the entire exchange by the porch, focusing instead on not
letting his omega’s excitement show. The thought of being taken home by Jimin makes him feel
strangely like a damsel in distress and he hates it.

He had no idea what was in store for him when, after following the alpha’s steps through a dark
pathway, Jungkook sees the destrier that awaits them.

There is nothing really special about it in itself. It is just a beaten black Yamaha motorcycle. But
the idea of spending the next twenty minutes pressed against the alpha’s back, arms around his
waist, makes Jungkook quiver.

Jimin hands him a black and pink helmet and puts on a silver one himself. Without saying a word,
he mounts the bike in a swift movement and starts the engine. When the front of the silver casque
silently turns to face him, Jungkook takes a deep breath in and hops on the vehicle while adjusting
his own helmet. As soon as he puts the casquet on, he feels dizzy, the smell of the ocean almost
suffocates him. He over-gingerly starts to wrap his arms around the rider’s body, and suddenly an
annoyed huff followed by a firm pull guides him hold tighter.

Then it is just loud engine rumbles and the wind.

It’s bumpy and uncomfortable at first, but after they leave the mountain area and hit the pavement,
Jungkook lets himself relax.

It is not really relaxing, if you consider the thumping lub-dubs in his chest. But it’s freeing. Even
with his nose caged inside the helmet, Jungkook feels his lungs fill with cold wind and it is
absolutely refreshing.

Jungkook doesn’t think about how weird it will be going back to his boring life and his empty
apartment. He doesn’t think about how it all felt as if he had stepped into a fairy tale when he
 entered Yoongi’s old car and agreed to go to the party at the dorms. He doesn’t think about how
good his inner omega feels holding the other wolf tight, how perfectly the alpha fits in his arms.
He doesn’t wonder if he would fit just as perfectly in Jimin’s hold.

It is those thoughts Jungkook wasn’t thinking that completely stir up his omega. Having the other
wolf’s body so close to him stirs something possessive in his stomach and he quickly gets annoyed
by the cumbersome helmet that won’t let him rest his cheek on Jimin’s shoulder. Maybe it is the
same feeling that makes him start to brush his wrist against the front of the alpha’s leather jacket.

It doesn’t take long for the shy brushes to evolve into almost obsessive scrubbing movements – his
omega wants his scent on the alpha, wants it desperately. Maybe it is the thought of not knowing if
he will ever see the other again, whether he will have him this close ever again. Maybe it is
something more primal. Jungkook doesn’t know, he has never felt anything remotely close to this.
All he knows is that he wants to mark Jimin.

If the other notices what is going on, he doesn’t let it show. All Jimin does is slow down a little,
but that must be because they are approaching Jungkook’s street.

In what must be less than a minute, way quicker than Jungkook wished, they reach their
destination. No, not theirs. His – Jungkook’s.

He hates it. He hates that the alpha is going to leave, and definitely hates how much he hates it.

“Thank you for bringing me home.” Jungkook says, resigned, and hands the helmet back to the
rider.

Jimin takes off his silver helmet and secures it in the back, tossing his head back and brushing his
soft red hair with his hands. Jungkook gulps at how sexy the simple movement looks.

The alpha then takes the helmet from Jungkook’s hands and puts it on. Had he given Jungkook his
own helmet to wear?

The engine is back on without a word and Jungkook’s stomach drops.

This is it. He’s leaving. Say something, do something. Anything will do.

He doesn’t.

There’s only one last glance his way – just as intense as the first one, back at the party.

“Next time stick to charities and your frat alpha, loverboy.”

The visor is pushed back down and then he is gone.

Chapter End Notes

Ahhh, I'm so excited for this one. I hope you like it so far. There will be a lot going on
in future chapters.

I will be updating them every week, or every 10 days tops. Most of the story is already
written, but I still have the last (or last two) chapter to type. That's why I love reading
your thoughts about the story, 'cause they inspire me A WHOLE LOT and sometimes
I even end up coming up with a new scene idea to add at the end like I did for my last
chaptered fic.

Oh, in case you liked the Rope Vmin Dance scene, this is the video that inspired it (it
is absolutely amazing, please go watch it!): "GREED"
 ‘Is this kid for real?’
Chapter Summary

Jimin and Tae act like assholes. Jimin ends up accepting Kookie's offer.

Chapter Notes

Hey! We're back after less than a week because I have no self control!

In this chapter, we try to understand Jimin's mindset a bit better. He still sounds like an
asshole, but I promise it will get better. Be mad at the mean writer, not at little Jimin.

Alright, let's get to this! Jimin's solo dance practice is one of my favorite scenes so far.
I hope you'll like it too.

See the end of the chapter for more notes

Jimin thinks it has to be a joke. It was what? The third time this week?

First it was on Monday during rehearsal, when Yoongi and Hobi tried to convince him of the
ridiculous idea that he could train the omega to be his partner at the showcase. What a stupid
proposition…
Then again on Wednesday morning, when he stopped by one of the studios at the Music
Department building to drop off an iced Americano for Yoongi. Jimin’s schedule cleared up after a
lecture got canceled that day. First, he decided to pay Taemin a visit and then buy his hyung one of
his daily coffee fixes, since it was on his way to dance practice.

Jimin was not in the best of moods that morning. He had been up till 3am, working on a paper for
his Dance Composition Theory course and had a headache, surely due to the sweet buttery scent
that lingered on his favorite jacket, the one that still lays on his bed. Then there was Taemin’s
mother’s face as soon as she opened the door and saw Jimin holding a fruit basket.

She was an overall pleasant woman, but seeing what she thought to be a lone wolf trying to court
her precious omega son made her face drop. Jimin swore the woman almost growled at him. He
smiled and pretended not to notice. It was ridiculous, really. As if he would have the time or money
to even consider courting someone.

No. Lone wolves like Jimin don’t court.

After talking to Taemin for about half an hour and confirming his sprained ankle was healing
alright, Jimin went back to campus, mood slightly improved (it would have been better if Taemin’s
mother was not eavesdropping every ten minutes, worried that Jimin would attack her son or
something).

His temper went downhill again when he opened the studio door to find the little omega prince
standing there with his stupid puppy eyes. Was Yoongi trying to get in the boy’s pants? Jimin had
thought his hyung was tired of clueless rich boys, but maybe he was wrong. So he just handed the
sweaty iced cup to the older and left without another word.

So right now, that makes this the third time in a week – or fourth, if you consider the party on
Saturday.

Jimin approaches their usual table at the cafeteria and completely ignores the odd-one-out sitting
awkwardly in the corner with his doe eyes and his cloying scent always smothering him.

Taehyung has his back to the door, so Jimin takes the opportunity to cover the beta’s eyes from
behind, knowing the scent blockers he just took for work had already started taking effect.

“You do know I can sense my soulmate even when he’s in a different room, right?” Taehyung
greets him with a smile, after swallowing down his spoon of rice.

“You’re no fun,” Jimin replies, placing a kiss on his best friend’s forehead. Along with the kiss, he
also places a plastic bag right in front of the beta, beside his food tray.

“Is Tae the only one who merits a greeting?” Yoongi grumbles from across the bench.

“I already saw you earlier today, hyung,” Jimin states with a sneer, making sure to convey how he
feels about the unwelcome guest.

“Jiminie, no way!” The beta’s excitement is a great distraction from the scolding Jimin was about
to get from Yoongi. “Shit, you must have spent half your monthly savings on these oil paints, you
asshole! Why would you do that?”

“You needed them.”

A few days ago, Jimin found the note Taehyung had made for all the art supplies he needed to
make the pieces for his scholarship interview. After getting his paycheck yesterday, the alpha went
straight to the art store and bought all the colors on the list.

“Yeah, well, about that…”

He immediately notices the beaten tone in Taehyung’s voice.

“What happened?”

“Grandma’s surgery. It was finally scheduled.”

“But that’s good news, Tae-Tae. Isn’t it?”

“It’s on the same date as the interview.”

Fuck. From the way he sounded defeated, Jimin could already tell the assholes from the
scholarship had probably denied changing the day of his interview.

“It’s alright. It’s not like I really stood any chance of winning, Jiminie.”

“Don’t say that. Yoongi hyung showed me your work. You are really good!” The uninvited omega
interrupts their conversation and Jimin has to take a deep breath in order to prevent himself from
giving him a rude reply.

Yoongi ends up intervening, “Haven’t you noticed how many gold-spoons apply for and win these
scholarships, Kookie?” The older omega has that patient disposition - the one he has when he
decides to adopt a pupil. Jimin realizes he is probably gonna be seeing a lot of this other kid around
thanks to his soft-hearted hyung.

Yoongi goes on, “Don’t you think it is weird that students who don’t even need these funds are
winning them?” The younger furrows his brow, apparently in some kind of induced epiphany
which only privileged people get to embark on.

Jimin hated the scholarship programs. It was all about faux prestige. Something to add to your
resume, something your parents will brag about at the club on the weekend. They could probably
afford buying tenfold the monthly grant in art supplies, go on whole weeks-long trips to Europe
instead of the ten-day expenses-covered excursion to the Amsterdam campus. But it was never
about the money or the costs for them.

Even the special scholarship that allowed lone wolves to attend the most prestigious colleges in the
country was fucked up. Somehow they were expected to provide counterpart contribution in the
form of free tutoring for other students (in Jimin’s case, dance classes and public recitals).

That, besides keeping an A-score performance while having to pick up one or two part-time jobs to
cover monthly expenses. It was all part of a fucked up system: if you do not have money and pack
guaranty, you must put in the effort and the time you can’t afford as collateral. Jimin hated it, and
he hated even more how he could see no way out.

His thoughts are once again interrupted by the new omega, apparently still trying to address
Taehyung’s predicament. “But… can’t you reschedule your grandmother’s surgery for the next
day?”

This time Jimin decides to answer. “No, Mr. Fix-it-All. He can’t just move a hip replacement
surgery that we have been waiting almost a year to be finally scheduled.” He notices his passive-
aggressive tone, but at this point the other one should already be used to it, to be honest.

“W-what about the interview? I’m sure if you reach out to the board and explain the issue, they
will agree on moving it to the day before.”

Jimin chuckles at the puppy’s hopeful eyes. Doesn’t this kid ever give up?

“He already tried that. They said no exceptions,” Yoongi explains in a sober tone. The other omega
has a weird look on his face, and Jimin can’t pinpoint whether it is dumbfoundedness or defeat.

It is then that Taehyung decides to finally address the kid. “What was your name again? ‘Pumpkin’
? ‘Kookie’? ”

The boy nods sheepishly.

“Well, you don’t know shit about my problems, Kookie. This is not your usual fairy-tale playpen
where things all magically come into place. This is the real world and that’s the way the cookie
crumbles here.”

‘Kookie’ seems to finally get the memo and decides to leave after that. He has his brows furrowed
as he leaves, a dark gaze that looks both like confusion and determination. He exits the cafeteria
without another word, leaving only a sour scent behind.

Jimin also stands up from their usual table without a word, leaves to get his food. He grabs the tray
and tries not to worry about the way the omega hadn’t even gotten his own lunch before leaving.

He tries not to worry because he already has too much to worry about: his part time job, dance
practices, the showcase problem, finals, student debts, now Tae-Tae’s interview. There is too much
on his plate and he simply does not have the time to worry about courting and omegas who skip
their lunch and look upset. The food at the cafeteria was probably not good enough for the boy’s
rich palate anyway.

Just one more day, Jimin tells himself as he parks his Yamaha at the shopping mall at 4:48pm. He
didn’t hate the job. It was good money, his coworkers were nice, it fit his hours. But it was Friday.
And Fridays meant rich assholes from the University would probably be lurking around.

The first three hours go by just fine: he manages to cover two whole floors, restrooms included.
That's when he gets called to help at the food court, which is not in his usual route. As soon as he
gets there, he understands.

It looks like a fucking war scene: plastic cups and dirty napkins, spilled beer and greasy chicken,
everywhere around four tables. There is probably more food on the floor than in whatever-
assholes-who-did-that’s stomachs and the air is thick with disgusting alpha pheromones. Right,
Friday. Jimin fucking hates Fridays. He starts cleaning and tells himself: just three more hours.

Lost Stars - Adam Levine

Friday evening was also like every other evening.

Just one more time, from the top, Jimin pushes himself almost every night, several times every
night, trying to perfect his routine. Only it is not working tonight. He needs to change the choreo
into a solo and it is not working. It hasn’t been working all week and he feels the frustration stick
to his skin under the layers of sweat on his bare torso.

He couldn’t get the arms movement just right either. Fucking months now and his arms were still
not doing it the way they should. They were not fluid enough, his joints were not twisting the right
way. Taemin was so much better at this part. Maybe he could get the omega to help him with the
flapping arms thing… No. Taemin has to rest to recover. Jimin has the most stupid ideas at three in
the morning.

But how was he supposed to go on stage like this? It was too late for a change in song, in concept.
He is frustrated and for the first time he is really scared he won’t be able to make it. It’s a
deafening kind of fear, one that makes you unable to hear any voice of reason. He knows it is just
his insecurity creeping out, but it is three o’clock in the morning, and everything has the same
tragic importance as it did to Fitzgerald.

He thinks about how close the showcase is, how half of his most significant movements in the
routine just wouldn’t work as a solo.

He thinks about how tired he is, about how sore his feet and hands are. He thinks about how he has
to wake up in a few hours to get to the Saturday morning shift at the mall and about how tired he
will still be.

He thinks about how long he has been going like this, leaning on barely-enough sleeping hours,
working his body and mind to exhaustion because that is all he can do. He thinks about it and he
hates it. He hates how he has no other choice, hates the way his limbs refuse to keep moving the
way they should, hates the way no matter how many showers he takes, he can still smell a
lingering stink of cleaning products in his hands. He remembers Doyun’s fucking words from last
Saturday: “Are you sure you’ve even taken your scent blockers? I swear I can still smell your
stench. Ah, but then again it could be from all the toilets you must have had to clean today.”

It makes his skin crawl at the thought that Doyun may be right. Jimin thinks and doesn’t notice
how he starts to rub his wrists together, trying to get his own scent to overpower the memory of
chlorine and rich frat alphas.

He thinks while he tries to dance, dances while trying to get rid of all the thoughts.

After getting the choreo wrong for the fifth time in a row at 1’15’’, Jimin finally decides to call it a
night. He gets his phone and clicks on his favorite Youtube channel for a quick cooling down.

‘Jumping kangaroo’ was such a stupid name, but their “Lost Stars” cover was fantastic, so he
closes his eyes and once again lets the familiar soothing voice lead him.

Jimin allows all of his anger and frustration to breathe out of his head, as he freestyles to words
wrapping around promises of ‘young dreams’ and ‘lost stars dancing in tears’.

He takes another shower and falls asleep as soon as his head finds its way to the pillow.

“I really don’t know what I’m doing here anymore, hyung.”

It was Monday and the three of them were sitting close to the stage during his weekly practice for
the showcase.

“Jimin-ah… Maybe I could still try to drop from the Organization Committee and do it with you,”
Hoseok offers for what must be the tenth time in a month.

“No, hyung. We’ve talked about it. You know they probably won’t even allow it.”

“It just sucks. I wish I could do something to help,” the senior tightens his lips, frustrated. The
movement makes his dimple show and Jimin smiles, thinking of how everything about the fellow
dancer was effortlessly comforting and warm.

“Maybe the omega prince is not that bad an idea,” Taehyung says as he draws invisible outlines on
the floor, obviously avoiding eye contact with his soulmate.

“What?” Said soulmate can’t believe his own ears.

Taehyung raises his gaze to show he means it. “You wouldn’t have to do so many changes in the
routine. You know you can train him.”

“Are you really suggesting I put my biggest chance of getting an offer in the hands of some rich kid
who will probably get bored of it after a month and give up?”

Because he most definitely won’t. Jimin will not place his bets, his trust on someone like that.
“Fuck this. I don’t need to start my week with this kind of shit.”

Jimin is ready to leave. He still has fifteen minutes of practice but he is ready to leave because, to
be honest, he doesn’t even know what he should be practicing anymore.

He grabs his backpack sloppily and the way he cannot get his arm through the strap reminds him
of how stuck he feels. He just needs to get away from there. Maybe some fresh air will help.

It is the sound of the back door and hurried stompy steps that makes Jimin look back. The
uninvited nutty scent makes him close his eyes for a moment and when he opens them again, the
pretty omega is standing close to his two friends, silent and staring back at him.

“Kookie?” Hoseok is the one to ask.

The omega averts his gaze, probably realizing he should explain the dramatic entrance. Jimin tries
not to let the others notice how he is stalling now, eavesdropping, pretending to look for something
that is not in his backpack.

“June 12th,” the omega finally says, still sounding a little out of breath.

When everybody else looks back at him in silent confusion, he clarifies. “The interview. It’s
moved to the twelfth.”

Jimin doesn’t have to be able to see Taehyung’s face to know his eyes go wide with hope. The beta
immediately grabs his cell phone and starts looking for what must be a confirmation email.

“Holy shit! Is this kid for real?” He must have found the message.

“Oh, my goodness, Kookie! Did you do it? How did you do it?” Hobi asks as soon as he sees the
email on Taehyung’s screen.

“Ah… turns out an old acquaintance from middle school is on the Secretariat Committee, so I
thought I would just… ask?” The boy looks shy, suddenly his own shoes or perhaps the floor looks
extremely interesting to him. “It was nothing really.”

Jimin keeps staring at the omega, surprised, amazed – and was the boy blushing?

He wants to approach them, to join the conversation, to thank Kookie. But his feet won’t move. He
just stands there, looking positively dumbfounded at the new development, and suddenly long
arms are around his neck.

“Did you hear that, Chim-Chim? I get to do the interview!” Jimin doesn’t have to be able to see
Taehyung’s face to know his eyes are watery, and his own chest is suddenly filled with so many
things that he has to hold his breath to prevent them from spilling all out.

As he walks to class later that morning, Jimin tries to pinpoint each of the things still making his
stomach twirl. It's been a while since he last saw his best friend smile like that, and the warm wave
of joy definitely is the predominant feeling in Jimin's own smile. So, yes, he is obviously thankful
to the boy. But he is also a little apologetic, guilty even, for the coldness which he has been
showing him.

But then there is something else, deep down.

He remembers the whole scene back at the auditorium, the way Taehyung’s eyes must have shone
the moment he confirmed the news, and he realizes it – hope. There is this little spot of hope
staining Jimin's once predominantly dark thoughts. He doesn’t feel so stuck anymore. Suddenly he
is willing to maybe give this thing a chance.

Maybe he can ask him. Maybe he can ask Kookie to help with the showcase.

And that is what takes him to the Business School building on Wednesday, right before lunch time.
It is a striking difference with the ones from the Arts department – this one is a modern four-storey
structure, imponent and metallic, and Jimin is sure there must be escalators inside, like those of a
shopping mall.

As he watches the sports cars parked everywhere and all the students leaving the building with
their designer clothes and expensive gadgets, Jimin feels unseemly. It's not like he usually feels
comfortable anywhere in the campus, but somehow, leaning against his cheap motorcycle waiting
for the omega, Jimin feels particularly unfit. Like it is not his place to be there, to do what he is
about to do.

As soon as the boy leaves the building, Jimin spots him. He also notices a disgusting arm around
the omega’s shoulder and Jimin immediately recognizes Doyun. Even if it doesn’t take two
seconds for Kookie to dodge the gesture, it still lingers in Jimin's sight.

He considers turning around and leaving right then. It was a stupid idea in the first place. He was
just desperate. He could find another way around this. The other must have already forgotten about
the offer at this point, probably has other plans, better plans. He should leave. Yeah, he’ll leave.

“Jimin-ssi?”

Fuck.

Jimin stops mid-way in the action of putting his helmet on and spins. Kookie is standing right in
front of him, alone, tilting head in question. Jimin can smell the same faint sweet scent that still
lingers in both his favorite helmet and favorite jacket back at his place.

“Uhm, hi, Kookie,” he says not awkwardly at all.

“Are you looking for someone?” The omega asks.

“Uhm, not really, I-I just-” Jimin takes a deep breath disguised as an annoyed huffing. He is
definitely not about to start stammering in front of the boy now. He reviews his mental notes:
apologize - thank - ask. “I wanted to ask if you are still available.”

And it does not go as he had rehearsed in his head.

“Available?” Kookie blinks quickly, tilting his head again, and the movement lifts a soft breeze
that cloys under Jimin’s nose.

“Yeah, for the showcase,” Jimin notices how he is still mumbling.

“You want me to?” The omega looks genuinely surprised.

“If you really want to…” Jimin knows he did not manage to phrase the whole thing right. “I mean,
if you’re still willing to. It will be hard work. Hours of practice. Everyday.”

The other does not reply, does not react. He just stands there, for seconds that feel like hours to
Jimin.

He should not have asked. He should have just left.

“I do,” Kookie finally says. He smiles and Jimin doesn’t dare to try to decipher the meaning
behind it.

“Ok,” is what Jimin says. “I’ll pick you up here at the same time tomorrow,” he adds, already
mounting back on his Yamaha.

“Ok. Tomorrow.”

Jimin leaves with a smile of his own. One he doesn’t dare to decipher either.

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

Jungkook is already exhausted. It's been only four days and he is exhausted. Well, maybe more
frustrated than exhausted, but still very tired. And every inch of his body aches.

All the alpha had him do the past days was pliés, relevés, sautés. It was an endless cycle of first,
second, third, fourth, fifth positions. Jungkook felt as if he was back in first grade at the ballet
lessons his mother made him take, exactly how Taehyung said he had. His life really is so fucking
predictable, Jungkook realizes.

When it was not the ballet lessons, Jungkook felt like he was in one of the Karate Kid movies. He
kept painting and repainting a fence for hours while Jimin was busy doing grown-up things and
practicing the choreo for real. Watching Jimin dance was distracting to say the least, and he kept
anticipating the moment when the alpha would show him how the repetitive movements magically
made him able to do half the routine. Only the moment never came. He had a feeling it would not
turn out like in the movies.

So, yeah – as he starts gathering his things to leave his last lecture on Monday morning, all
Jungkook feels is muscle pain and frustration.

“Jeon, a word?” Kim Namjoon, his Business Law Assistant Professor, stops him right when he is
about to exit the classroom.

“Yes, Mr. Kim?”

“I, uhm, was looking over your assignment and, well, I noticed how you submitted it late night on
Sunday…”

Jungkook is not sure where the conversation was headed there. He checks the time on his phone,
wondering if Jimin is already waiting for him at the studio for practice.

He is not trying to seem disrespectful. Truly, Assistant Professor Kim was one of the best things
about his whole Major: the beta was smart (like genius smart, like youngest-Assistant-Professor-
on-campus-prodigy-kind-of smart), gentle, sweet. And then there were his dimples, and his
thighs… Ok, maybe Jungkook had a small crush on him and did all he could to impress the man,
but he really had to go. He knows how busy Jimin’s schedule is and does not want to make the
other think he is wasting his time on Jungkook.

“Is something wrong with my work?”

“No, not really. I just-... I noticed how late it was, and how you usually submit your works early on
the weekend...”

It makes Jungkook’s heart soften upon noticing how the professor seems to be worried about him.
A couple of weeks ago it would have given him butterflies in the stomach. Alright, he knows the
man was probably taken – he could always smell an oddly familiar scent of tea leaves under the
beta’s own water lily and pear – but he couldn’t help it.

The thing is that now Jungkook has a more pressing issue, a Jimin issue .

“Ah, it’s just that I’ve been taking some extra classes, Professor, and I’m still trying to adjust my
schedule.” It is not exactly a lie, per se. He just omits the part where it is extra dance classes he has
been taking, but he tries not to focus on technicalities.

“Oh, okay. Just try not to… overwork yourself, uhm?” The beta says in an almost endearing way.
“And if you ever need anything, even if it is, I don’t know, just talk, you know you can always
come to me, right? Try to think of me like-... extended pack. Okay?”

That was… wow. A lot. Jungkook nods and thanks the teacher, trying to hide his blushing cheeks
from all the unexpected attention and rushes out of the building.

The idea of ‘Extended pack’ follows him all the way to the dance studios, and he wonders about
the meaning behind the words. Wonders if that is something he could ever wish to have. If there
could ever be something, anything, left for him outside of his own family-pack life. It makes
Jungkook feel a little ungrateful. And his greedy thoughts that secretly want more than what he
was given at birth unsurprisingly take him to Jimin and to his new group of… friends? No, not
friends. That would be too covetous of him.

He gathers his greedy thoughts and hides them somewhere he can ignore for now. He has a more
pressing issue.
Own It - Drake

“No.”

“Sorry, sorry.”

“The tippy toe is on ‘and’, the heels on ‘one’,” Jimin explains yet again.

“I know, I know.”

Popping was easy. Popping was fun. Fifteen minutes and Jungkook could lock and pop like a pro.

Now shuffling was a whole other story. His feet just refused to. Suddenly he misses the pliés and
sautés. How is he supposed to learn that in a couple of days? Shuffling is a nightmare!

“Ok, one more time. Let’s do it together.”

The alpha crouches down next to where his phone is charging to restart the music and all Jungkook
can think of is how hot his butt looks under those goddamn gray sweatpants. He can’t focus on
toes and heels when Jimin is back, this close to him, standing in front of the mirror. Not when he
brushes his hair like that – the red a little faded, the remaining dye was now only a peach-colored
sunset. All Jungkook sees is the reflection of sweat drops falling from the man’s temples. All he
notices is the way the alpha narrows his eyes and fixes his gaze on him.

“Six, seven, eight. And, one. And, two. And, three. And, four,” his feet try to follow the
commanding voice coming from Jimin’s lips. He looks down because if he looks at those lips for
one more second…

“And, seven. And, eight. Lift your gaze. And, two…”

Jungkook looks up again but focuses on the movement of his own feet.

“And, five. And, six. Shoulders down. And, eight...”

He fixes his posture and keeps following Jimin’s lead. He misses a few counts and has to restart
multiple times, but he keeps following the alpha’s lead for two, and, three more songs.

Jungkook is gonna learn this damn shuffling thing. His quiet stubbornness has always been his best
trait.

“Ok, enough. You’d better practice the happy feet at home. It’s not that big a deal. I can change the
routine a little if you can’t do this.”

Jimin is again squatting by the power socket to find another song, but this time Jungkook averts his
gaze.

“We still have fifteen minutes. Let’s see if you can move your hips a bit better than you did back at
the party.”

Oh, damn. Jungkook did not like where this was heading.

“Ok, just try to do as I do,” Jimin says while taking position once again too close to Jungkook.

The alpha starts with some lazy body rolls that slowly turn into sharper ones, popping and locking
 his hips almost aggressively, but always complying with the smooth rhythm of the song.

The dancer slides his hand all the way down from his neck to his chest, then to his lower abdomen.
Jungkook can almost feel Jimin’s skin under the wet T-shirt as if it was his own palm.

Jungkook is barely trying to follow the moves with his body now, all his energy is on his eyes,
tracing every swing in slow motion. His omega is invested and wagging his tail in interest, eagerly,
inside of him.

How Jungkook thought this whole dancing thing was a good idea is beyond him now. He won’t
survive the following month. And they haven’t even started practicing the moves where they have
to touch! This is not going to end well.

As the alpha brings his hand to his throat once again, leaning his head back, Jungkook has to take a
deep breath.

Bad idea. Bad, bad idea.

The wolf inside of him laps at the scent of sea and Plumeria. Jungkook wouldn’t be surprised if he
suddenly started barking now, and he can feel a slight bulge growing inside his black joggers.

Fuck.

He tries to keep moving, to follow Jimin’s lead, but it is getting harder and harder to keep his
omega in check. It feels impossibly cramped inside the studio, too many mirrors turned to
Jungkook and his disobedient body – he can’t hide the way it responds to every call coming from
the other wolf.

The tongue is the last straw.

When Jimin rotates his hips in a wider circle and licks his upper lip – slowly, premeditatedly –
Jungkook loses it.

He runs to his backpack then straight to the door.

“Hyung, I’m sorry. I have to go. I forgot I’m late for a thing,” he says in a high pitch that surely
shows his desperation, unable to face Jimin.

In a heartbeat, he panics out of the studio hoping the alpha couldn’t smell the strong nutty scent
coming from him.

Dripping slick just from watching an alpha dance, Jungkook? Really?!

Chapter End Notes

So... this ended kind of awkward... Sorry...

But I promise we'll pick up the pace starting next chapter, with lift rehearsals, scenting
and not-courting gifts! See you soon, hope you are enjoying the story.
 ‘You know, the best place to practice lifts is in the water’
Chapter Summary

Jimin and Kookie get closer. And they practice the lifts!

Chapter Notes

Hello, hello! I'm not feeling so peachy today, so I'll keep this short. I hope this chapter
helps you understand Jimin a little better.

There are some references to dance lifts names. In case you are curious, this video
shows most of the ones mentioned in this chapter.

See the end of the chapter for more notes

“What do you even do every day after class with that alpha anyway?” Jiwon asks him, with a pout.

It is Friday, and for the umpteenth time, Hyeji and Jiwon have been trying to convince him to go
shopping with them after ‘Introduction to Economics’. They do not seem like they will take no for
an answer this time.

“I've been taking lessons. Dance lessons.”

He figures he should stick with this for now. They will probably find out all about it eventually,
but he hopes to postpone that to as close as possible to the showcase. It is not like he is trying to
hide it or anything, but he certainly does not want to be put in a situation where he has to negotiate
his participation in the event with his parents in case they end up hearing about it somewhere.
“Oooh! Are you trying to impress Doyun?” Hyeji asks.

“What?!” That is the most ridiculous thing Jungkook has ever heard. “Obviously not.”

“I think it is another alpha that Kookie is trying to impress,” Jiwon suggests.

Jungkook widens his eyes a little, wondering if he really is that obvious.

“Don’t give me that look. I noticed the way you were drooling over that lone wolf at the charity.”
Jiwon adds, proving to be much more perceptive than the other omega girl.

“It was just an impressive performance. That’s all,” he feigns indifference. But he knows his easily
blushing cheeks must have already betrayed him by now.

“I can’t believe you have the hots for fucking Park Jimin!” Hyeji finally catches up.

“I… don’t.” Jungkook instantly gets annoyed by the lack of conviction in his own tone. “It's just
dance lessons. No big deal.”

“Oh, that’s where you are wrong. Everybody knows how big a… ‘deal’ Park Jimin is.” Jiwon
laughs, amused at Jungkook’s shyness. “Good for you, Kookie!”

Damn it. Why the hell is his omega getting excited about this? Get a grip on yourself, Jungkook!

“Whatever.” He tries to sound unbothered and hopes his spiking scent won’t betray him as well.
“Ok, you win. I’ll meet you at the mall after my lesson.”

“Ooh, finally!” Hyeji celebrates.

“Why do I get the feeling you’re only trying to change the subject?” Jiwon asks with another
suggestive smirk.

“You’re kind of obsessive, you know?” He points out playfully, but hoping it will be the end of the
conversation. They are almost at the exit of the building. A few more steps and he will be able to
get rid of them.

“We just worry about you, Kookie,” Hyeji is the one to prolong the subject.

“Yeah, we do,” Jiwon agrees. “You do you, and I’m all about having all the fun we can through
Uni, but don’t let yourself catch feelings, eh?”

He wonders what Jiwon is trying to say here. If it is just the expected ‘lone wolves do not belong
with people like us’ or if there is something else they are trying to imply.

“You know, Soyoon told me he had the guts to take a courting gift to his dance partner the other
day. Like, to his house, where he's recovering from an injury. Imagine his mother’s face when she
saw a lone alpha trying to win over her precious so!” Hyejin comments with a giggle.

“Oh, really? I did not take Park Jimin to be one to give out courting gifts left and right. Where does
he even find the money?” Jiwon’s smirk rubs Jungkook the wrong way.

“Ah, but that omega is a special one in Park Jimin’s list. From what I hear, the rest of us mortals
can only get some other kind of gift from him.” Both of the girls laugh at Hyejin’s suggestive
remark but Jungkook can’t even fake a smile. Why is this conversation bothering him this much
anyway?
“Yeah, but even the dance partner is no match for Taehyung.” Jiwon adds.

“Taehyung? Kim Taehyung? The other lone wolf, from the Arts Department? Aren’t they just
platonic soulmates or something?” Hyejin asks.

Jungkook remembers how Yoongi had told him at the party that Jimin and Taehyung were just
friends, not a thing, ‘not since they were kids’.

But as he thinks about courting gifts, as he remembers that day at the cafeteria when Jimin gave
Taehyung all those expensive paints, he can’t help the hint of jealousy that threatens to spoil the
milky part of his scent.

“Well, that’s what everybody says, but don’t you see what they are like together? I mean, the way
he looks at Taehyung, like he has saved the world or something. That is not just platonic. I refuse
to believe it.”

Jiwon’s words really manage to sour Jungkook’s day and he is beyond relieved to finally get to the
sidewalk where they will part ways.

“Ok, I have to go now. I’ll text you when dance practice is over so you can tell me where to meet.”

With that, Jungkook leaves almost abruptly, refusing to hear more about gifts and platonic
soulmates.

“Kookie, here!” Hyejin waves from beside an ice-cream stall at the main lobby.

She always greets him with a burbly beam, and Jungkook feels a little guilty for being so deflective
of their tireless attempts to befriend him. So he feigns a smile and apologizes for being late.

He is tired. And frustrated.

Unsurprisingly, the whole conversation from earlier kept spinning around his head and he had an
extra hard time concentrating during practice, earning more scoldings than usual from Jimin.

What a waste of a day. He wishes he could just go home and sleep his feelings away.

“Come on. The guys are waiting for us at the food hall. Have you eaten yet, Kookie?”

“Uhm, what ‘guys’ ?” Jungkook asks, forgetting about the other question the omega asked.

“Just Doyun and the guys from the basketball team, plus Aeri and Minyoung from second year.
You know them, right?” Jiwon says, taking him by the wrist toward the escalator.

Perfect. Just perfect. He knew he should have just gone home. Now he has to deal with obnoxious
alphas on top of it all. His life is a joke.

The only reason why the meal is not a complete nightmare is because Jungkook manages to take a
seat between Hyejin and Aeri thus avoiding having to sit beside Doyun. But the whole thing is
noisy in an offensive way.

The basketball team keeps singing extremely loud, banging food trays on the table and stomping
their feet. When they are finished, they leave a complete mess and Jungkook stays behind, piling
up dirty plates and cups on trays.
“Kookie, come on. Somebody will come clean this in a minute.” Jiwon says, but at least she helps
him take most of the mess to the trash cans before pulling him to follow the horde of wolves.

They stroll around the mall, speaking almost as loudly as they had at the food court. Jungkook
walks a little behind the group, Hyejin holding his arms and taking her time watching the displays.

Already planning his escape, Jungkook is pondering which excuse he is gonna go for this time
(Uni work or a video call with his parents are his best options for now). That's when he sees him.

He had no idea the alpha worked at the mall. But then again, he never got many opportunities to
make conversation with Jimin, at least nothing besides counting steps and correcting stances. So he
is a little surprised to see him there.

Jimin is at the opposite side of the large aisle of stores they are walking in, dressed in a gray
uniform and pushing a cleaning trolley when they make eye contact. He is wearing a face mask
and a cap, and probably also scent blockers, but Jungkook would recognize him anywhere. There is
something about the powerful way in which he stands and moves that sticks out to his omega. It
must have something to do with his dancing training, Jungkook is sure.

They make and break eye contact just a second later, when Jimin seems to pretend not having seen
him. Jungkook tries not to take offense – it is his workplace after all. The alpha is probably not
supposed to be chit chatting during his work hours. But he can’t deny he was hoping for a nod at
least. Again his wolf feels that hint of rejection, the same one he felt when he was left alone on the
dance floor at the party.

A sudden clunk startles Jungkook out of his thoughts.

He looks ahead and sees how Sungho, a beta from the basketball team, has just outright kicked one
of the metal trash cans and made it spill all the garbage on the floor.

“Oops,” he says loudly, in terrible acting. The others don’t even try to hold back their laughter.
They just keep walking ahead as if nothing had happened.

Jungkook just stands there in the middle of the aisle and watches as Jimin approaches the scene to
swiftly clean the spill.

The omega feels his stomach churn.

He can’t believe what he just saw. Can’t believe the assholes really did that on purpose.

He remembers the way Doyun had treated Jimin back at the charity party and wonders whether
they had seen Jimin and were really targeting him or if it was just random viciousness.

Still shocked, Jungkook starts walking toward where Jimin is already finishing up cleaning the
mess. He is not sure what he is going to do when he gets to the alpha, but his feet hurry him to the
older wolf. Before he can reach him though, Jimin is already rushing to a side aisle. Jungkook jogs
the last feet there, only to see the other disappearing behind a “Staff Only” door.

The next day Jimin texts him saying he cannot make it to dance practice.

When Jungkook replies asking if he is okay, there is no response. He knows the alpha is not really
talkative – at least not when he is with him – but Jungkook can’t help but feel worried. It is not like
him to actually cancel practice.
All day he worries that Jimin is sick, his omega wondering if he has someone to take care of him.
While studying for his Introduction to Marketing test, he also worries about what happened at the
mall, and if maybe Jimin thinks Jungkook had something to do with what those assholes did. He
feels terrible about the whole thing, keeps replaying the scene in his head, wondering if there was
anything he could have done to prevent it.

It is hopeless.

So when Sunday comes and the alpha once again cancels on him without further explanation, he
doesn’t think twice before getting his car and going to where their dorms are. His GV80 easily
makes the trip through the dirty road that leads to the eastern hill.

When Jungkook gets there and realizes how large the dorm area actually is, he ends up at the only
door he really knows.

“Kookie? What are you doing here?” Hoseok greets him by the door, seeming a little confused. He
looks fresh off sleep with messy hair, wearing a white T-shirt and pajama pants.

“Hobi-hyung, I’m sorry to bother. I’m actually looking for Jimin-hyung, but I don’t know which
dorm is his. If you could just tell me the direc-”

“Oh, come in, come in! Yoongi-hyung is out recording, so it is just us.” He interrupts with a wide
smile, adamant on making the omega get inside.

The cabin looks just as neatly organized as last time when the task force had cleaned the whole
place after the party, maybe even more. The room smells like the beta’s eucalyptus and it has a
soothing effect on Jungkook. There’s a citrusy trail coming from behind a closed door, and
Jungkook assumes it is Yoongi’s room.

“I was just fixing myself a sandwich. It is my signature Hope Toast . Here, let me make you one.”

Jungkook eyes the strawberry-jam-with-bacon-an-scramble-eggs combination and feels really

unsure, but doesn’t have the heart to deny the cheerful hyung, who is already working on the
sandwich.

“Here. Try it.”

Jungkook takes the first bite and it is… surprisingly good! What the… Who would have guessed?
He is already on the second one and it tastes just as great.

“Jiminie's right. You do look mad when you eat.” Hoseok comments, giggling.

Jungkook probably blushes immediately. Jimin said what?

He recalls the few times when the alpha had caught him eating his favorite sandwich or some
gimbaps before practice. But he never figured the other would pay attention to something like this.

Jungkook's mother was always scolding him about it, reminding him of having graceful table
manners, whatever that was supposed to mean.

“It is only when it's really yummy.” Jungkook explains, a little embarrassed. Hobi laughs, looking
completely endeared by the shy compliment.

“Oh, right. Let me try to reach Jiminie. Hold on.”

The beta leaves for what must be the bedroom with his cell phone and the last bite of his Hope
Toast, probably to call the other dancer. Jungkook finishes his sandwich and takes the plate to
wash it, wanting both to distract his anxiety with something and to show at least some proper
manners after the unannounced visit.

“Kookie, you don’t have to do that.” Hoseok comes back rather quickly.

“No, it’s okay, hyung. It’s the least I can do.”

“Alright, but it’s enough,” he says, while handing Jungkook a towel to dry his hands. “Now, come
on. This is your lucky day!”

“Lucky day?”

“Yeah, you get to learn from the best today.”

It turns out Jungkook has a lot of fun practicing with Hobi. The dancer mostly teaches him street,
giving good tips on how to improve his locking. While the beta is very rigorous and attentive to
detail, Jungkook finds himself relaxing and enjoying the lessons a lot, eased into the gentle smiles
and pats on the back he keeps getting from his teacher-for-the-day.

They talk comfortably during water breaks. Hoseok tells him about his parents and sister, how he
was the first one in his family to be admitted in a University and how much his family supported
him even when they struggled financially. With teary eyes, he tells Jungkook about how his
mother had taken an extra job so that he could enroll in a prep course in his last year in High
School. He talks about how much he misses his family, how happy they were when he sent them
his first paycheck, how he had made sure they would use it to go out and get some nice food.

Listening to Hoseok’s stories makes Jungkook realize how universes apart they stood when it
comes to life experiences, but strangely the omega doesn’t feel stranded in the slightest. The whole
day, practicing together, talking and laughing, Jungkook feels... content. The same way one wraps
themselves in a warm blanket on a cold morning under a ray of sunlight. He doesn’t remember ever
having felt like that.

And that is how the afternoon goes by: panting and sweating interspersed with laughter and warm
stories. By the end of it, Jungkook is as happy as he is exhausted. He also thinks he finally
managed to up his shuffling game and he hopes Jimin will be proud… which brings his mind back
to the alpha, of course.

“Hyung, is everything ok with Jimin? He never really told me why he had to cancel and I’m
starting to get a little worried.” Jungkook has his backpack and is heading to the door when he
finally summons the courage to ask.

“Ah, he’s fine Kookie. There’s no need to worry. He’s just…” The beta seems to consider what or
how much he should say. “He’s just… helping with Tae-Tae.”

“Is anything wrong with Taehyung-ssi?”

“No, nothing really wrong.” Hoseok looks conflicted, like he doesn’t think he should say much but
also not wanting to lie. “It’s just his rut.”

“Rut?!”

Jungkook didn’t mean it to sound this snappish. He knows that, even though it is not as common,
beta wolves will sometimes develop either ruts or heats. While it can be related to a potential or
current partner’s mating cycles, it will sometimes happen during very stressful or emotional
periods.

He doesn’t really know which is the case for Taehyung, and that is not the reason why his scent
seems to be growing more agitated now. It is already a little sour, with a pungent leathery spike,
and Jungkook is startled by how strongly his wolf reacts.

“Yeah, Tae is a bit stressed and he can get really aggressive when he goes into a rut. Jimin is the
only one who manages to approach him to get him some food and water. Jimin usually just stays in
the next room releasing some pheromones and making sure Tae doesn’t hurt himself or break
anything through it.”

“Oh. It must be tough…” Jungkook says, feeling a little better after learning that Jimin doesn’t
really ‘help help’ Tae with his rut.

He knows he shouldn't care, that it is not his place. But his wolf doesn’t really seem to listen to his
logical side when it comes to that specific alpha.

He hates it.

“Yeah, I’ve never had a rut myself, but I hear they can be pretty… intense.” Hoseok chuckles,
trying to ease the heavy mood a little, holding the door open to the omega. “But Jimin texted a
while ago saying it's almost over now, so he should probably be able to resume practice with you
tomorrow or the next day.”

And that finally sets his wolf at ease.

The thought of being able to see Jimin again after only three days shouldn’t make Jungkook this
excited, but he chooses not to dwell on that for now. He’s just had a great day with Hoseok, he is
exhausted and happy, so he will just go home with that feeling.

“Thanks, hyung. For everything.”

Jungkook can’t resist going for a hug. It is quick, nothing suspicious, but maybe it can get some of
the soothing rainwater and eucalyptus scent to stick with him a while longer.

He walks back to his car and thinks about Professor Kim Namjoon’s words. ‘Extended pack'... was
this what real friends felt like?

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

Jimin is exhausted. That is the first thing he notices as soon as he leaves the cabin.

It is not his usual exhaustion, the long time acquaintance where his muscles are sore from
overexertion and his head weighs him down because he can’t get enough hours of sleep. It is all
that and more.

Every inch of skin throbs, every one of his senses is surfeited and on the edge.

Taehyung’s rut had been particularly brutal this time. Jimin doesn’t remember seeing the other so
violent and emotional, probably the result of the stress around the scholarship preparation and
grandma's surgery. The cuts on his skin from the couple of times he had to intervene and stop the
beta from hurting himself or destroying the whole cabin won’t let Jimin lie. At least it only lasted a
day and a half.

Jimin has always helped with his best friend’s ruts and even that one heat he had.

It was never sexual. No. They were very young when they agreed their relationship could neither
be romantic nor erotic. They had a very clear mutual understanding about where they stood.
Taehyung himself was also figuring out his own place within the ace spectrum, and Jimin chose to
spend his own ruts alone or with omega partners.

As he steps out of Taeyung’s cabin, Jimin drags his feet, wishing for nothing but a hot shower and
the silence of his own bed. His cabin is farther up the hill, in a slightly more secluded area. He
takes a deep breath in and starts walking the path that goes through the back of Yoongi and
Hoseok’s place.

Jimin smells the unmistakable creamy scent before his eyes can make out the sturdy figure about to
get in the very expensive looking SUV.

Kookie.

He doesn’t know why the omega’s scent bothers him so much. Maybe it is because he can’t even
pinpoint what it really is, such a complex combination of aromas that Jimin does not fully
recognize. Probably some expensive shit he has never heard about.

He can almost taste it in his mouth though – its sweetness. There is a sugary undertone, often
overpowered by a greenish nutty note. It is oddly familiar in a way Jimin cannot completely grasp.

The alpha often finds his mouth watering during their dance practices whenever Kookie’s nutty
scent grows stronger. There was one time the alpha got this close to wrap himself around the other
to get the addictive fragrance all over his own skin. Thankfully Kookie left rehearsal abruptly that
day, before Jimin could do anything he would regret later.

But this time there is a third note reaching Jimin’s nose. Something sharp and leathery takes over
all of his surroundings, definitely hinting distress.

“Kookie...?”

The omega stomps toward Jimin and stops right before him, sniffing the air with a distraught look
on his face.

Jimin cannot utter another word. The dry, almost burnt out scent envelops him and leaves his
whole body completely at the other’s mercy. Kookie doesn’t speak, but his eyes and scent scream
at the alpha. He doesn’t know what he is being screamed at about, but he feels deeply afflicted, his
legs shiver.

He can still smell the creamy, nutty notes behind all the pungency, and it almost feels like being
scented. Like being aggressively scented, in the rawest kind of way.

Jimin tries to release pheromones of his own. Part of him wants to be able to affect the omega with
his scent the same way his alpha is getting attacked. Another part of him wants his sulfuric ocean
smell to mix with the omega’s creamy, sweet one.

They stay like that for a few more seconds or perhaps until sunset. Jimin can’t tell for sure. He is
too lost in the fog of scents which shouldn’t, but do harmonize impressively well together.
Maybe it is how strongly all the fragrances hit him, or maybe it is just his previous exhaustion, but
Jimin’s knees falter. Everything turns impossibly bright before turning dark.

“Jimin!”

The last thing he hears is Taehyung’s voice calling for him.

Jimin has never woken up feeling so well-rested. There is a haziness that lulls him back to
consciousness slowly, a sweet scent that embraces him. He is surprised to not find a single hint of
Taehyung’s cherry and lemongrass left on his skin, even after two days stuck inside with the beta.

No, the scent that makes him smile right now, that soothes him so easily, is a different one. It is
thicker but airier, sweet but in a more subtle way. Taking a deep breath in, he smiles and stretches
his body, not worried about the alarm on his phone for the first time in what feels like forever.

But wait. Is it still night time? What happened?

“Good to see you looking so refreshed.” A voice approaches the end of his bed and sits down.

Jimin just hums, not wanting to move his face from the fluffy pillow.

“Jimin-ah, can you tell me what happened now?” The voice harshens slightly, conveying a
sternness that contrasts with the caring hand which touches his ankle.

He doesn’t know exactly why but he recoils his foot immediately, not wanting another scent on his
skin. It is almost instinctual and Yoongi looks a little taken aback by Jimin’s reaction.

“Sorry,” Jimin apologizes, still shrinking against the wall.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on between you and Kookie?"

Yoongi has that intense look on his face, one he rarely uses. One he only uses when he wants to
hint that he is serious about something. Jimin has no idea what to reply.

"What do you mean? Nothing's going on." His voice comes out a little defensive though, and Jimin
has no idea why either.

"First, I am getting home from the studio and immediately have to go to the backyard only to find
the two of you stinking up the whole area in some kind of scenting battle. Now you won’t even let
me touch you? Because what? You don't want another scent on you?"

Was Jimin this obvious? How could Yoongi tell he didn’t want his scent on--

"Oh, right. I forgot to mention the best part. After you fainted, Kookie wouldn’t let anyone get
even close. When Taehyung got there, just as confused as Hobi and I by the whole scene, Kookie
growled at him. Like, he actually snarled like a wild animal, showing his teeth and all."

Shit. Did he really?

For some reason, the thought of Kookie being so protective over him to the point of growling at
the sight of another wolf immensely appeases his alpha.
What is even going on?

Maybe sensing his confusion, Yoongi lets out a frustrated sigh and that is when Jimin knows the
omega will let him off this time.

"It’s late. I gotta go pick up Hobi at Kookie’s place. Here, drink some water and rest."

Jimin is glad Yoongi doesn’t fight him about taking a shower. Because he really really doesn’t
want to. He is just tired, too sleepy, Jimin tells himself. It has nothing to do with wanting the nutty
scent to rock him back to sleep.

Some time after Yoongi has left, Jimin gets his cell phone.

At first, he is disappointed at the lack of messages from one particular contact. But it quickly turns
into worry. Yoongi mentioned that Hobi had to drive Kookie back to his apartment after the
whole… scenting episode.

Had something happened to the omega? Was he not alright?

[To: Maybe new dance partner]

Hey. Just woke up and wanted to check if you’re ok.

The few of his texts in the chat history are usually replied within a minute or two. So when fifteen
minutes pass without an answer, Jimin feels restless.

[From: Maybe new dance partner]

hey... sorry it took me this long to reply. I was taking hobi-hyung downstairs. Yoongi-hyung
came to pick him up.

I'm ok.

but I should be the one asking you.

are you?

ok?

[To: Maybe new dance partner]

I am.

[From: Maybe new dance partner]

I’m sorry… about today and also friday.

Friday? Does he mean… Is this about the disgusting guys from the basketball team who live to
bother Jimin? The whole thing seemed like a lifetime ago really. Why was Kookie still thinking
about that?

It hadn’t even been that bad last Friday. Of course it was still absolutely sickening how they kept
on bullying him, knowing he couldn't properly fight back at his workplace. And all of it happening
right in front of Kookie made the thing even more embarrassing. His alpha hated it and wanted to
disappear. But kicking a full trash can to the floor was nothing compared to that one time when two
of them had peed all over the restroom's walls knowing that was Jimin’s floor to cover.

[To: Maybe new dance partner]

Don't worry. It's all fine. I'm fine.

Are you really alright? Not feeling unwell or anything?

Where was all this attentive concern toward the omega coming from?

[From: Maybe new dance partner]

no, I'm perfectly fine. we can still practice tomorrow if that's what you're worried about.

Right. Practice. Dance practice. The showcase. That must be why Jimin is so worried. It makes
sense.

[To: Maybe new dance partner]

Ok. Good. Same time tomorrow. Let's properly start learning the choreo.

Jimin plugs the charger on his phone and sets the alarm. He lies back down and keeps trying to
figure out why he is so anxious for tomorrow.

It must be the showcase. No other reason.

Jimin has to admit. The omega prince is good.

Of course, he's had no professional training, but he learnt practically the whole choreo in just two
days. Naturally, there is a lot to perfect yet, things to adjust. Kookie’s balance and flexibility are
not those of someone who spent half their life stretching and dancing, but still… he is good.

The omega pays extra attention to detail, his moves are impressively clean and Jimin is sure he
must be practicing a lot on his own, judging from how much he progresses in only a week’s time.
Jimin also manages to finally get his own arms to do the flapping-wings movement right, which
makes him feel extremely relieved.

By Saturday, they can already do the Fish Dive. Jimin struggles a little at first, surprised by how
heavy the omega was compared to Taemin. He also has to try extra hard not to get distracted with
the thought of how ripped Kookie must be underneath all those loose clothing he always wears.

Eventually Jimin makes do, now able to properly hold Kookie’s weight for the movement. But he
can’t help but feel apprehensive about the lifts. He is not confident in his arm’s strength to sustain
the other for the Star Lift and he is almost certain the Angel Lift will have to go.

It’s okay, Jimin knew he would have to make changes to the choreo. It is still much better than
having to rethink it all into a solo, he tries to tell himself. He should be thankful. But he can’t help
but feel anxious, scared even. This performance means a lot to him, and he wants to be able to
show his all.

It is especially frustrating because he sees how much effort Kookie is putting into it - against all
odds and in spite of Jimin’s misplaced skepticism. He now sees how committed the omega has
been to it and, on top of the self-reproach for having doubted Kookie so much, Jimin now also
feels like he himself is lacking.

He is used to being the one putting the most effort. He has always had to work harder, study longer
hours, get better grades. It was the only way someone like him would ever get a chance.

But now, seeing how hard Kookie is working on the performance, Jimin can’t help but feel guilty.

He feels like- No. He knows he is not putting in as much effort. If he were, he would already be
able to start with the hardest lifts by now.

It is the fifth time they go over the second part of the choreo, the one that starts with the Hopping
Backwards Arabesque and ends with the Fish Dive. The leaping arabesque was originally Taemin’s
part, a reference to the coda of Swan Lake Act III pas de deux, but knowing how hard the move
would be for someone untrained, Jimin changed the routine a bit so he would be the one to do it.
Being the over achiever that he is, the alpha is determined to do it like Alicia Alonso, fully en
pointe. He is almost there. Almost there.

Jimin is used to it. Repetition, repetition, repetition… Until his muscles detach from his mind and
are able to do the movements all by themselves. The tricky part for Jimin is not training his
muscles to exhaustion, to perfection, to independence. That is easy. The tricky part is keeping his
mind from wandering. During practice, it is not unusual for him to find himself disconnecting from
his body and letting his thoughts get the best of him.

And that is what happens now, as Kookie and he get to the seventh (or was it the eighth?)
repetition of the second part. It is Sunday right after lunchtime and they are in the living room in
Jimin’s cabin, where he managed to install a cheap wall mirror for his late night practices a while
ago.

Jimin starts well with the arabesque, doing it almost as well as he knows he can. But as they get to
the following moves, mixing shuffling with more leaps, combining locking and turns, Jimin starts
to get anxious. His thoughts go on and on about the approaching showcase date and his insecurity
with the lifts.

As they get to the Fish Dive, right after Kookie raises his arms and left leg, when Jimin bends his
knees and wraps his arms around the omega’s inner thigh and rib cage to lift him, he knows he is
not as focused as he should be. His balance is off and his angle, not quite right. So when Kookie
bends his right leg, he ends up hitting Jimin’s knee.

The alpha groans and places Kookie back on the floor. His hand goes immediately to his knee.

“Sorry, sorry,” Kookie looks truly concerned.

Jimin takes two deep breaths.

“Are you trying to kill me?” The pain is not as bad, he is not truly hurt or anything. He is just
frustrated. “Is this your way out of it? You’re trying to give me an injury so you don’t have to do
the fucking showcase with me anymore? Do you just enjoy coming here and watch me struggle so
that you can finally give up when there’s no more time left for me to find another partner? Is that
it??”

Jimin doesn’t know why he says it. It doesn’t even make any sense. He knows none of it is even
close to the truth. But his fears just slip out of him all of a sudden. It all comes out before he can
even reason with his own mouth.

“As a matter of fact, it is. I have so much fun coming here every day, only for you to tell me how
every single thing I do is wrong. I enjoy being so sore all the time that I’m not even able to walk
straight. I enjoy it so much that I intend to drag it to the very last minute and leave you alone on
stage right before the performance starts.”

Jimin knows he doesn’t mean it. But hearing his deepest fear worded out of the omega’s lips with
so much anger makes his stomach feel suddenly cold. He doesn't dare say a word.

“But seeing how there’s only three weeks to the fucking showcase and you won’t show me the
lifts, maybe we won’t even need to get to that point, right, Jimin?” Kookie says it all with such raw
anger that it renders Jimin completely silent.

He stares at the omega’s furrowed brows and pouty lips and all Jimin wants to do is hug the other
and say he is sorry, release calming pheromones and paint Kookie’s burnt leathery ire with waves
of his Plumeria flowers scent.

“Let’s get out of here,” Jimin decides to put an end to the argument.

The alpha turns his back to his partner so he can hurriedly gather some things to put in his
backpack – snacks, water, towels. Pulling the omega by the wrist, the closest he can get to his
scent gland without touching it, Jimin leads them outside of his cabin.

Without further explanation, he takes them to the track that leads to the lake. It is not that long of a
walk, maybe thirty minutes. Just enough for the both of them to calm down. It has always worked
for Jimin whenever he needed to cool off his head. He had found the small lake on one of his lone
walks into the woods, hidden beneath a steeper part of the hill the other wolves did not seem to
venture around much.

“Careful. Here,” Jimin offers his hand as they have to go across a stream. He is not too confident
about the soles on Kookie’s shoes.
The omega just follows along, conforming to each of Jimin’s instructions about where to step on
and which paths to go through. It appeases his wolf more than expected, making him feel like he
can protect the other somehow.

“Wow. This is beautiful,” Kookie says as they finally reach the meadow by the river.

“I figured the change of scenery would be nice.”

“How did you find this place?” The omega asks, big-eyed, moving his head in every direction to be
able to see everything.

“I just… walk around a lot.” Jimin takes off his backpack and offers one of the bottles of water.
“Alright. I thought we could start with the basics.”

The basics.

Lying down with his back on the grass, arms stretched up supporting the omega by the hips, Jimin
has a full view of… well, basically of Kookie’s loose black T-shirt falling down his torso. Kookie
has his back and shoulder blades beautifully arched above Jimin, both hands and feet extended
towards the sky, his whole body shielding Jimin’s eyes from the rays of sunlight that make their
way through the trees.

They work the Airplane exercise fairly easily. Kookie’s stance is practically perfect and Jimin is
once again amazed imagining how strong the omega’s back muscles must be.

Seeing how fast they manage to do the Airplane, Jimin decides to try the Bird Flip. Usually, he
would only try that with a spotter to help them stabilize in the first attempts, to make sure Kookie
won’t risk getting hurt, especially during the air-somersault. But there is no one around, and Jimin
feels pretty confident they can do it.

After fifteen minutes or so, they master the Bird Flip too. It is easy, really. Jimin is an experienced
base and the lift doesn’t demand such a complex set of skills from the flier besides good balance
and muscle control, both of which Kookie has enough of.

“Alright. Next one is a variation. But you gotta be careful with this one otherwise you’ll hurt me.”
Jimin warns the omega, as he mimics every movement they have to follow up until the actual lift.

This time it takes a little while longer, but they also manage to do the Spinning Bird without further
accidents. Jimin is starting to think Kookie is a natural at the lifts thing.

“You never told me the concept for the dance,” Kookie says out of the blue, taking another bite of
one of the protein bars Jimin brought for snacks.

It must be around four pm and they are sitting barefoot on a larger rock closer to the lake, taking a
deserved break from all the lifting.

“Huh? You mean for our choreo?” Jimin asks with his mouth half-full, having the decency to at
least cover it with his hand.

Kookie nods, staring at the alpha with expectant wide eyes.

Jimin averts his gaze to the horizon of trees across the water. It will probably be easier to organize
his thoughts if he is not distracted by all the sharp curves of the omega’s face.

“If you let me, I can talk about it all afternoon,” Jimin confesses with a chuckle.

He briefly turns his head back to the omega, who just keeps staring at Jimin. The younger’s wide
eyes seem to tell him to go on and take all afternoon if necessary. The alpha purses his lips and
turns his gaze back to the lake before he blushes from all the attention.

“It's mostly about how society sees art. Especially how it idealizes classical art, as a higher
aesthetic form when compared to pop culture. About how we value and consume classical art in an
elitistic way, how it's viewed almost as a symbol of status.”

He briefly glances at Kookie again to make sure he is not already bored to death by Jimin’s speech.
He is not. His eyes are fixated on the alpha, waiting for him to go on.

“So, uhm, the Swan Lake, Black Swan setting is the background for that.”

“Is it like the White Swan being classical and the Black Swan, pop art?” Kookie asks, offering
Jimin some of the Honey Butter Chips he had just opened. Jimin grabs a handful before replying.

“It is. But not only that. They also represent society itself. The parts it idealizes, values. And then
the parts it keeps in the shadows, hides in a corner where it doesn’t have to look at, acknowledge it.
So, it's about the way society categorizes, segregates between what is seen as higher and lower
forms of art. And how by doing so, the relationship between society and art is nothing but a mirror,
a reflection of how society sees itself.”

Gingerly, he turns his head back to the omega. He wonders what the other thinks of what he has
just said, suddenly finding the whole thing a little silly. He finds nothing but curious eyes shining
bright, but he can't help but feel insecure about the whole thing. Before he gets lost in his maze of
self-doubts, though, Jimin stands up and decides to change the subject.

“Come on, slacking-off time is over. Let’s start with the real lifts now.”

That is how Jimin finds himself once again lying on the grass, struggling to keep a shivering
Kookie, now with his back turned to the alpha, right above Jimin in a Reversed Airplane.

“Hold. Hold...” The omega’s body keeps shivering over Jimin, making it hard for both of them to
stabilize the position. The grasp he has around Jimin’s wrists is merciless. It will definitely leave
bruises, but that is not what Jimin is concerned about. Right now, they need to find a way to
balance.

“You gotta trust me, Kookie. If you don’t, I won’t be able to keep you stable and you'll fall,” Jimin
warns him between panting breaths.

“This is not… working,” the omega says as he shifts his way out of Jimin’s hold and rolls to his
right on the grass.

“Of course it’s not working. You’re trembling like a scaredy cat. A heavy scaredy cat,” Jimin
points out, bringing his hands to massage his sore arms.

“Or maybe it is your tiny hands that are not large enough for a lifter.”

They bicker, but this time it is not as serious. The change of environment has really managed to
make both of their wolves calmer.
“Oh, yeah? I’d like to see you and your big ass hands try.”

“With pleasure!” Kookie settles himself lying on his back with his hands raised. Jimin sits up and
just stares at him.

“So…?” The omega asks with an impatient tone.

“Are you kidding??”

“I thought you wanted to see me try.”

“You think you’re gonna be able to lift me?” At this point, Jimin sounds like he is challenging the
omega.

“You think you got what it takes to be a flier, Jimin?”

The dare goes right back at Jimin and he is not one to run from a challenge.

“I swear, if you drop me…” Jimin says the second before he wraps his fingers firmly around the
omega’s wrists and leans back. He doesn’t fail to notice how Kookie positions the palms of his
hands perfectly on Jimin’s lower back, like a pro.

“I won’t drop you, alpha.”

It takes around five seconds for Jimin to arch his back completely and find his balance into a full
split. It would have taken less were it not for the teasing way Kookie called him ‘alpha’, making
Jimin’s stomach do funny flustering things inside.

As Kookie brings him back to the ground with grace, Jimin cannot believe how easy it was. He is
positively dumbfounded and the omega uses this to his advantage.

“Come on, let’s try some real lifting now.” With a pleased grin on his face, Kookie takes the alpha
by the hand, leading them toward the lake.

Jimin just laughs and takes off his shirt, wanting to keep at least one piece of clothing dry. When
Kookie does the same, Jimin can’t help but admire the contrast of his broad back and small waist.
Thankfully the cold water chases away further thoughts of his own small hands holding the omega
by the waist, fingers leaving pink marks on unblemished skin.

“It’s fucking freezing. I won’t be able to stand still.”

“Stop whining, alpha. Come on.”

With his back to the omega, and the younger’s right palm firm on the arch of his back, Jimin bends
his knee and pushes up. Before he can straighten the leg where Kookie has a strong hold of his
ankle though, Jimin loses balance and dives into the water.

“What was the thing you were saying about trust again?” Kookie says with another cheeky grin as
soon as they resurface and shake some of the water out of their heads.

“Oh, come on. It’s been what? Ten minutes since I found out I was standing before a professional
lifter? Give me a break!”

Jimin positions himself back to the other again and holds Kookie’s wrist with both hands.

After managing to do the Dirty Dancing lift, they are determined to master the Torch, where
Kookie will hold Jimin’s whole body with only one hand stretched up over his back, while the
other is wrapped around Jimin’s ankle, balancing his lifted body.

Supported by the omega’s strong hand, Jimin manages to straighten his ‘torch leg’ and spread both
arms, so focused on keeping the position that he doesn’t even take much notice of the beautiful
orange upside-down sunset in the horizon. After about twenty seconds, satisfied with their third
successful lift in a row, Jimin goes for a backwards dive instead, careful not to hit the other’s leg or
shoulder.

He rises up to find himself facing the omega, two large hands on each side of his hips. Jimin
watches the way globules of water slide down Kookie’s pitch black curls of hair. They are both
panting, exhausted from all the lifting and dropping.

“How did you learn to lift?” Jimin asks, his thumb instinctively reaching for a rogue drop that
threatens to fall onto Kookie’s left eye. He barely notices how he licks his own lips right after
touching the omega’s face.

“Cheerleading in High School. I was one of the bases, of course.” He explains with what looks like
a pinkish shade on his cheeks that Jimin finds adorable.

“You’re very good at it.”

“Thanks,” the omega lowers his head, now clearly blushing.

“Not only at the lifting, I mean. All of it. You’re doing great.”

When Kookie raises his gaze again to face Jimin, they are somehow closer, noses almost touching.
Jimin can’t help but stare at the way the omega purses his lips, how thin and pale they look from
the cold.

Again instinctively, he brushes his hands up and down the other’s shoulders, wanting to warm
him.

Feeling how Kookie shivers a little, Jimin leans even closer. When he doesn’t find any resistance in
the omega’s eyes, he lowers his face to the spot between the other’s neck and shoulder. After
sniffing around the spot for a couple of seconds, he brings his lips closer and blows on the omega’s
scent gland.

The hot gust of air makes Kookie quiver even stronger, but his body relaxes right away. Jimin
wraps his arms around him when he feels how the omega’s legs falter, noticing how pliant his
whole body goes.

“Come on. Let’s get you out of here. It’s getting cold.”

Jimin leads him out of the lake in slow steps, hand firm around his tiny waist. As soon as they are
out of the water, Kookie starts shivering again, and Jimin is fast in getting two towels out of his
backpack. The thicker, softer one is quickly placed on Kookie’s shoulders, wrapped around his
torso alongside the alpha’s arms.

He holds the omega in a silent hug, brushing his hands up and down his back. Kookie stands still
in his hold and when Jimin notices he is a little warmer, the alpha uses his own towel to dry the
pretty black curls.

The walk back to his cabin is quiet. Jimin makes sure to stand behind Kookie as they climb up the
steep hill. He watches the omega’s every step, always close, making sure he won’t trip anywhere.
 When they arrive, he tries to convince Kookie to take a hot shower, but the omega terminantly
refuses to. He looks like a pouting child, with Jimin’s yellow towel still wrapped around his neck.
Maybe he wants to take a fancy bubble bath at his own apartment, Jimin tells himself, trying not to
get upset by the rejection.

He watches as the omega gathers all his things and follows him to his SUV outside.

After throwing his black backpack to the backseat, Kookie hesitantly unwraps the towel from his
shoulders and tries to hand it back to Jimin.

“Keep it. You can use it on the seat, so it doesn’t get wet.”

The silent pout on Kookie’s lips immediately curls into a smile and Jimin tries not to see much in
the way the omega brings the towel to his face and whiffs the fluffy fabric before getting into the
car.

“Thanks, hyung.”

They say their ‘see you tomorrow’s with gingerly smiles on their faces.

As Jimin waves awkwardly and watches the car driving away, he tries not to think much about the
whole thing. It’s just a towel, he tells himself. The omega was obviously cold. He doesn’t want
him to get sick. He can’t afford him to get sick three weeks before the showcase.

It’s just a towel. Of course it is drenched in his own scent. It’s Jimin’s favorite towel!

Not a courting gift. Definitely not a courting gift. Lone wolves like Jimin don’t do courting gifts.

Chapter End Notes

Ah, the plot is finally picking up pace! I hope you liked this update! Please let me
know your thoughts?
 'Dance with me.' 'What, here?' 'Here.'
Chapter Summary

Yoongi and Tae help Kookie and Jimin figure out their feelings for each other,
followed by a lot of sexy dancing and more.

Chapter Notes

Hello! A large update this time! This one starts with one of my favorite scenes: if you
don't love the back and forth from Kookie's apt to Jimin's cabin, don't speak to me
again!

Ok, now important things: we finally have smut! As usual, I am placing the explicit
part between "(***)", but be warned that there is a lot of very sexy dancing scenes in
the whole chapter.

Finally, in case you don't know what 'Bachata' dance looks like, I strongly recommend
you check this video for a visual idea of what Jimin and Kookie dance in this chapter.
(I love these two dancers from the video so much! They're amazing! )

See the end of the chapter for more notes

He said ‘keep it’, right?

That means Jungkook doesn’t have to return it, right? He really doesn’t want to return it.
It is Thursday evening and the omega is at his rented two-bedroom apartment downtown, waiting
for Yoongi to arrive. The place is way larger than Jungkook really needs, but well, he can’t say he
isn’t used to all this empty space around him all the time. It feels like home, whatever ‘home’ is
supposed to mean.

He stares at the box where a fluffy yellow towel is carefully stored alongside a small bottle of
peppermint oil. ‘To relieve your muscle pain’ , Jimin said on Monday.

Jungkook has tried hard not to see much into it. He really has. It is just a towel, he tells himself.
Just some essential oil. Jimin probably doesn’t want to hear any more of your complaints about
sore calves , he tries to convince himself.

The wood-carved tea box on the kitchen counter with handmade tea bags inside tells him the same.
‘It’s uhm, just some dried flowers, for an infusion. They’re good for digestion’ is what Jimin told
him yesterday when he gave Jungkook the box. And of course the mix of dried flowers had to
contain fucking Plumerias, Jungkook’s now favorite flower. Good for digestion .

He thinks back to the day at the cafeteria when Jimin gave Taehyung a bag full of expensive paint
tubes. He remembers Hyeji and Jiwon talking about how Jimin had visited Taemin with some kind
of get-well-soon gift. He stares at all the tea and essential oil and towel (which still has the alpha’s
scent, therefore making it Jungkook’s favorite among the three items) and concludes it must be the
same.

It is probably Jimin’s love language: gift-giving. Not courting gifts. It cannot be courting gifts.

:::

On the other side of town, Jimin concentrates on the task. In his cabin, sitting on the floor in front
of a pallet box surrounded by all kinds of carving tools, the alpha analyzes the design on the small
case.

A desk lamp and a couple of cheap candles provide all the light that Jimin needs. Or at least all that
he can afford. The month is almost over, which means cold showers to save power, more and more
instant ramen for dinner. Nothing Jimin isn’t used to.

Finally satisfied with his drawing, Jimin puts mask and glasses on. He picks up one of the
precision chisels and starts the carving. He knows that, between the case and the necklace, this one
will take a while. But he has time. Jimin is nothing but a perfectionist and he knows that perfect
takes time. Maybe he can finish the wood carving part today and work on the abalone shells
tomorrow if he is not too tired. It’s okay, he has time. Two and a half weeks is more than enough.

He wants to give it to the omega at the showcase, as a thank-you gift. After some small
adjustments in the routine to switch positions for most of the lifts, they are now at a point where
they just have to practice the choreo, rehearse it to exhaustion. Jimin still smiles thinking about
how amazing it is that Kookie has managed to hoist him up in the most complex lifts with such
ease. The omega never ceases to surprise him. Jimin couldn’t have found a better partner after
Taemin’s injury.

That is why he is working on the present. Jimin knows that even if he tries, his words will end up
failing him. So he hopes the gesture will be able to convey his gratitude towards Kookie.

Deep down, he knows it is not enough. The omega deserves more, after all he has done for him, for
Taehyung. Kookie deserves more, and Jimin wishes he could give him all he deserves. But he
can’t. He knows he can’t. That is all Jimin can do for now, all he can afford.
The thought makes his alpha feel inadequate, small. But well, that is what Jimin has been trying to
tell his wolf all along, dismissing each of his ridiculous daydreams about making a move on the
omega.

So, yeah. He will give Kookie this one final gift – a thank-you gift – and then stop flirting with
ridiculous ideas like courting and making moves.

:::

It is almost midnight when the intercom rings. Jungkook knows it is Yoongi.

“Sorry for the late hour,” the omega apologizes with an extra sweetness on his tangerine.

“Don’t worry, hyung. I’m a night owl myself. Come on in.”

He knows why Yoongi is there. He knows it is not only to show him the finished song with
Jungkook’s adlibs. With headphones on, he has to admit he loves it. Hearing his own voice here
and there on a finished track gives him goosebumps – the good kind, those that warm you up from
inside out. He knows it is just a demo that Yoongi will hand in for the new company he has been
hired as trainee producer. But still. It is his voice. Jungkook’s voice. On an actual song .

But the older omega is there to convince him to feature on another track, to solo on a whole chorus.
And Jungkook is really not sure about this.

“Come on, Kookie. Just the chorus. We’ll credit you as ‘JK’. No one will be able to tell it is you.”
Yoongi is not one to give up easily. Ever since he first heard Jungkook singing, it is like he has
been on a mission.

“I don’t know, hyung… What if the song is released? What if somebody hears it and recognizes
my voice?”

Jungkook knows what will happen then. His father will happen. The man has been adamant:
Jungkook is not to 'waste time' on music. He knows that if his father finds out, he will go ballistic
and end up making the omega drop out of college or something. Probably find a way to sue Yoongi
and his company just for the heck of it. It was not worth the risk.

“I’m sure you can find someone else, hyung.”

“But your voice is just perfect for this song, Kook-ah… Come on! I’ve worked with many singers,
but you’re the most talented one I’ve seen so far. I really need you on this track.”

The praise makes Jungkook’s face redden instantly and he contorts his mouth awkwardly, trying to
suppress a smile. He ponders over the words that keep replaying inside his head. Yoongi thinks he
is talented. A silent chuckle echoes in his mind, one that can’t believe his hyung’s words. But
Yoongi needs him. He sighs.

“Ok, hyung… Only this one more time.”

Jungkook gives in easily. But then, just seeing the timid but pleased smile on the other omega’s
face makes it all worth it.

:::

It is past midnight when the door is jarred open. Jimin knows it is Taehyung and heads downstairs
from his loft bedroom.
“Not rehearsing?” The beta asks, placing a dramatic (and paint-stained) hand on Jimin’s forehead,
“Are you feeling sick?”

“Just busy with something else. What do you want this time, brat?”

He knows why Taehyung is there. He knows it is not only to borrow something for one of the art
projects he has been working on for the scholarship interview. Jimin worries sometimes seeing all
the dark circles under his best friend’s eyes from staying late almost every night now. But he also
sees the other’s content smile, his excitement every time he is painting or sculpting. Such a stark
contrast to two years back when the boy knocked on his door, face swollen from crying, saying he
had left MG for good and abandoned the idol dream.

The alpha watches as Taehyung heads to his small kitchen and knows for sure he is actually here to
raid his fridge in search for a late night snack.

“Yah! Don’t you ever buy your own food?” Jimin scolds him, already on his way to fix the beta
something to eat.

They end up sharing the food, their backs leaning against the kitchen sink, Taehyung making sure
Jimin eats at least half of the kimchi and cheese sandwich.

“Can I borrow a couple of your gouges?” The boxy smile asks Jimin as soon as the last bite of the
sandwich is taken.

The alpha looks at his shameless friend, lets out a sigh, feigning annoyance.

“Yeah, why not… Only this one more time.”

Jimin always gives Taehyung whatever he wants in the end. And seeing the bratty but grateful
smile on the beta’s face makes it worth it every time.

:::

“What’s this, Kookie?”

"A box of tea," he replies sheepishly when the older omega points at the item on his kitchen
counter.

"Uhm… Did you buy it somewhere?"

"No…" Jungkook recognizes a suspicious look on Yoongi’s face. "It was a gift."

"A gift?" A raised eyebrow confirms Jungkook’s impression. "A gift from whom?"

He is not sure whether he should tell Yoongi. What will he think of it? But then there is something
inside of him, a proud feeling that wants to let the older know who he got the present from. His
wolf wants to make sure the other omega knows the alpha gave him a gift.

"From Jimin…"

:::

"What’s this, Chim-Chim? Are you gonna sell wood carving again?" After racing Jimin up the
stairs, Taehyung goes to the small box the alpha has been working on right away. "Oh, it is so
pretty!"
"Not for sale." Jimin immediately grabs the box back from Taehyung’s hand. He doesn’t want
anyone else to touch it.

"Not for sa-" Taehyung looks taken aback by the alpha’s sudden reaction. The words fade on the
beta’s lips as his eyes widen, seemingly stricken by a ray of epiphany. "Jimin, who is this for?"

He doesn’t reply.

"Jimin?"

He places the box back to where it was, avoiding eye contact.

After a heavy minute of silence, Jimin raises his gaze again.

"Jimin, is this a…"

"Tae, it’s not a…"

They finish their sentences in unisound, "...courting gift."

:::

"I know what you're thinking, hyung. And it's not! It's just good for digestion."

"Good for digestion?"

"Yeah, the tea. It's good for my stomach. It's not a… special gift or anything."

"I see…" The dramatic pause makes Jungkook more agitated. "And how many other parts of your
body have gotten not-special gifts from Jimin lately?"

Jungkook sighs and lowers his head, knowing he can’t lie to Yoongi.

"Two…"

:::

"It's a thank-you gift, Tae. For the showcase and all. It's just a thank-you ."

"A thank-you gift?" Taehyung doesn’t seem convinced. Not at all.

"Yeah…" Well, Jimin’s words don’t sound convincing either, so he can’t really blame his friend
for not believing them.

"And how many thank-you gifts have you given the omega prince so far?"

"Three…" Jimin lowers his gaze again, feels like he needs to explain himself. "I'm just really
grateful, okay? He has done a lot, with the rehearsals, your interview…"

"Uhm… I see. I suppose I should thank him too then, right? Maybe I could paint him something. A
portrait. I'm sure he would appreciate it. He wouldn't refuse a thank-you gift, right?

This time Jimin is not able to suppress his own growl.

:::

"Kookie, I’m gonna ask you something and I want you to be honest with me, okay?"
" 'kay…" Jungkook doesn’t look Yoongi in the eyes when he replies.

"Why did you accept the gifts, Kook-ah?"

"Hyung, I told you already. It was just tea and some oil because I was complaining about sore
muscles. And the towel wasn't even…"

"Kookie." Yoongi’s tone is extremely calm, but Jungkook still feels like he is being reprimanded,
so he quietens down. "Look, I know this is between the two of you, but I… I can’t help but worry.
I’ve known Jimin for a while, okay? And he’s never… I’ve never seen him do anything like this.
And I know he wouldn’t just do that. So that is why I’m asking, Kook-ah. Because I’m not sure
you can see all the implications here.”

“Hyung…”

“No, I need you to listen now, okay? Look, you’re young, you’ve just gotten into college, you’re
living by yourself for the first time, meeting all kinds of new people. You’re having new
experiences and that is great. But this … whatever this is that you two seem to be doing, it can get
complicated too quickly, Kook-ah. You come from two completely different worlds, two different
worlds that don’t exactly… bond . And trust me when I say I know that.”

Jungkook knows all that. He knows Yoongi knows what he is talking about. The older had told him
about how his mothers were trying to arrange his mating with an upper-class alpha, ‘joining name
with money’, they had called it. Yoongi had told him all about how he ran away from home one
day, left the comfort of his penthouse and had to build his own life out of nowhere when he was
just 19, without his family, without a pack. So yeah, Yoongi knows what he is talking about.

“I don’t want either of you to get hurt, Kook-ah. So if you’re just… if you’re taking this lightly,
then…”

“I’m not, hyung.”

This time Yoongi lets him speak.

“I’m not taking it lightly. I meant it when I accepted the gifts. My wolf meant it and so did I.”

:::

“What do you think you’re doing, Jimin?”

“Tae, it’s late, come on. We both have class in the morning.” Jimin feels apologetic about the
whole growling thing, but his wolf is not ready to admit it yet.

“No, seriously. What do you expect, huh? You think you’re gonna craft him the prettiest box in the
world and he is gonna run into your arms saying you are everything he ever dreamt of?”

Jimin has to bite his lips trying to prevent himself from snarling. On the inside, he is begging his
friend to stop, to stop riling his alpha up.

But he doesn’t.

“Then what? You’re gonna walk to his parents mansion and ask for their blessing? ‘Cause sure ,
they will not care one bit about you being a fucking packless wolf. Sure they’ll be able to see just
how wonderful you and your alpha are, how strong, caring and determined you are. Sure the most
important thing to them will be how much you love their precious prince.”
Jimin’s wolf is extremely confused. He knows Taehyung means each of the compliments he says
about Jimin, but everything else, the ironic remarks, it all just… hurts. It suffocates him, makes
him angry.

Because it is all true. It’s all painfully true.

“I know, okay?! I KNOW!” Jimin snaps, already feeling like he is about to lose his breath.

“Jiminie, listen to me. You gotta stop this now.” Taehyung has that collected look on his face, the
one that makes his alpha cower. Jimin just stares back at his friend, feeling the impending tears
burn behind his eyes.

He hates this. He hates how right Taehyung is, how true his words are. He hates that there is
nothing he can do to change this, that it has all been decided for him at birth, or at least right after
his birth when he was abandoned by his parents. He hates his thoughts, how he cannot seem to
control them, to put a stop on this pull he feels toward the omega.

“But I don’t want to, Tae…” He knows he is pouting. He is pouting and the tears have finally
made their way out. “I don’t want to stop. Let me have this, Tae, please… Just a little longer.
Please…”

“Shit. I didn’t know it was this bad, Jiminie…” Taehyung takes one step towards the alpha and
encloses him in a tight hug. He comforts Jimin with shushes – shushes that tell him that it is okay.
He will be okay.

:::

“Hyung, do you think Jimin means it, too? All the gifts… Do you think he means it?”

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

10:15 pm. Jimin told him to be ready by ten.

Not knowing what to do with himself while he anxiously waits, Jungkook once again examines his
outfit, standing in front of the full body mirror in his closet: black pants stuck into his favorite
black stomper boots, black cropped blazer. Contrasting with the monocolor, there is a shiny piece
of body jewelry: silver chains that adorn his torso all the way from neck to hips, barely concealed
by the one-buttoned jacket.

Yet again he considers putting on a shirt, questions if the bare chest under the blazer isn’t a bit
much. He checks his parted hair once more, making sure the right side is properly sprayed back.

The hell with it. Jimin told him to dress for a night out. And that is what he did.

Discarding the black silk shirt he has been holding in his hand the whole time, Jungkook checks his
phone again.

[From: dance instructor]

Sorry, sth kept me. Come down in ten.

His omega perks up at the message, all previous worries about being stood up replaced by a
tingling kind of excitement.

It’s not a date , he tells his wolf. It’s just practice. Not a date.

Jimin didn’t tell him exactly where they were going, just that it was a change of scenery for another
dance practice. And to dress for a night-out.

It is a whole thirty-minute ride south until they arrive, and Jungkook is not complaining one bit
about being at the back of the alpha’s motorcycle, holding him by the waist all the way there. The
place looks like a small abandoned warehouse in the middle of nowhere, but there’s lights and
music coming from the inside. People go in and out of the building, and all around it, there are cars
and motorcycles, a couple of food stalls selling what seems to be corn-dog and hamburgers. They
park there, too.

Jungkook fixes his jacket, a little self-conscious about the way it shows his belly when he raises his
arms. Jimin takes a while to get off the bike, but when he does, Jungkook can see how much he
looks like a fucking prince wearing a black jacket with golden buttons and golden details
embroidered on the shoulders.

He has tight black jeans on, knee-ripped, and under the jacket, his thin low-collared shirt is also
black, but glittered. Leather ankle boots and five or six silver rings complete the look. After
removing his helmet, the alpha runs his fingers through his now lighter bleached hair and
Jungkook maybe drools a little at the sight of him.

“Hungry?” The alpha asks him and Jungkook just shakes his head. “Ok, let’s get inside, then.”

On the inside, the place also looks just like an abandoned warehouse: concrete floor, brick walls,
corroded metal columns and exposed ceiling beams. Only it is packed. People everywhere dance
under neon blue-and-red lightning that gives the open space a nightclub vibe. At the back, there is
a large bar selling what seems to be beer and two or three kinds of spirits. At the opposite end,
there is some kind of stage. It is just a wooden platform with half a dozen dancing poles on the
sides. Up there, more couples and trios dance together.

The atmosphere is just like that of the party back at Hobi and Yoongi’s place, but there are at least
threefold as many people. Everybody is dancing just the same: dance dancing. To some kind of
reggaeton beat, Jungkook thinks.

Jimin enters the room like he owns the place, casually greeting at least a dozen people with his
beautiful smile while they make their way through the dance floor. It again reminds the omega of
the party, when he watched Jimin and Taehyung arrive from afar. Only this time Jungkook is the
one holding the alpha’s hands – it feels somewhat unreal and his omega feels excited inside of
him.

They stop when they get to a corner where some wolves are sitting on colorful armchairs and
metal stools.

“Baby J!!” A couple of them shout as soon as they see Jimin, and Jungkook can’t help but giggle at
how embarrassed the alpha turns when he hears the nickname.

“Hey, Jihoon Sunbae, Bo-ah Sunbae. Hyuna-noona. Everyone, hi.”

The whole group starts standing up to hug and tease Jimin, screaming over the loud music about
how he has to come visit more often, asking about school and Taehyung and everything. The alpha
introduces Jungkook, and ‘Jihoon Sunbae’ offers the two of them his seat on a yellow chair. Jimin
leans over the armrest, right arm hovering behind Jungkook. Another omega tosses him a can of
Kloud, Jimin sticks with water.

Jungkook quickly realizes the others are all dancers like Jimin, and like probably half of the place
as well. Bo-ah and another alpha soon leave to the dance floor, while Jihoon keeps smoothly
shuffling around the stools, almost making Jungkook dizzy with how fast his feet move.

Two or three songs later, Jimin stands up. “Come on, slacking off time is over,” he says, and
Jungkook takes the hand he is offered. The alpha waves the others goodbye and leads the younger
to the dance floor, never releasing the grip on his hand.

Pa Mí (Remix) - Dalex

The closer they get to the center, the more crowded it is, and Jungkook can smell the air cloying
with thicker and thicker waves of pheromones. Mixed together like that, the scents don’t affect him
too much, but it still feels a little cramped, a little uncomfortable. So when Jimin stops walking and
turns around, bringing him closer with a hand on his lower back, Jungkook can’t help but let his
nose brush slightly on the side of the alpha’s neck, seeking relief from the swarm of different
smells.

Never letting go of Jungkook’s back, Jimin locks their thighs together and starts moving them to
the rhythm. It is slower than usual, or at least it feels slower. It feels so intimate: the way Jimin
barely brushes the palm of his left hand all the way from Jungkook’s hip, waist, shoulder blade,
until it rests on the back of his neck. Jungkook wraps both arms under the alpha’s own and holds
him by the shoulders.

They dance like that, swinging together, slowly . Keeping their bodies close, it all feels much closer
than usual. It feels like their bodies are old acquaintances, knowing their way to each other a little
too well. Jimin rotates them together one, two times, slowly, never letting their torsos and hips
detach from one another. The alpha’s thumb strokes Jungkook’s nape, while the other one finds its
way under the cropped jacket that keeps sliding up. He wonders if Jimin notices the way he shivers
a little from the touches.

When the song changes to a slightly faster beat, Jimin starts leading them to wider moves, in what
Jungkook now recognizes as a sensual bachata. He brings his arms from underneath Jimin’s and
places them over the alpha’s shoulders so that he can properly follow along. Soon enough, the
alpha is leading them into chest isolations and hip rolls, their bodies always a little closer than
usual.

“This is where I learnt how to dance.” Jimin speaks very close to his ear because of the loud music.

Jungkook reclines his head to look at the alpha, showing a surprised expression. Jimin smiles and
motions him to go back to the former position, the sides of their heads touching, in a way which the
older’s lips can graze Jungkook’s ear and make him shiver a little more.

“They gave dance lessons to poor kids twice a week. Taehyung and I came one day, and we just
kept coming back.”

Jimin says that and motions Jungkook to a head roll, hand maybe touching the omega’s neck a
little longer than necessary, but he is not complaining.

“Then Bo-ah Sunbae got us a scholarship at a dance academy in the city.”

Jimin keeps sharing short pieces of information, small glances of his life, all in between turns and
dips and rolls. Everytime he brings Jungkook’s body back against his, he keeps both hands almost
on the omega’s shoulder blades, underneath the cropped jacket that now barely covers the upper
half of his chest. Jungkook doesn’t mind. He enjoys it: the alpha’s touch on his skin. He doesn’t
even mind the drops of sweat that slide down his own back. He just lets himself be surrounded by
Jimin’s voice and touches.

They get lost in themselves like that, in the intimacy of rhythm and skin contact. Sometimes Jimin
holds the omega’s waist with such authority, such eagerness. Then some other times he releases his
hold and allows Jungkook to lead them. Those other times, Jungkook makes sure to keep the alpha
just as close. And if he guides the dancer to do a little more head rolls than anything, if he nuzzles
his throat for a second or two each time, nobody needs to know.

When the song changes to a slower beat, Jimin turns his back to Jungkook and places the omega’s
right hand on his stomach. A grip on his wrist guides the other hand to the alpha’s hip, right where
his thigh starts. Jungkook’s long fingers end up a little too close to the dancer’s crotch, and the
brush of Jimin’s butt against his own groin makes things even more difficult for the omega.

“Jimin…” He pleads with a whisper in the alpha’s ear, unsure of what he is asking for.

The only answer he gets is a head tilting back to rest on his shoulder, giving Jungkook perfect
access to the marble column that Jimin’s neck is. Fuck . He just wants to lap at it, lock his teeth on
the pretty skin and shake his head from side to side like a dog playing with his favorite toy.

Damn it. Jimin is way too gorgeous and sexy.

While they keep moving together, in slow but eager body waves that synchronize, Jungkook’s
thumb starts gently caressing Jimin’s stomach. The fabric of the other wolf’s shirt is so thin that his
fingers can almost taste skin. When he finds Jimin’s belly button and keeps drawing circles around
it, the alpha arches his back even more. Jungkook is sure the other can feel his own erection
grinding against his fucking delicious butt and the omega doesn’t think he even minds that at this
point.

The grasp his other hand has on Jimin’s hip gets stronger, maybe it will even leave a bruise.
Jungkook’s wolf loves the idea and before he realizes, his mouth is on the alpha’s sharp
collarbone.

“Kookie…”

The way the alpha’s honey voice moans his name almost makes Jungkook lose his shit. So he
hastily turns Jimin back to face him, worried that he wouldn’t be able to control his wolf for much
longer.

Jimin takes back the lead, pulling Jungkook’s hips so close to his it almost feels like he is
straddling the alpha. They wave and lock their bodies together. The way they move synchronizes,
harmonizes. In what looks like another head roll, Jimin rotates his neck, ending the motion by
brushing one side of his face against Jungkook’s cheek.

Then he does it again. And again. He keeps doing side waves and rolls, ending the moves with
another rub of his whole face against Jungkook’s cheeks. And chin. And neck. He moves like a
fucking cat, scenting Jungkook like that. It is torture. Jungkook is gonna fucking lose his mind.

Their bodies keep waving together under the sweet smell of the ocean that comes from Jimin. It
feels more than scenting, almost like he is marking Jungkook. It is all a little frantic, a little unruly,
but Jungkook drinks in it like a parched man.

“Jimin…” The omega slowly turns his head during one of Jimin’s rolling-and-rubbing moves,
managing to graze the other’s cheek with his lips. “Jimin, I-I won’t be able to-”

Jimin’s hands slide down Jungkook’s torso to stop at the bare skin right above the waistband of his
pants. The alpha stops dancing and rests his forehead on Jungkook’s right shoulder, taking deep
breaths in and out.

“S-sorry, I--... just give me a moment,” the alpha says, panting breath.

The tip of his fingers find Jungkook’s back dimples and dig deep down on them. The inhale and
exhale continues, and the omega brings his hand to the other’s hair, trying to find something to
ground himself just as well.

A couple of breaths later, Jimin raises his head and looks into the omega’s eyes. Jungkook notices
how the alpha’s pupils are still a little dilated, making him look a little wayward. He loves it.

“Come on. We warmed up enough. Now for the actual dance practice of the evening,” Jimin says
with a teasing grin and a grasp on the omega’s hand.

NOW for the dance practice…?

Jungkook quickly realizes what the alpha means when he starts beelining towards the stage.

Me Gusta - Anitta (with Cardi B & Myke Towers)

He totally sees why Jimin thought of this as dance practice. He sort of freezes when they get up
there and he can see the whole place staring at him.

Ok, Jungkook. You got this. It is just a stage and just a crowd of probably all professional dancers
on the dancefloor looking at you. This is fine.

“Relax, Kookie.” The alpha says in his ear with his dizzying mellow voice. “Just dance with me.”

“Here…?” He asks, still a little unsure.

“Here, of course,” Jimin replies with his reassuring smile.

Jungkook complies. He always does when it comes to the alpha.

Soon they are back to dancing in their own bubble of seaside and Plumeria flowers. Jungkook is
sure Jimin notices (and lets) him hide his face on the crook of the alpha’s neck for comfort at first.

But slowly Jungkook realizes the crowd below is just dancing and having a good time on their
own, completely unbothered by the shy amateur omega on stage. So he starts letting go. He turns
off his brain and lets his body take the lead.

Soon ‘Baby J’s friends join them on stage and the song changes to a Brazilian funk. Bo-ah teaches
Jungkook a couple of steps and goes wide-mouthed seeing the omega learning them so easily.
“Twerking is his specialty, sunbae,” Jimin explains, giggling. Jungkook would blush at the
comment if he wasn’t already pink all over from all the dancing.

“I can see that,” the female alpha replies, getting a little closer when she notices Jungkook doesn’t
stop her. “And what else can you do, Kookie?”

He notices the teasing tone and for some reason decides to indulge her.

“I don’t know… Is your balance any good, noona?”

She clearly wasn’t expecting the reply. Staring Jungkook in the eyes, she raises her eyebrow. “Top
notch, of course.”

Jungkook offers her his hand and when she takes it, he leads them to a few simple steps before
asking “Good enough to be lifted, noona?”

She laughs, amused. “I’m sure I can handle it.” In the dancing position, he cannot see her face, but
Jungkook is sure she has a smirk on. “But can you ? Handle lifting me?”

Jungkook takes up the challenge, obviously. Two or three turns, just to match their rhythm a little
better, and Jungkook takes her into a simple spin lift. She seems surprised at first by how easily the
omega manages to lift her with one arm, but quickly recovers, stretching her legs beautifully into
an almost full air split for two spins, before Jungkook brings her down back to the floor.

“Oh, you’re definitely a strong one,” she commends him.

A couple of beats later and he manages to get her into a shoulder sit, gathering some cheers from
the crowd. The song ends soon after that, and Bo-ah taps him in the shoulder with a wide smile.
“Alright, Kookie. You proved your point. Now let’s get you back to the pouting alpha over there.”

Jungkook turns his head to see Jimin in the corner of the stage between two of their friends whose
names the omega has forgotten already. The alpha has his eyes fixed on him and is indeed pouting.
Jungkook just wants to run into him and bite those fleshy lips.

“Having fun?” Jimin asks him as soon as Jungkook finds his way back by his side. He hums in
response.

“We should get going, though. It’s late and you have that thing with your parents tomorrow, right?”
Jimin has the mellowest voice when he speaks close to his ear like that. Jungkook just nods in
agreement.

After quick farewells, Jungkook is again at the back of the alpha’s motorcycle. He doesn’t really
want to go. It has nothing to do with leaving the warehouse. Don’t get him wrong, he had a good
time and all, but what is bothering Jungkook as he holds Jimin’s waist tighter is the thought of
having to go back to his empty apartment. Alone.

He keeps hoping for some late night traffic, for a wrong turn, some rain, a flat tire – anything to
make the ride last a little longer, to stretch his time with Jimin some more.

It bears an annoying resemblance to their first ride, when the alpha took him home from the party
at the dorms. The dread Jungkook feels as they enter his street is the same. When they stop in front
of his building, the desperate need to say something is also the same.
Just ask him if he wants to come upstairs for a while.

Like before, Jimin takes off his silver helmet and secures it in the back, taking the pink helmet
from Jungkook’s hands to wear it himself.

Just offer him a fucking drink, damn it.

The engine is back on. Jungkook feels his stomach drop.

This is it. He’s leaving. Say something, do something. Anything will do.

“Thank you for tonight, hyung.”

Not THAT.

“Take a hot shower and get some rest, Kookie. I’ll see you Monday.”

Jimin grants him one of his sweet smiles before pushing the visor back down. And then he is
gone.

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

Jimin opens the door to his cabin feeling a little agitated. The first thing he does after getting inside
is take off his jacket and bring it to his nose.

A tingling wave of relief instantly takes over his entire body.

It is not only the effect of the intoxicating creamy and nutty scent itself that makes him relax, but
also the confirmation that the smell is still there, that all the wind from the ride back home was not
able to remove it.

With his brain still fogged up by the sweet scent, he climbs up the stairs keeping the piece of
clothing close to his chest. At the sight of his bed, he smiles without noticing. It is nothing but an
old mattress on a set of cheap pallets, but his wolf is proud of it. It is his nest, he made it himself. It
smells of sea waves and sand and flowers, just like himself.

He lowers to kneel down over the white sheets and grabs the black leather jacket that has been
lying there for weeks, his favorite jacket. He brings it to his nose and takes a deep breath in,
quickly discarding it on the end of the bed. Jimin then holds with both hands the golden-buttoned
jacket he was just wearing and plunges his whole face into the fabric.

‘Yes, this is it’ , his wolf tells him, utterly pleased.

Jimin carefully folds the jacket in half – his new favorite jacket – and places it beside his pillow.

‘Perfect.’

Still completely lost to his inner alpha, he starts brushing his cheeks and temples and hair against
the pillow. He wants whatever is left of the omega’s delicious scent to impregnate the fabric he
will sleep on.

Fuck. The omega was so fucking hot tonight with that damn jacket and nothing else underneath it.
And the fucking body chains…

Jimin growls.

He growls and keeps rubbing his face now against the jacket that smells so sweet. He remembers
how strong the omega’s scent was back at the party, how the nutty notes started to get thicker and
thicker while they were dancing. Remembers how his alpha noticed some other wolves looking at
Kookie a little too eagerly and the urge he felt to cover the other with his own scent.

Jimin has always been so good at shutting his scent down, but something about Kookie always
makes him lose his mind. Even his own alpha – usually pretty level-headed and unobtrusive, used
to keeping a low profile to avoid situations which, as a lone wolf, would not be easy to get out of –
is coming out more often around Kookie.

Right now was a perfect example. All the way from the omega’s apartment back to his cabin,
wearing the pink helmet drenched in nuts and cream, Jimin’s alpha had been out in the open. He
was annoyed for having to leave the omega behind. Frustrated by Jimin’s hesitation at making a
move on the other wolf.

‘He is so perfect, so perfect for us.’ The wolf keeps whining inside of Jimin, now lying in his bed,
cuddling the jacket.

It is a knock on the door that drags him out of his Alpha-frame-of-mind.

Still feeling a bit out of it, he checks his phone. 3:17 am.

Another knock. Jimin stands up, shaking his head a little to try to get some clarity before heading
downstairs.

Who could it be? Taehyung doesn’t knock . Yoongi or Hobi would have texted first.

He tries to take a whiff of whoever is outside before opening the door, but the only thing he can
smell is the fucking nuts and cream coming from the pink helmet he left at the entrance. So he
resigns to turning the doorknob blindly.

“Kookie?”

What the hell is he doing here?

“Uhm… Hi, hyung.”

He is still wearing that damn sinful outfit from the party. His SUV is parked right outside and he
looks… shy.

“What are you doing here?” Jimin doesn’t mean to sound rude, he is just completely surprised.

“Ah, sorry hyung… I know it’s late, but… c-can I come in?”

One, two, three, four. It takes him four seconds to finally get out of his own head and make way
for the omega to get inside. “Sure, get in.”

As the boy gingerly steps into the cabin, hands stuck into his pants pockets, Jimin starts to run
every possible scenario in his mind. Did something happen? Is he hurt? Is he angry?

Nothing in the omega’s demeanor hints at an injury or any apparent distress.

“Can I get you something to drink?” He asks in a careful tone, still trying to assess the situation.

“Water’s fine.” The younger’s nervous half-smile does not go unnoticed by Jimin.

“Lukewarm? Cold?”

“Just room temperature,” he replies, surely after noticing the bottle of water on the kitchen counter.

“Okay.”

As he serves him the water, Jimin keeps trying to figure out what could be that made Kookie drive
all the way from his apartment to Jimin’s cabin in the middle of the night when they have just seen
each other. Did he forget something with Jimin? He looks so hesitant... Did he forget to tell Jimin
something? What could be so urgent that couldn’t wait?

Oh.

That is when it hits him. Maybe he is here to tell Jimin he cannot do the showcase anymore. That’s
it. It is all over.

“Can you put some music on?” Kookie’s out-of-place request brings Jimin out of his thoughts.

Unsure, Jimin grabs his phone and connects it to the bluetooth speaker that lies on the wooden
table.

Movement, Hozier

He then turns back to find another indecipherable look on the omega’s eyes.

Kookie looks absolutely gorgeous standing in the middle of his cabin, only the indirect light of a
lamp casting shadows over each of his perfect curves. Jimin finds himself frozen at the sight. It
isn’t even the fear of hearing the fated words from the omega, the ones that will tell him he won’t
do the showcase. That is not what is on his mind, his greatest fear is not what scares him the most
right now. Not anymore.

What really scares Jimin is how much he wants to kiss Jungkook.

“Dance with me, hyung.”

Jimin doesn’t dare to disobey.

He steps closer and closer, until their noses are just inches apart. When Kookie lifts his left hand to
Jimin’s shoulder, he repays by bringing his right one to the omega’s lower back. When said left
hand trails its way to the side of his neck and to his nape, Jimin’s right one pulls Kookie’s body
even closer to his. With the other hand, Jimin grabs him by the hair, firm but gentle, and motions
the omega to lean back for a dip.

It’s slow. Letting go of his hair to support him by the upper back, Jimin guides Kookie to dip back
in a circling motion. He watches how easily the omega’s torso bends, how his stupidly sexy jacket
slides all the way up to reveal the muscular abdomen. Repeating the movement, the sound of the
younger’s body chains tingles in Jimin’s ear and the sight of his throat when he bends neck and
waist makes the alpha’s mouth dry.

When Kookie comes up from the second dip, their pounding chests are pulled together. With a
slight move, Jimin guides their hips in slow waves to one side and the other. Contrasting with their
fast heartbeats, their hip movements are lazy, bodies seeming content with only breathing each
other’s warmth. Kookie feels like a doll in his hold, completely pliant, completely willing. Jimin’s
wolf is practically howling inside his stomach and he knows his scent must be getting stronger.

Probably smelling the pheromones Jimin can’t seem to stop releasing, Kookie’s grasp on his bare
arms gets stronger. The omega’s nose starts to explore his neck: first up the left side, then tracing
his jaw, getting dangerously close to Jimin’s lips, before following the sharp pathway from chin to
right ear, only to go torturously slow down his neck again. He repeats the motion back to the left
side of the alpha’s neck, then again to the right, only this time the omega’s lips brush his skin here
and there. Jimin is about to go crazy.

Kookie then slides his right hand down the alpha’s chest and stomach until it reaches the belt still
on his jeans. Sliding to the side, the younger then steps to stand right behind Jimin, his chest
brushing the alpha’s back. The hand on Jimin’s belt circles along the waistline of his pants slowly,
until the omega steps again to stand now on Jimin’s left side. Kookie’s hand slides down from
Jimin’s lower back to draw a studious circle around his butt. Nuzzling Jimin’s almost bare shoulder
underneath the black tank top, Kookie squeezes the alpha’s buttcheek, completely engulfing it with
his eager fingers.

It is such a deliberate motion, the placement of the younger’s fingers so perfect, it feels like it has
been planned over and over, meticulous like a bank robbery. Jimin cannot contain the low growl
that scratches his throat.

Damn.

When Kookie completes the lap around Jimin and stands before him, ready to let the alpha take the
lead again, Jimin already has full hard-on. Biting his lower lip as if it would help ground him,
Jimin knows he won’t be able to control his wolf for much longer, so he keeps his head low,
avoiding the omega’s enticing gaze for as long as he can.

When he wraps his arms around Kookie’s waist, getting ready to resume the dance, he swears he
hears the omega moan, and that’s it for him.

“Why are you here, Kookie?” He whispers, out of breath.

Jimin’s brain is still in a haze of pheromones and lust, and he is scared of the answer. He fears that
this whole dance thing is just an excuse, just foreplay for the fated words Kookie is there to say.

But Jimin needs to know, needs to hear it from him. So he brings his gaze to meet the younger’s
carefully, cautiously waiting for an answer.

The boy’s eyes fucking shine like a starry night and Jimin is gonna lose his damn mind.

“To do this.” The sound of Kookie’s voice is raspy and candied like honey crystallized in a jar.
And when he cages Jimin’s face with his hands and kisses him, it is like all the sweetness melts
down against the alpha’s lips.

With one hand moving to Jimin’s lower back and the other on his nape, the omega holds him
caringly, protectively. He keeps brushing his petal lips over Jimin’s, slow but with no hint of
hesitation.

The way Kookie kisses is both delicate and resolute. It feels like a jump. Or the last step before
taking a leap. Something that scares you to death, that paralyzes you, and for that very reason, it is
something you focus all your courage onto, no room for second guessing.

So Jimin really has no choice but to take the leap. He knows he shouldn’t. He knows this will only
complicate things for the both of them, but he has no choice. Not when Kookie is kissing him like
that, not when he says he drove all the way there only to kiss Jimin.

So he kisses him back.

With a firm hand, he brings Kookie’s right knee to the side of his hip. Supporting him by his lower
back, the alpha leads them to grind against each other to the lazy rhythm of the music. Their body
rolls are perfectly synced, but their kiss is sloppy, tongues twist missing every other beat. Jimin
keeps leaning forward and Kookie arching his back, in a game of chasing lips.

When the omega bends his neck, Jimin hisses and immediately attacks the exposed throat with
open mouthed kisses. His hand slides from the back of the younger’s thigh all the way to his butt,
and Jimin finds himself lapping at the omega’s collarbone.

“Jimin…” Kookie grabs a fistful of his hair to get Jimin’s attention and make him kiss him on the
lips once more.

Standing on both feet again, the omega breaks the wet kiss and stares at Jimin with a daring look.

Damn it. What now? What else is he gonna do to rile my alpha up?

Jimin is so focused watching the younger poke the inside of his cheek with his tongue that he
almost misses the way Kookie undoes the single button on his jacket to expose his bare chest.

Holy fucking shit. Jimin was not ready.

The omega’s chest glows. Of course, there are the tiny crystals on the body chain around his torso,
but his skin… Covered in a thin layer of sweat, like varnish on wood, Kookie’s skin fucking
shines. Jimin is again afraid, scared to touch it. As if it was not allowed, as if the wolf was the
most precious thing Jimin had ever seen, as if just a brush of Jimin’s fingers would ruin it all.

“Touch me…” Kookie asks in a whisper, guiding Jimin’s left hand to his stomach. “Touch me,
alpha.”

Fuck.

Kookie once again leans backwards, supported only by Jimin’s other hand on his back. This time,
the omega brings both his arms to hang behind him as well, completely yielding his body to Jimin.

He wants to devour Jungkook.

In complete adoration, Jimin lays his open palm flat on the omega’s stomach. Slowly, savoring
every inch of the offering before him, he slides a hand along the defined abs and chest, all the way
to Kookie’s delicious neck, applying just enough pressure around it until he makes the omega
moan. The bulge in his jeans throbs with want, so he quickly brings the other up in his arms again
to look him straight in the eyes.

“Kookie…” He makes their foreheads touch, trying to catch the omega’s attention before the both
of them are completely lost to their wolves. “Jungkook.”

The younger opens his eyes immediately, like on command, and Jimin thinks he catches a glimpse
of gold in them.
“Are you sure you want this? Because I do , I fucking want you like crazy, but you need to tell me
now.”

Kookie’s gaze still looks a little hazed, short breaths coming in and out his barely open mouth.

“Say that again,” the omega asks.

“I asked if you’re sure you want t-”

“No. The other thing,” he interrupts. Jimin is not sure what he means.

“That I want it? That I want you ? Cause I do,” the alpha reassures him.

The younger shakes his head and lowers his gaze, looking a little shy, perhaps. “No. Say my name
again.”

Oh.

Jimin pinches the omega’s chin to bring him to face him again with those round shiny eyes.
“Jungkook…”

He whines. Jungkook whines so prettily that Jimin can’t resist kissing him again. The younger
kisses Jimin back, moaning little ‘I do’ s and ‘I want you’ s against the alpha’s eager lips.

After the several confirmations, Jimin pulls the omega by the back of his thighs up to his lap,
never breaking the hungry kiss for more than two seconds. Jungkook wraps his legs around his
waist and the alpha proceeds to walk them upstairs. Cropped jacket and Jimin’s black tank shirt are
discarded on their way there, and by the time they reach the bed, Kookie must have left at least two
hickeys on Jimin’s neck.

He carefully lowers the omega to sit down on his bed, feeling a little self conscious about the mess
of clothes thrown around boxes and the makeshift pallet desk.

“I-uhm… I guess it’s not a great room.” He looks around, ready to stand up and start gathering the
couple of books and shoes on the floor to store them properly. Suddenly he can’t look Kookie in
the eyes anymore, that feeling of inadequacy he often gets around the omega is back in full force.
“You probably have a great room.”

Surely noticing the alpha’s turmoil, Jungkook grabs him by the wrist and brings Jimin’s gaze back
to himself with a caring palm on his face. “No! It’s a great room.” Never breaking eye contact, he
lies down on the mattress, looking up at Jimin with hooded eyes. He raises his hips and starts
taking off his black pants, biting his lower lip.

Damn it . Now that he sees the full picture, all the bare skin interrupted by only the body chains
and a pair of black Calvin Klein boxers, Jimin doesn’t know if he will survive the night. As he
already knew, the omega is ripped . Every curve of his body looks like it has been carefully
sculpted by hours and hours at the gym. His small waist and the ropes of muscle in his thighs make
Jimin almost drool. The alpha can’t take his eyes off of him.

“I really like your bed. It’s so comfortable…” Brushing the palms of his hands up and down the
white sheets, Jungkook turns his face to graze it against the fabric, eyes closed and a gorgeous
smile. “And it smells amazing…”

Damn. Jungkook definitely knows how to make the alpha forget about everything else and rile him
up.
(***)

In three swift motions, Jimin removes his belt and lowers to the bed, hovering over Kookie’s
perfect body, one knee on each side of him. From that position on top of Kookie, hair falling all
over his face, Jimin takes deep breaths in and out, trying to calm down.

The pungent nutty smell cloys Jimin’s every thought, and his whole body is invaded by a strong
urge to hold the omega tight in his arms and never let go, to eat him up, cherish him, protect him,
keep him all for himself.

“Jimin…” In a hazed state caused by the uproar of feelings in his chest, Jimin doesn’t notice
Kookie calling him the first time.

“Alpha.” He hears it this time. He would hear Jungkook calling him ‘alpha’ in the middle of the
noisiest crowd. “Kiss me,” the omega demands.

Jimin immediately leaves a passionate peck on the reddened lips and darts down to his nipples.

Fuck. They are just so tiny and dark, impossibly hardened already, two perfect dots on the expanse
of his defined chest.

Jimin approaches one of them with the tip of his tongue. Taps on it slightly – once, twice, thrice,
leaving a wet trace behind.

“Jimin, come on…”

The alpha smiles at the whiny complaint and wraps his lips around the now even harder peak. He
licks it thoroughly this time, while using the knuckles of his right hand to play with the smooth
skin on Kookie’s stomach. He then slides his tongue all the way to the right nipple, leaving a trail
of saliva across the omega’s chest, even the brass flavor of the metal chains tastes sweet to Jimin.
He kisses and kisses all around the small crest, grazes his teeth over it, careful not to hurt.

Jungkook lets out a pained, prolonged moan, and Jimin’s wolf starts running out of patience.

“Shhhhhh… I got you, I got you.” Jimin is not sure whether he is assuring the omega or his own
wolf, but he stands on his knees and starts unzipping his jeans, never taking eyes off Jungkook.

He ends up pulling his boxers off alongside the jeans, wanting to reduce the time far from the
omega’s body to the minimum.

“Mine too,” Jungkook pleads, already tugging on the waistline of his Calvin Kleins. Jimin smiles,
pleased, and helps sliding them down.

When he notices how wet the black fabric already is, Jimin has to control his wolf not to bring the
boxers straight to his mouth and nose. He wants to drown in Jungkook’s sweet scent, to sip in
every drop of his slick at least once a day for the rest of his life.

Fuck. He wants him so bad .

“You’re already so wet, little prince.” He teases the omega, brushing hands up Jungkook’s
muscular legs, enjoying the touch of the thin hair on them. “Is this why you drove all the way
here? You couldn’t wait?”

“Y-yes, hyung... Yes. Now f-fucking do something about it.”

He can’t help but giggle at the other’s brattiness. He slides his hand under one of Kookie’s knees
and brings his leg up, almost touching chest.

Jimin kneels closer to the younger’s crotch, letting his own dick rest over the omega’s. “And what
do you want me to do, Kook-ah?”

Kookie gasps and bites his lips. “Anything, hyung. J-Just… Just touch me, kiss me, fuck me.
Please…”

Jimin smiles and touches him. He brings his right hand to caress the omega’s face caringly, boops
his cute round nose. His hand slides down and keeps touching him: strong neck, delicious chest and
stomach, the v-line that guides the alpha to his crotch, the curve of his fleshy butt.

He smiles again and kisses him. First, his belly button. Round like his nipples, Jimin places a
loving peck on it. A series of just as affectionate pecks follows the trail down the lower belly to the
base of the other’s dick. Jimin raises his gaze to find the omega with eyes closed and furrowed
brows. The next kiss goes to the tip of Jungkook’s cock. It’s still a peck, but lasts longer. Maybe
Jimin ends up opening his plump lips a little so that he can taste the smear of precum that lies there.
Jungkook moans and shivers a little. Still smiling, Jimin leaves two more pecks on each of the
omega’s balls and finally reaches his rim.

Fuck . The smell is so strong, so sweet. He can sense it perfectly: a nutty top, overbearing,
followed by a sugary, creamy undertone, and finally a leathery trace, hay-like – it is just a drop,
just a hint, imperceptible on most days, but this close Jimin can notice how pungent it is. The
bouquet of scents envelops Jimin, bringing him to an even hazier state.

Before he knows it, his mouth is on Kookie’s rim. It is not slow. Not gingerly, not reluctant. He
laps at it hungrily, wants to drink the delicious slick to the very last drop. He gathers some of the
liquid on top of his tongue and licks around his own lips, wanting to have it on his own skin. He
does the same with his fingers, first carefully inserting them into the omega’s hole, then rubbing
the remnants of the slick around his neck, close to his scent gland.

He prepares the omega like that, fingering him open and using his glossy digits to mark his own
body. Jungkook moans incessantly all the way through, sometimes begging for more, sometimes
just saying how hot all of it is, how much he wants Jimin, how much he needs his alpha. It is
maddening, really.

When Jimin finally manages to break from the slick-marking frenzy, he needs a moment or two to
recover. He just stands there, on his knees, dilated pupils staring at the gorgeous omega. In tune
with the alpha, Jungkook sits up and starts brushing his hands all over Jimin’s just as defined abs.
He nuzzles and kisses the alpha’s skin, moans lowly against it.

“Please, Jimin…” Jimin hums in response, eyes closed. “Alpha… Alpha, please…”

His eyes open on command.

“Hold on.” He crawls to one of the boxes by the bed to quickly grab a condom. He is back between
Kookie’s thick thighs just as fast.

His cock finds no resistance sliding in, just one slow push and it is completely engulfed by the
omega’s wet hole. Jimin closes his eyes, enjoying the pressure around his dick and waiting for
Kookie to adapt to the stretch. It happens soon: the younger’s signal that he is ready comes in the
form of a clenching around his dick, making Jimin moan.
“You can move now,” he says with an impossibly sexy voice.

So Jimin moves . He pulls his dick until only the head is still inside and plunges back in, slow but
firm. The second time he does, his hips snap against Kookie, and soon Jimin is pumping into the
younger’s rim in a luscious rhythm.

“You are so fucking gorgeous, Kookie.” Jimin keeps moving, while his palm examines the
omega’s torso with care. The other hand holds Jungkook’s hips in place. “You’re a whole treat
smelling so sweet…”

Jimin feels swamped in pleasure already, completely engrossed in the smoothness of Jungkook’s
body. The younger looks dazzling under him, body so strong yet so soft. And so moist.

The alpha’s pace is already unsteady but he wants to keep going. Jungkook looks just as affected,
eyes still closed and furrowed brows, the same expression whenever he eats something tasty. Jimin
smiles and lowers his gaze to find the omega’s hard cock flapping with each thrust. And suddenly
all he wants is to taste it.

So he does.

Jungkook whines when the alpha pulls out, but Jimin comforts him with the slide of his tongue
along the younger’s cock. Damn. It is delicious.

He moans as soon as he gets a taste of the omega’s precum. It is tart, stronger than his slick in
which the nutty flavor prevails.

“You’re a fucking dessert, Jungkook-ah,” he concludes right before swallowing the whole length in
his mouth. The omega moans loud at the brush of his tongue on the throbbing vein.

“J-Jimin, please… I’m g-gonna…” Whatever he is trying to say is interrupted by another moan.
Jimin drinks in the omega’s sounds. He doesn’t get to savor it for too long, though, because Kookie
is soon grabbing him by the hair and pulling him up. “N-not like this… Please… N-need you
inside…”

He watches as Jungkook turns to his knees and lowers his torso to the mattress, presenting to Jimin.
The alpha has to bite his lips in order not to howl at the sight.

“I-Inside, please…”

He doesn’t waste any other minute and sinks back down into the younger’s stretched hole. It is
maddening. With this angle, he gets to pound even deeper into Kookie, quickly setting an
unrelenting pace.

Feeling how his hands keep losing their grip over Jungkook’s sweaty skin, Jimin grabs the body
chains with his right hand for support. “F-Fuck, Jimin. Yes…” Kookie moans.

Jimin doesn’t know how long he will be able to keep going, already way too lost in Jungkook, in
his delicious hole and luscious sounds.

“Jimin, more…” The omega shivers under him, grabbing a fistful of the sheets. “T-tighter.”

He pulls the accessory tighter around the other’s torso, careful not to break it, but loving the way it
digs into Kookie’s slim waist.

“M-more…” Jungkook is practically thrashing on the mattress, begging Jimin.

The alpha brings a caring hand over his hips, trying to calm him down. “I-if I pull it too tight, it
might break, Kookie…” Jimin has no idea how expensive the body trimming is, but if it is
Jungkook’s, then it is definitely more than the alpha can afford.

“Then break it! I don’t care,” Kookie tells him decisively. “Fucking break me, Jimin.”

Fuck.

Jimin takes his other hand to the body chain as well and pulls. Tight . Tighter. He keeps thrusting,
hammering at Jungkook’s ass, and pulling the chains. He can see the metal links digging into the
omega’s skin, making it red. He loves it.

“Y-y-yes…” Jungkook’s voice stutters to the frantic rhythm of Jimin’s thrusts. “F-f-fuck. F-fuck.
I’m… I-I’m g-gonna…”

Jimin pulls even tighter, thinking about the marks the chains will leave all over the omega’s perfect
chest. He feels his abdomen start to tighten just like the metal on Kookie’s torso. He is close.

“Come, Jungkook. Come for Alpha.”

All it takes is one more pull and Jungkook comes.

To say the younger comes loud would be an understatement. He fucking howls around Jimin’s dick
like a turned wolf and that sends the alpha completely over the edge. He comes into the omega’s
hole, overwhelmed by pleasure (his alpha resents the damn condom).

Kookie keeps howling, lower now, whining like a puppy, and Jimin growls, still releasing the
remnants of his cum. Trying to settle the omega, Jimin brings his mouth to the younger’s waist and
bites. He huffs against the warm skin and doesn’t let go, knowing the bite will manage to calm the
other.

When Jungkook finally quiets down and relaxes a little, Jimin releases his grip and pulls out.
“Shhhhh…” He caresses the younger’s arm and shoulder, placing a kiss on the bite “Such a good
omega… Be right back, ok?”

He returns the next minute with a wet towel. “Let’s take this off, uhm?”

The alpha finds the clasp on the surprisingly-still-intact chain and removes it from Kookie’s torso,
not wanting it to hurt the younger while they rest. He then proceeds to clean him carefully, placing
loving pecks here and there. Deeming both of them clean enough, Jimin heads downstairs to get
them some water and hurries back with a glass.

(***)

“You okay?” He whispers in Kookie’s ear after he drinks the whole glass, brushing his fingers
lazily up and down the omega’s arm.

There is just a hum in response, and Jimin is a little worried at the other’s silence. He notices how
Jungkook’s scent is also faint, almost muted.

He shifts to look at the omega’s face, “Hey, are you sure?”

A nod and a smile.

Ok. That will do for now.

He brings the omega close to him in a back hug and doesn’t let go.

Jimin’s brain wants to drag him into thoughts about how he fucked up everything allowing this to
happen, how he shouldn’t have. But he dismisses the thoughts, postpones them until tomorrow.
Right now, all he wants is to enjoy Kookie’s presence, so warm inside his arms.

He brings his nose to the omega’s neck. Taking a deep breath, he starts nuzzling along the skin all
the way to his arm, placing gentle kisses all over his scent gland. Soon they are enveloped in sea
waves and plumeria, making Jimin’s alpha satisfied.

“Hyung…” Jungkook finally breaks his silence with a weak voice.

Jimin hums, still kissing his shoulder.

“What does this mean? For us?”

Well, there goes Jimin’s plan to postpone the issue until tomorrow.

Jungkook turns in the alpha’s arms to face him. “Yoongi hyung… He, uhm… He saw your gifts.
The tea box, the body oil… He says they’re not ‘just’ gifts.”

It is hard. It is fucking hard looking at Kookie’s wide shining eyes asking Jimin this question.

What could he say? ‘Yoongi is right, Kookie. They’re courting gifts. I’ve been secretly trying to
court you. Will you let me?’ Yeah, right…

“What do they mean, Jimin?” The omega insists.

“Jungkookie, it’s late…”

“Please, hyung,” he pleads in a firm tone. “I need to know.”

Jimin takes a deep breath and turns to face the ceiling.

He doesn’t know how to reply. He can’t say it. He can’t . It is not fair to Jungkook. It is not fair to
him that Jimin caught feelings so easily, that he allowed himself to be so irresponsible. But he also
doesn’t want to lie to the younger. Not ever, but especially not tonight.

So he turns again to face the omega, who looks tired and unsure but still gorgeous as usual. He
brushes a thumb on his smooth cheek and does his best to give him an honest answer.

“Jungkook-ah… You’re the most lovely person I have ever met.” He kisses and kisses the frown
on the younger’s forehead until it softens. “You are. You are just so absolutely full of love and
wonder. Even when I was straight up rude to you for no reason, you kept being lovely. You were
relentless in your attempts to help me, to help Tae. You got nothing out of it, and had to face our
inexcusable behavior towards you, and you still did everything to help us.”

Jimin places a kiss on the younger’s left eye, making him smile and scrunch his nose cutely. He
looks into the boy’s wide eyes, hoping to convey all of his affection and sincerity, “I’ve never met
anyone like you, Jungkook.”

He then pecks his rosy lips. He does it once, twice, then smiles at the omega. “But it’s late. And
you have the thing with your family tomorrow. Let’s sleep a little and not try to sort everything out
in one night, hum?”

Jungkook smiles shyly and nods. It is not a very wide smile, but it lingers on the younger’s petal
lips. It’s okay, Jimin tells himself. It is enough for now. They will deal with this later. “What time
do you need to wake up?”

“I think 8 is fine.”

“8? But don’t you have to be there at 10? Will you have time to drive back home to get ready and
drive all the way there?”

“I brought a change of clothes. It’s in the car,” Jungkook nuzzles into the alpha’s chest and closes
his eyes, apparently deeming the problem solved.

“Ok, alright. Goodnight, Jungkook-ah.”

“Goodnight, alpha.”

He brought a change of clothes , Jimin repeats to himself. He must have really meant it when he
said he drove all the way to the cabin only to be with Jimin.

Damn, this is so fucked up . Jimin smiles himself to sleep.

Jimin wakes up before the alarm, with a smile on his face. Has he been smiling all through his
sleep? Having Kookie’s arms all around him like this, he wouldn’t doubt if that was the case.

Feeling light, happily giddy, he heads downstairs to make them breakfast.

At 8 minus 5, he takes a break to go wake the younger up. It takes two minutes of pecks all over
the omega’s back to finally get him to open his eyes. Jimin feels like his heart is about to explode.

He shows Kookie how to use the shower and goes back to the kitchen to finish setting the table. It
is when he opens the cabinet to look for sugar that he hears it.

“When it comes to you / There's no crime / Let's take both of our souls / And intertwine”

He knows this voice. The smooth and clean register, the careful pronunciation, the purest timbre.
He gets closer to the bathroom door to hear it better.

“When it comes to you / Don't be blind / Watch me speak from my heart”

No doubt. It is him .

Jimin knew Kookie could sing. Several times he had heard Yoongi dropping praises about the
younger omega’s voice, about how controlled and steady and effortless he sounds on track. If
Yoongi was so excited about it, Jimin knew it must be quite something. But now, as he hears it for
the first time… How the hell did it take him all this time to finally hear it?

He is so immersed in the voice that he doesn’t notice the door sliding open.

“Hyung? Are you ok?”

“You!”

Kookie’s eyes widen, unsure of what he is being accused of.

“It’s you !”

All through breakfast, Jimin praises Jungkook’s singing and teases him about the name of his
Youtube channel, ‘jumping kangaroo’, the one where a mysterious voice covers some of the
alpha’s favorite songs. He laughs to himself, now knowing the voice belongs to the boy next to
him.

The teasing gets to a point where the younger stands up from where he is sitting on the floor,
shoving the last piece of toast into his mouth, and starts jumping around. Buffing out his chest and
letting his arms hang low in front of his body, the omega actually makes a pretty good impression
of a kangaroo. Too cute, Jimin thinks.

They laugh and talk about ‘whatevers’ for the duration of breakfast, and Jimin is surprised when
Kookie says he has to go. They didn’t even have the chance to discuss the whole thing, to establish
where they stood from then on.

Jimin suddenly feels unsure about it all, wondering if last night has changed anything between
them. He watches as Jungkook finishes styling his still wet hair and grabs his backpack.

The omega looks so handsome in his white pants and yellow patterned shirt, two or three open
buttons. When he puts a pair of yellow-shaded sunglasses on, Jimin is certain he is gonna lose his
mind. Jungkook looks absolutely ravishing.

His alpha thrashes inside of him, hurt because he cannot recognize his own scent on his omega
after he showered. He suddenly wants to scent the other until he is drenched in ocean and flowers.

Jimin is quiet all along, still trying to shut his alpha down, when Jungkook says goodbye and heads
to his car.

He keeps watching from the front door as the omega leaves. He watches and feels his stomach drop
in slow motion. Every crunching step Jungkook takes towards the SUV reminds Jimin that he is
leaving, that of course he would leave him, that he was never his.

Fuck. It hurts.

When the car door closes and the engine is turned on, Jimin blinks out of his thoughts and runs to
the vehicle.

“Kookie!” He screams in a high pitch, managing to catch the omega’s attention. Standing by the
driver’s door, he waits until Jungkook lowers the window.

They don’t say anything. Just stare at each other for what could have been three seconds or twenty
whole minutes. Jimin doesn’t know. All he knows is that he needed to look into Kookie’s eyes one
more time.

As if he understands, Kookie smiles. His smile is so pure, so beautiful, that Jimin smiles back,
already feeling warmer inside.

In a swift movement, he cages the omega’s face in his hands and kisses him. It is a chaste kiss, but
it lingers long enough for Jimin to be able to breathe again.

“See you tomorrow?”

“See you tomorrow, hyung.” Another smile, one that makes the other’s nose scrunch up, and
everything is good in the world again.
Chapter End Notes

Ah, it is over! I hope I didn't bore you too much with the detailed dance scenes. I
guess I got a little carried away by the need to write Jungkook's body chains out of my
system!

THE Showcase is coming up next! I can't wait!

 ‘What if I forget the steps?’
Chapter Summary

The showcase, Seokjinnie, Tae and Kookie's heart-to-heart.

Chapter Notes

Hello! Hope you had a good week and a couple of days! This update took a bit longer
because we were all listening to Bad Decisions!

Well, the first thing I want to say is: Kookie is such a cute badass and I love him!

Second is: you must have noticed there are a lot of linked songs along this fic. I know
some people don't like to read with background music, but in this chapter, in the
showcase scene, I think you should give it a try. I made an effort to make the scene
description "follow" the linked version of the song, so if you don't like to read and
listen to music, I suggest you at least give it a listen before going back to read the
specific scene.

And finally: there are some ballet and Korean culture references in this chapter. In
case you don't know about some of that vocabulary, I will add links in case you're
curious.

Alright, let's do it then. Hope you enjoy this chapter!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

He survives lunch at the country club.

Apparently the Choi’s were getting a divorce, which meant that Jungkook’s mother and uncle were
distracted enough by the fresh piece of news not to drown him in questions about University and
everything. He felt a little guilty but, honestly, he was thankful to the Choi’s.

His father couldn’t make it to lunch. He never did, really – always at the office or on a business
trip. He was a beta, the first beta in five generations of alpha Jeon’s, but everything about his
stance screamed ‘stereotype alpha’. Even his own ginger scent was always masked by a strong
musky cologne he had customized.

Jungkook’s mother, Jeon Chaewon, was naturally everything one would expect of a chaebol’s
omega wife: elegant, soft-spoken and erudite. She was often involved in social and charitable
activities, definitely one of the most engaged members in the community. Jungkook lost count of
how many clubs she was president of, and no event took place without her knowledge.

It was overwhelming: growing up under the stern gaze of his parents’ expectations. So Jungkook
did what he could. He survived lunch after lunch, event after event. Today was just another one,
like several others before and to follow.

He closes his eyes and enjoys the summer breeze, finally able to breathe. The strong vanilla
perfume he put on to make sure nobody would notice any lingering hints of plumeria in his body
bothers his omega a little. But it’s okay, he tells himself. It’s just for now.

Having managed to drag one of the loungers and a cantilever umbrella to his favorite spot – far
enough from all the people but still facing the pool – Jungkook lies down and puts his headphones
on. He is glad to finally have a moment for himself, needing to replay the moments from last night
in his mind to enjoy a little longer the pleasant buzzing feeling he has all over his body.

His fingers trace an invisible line on his chest, where he knows, under his yellow shirt, are the
lingering marks of the body chain he wore to the dance. The memory gives him goosebumps, and
his hand ends up hovering over to the bigger bruise on the side of his waist. Holding onto it has the
same grounding effect Jimin’s bite had last night, making Jungkook feel strangely safe and taken
care of.

He takes another deep breath in and out.

He thought he would be second-guessing everything today, focused on all the answers Jimin
refused to give him, on everything that was left unsaid. But when he thinks about it, he feels…
calm.

It is that kind of serenity one feels when you are so sure of something that nothing else can break
you. And there is one thing Jungkook is sure of: he is in love with Jimin. And his wolf wants the
alpha. Desperately.

He has no idea where to go from there. Between his parents, his whole life so far and ahead of him,
Jimin’s, too – Jungkook has no idea how to make this work. But still he feels calm. It is an odd
feeling when he thinks about it. And it is not as if Jimin has really-

“I thought I’d find you here.”

His thoughts are interrupted by a firm but soothingly familiar voice. It hits his ears as soon as his
headphones are moved by just as steady hands. Before he sees the man, he recognizes the relaxing
tea leaves filling the air around him.

“Seokjin-hyung.”

“Jungkook-ah!”

Jungkook wants to sound more excited at meeting his cousin. He has always been his favorite. At
every family gathering when they were kids, they were always playing together, teasing each other
mercilessly. Even with the seven years difference in age, even being an older alpha, Jin has
always treated him with the utmost respect, always as an equal. At the same time, he would
immediately put his ‘Big Hyung’ cape on and defend Jungkook every time he got picked on by the
older cousins. All of the omega’s memories of the older were filled with affection and happiness.

But then, some years ago, the man just sort of disappeared. The younger knew it coincided with the
time when Jin started to have disagreements with his parents, something about him refusing to take
over one of the overseas branches, but Jungkook never really knew the exact reason. So that was
probably why he almost never saw him at family gatherings anymore, but Jungkook couldn’t help
but feel hurt that his hyung didn’t even try to reach out.

“Long time no see,” Jungkook ends up saying in a still not very warm tone.

“Ah, don’t be upset, Kook-ah. Hyung’s sorry. Things were… a bit chaotic.” As always, Jin seems
to immediately sense Jungkook’s feelings and fights the younger’s sulkiness with his best grin,
while ruffling his hair.

Jungkook can’t help but let out a smile of his own – a shy, smaller one, but still sincere.

“How have you been? How are things at Uni?” The alpha asks, sitting on a stool he seems to have
brought along to Jungkook’s not-so-secret spot.

Now that he is closer, Jungkook can sense another smell in his cousin’s tea leaves. It is not their
own pack’s scent – no, that one was so faint that it is almost as if it were not there anymore. It is
something sweeter, but still fresh. Like… Peach? No. Pear. Barely ripe pear.

“It’s all fine, hyung.”

Seokjin raises a brow, inquisitively. “That fun, huh?”

“I don’t think University is supposed to be fun.” Jungkook chuckles, a little disheartened.

“Well, I think that depends. I, for one, like to think everything is supposed to be fun. And that you
should always be able to pursue things that allow you to have a good time.”

That is something Jungkook has always admired about his cousin: his cheerful disposition, the way
he always managed to look at things positively, not to let himself be discouraged by everything life
will throw in your face.

“But of course most people in our family won’t agree with me…” It is Seokjin’s turn to chuckle.

Jungkook tries not to ponder too much over the alpha’s words. At least not for now, aware of how
prone he is to getting lost in his own thoughts. Se he goes for a slight change in subject. “What
about you, hyung? How’s the stock market thing going?”

“Oh, it’s doing well, I guess. I think I am ready now to take another step. I found this new
company with great potential. They’re still growing, but fast, and I believe they are the real deal. I
managed to reallocate some of my profits to become one of the main shareholders.”

“That’s awesome, hyung!”

“Yeah… Please cheer for me.” He adds a couple of playful punches against Jungkook’s arm,
something he always does to deflect attention from his flushed ears. “Now enough about me. Tell
me more about you! The ‘Ending Scene’ cover from last week was so good! I wish you’d post
more often.”

Jungkook smiles and blushes a little at the praise. Seokjin was the only one in his family who knew
about his Youtube channel, the only one he would trust with the information.

“Thanks, hyung… I just… I don’t know. Sometimes I just don’t see the use for doing it.” He
somehow managed to spoil the cheerful mood in the conversation again.

“What do you mean, Jungkook-ah?”

“Well, I just think I should focus on Uni and… I don’t know, on more feasible, more productive
things.”

“Jungkook-ah, the only one who should get to decide what is productive, feasible or worth of your
time and dedication is you.” The alpha ruffles his hair again, making Jungkook sigh. “You
shouldn’t be ashamed of it, Jungkook. I told you already. You are really talented. Anyone can see
how much you love singing. Even if you don’t want to pursue this as a career, you are still allowed
to love it as a hobby and dedicate as much time to it as you want.”

The omega smiles, a part of him really wanting to believe his hyung’s words.

“And if it is something that you actually want to do… To be a singer, I mean, then please go for
it.”

“You know it is not easy like that, hyung.”

The other sighs, acknowledging what the younger means.

“But it should be, Jungkook-ah. You should be able to pursue what you want. And you are.” He
shows the omega that calm smile which always manages to reassure him. “And if your own family
is not able to see that, I want you to know that you have people in your life that will.”

Jungkook feels his stomach churn listening to that. He tries hard to hold the tears in, knowing how
he will probably end up a sobbing mess if he allows the first one out.

“You know, I have always thought that ‘pack’ was so much more than bloodline. And over the
past years, especially when things were a bit hard for me, I realized it is. It is so much more,
Jungkook, and I hope you can see that too. ‘Pack’ is about shared visions and interests, about
companionship and a support system. It is about people who respect and protect each other. And
you can find that outside of… this.” Jin gestures at everything around them, making Jungkook
giggle.

Hearing his cousin’s words, he can’t help but think about Jimin. About Jimin and all of his friends,
happy to know that they have that, that they are to each other exactly that: ‘pack’. He smiles,
relieved to know Jimin has that, despite society’s overall view of what pack and lone wolves mean.
But something also clenches in his chest, realizing how much he craves this type of
companionship, how much he wishes to have that himself.
“Jungkook-ah…” The alpha’s steady voice draws him out of his thoughts. “I hope I can be that for
you someday. I want you to know I am working on it, to be able to offer you that, if you want. Like
an ‘extended pack’, whenever you need it.”

‘Extended pack’. Again the words that keep calling for Jungkook.

“Hyung…” The omega whines and tears threaten to show in his eyes and voice. He wants to thank
his cousin and hug him and say how much he misses him. But when Seokjin smiles back at him,
that sweet reassuring smile, Jungkook realizes he already knows his heart.

“Just cover a song for me next week, uhm?”

“Ok, hyung. Ok. I will.”

“Not a sappy one. But something pretty,” he demands, standing up to leave. “Make it an ode to my
beauty,” he adds, making Jungkook laugh and forget about all the heavy stuff they just talked
about. The younger manages to discreetly wipe the one stubborn tear that was trying to leave his
eye.

As he watches Seokjin leave, headphones back on, Jungkook thinks about how his cousin always
manages to leave him feeling lighter, warmer inside. He decides to close his eyes and enjoy the
summer breeze for a little longer. Two more songs, he decides. Maybe three.

Knowing that his mother would be surrounded by other omegas in the tea room, Jungkook decides
to take the path behind the west wing to avoid spending another forty minutes trying to say
goodbye. He will text her later saying he couldn’t find her and that he had to leave to finish some
paper for Uni.

“You should have seen his face! He was definitely desperate knowing he would be late for his little
date because of a flat tire.”

The obnoxious laughter coming from the balcony on the second floor tells Jungkook it is the usual
group of alphas that like to gather at the cigar room. Even if he can’t see anything, he guesses it is
probably Seoungho, Doyun and some other wolves Jungkook doesn’t want to have anything to do
with. So he keeps on walking towards the parking lot.

“But did he notice it was you guys?”

“Ah, we made sure he did.” Jungkook now recognizes Doyun’s voice. “He definitely cursed a lot
when he noticed the extra grease we left around the tire.”

Another round of laughter.

“I would have cursed your mom and three generations up if you ruined my date like that, Doyun-
ah.”

“Well, that’s what he gets for being such a stuck-up cur.”

That makes Jungkook stop in his tracks. Again the same despicable word coming from Doyun’s
disgusting mouth. He tries to control his scent not to give his presence away.

“Where does Park Jimin even find the money to go on so many dates? I bet he uses all of his
scholarship on cheap motels and then forges receipts for books and school shit.”
“I bet he just does them on dirty alleys.” More laughter.

By then, Jungkook’s brain has already shut the rest of the conversation all out. He thinks back to
last night. He remembers how the alpha was thirty minutes late to pick him up for the dance,
which was not usual of him. Remembers a grease stain on his jeans. ‘Something kept me’ was all
the explanation Jimin had given him.

Fuck Doyun. Fuck all of these losers.

Jungkook stomps back to his car seeing red.

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

[To: Jungkookie]

On a scale of 0 to 10, where 0 is ‘absolutely insignificant’ and 10 is ‘I will literally die if I

don’t, how important is it that you attend your next class?

[From: Jungkookie]

hmmm… 2?

why?

[To: Jungkookie]

Wanna go somewhere?

[From: Jungkookie]

how long till u get here?

[To: Jungkookie]

10, 15?

[From: Jungkookie]

i can do 15. meet you up front in 15.

‘Regular Jimin’ would be rehearsing right now.

With less than two weeks to the showcase, ‘Regular Jimin’ would be taking any canceled class or
day off work to dance to exhaustion, shrinking his sleep schedule even further in order to practice
some more, under sequences and sequences of ‘just one more time from the top’.

But not ‘After-Jungkook Jimin’.

‘After-Jungkook Jimin’ finds himself smiling much more often than usual, daydreaming about
Saturday night. ‘After-Jungkook Jimin’ gets butterflies in his stomach meeting his dance partner
for practice, dotes on his clean isolations and work ethic, whines until the other sings him another
verse acapella on the phone.

Even if the two haven’t yet had the conversation about what it all means to them, it is obvious how
the dynamics between them have changed. It is like a tacit agreement that they will wait until after
the showcase to address it. But that doesn’t mean Jimin can’t enjoy his cloud-nine period.

And that is why he is parked in front of the Business School building on a Wednesday morning
scrolling his phone while waiting for the omega.

It is a sunny but not too hot summer day and maybe a park or somewhere outdoor-ish would be a
better choice, but Jimin wants to take Kookie to a place he knows the other will enjoy himself. He
is pushing away wondering thoughts of ‘ is this a date or yet another thank-you? ’ when the group
chat pops up.

Soulmate

11:04 [image]

11:04 [image]

11:04 didyou see that???????

Hobari

11:04

The first image is of a black Porsche in a parking lot. The second is of a tire, a very flat tire. With a
big kitchen knife stuck into it.

Me

11:05 what???? Whose car is that?

Hobari
11:05 they’re saying it belongs to one of those alphas who are always bothering Jimin at the
mall!!!!

Soulmate

11:05 confirmed. It’s fucking doyun’s, from finance

Me

11:05 What???? Oh shit!

Soulmate

11:06 I say karma is a fucker

Me

11:06 Yeah, right. Until they start thinking it was me

and then never leave me the fuck alone!

Hobari

11:06 oh shit. I hadn’t thought of that.

Soulmate

11:06 fuck them. It wasnt jimin.

Hobari

11:06 People are saying someone saw a guy wearing all black taking a selfie in front of the
car this morning.

Old hyung

11:07 Shit, I didn’t think he would actually do it.

 Me

11:07 ??????

Hobari

11:07 ???????x2

Soulmate

11:07 yoongi hyung drop the TEA NOW!!

Me

11:08 hyung!! come on!

Jimin looks up from his phone and sees Kookie leaving the building towards where he is waiting
by his motorcycle. Jungkook is always so fucking cute with his hair growing longer, black cargo
pants and black T-shirt even in the middle of summer… Jimin has to control himself not to run
towards the omega and nom-nom his cheeks or something.

Soulmate

11:08 !!!!!!

Old hyung

11:08 Look, I don’t know how he found out, but yesterday or the day before, Kookie came to
me asking if Jimin had to change his motorcycle’s tire recently, more specifically on
Saturday, before you took him to the old warehouse to dance.

Soulmate

11:08 asaseewehsdhiweurioejwjsajidsdfhdijfwp

Old hyung

11:08 And when I asked why, he just said, and I quote: ‘I’ll fucking show Doyun’
Hobari

11:08

Soulmate

11:08 omg

11:09 im not gonna lie. that kid is one tough kookie

Hobari

11:09

Old hyung

11:09 You didn’t. Please tell me you didn’t just do that joke.

Hobari

11:09

Jimin zooms in on the first image and notices the nasty scratches on the side of the Porsche,
certainly made with the same sharp object that now lies inside the coziness of the rear tire. He can
perfectly visualize how the marks were left on the knife’s way there from the front pneumatic,
which seems to have released its last breaths of life, also melted on the asphalt.

Picturing Jungkook’s stomping steps, slowly threading the distance between the two tires with a
rapt smile... imagining Jungkook’s hand firmly clutched around the handle while scraping the
blade against metal, like fingernails on a chalkboard... it all somehow makes Jimin rather appeased
and his wolf wants to howl till he gets the whole campus’ attention to the fucking bad-ass omega
he gets to take on a date.

“Hyung?”

All of his thoughts are immediately captured by Kookie’s silky voice.

For what feels like a whole minute, Jimin just stares at him, at how handsome and cute he looks,
but also still trying to take in all of the new… information he has just learned.

“Hi, Jungkookie.”

Yeah, ‘Jungkookie’ is now a thing for them and Jimin can never use the suffix on the omega’s
name without an accompanying smile.

“Is everything alright, hyung? You look… startled.”

“Uhm, I was just…” Jimin wonders how to bring the whole thing up with the other, if at all. “Just
seeing a picture Tae sent me.”

“Oh…” Jimin notices how the boy averts his gaze, looking down like a puppy who chewed a pair
of sandals to pieces. “What picture?”

“Of a black car…” He tries to meet Kookie’s gaze, but the boy is still more interested in his own
feet. “At a parking lot, probably somewhere nearby…”

The omega does that sexy thing where his tongue pokes his cheek and Jimin is hanging by a thread
here wanting to kiss him.

“Do you know anything about it, Kookie?”

“Hyung, look, you can scold me all you want but I don’t regret it one bit.”

The omega is now facing him with a determined look. Still shy, though.

Jimin can’t help but giggle.

“You’re not mad?” The younger asks.

“No, I’m not.” Jimin can’t help but pinch his cheek. Whatever. Let Doyun come and confront
Jimin about the flat tires. He will gladly take all the blame. “But when he comes to me about it, let
me handle it, ok?”

“He won’t.” Jungkook says it with a terminative assuredness.

“And how do you know that?”

“I made sure to tell him not to.”

“You what??”

“Don’t worry, hyung. It’s handled.” He gets the helmet from Jimin’s hand, surely wanting to put an
end to the conversation. “Now, where are we going?”

“No, no, no. First you tell me what you mean.”

Jungkook sighs and takes his phone from his pocket. He opens a chat and brings the device closer
to Jimin’s ear to play an audio message.

“Stay. The fuck. Away. From Jimin. Otherwise, next time it will be your knot.”

Jimin almost chokes on his own breath.

Fucking damn. The way Jungkook sounds on the audio, speaking between clenched teeth, is so
cold and fucking sexy that it is already making Jimin’s alpha lose his mind!

Jimin also spots one text message on the same chat where Jungkook says ‘In case you dont get the
memo, remember I still have those photos’.
He doesn’t ask anything about that last part. Just gulps down, quiet and trying to get a grip on his
inner wolf, hoping all of the arousal pheromones he is letting out will go unnoticed. He puts the
helmet on and waits until the younger hops in the back.

“I also made a short video of it. If you’re a good hyung, I’ll show it to you someday.” Jungkook
then puts his helmet on and hugs the struggling alpha by the waist.

Fuck. Fuck. Jimin is so fucked.

He only manages to nod in response. He takes off and speeds, cursing in his head for about ten
minutes until he finally manages to calm down a little.

Jungkook is gonna drive him crazy.

After the forty-minute ride, they get to the mall two towns down south. Jungkook looks confused
at first, certainly wondering why they went to a whole other city just to eat lunch at a mall, but
when Jimin turns a corner and the younger sees the entrance to the huge VR arcade, he lightens up.

Something warm tickles inside Jimin’s belly upon seeing how excited Kookie is when he finds out
where the alpha is taking him.

“No way, hyung! I didn’t know there was such a big VR here!”

They get inside and Kookie quickly takes the lead, his voice going higher with elation while
explaining the games Jimin didn’t know about. With a smile, Jimin notices how they never let go
of each other’s hands, not since leaving the parking lot. When they have no other choice, they
release their hold to grab the basketballs (Kookie wanted to start with something easier on his less-
virtually-inclined hyung).

Jimin still finds ways to keep on touching the omega, ruffling the other’s dark hair or sliding a
hand down his arms every time he misses a shot (which is a lot of times). Kookie always welcomes
every touch with that toothy smile that crunches his nose and makes the dancer want to wrap him
in gift paper and take the boy home all for himself.

After spending a whole hour playing ‘Half-Life’ – “Only an hour”, Jungkook would argue – Jimin
complains about his eyes burning. Secretly, he only wants to move to a game where he gets an
opportunity to be closer to the younger. He has always been a physically affectionate person, and
finds himself wanting to touch Jungkook all of the time now.

“Come on, Jiminie-hyung. Let’s try something more old school,” a still excited Jungkook takes
him by the hand toward what seems to be a car racing one. “I’m sure you’re gonna be able to-”

So lost in each other, they barely notice the two other men just standing up from the equipment,
not until they are face-to-face.

“Hyung?” Jimin and Jungkook speak at the same time, then look at each other confused.

“Professor Kim?” This time it is only Jungkook.

Oh. Of course, he must be in Namjoon-hyung’s class, Jimin concludes.

The introductions are the most awkward three minutes Jimin has ever experienced.

The alpha who looks like a movie star – Kim Seokjin – is Kookie’s older cousin, which
immediately makes Jimin tense wondering if the encounter would end up leading to a whole family
drama after Jungkook’s parents hear about their precious son walking around holding a lone wolf’s
hand all afternoon. Seeing how the omega doesn’t seem to be particularly worried, Jimin allows
himself to relax a little.

After Jungkook confirms to be in Namjoon’s Business Law class, Jimin explains to him that
‘Namu-hyung’ is a manager at the label Yoongi produces for. That was the easy part.

Jimin notices how Kookie also seems to be picking in the air the way Namjoon’s pear and water
lily mixes with the other man’s sharper tea-leaves scent. Clearly wanting to dodge the explanation
about his own relationship with the beta professor/manager – judging from Jungkook’s surprised
expression at seeing the two together, probably not a very public one – Seokjin quickly moves the
conversation to “And who is your alpha, Kook-ah?”

Kookie’s face blushes into a burning red in record time. Noticing the omega’s panic and
increasingly sweating hand, Jimin intervenes.

“I’m Jimin.” He never really bothered using his surname, not since he was just a kid and was told
by an omega boy, one with parents, that lone wolves had no use for packnames. “I’m a
Contemporary Dance Major. Kookie has been taking dance lessons from me.”

Jimin didn’t know how much he could share, so he decides to stick with that for now. Jungkook
flashes him a half-smile, seemingly thankful.

“Ah, is that so? Nice to meet you then, Jimin-ah!” The alpha cousin replies with a heart-warming
smile. “Please take good care of my little cousin.”

“Wait, aren’t you supposed to be in Introduction to Marketing right now?” The assistant professor
interrupts the exchange rather abruptly to address his student.

“Ah, that’s right…” Kookie looks down and scratches the back of his neck, clearly a little nervous
to be caught skipping class. “But I-”

“What are you doing, Joon-ah?” The alpha raises his voice, but for some reason it sounds more
whining than an actual scolding.

“What?” The beta looks taken aback by his… companion(?)’s sudden reaction. “You were the one
who told me to keep an eye on him!”

“Yah!” Jimin wants to laugh at how the older alpha dramatically conveys his frustration with two
hands slowly sliding down his face. He likes this Seokjin, Jimin decides. “And since when do I
care about a stupid Introduction to Marketing class?”

“But…”

Apparently wanting to put an end to the conversation before the beta says even more than he
should have, Seokjin takes Kookie by the arm to the car racing seats.

“Come on, Kook-ah. Joonie is no fun at this. Let’s show them how it’s done.”

Kookie lets himself be pulled to the game with a smile.

And that is how the afternoon is spent: Jimin talks and learns more about the hyung he had met a
few times through Yoongi, while the both of them watch with loving eyes as the two cousins hop
from game to game excitedly.

“I didn’t know you were this close to Jeon Jungkook.” Namjoon says half-way through a frozen
matcha latte they got from the café while the cousins are distracted with a sniper game.

Jimin startles with the sudden question and looks back at the man, wondering where the beta is
trying to get with that.

“I think he didn’t know you were this close to his cousin either,” he retorts.

Seeing how the man melts into a smile by the simple mention of the handsome alpha, Jimin lets
his own guard down. Namjoon and those goddamn dimples always manage to make him soft.

“Kookie is helping me with the showcase.” He adds, deciding to let go of his defensiveness. “My
previous dance partner got injured, and Tae couldn’t replace him. So he kind of showed up out of
nowhere to help.”

It is Jimin this time who ends up smiling thinking about the omega.

“I take it, it is working out.” Namjoon says, leaving room for Jimin to speak more.

“Yeah… Kookie, he’s…” Jimin looks back at the two gamers bickering about choice of gun or
something and exhales another smile. “He’s an amazing partner. I’d be lost without him.”

Namjoon hums, satisfied, churning the remaining ice in his beverage.

“But if you are trying to get more intel on him for your boyfriend, it is Yoongi-hyung you should
go to. He is the one who introduced me to Jungkookie.” Jimin adds, trying to lighten the
conversation.

“Ah, is that so? Maybe I will, then.” The beta chuckles before sipping from the metal straw.
“Jinnie just worries about him, you know? He has the softest spot for Kookie, and when we found
out he was in my class, he begged me to watch out for him.”

It is Jimin’s turn to only hum, leaving room for Namjoon to fill in more blanks in their comfortable
conversation.

“Jinnie wants him to be able to take some breathing space from all of the… all the pack-pressure.
Just be able to see he can still make a choice for himself, you know.”

The way Namjoon speaks makes Jimin think it is something the beta knows better than he does
himself: about Jungkook’s pack and life. Maybe Jimin should ask more. He is always so fixated on
his own feelings of inadequacy that he had never stopped to just ask the omega about it.

Namjoon interrupts his thoughts, “He likes singing a lot, did you know?”

Oh, that Jimin knows. Jungkook sings like he needs to, like he will drown if he doesn’t. Nobody
sings like that unless they love singing. That Jimin knows.

“And he’s good,” the beta adds.

Again, Jimin knows he is. He smiles and nods, knowing how great Jungkook is.

“You’re coming to the showcase, hyung? On the 15th?” He suddenly asks, knowing that Yoongi
had invited him.

“I am.”

“You should bring Seokjin-hyung along. I think he’ll like it,” the alpha comments suggestively.

“Hyung!” Jimin and Namjoon turn to the left, where the sudden voice comes from.

The black-dressed figure runs towards them with a blinding smile and Jimin can’t fight the wide
grin on his own face for seeing Kookie happy like that. He is so fucking weak for the boy.

“Jiminie-hyung,” Jungkook stops right in front of Jimin and takes the alpha’s hand in his, a little
out of breath from the sprint. “Do you still have time or do we need to go back? Jin-hyung says
there’s a great pizza place on the third floor and I’m kinda hungry… Do you think we can go?”

Jimin has to bite his lower lip to stop himself from grabbing the cute omega’s face and kiss him
like crazy. Instead, he runs his other hand through Kookie’s hair to fix it a little.

“Of course we can, Jungkookie.” Jimin boops his nose, can’t resist it, missing how the other
couple silently coos at the scene. “Anything you want today.”

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

“What if I forget the steps?” Jungkook voices the fear that has been plaguing his mind, now that
the showcase is less than a week away.

It is Saturday afternoon and while Jimin is finishing his shift at the mall, Jungkook is at
Taehyung’s cabin to try his outfit for the umpteenth time now. The room looks much smaller than
Yoongi and Hobi’s and even Jimin’s. The plethora of art supplies spills out of the two windows
into the porch, each Boho decor piece screams for attention from every corner. Still, seeing how
easily Taehyung floats from the box full of pins and needles on top of the vintage butterfly sewing
machine to grab a pair of scissors from behind a row of colorful canvases makes Jungkook feel
oddly comfortable in the crowded room.

“You two have practiced the routine so many times that you will probably remember each step
even when you are in your seventies, Kookie.” The beta keeps on lining pin after pin on the side of
the black pants’ left leg.

“Ouch! Hyung!!” Seeing the grin on the other’s face, Jungkook is pretty sure Taehyung has
pricked his thigh on purpose, probably trying to distract the younger from his worried thoughts.
The omega is happy that, after all the meet-ups to make the showcase outfit, he is now on ‘hyung’
terms with Tae. The seamster stands up and helps Jungkook put the also-black jacket on.

“Stop holding your breath, Kookie.”

“Sorry,” he forces himself to exhale.

“Just ignore everything else that is not Jimin and the song,” Taehyung resumes the previous
conversation. Another trail of pins, now following Jungkook’s waistline up to under his arms.
“You got this, Kookie. You’re good. You’ll do well.”
Jungkook thanks Taehyung with a smile – a faint one, but sincere.

The beta never stops working on the clothes, making the breathing mannequin raise his arms,
squat, twist his torso to both sides. Seemingly pleased with the fit, he then makes Jungkook turn his
back to him, proceeding to work on the tricky part in the back of the jacket.

“I just don’t want to ruin it all…” Jungkook confesses to a pair of oil portraits hanging on the wall.
One of them is of a beautiful older lady with a boxy smile, whom Jungkook guesses must be Tae’s
grandmother. The other is undoubtedly Jimin, a cubist rendition clearly centered on the perfect
shape of the alpha’s lips. So pretty. “I know how important the showcase is to Jimin, and I’m
scared I’m gonna make a stupid mistake and ruin it all for him, hyung.”

Taehyung stops the pin work and turns the omega to face him again. “You won’t ruin anything,
Kookie. I know you won’t. You two have nailed the routine, I’ve seen it several times. Even I have
to admit it was a surprise. I thought Jimin would have to make many adjustments in the choreo,
bring it down a little, but quite the opposite. It is even better now! You two fit so well together, you
trust each other. It is something you usually only achieve after years as partners, but you got there
in weeks. Trust me when I say it, you two got this.”

Jungkook can see the sincerity in the other’s eyes but fears and worries are still boiling up in his
stomach. He sighs and looks down, still unsure if he is worthy of Taehyung’s words. But he smiles
and nods, wanting to trust them: the words, Tae’s judgment, himself.

He turns to face the wall again, letting the beta continue his work.

It doesn’t take too long after that. Taehyung takes the jacket back to the sewing machine and
Jungkook knows to take a seat by the bed and wait. The swinging sound coming from the butterfly
pedal lulls Jungkook’s ears and he leans back on his elbows, closing his eyes.

“I never really thanked you.”

Jungkook opens his eyes to see Taehyung unmoved, focused on the fabric, guiding the machine
into repetitive motions.

“For helping Jimin with the showcase. For the… uhm… scholarship interview date.” He clears his
throat and adjusts the fabric on the machine. “I’m really thankful, you know?”

Jungkook smiles and keeps watching the beta work. Back and forth, back and forth, Taehyung’s
foot on the pedal sets the machine into action again, triggering the hammering sounds of needle on
chiffon and cotton.

He doesn’t respond, doesn’t say anything – content to just watch. He studies Taehyung’s pursed
lips, heedful eyes and hands on the sewing threads. Something tells Jungkook that the other needs
the space, the silence. So he doesn’t say a word and waits.

“I’m sure Jimin or Yoongi-hyung must have told you already, but I used to be a trainee at MG.”

Jungkook hums in response. Taehyung doesn’t let his gaze leave the jacket, probably finding it a
good excuse to avoid eye contact and keep on talking.

“I was actually very close to debut. After three years training, they finally told me I had made it.
The last one to join a seven-member group. We already had a name and had recorded five whole
tracks. I could barely believe it. ‘A lone wolf turned idol’. Wild, right?”

The seamster chuckles. A sharp smell of lemongrass takes over the room. Crispy, almost charred.
“The day we were leaving the dorms to film the MV, one of the managers told me to stay behind. I
didn’t think too much of it at first. Thought I was gonna get scolded for the mess in my side of the
room. But then she told me there had been a change of plans, that the company thought the group
was not well-balanced, that maybe one more omega would work better, but they had to keep an
odd number.

“When I finally realized where she was trying to get to, I started crying. She tried to comfort me,
saying they would still allow me to be on the MV, to do back-up dancing. I sobbed even harder,
said I didn’t want to. Begged not to. But she advised me to do it. If I didn’t, they would use the
contract against me, make me pay an infringement fine.

“So I did it. I went to the filming site in the backseat of the manager’s car. My replacement was
already there. She was so pretty and nice. I put on a smile and did everything they told me to, then
cried in the bathroom when filming was over.”

Jungkook had no idea that is what had happened. Damn. He is angry just from hearing the story,
can’t even imagine what it must have been like for Tae.

“Turns out it was all bullshit. The omega was somebody’s daughter, a trainee coming from another
company to avoid a scandal or something. After a few phone calls, it was decided she would take
my place. In three days, they managed to put her voice and image in every track and photoshoot I
had already done. That week, I ran away in the middle of the night and Jimin took me in.”

“Fuck, hyung. That is… so… That’s so fucked up.” He wants to go to Tae and comfort him, hug,
scent him, but he doesn’t know if they are there yet. So he just releases some calming pheromones,
hoping they will help. “I’m so sorry, Tae.”

“Ah, it’s okay. I managed to get into Visual Arts, got a few jobs. The contract breach is all paid for
now. Grandma had some money saved, Jimin helped a lot. Even Yoongi and Hobi hyung pitched
in. It’s all good. I’m happy now.”

The beta finally makes eye contact with him. There are a couple of tears down his face, but he is
smiling. His scent is much fresher too, shy cherry notes making it sweeter.

Jungkook tries to smile back at the other, reassuringly. He thinks back to the first days after he had
met them all, when he asked Yoongi how come Taehyung was a packless wolf if he had a
grandmother.

‘Two lone wolves don’t make a pack, Kookie’ was Yoongi’s answer then.

Jungkook was so fucking clueless.

When he thinks back and realizes how he has been able to get closer to them all, now even Tae
opening up to him, Jungkook feels… warm. Honored. They are such great people, such great
wolves, and Jungkook just wishes he could have them in his life forever.

With these thoughts swirling around his chest, he stands up and approaches Taehyung, still at the
sewing machine which now lays quiet in front of its seamster. Jungkook crouches beside Taehyung
and holds his hand.

“I’m glad you’re happy, hyung. You deserve all the happiness.” He feels a little silly, wishing he
had better words to say.

When Taehyung smiles again, Jungkook exhales. Maybe his words were not so lacking after all.
“I told you all that because I wanted to say I’m sorry, Kookie.” His own furrowed brows tell
Taehyung to explain, so he goes on. “I have a hard time trusting people, after all that bullshit. So
when you approached Jimin… approached us, I just… I didn’t know what to think, couldn’t see
what was in it for you. So I was an asshole.”

Jungkook lowers his gaze and giggles. He was kind of an asshole.

“And I’m sorry.”

Jungkook meets Taehyung’s eyes and sees the hurt in them. A soft brush of knuckles on his cheek
is all it takes for the omega to leave it all behind.

“Don’t worry, hyung. You were a fun kind of asshole.”

Taehyung grins his wide boxy smile.

“Plus, I heard I actually snarled at you the day your rut ended, so I guess we’re even.” Jungkook
adds, slightly blushing, with a grin of his own.

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

The thing about the control room is that it has the best view. Not the closest to the stage, of course,
but the good thing is that there will definitely not be people standing up or talking in the middle of
a performance. That is why Yoongi thinks his is the best seat in the auditorium.

“Yo, hyung! Save a generous part of your first paycheck to treat your roommate, huh? I will take
nothing less than meat.” Hobi speaks over the intercom as soon as Yoongi is back. He can hear the
smile in the beta’s voice.

Just a few minutes ago, Mr. Bang arrived at the University theater with Namjoon to watch the
showcase and asked for Yoongi. Surprised that the man even knew his name in the first place, he
managed to run downstairs quickly to greet his boss. And just like that, he was formally offered a
permanent position at the label. An actual job, as a producer. Not a trainee, not an assistant. Just
‘Min Yoongi, music producer’ . He had to purse his own grin all the way back to the control room.

“Haha. Alright, Hobah. You’re first on my list,” he replies to the intercom mic. “All set here.”

“Copy that. Host is on stand-by. Eight minutes to show start.”

“OK. Let me know.” He refuses to use that ridiculous radio lingo.

Shifting his gaze to the sound table, Yoongi checks once again to make sure he has all the files
right. Three of the songs to be performed at the showcase were his own arrangements. Jimin’s had
been of course the most time-and-energy-consuming one, especially after having to make a change
in the beginning of the song last week.

The track is an orchestral version of a famous pop-song called ‘Black Swan’ – it took three whole
days recording the intricate violins which he was determined to add. He had to sacrifice more
sleepless nights than originally predicted, but Yoongi couldn’t be happier with the result. Plus, for
Jimin, he would do it all over again.
They met through Taehyung. The beta was a young trainee at MG and finally approached Yoongi
after seeing the omega camp at the label’s entry lobby for almost a week. It was a couple of
months after he had left home. He fell for a stupid scam and his song ended up being sold by a
fucker to MG as if it were their own, then released as a B-track on a group’s debut album. Yoongi
tried for days to speak to any of the MG producers who had worked on the song, to someone from
the legal team, anyone. But of course they didn’t even receive him.

Taehyung listened to his story. He then introduced him to Jimin, managing to get Yoongi a job at
the supermarket where the alpha was working at the time. He doesn’t know where he would be
today if it weren’t for Jimin. The dancer taught him everything about being a packless wolf, how
to apply for government financial aid, how to get into the scholarship programs. Fuck, Yoongi
didn’t even know there was a national official registration for lone wolves. It was thanks to Jimin,
who was only 18 then, that he got into University with the special scholarship.

So yeah, Yoongi would do anything for Jimin.

“Jack-in-the-box to Agust D. Jack-in-the-box to Agust D. Do you read me?”

Yoongi rolls his eyes to the nicknames as if Hobi could see his protest from the other side of the
intercom. “Yeah, I’m here.”

“90 seconds to show start. Roger that?”

“Yeah. All set.”

The performances are good this year, Yoongi thinks. He particularly likes an emotional
contemporary duo by Choi Hye-Yoon and another student whose name he doesn’t know. It was
only the two dancers with simple outfits and a sofa in the middle of the stage. But the rendition
was very powerful, almost making his eyes wet.

He doesn’t get to pay too much attention to other stages, focused on his own work. But when it is
Jimin and Kookie’s presentation, Yoongi stops everything to watch.

The stage is dark and Kookie lies barely visible right at the center, with his black outfit and dark
hair in a small bun that does nothing to hold some of the stubborn stray curls. He is crouching on
the floor, his strong body looking small and fragile.

Kookie snaps his head up at the sound of the first note and a light goes on at the right corner of the
stage to reveal a white ring floating in the air.

There it is: the adjustment he had to make to the song just last week at Jimin’s request. When
Yoongi learned what the change was for, he agreed immediately. If only he knew that all it took to
convince Kookie to sing publicly was Jimin’s asking, he would have started using this trick a long
time ago.

don’t cry, little pup

the moon shines bright

little pup, don’t fear

sing and the moon will hear

Kookie’s silky voice takes over the entire auditorium and ooing sounds bubble from the audience.
The omega sings the verses in a slow Ganggangsullae style. His clean but soft register manages to
stretch the air with acute emotion.

On the right corner, wearing all-white outfit and newly-dyed light gray hair, Jimin has his seat in
the marble moon that slowly lowers to the ground. The dancer makes the ring twist and turn with
him in the air smoothly, like clockwork set into motion by Kookie’s voice.

Black Swan - Orchestral version

Yoongi closes his eyes for a split second to appreciate how well the melody suits the chord
progression – the whole thing about D-minor being the saddest key was bullshit given the standard
tuning nowadays, but he always thought it to be kind of a romantic idea.

The way Kookie slides through the notes so smoothly makes it such an interesting contrast against
the dissonant violins that it gives Yoongi goosebumps. There is such emotion, such sadness in the
omega’s register. He manages to turn Ganggangsullae from the playful traditional tune sang in
groups for a bountiful harvest into a lonely cry to the skies. Kookie howls the last note of his verse
to Jimin like a wolf to the full moon.

Jimin dismounts the lunar ring and walks elegantly to the center of the stage. Ryeon, the beta
lighting operator, guides the eerie spotlight to follow the dancer in the off-white outfit. When the
first gayageum strings reverberate over the violins, the alpha takes over.

Yoongi will never cease to be amazed by Jimin’s dancing. He slides from motion to motion so fast,
so effortlessly. There is this serenity in his movements, like he unwrinkles the air with his limbs,
purging the world of its every edge.

After watching so many rehearsals and heated discussions between Hobi and Jimin about the
choreo, Yoongi can easily recognize some of the alpha’s movements. There are the fast-paced feet
and legs variation from the ‘Dance of the Little Swans’, sliding side-by-side and up-and-down
from tiptoe to heels, quick jumps with fluttering feet in the air. There is also the impressive
arabesque, hopping backwards on a tiptoe, completely en pointe. Hanging out so often with
dancers, one ends up learning some jargon.

Jimin just swiftly delivers intricate and perfectly executed movements throughout the first portion
of the song, several of them a reference to the Swan Lake ballet. His arms flap in the air, in gawky
waves that somehow manage to look extremely elegant, in the image of his Cygnus model.

All the while, Kookie lurks in the shadowed part of the stage. He watches and circles the
illuminated dancer in the center, curious like a wolf to prey. Slowly, the omega starts moving to the
music as well, an attempt to mimic the skilled danseur. Where Jimin’s turns and jumps are graceful
and joyous, Kookie’s isolations are sharp, raw. It is such an interesting contrast.

When the pre-chorus makes the violins speed up, Jimin concurs with turns. Fouettes are what they
are called, Yoongi knows that. One, two flawless spins quickly become ten, twelve. Kookie, now
much closer to the center, follows suit, but instead of fouettes, he break-dances into a powerful
windmill on the floor, circling Jimin’s stationed turns. Maybe it’s because it brings back memories
of his own b-boying childhood, but Yoongi loves that part.
Jimin’s chain of fouettes is suddenly interrupted when Kookie’s scissoring legs cut into the up-
until-now unequivocal routine.

The white-dressed dancer loses balance, his fall graciously stopped by trained hands. Yoongi
knows this is all part of the choreo – Jimin’s set of spins never intended to reach Swan Lake’s
fateful mark of 32. But he can still tell that most of the audience tenses up. So. Good.

That is when the duo actually starts, spotlights on each dancer now.

With still the same contrast in the way they approach every move, Jimin and Kookie dance around
each other. Sometimes mirroring the same steps, back to back. Sometimes clashing in lifts and
turns that synchronize but don’t exactly match.

The two figures move together as if they have just barely acknowledged each other’s existences.
Their movements are fast, their transitions swift. There is this building tension in the air, and the
song keeps gaining momentum.

Each of the two performers seem to dance only to the other. The music accompanies them, not the
opposite. They dance to each other with the curiosity and suspicion of two strangers who have met
in unfortunate circumstances. Suspicion becomes mistrust, and the tension grows into more violent
motions. Limbs cross and twist around each other; lifts end in sharp pushes and pulls. Strings
squeak in the background.

The next pull causes the sleeve on Jimin’s white jacket to come out and reveal a black fabric
underneath. The alpha responds on the next beat with a tug at Kookie’s right leg. The ripped off
cloth gives way to a shiny white material. Another sharp pull, and a trail of black feathers spill all
the way down on one side of Jimin’s lapel. One more, and it is the back of Kookie’s dark jacket
that is torn apart, to show a hidden canvas of white fur pompoms. Taehyung really outdid himself
this time with the attire.

It is not just the dancers that openly clash against each other at this point. It is their outfit ripping
off open fabric wounds, almost as if their touches stain one another. It is the two illuminating spots
that keep crossing and meeting halfway, in a rehearsed battle of light-swords. It is the duo of
violins disputing prominence in the track.

When the song reaches its peak right before the interlude, a low round leg movement by Jimin –
which looks much more like a Capoeira sweep kick – brings Kookie to the floor. The light dims
into just a faint beam. The song stops – all but a stubborn violin.

In an outburst, Jimin grabs Kookie by the hair and drags the omega strenuously across the stage, to
the dissonant spirals which the violin sketches in the air. After dumping Kookie’s body on the left
corner of the stage, Jimin toils back to the center. His right leg draws half-circles on the floor, in a
crafted limp-alluding movement. When he finally reaches the spotlight, alone and triumphant,
ready to take flight, Jimin smiles and collapses.

The violin staggers like the dancer’s steps, squeaking out echoing sounds. The strings whine eerily
in the background, giving way to a percussion break. As the wet snares start to thump against the
fading violin, Kookie stands up. Slowly, he walks each painful beat toward the center of the stage
where Jimin’s body lies. He collapses beside the motionless figure and the lights go out.

Yoongi closes his eyes and listens to the dark silence. It is just a three-second pause, carefully
calculated. He knows that. He did that. But the way the audience collectively holds their breath
makes Yoongi’s heart pump faster in anticipation.
When the song reverberates again in full force, spotlight back on the two dancers, Kookie has
Jimin’s heavy body on his back, facing the ceiling. He struggles to stand up supporting both of
their weights, the alpha’s arms loosely falling around his neck.

As if hit by a violent gush of life, Jimin’s limbs flutter up lively from Kookie’s curved back. The
alpha slides down and turns, standing firm on his feet. Kookie does the same. They face each other
in the center of the stage, their outfits now indistinguishably black and white, and Jimin offers
Kookie his hand.

As soon as Kookie takes the hand, the two dancers engage in a fast-paced sequence of lifts and
turns. What was first two clashing figures disputing space just before, is now replaced by a
beautiful procession of complementing motions.

Jimin gently tucks Kookie into an elegant fish dive. Yoongi barely notices the end of the
movement, because the next second Kookie is raising the alpha from the waist. Jimin has his back
to the audience, posture completely elongated, arched torso and limbs stretching backwards. As
Kookie lifts him vertically above his head, the alpha starts moving his arms in waves, gracious
wings trailing the air.

Kookie brings Jimin back to the ground again, and they keep alternating and merging jumps and
turns and lifts. The end of each movement is nothing but the beginning of the following, the two
bodies never go without touching. It is like separating becomes unthinkable, any distance
impracticable.

Yoongi knows the song is about to end, and right before all percussion dies out, Kookie wraps
himself around Jimin’s torso. Hanging only by his arms around the alpha’s neck, he bends his
knees in a bridal style position, while Jimin keeps pirouetting into the outro.

When only the last violin remains, uttering its final woes, Kookie holds Jimin with both hands from
his lower back and raises the dancer into a beautiful arched position above his head. Jimin’s left
arm is stretched and pointing gracefully to the ceiling, while his right one completes the arch right
behind the omega. Kookie then brings his own left arm from the alpha’s back and elongates it to
the side, while his right one completely stretches up holding Jimin’s whole weight. Yoongi finally
gets to see the famous ‘Angel Lift’ in its full glory.

As if it were not an enough display of strength and control, Kookie starts threading small
calculated 360ºs towards the left corner of the stage, his arm never once faltering under Jimin’s
gracious weight.

The violins fade out and Kookie brings Jimin down to an emotional back embrace.

Fuck.

Yoongi cries at yet another of Jimin’s performances.

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

Jungkook thinks he has never smiled so wide. He was a complete nervous wreck right before their
turn, to the point where Jimin had to hold him close and scent him a little in order to calm him
down. “You’ll do fine, little prince. You got this. I trust you. We’ll do fine, baby” were the words
Jimin kept whispering in his ear, while the smell of sea waves grounded him.
And now Jungkook doesn’t want to leave the stage. He soaks in the applause and cheers from the
audience. He keeps his eyes wide open, determined to memorize every second of it. Jimin has to
practically drag him out, giggling at probably how astounded he looks.

“You did so well, Jungkookie.” It is the first thing the alpha says when they get backstage,
bringing him to a tight hug and not letting go. “So good, you’re so good. Thank you, Kook-ah.
Thank you!”

“I can’t believe we did the Angel Lift right, hyung!” He is not sure whether he is laughing or
crying on Jimin’s shoulder. Probably both.

The next couple of hours pass by in a frenzy. Lots of people congratulate them. Jungkook has no
idea who two thirds of them are, but he doesn’t care. Jimin and he did the lift, did the whole thing.
And he sang. He fucking SANG. Live, on stage. Even Jin-hyung was in the audience! He swears
the alpha had some tears in his eyes the moment Jungkook started singing.

Everything is good with the world.

At some point, Jungkook notices he is holding two business cards from big music labels. He has no
idea how that happened. Jimin is approached by several other people who introduce themselves
with big dance company names. Even in the midst of his numb happiness, Jungkook finds himself
staring at his alpha with proud doe-eyes.

The only other thing Jungkook registers before Hobi is pulling them to the parking lot to go
celebrate (the beta announces with a grin that “Yoongi hyung is paying!”) is Taemin coming to
congratulate them. Jimin had told him that the older omega is in his last year and already has a
contract with a dance company, so he was only doing the showcase for fun. And for Jimin, of
course, which is something that unsettles Jungkook’s wolf a little, he can’t help it.

“Are you really feeling completely fine now, hyung? The ankle doesn’t hurt anymore?” Jimin asks
with a sweet voice and a hand on the other’s shoulder. If the alpha wasn’t holding Jungkook’s own
hand in his other one, he would definitely be releasing some claiming pheromones in the air.

“100% fine and ready to lose my dance partner forever apparently!” Taemin replies with a teasing
grin and Jungkook is not sure how to feel about the comment. “But seriously, you two did so well.
I was amazed! I can’t believe Kookie-ssi did all those lifts! The fucking ‘Angel Lift’, Jiminie! And
his voice! Where did you find him?”

Jimin giggles agreeingly and brings his arm around Jungkook’s shoulder, bringing him close and
bumping their heads caringly. “I know, right? He really is amazing.”

Jungkook is positively a tomato right at that moment. Between Taemin’s sincere compliments and
Jimin’s praise and tight hug, Jungkook simply melts into tomato purée on the ground. He stays
there in blushing puddle-form until Tae comes to make sure they leave, otherwise they will lose
their reservation. Even Jin-hyung and his ‘professor boyfriend’ end up joining the group for lamb
skewers. Yoongi’s treat.

He drives Jimin back to the dorms after dinner, the other three take ‘The King’ – Jimin still rolls
his eyes upon hearing the car’s name.

“Thanks, Kook-ah.” The alpha turns and smiles at him as he parks the SUV. “Come in for a
minute? I-uhm... have something for you.”
Yes! Jungkook celebrates the invitation internally. “Of course, hyung.” He tries to voice his
excitement one or two tones-down.

They enter the cabin hand-in-hand. It is such a common thing for them nowadays – holding hands
– but it never fails to make Jungkook’s stomach flutter. Jimin turns the main light on and asks if
Jungkook wants something to drink. He doesn’t. The alpha then hurries upstairs to grab something,
telling Jungkook to just hold on a minute.

When Jimin told him he had something for him, Jungkook legit thought he meant his knot.

The omega just took it as Jimin’s poor excuse to ask him over. After the warehouse dance, they had
this tacit agreement to not take things further until the showcase, focus on practice. So Jungkook is
not gonna lie: he was anticipating this today. He was ready to invite himself in had Jimin not been
quicker.

So, now, as he holds the wrapped box in his hands, he doesn’t really know what to do.

He was not expecting a present. His mind is already twirling inside his skull wondering what kind
of gift that is when Jimin speaks.

“Before you open, I just wanted to say thank you.”

Oh. It is that kind of gift again, then, huh?

“You really have to stop thanking me, hyung. It’s getting old already.” He complains sweetly,
trying not to sound too disappointed.

Jimin smiles.

“But I really am thankful. For all you did for me. For your help, your patience, your relentless
efforts… But most of all, Kook-ah, I’m thankful for you. For meeting you, for your… existence.”

Jungkook lowers his gaze and blushes, smiling. “Ah, hyung, stop. You’re gonna make-”

“Here,” Jimin interrupts him with gentle hands hovering around his. He starts removing the white
waxed paper from the small box that Jungkook still holds untouched. “Let hyung help.”

The first thing Jungkook notices is the beautiful blue wolf howling to a bright full moon. It is
beautifully carved on black wood and inlaid with what looks like carefully cut pieces of abalone
shells. The corners of the hexagon-shaped box are framed in an intricate floral pattern.

“Hyung… It’s… beautiful.”

“I-I wanted to make you something to remember the performance by.”

“Wait. Did you do this yourself ?”

“U-hum.”

“The whole carving, the lacquering?!”

Jimin nods.

Damn. Jungkook can barely believe it. He takes one of his hands from under the box, making sure
he has a steady grip with the other. He then starts to trace the delicate inlays of mother-of-pearl,
taking his time to appreciate every detail. So. Pretty.
What makes Jungkook’s heart beat a little faster is not only the new-found knowledge that Jimin is
a talented Najeonchilgi crafter. It is also the implication that the alpha has personally handmade
this as a gift for him. If this is not instruction-book courting, he doesn’t know what is.

“Here, there’s more on the sides.” Jimin tilts the box so Jungkook can see. They are like three sets
of small frames. In the first pair, there is a white wolf, fur as bright and white as the full moon
depicted in the distance, at the right corner. The white wolf seems to be observing the blue-furred
one from afar. All around the two-framed panel are intricate carvings depicting a forest.

Jimin rotates the box clockwise to show the second double-panel. In this one, the white wolf has
reached its blue companion, who is still unaware of another presence, consumed in his howls to the
moon. A final axis-turning and the third panel reveals the two wolves now facing each other under
the moonlight, muzzles slightly touching in an intimate gesture.

“The blue wolf is singing to the moon, thinking nobody is listening.” Jimin explains, tracing the tip
of his index finger from the main carving on the lid down to the laterals. “But this white wolf is
always listening.”

“Jiminie, this is all so… So beautiful. I-... I don’t even know what to say.”

He looks at Jimin, his Jimin, who shines so bright with new light-gray hair, a pearly shade like the
moon in the box, like the inlaid white wolf. He looks at the alpha and feels his eyes lacquer with
tears.

“But you also have to look inside.” The alpha pouts and Jungkook’s heart is too weak for the cute
alpha, for the cute talented alpha and his precious gifts.

He furrows his brows, completely focused on the action of opening the prized case. Inside, there is
a necklace with a circular pendant. It is also filled with pearly white and there is a small point of
light closer to the bail.

Jimin, seemingly anxious to explain all of the gifts, takes the collar from the box. He slides his
fingers down the chains to the pearly pendant and shows it to Jungkook.

“Here. So you can carry the moon you are always singing to.”

The alpha then turns the pendant around to reveal a different face. The material is also nacre, but a
yellowish one, and the whole circle is framed by tiny points of lights. “And in the back is the sun.
To remind you that you shine the brightest to me.”

Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.

Jungkook has to purse his lips to not start crying. He really really really hopes this means what he
thinks it does.

“Help me put it on?”

Jimin smiles and nods. The next moment, the necklace is on. Jungkook brings his fingers to touch
the smooth surface of the pendant, then back to the now closed carved box.

“J-Jimin, thank you. Thank you, really.” His voice falters, so he clears his throat. He is determined
not to cry. Not yet. But when he looks the alpha in the eyes, he can already taste the impending
tears. “They’re the most precious gifts I have ever gotten, hyung.”

The dancer averts Jungkook’s gaze and bites his lower lip. He then takes a deep breath. “You
 know they’re not just thank-you gifts, right?”

And apparently that is the last drop. Jungkook’s silent tears start coming down.

“T-they’re not?” He needs the confirmation. He needs to hear it.

But Jimin just shakes his head in response.

“W-what are they, then, Jiminie?”

“The same as the other ones,” he mumbles and looks away.

Jungkook notices how Jimin keeps fiddling with his own sweater. Seeing the alpha so nervous is
kind of endearing. After all the sweet, heartfelt things Jimin has said to him while explaining the
gits, Jungkook finds it cute that the other is having such a hard time just replying to his question.

“H-hyung, look at me.”

He does. As soon as Jimin’s eyes meet his, they widen, painted with clear concern.

“Aish, you’re crying… Why are you crying?” Jimin brings his thumbs to dry the few tears that
slide down Jungkook’s cheeks.

“B-because… Because I want it, hyung. I want you to court me!”

There. He said it.

“And I know it’s complicated. Fuck, I know. I have no idea how to make this work, with my
parents and all, but I… I want to try, hyung. I want to. I want you. I want you so bad, Jimin.”

The next moment, Jimin grabs him by the nape and kisses him. First, a tight peck with eyes shut
closed, as if trying to silence Jungkook. Then, a series of brief open mouthed kisses intercalated
with whispered ‘I want you, too’s. Jungkook kisses him back, lets the alpha take the lead.

When they are both a little out of breath, Jimin rests his forehead against Jungkook’s and looks at
him straight in the eyes. They stay like that for a minute or two, just breathing in each other’s
gazes.

“So… does this mean you accept this as my courting gift?” Jimin asks with a husky voice. The
alpha raises his right hand and touches the pendant on Jungkook’s collarbone.

Jungkook smiles and brings his head back a little to bump their foreheads together gently.

“I do, Jiminie. This and all the previous ones. All of them.”

Chapter End Notes

.
.
.
.
.
Jimin is just so SO precious, isn't he?

I hope you enjoyed the chapter and the Showcase scene with Yoongi’s POV! I
watched a LOT of performances for inspiration while writing that scene, but I
particularly wanted to suggest Bourne's Swan Lake and its male-male pas-de-deux .
The whole routine is stunning, but if you don't wanna watch it all, at least watch the
minute-and-a-half that starts at 15'.
 ‘Fight harder, huh? I don’t see you fighting so hard, Baby’
Chapter Summary

Jimin's rut. That's it. That's the chapter. (also a bit more about his past)

Chapter Notes

I could write about Jiminie's rut for the rest of my life.

This is gonna be hard, but I will try to signal the most explicit parts between the usual
"(***)", but be warned there will be some sexier moments right before/after them that
are plot important, so I'm keeping them "in the open".

See the end of the chapter for more notes

Just one more time, from the top.

Jimin knows this must be his sixteenth ‘one more time’ by now. He knows Kookie is getting
impatient waiting for him upstairs. He is not much better himself, after almost a whole week apart,
while the omega had his marathon of finals.

But Jimin needs to practice one more time, needs to perfect this solo. His auditions for some of the
biggest dancing teams in the country are in less than two weeks, and he cannot mess this up.

The showcase was an utter success: by the end of the night, he had a total of eight business cards
with audition invitations, the National Ballet included. Jungkook himself has been invited to a
couple of auditions after his outstanding vocals in the beginning of their performance. His singing
was amazing, and he looked so damn happy on stage. That is why Jimin has been trying to
convince him to at least try the auditions.

He does not pressure the younger too much though. He now knows how adamant his parents seem
to be in making him (and his future spouse…) the family business’ successor and how much this
has affected every (not) choice in Kookie’s life so far. So Jimin gives him space, encourages the
omega to at least consider the possibility of going to the auditions, makes him flirt with the idea of
trying it out, just to see how it goes.

Jimin has to push his always-wandering thoughts to the back of his mind in order to focus on a
particularly challenging series of leaps and turns. Right after finishing the sequence without major
issues, he hears Jungkook’s approaching steps, and smiles.

“Alexa, stop.” The omega interrupts the song with a firm voice.

Jimin turns to him, not without putting on a curious look and a bratty pout.

But the joke is on Jimin.

His pout quickly dissolves into an ‘oh ’-shape when he sees the younger standing before him,
wearing only a pair of boxers besides the electric guitar that hangs from his shoulder. Fuck. Jimin
is so fucked in this omega’s hands.

Jungkook, certainly aware of the effect he has on the alpha, shows him a brief crooked grin and
plugs the black guitar into the amplifier he borrowed from Yoongi. Jimin stands still, waiting for
something he is sure, is going to make him forget about practice and auditions and everything else
in the entire Universe.

Teach Me Tiger - Balz Bachman

After trying three chords to make sure everything is working fine, Jungkook slides the Iron Man
pick down the nickel strings, introducing a ballad Jimin is not sure he is familiar with.

“Teach me, wolfie / How to kiss you / grrr-wooo-woooo-grrrr”

Oh fuck.

“Show me, wolfie / How to kiss you / grrr-wooo-woooo-grrrr”

Fuck. Fuck. The way Jungkook sings the end of each verse like a low growl, with just a tint of
howling: it goes straight to Jimin’s cock. He sits down on the wooden floor, forearms leaning on
raised knees, and wonders how far into the song he is gonna make it before he jumps on the
delicious omega.

From the new angle, Jimin starts admiring the other’s now longer hair, half of the curls refusing to
be tamed by a hair tie. The next time Jungkook does the growling part, he notices how the omega
crunches his nose cutely and Jimin doesn’t know how to feel about the duality of it.

He wants to eat him up.

Lowering his gaze, Jimin drinks in the pretty mole under the omega’s rosy lips, his thick neck and
broad shoulders. He is so fucking strong, his skin so soft. Gaze falling a little lower, Jimin licks his
own lips not even trying to hide the way he stares at the man’s nipples, so hard and small peaking
out from the expanse of his hulky chest. When they make eye contact again, Jungkook shows him
another crooked smile, that is telling of how he is aware of the alpha’s eager stare.

Jungkook walks two steps forward and goes down on his knees, still playing the guitar and singing
in the sexiest register Jimin has ever heard. The alpha doesn’t think twice and starts crawling in
Kookie’s direction, never taking the pair of hungry eyes off of him. Damn, he is so fucking hot!

“Teach me wolfie / how to tease you / grrr-wooo-woooo-grrrr”

Jimin chuckles hearing the verse, and brings his left hand to touch Kookie’s muscular thigh. He
raises his body to look the omega straight in the eyes and tucks a dark piece of hair behind the
pierced ear. His thumb lingers on a caress over the other’s cheek. Damn, he wants to kiss him so
bad.

“But teach me, wolfie / Or I’ll teach you”

That’s it for Jimin. He places his palm on the guitar’s neck and interrupts the little show because
he can’t take it any longer. Jungkook smiles knowingly, expectantly. Jimin interrupts the smile as
well: with an impatient kiss, he licks and nibbles and moans into Kookie’s lips.

“I’ll teach you, little prince.” Jimin takes the guitar pick from Jungkook’s fingers and brings it
close to his mouth. He then grazes the plastic over the omega’s lips and motions for him to take it
between his teeth. “Hold this for me like a good boy, huh?”

(***)

Jungkook’s eyes widen and a new wave of cream and nuts envelop them in thick arousal.

Jimin removes the electric guitar from the omega’s hold, unplugs it and carefully places it beside
them on the ground. The boxers go next, swiftly thrown across the room. He can smell the
omega’s slick, dense in the air, and it makes him shiver a little.

Not bothering to take off his own clothes, Jimin lowers his sweatpants just enough to let his fully
hard cock out. A hand on the omega’s butt brings the other closer to straddle him. Without a word,
he guides Kookie’s rim onto his dick, knowing he was still stretched from their morning quickie.

When he bottoms out, Jungkook moans through the guitar pick still between his front teeth. Fuck.
He is so wet and hot.

“Come on. Now that you interrupted my dance practice like a spoiled brat, you’d better ride me
until you come.”

Jungkook hisses and starts moving. He is so out of it already, unable to keep a steady pace from the
very start. Jimin leans back onto his elbows and lets the omega ride him at will. Sometimes he
shifts a little, keeping his weight on one arm to bring a hand to Kookie’s lips, to twist a dark nipple,
hold him by the lean waist.

Noticing how Kookie’s rhythm slackens a little, Jimin slaps his thigh loudly. “Come on.” One
more slap. “Don’t you wanna ride your alpha, baby?” Jungkook shuts his eyes at each hit and
moans, but still tries to reestablish his pace.

Needing more, Jimin holds Jungkook’s hips up and pulls out. Before the omega can whine a
complaint, he motions him to turn around and lay on his stomach.

“No, not on the floor.” He guides Kookie’s hips toward the guitar that lies on the wood tiles.
“Here.”

Careful not to hurt the other with the bridge and pickups, Jimin maneuvers Kookie to bend his left
knee and places his groin right on top of the guitar’s body.

“Is this okay? Doesn’t hurt?”

Jungkook shakes his head emphatically.

“If it hurts, tell me and I’ll stop immediately, okay?”

Jungkook nods, and grabs Jimin’s thigh behind his own body to pull the alpha closer. Jimin giggles
at how eager the little prince seems to be. “Ok, ok. I got you, baby.”

As soon as he sinks back down into Kookie’s hole, Jimin realizes he won’t be able to control
himself at all. The boy is so pliant, so open and wet under him. “Fuck, baby. Fuck, you’re so damn
hot!”

He thrusts and pounds into the omega recklessly. His hands slide up and down Jungkook’s arms
and thighs, he kisses the side of his neck, his shoulders, desperate to show how much he adores
him.

Jungkook is not much better himself. He moans loud, hisses and drools around the guitar pick, still
following his alpha’s command to hold it in his clenched teeth. The mix of precum and slick that
leaks down smoothens the slide of the omega’s dick against the guitar’s body. And every time the
tip of Kookie's cock touches the metal strings, he almost convulses under the alpha’s weight.

Jimin has half a mind to remove one of the strings from the guitar to wrap Jungkook’s wrists
together and make him even more pliable, but he is too far in already, too close to release. Maybe
next time…

“J-Jungkookie…” He can’t hold a prolonged moan, “J-Jungkook-ah, I… I can’t… I-I need to

come, baby.”

Oh, shit. He can’t hold it any longer.

Jimin cums hard. Damn , he cums a lot. While he is still releasing inside the omega’s hole, Kookie
starts shivering under him. He stutters moan after moan, hoarse but loud repetitions of the alpha’s
name. Jimin shushes him with kisses against his sweaty skin, with loving reassurances and praises.

(***)

“Kookie, what is your scent?”

It is later that day, twilight fading outside his cabin’s window. After taking a shower together and
eating a quick chicken sandwich which Jimin had brought earlier from the mall, they decided to
just laze out in his bed upstairs.

They have been doing that a lot: spending time together at Jimin’s cabin or walking in the woods
nearby. It is just easier like that, not having to worry whether somebody will see them and end up
telling Jungkook’s parents before they are ready to face the storm.
They need time. Time to get to know each other better, time to figure things out. It’s okay, it’s how
it should be, Jimin tries to reassure himself. Still, that old feeling of strandedness, of inadequacy,
takes over him every now and then.

“Hm?” Kookie, a little sleepy, turns in Jimin’s hold.

“What is your scent? I can’t… pinpoint exactly what it is.” Jimin has been meaning to ask him this
for a while now, curious about it, but somewhat annoyed that he still can’t determine his omega’s
scent.

Jungkook giggles.

“What?”

“Took you a while,” the omega smiles half a dozen pecks on Jimin’s chest.

“What do you mean?”

“Ah, people always ask me about my scent, because it is a bit… specific.”

“ Oh. Yeah… I mean, I know there is something sweet and creamy, like a-uhm… a meringue?”

“Yes!” Kookie seems excited that Jimin got that right, so he decides to carry on with the guessing
game.

“And then there is also a woody, nutty tone. It is buttery, but also fresh, greenish, I don’t know…”

Jungkook nods with a grin, encouraging Jimin to continue.

“Is it a nut?” The alpha asks.

“Yes…” Kookie raises a brow, expectantly.

“Hmm, let’s see… Maybe almond…? No. Pistachio. Is it pistachio?” Jimin asks, a little unsure.

“Yes,” Jungkook smiles wide. “You’re good at this!”

Jimin’s wolf perks up at the praise for some silly reason and he can’t hold back a small smile of his
own.

“But then… there’s a third note. Strong , but it doesn’t come out too often. I don’t know…
Sometimes it reminds me of leather, sometimes it is a straw rope…”

Ugh! So frustrating! Jimin really can’t tell what it is. The day he felt the leathery tone the most was
that one time in front of Tae’s dorm, when Kookie’s scent went all over the place in such an
overwhelming way. It was not very common for wolves to have a third element to their scent, and
for those who did, it was usually a rather faint one. But Kookie’s was so pungent, so staggering.

“It’s saffron,” Kookie reveals.

Oh.

“My mom says it is her cousin’s fault,” he explains with a happy giggle. “She was pregnant, around
12 weeks in, when she went to visit a cousin in Australia. He took her to a pastry store specialized
in some kind of local dessert, the saffron-pistachio flavored one ended up being her favorite. When
mom came back, she drove all the cooks in the house crazy until one of them managed to replicate
it.”

Jimin enjoys it: hearing Jungkook telling stories about himself, his childhood, his family. Even if
his parents sound like your usual stuck-up rich people, even if Jimin hates the way they pressure
the omega into a life he never got to choose for himself, the endearing way in which Jungkook tells
the story about his mom’s pregnancy and the sweetness in his scent tell Jimin that there is some
love and caring in their family. He can tell it in a way only someone who has spent his whole life
deprived of that kind of love could.

“And what local dessert is that?” Jimin asks, wanting to hear more from the omega.

“It is called pavlova.”

Oh. Something shakes deep inside of Jimin.

“L-Like, the one named after Anna Pavlova , the Russian ballerina…?”

“Yes! Did you know that?” Jungkook smiles again, looking just a little surprised. “Ah, but of
course a dancer would know that.”

Shit.

“Ah, yeah…” Jimin takes a deep breath, trying to calm his thoughts down. “It must have been
Yoongi-hyung.”

“It surely sounds like something Yoongi-hyung would know,” Jungkook agrees with a giggle.

Yeah, it definitely is something Yoongi would know, something he could have told Jimin. The
plethora of random facts stored in the older omega’s brain definitely feels endless.

Only it is a lie.

It is a lie and Jimin knows it. He tries not to fixate on that, not to let his mind be flooded by the
memories of that day . Jimin notices his whole body stiffen, as if attempting not to stir the thoughts
inside his skull. But it was too late. The olives in her scent, the melodic sound of her voice swirl
around his head. “Did you know this sweet is named after a very famous ballerina, Anna
Pavlova?” ... “Do you like it, little seashell?”

Fuck. His scent must be a mess right now, but Jimin still can’t bring his body to move. All the
swirling memories, the painful thoughts… Like a storm, they want to leak out of his mind. They
threaten to spill through his scent glands, through his eyes. He can’t let them out. He doesn’t want
them to.

“Hey, Jimin. Jimin, can you hear me?” He tries to focus on Jungkook’s voice. “Jimin, breathe.
Come here.”

He goes into the hug Jungkook is offering. He dives into it, his nose immediately searching for the
omega’s scent gland, taking in the soothing nutty freshness. Even the leathery tone which indicates
Kookie’s worry manages to make Jimin feel better, grounds him slowly. Jungkook’s arms hold
Jimin tight enough to make him feel safe, the appeasing circles the other keeps drawing on his
back enrapture his thoughts back to the present moment.

“Sorry, sorry…” He mumbles against skin, mouth still digging into the younger’s neck. “I’m just
stressed about all the auditions. Don’t worry, baby.”
Jungkook pecks his shoulder in response, “Ok, ok.”

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

Having enrolled in the Mandarin intensive course back in February was one of the best decisions
Jungkook has ever made.

It was summer break, and the preparatory lessons for the HSK 5 exam were the perfect excuse to
avoid having to go back home for the month. Meaning: he could meet Jimin almost everyday! The
alpha was busier than Jungkook expected, with his job at the mall, extra dance classes he was
teaching in order to save some money, plus all the preparation for more auditions. But they always
found a way to at least have lunch together.

When he was not with the dancer, Jungkook would spend time around the dorms with Hobi or
watch Yoongi work on a track for hours. Taehyung was also back, his grandmother now mostly
recovered from the surgery. The beta was on cloud nine after winning second place in the
scholarship process – he did not get the trip to Amsterdam, but all his spendings with art material
would be covered until graduation. Jungkook also met Jin a couple of times for dinner. Usually he
brought Profes-- brought Namjoon along (the beta kept scolding him every time he used the
‘Professor’ title outside Uni).

It was a great break.

He has also been uploading more song covers these days, his channel doing numbers. Now the
whole group of wolves knows about it. Jin has easily summoned Hobi to the 'Hyping up Jungkook
to Take the Auditions Squad', along with Jimin, of course. It was kind of endearing, but he was glad
none of them pressured him too much about it.

Of course he wants to do it. Every now and then Jungkook daydreams about passing an audition,
recording, performing on stage again, having people listen to his singing… He keeps writing lyrics
in his diary and his notes app. Lonely words about the moon crying brightly in the sky. Cornered
letters about four scents left by the four seasons. Staring at them like that, lying dead on white
paper, Jungkook wonders about the purpose of hollow songs that will never be heard.

And… he has zoned out again.

Jungkook checks the time on his phone: 6:50 pm. With only ten minutes to the end of the class, the
omega rushes through the last page of his calligraphy exercises, managing to finish them just in
time.

[From: ]

Waiting right up front. Take your time

Jungkook all but runs out of the classroom. It is Tuesday, Jimin’s day off, so the alpha is picking
him up after Mandarin class. They will probably go back to the dorms, grab dinner at Yoongi’s and
then spend the night in Jimin’s cabin. Jungkook can’t wait to have the alpha all to himself after a
whole weekend apart when Jimin went to visit Tae’s grandmother.

He goes down the large marble stairs skipping every two steps like a hopping bunny. Going
through the main door, he immediately feels July’s implacable heat. Across the street, leaning
against his Yamaha, Jimin smiles at him sheepishly and it is like a breath of fresh air.

It takes him a couple of steps to notice the black Genesis parked right in front of the building.
When the driver opens the passenger’s door, it is already too late: Jungkook finds himself facing
her , with no escape route he could take and pretend he was distracted with something else.

“Kookie, my child!”

“Auntie…?”

His panicked face must be obvious enough. “Don’t look so surprised to see me, my dear.”

She hugs him and Jungkook manages to make eye contact with Jimin, who was already walking
toward him. He shakes his head insistently, eyes wide, trying to tell the alpha not to get closer. He
notices the hurt look on his boyfriend’s face and feels guilty immediately, but what else could he
do?!

“Let me look at you.” The old woman, shorter but with a strong grip, holds him by the shoulders.
“Ah, always so pretty and cute. Your mother would have a syncope just upon seeing these boots.”

Of course. That must be why she is here. Sang Seohyun, his mother’s aunt, is one of the most
respectable alphas in the family. One of the sneakiest, too. Her elegant outfit is as unfaltering as
her intentions.

“Now tell me more about what you are doing these days. How is school going?” Apparently
oblivious to Jungkook’s turmoil, the woman takes him by the arms and starts walking back to the
building.

“Uhm, I was just leaving my Mandarin class, Auntie. I-I have a big exam coming, so I was heading
home to study.”

Feeling anxious about the situation, he wants to look back to check on Jimin, but resists the urge.
He cannot let her notice anything. That is probably the very reason why she is there: to find
something on him.

“Oh, such a diligent little omega. Don’t worry, child. Auntie is not going to take too much of your
time,” she adds with a rehearsed smile. “I am here to meet Dean Choi for tea, so I thought I would
be a little early and see my dear nephew.”

He feels relieved upon hearing that at least he won’t have to cancel his plans with Jimin. Now he
just has to find a way to text the alpha and let him know about the situation.

“I barely hear any news about you from your own mother, so the best thing is coming directly to
the source, don’t you think?”

She admits it, then, huh?

While his aunt is distracted pointing out every detail that looks different in the building from when
she was studying there, Jungkook manages to text Jimin apologizing and asking him to wait ten
more minutes. He gets no response, so he can only hope.
It turns out that ten more minutes ends up becoming thirty when both his aunt and the dean insist
that Jungkook have at least a teapot of Jasmine with them. When he rushes out of the building for
the second time that day, he can’t help but grin wide, relieved to see the alpha once more leaning
against his motorcycle. This time he already has his helmet on.

As he spots the omega practically running towards him, instead of his usual welcoming smile,
Jimin turns around and mounts the vehicle, silently waiting for the younger to hop on as well.

Jungkook decides to just do as he is shown and postpone the argument for later. The alpha is
clearly upset, with every reason to, so he hopes the ride to the dorms will help in diffusing the
other’s anger and maybe a bit of his own guilt.

When Jimin exits the campus and takes the Boulevard instead of Main, he knows there has been a
change of plans. Fuck. He must be really upset.

They stop in front of Jungkook’s building and Jimin doesn’t even turn the engine off. He just waits
for the omega to hop off. Jungkook does so, slowly removing the pink helmet and placing it on the
back seat.

“Hyung…” Standing beside the handgrip, Jungkook holds the alpha’s left wrist and pushes the
visor of his helmet to be able to look him in the eyes. “Are you leaving already?”

“ ‘M tired,” he forces a cold stare, but Jungkook can smell the pungent oceanic sulfur growing
stronger.

“Come up and rest, then.”

Jimin furrows his brows, as if doubting what he has just heard.

“Please…?” Jungkook adds, brushing his thumb over the alpha’s scent gland on his wrist. After a
brief moment where Jimin seems to be pondering, the gentle scenting apparently works. Never has
the sound of a dying motorcycle engine felt so sweet to Jungkook’s ears.

He takes the alpha by the hand all the way to his apartment, sometimes briefly scenting him on the
wrist again, now with the tip of his index finger. It is Jimin’s first time there – Jungkook can see a
hint of curiosity slowly melting the coldness in the older’s stare.

Jungkook doesn’t know why he had never brought Jimin there. It just didn’t seem… necessary .
Even if it was highly unlikely that his parents would show up — unannounced or at all —, it felt
like an unnecessary risk when they had Jimin’s cabin, so perfect, so cozy like the alpha himself.
Why would Jimin want to go to Jungkook’s lifeless home, full of empty spaces, when he had his
warm cabin and friends around?

“So, uhm. Welcome to the apartment.” Jungkook says awkwardly, letting the alpha in and turning
the AC on. “Here. You can wait there while I get us some tea,” he motions to his empty living
room where a TV and video game lie in front of a large brown carpet.

Jungkook is back just a few minutes later, sitting close to Jimin on the beige couch.

A deep breath in and he goes straight to the point, “I’m really sorry, hyung. I didn’t know what to
do.”

The alpha doesn’t say anything, just sips on the black tea.

“It was my mom’s aunt. She just showed up out of nowhere, and I knew she was there to tell on
me, so I just couldn’t…”

Ugh, this all feels so bad. Jungkook only feels worse after poorly wording the whole thing. It is not
like he was trying to hide his alpha, but it is exactly what he ended up doing, and he hates it. He
hates not knowing what to do, hates that he doesn’t have a plan for them, for himself.

“I’m sorry, hyung…” He can’t even look the alpha in the eyes. “I just… I need to think of a way
that they won’t… ruin this. I just… I don’t know what else to do and it sucks and I-”

“Hey,” Jimin’s hand on his thigh gets his attention. The alpha’s eyes are back to their usual
warmth. “It’s okay. I know.”

Jungkook notices how the alpha starts releasing calming pheromones. They hit him like waves,
making him close his eyes, shoulders relaxing.

“We don’t need to have it all figured out already, Kookie. It’s okay.”

The inviting tone in Jimin’s voice and scent makes Jungkook move closer into the alpha’s hold. He
hugs him in a not very comfortable position and mumbles another “ ‘M sorry” against his neck.

“I’m sorry too. I guess it is this pre-rut. I’m already too tense.” Now that he said it, Jungkook
notices how the alpha’s scent seems to be a little over the edge, even releasing calming
pheromones a little more aggressively than usual. “I told you I can be a lot…”

“No, never a lot.” Jungkook holds him even closer and brings the pouting alpha to lay down with
him on the couch. His skin feels a little warmer than usual, too, now that Jungkook pays attention.
“You’re just the right amount, hyung. Just perfect.”

It is Thursday evening when it finally happens.

[From: ]

I think I’m close now.

[To: ]

Oh. ok ok. on my way

[From: ]

Can you bring your pillow..? If it’s not too weird?

His pillow? Jungkook wonders why. Maybe Jimin got a little excited and ended up damaging his
own? Maybe it is a scent thing? But then why a pillow and not his clothes?
[To: ]

of course! i’ll bring two

[From: ]

Thank yoooou, Jungkookie

He takes his two pillows. And two extra sets of sheets, in case the alpha didn’t have the time to
wash his own. Then there is his backpack with changes of clothes, towels, ice packs, a pistachio-
scented massage oil he managed to find online, scented candles, too. There is also a bag with
Jimin’s favorite snacks, bottles of water and some of a sugar-free electrolyte drink.

From the fridge, he gets the gimbaps and sandwiches he prepared earlier – all with an extra meat
serving: his alpha dancer needs the protein intake! Now that Jungkook thinks about it, he should
have gotten some protein shakes too. Damn it. He searches the cabinet next to the fridge – there
must be something somewhere… Ah, there! Three individual bags, one chocolate and two
strawberry flavored ones. Jiminie likes strawberries, right?

When he finds himself unable to open the front door because of how many bags he is carrying,
Jungkook wonders if maybe he is overdoing it. It is supposed to be a care pack for his alpha’s rut,
not preparation for doomsday.

With that thought, he decides to also get his guitar case. Maybe some music will help soothe Jimin
in-between episodes.

When Jungkook parks his SUV in front of Jimin’s cabin, he notices the alpha is already outside
waiting for him. Before he can exit the car, Jimin opens the passenger door and gets in.

“Hey, hyung… Did I take too long?”

Jimin is already all over him, nuzzling and kissing his neck and shoulders slowly.

“No… Not too long.” Jungkook notices how the older’s breathing seems a little heavier, his skin
already getting hotter. “Just… needed you.”

“I’m here, hyung. I’m gonna take care of you now. Whatever you need…”

He starts strumming his fingers along Jimin’s scalp and the alpha relaxes against his shoulder,
letting out labored breaths. His scent is getting stronger by the minute and Jungkook already feels a
little fuzzy under the sweet ocean breeze that takes over the interior of the vehicle.

It smells so nice, so strongly of the seaside that when Jungkook closes his eyes, it is almost like he
is bathing under warm sunlight, floating to the rise and fall of a tide. He opens his eyes again and
notices how Jimin is brushing his wrist against the leathered steering wheel. The alpha keeps on
nuzzling little moans on Jungkook’s shoulder and collarbone, apparently oblivious to anything else.
“Jiminie…” It feels so nice, being enveloped by the dancer’s scent like that. “Jimin-hyung…”

“Uhm…?”

The dancer looks so fucking cute, almost like a cat, rubbing his cheek on Jungkook’s chin, then on
the driver’s seat headrest. He just wants to take Jimin inside and wrap himself around him. But the
alpha seems a little lost in all his charming scent-marking.

“Jimin… what are you doing, hyung?”

Jungkook can’t help but giggle when the alpha readjusts in his seat and stares back at him with a
misty look. Jimin blinks lazily a few times before he seems to come back to full consciousness. He
is still not completely into rut, but he is close, Jungkook can tell.

“Shit. Sorry,” he replies with a raspy voice.

Jungkook giggles again and takes the older’s hand in his.

“What was that, hyung? Were you making sure nobody can get in my car without knowing the
driver belongs to you?”

He can smell a new wave of Plumeria fill the air, piercingly sweet and enticing. Jungkook can’t tell
if Jimin is blushing or if it is the rut and the high temperature.

“I-uhm… I guess I get a bit territorial during my rut…”

Jungkook wants to coo at him and tell Jimin that he can scent him and his car and all of his things
as much as he wishes. Something about the gingerly way in which the alpha tries to place claims
on him makes Jungkook extra soft. He can’t help but take a soft bite on the older’s mushy cheek.

“Come on, take me inside, alpha.”

They carry all the bags into the cabin and Jimin immediately grabs the two pillows and heads
upstairs. Jungkook takes his time sorting out the food and drinks, storing some in the fridge,
keeping others in the bag to take to the bedroom.

He thought he would be nervous, spending Jimin’s rut with him for the first time, spending a rut
with anyone for the first time. When they talked about it a couple of weeks before, Jungkook felt
unsure, scared that he wouldn’t know what to do. But now, he just feels… calm. The only thoughts
Jungkook’s wolf feeds him with are 'must take care of alpha' , 'make sure alpha is comfortable' ,
'give alpha all he needs' .

The omega gets his backpack along with the food bag and starts going up the stairs. Halfway there,
he hears something heavy being dragged around the wooden floor, then a couple of frustrated
huffs.

The sight that meets him when he reaches the loft bedroom makes Jungkook’s eyes widen. There
are clothes scattered absolutely everywhere, shoes piled up under the desk. The pallet bed has been
moved to the opposite corner, along with sheets and cushions that surround it on the floor.
Carefully placed on top of the mattress, Jungkook recognizes a T-shirt he forgot there last week and
the two pillows he just brought.

“Jimin, is… everything ok?”

The alpha turns to face him, holding a small fleece blanket with a thwarted look. “I… I tried but I
can’t do it right.”

It makes Jungkook’s stomach churn with anxiety seeing Jimin like that. He can’t tell what is going
on but he needs to make it right, to comfort his alpha and take care of him.

“What, baby?” He asks in the gentlest voice possible.

"N-nest…"

Oh .

Jungkook has heard of alphas nesting before, even if it was not that common. It would happen in a
moment of high vulnerability, seldom would an alpha allow another wolf to see them in such a
state.

That is why he is momentarily taken aback. Noticing how the older’s pupils are dilated and the
especially low register in his voice, Jungkook knows Jimin is in a deeper state of mind now, his
wolf exposed. So he approaches him carefully.

"What makes you think it's not right, alpha...?" He asks, bringing a hand to brush the older’s hair.

Jimin leans to the touch and takes a deep breath. He pulls the omega by the waist and hugs him
tight against his burning skin.

"Just not… fluffy enough," Jimin mumbles. "H-help me do it…?"

His stomach quickly fills with something warm and fuzzy, his omega excited with the prospect of
helping Jimin with his nest. It's silly, Jungkook knows , but the idea of building a nest together
almost brings tears to his eyes.

"Of course, hyung…"

What follows are several minutes of fussing with pillows and cushions and more clothing, the
alpha asking for Jungkook’s opinion after every change in position. Jimin finally settles in the
middle of the bed after Jungkook brings one of the extra sheets, dark gray Egyptian cotton, and
places it between the pillows.

They lie down together, Jimin wanting to be the bigger spoon. He falls asleep like that, scenting
Jungkook’s nape to exhaustion while whispering growled 'thank-you' s and ' my omega' s.

(***)

Jungkook wakes up an hour or two later with heated breaths blown on his bare back. He turns
around to find Jimin completely lost in the action of grinding a pillow. The alpha is naked, lying
sideways and facing Jungkook, a mouthful of the gray sheet locked between his teeth. His half-
closed eyes are fixated on the omega’s neck and he keeps huffing heavily.

“Hi, alpha…” He greets the older, sleepily caressing his scalp.

Jimin closes his eyes for a moment, enjoying the touch, but opens then again. His stare is
aggressive, determined, but also somewhat fragile.

“Are you enjoying yourself?” Jungkook asks with a teasing smile and the alpha lets out an even
harder huff. His hips start moving faster, thighs pressing tighter around the pillow, showing the
sharp outline of his muscles.

Gently, Jungkook grabs the sheet which Jimin keeps biting on and tugs at it, thinking to kiss his
feverish boyfriend. But Jimin crunches his nose and growls, biting harder. Jungkook tugs at the
fabric again and Jimin growls again, still rutting the pillow.

Jungkook giggles, amused by the alpha’s reaction. “You are such a puppy.”

Jimin moans.

“You like being called a puppy?”

A cute nod.

“My puppy alpha,” he says, licking over his lower lip. Jimin’s eyes follow the action with intent,
thrusts growing more and more erratic. The way he blinks his eyes hazily and his huffing breath
stutters, shows he is close. Jungkook is getting increasingly affected by the sight, can smell his
own arousal fighting Jimin’s in the air all around them.

“Come for me, alpha. Come now, puppy.”

Jimin’s whines and drooling are stifled by the gray fabric when he cums.

Jungkook leaves small licks and bites all over his collarbone and chest, hands already wrapping
around the alpha’s waist to bring him closer.

“Now, inside me.”

Jimin’s rut is intense. Jungkook lost count of how many times the older has knotted him. The alpha
seems to take special pleasure in pounding Jungkook hard, repeatedly, until his knot starts forming
and then he will stop. With his whole dick stuck deep into the omega’s ass, Jimin stays still,
waiting for his knot to grow. Only when the bulge is fully inflated will he resume his thrusting and
allow himself to cum. If Jungkook tries to move before then, Jimin growls in warning – once he
dared to ignore the growl, kept arching his back, so the alpha bit his nape until he subdued. It riled
Jungkook’s wolf up to no end.

Every time he knots, Jimin also gets particularly vocal. It is usually sweet-nothings, praising the
omega for being so good to him, for letting him cum again. But sometimes it gets more aggressive,
almost desperate. ‘You are mine, Kookie’ ... ‘You’re stuck on my knot so you can’t leave, Kook-ah’
... ‘You can’t leave me, Jungkookie’ ... He keeps repeating Jungkook’s name in every possible
form, as if trying to claim all of them to himself.

Jungkook’s wolf responds accordingly, feeling especially pliable. He reassures the alpha every
time with ‘I’m yours’ s and ‘I’m here’ s. He also allows Jimin to do every act of care he wishes to,
since the alpha seems to be especially set on showing how well he can look after and provide for
his boyfriend. So Jungkook revels in each scenting, lets himself be fed and cleaned by the eager
alpha.

It comes to a point where Jimin’s wolf is so fixated on proving how great a provider he is that
Jungkook wakes up at 3 am to his feverish boyfriend trying to cook him something. Even if he is
still a little sleepy, Jungkook decides to go downstairs and sit by the counter. He just watches in
silence as the other works on the food, releasing calming pheromones every now and then to
soothe him. When he notices Jimin’s movement getting more erratic stirring the chicken stew, half-
lidded eyes lost in a haze and trying hard to fight another rut wave, Jungkook hugs the alpha from
behind and jerks him off until he cums all over the oven door.

So, after that many knots, Jungkook needs a break. It was actually Jimin the one to mention it,
reassuring the omega it would be fine, that he could still find release in other ways.

But now the alpha is lying beside him, stomach down, humping one of Jungkook’s pillows. The
younger’s wolf is annoyed inside his chest, having to watch the frustration that drenches the other's
movements. Jimin puffs and turns his head to the other side after another unsatisfying climax.

Jungkook tries to comfort the alpha by gently caressing his back with the tip of his fingers.

"Jiminie… what can I do to help…?"

Another frustrated huff.

Jungkook leans in and brings his boyfriend into a tight back hug. He asks once more, "Uhm?"

A soft sigh this time. "Don't know… just… Being here," the alpha mumbles behind a cute pout.

"I'm here, alpha…" He reassures the dancer with pecks on his shoulder. "But there must be
something."

A pending moment of silence.

“Maybe…”

“Maybe…?” He asks teasingly, with his mouth on Jimin’s neck.

“M-maybe…” The older moans when the omega’s tongue finds his scent gland.

Jungkook turns the still feverish body to face him and notices an unsure look on the alpha’s face.
He pecks the stubborn pout and waits until Jimin says what is on his mind.

“You could, uhm-” Another hesitant pause. Another kiss on the plump lips.

“Tell me.”

“You could fuck me…”

Shit.

Oh shit.

He wants to. He really wants to. Jimin can probably already tell, by the way his scent peaks, a thick
nutty fog clouding over the two.

Jungkook has topped before – an omega girl from the gym, a beta guy from summer camp. But the
thought of fucking Jimin, an alpha … Being offered to fuck him by the dancer’s soft raspy voice…
It was doing things to Jungkook’s brain.

“You want to be fucked, alpha?” He can’t resist teasing the man a little, running fingers down his
torso, his hips.

The reply comes in the form of a whined ‘yes’ when Jungkook squeezes the older’s butt around his
spread out palm.
“And have you even been fucked before, Jiminie…?” The omega whispers against the dancer’s
ear.

“J-just… sometimes… with my fingers.”

Jungkook inhales deeply, the air filled with sweet Plumeria flowers and pistachio. Feeling his slick
already coming out, he tries to take in the – very enticing – idea that the alpha sometimes fingers
himself. Damn. Jungkook is so fucked.

The omega scoops some of his slick with his index and middle fingers and takes it to lube the
dancer’s rim.

“But you have such small fingers, alpha…” He keeps provoking the other with a sweet smile and
sweeter scent – he can’t help it. The tip of his finger circles and circles Jimin’s rim, spreading his
own pistachio-scented slick around it.

“Do you think you’ll be able to take mine…?” Jungkook adds with a grin.

“Y-ye-es…” Jimin moans daintily when Jungkook’s finger starts breaching in.

He takes his time opening Jimin up to three of his digits. Whispering praises in his ear, he kisses
every part of the dancer’s body he manages to reach. He notices how Jimin slowly lets himself
drift into his wolf, and Jungkook’s omega feels particularly proud seeing how much his alpha
trusts him.

When he removes his fingers and lines the tip of his dick with the alpha’s entrance, Jimin stiffens
in his hold. Jungkook halts. Lying side by side, he embraces Jimin’s body and releases some
pheromones.

“Want me to stop?”

“N-no…” Jimin’s body relaxes as soon as he replies. “Want you… W-want to feel my omega…”

Ah, shit. Jungkook’s stomach swirls like he is free falling, like skydiving. Hearing Jimin so lost in
it, calling him ‘his’ omega never fails to give him the best kind of goosebumps. Shaking a little,
wanting to be as gentle as possible, he pushes in. He feels the alpha’s hole surrounding him,
welcoming every inch of his cock. Jimin takes it all with low moans and tiny growls, holding his
hand tight.

“Jungkookie… It-It feels good .”

And with that, Jungkook knows he can start moving.

It doesn’t take long for Jungkook to get completely lost in the action of fucking Jimin. His omega
takes over, desperate to care for their mate. He thrusts and thrusts into the older’s tight hole, his
arm wrapped around Jimin’s waist, slick-oiled hand cupping the alpha’s hard cock up and down.
Unable to say anything intelligible, Jungkook licks and bites into Jimin’s ears, trying to hold
himself together and make the alpha cum first.

When Jimin starts moaning that he is close, Jungkook pounds harder, deeper. He lets his fingers
slide down Jimin’s cock and presses around the base a little tighter. Slightly surprised when he
feels a bulge starting to form, he stops.

Fuck . Jimin is actually knotting around Jungkook’s fingers. From being fucked by the omega.
Jungkook doesn’t know how he manages not to cum on the dot upon the realization.
He ceases his thrusting completely and does it just as the alpha likes it: his throbbing cock stuck
deep into Jimin’s ass, Jungkook doesn’t move. Just keeps the pressure around the growing knot.
Jimin shivers in his hold, stuttering sexy moans. Jungkook is close. Jungkook is so close.

When the swelling finally concludes, all it takes is three. Three. More. Thrusts.

Fuck.

Jimin moans loud. He cums hard and moans loud. Jungkook follows suit, filling up the alpha’s
hole, already moisturized by his sugary slick, now also wet with his tart white cum. He can already
feel some of the mix leaking out onto his crotch while still keeping the alpha’s knot in a firm grasp.
Damn, so fucking sexy.

(***)

Jungkook’s wolf is absolutely elated seeing how Jimin seems to be finally appeased, drowsy eyes
blinking slower and slower.

“Such a good alpha,” he whispers in Jimin’s ear, kisses it. “Such a perfect puppy alpha.”

Jungkook sings him to sleep.

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

Jimin wakes up on the fourth day feeling exhausted but oddly grounded. And content.

He can see it is dark outside and the noise downstairs tells him Jungkook must be in the kitchen
preparing something. Jimin almost wants to go right down, missing the omega already, but his
strained muscles and dazed mind beg him to stay in bed a little longer. So he does.

His rut has been longer this time, not the usual two days. It is almost like his wolf was trying to
prolong it as much as possible, wanting to enjoy their omega’s care some more. Never has he felt
so relaxed while in rut before, so comfortable. Jimin’s ruts have always left him feeling stuporous,
stranded, like he had spent days floating in nothingness. But Kookie has this effect on him, this
grounding effect. So this time, Jimin remembers every detail from the past days.

He remembers how caring the omega has been the whole time, attentive to Jimin’s every single
need. Jungkook let Jimin scent him, mark him, knot him, fuss over him all Jimin wanted. He put up
with Jimin’s frustration when he couldn’t find release, comforted him whenever Jimin’s emotions
were all over the place, he just read right into Jimin and went with whatever quirk the alpha hinted
at. He noticed how Jimin enjoys to stay still while his knot grows inside his hole, when the alpha
filled his cupped hands with cum, Jungkook didn’t even ask and started lapping it clean right away,
like a thirsty kitten. Damn it. He even fucked Jimin so good to the point of drawing a knot out of
the spent alpha.

Jungkookie was absolutely perfect.

“Oh? You’re awake?”

Jimin nods and smiles at the cute omega entering the loft bedroom, hair still wet from what must
have been a warm shower and wearing black shorts only. He notices the marks on Jungkook’s
chest – the marks Jimin left there, his wolf provides proudly.

“Come ‘ere,” Jimin asks halfway to pulling the younger back into bed.

“Alpha, come on. We have been in here for more than three days,” he protests into Jimin’s hug.

When the alpha doesn’t respond, too distracted in scenting his omega, Jungkook goes on. “I was
thinking we could go outside for a bit?”

Unconvinced, Jimin just whines against his boyfriend’s scent gland. ‘Outside’ doesn’t seem too
appealing right now, not when he has the most perfect omega in his bed.

“No? You don’t wanna?”

Jimin shakes his head, nuzzling up and down Kookie’s neck in the process.

“Ah, too bad…” Kookie pouts, trying to use Jimin’s secret weapon against Jimin himself. “I spent
so long preparing everything as a surprise. I guess it will all go to waste then…”

And that does it.

“A surprise?” His wolf also perks up.

“Yeah… But you don’t wanna…” Jungkook plays difficult, certainly knowing he already has Jimin
in his hands.

“I changed my mind.”

“Yeah? So you wanna go outside with me?”

Jimin nods fast-paced ‘yes’ s with his smiling face.

“We won’t go too far. Just five or ten minutes. We can come back if it gets too much, ok?”

Jimin kisses him in agreement.

The surprise turns out to be a late night picnic under the stars. They quickly find a good enough
spot at a clearing after a six-minute walk into the woods.

It was exactly what Jimin needed, he realizes now: feeling the earth right beneath his feet, the
smell of pine trees and night-blooming jasmines, lying on a blanket to watch the blinking stars.
Jungkook tricks him into eating more of the fruit salad he brought, promising a kiss after each
bite.

"Thank you, Jungkook-ah."

His head is on the omega’s thigh, eyes closed to a hand that keeps playing with his blond hair.

"All this alpha does is thank me," Kookie replies joyfully.

"You keep giving me reasons to."

Jimin notices a spike of meringue in the air, sugary and aerated, signaling that the omega must
have liked hearing that. He turns his head to the side and leaves two small pecks and a soft bite on
Kookie’s thigh.

"But seriously, I know I was a lot, asking for all sorts of things…" Jimin feels a little awkward
remembering it, now that the haze of the rut is all gone. "I-uhm… The nest thing, it must have been
weird for you. But thank you for doing it anyway."

It had not been Jimin’s first time doing it. Even outside his rut, Jimin would find himself trying to
nest sometimes. He thinks it must have something to do with never having had a parent to do it for
him when he was little.

But he usually managed to conceal the habit somehow. Especially after an omega girl with whom
he spent a rut once noticed what he was doing (and made fun of him for it), Jimin has been
particularly careful not to let anyone see him do it. But with Jungkook , his wolf just left it all out in
the open, even asking for the omega’s help. Ugh! He feels so awkward remembering it.

"There’s no need to thank me, hyung. I-uhm… I really liked it, you know?" It is Jungkook who
looks kind of shy now.

"You did?" He asks, truly surprised.

"Mm-hmm. My omega was just over the moon building a nest together with our alpha."

That's it. Jimin can’t resist this man anymore.

He sits up and clumsily grabs Kookie by the neck, kissing and nibbling him all over until all Jimin
can hear is their buzzing giggles. With their bellies hurting from laughing, they stop and just
silently stare at each other for a couple of seconds.

"You promised me a song," Jimin chins toward the guitar which Jungkook wanted to bring along.

"I did?" The omega asks teasingly, pretending not to recall.

"Ah… empty promises. You thought just because I was in rut I wouldn't remember, huh?" He
teases back.

Jungkook stretches his arm and reaches for the guitar case. While he opens it and grabs the
instrument, Jimin shifts on the blanket, lying sideways – head on his right arm to make sure he has
a front-row view of the singer.

"What do you want me to sing?"

"Hmmm… I don't know," Jimin searches his fuzzy mind for an idea. "Just… something that makes
you think of me."

Jungkook chuckles. "That's not helpful at all, hyung. Everything reminds me of you."

"Aish, who taught you these things?" Jimin blushes at the cheesy line and scolds him playfully
with a slap on his thigh.

"It was Jin hyung," he confesses.

"I knew it."

Julia (The Beatles) - Celso Fonseca cover

Kookie leans down and pecks the alpha’s lips before clearing his throat and checking if the guitar
is properly tuned.

He starts plucking the guitar in a soothing bossa nova style. Jimin closes his eyes and enjoys how
clean the chords sound at each twang of Kookie’s fingers against the strings.

"Half of what I say is meaningless / but I say it just to reach you / Jiminie"

At the first verse, Jimin recognizes the song by The Beatles. When he notices how Jungkook
replaces the song title by 'Jiminie' he giggles, something warm lights up in his belly.

"Jiminie, Jiminie / ocean child, calls me / so I sing a song of love, Jiminie"

The calid feeling starts buzzing up, reaching Jimin’s chest now. Each time his name is intonated by
Kookie’s silky voice, the alpha feels lighter. It is like floating a couple of inches up in the air.

"Jiminie, seashell eyes, windy smile calls me / so I sing a song of love, Jiminie"

Soon the warmth created by the younger’s voice finds its way into Jimin’s head. It relaxes him,
lulls him. The melody allures Jimin’s most hidden thoughts and memories into light. He doesn't
fear them though. It is like he is put in a trance, one that reassures his very core.

He allows himself to relax, lets the notes awaken thoughts in his mind. They swing in waves, dance
to the music coming from the guitar. Jimin doesn't mind. He just watches from afar, charmed by
the soft way Kookie sings his name over and over again.

When the song ends, Jimin keeps his eyes closed for a while, enjoying the buzzing feeling it leaves
him with. It takes him a moment to notice the two or three tears on his cheek, probably allured by
Jungkook’s voice as well. He doesn't bother wiping them. He feels them stroll down, lets them be.

"She called me seashell," Jimin says to the stillness of the night. It is comfortable, the way
Jungkook just waits in silence for him to explain. "My mom did."

“Do you remember her? Were you not that little then?”

Jimin hadn’t really told Kookie much about his past yet. Of course, the omega knew about his
growing up at the orphanage, knew about the dancer being abandoned by his parents when he was
little. But that was pretty much it. Jimin was never one to share about it, he never saw a point in
torturing his mind into reliving the memories. But he guesses it is time to tell his boyfriend.

“I was just a baby when they left me. Or she left me, I don’t know shit about the other one.” A
small five-month old pup wrapped in a fleece blanket – easy to leave behind, he guesses.

“But then… how?” Jungkook asks, obviously confused by the previous comment.

“Soomin Halmeoni, Tae-Tae’s grandma, she was working at the orphanage back then. She wanted
to be close to Tae, even if she didn’t have the means to get his custody. She did a little of
everything, anything they asked of her, from cleaning toilets to taking care of the kids. Even some
desk work whenever someone was on vacation or called in sick. And one day she managed to get a
hold onto my file.

“Every other year on October 13, which I guess is my birthday date, I used to get something
delivered to the orphanage. Nothing big: a plush toy, a music box, a wooden bracelet. There was
never a note, no explanation. Just a small something.”
With a bitter spike on his scent, Jimin remembers the first October 13th when nothing came. He
was eight. He waited for a whole week, silently crying himself to sleep every night. The next year,
a book arrived, and in the following one, a Vivaldi CD – he had to sneak into the music classroom
late at night to listen to it.

The second time nothing came, he was devastated. He was angry. Taehyung tried to comfort him
with a small painting the beta made as a gift – in his anger, Jimin tossed it on the grass. An hour
later, hands clenched like his heart, he got the painting back, relieved it was undamaged. Two days
after that, Jimin ended up crying in Tae’s arms, muttering apologies in dozens.

He hated how much expectation he put into those October deliveries, hated how much their
absence messed up with him. Most of all, he hated how happy they made him feel in spite of it all.
He swore to himself he would never wait for them anymore.

“Halmeoni knew about the deliveries, so she searched my file, looking for something, anything.
She found an address, under ‘For medical emergencies only’. No name, no phone, just an address.
She gave it to me.”

Jungkook shifts on the blanket, lying down sideways in order to properly face Jimin. Looking into
the omega’s eyes this close, the comforting sweetness in his scent: it helps. It makes the memories
feel lighter.

“It was the house of an old friend of my mother’s. My omega mother. He told me they hadn’t been
in touch for a while, but gave me the location of a place she used to work at. And her name. Lee
Chaeyeong.” He remembers how fancy the entrance to the shop looked to his thirteen-year-old
self.

“I skipped classes for a whole week going there to try to meet her: a pastry shop in one of the fancy
districts downtown. It was a two-hour bus drive, and they would always tell me she couldn’t get
out, that she was working in the kitchen. I just sat there and waited. One of the waiters felt sorry, I
guess, and brought me something to eat every day. It all looked and tasted so good . I never knew
food could taste so good!”

The smile on Kookie’s face is warm, and so is the hand holding Jimin’s. He goes on.

“On the third day, she came out and sat at the table with me.” Jimin remembers how astounded he
was. The first thing he took in was a faint scent of olives. Then her smile. It did not go all the way
up to her cheeks, did not make her eyes close, the way Taehyung always said Jimin’s did. It was
just a tired smile, faint as her scent. She really looked tired, but her smile seemed sincere. So did
her watery eyes.

“She started asking questions. About friends, what I liked to eat, my favorite subject. Stuff you ask
a kid you know nothing about. I told her about the dancing scholarship I had just gotten in the city.
She asked me more about that. But it was only a fifteen-minute break and she had to go back.

“The next day she didn’t come out at all.” Jimin takes a deep breath, letting Kookie’s calming
pheromones sink in. The omega keeps drawing circles around his knuckles. It’s soothing. “On the
last one, she brought me a plate with a fancy-looking white cake.”

‘I made this just for you, seashell.’ Jimin can still perfectly hear the sound of her voice inside his
head.

“It tasted so good, and it looked so pretty! She told me the story of the dessert, how it had been
named in honor of a Russian ballerina.”
“Oh, Jiminie…” Kookie’s hand moves to Jimin’s face, finding a stray tear.

Jimin chuckles, smelling the omega’s meringue and thinking about the irony of it all. “But the one
she made me was berry-flavored. That’s why I didn’t recognize it in your scent.” Jungkook just
smiles at the alpha, keeps caressing his cheek, tucks his hair behind his ear.

“When I finished eating, she said I should stop coming.”

Jimin chuckles again, swallows the knot on his throat.

“I know right? Why even bother doing all that and then tell me to leave? To leave and never come
back.” He remembers the anger, can feel it on his tongue again. He wanted to scream at her, to ask
her why. He remembers feeling the rage hot in his skin, remembers standing up and throwing the
plate on the floor. “I told her fine, I’d stop coming. But that she should also stop sending me shit.”

He doesn’t notice how stiff his body is until Jungkook has to use some strength to pull him into a
hug. He starts crying. He sobs loud against the omega’s shoulder. Tears spilling out of his body in
stutters, he feels the anger leaking out with every spasm.

“S-she told me to practice hard and become a great dancer. She s-said she would create a new
dessert j-just for me then.” Jimin hadn’t told anyone that part. Not even Taehyung. It hurts like a
hole being carved in his stomach. “W-why would she say that and tell me to leave? A-and then she
just d-disappeared, Kook-ah. I went back there and s-she… She quit. S-she left. Left me again. W-
why did she leave me again?”

“I don’t know, Jiminie. I-... I don’t know, baby…” Jungkook holds him even tighter, hand rubbing
Jimin’s back.

The amount of pheromones the omega keeps releasing, compels Jimin’s body to relax completely
the next moment. His crying also quietens out, mind slowly lulled into haziness.

He doesn’t remember walking back to his cabin, to his bed. Just Junkook’s arms holding him
close. Safe and close. The swaying of Jungkook’s steps rocking him to sleep, the omega’s voice in
his ear telling him how lovely he is. How great a dancer, how perfect an alpha. Telling him he is
loved. So loved. That Jungkook loves him.

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

Coming back to his apartment after almost five days wrapped around his alpha was hard on
Jungkook. The only reason why he even managed to was because Jimin let the omega take one of
his blankets with him. The pillows were to be properly cleaned before returning home, Jimin was
adamant on that one.

Jungkook wakes up the next day feeling better, hugged by the ocean waves in which the blanket is
drenched in. He has classes today. A good distraction until it is time to pick Jimin up from his shift
at the mall.

After breakfast and a quick shower – and a rubbing session against the blanket, just so he still has
some of the alpha’s scent on him – Jungkook heads to the door. He is putting sneakers on when the
doorbell rings. Weird. Who could it be?
 Not thinking too much about it, thinking it’s probably a delivery or something, he opens the door
the next second.

Shit.

Immediately he feels all blood drain out of his face, his breath freezing.

“Jungkook,” a stern voice wrapped in its signature musky scent. “We need to talk.”

Chapter End Notes

I know, I know! You hate the cliffhanger! Sorry, ok? I'm sorry! But it had to be done.

Anyways, how do you like this chapter? I had so much fun writing about Jiminie's rut!
Did you have a favorite scene?

This story is almost over! Ahh... I don't wanna let go! I'm halfway through the last
chapter.
 ‘Nobody puts Baby in the corner’
Chapter Summary

Break up and make up.

Chapter Notes

So, is anybody still here?

I know, I know... I said updates every ten days. But then a whole lot happened.
Personal life mostly, but also fest deadlines, a trip, and well... I ended up finishing
writing this chapter on the line to get Yet to Come merch in Busan. lol. I don't know if
it's everything I wanted of it, but I'm really hoping you like it. Since it started getting
too big, I stopped here and we will have an 8th one with the actual ending. Yay!

Alright, I hope you are all well, or at least hanging in there, and that you have a good
time reading this.

PS: btw, this chapter has not been beta-read, because my beta and muse is busy with
life too, and it has mostly been written on my cell phone, so please forgive any
mistakes. Also, please be nice on comments - like Yoongi says, I'm a sensitive kid.

See the end of the chapter for more notes

It’s funny how quickly things can change. One minute you are happily about to leave your
apartment, hoping the hour-hands will circle around the clock a bit faster so you can finally meet
your boyfriend. Then the next, it is already evening and you are sitting in your car in front of a
shopping mall, dreading the prospect of facing him.
Jungkook chuckles behind a bitter crooked smile. It is all his own fault really.

What was he even thinking? That he would sing and dance on stage in front of the whole campus
and his parents wouldn’t hear about it? That he would be able to hide his relationship with Jimin
forever? Or did he honestly have any hopes that his parents would ever accept that, out of all
people, Jungkook would fall in love with a lone wolf ? What else after that? Be happy when
Jungkook tells them he doesn’t want to have anything to do with the pack’s business? Support his
decision in pursuing a music career? Smile and accept Jimin into the family? Sure they would…

He had been stupid and now he was paying for it. He was too distracted, up in whatever cloud
Jimin and everything else good in his life lifted him to, too overwhelmed with the feeling of finally
being on a path he actually wanted to walk on for a change. Even if deep down he knew it was just
a taste, just a mirage fated to dissolve into the desert of his life, he let himself get carried away by
it. And now he was about to pay the price.

Jungkook had been stupid but his father was anything but. That was how he managed to be the one
to lead the pack’s conglomerate even in the face of tough competition from his cousins. When one
of his alpha uncles tried to frame Jungkook’s father for tax fraud, the beta had anticipated the
whole move and said uncle ended up facing persecution himself.

His father made the group’s revenue grow threefold since he took command, bought into some of
the now largest companies in the country, expanded overseas. Nobody knew the business better
than the beta CEO, no one worked harder. Jeon Group was his most precious project, his treasure ,
and he wanted to make sure to hand in the outcome of his blood-sweat-and-tears to his beloved
son.

Each of his father’s moves was carefully calculated. So when the man showed up unannounced at
his doorstep, Jungkook instantly knew something big was gonna happen.

Fuck. Jungkook really did screw up everything, didn’t he?

He shouldn’t have let all of that happen. He should have moved on with his life, gone to class, then
back to his apartment. He should have been more cautious, shouldn’t have gotten involved. Now,
because of his carelessness, it was all going to be harder. Now, going back to the familiar
achromaticity of his life would be much more difficult. The hollowness in his days would only
grow larger after being inevitably emptied.

He grabs the steering wheel with whitening knuckles, takes two deep breaths, trying to calm down.
He didn’t have to do it tonight. He could still let himself enjoy this – his little bubble of happiness,
ephemeral and impenitent. He would allow himself to have this for one more night.

The warm smile Jimin shows Jungkook as soon as he enters the car only makes the darkness in his
chest feel colder though.

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

Jimin doesn’t know what is wrong with Jungkook. It has been two weeks now – ever since his rut
ended, the omega has been acting increasingly stranger. Clearly something is bothering Kookie, but
he refuses to talk about it, gets angry, makes up excuse after excuse.

It is not that Jungkook simply avoids him. Sometimes he does, says he is busy with some paper
whenever Jimin asks him over. But then the next day, he will show up after one of Jimin’s class or
pick him up at work, kiss him desperately, saying he is sorry a dozen times, scenting the alpha
with a spiking note of saffron.

One afternoon last week, after rejecting his lunch invitation for the uptenth time, the omega took
Jimin to his car in one of the campus' parking lots and practically begged until the dancer knotted
him in the backseat. He has been especially keen on marking the alpha too, leaving Jimin's whole
torso filled with bites and dark hickeys.

And then there were times when he wouldn't reply to Jimin’s texts for hours. Even Yoongi said he
has not been able to reach Kookie these days. Whenever Jimin tried to discuss their plans for a
short weekend trip in October, Jungkook changed the subject. It all gives the alpha whiplash,
really.

He was trying to give Jungkook some space, be patient until the younger was ready to talk about
whatever it was that was bothering him. And he was going to wait longer, but the younger’s
behavior since yesterday has been kind of a red flag to Jimin.

Monday, August 21

[To: Jungkookie ☀️ ]

(7:53pm)

Hey, so I just got a text from Jaehoon-sunbaenim. He said I don’t have to go tomorrow. The
company changed their mind or something…

[From: Jungkookie ☀️ ]

(7:55pm)

what??? what does that mean?

[To: Jungkookie ☀️ ]

(7:55pm)

They’re not hiring me for the tour anymore. Apparently decided to go with someone else.
Sunbaenim was really apologetic and all, said his hands were tied.

[From: Jungkookie ☀️ ]

(7:56pm)

but just like that??? isnt he like the head of the crew?? shouldnt he have a say on this??? he
was ready to fight other choreographers to have you on his team, hyung!
[To: Jungkookie ☀️ ]

(7:57pm)

Yeah… I don’t know what went wrong, really. Taemin is just as confused as we are. It must
have been something with the higher-ups. I don’t know. Nothing much I can do at this point,
I guess… ♂️

Well, at least I have off tomorrow now. We could catch a movie or sth.

(8:01pm)

Gotta get back to work now. Can I come over later, Jungkookie?

[From: Jungkookie ☀️ ]

(8:52pm)

sorry, hyung. i gotta go back to the capital tonight.

but it’s gonna be okay, hyung. you’ll see

[To: Jungkookie ☀️ ]

(10:03pm)

Ah, it’s okay, baby. See you tomorrow then?

Tuesday, August 22

[To: Jungkookie ☀️ ]

(07:02am)

Morning! Was everything alright last night, Jungkookie? Are you back yet?

(07:33am)

I’m leaving for class. We could grab a coffee during your morning break. Are you going to
Uni?

Holding his large gray umbrella at the entrance of the Business School parking lot, Jimin re-reads
the lack of replies from Jungkook with furrowed brows. Something is off, the alpha can taste it in
his tongue. It is so out of character for Jungkook to simply ignore him when he otherwise would be
all over Jimin, trying to comfort him after the dancing company fucked him over. Clearly more
worried about Jungkook now than upset with the whole thing with the company, Jimin pockets his
phone and waits, just the encompassing sound of rain and thunder around him.

Soon after the clock turns 5:00, the usual flock of students starts making their way out of the
building a few meters ahead. Jimin watches closely, looking for the cute familiar figure probably
wearing a black outfit. It takes about three more minutes to spot him: hunched shoulders, walking
concerningly slow for someone whose only protection from the pouring rain is a bucket hat. It
looks like he doesn’t see the alpha, staring at his own feet and taking a side pathwalk to the
parking lot.

“Jungkook-ah!” Jimin jogs toward the younger, splashing water with every step.

“Hey, Jungkookie…” He pauses right beside the omega, shielding the taller body from the rain
with the umbrella.

Jimin feels his wolf shift uncomfortable inside his chest, worried about how soaked Kookie’s
clothes already are. He looks cold and pale, so Jimin instinctively starts bringing the omega’s body
into his hold.

But Jungkook flinches as soon as Jimin tries to touch him, stepping back and almost out under the
rain again. “Sorry, I-...”

Jimin steps closer, not wanting the younger to get any more wet than he already is. “What’s wrong,
Jungkookie?”

“Nothing, I was… just distracted,” he avoids making eye contact with Jimin. “Sorry…”

"It’s okay,” Jimin raises a hand to his arm, slower this time, in order to allow the younger to refuse
the touch in case he wants to. He doesn’t and Jimin breathes out, a little relieved. “Are you okay?
You weren’t replying to my messages…”

“Ah, yeah…” Jungkook places his hand on top of Jimin’s, caressing it for two seconds before
gently pulling his arm away from the alpha’s hold. Jimin swallows down the hurt in his throat after
the rejection. “Sorry… I-uhm, got caught up with stuff.”

“Jungkook-ah, I think we should talk…” Jimin says it and searches the omega’s face for any hint
of how he should handle the situation. But the younger just looks… tired . Every other emotion
seems to be carefully concealed behind avoidant eyes. So Jimin tries some more, “You want to go
to my place? We could take a warm shower, then just cuddle.”

“I have a presentation to work on for tomorrow,” Jungkook replies with an awkward coldness in
his voice.

He proceeds to walk slowly toward his SUV. Jimin follows him, holding the umbrella over both of
their heads. “Alright. I can go to your place then.”

“Hyung…” Jungkook halts only a couple of meters away from the parked car and looks Jimin in
the eyes.

It is cold. Such a cold, cold stare. His alpha growls inside of him, trying to get him to do
something, anything to reach their omega. “Jungkookie, please… Tell me what’s wrong. I’m
worried about you.”

The younger chuckles, not looking very amused. “You should worry about yourself, hyung.”
Jimin is not sure what Jungkook is trying to imply with his tone, which seems to get more
aggressive at the minute. “What do you mean?”

“Nevermind what I mean.” Seemingly giving up, the omega turns and resumes the walk to his car.

Jimin follows him yet again and pleads, “ Tell me.”

“Not now, hyung. Let’s talk tomorrow, ok?” He bips the doors open, fingers reaching for the
handle.

“No. Let’s talk now ,” Jimin grabs the younger’s wrist and motions him to turn around. “I’m not
postponing this discussion anymore.”

After a ten-second staring contest, Jungkook seems to give up. “Fine,” he rests his back on the car
door, which is probably just as wet as his T-shirt. Then drops the backpack to hang from his left
wrist, straps playing with the water on the floor.

Jimin steps closer with the umbrella again, not wanting the younger out in the rain.

“But please stop releasing all these alpha pheromones so I can think properly while I speak.”

Jimin hadn’t even noticed that he was doing it. Fuck. His stupid wolf is all over the place, doing
anything he can to soothe their omega, making Jimin unable to control his own thoughts.

“Sorry,” he clears his throat and tries to curb the indirect scenting. “Speak, then.”

Jungkook drops his gaze to the puddle on the asphalt for a moment before directing another cold
stare straight back at Jimin’s face. “We should break up.”

It is Jimin who chuckles now, more like a snort. “And why is that?”

“You know why, hyung.” Jungkook crosses his arms and averts Jimin’s gaze.

“I don’t. Please enlighten me.”

“It was never going to work out...” – as if feeling the need to clarify, Jungkook adds with a
mumble, “... us ."

Oh, Jimin definitely knows that. He has lost count how many times this very thought has been
whispered inside his head. But hearing it from Kookie, the way it sounds in the omega’s cold
voice, somehow it feels different – it tastes sour, acetic in his throat.

“Jungkook-ah, com-”

“No, Jimin.” The younger interrupts the alpha’s plea abruptly. “We are like two different worlds.
It’s never gonna work. You were right. I’m just this omega prince, bored to hell with my perfect
little life. I have nothing to offer…”

“No. That’s not true, Kook-ah. I was wrong about you. I was so wrong.” Jimin can feel himself
getting desperate, completely at a loss as to how to drag the omega out of that line of thoughts.
“You’re so much more than that, baby. You’r-”

“Please stop, hyung.” The resolution in Jungkook’s tone makes Jimin shiver in anticipation. “Let’s
just end this.”

Jimin shuts his wolf deep at the back of his head, where he can’t hear its cries of protest. He needs
to keep in control, needs to approach this with a calm mindset. He searches his brain desperately –
there must be something he can say to change the omega’s mind. It cannot end like this. He cannot
let it all end just like that. He can’t let Kookie leave like that. He just can’t le-…

When Kookie’s hand touches his right shoulder, Jimin notices how panted his breath is. “I’m
gonna go now, Jimin. Please take care.”

Please take care. Please… take… care… Are these really going to be Kookie’s last words to him?
He watches as the omega opens the car door and throws his backpack inside, getting ready to go.

Damn it. Damn it all. Jungkook is leaving. He is leaving Jimin. And there is nothing the alpha can
do to stop him.

He feels angry. Feels the familiar burning rage take over his body, quickly kindling his insides all
the way from his stomach to his eyes. He hates this. Hates this feeling, hates how he lets himself
get affected by it every time. He should be used to that already, shouldn’t he? Being left. Not his
first time. Jimin should have learnt by now.

“Well, fuck you, Jungkook. FUCK. YOU.” Jimin practically screams as the omega sits on the
driver’s seat. “I didn’t think you would give up this easily. Guess I was wrong about that too.”

He makes sure to dress each of his words with a special tint of ire, wanting to expel the feeling out
of his body. Instead, it just burns grimmer.

Jungkook doesn’t look phased, though. Almost as if he had been expecting it, he seems to welcome
the alpha’s rage, absorb it, only to exhale more coldness out of his every pore. “It’s not that hard to
give up on things you never really believed in, Jimin.”

With that, he closes the car door and turns the engine on.

Jimin turns around and starts walking away. He is not about to be standing there and watch the car
as it leaves. No way. Jimin walks away, leaving the whole thing behind just as well.

He doesn’t need Jungkook. He doesn’t need anyone . Jimin is a lone wolf, and lone wolves don’t
need little omega princes or anyone else.

Fuck this. Fuck him.

Clink.

Clink.

Clink.

Clink.

Jimin’s tired mind focuses on the sound of his nail hitting the green bottle of soju. The repetitive
sound is numbing. It helps Jimin shut out all the background noise of people going in and out the
convenience store.
Sitting on one of the plastic stools just outside, Jimin snorts thinking about the events from earlier
that day, from the night before. Yoongi’s face comes to mind and Jimin snarls at the memory. He
downs another bottle and lets his arms fall splattered over the small table, not wanting to
remember.

Some friend Yoongi is. The next time Jimin sees the asshole, he’s gonna give him a piece of his
mind. The alpha’s recidivist anger starts boiling again in his stomach, mixes with the rice liquor
and fogs up his mind.

Kookie’s desperate howls find their way back to Jimin’s ears. He covers them with his hands, as if
the memory was not coming from the inside. His own wolf, dizzy, howls just the same and claws
against his ribcage, wanting out. The wolf is utterly confused, cannot understand why they are not
with their omega when he needs them the most. To the animal inside of him, it doesn't matter that
Kookie broke up with him, that he doesn't want to see Jimin anymore.

In an attempt to suffocate his alpha, Jimin takes another gulp of soju. Holding the bottle against the
afternoon sunlight, he watches how the liquid inside moves in waves as he swings the object like a
pendulum. Another gulp and only a third of the drink remains.

He places the bottle back on the table, runs his hands down his face gruelingly. The busy passersby
start to look more and more like dark outlines, the sounds they make thumping duller in Jimin’s
ears, their scents muted. It feels good like that. He doesn't want to hear anything, see anyone. He
hopes this numbing sensation takes over every inch of his body, until he cannot feel a thing.

"I can't believe you're getting your ass drunk in the middle of a weekday, Jimin-ah." The familiar
voice wrapped in lemongrass concern drags Jimin out of his sluggishness and the next minute an
annoying Taehyung is sitting across from him.

"Fuck off," he says with a hoarse voice and takes another sip of soju.

"Ah, it's so nice feeling this welcomed," the beta replies, as if he had been expecting Jimin’s
reaction.

He doesn't care. Jimin knows Tae must be here after hearing from Yoongi about the incident at
Kookie’s building. Or maybe from Hobi, after Jimin suddenly left dance practice earlier today
since his limbs kept refusing to follow his lead. He knows Tae is here to keep an eye on him, as if
he were a child or something, and he is not having it.

Most of all, Jimin doesn't want to hear anything about Kookie. He hasn't told his friends much
about their break-up. What even was there to tell? It's not like he has been given much explanation
about it himself. So he opted to just inform them about it and ignore their constant questioning and
fussing over.

Only this time there are new developments. This time, Taehyung definitely knows all about how
Jimin spent the night crouched by the back gate of Kookie’s building, tortured by the desperate
calls coming out the window of the apartment on the fourth floor. Calls coming from the omega in
heat – his omega –, and the only thing Jimin could do was howl back in response.

He had heard about Kookie’s heat accidentally. Yoongi was telling Hobi about how the next
morning he would stop by the other omega’s apartment to check on him, since his heat would be
starting. Jimin overheard it and his alpha went ballistic. Their omega, their mate , was in heat.
They had to go there, they needed to be there.

Of course he was not allowed in. Kookie hung up the intercom as soon as he recognized the alpha,
telling him to go back home. Jimin swallowed yet another bitter rejection, its taste burning thick
down his throat, but still refused to leave. He spent the night outside, the closest he could get to his
bedroom window.

When the omega’s pained whimpers started to reach his ears, Jimin felt like he was gonna lose his
damn mind. It hurt. It hurt more than anything – more than the break-up, more than every time
Kookie rejected his calls or when he blocked his number. It hurt because his omega was in pain
and all alone – so close, but so out of reach. And he kept calling for Jimin.

As Kookie got more and more lost in his heat, the omega’s wails grew louder. And all Jimin could
do was howl back to him, letting the omega know he was there. His body kept releasing stronger
and stronger waves of calming pheromones, and that was probably the only reason why there
weren’t more complaints from Kookie’s neighbors.

At one point, a security guard from the building, a nice alpha who knew Jimin from back when he
visited Kookie almost every evening, had to intervene. One of the neighbors was threatening to call
the police, but the guard felt sorry for the young dancer, so he ended up allowing him to stay as
long as he stopped howling.

So he just stayed there for the rest of the night, releasing pheromones and feeling like an even more
useless piece of shit. His arms were full of ugly self-inflicted scratches, his scent glands red and
swollen, and his wolf… His wolf was an utter mess: he was enraged, choleric, shattered. Jimin has
no idea how he has so far been able to keep hold of him. Maybe his alpha was just as drained as
Jimin. Maybe he was just as ready to let go.

When Jimin motions to grab the soju, needing to silence the insistent memories again, Taehyung is
faster and holds the bottle out of his reach. “Come on, Chim-Chim. Enough of this.”

Jimin ignores the honeyed concern in his friend’s voice, the sweetness makes him sick. He half-
stands and takes the bottle back without a word, applying an unnecessary amount of force when
gripping the beta’s arm. He is angry . He is angry and wants Taehyung to know that. He then gulps
down the soju in one go, making sure to never break eye contact with the other, wanting him to
know that Jimin will do as he pleases.

When he sits back down, he almost falls off the stool. His stupid friend starts laughing with his
stupid square grin and Jimin’s anger revolves in his stomach – or maybe it is just the alcohol
irritating the organ.

“Looks like I’ll have a heavy alpha to carry home,” Taehyung comments with a lingering grin in
his voice.

Jimin feels his face redden with rage. He averts his blurred gaze, thankful that the alcohol has
managed to fog up his vision. Jimin doesn’t want to look his friend in the face, doesn’t want to see
his stupid expression, the worried eyes behind his grin, his gaze of pity. He just wants to be left the
fuck alone.

“Dzon't you have anything better to do?" Jimin asks, trying to spill all of his ire into the words. He
feels a wet numbness in his mouth – maybe some of the raging venom still needs out, maybe it is
just the soju slowing his movements. When Taehyung doesn’t immediately respond, Jimin decides
it is the first option and spits more of his inebriated wrath. "Ohh, rwight. I forgot. You're just a
lonely fucker who ijs gonna die alone.”

And he knows it was too much. He doesn’t even need to be able to see the shift in his friend's face
to know that. Jimin knows about Tae's struggle with the topic, his fear of never finding a
relationship he is comfortable with, of 'ending up' all alone. He knows that because he has
comforted the beta several times before because of that. And now Jimin is using it against him.

The thing is, Jimin wants to hurt him. Maybe he is trying to make Tae understand he really wishes
to be left the fuck alone. Or maybe it is his own pain that is too much, too encompassing,
overflowing. And he just needs somebody to share it with.

“Hey, asshole." Taehyung’s tone is less gentle this time. He pushes Jimin’s left shoulder to make
the alpha look him in the eye. "Stop projecting your shit on me.”

The next minute he is gathering all the empty bottles and taking them to the trash can. Then he is
back and starts motioning Jimin to stand up, holding him by the waist.

"I don't need help walking," Jimin complains as he wraps an arm around the beta’s shoulder.

"Well, you're getting it either way," Tae says as he helps the uncoordinated alpha down the steps to
the sidewalk.

They walk in silence for a while. Leaning against Taehyung’s taller body, Jimin trails what seems
to be the campus' tracks, lost behind the soju daze and feeling his stomach churn from the alcohol
abuse. He does his best to focus on his own steps, right then left, right then left…, paying attention
not to trip on anything.

For a while, it feels good. He doesn't think about anything else. The sun is almost set and he
cannot see too well under the faint dusk light and behind the liquor haze. He doesn’t think
unwanted thoughts, memories from earlier kept at bay. At least until Taehyung decides to bring
them back.

"Yoongi hyung was very worried about you, you know?" The careful tender note back to the beta’s
voice.

Jimin snorts in response. "It looked like he wasj more worried about someone else."

"Don't be like that, Chim-Chim…"

Again, Jimin knows . Honestly, he is thankful, relieved that Kookie asked Yoongi to watch over
him during his heat. At least someone was there to make sure he drank water, ate.

But when Yoongi arrived in the morning and refused to let Jimin go upstairs with him, it hurt . It
tasted bitter in his tongue, the betrayal. He felt disregarded, forlorn. He knew the older omega was
only respecting Kookie’s wishes, but it still hurt like fuck. He protested, reasoned, pleaded, but
Yoongi was unyielding. He kept asking Jimin to go home, telling him there was nothing he could
do.

After a few hours, Yoongi came downstairs and told Jimin that his presence was only making
Kookie’s heat worse – that he was agitated, restless. Yoongi told Jimin that if the omega kept
refusing to drink water and snarling whenever he tried to get near, he would have to call an
ambulance. That's what eventually convinced Jimin to leave.

The memory makes Jimin’s insides swirl, or maybe it is the alcohol. His legs tremble and his
mouth waters acridly. Painstakingly, he manages to detach his body from Taehyung and make it to
one of the bushes before it all comes out.

He empties his stomach once, twice, with tears in his eyes. When there is nothing else left to throw
up, he crouches down and starts telling Tae everything that happened the previous night. It feels
cathartic and Jimin wants to let it all out of his system. In between sobs and groans, he tells the beta
about how much it hurt to hear Kookie's omega calling for him, about how he pleaded, how he
literally begged Yoongi, on his knees , to let him go upstairs.

Taehyung listens patiently, releasing fresh pheromones in small doses to calm the alpha. He makes
Jimin drink some water, runs long fingers through his hair. When Jimin finally manages to stop
crying, Taehyung helps him up and convinces him to walk some more, just back to the Arts
building where Hobi is waiting to drive them back to the dorms.

"Shit, I didn't think this lone wolf could smell any more disgusting than his own scent mixed with
dirty toilets, but I guess I was wrong."

Two tall figures approach from the opposite direction and Jimin's brain takes in word by word,
slowly making out who it is coming from.

Doyun .

His overworked scent glands burn, still managing to let out sulfuric seawater as a warning to the
other alpha.

"Come on, Jimin-ah. Just ignore them." Taehyung keeps a strong hold around Jimin’s arm, pulling
him to keep walking.

Doyun turns to whichever asshole he has by his side this time and keeps going, speaking loud
enough to make sure Jimin can hear him. "You know, everytime I met Kookie, I felt like throwing
up because of that stink lingering on him. I was so relieved to see his scent back to its old
sweetness. Especially the past few days, he's been smelling so delicious… I wonder if his heat
already started."

That's it for Jimin. At the mention of the omega's scent, his until-then slumberish wolf immediately
comes out. But Jimin only manages to take two steps, growling low, before Tae is on him. "Jimin,
Jimin, hey! Stop."

The other alpha fleers triumphantly and takes a defiant step in Jimin’s direction. Taehyung pulls
Jimin behind him and warns the other, "Stay the fuck away, Doyun-ssi."

"Oh, now you need your stinky beta friend to protect you?"

Taehyung doesn’t pull out, staring straight at the other alpha’s face before replying, "Wake up,
Doyun-ssi. If there's anyone that needs protection, it is you."

"Oh, please, look at his state. He can barely stand," Doyun speaks with a chortle. He looks at his
friend, who responds with an unenthusiastic laugh.

Behind a remnant light daze, Jimin watches as his friend makes an attempt to deescalate. "Why
don't you keep walking, huh?"

Doyun seems to be in one of those moods, though. "Why don't you keep walking? It's you fuckers
always on my way."

"Ugh, why do I even bother?" Taehyung, clearly uninterested in prolonging the argument, motions
to leave.

But as the beta is turning, Doyun provokes him again. "Just what I thought: a pair of coward curs
." He then pushes Taehyung’s head with the tip of his index and middle fingers right on his temple.
Taehyung shoves the alpha back on the shoulder, "What did you say?"

"You heard me," Doyun replies in a lower tone, seemingly taken aback by the beta’s defiance.

Jimin starts growling low, but decides to let his friend handle it for now. He knows that if he gets
his hands on Doyun, it's gonna get bad. His wolf is on the verge of losing control, and Jimin is in
no state of being able to hold it back after letting it out.

"Why don't you leave us the fuck alone, Doyun? Why do you waste your time bothering us this
much?" Jimin notices how his friend seems to be losing patience, both his tone and his lemongrass
smelling sharper. "Just let us fucking be ."

"Because…" Doyun makes a stupid face, apparently considering how to answer Taehyung's
rhetorical question. "Because you are always on my fucking way ! Stinking up the whole campus
with your disgusting smell. It's fucking annoying that you don't know your place."

" Our place?" Taehyung now looks positively outraged. "Is this what bothers you, Doyun? That we
don't know our place? That we get to go anywhere, be anything we want, while you have to follow
your stupid pack's footsteps?"

Doyun stares at the beta with his stupid face, but Taehyung never stops talking. "Or do you
perhaps feel threatened by us, pack wolf? That someday we will take your place? That someday
only relying on your pack and blood won't be enough?"

The other alpha's disgusting pheromones rot under Jimin's nose and he feels his stomach churn
again. He tries to focus on Tae's scent, on the sound of his voice.

"Are you scared, Doyun? Scared because you know that everything you have, everything you are ,
it is all because of your pack ties? Take that away, and what even are you? You're shit without your
pack, you're nothing . So just leave us the fuck alone so we can keep on ignoring your existence."

Damn . Jimin feels like clapping after the beta's speech. But as soon as he finishes speaking,
Taehyung turns and starts walking away, pulling Jimin with him.

"You stupid cur ." At the galled words, Jimin turns only to see Doyun kick Taehyung right in the
back, making him fall on his knees and hands.

This fucker. Jimin is gonna end him.

He reacts immediately. He grabs Doyun by the collar and pulls him to hit him right on the stomach
with his knee. The sorry excuse of an alpha groans after being hit, but Jimin is far from satisfied
with that.

Still grasping him by the collar, Jimin then shoves him to the ground. Doyun falls awkwardly on
his left arm and Jimin doesn't waste a second. He grabs Doyun by the hair with both hands and
drags his body against the concrete. Doyun manages to wrap his right hand around Jimin's wrist to
relieve the pull, but other than that, he just wails out loud. His friend motions to help, but gives up
mid- movement when Taehyung stands up and positions himself between him and the other two.

Jimin keeps dragging Doyun’s body until he finds a flat rock the size of a soccer ball. That is where
he places Doyun’s head sideways with a harsh pull, Jimin’s foot stepping right on the other’s
temple, holding him down. He then releases the grip on the alpha’s hair to grab his arm and twist
it, immobilizing him.

It feels good . It feels fucking good stepping on the fucker. He could break his jaw like that, just by
changing the angle a little. It would be so easy, shutting up this piece of shit.

He takes a deep breath instead, telling his wolf to calm down. When he feels more in control, Jimin
lowers down until his face is close enough to Doyun’s ear, wanting to make sure he gets every
word of his whispered warning.

"If you fucking touch Taehyung or any of my friends ever again, I will break you, Doyun." He
presses his foot down a bit more, pleased by how the other’s scent smells thick of fear. "Do you
hear me, fucker? I will smash your skull into pieces."

Jimin then releases Doyun, not without rubbing the sole of his shoe on his fucking cheek with a
satisfied grin. "Let’s go, Tae-Tae."

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

Jungkook checks the video for what must be the twenty-seventh time before uploading it.

It starts differently from all of his other covers. This one begins with a series of fast-forward time-
lapses of the sun setting and the moon rising. Something he spent two weeks filming, then another
one editing. Sequences of the same thing over and over, a perfect representation of his own life
nowadays.

Over the video, his handwriting spells a short message:

Because this is another thing I guess I'm not supposed to have

Another thing I'm letting go of

Another thing I don't know how to get hold of

Another thing that is safer away from me.

Thank you for everything.

Sorry for everything else.

Falling - Harry Styles

Then his guitar starts.

The keyboard would work better for this song, but he can't bring himself to play it these days. The
cold touch of keys reminds him too much of a time long ago when music was still a joy he was
discovering, back when his parents encouraged his interest in the piano. For them, it must have
always been something to show, a token of grace and status. But for Jungkook, it was something
that made him feel powerful, something he could pour himself into and watch it grow.
The keyboard reminds Jungkook too much of those days, simpler days, when he thought music
was something he could always live around. Good memories, warm memories like the ocean
breeze. And those are the ones that hurt the most when they're gone.

'Forget what I said / It's not what I meant / And I can't take it back, I can't unpack the baggage you
left'

He closes his eyes when the same verses sting for the uptenth time, pouring painfully in his ears
like the rain in that parking lot a few months ago. He tries not to think about the words, not the
ones his recorded voice is singing, nor those he said to Jimin that afternoon.

It was the right thing to do , he tries to convince himself. Maybe not the rightest thing, but the best
he could do. The only thing he could do.

The shadowy outline of his torso in the video keeps going, keeps playing his old guitar, his old
friend. He remembers how his father refused to buy him one, saying he should focus on the piano
and on his other studies instead. So he did what he could do: sold one of his watches he never
wore, then a design jacket and a pair of sneakers. With carefully counted bills in a pouch bag, nine-
year-old Jungkook went into the store and bought the instrument himself.

He had to keep it in Jin-hyung's house for weeks, practice in secret at a park nearby, or the
emergency staircase of a shopping mall. When his mother finally found out, she just smiled in
silence. His father for months pretended he didn't know about it. Simpler times, Jungkook thinks –
when he could get away with almost anything.

Not anymore. Not when his father seems more eager to get him involved in the company's
business. Not when there is more at stake. Not when other people could get affected by
Jungkook’s insistence in doing music. Not when Jungkook’s silly ambitions and refusal to abide by
his father's wishes could ruin everything. Not when Jimin almost got caught in the middle.

'What am I now, what am I now? / What if I'm someone I don't want around?'

The chorus hits again, and he thinks about Jimin some more, wonders if he'll watch the video.

'What if I'm down, what if I'm out? / What if I'm someone you won't talk about?'

He thinks about himself, about how he is back at zero, back at the non-existent place where his life
has always been. Maybe that is exactly where he is supposed to be.

He finally uploads the video and turns off the laptop as if he were in a hurry. As if he had
somewhere to be, as if he could dream to be anywhere but the place he is always at.

By Saturday evening, Jungkook finds himself at yet another place he wishes he didn't have to be.

It is an event to celebrate the merging of one of the group’s logistic companies overseas with a
payments service provider. Jungkook enters the hotel salon arm in arm with his mother, who looks
as elegant as ever in her dark blue silk dress. He fixes his lavallière tie and sprayed hair once again,
feeling as self-conscious as ever being there in his black-tie suit.
He runs the program in his mind once more: promotional video, speeches, cultural presentation,
signature ceremony, cocktail party. Thankfully all Jungkook has to do is sit at his table and look
interested. If he is lucky enough, perhaps he gets to leave mid-way through the cocktail.

Jungkook has been trying. He goes to the company for a whole afternoon once a week, listens
carefully to what his father explains with patient eyes. He can tell how much the man loves what
he does, how much care and diligence he puts into each action, each decision. A part of Jungkook
envies him, wishes he could have something he loves doing as well, wonders if he will ever learn
to care for the company which his father wants him to take on – at least a little, just so that
everything is not as empty anymore.

Jungkook manages to recognize some of the faces that bow and greet him, glad that his mother
does all the talking. She is so good at this, always has been. She knows the company's businesses
perhaps as well as his father does – even without getting involved in the everyday management,
she is always aware of what is going on, sometimes even learning things before his father does.

Watching his parents, Jungkook often wonders if he really is their son, feels lowkey sorry for them
for having had such an aloof, incapable kid. Between being expected to marry a respectable alpha
to lead the family business while also being directly involved in the company like his father
appears to be training him to, Jungkook is not sure what role he is supposed to fulfill. So he just sits
and listens, trying to learn, trying to care.

"Imo, Jungkook-ah, thank you for the invitation." The alpha approaches them with graceful
confidence, bowing to both and adding a smiling pat on Jungkook’s shoulder. Namjoon is right by
his side, bowing as well with a silent dimpled smile.

"Seokjin-ah, I'm so happy you could make it. It’s so hard to see you these days…" His mother
seems to be sincere in her welcome. She has always had a softer spot for the alpha, always thanking
him for looking after Jungkook when he was little.

"Ah, I'm sorry, Imo. I think I have been taking on too many work projects." Ever since Namjoon
and he publicly announced their engagement, Jin's parents cut him out. He was ready for that,
though: for the past years, he has been making money in the stock market. And apparently now the
couple has been working together on a bigger investment Jungkook doesn't know too much about.

"Ah, as expected. And is this the famous man who is stealing you from the pack?" Jungkook rolls
his eyes. Of course she wouldn't let it go without some double-edged comment.

"He is. This is my Namjoon-ah, Imo. The captor of the most willing victim. Jungkook doesn't need
introductions, right?" His cousin smiles smoothly, never having been one to leave a provocation
unresponded.

"Good to see you again, hyung." Jungkook offers the couple his best smile, or at least the most
sincere he manages to form these days.

"Namjoon-ah, I'm happy to finally meet you. I hope you enjoy the event tonight." He can see that
his mother is putting her hostess face on and he can't tell if there is any sincerity behind the words,
but he guesses it is better this way. The couple leaves for their table and Jungkook has to force his
own welcome face back to greet the next guests.

Jungkook lets out a relieved breath when he finally gets to go to his seat. At least now he can tune
out for a bit, while the ceremony unrolls. He can already feel an annoying headache coming, his
head too crowded, the thoughts weighing heavy on his shoulders.
When the announcements and speeches start, he puts on his best public face and lets his mind shut
down, careful not to let it wander to places he is not supposed to revisit. When the clapping sounds
wake him from his dreamless daze, his hands mirror the crowd's. He tries to pay more attention
when it is his father on the stage, but eventually it all becomes background noise. At least until the
cultural presentation starts.

It is a performance by the National Ballet Academy, a pout-pourri of iconic ballet scenes

accompanied by a small section of the National Philarmonic Orchestra. It starts with a group scene
of four dancers in flowy pink tutus doing The Nutcracker's 'Waltz of the Flowers'. The
unmistakable melody captures everyone's attention immediately and Jungkook feels his brain get
slowly lulled into a more relaxed state.

A pas-de-deux which Jungkook doesn't recognize follows – from Giselle, the printed program on
the table registers. Another one from Sleeping Beauty. It is all short choreos, just excerpts of the
most famous classical pieces, but Jungkook devours them with thirsty eyes. The melodies fill his
lungs with something that tingles, the dance variations swirl into deserted corners of his mind.

A faint voice warns him to be more careful, not to open himself this much to the familiar warm
feeling. It is like something inside of him knows before it happens, knows about the tide that is
going to engulf him before it even forms.

The tide comes in the form of a shirtless alpha with blond hair that takes the stage like a strong
wave.

Jimin.

Jimin is here.

Wearing only fucking white trousers and some kind of jewelry around his chest and forehead for
the costume, Jimin dances a solo from Le Corsaire, one Jungkook saw the alpha practice several
times. The wave hits painfully: it is seeing the alpha again after so long, then the memories that
come back like a flood.

He didn't even know Jimin had gotten into the National Ballet Academy. Butterflies swarm in his
stomach upon realizing it. Jimin deserves it. Jimin deserves it all. He is so proud of him.

No. He has no right being proud of the alpha, Jungkook recalls. The guilt doesn't have enough time
to leak into his chest this time because the amazing danseur on stage distracts him.

Jungkook tries not to let it show, but each time Jimin pirouettes skillfully, each time he finishes a
high saut de chat on one of his knees, the omega’s chest bubbles in excitement. By the time the
dancer finishes the short solo, Jungkook’s mother places a concerned hand on his shoulder. "Are
you alright, son?"

He nods, not trusting his voice to speak for now. With the alpha off the stage, replaced by a group
doing the 'Dance of the Little Swans', Jungkook focuses on controlling his scent. The nut tones
keep spiking up with brushes of saffron, his wolf screaming for Jimin inside his chest.

After two more scenes, the alpha is back on stage for a pas-de-deux with a petite ballerina: an
omega, Jungkook guesses, since the performers are wearing scent suppressants. It is the final dance
of the night and of course it has to be fucking Swan Lake.

They do highlights from the famous duo and Jungkook recognizes several of the movements which
Jimin incorporated in the choreography they performed for the showcase back in summer.
Jungkook can’t help but notice how the omega doesn’t do the hopping backwards arabesque on
pointe and he smiles, knowingly and proud, remembering how the alpha had mastered the
movement.

Thinking about the winter coats he left at the entrance, watching Jimin dance with another partner
from afar, it all makes Jungkook feel like last summer was another life he lived years ago. Like it
was somebody else using his body and acting so out of character, an imposter who took over and
went out living Jungkook’s wildest dreams for a couple of months. Because the real Jungkook is
the one who sits at a table, impassively watching everything he will never get to be.

The rest of the ceremony goes by quickly, probably because Jungkook’s mind is too focused on the
thoughts of the dancer, who is probably in some room in the back, removing his make-up and
changing clothes to leave. Soon the cocktail party starts and Jungkook finds himself recoiled next
to a column with a champagne flute in one hand and his cell phone in the other, hoping that nobody
notices him there.

He needs some time alone, the thoughts are whirling confused in his chest. His omega keeps
calling for the alpha, irritated that they saw him after so long but that it was just from afar. His
wolf can't believe that the alpha was there but didn't come to them. It all feels so anticlimactic, and
Jungkook wonders if Jimin even noticed he was there.

Probably not. Why would he?

He wonders if Jimin even remembers him.

"Are you hiding from someone?"

The unmistakable mellow voice in his ear startles Jungkook, making his heart speed up all of a
sudden. In a frozen state and unsure of how close the alpha is behind him, he opts not to turn
around and tries to reply. "N-no."

Jimin circles him and… fuck . Jungkook was not ready to face the dancer. He looks dazzling,
wearing his black jeans and black leather jacket, no fucks given to the required black-tie for the
event. Even without being able to pick up his suppressed scent, Jungkook's wolf jumps excitedly
inside of him, like a puppy greeting the owner who has just gotten home.

Jimin stares into his eyes inquisitively and Jungkook feels ready to open his whole soul to him. He
will never understand the power those half-lidded eyes hold upon him, always making him pliant
and willing. Fuck.

"Look, I know you want nothing with me, but I just wanted to ask you something before I leave.
Can I?"

Jungkook bites his lower lips and nods, nervous about the question and trying to get a grip on his
omega who keeps wanting to release pheromones to Jimin's alpha.

"Why are you cutting everyone off? Yoongi-hyung, even your cousin? Now that video from last
week." Jungkook’s heart jumps in his chest. He saw it. Jimin saw his 'Falling' cover video. "What
are you even doing, Jungkookie? Why are you hiding in a corner?"

Shit . The way Jimin says it... The raw truth wrapped in such a gentle tone. The 'Jungkookie' all
over again. He has been called 'Kookie' his whole life but somehow 'Jungkookie' – Jimin calling
him 'Jungkookie' – is what makes him melt. It’s silly, really. But when Jimin calls him like that,
Jungkook feels like he is being taken care of.
It is not a feeling he is allowed to have, though. It is not his place. Not anymore.

“You don’t understand, hyung.”

“You’re right. I don’t.” Jimin sounds a bit harsher now, but still has the same caring look in his
eyes. “Unless you explain it to me, I won’t understand.”

And for a second, Jungkook thinks he could. He could explain it all to Jimin, maybe he would
understand it… why he had to do it. For a short moment, he plays with the idea of grabbing the
alpha’s hand and getting out of there. Just for tonight. At least so that Jungkook could tell him.

But what would the point be?

He lowers his head, unable to face Jimin.

“I’m gonna go now, Jungkook.” The alpha brings a tentative hand to his shoulder and Jungkook
allows it, letting out a pained sigh. “Please take care of yourself.”

Jungkook manages to raise his face a little and notices how they are in his father’s line of sight.
The beta stands tall, speaking to guests all the way across the room, but somehow Jungkook can
still feel the force of his gaze upon them. He tries hard to ignore it. Just for a second, he wants to
look Jimin in the eye. Just one last time.

“Y-you too, hyung.”

That is all Jungkook manages to say.

Then the hand on his shoulder is gone. Jungkook closes his eyes, not wanting to watch Jimin leave.

“You know, even in the corner, you still shine the brightest.” The warm voice whispers close to his
ear and Jungkook bites his lower lip, trying hard not to start crying at the words. “You were all I
could see.”

And then the voice is also gone.

About five minutes later, Jin finds him by the bar with another glass of champagne.

“Please tell me you did not just send Jimin away again.”

Damn. He does not beat around the bush, that man.

Jungkook chuckles bitterly and takes another sip.

“Kook-ah… Please don’t be like that. You look miserable! Why are you doing this to yourself?”

He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, still unwilling to answer. He knows he looks miserable.
He feels miserable. He is fucking miserable. And all of his energy right now is focused on just
surviving the night.

“Jimin cares about you, Kook-ah. We all care about you. Just talk to us,” Jin insists and it hurts.
The gentle words poke against his stomach and Jungkook is not sure how much longer he is gonna
be able to hold on.

“You don’t understand,” Jungkook repeats the same line from before, not putting too much thought
into its meaning.

“ What don’t I understand?” Jin retorts immediately. “That you are shutting everyone off because
you are scared? You’re so scared of what your parents will do to you that you’re giving up on
everything that makes you happy, Kook-ah?”

“T-that’s…” Jungkook watches as Namjoon approaches, carefully, ready to leave if the omega
tells him to. He doesn’t. “T-that’s not- It is not about me , hyung.”

“Then who is it about, huh?” His tone is still calm despite the blunt words. “Is this about how your
father made Jimin lose the back-up dancer position for that group’s tour?”

What?

Jungkook must have widened his dull eyes in clear surprise, because the next second Jin confirms,
“Yes, I know. We all know. Jimin knows.”

Oh shit. Oh shit. They know ?

Jimin knows ?

Oh fuck. He remembers the night when Jimin sent him the text and immediately he knew. It was
his father's message to Jungkook: 'your time is up '. That night, he drove all the way to the capital
to protest with his father. He ended up crying more than protesting though. The argument ended
when his father informed him he should start coming to the company every week to learn about
the business.

So… Jimin knew all that? Fuck , he probably hates Jungkook for it. Probably thought it was good
riddance when Jungkook broke up with him. Good. That’s good. Then he understands. He knows
he should stay away.

“And before your little brain starts to come up with all those crazy little theories, I’m gonna go
ahead and tell you that Jimin doesn’t care.”

What?

“Yeah, he doesn’t care. It was not that big a deal. He got into the National Ballet Academy, didn’t
you notice?”

Right. He did. Jimin is so fucking amazing and Jungkook is so proud that his talent and hard work
are finally getting some recognition. Everybody should be able to see it. Jimin just needs nobody to
fuck this up for him.

“Y-yeah, but-”

“But nothing, Kook-ah."

Jin seems to be losing his cool, so Namjoon intervenes. "Look, Kookie, I know you are afraid that
your parents will ruin things for Jimin again. But please hear me out. Jinnie and I have been
working on a lot of things recently. We cannot say much at this point, but the National Ballet is one
of the partners we have been working with. So trust me when I say it. This is different."

Jungkook stares at the professor, unsure of what he is trying to tell him. So his father can't
intervene in the National Ballet? He doubts that, but… maybe. He is not sure what to think.
"Kook-ah, just talk to Jimin." Jin tries to convince once again. "I think that boy is ready to fight the
whole family pack for you."

"Well, I could help…" Namjoon adds shyly and it makes Jungkook laugh. It is not a very long one,
more like a chuckle, but the first real warm laugh he has let out in months.

He wonders when was it that his cousin got this close to Jimin, to the point of speaking about him
like they have talked, really talked. He wonders if it was through Namjoon or Yoongi-hyung. Or
maybe it was because of him.

The thought makes his eyes water – the idea that maybe he has people in his life that get along
together and care about him. Something lights up in his chest, something that whispers 'maybe' in
his ears. It is faint and weak, but it is there. Hope.

Maybe he could at least talk to Jimin. If anything, he could at least apologize, tell him everything.

Yeah, Jungkook could do that.

"Hyung, can you give me a ride?"

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

Jimin didn’t expect to find Kookie at that event. Yeah, of course he knew it was going to be at one
of the Jeon Group’s hotels but he never thought the Jeon pack would be there, that Jungkook would
be there.

He spotted the omega a while before the performance, looking a little bored, a little shy, at a table
up front. He had his shoulders hunched and a lost gaze, like he was trying to make himself go
unnoticed.

Yet he was all Jimin could see.

His wolf screamed at Jimin to go and get their omega, take him by the hand and out of that place
he was clearly uncomfortable at.

But what right did he have? Kookie had made himself clear more than once that he didn't want
anything to do with Jimin. But he couldn't help but worry. Worry about how the omega seemed to
be pushing everyone else away: Yoongi, Seokjin…

Then there was the new video on his channel. As soon as Jimin got the notification on his way to
practice, he rushed to a less crowded corner to watch it. Instead of the usual view of a guitar being
played by someone whose face was never shown, this time the video started with a time lapse of
the sunset, followed by the moon rising – a succession of those. And Jungkook’s handwriting
speaking of letting go of music. Jimin felt something weird in his chest, something between pain
and agitation.

When the video transitioned to the same familiar cut of Kookie’s torso with his guitar and the first
chord sounded, Jimin was already a little emotional. Kookie’s voice was clear and soft as ever.
Jimin missed it so much, missed the sound of the omega’s whispers, the way his register goes
lower right after he wakes up.
Watching the video, Jimin couldn't help but wonder if those lyrics were somehow meant for him.
There was such a longing in the omega’s tone that it made Jimin sigh, his eyes wanting to water.
When he spotted the necklace on Jungkook’s neck – the necklace, the one Jimin made, his gift, his
courting gift, his courting gift which Jungkook accepted – that's when it hit him: the video. The
sun and the moon, repeatedly. It had to be meant for Jimin.

For days he thought about contacting Kookie, waited for a call, a message, anything. But the
omega was still avoiding everyone. If anything, it apparently only got worse after the video. Even
Taehyung and Hobi tried to reach him, but Kookie just politely brushed off their attempts to get
him to talk.

So watching from backstage as Kookie sat through that ceremony with empty eyes made the
worries sting harder in Jimin’s chest. He did his best to focus on his performance when his turn
came, but the scent of pistacchio and saffron was overwhelming. He even ended up doing a couple
of lazy leaps not completely en tendu.

As he walks the last steps toward his cabin under the moonlight, flashes of his short conversation
with Kookie assault him again. Jimin was so distracted with the omega’s scent, an anguished
creamy undertone mixed with sweeter peaks of nuts kept making Jimin’s alpha utterly confused, so
he had a hard time formulating thoughts. All he could think of was taking Kookie by the hand and
escaping somewhere he could scent and kiss all of the omega’s distress away. He was so agitated
when he left the hotel that he ended up going straight to Tae's to grab a drink and talk it out.

Now finally back home, he opens the front door and leaves his change of clothes by the door. After
taking off his jacket, he lets out a longing sigh. Alone with his thoughts again. Not bothering to
turn the lights on, Jimim drags his feet to the kitchen to get something to eat, because of course all
Tae had at his place was cheap chips. He examines the empty fridge and ends up finishing a bottle
of milk, after sniffing on it to make sure it hadn't gone bad.

Ready to go straight to bed and internally thanking Taehyung for having insisted on Jimin taking a
shower before the soju rounds, he starts heading upstairs. He is on the third step up when he
freezes on the spot.

A flow of meringue. A hint of pistachio.

It can't be. It must be his tired brain tricking him.

Impatient, Jimin rushes up the remaining steps, needing immediate confirmation of the probable
delusion. Why is his imagination playing such a cruel trick on him now? He prepares himself for
the disappointment, almost closing his eyes in fear of what they'll find.

"Jungkookie…?" He whispers, almost as if he is afraid that speaking too loud will make the mirage
disappear.

The omega looks so dreamy curled up over his sheets. He is wearing the fancy outfit from earlier,
velvet tie clutched in hand and only the suit jacket protecting his torso from the cabin's cold. Still,
he looks peaceful in his sleep. His nose keeps twitching, sniffing on the pillow that Jimin knows is
covered in his own scent. It makes his heart flutter.

When he lowers down on the mattress, Kookie shifts and sits up, confused from sleep. He looks
around with a half-lidded gaze, then suddenly freezes with the same eyes now wide open and
staring at Jimin, as if he was surprised to find the alpha in his own bed.

For what must be ten seconds that feel like an eternity, they stare at each other in silence. Jimin
notices how Jungkook shivers a little, probably cold. He wants to go to him, but holds back,
waiting for the omega to say something. He waits, watching as Jungkook’s expression melts into
brows that furrow and lips that curl together in a pout.

Seeing as the other still won't say anything, Jimin asks, "Kookie, what are you doing here?"

Because Jimin needs to know. He needs to hear it from him, unable to hold on any longer,
desperate for a word from Jungkook.

The omega starts to tremble harder, his whole body now, and Jimin thinks he is going to go crazy
if he doesn't hold the other in his arms right now and starts warming him. He notices how Kookie’s
lips begin to quiver just as well, right before those wide eyes fill with shiny unshed tears.

Fuck.

"H-Hyung-" The voice shivers like the rest of Kookie’s body and his scent is all over the place,
making Jimin dizzy. "I-I’m s-sorry. I'm so s-sorry…"

And that is all it takes. All of a sudden, Jimin doesn't need to hear anything else from Kookie.
Looking at his trembling form and eyes open bare, Jimin knows .

"It's okay, it's okay. Come here," Jimin pulls Jungkook towards him and he goes willingly. The
omega straddles Jimin’s lap and curls himself all around his body, nose close to his scent gland.
Jimin wraps him in an embrace, hoping it will help calm him down.

"I-I’m sorry, I'm really sorry, Jimin. I-... I d-didn't know what else to do. I didn’t want t-to ruin
things for you." His voice is filled with tears, and Jimin starts releasing some calming pheromones,
brushing his hand up and down the other’s back trying to comfort him.

"I… still don't know what to do, hyung. I’m… I don’t know what they'll do if-... if-"

"Shhhh, it's okay, Jungkookie. Just breathe," Jimin says in his gentlest tone. For a while, they stay
like that. Only Jungkook's fading hiccups interrupt their silence.

"Hyung," Jungkook sits up and wipes his face with the back of his hand. He looks straight at
Jimin’s eyes with a forming pout. "Do you still want me, hyung?"

Jimin can't help but chuckle, fondly. "Can't you tell?"

When the pout remains on the rosy lips, Jimin confirms, "Of course I still want you, Jungkookie. I
meant it when I said I wanted to court you, you know?"

The omega lets out a guilty smile.

"Hey," Jimin pinches his chin and looks him in the eye. "But I need to know what you want,
Jungkookie."

"I-" He takes a deep breath, as if he is gathering courage to answer. "I want you too. I also meant it
when I accepted your courting, hyung. I really want it. I want you to be my boyfriend, my alpha."

Fuck. Jimin wants to kiss him senseless. Wants to bite into those rosy lips and hold him close by
the waist.

But they need to talk. So he smiles and runs his fingers through the other’s hair, combing it a little
to remove some of the remaining spray.
"I-I also want to try and do music," Jungkook adds.

Jimin stops his movements for a second, wanting to confirm if he heard that right. This is big . If
this is why Kookie is here, if he is finally ready to do that, then this is much more than just about
their relationship. So he asks again, just to make sure, "Do music?"

Jungkook nods and lowers his head, then raises his gaze, only to show those pretty doe eyes. "Is it
selfish, hyung? To want it all?"

"No, baby. No." He brings the omega closer for a hug, drawing circles in his back. "It is not selfish
to go after what you want, Jungkookie." He nuzzles Kookie’s covered shoulder, leaves longing
pecks over the fabric of his white shirt.

"Have you talked to your parents yet?"

"N-no…" A peak of burnt saffron fills the air, so Jimin holds him even closer, almost regretting
asking the question. "I wanted to talk to you first."

Oh.

"B-Because I don't know how they'll react, Jimin. And it can affect you." He leans back, looks at
the older. "So it's okay if you-... I-I mean, I'll understand if you don't-"

Jimin stops him with a kiss. Grabbing him by the nape, Jimin does not hold back anymore. He
kisses Jungkook fiercely, but slowly, wanting to savor every inch of his lips. He presses kisses and
bites on them, from one corner to the other, successfully shushing the omega. "We can figure it
out," he keeps repeating between pecks. "We'll figure it out together, Jungkookie."

When the younger finally relaxes in Jimin’s hold, his scent turning refreshingly sweet, Jimin stops
the kissing attack and looks him in the eye. "Okay?"

Jungkook smiles, truly smiles – that wide smile that crunches his nose, the one Jimin missed so
much. "Okay," he replies with a sigh right before buring his nose on Jimin's neck.

After the nose, it is moist lips on the expanse of his skin, then tongue and teeth quickly getting
more desperate right over Jimin’s scent gland.

(***)

"Jungkook-ah," he warns the omega who has started rolling hips on his lap. Jimin can feel how
hard Kookie already is, seeking friction against Jimin’s own erection.

The younger ignores the warning and keeps moving his hips. Jimin’s hand inadvertently slides
down to the round of his butt, mind a little hazy from the constant licking on his scent gland.

"Hyung, please…"

Again, that is all Jimin needs to hear. He undoes the omega’s belt and unbuttons his slacks, all the
while Kookie keeps leaving wet stripes over Jimin's shoulder and neck with his tongue, making the
collar of his sweater stretch from the tug.

Jimim tries to pull away so that he can remove both their pants, but Jungkook refuses to, moaning a
complaint against his neck. So Jimin appeals to the other’s wolf, "Be a good omega and take off
these pants for me, Jungkookie."
It works. The omega lets out an even louder whine, right before shifting clumsily on Jimin’s lap
until one of the pants legs is off, one side of his boxers also removed in the process.

Deeming the clothing taken off enough, with pants hanging from his left calf, Jungkook returns to
Jimin’s lap, pulling the alpha’s joggers and boxers just enough to release his hard cock.

When Jimin feels a warm wetness on the head of his cock, he stiffens. "Jungkook, wait."

"Can't wait, alpha…" He replies in a hazed moan, biting on Jimin’s neck softly and lowering
himself on the alpha, leaking a copious amount of slick.

"I don't want to hurt you, Jungkook-ah." Jimin practically moans, feeling the wet rim start to engulf
the tip of his dick. "Let me prep you, baby."

"Need now," the omega insists, holding the older’s cock with his hand and lowering his hips even
more. "I can do it, slow. Please, alpha."

Jimin takes a deep breath and Jungkook is already halfway down his dick. He feels hot, a little
hazed.

And fucking delicious .

A few more seconds and he bottoms out. Jimin brings both of his hands to the omega’s ass,
squeezing the cheeks apart and adjusting his length further inside Kookie.

"So good," Jimin praises. "My omega is so good."

Jungkook practically melts on his lap, again buring his face on the junction of Jimin’s neck and
shoulder. He notices how the younger's eyes still seem a little foggy, his skin growing hotter.

"Jungkookie, you okay?" He brings a palm to his forehead instinctively. "You are burning hot."

Could it be? The timing doesn't quite match, Jimin thinks. "Are you in heat?"

Jungkook whines in reply. Then he growls low, almost lazily. "M-my heat… alone… it hurt so
much, alpha…"

Fuck. Jimin's wolf practically howls in his chest, recalling the way he couldn't be with their mate in
heat months ago. But Jimin tries to calm down, focusing his attention on Kookie. Is this some kind
of phantom heat he is having? It doesn't seem too strong, but Jimin still worries. He puts his hand
under the omega’s shirt, feeling how hot his skin is.

"Come on, let's take this off too."

Jungkook abides and lets the alpha undress him of his shirt, circling his hips around Jimin’s dick
all the while, the fucking menace.

And then Jimin spots it. The necklace, on Jungkook’s neck. "Jungkookie… you're still wearing it."
A little emotional, he places his palm over the pendant.

"I always wear it, alpha."

Ah, shit.

Jimin brings him to a deep kiss, the other hand caressing his muscular leg. "Come here," he then
shifts their bodies closer to the wall, trying to get a better angle. Kookie goes pliantly.
They keep kissing like that, Jungkook rolling his hips, straddling the alpha. Every now and then,
Jimin thrusts up and Jungkook throws his head back, growling low. His skin still feels hot, but he
seems a bit calmer, only whining small pleas of 'Alpha, don't leave me , 'Alpha, need your knot' ,
'There, there, alpha' . And then "Alpha, I love you."

Jimin always brings the younger’s lips back to his, his alpha snarling everytime the omega is not
glued against him. When he notices that Kookie is getting tired, he holds him by the hip with one
hand for leverage and wraps the other around the omega’s cock. Using his thumb, he gently
brushes the throbbing vein right under the tip.

"A-alpha…" The way Jungkook’s moans go to a higher register, then the pressure he feels all
around his own dick, it tells Jimin how close the other is. He is barely hanging there himself, the
mere sight of the omega’s pleasure edging him.

"M-me too, baby."

With that, they come. Still knowing each other’s bodies too well, they come in sync. They don't
moan too loud this time, just whispering lips on lips. Jimin’s knot starts forming right on spot, and
he lets his mind drift deeper into his inner wolf, finally sated inside their omega.

(***)

"So pretty, my beautiful wolf," he growls fondly brushing a cheek along Jungkook’s jaw. "My little
prince, I missed you so much."

"Me too, alpha. Me too… I'm so sorry. I was a bad omega, I-I'm sorry."

"No, no, baby." He leans back to look him in the eye, and something stings inside Jimin when he
notices the guilt still lingering in Jungkook’s gaze. "You were the best omega, Jungkookie. The
best for me. And I love you so much."

Jungkook moans another whine and Jimin kisses his lips slowly, releasing more inside the omega.
He takes a deep breath, feeling his knot finally settle, and then carries on, "You were trying to
protect me, Jungkookie. You are such a brave omega for your alpha. So brave, so caring."

The younger's meringue peaks under Jimin’s nose and all he wants in life is to see the other happy
like that. All he wants is to hold and cherish Kookie, to be held and loved back. He hugs the omega
closer, nuzzles his neck, trying to calm the thoughts that fear being left by the other again.

He leaves small kisses on Kookie's skin, thinking about how much more scared the younger must
be feeling right now, considering facing his parents and possibly letting everything behind for
music, for Jimin. The gentle kisses turn into love bites, his wolf feeling the need to mark their
omega, claim him. It all feels right like that, his knot even coming down faster than usual. He just
wants to lay down and hold Jungkook to sleep.

"Jimin…" The whisper sounds so sweet in his ear, he missed this voice so much. "Will you go to
the apartment with me tomorrow to help me pack my stuff?"

His hazed brain almost doesn't fully comprehend the meaning behind those words, simply
humming in response and shifting, so they can lie down.

He spoons Jungkook and holds him tight by the waist, kissing his shoulder a bit longer. "Will you
come back home with me after that?" He asks sluggishly, as if it was the most normal course of
action.
 "If you'll let me stay," Kookie replies shyly. "I could ask Jin-hyung too."

Jimin bites his shoulder in reprimand, just a little hard, just enough to make the omega’s body a bit
more pliant in his hold. Kookie shivers a little, so Jimin pulls a thicker blanket over them, holding
the other even closer. "I'm gonna have to get us better heating then. Can't have my omega being
cold at our home."

Chapter End Notes

Have I mentioned how much I love these two? I'm so not ready to let go of this
story...
I can't tell I will be able to post the final chapter too soon cause I still have a lot going
on, but I promise I will pour my heart into it.
‘And I'm sorry I let you down. I'm so sorry, Daddy. But you let me down too.’
Chapter Summary

The happy ending they deserve.

Chapter Notes

Ah, I can't believe this is it. I feel like I kept postponing finishing this chapter because
I didn't want to say goodbye to the story. Also, a lot of life and work happened, but
let's not talk about /that/.

This is probably the chapter that less resembles/has references to the movie, but that
may be because I wanted to give jikook the happy ending they deserve.
(#johnnyDeservedBetter)

Alright, I won't make this long. I love this story. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THESE
CHARACTERS so you'd better love them as well!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

. .

Family - David Guetta, feat. IZA, Ty Dolla $ign & A Boogie Wit da Hoodie

Jungkook’s gaze anxiously moves from the flight information display down to his cell phone.

He remembers how much he used to love watching those old split-flap panels whenever his mother
took him to the airport. Little Jungkook would stare at the black board without even blinking,
waiting for the white letters and numbers to start their loud dance. He remembers thinking it was
the sound of fluttering wings, imagining the airplanes outside buzzing around like a swarm of giant
insects.

“I’ll go get us some overpriced drinks. What do you all want?” Hobi asks with a zestful voice,
always ready to help diffuse any tension in the air. The embodiment of tension in this case –
Jungkook – ends up asking for soda water. The other four chant their beverage preference and
Seokjin tags along, offering to help carry everything.

"Kook-ah, you know that staring at the arrivals gate is not gonna make him get here sooner,
right?" Namjoon mocks him fondly with a hand on his shoulder.

"I know, hyung… I just don't want us to miss this spot."

It's a great spot. It's perfect. Jimin will be able to see them as soon as he crosses the sliding doors.
Jungkook just had to keep the spot for fifty more minutes.

He has waited a whole six months and three days. Fifty minutes is nothing.

The omega still remembers that Wednesday evening when Jimin got home smelling absolutely
distressed, convinced that he would have to leave the National Ballet for good. It took Jungkook
several minutes of scenting and cuddling to finally get his boyfriend to tell him what had happened:
Jimin had been chosen by his teachers for an exchange scholarship abroad, at simply the world's
best ballet academy. And he refused it. The stupid alpha refused it because he didn't want to leave
Jungkook alone for six months.

Jungkook spent the whole night trying to convince Jimin that it would be alright, that he should go,
that it was his dream, the opportunity of a lifetime. Jimin argued that he did not need it, that there
were other paths for him, even if the National Ballet decided to end his scholarship for refusing to
go.

The alpha knew how hard the past months had been on Jungkook – facing his parents, leaving
everything behind, the whole process to separate his register from the family records, the
University's initial refusal to accept his scholarship request. After months battling both the
University's Scholarship Board and the Capital’s Pack Council, Jungkook had given up on trying
for a Music Degree. He knew that it was probably his parents’ doing, especially after the Board
agreed to give him the Music scholarship on the condition that Jungkook remained in his Business
course. It was utter bullshit. So he went and got a job at BH, the music label where Yoongi works
at. An administrative internship, but it was something. At least until he could figure out what to
do.

It was around the same time when Jimin had managed to get his credits transfer approved and
finish his degree as a full time student at the National Ballet in the capital city. With Seokjin and
Namjoon's help, they were able to rent a small apartment downtown and had just moved there a
few weeks before.

That is why Jimin thought it was too soon for them, that there was too much going on and that he
didn’t want Jungkook to be alone.

After minutes of heavy silence, the omega asked Jimin if the exchange program was something he
truly wanted to do – were the circumstances any different, would Jimin want to go? Jungkook
didn’t budge, he insisted until the dancer answered the question. He finally admitted that yes , it
was one of his dreams.
Making the alpha look him in the eye, Jungkook said he would respect and support whatever his
decision was, but asked him not to give up on something he wanted so badly, not without thinking
about it a bit more. He said that seeing Jimin do what made him happy was something that gave
him courage every day. With a watery voice, Jungkook asked, practically begged him to never stop
doing what brought him happiness. That was when Jimin started crying.

Watching now the other five wolves around him waiting by the arrivals gate, the colorful
assemblage of different beverages and personalities, Jungkook wonders how Jimin could even
think he would be alone those six months.

Loneliness was something Jungkook definitely knew. His whole life, he had been surrounded by
empty spaces and loud silences. He watched everyone around him and couldn’t understand why he
struggled so much to be like them, to have friends and enjoy his comfortable life. He felt
completely disconnected from everyone and everything. But most of all, it was like Jungkook
himself lived in a foreign organism. He contemplated his life and foreseeable future and couldn’t
recognize himself there. He felt detached from his own existence, his days went on in a quiet
cacophony.

Looking back at the past six months, Jungkook felt anything but lonely. Of course, he missed Jimin
so much that it sometimes physically hurt in a certain spot in his chest and it even got hard to
breathe. But between working on tracks with Yoongi after work hours, catching dance lessons with
Hobi, spending the night at Namjoon and Jin’s big apartment being fed and pampered and making
the two-hour train trip back to the University dorms to visit Tae on the weekend whenever he
started complaining how everyone forgot about him, Jungkook was really far from lonesome.

Again Jungkook thinks of those two words he heard first from Namjoon then from Jin: ‘extended
pack’ . Of course now that the two had managed to register the new Kim Pack at the Pack Council
and included both Jimin and Jungkook as members (which was how the younger couple managed
to rent such a good apartment downtown in the first place), it was not ‘extended’ anymore but the
real deal. Tae and his grandmother had officially joined the Kim pack three months ago too, and
Jungkook was sure Yoongi and maybe even Hobi would follow soon.

When his cell phone buzzes with the alert that Jimin’s flight has landed, Jungkook’s scent spikes in
anticipation. He barely registers Hobi commenting that if the omega were a puppy, he would have
ears up and tail pointed, anxiously waiting for his owner to cross the door.

Taehyung starts distributing the welcome signs he made the day before: ‘Welcome home, Jaman’
goes to Jin and ‘Took too long. I have a new soulmate’ obviously to himself. Hobi bursts out a
laugh and takes the ‘Thanks fuck you’re back so Kookie will finally stop whining’ and a rather
embarrassed Namjoon is handed the ‘All of the underwear you left behind is in Kookie’s nest’
(Namjoon then begs his alpha to change signs. Jin refuses at first, loving to tease his partner, but
eventually complies). Yoongi gets the ‘I was coerced into coming here today’. And finally
Jungkook’s says ‘The baby is yours’. Yep, that’s him: he is the baby.

As soon as he locks eyes with his clearly even more distressed and anxious boyfriend coming from
the gate, Jungkook forgets all about the cute sign and practically runs towards Jimin. His omega
howls and howls inside of him at the sight of their alpha, desperate to reach him. The other doesn’t
seem much different, zigzagging his way through the crowd with two luggages, gaze set on
Jungkook.

“Hyung!”

He notices how Jimin almost loses his balance from the impact of Jungkook’s abrupt hug, but he
can apologize later. Right now, if he doesn’t gulp down a lungful of ocean waves and plumeria,
Jungkook thinks he will literally pass out. So he buries his face on the crook of the alpha’s neck
and takes a deep breath in.

Fucking finally.

All of his thoughts are quickly drenched in Jimin’s scent and his omega feels at peace for the first
time in months. Jimin’s face finds Jungkook’s scent gland the next moment too, and they just stand
there in the middle of the airport wrapped in their own bubble. Nothing else matters – not the loud
noises, the annoyingly bright lights, the people having to dodge them. It is all insignificant,
because his alpha is back. Jimin is back into his arms and all’s good with the world again.

That is, until a bear-like embrace collides into them: “I want in, too!”

Jungkook can’t really complain: Tae has soulmates-benefits, plus he knows how much Jimin’s
absence took a toll on the beta. So he ends up reluctantly allowing the two to have a moment of
their own too. Soon the others reach them and after a noisy round of hugs and laughter and
promises of telling everything, they start moving towards the parking lot.

Jungkook tries not to be selfish and lets Jimin catch up with his friends. After all, the two will be
heading straight home from the airport and he will have the alpha all to himself the rest of the day.
So he stays a step behind, walking beside Jin and Namjoon who are taking Jimin’s luggage.

But when Jimin stops mid-sentence on his narration about a nasty instructor at the academy and
starts searching for Jungkook, looking a little agitated, the omega can’t control it.

An almost childish possessiveness takes over him and he can feel himself pouting when Jimin’s
eyes meet his. Stepping closer, Jungkook lets out a soft whine and lifts the alpha by the waist.
Jimin doesn’t miss a beat, immediately wrapping his legs around the omega and hugging him tight.
One of Jungkook’s hands automatically slides down to hold Jimin from the back of his thigh and
his inner omega decides that this is where their boyfriend belongs.

“Are you gonna carry me all the way to the car, Jungkookie?” The alpha asks, smiling onto
Jungkook’s neck.

“I am,” he replies, already making his way forward with sure steps. “Don’t make me let go,”
Jungkook asks and hugs the dancer tighter.

The dancer’s laughter tickles his skin and he loves it. “I won’t.”

They get home an hour later and Jungkook's skin tingles everywhere wanting to be wrapped by the
alpha. It is just an old one-bedroom apartment, but compared to the log cabin they shared for a few
months back at the University dorms, the place is huge, with even a built-in closet and a small
balcony. And a bathtub! How could Jungkook forget to mention the bathtub ?

As soon as they enter the apartment, Jimin takes a deep breath in, sniffing the air that is probably
filled with Jungkook’s scent. He smiles and brings the omega into an intense kiss with eyes still
closed.

The alpha doesn't seem to make up his mind whether he wants to use his tongue or bite Jungkook’s
lips. His hands grab the omega by the hair, then slide all the way down to his waist, only to come
up again to cage his face and control the kiss.

"I missed you so much, Jungkookie..." A dozen pecks and short licks are left all over the omega’s
face and neck. "So, so much."

Jungkook keeps his eyes closed and enjoys the attention, his wolf absolutely in heaven.

Leaving the luggage at the door, he lets himself be taken by the hand toward the bathroom. “Just a
quick shower”, the alpha promises.

With earnest heed, Jimin undresses him. There is a flaming intensity in his eyes that contrasts with
how gentle his fingers caress the omega’s skin. Jimin cleans himself quickly and then turns all his
attention back to the younger. Refusing to allow Jungkook to do anything, Jimin shampoos his
hair, then soaps his arms, torso, legs. On one knee, the alpha carefully washes his foot, then the
other. He comes back up and rinses Jungkook’s hair under the shower, kissing the corners of his
mouth lovingly.

Jungkook basks under the emotional touches and takes everything Jimin gives him, knowing that it
is what the alpha needs.

(***)

They dry up and don't bother redressing. Jimin guides the omega to their bed and motions him to
lie on his stomach. The alpha follows and lies sideways, propped on one elbow.

Feeling as Jimin’s fingers start to trail down his spine, Jungkook reaches for a pillow and tucks it
under his shoulders. After watching how the omega shifts a little to get more comfortable, Jimin
takes another pillow and pats Jungkook lightly on his buttcheek twice. On command, the younger
lifts his hips and Jimin places the pillow under him, then adds another one, saying how gorgeous
he is with a lingering kiss on his shoulder blade.

The new position makes Jungkook feel on display, laid open with his ass lifted up. But as soon as
Jimin starts touching him again, he finds himself enjoying the exposure.

It is so soothing, the gentleness with which the tips of Jimin’s fingers brush up and down his back,
leaving behind a trace of ocean and plumeria flowers. The soft touch of the alpha’s lips on his
shoulder gives him goosebumps but makes him relax the next second.

"Jungkook-ah…"

The alpha’s voice is like a faint breeze against his skin, claiming every inch of him.

"Kookie…" Jimin keeps calling him in whispers, and he smiles at the dancer with eyes closed.
"My precious omega…"

The familiar fingers start trailing further down his back, following the outline of his butt – first
with the same gentleness, then a little more acutely, scraping skin with fingernails.

"Hyung… You tease too much," he whines and hides his face on the pillow, feeling some slick
already pooling around his rim.

Jimin giggles and wraps his right arm and leg around the omega’s body. Jungkook can feel the
other’s half hard-on pressed to his hip as Jimin growls against his neck repeating how much he
missed the younger.

The alpha’s hand finds its way back to Jungkook’s butt and Jimin starts nibbling on his shoulder,
then closer to his neck. Even when Jungkook’s skin prickles in anticipation, there is something so
relaxing about the way Jimin keeps breathing his name in his ears, his fingers whispering feathery
touches up and down his thighs. So Jungkook’s body loosens up even further under the dancer’s
strokes.

When Jimin’s index finger reaches the contour of his rim, Jungkook fists the corner of the pillow
below his head and lets out a low moan. The alpha draws circles around Jungkook’s entrance,
whispering praises in his ear. It all makes the younger feel like he is floating, completely at his
boyfriend’s mercy. A thin stream of slick starts pouring out of his asshole and Jungkook stirs,
arching his back and spreading his legs to make the access easier.

And Jimin obliges. A moment later, a gentle finger breaches the omega’s rim and Jungkook closes
his eyes to enjoy the slide. It is only a knuckle in when Jimin hisses and withdraws the finger
rather suddenly. When he notices how the dancer recoils his body, Jungkook turns to find the other
biting his lower lip with a smirk, fingers wrapped tightly around the base of a very hard cock.

“H-hyung, what’s wrong?”

Jimin opens a sexy smile and the scent of flowers sweetens in the air. “J-just… You’re so hot it
drives me crazy, Jungkook-ah,” he explains and brings his finger back to the omega’s asshole.

Noticing the slight swelling at the base of the dancer’s dick, Jungkook can’t help but tease. “You
wanna knot me this bad, alpha?”

Jimin hums in reply, biting into the younger’s shoulder and slipping a digit back in. Another finger
starts circling and pressing into the moist rim and Jungkook can feel his toes curling from want
already.

“You know, ever since my rut, no matter how much I touched myself, I couldn’t pop a knot.”
Jimin confesses with pecks along his back.

Jungkook remembers how needy and frustrated the alpha sounded on the video calls they made
during his last rut, three months ago and thousands of kilometers apart. Jimin kept asking him to
show himself, to moan and cum for him. It was like Jungkook’s cumming gave the alpha more
relief than his own, and Jungkook complied. He must have touched himself to climax six, seven
times in a single call.

“Not even with the toy?” Jungkook asks, recalling how much Jimin seemed to enjoy the knotting
sleeve the omega had gifted him.

“Not even the toy,” he replies in his sexy low register. The second finger slides in easily with how
much Jungkook keeps slicking. “And now, all it takes is feeling you around my finger and my knot
starts forming.”

Jungkook whines after hearing it. He loves it when the alpha tells him how much Jungkook affects
him, loves the weight of Jimin’s hungry gaze whenever he wears a cropped top or dances for him,
how the sharp redolence of plumeria thickens in the air.

A third finger presses into his asshole, a bit more forceful than the previous ones. Jungkook
welcomes the strain, recognizing how the alpha’s breathing starts to grow more impatient. He is
not much better himself, craving more friction. His hips start moving on their own, slowly rutting
against the white cotton fabric. As Jimin’s fingers pump in and out his hole harsher, the younger
grinds his crotch on the pillow with growing desperation.

Jungkook wants to tell the alpha that it is enough, ask him to fuck him already. He needs the man’s
cock, craves the weight of his warm body over his own. But the words won’t come out. He is still
floating, a pleasant buzz in his skin muffles his other senses. Everything around him is Jimin:
Jimin’s beachy scent, the groaning sound of Jimin’s moans, Jimin’s commanding and gentlest
touches.

He doesn’t notice he has started howling until Jimin’s teeth sink into his nape. It is just the right
amount of pressure, just enough to bring Jungkook back to his senses a little. The alpha is on top of
him and he can feel Jimin’s hard cock pressing against his ass.

“J-Jimin… Please…” He swallows the droll in his mouth.

Jimin’s teeth detach from his nape and Jungkook revels under the comforting licks that the alpha
starts leaving on his skin. “What is it, little prince? What do you need?”

Jungkook smiles under the attention and arches his back to feel Jimin’s dick slide between his butt
cheeks. “A-Alpha’s cock,” he replies with a still hoarse voice. “Need you to fuck me, Alpha.”

With that, Jimin sits up, both of his hands firm around Jungkook’s waist for leverage. Straddling
the younger, he slides his body backwards and Jungkook can feel the glissade of his hard cock all
the way from his lower back until the tip touches his rim. Jimin then grabs two handfuls of the
omega’s lusty glutes and prises them apart.

“You’re leaking so much, Kook-ah. So good for Alpha…” He practically moans the words, while
pressing his dick into Jungkook’s asshole. The younger trashes under him, as half of the shaft
makes its way inside.

Jimin’s hands track the way up from his butt, back to hold Jungkook firmly by the waist. The
dancer’s thick thighs presses on either side of his hips, effectively caging him in. It makes
Jungkook feel some kind of way, to have his boyfriend so easily — so gently — subdue him.

When the alpha bottoms out, Jungkook is already desperate for release. Unable to move his hips,
he leans on both elbows and raises his whole torso, moaning a wordless complaint. Jimin chuckles
over him and brings one hand to his hair.

As if allured by the touch, Jungkook leans his head backwards, arching his back even further.

The hand on Jungkook’s hair strokes his black curls and a low honeyed voice shushes the omega,
telling him to be patient. The light touches melt into raking fingers on his scalp, amplifying the
buzzing sensation that Jimin elicits all over his being.

Jimin’s other hand presses heavier onto his lower back and the alpha starts moving. He grinds in
and out of Jungkook’s wet hole, hips dancing waves at a controlled rhythm. The hand on his head
keeps stroking his scalp softly — when it clenches around the curls and pulls his hair, Jungkook
raises his torso even more, now leaning on his palms pressed to the mattress, arms stretched all the
way up.

With his back arched at a narrower angle, he can feel the shift in Jimin’s hips. The alpha leans
closer to whisper a claim of “my little omega prince” behind Jungkook’s ear and his hips sink
deeper into Jungkook’s.

His thrusts become heavier, rougher, and with a gentle hand on his forehead, he brings Jungkook’s
head to rest on his shoulder.

Jungkook’s cock is wedged against the pillow under their combined weight, his mind completely
lost in the feeling of Jimin’s fingers stroking his face, then wrapping around his neck. A thumb
grazes the protruded Adam’s apple, while another hand finds one of Jungkook’s nipples and
pinches it. When the alpha’s tongue starts playing with his ear, he feels like he is under water. The
buzzing pleasure is almost too much.

“Kook-ah…” Jimin’s breath sounds as labored as his thrusts. “C-can I turn you over? I wanna look
at you, baby.”

Jungkook nods but doesn’t move. He wouldn’t dare to. Not when Jimin has started leaving open
mouthed kisses over his scent gland. Not when the alpha’s hands are still holding him so dearly,
with such authority.

Only when Jimin lets go and motions him to, does Jungkook turn to lie on his back. As if following
choreography, Jimin slides back on top of him. In one swift motion, the alpha hooks both of
Jungkook’s thighs over his own shoulders and lifts his whole body, hovering above it. Without
missing a beat, he guides his cock back into Jungkook’s asshole in one single effortless plunge,
making Jungkook gasp.

The alpha closes his eyes for a couple of seconds and opens then again, staring straight into
Jungkook’s. His gaze shines with what feels like both hunger and adoration. Jungkook can’t help
but stare back just the same.

He notices the redness that surrounds the alpha’s plump lips, the gorgeous outline of his sharp jaw
and the way his ash blond hair falls around his face. Damn , Jungkook missed him so fucking
much!

He wants to tell Jimin how pretty he looks, wants to whine all about the torture that sleeping alone
in their bed has been for the past six months, ask the alpha to lock him in his knot. But it is like
there is a lump in his throat, too much pent-up longing. He feels his head swim and tears pool up
under his eyelids. Jimin’s hips start moving again and the alpha slides a hand behind Jungkook’s
neck, bringing their faces closer. Holding the omega firmly by the nape, Jimin presses both of their
foreheads together.

Jungkook immediately feels calmer. It is like Jimin has this grounding effect on him, pulling every
piece of him back together. Something between an anchor and a lighthouse, something that draws
him in.

“You okay?” The alpha asks him with a quick peck on the tip of his round nose. He keeps fucking
the younger, and Jungkook barely manages to nod in response.

Jimin’s fingers rake into his hair once more, their gentleness contrasting with the way the alpha
starts puffing, his hips pounding into Jungkook more erratically. He looks like he is on the verge of
losing control, yet everything about his presence exudes authority, demanding Jungkook to yield.

And he wants to. His wolf, every cell in his body screams at him to tilt his neck and submit. But
Jimin keeps a strong hold on his nape, Jungkook is completely caged under the alpha, his legs
hanging from the dancer’s shoulders. It is maddening.

No.

It is exhilarating.

The alpha dribbles sloppy kisses on his mouth, bites his lips once, twice. Then he brushes his
cheek against Jungkook’s, the way a cat would try to mark something. The omega closes his eyes
and hums in appreciation. All the while, Jimin’s thrusts keep striking Jungkook’s ass at a harsher
pace.
When Jimin’s forehead is back leaning over his, Jungkook opens his eyes again. Following the
alpha’s gaze, he notices how the other is staring down at where their hips meet. From this angle,
with the way Jimin is holding his body curled up in a ball under him, Jungkook has a great view of
the alpha’s cock pumping into his asshole, a slightly swollen base wanting to breach in. He can
also see how his own dick twitches and bumps onto his stomach with the force of Jimin’s thrusts.

“Jungkook-ah…” Jimin’s gaze is still locked on Jungkook’s bouncing cock and he can feel the
alpha’s heavy breath on his face. “You smell so good, baby. Always such a fucking dessert. I
wanna eat you up so bad,” he says, biting his lips.

Jungkook giggles at the alpha’s cute comment, but at that very moment, Jimin’s cock brushes
against his prostate just the right way and he gasps — loud , practically screams with pleasure. As
if stirred by the omega’s voice, Jimin lets out a luscious moan of his own.

They lock eyes again, sharing a desperate glare. “I-I’m gonn-” Jimin tries to say, but Jungkook
interrupts, “Knot me.” He can already feel the swelling brushing against his rim. “Knot me, alpha.
J-Jimin, please.”

Jimin’s movements halt completely and Jungkook shivers under him. He smiles and focuses on the
feeling of the growing bulge inside of him. Jungkook keeps asking for his knot uselessly, babbling
about how much he needs it.

He loves it.

Jungkook absolutely loves it. Just the way the alpha likes it, not letting Jungkook move a muscle
until the knot is completely formed. And then one, two brutal thrusts and they come undone.
Jungkook’s cock burns deliciously with how much sperm bursts out of him. His hole fills to the
brim with Jimin’s cum, locked up inside by the alpha’s knot.

With the amount of Jungkook’s slick collected over his crotch, Jimin manages to slide around a
little and maneuver the both of them to lie more comfortably on their sides. “I think this time I’ll
take a while to come down,” Jimin apologizes with his face buried on the crook of Jungkook’s
neck, and the omega instantly forgives him with a giggle and pecks on his knuckles.

(***)

They stay in silence for a while, wrapped in each other’s arms, breaths settling down. Jungkook
purrs about how much he loves the alpha; Jimin replies with a longing kiss on his neck.

Out the window, the sun is setting in pink and purple hues behind the tall buildings, and dusk starts
to gloom over the apartment. The touch of Jimin’s fingers on his stomach puts Jungkook’s mind in
a lull, his eyes already feeling heavier.

Jimin notices and nibbles at Jungkook’s shoulder, tickles his belly. “Come on, Kookie. If you fall
asleep now, you’ll end up staying up all night.”

Jungkook smiles and stirs, still refusing to open his eyes. “Hmm, as long as you stay up with
me…” Jimin tickles him harder and Jungkook gives up quickly. “Ok, ok. I won’t sleep. I won’t.”

Jimin hugs him tighter and asks, “What is it that you wanted to show me?”

“Hm?”

“You said you had something to show me when I got here.”

Ah, that’s right. So lost in quenching his need for the alpha’s touch, Jungkook almost forgot.

He searches around for his phone, finding it on his side of the bed. He then turns to Jimin, “I think
my earbuds are in the first drawer. Can you get them?”

With some effort and a good deal of giggles after each complex maneuver of their still linked
bodies, they manage to settle back in bed with both items. Jungkook turns his torso to the side in
order to place one of the airpods in Jimin’s ear. He also places a peck on the alpha’s lips, another
one on the tip of his nose.

“You remember the message Mr. Bang sent me the other day? The one about the song?”

“Of course I do.”

Jungkook remembers how absolutely shocked he was a couple of weeks ago when Namjoon texted
him saying the boss had asked him for his number. Not just any boss, but The Boss. As in the
fucking chairman of BH, the one who founded the whole label, who built it from scratch. Before
Jungkook could panic even further, there was a message from an unknown number, saying he had
heard his backing vocals in one of the tracks Yoongi produced. Saying he enjoyed them. Saying
that he would like to hear more.

Had Namjoon not warned him beforehand, Jungkook would have dismissed the whole thing,
deeming it to be a prank. But it was real. Mr. Bang was texting Jungkook about his vocals and the
next minute asking him to work on something to show him. Something more, something new.

Jungkook searches his phone for the right file. “We finished it on Thursday,” he tells the alpha,
pressing play.

The acoustic guitar starts, followed by Jungkook’s humming voice. It was a simple track, just an
old feel-good melody the omega had never put lyrics to. But with Yoongi’s production magic, it
now sounded like a finished song.

“I love watching you sleep/ Parted lips, like a tired kid / Our stuff drowns in this huge new place /
Hurry home, I made kimchi jjigae.”

Jungkook listens to his own voice singing the verses for the umpteenth time, but his heart beats
anxiously as if it were the first. He is probably just as nervous now, showing it to Jimin, as he will
be when he plays it for Mr. Bang next week.

“Can’t find my favorite hoodie / This weekend why don’t we go visit Tae / Can you get eggs? It
seems we’re out / I think I broke the microwave.”

He wishes he could turn and face Jimin now, watch his reaction. It’s not the first song Jungkook
has written him – sometimes he thinks that all he will ever do is write songs about Jimin. But it is
the first one he recorded at a proper studio, the first he will dare to show someone who is not one
of their closest friends. It feels more… real.

“Puppy, come here / Come lie with me / The world is tough enough as it is / All I wanna do is get
you through the day.”

Jungkook ends up getting lost in thoughts about his choice of harmonization at the end of a verse,
or Yoongi’s advice on changing the melody for the bridge. After just a few months learning more
about song composition and production, the omega notices how different listening to music has
become to him, his own songs included. It is like he can now see several layers which he wasn’t
that much aware of before. If anything, he can appreciate it even more. It is like music can make
him even happier now that he understands it on a deeper level.

Distracted by the sentiment, he only notices that the song has ended when Jimin removes the
airpod from his ear and hugs him tight. The alpha presses his nose against Jungkook’s shoulder and
takes a long breath in, the way he usually does whenever he is feeling overwhelmed, searching for
comfort.

“Jungkook-ah…” He whispers with a hoarse voice. “I j-just— I don’t even know what to say,
baby. I’m…” Noticing the emotion in the other’s tone, Jungkook smiles and brushes a hand up and
down his arm.

Jimin takes another deep breath in and tries again, “The song is beautiful, Jungkookie. I mean, I
won’t even start talking about the lyrics ‘cause I will start crying for sure. You are so evil! You
cannot ever play this on a concert ‘cause everybody is gonna laugh at the sobbing mess that your
boyfriend is.”

Jungkook laughs and turns his body a little, feeling Jimin’s knot start to go down. Jimin brings the
omega’s torso close to his chest again, wrapping strong arms around him. When Jungkook stops
moving, he goes on, “And the song, the melody… It all fitted your voice so well! The transition
from the bridge to the chorus especially… The note you reached, wow! And was it you on the
guitar?”

“Yeah… The keyboard, too.”

“Wow. It was so, so good!” Jimin tightens the hold around his body again, kisses his shoulder.
“Ah, I’m sorry. I’m not giving much useful feedback,” he apologizes with what sounds like an
embarrassed giggle. “But I really love the song. I think it was the right choice to show Mr. Bang.”

“You do?”

“Yep. It really shows another side of you, different from the tracks Yoongi-hyung had you on.”

“Yeah, that’s what I was thinking too.” Jungkook smiles, thinking about how perceptive and
attentive to detail Jimin actually has been in his feedback after only listening to the song only
once.

For some reason it makes Jungkook think back to how unbelievable it was that Jimin used to listen
to his covers on Youtube before they had even met. He really was one of his oldest and most
supportive fans.

Remembering how many times Jungkook caught Jimin stopping what he was doing around the
house to just watch him sing, he feels butterflies in his stomach. It seems that it truly was like the
alpha said that night after their showcase, when he gifted Jungkook the Najeonchilgi box: Jimin
was like the white wolf engraved in the wood, always listening to Jungkook’s cries to the moon.

“Jungkook-ah…”

“Hmm?”

Jimin slips out and Jungkook turns in the bed to look the alpha in the eye.

“But you know what I liked the most about the song?”

Jungkook shakes his head and looks at Jimin, waiting for his answer. The alpha smiles at him and
gets nearer, placing a kiss on one of his eyelids. “How happy it seems to make you,” he explains,
brushing their noses together. “It makes me happy, too.”

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

Jungkook pops his eyes open, startled; his body frozen. He doesn’t need to remember the details of
the bad dream to know what it was about.

He blinks in the darkness of the bedroom and checks the time: 5:54 – at least one hour before they
have to wake up and get ready to make the short trip to the lake house.

Certainly noticing the anxiety sipping out of his pores, a still sleeping Jimin shifts beside Jungkook
and tugs him closer. The touch of the alpha’s nose on the back of his neck instantly relaxes him
and he takes a deep breath of calm ocean waves.

Jungkook doesn’t know why he is so anxious about this now. He agreed to this, he wanted it. He
wants it. But now that only hours separate him from the fateful meeting, he can’t help but grow
antsy.

It’s been more than three years.

So much has happened in that time: Jimin went to the ballet scholarship abroad and came back,
graduated from the National Ballet Academy and was now about to star in his first main role for a
major ballet production. They moved from the University dorms to the small rental downtown,
then bought a brand new apartment in the Hills, which they were still paying for. Jungkook left
home with nothing but a few brand items to resell and his friends’ support. For months, he had
Jimin, Yoongi and all of his friends guide him through the life of a packless wolf, friends who not
much later he was able to formally call ‘pack’. He went from administrative intern at the label
Namjoon and Yoongi worked at to record-selling new solo artist with an amazing fan base. Now
that his first comeback promotions were over, ‘JK’ was in preparations for his first concert.

A lot was going on with their friends, too. Yoongi was busier and busier, a long line of artists
wanting him to produce for their tracks. After signing and debuting three more groups, their label
kept growing and managed to bring Hoseok in as one of the main in-house choreographers.
Namjoon had been promoted to BH’s Head of Strategic Planning and, upon Seokjin’s insistence,
became the label’s liaison with “Connect”, the Marketing and PR company specialized in Arts
founded by Seokjin, who was on the talks to make it one of BH’s subsidiaries. Barely two years
after graduating, Taehyung was quickly making a name for himself in the art world, with the help
of Connect. The beta ventured into so many fields that Jungkook could barely keep up: from
fashion design to astrophotography, from flash mobbing to art auctions.

“Kook-ah… let’s sleep some more…” Jimin mumbles and tightens his hold around Jungkook’s
torso. A strong leg locks around the omega’s hips, bringing the two even closer. “I can hear you
thinking from here.”

“ ‘M sorry…”

Jimin groans cutely behind him and moves his body until it is on top of Jungkook’s, eyes closed
and his now long hair a complete mess around his head. He stirs again, in an arduous motion, like
he is fighting his own muscles. He finally rolls to the other side of Jungkook, almost falling out of
the bed.
“What are you doing, puppy alpha?” Holding Jimin by the waist, Jungkook hauls him back to the
center of the bed.

“Wanna look at you,” the puppy explains. His eyes are still closed and his lips tumid in a cute
pout.

“Oh, yeah?” With a gentle index finger, Jungkook moves the curtain of hair covering the dancer’s
face and pecks the tip of his nose. “You can look now.”

Jimin half opens his puffy eyes only to close them again the next moment. “Still the prettiest
omega prince,” he confirms with a lazy smile.

Impossibly endeared, Jungkook smiles back and starts running his fingers through the alpha’s hair.
Jimin was letting it grow for the main role he got at ‘The Third Son of the King’ ballet. The long
hair was a must for the scene of the coming-of-age ceremony, where his hair was to be tied up in a
topknot during a complex choreography. The alpha keeps complaining that Jungkook won’t stop
combing and styling his hair at every opportunity, that he feels like he is the omega’s play doll.
Jungkook knows that Jimin actually loves all the grooming and has no intention to stop.

“Are you nervous about today?” Jimin asks with a firm but gentle voice, eyes now open to give his
full attention to the omega.

“Yeah…” He can’t help but avert the other’s gaze.

“Hey,” a soft hand cups his cheek. “You know if you don’t wanna do this, we simply don’t go,
right?”

Jungkook nods. He knows that. He knows Jimin will always have his back. As will Seokjin and all
of his friends. No. Not just ‘friends’. His pack .

Jimin waits. Patiently, he keeps tracing Jungkook’s face with his knuckles, until the omega is
ready to speak.

“I want to do it. I do . I’m just… nervous.”

Jimin hums in acknowledgement and keeps touching the omega’s jaw, his chin. “Is there anything
in particular that is making you nervous?”

He considers the older’s question.

Meeting his parents for the first time in more than three years was definitely not on Jungkook’s
plans, at least not until a few months ago.

Not that they hadn’t tried to reach out: after hearing about Jungkook’s intention to drop out of
college, his mother in particular kept trying to get in touch with him, even offering to pay for his
Music degree with no other conditions. She pleaded to Seokjin, sent Jungkook messages on his
social media, went looking for him at the University dorms. In the messages, she said that they
were sorry, that they wanted to talk, that his father wanted to see him. She never stopped trying,
even when Jungkook barely replied. She kept asking about his life, telling things about her day,
saying how much she missed him. When Jungkook debuted, she sent a video of his father standing
in his office, watching the performance on his TV, probably filmed by someone sneaking in from
the door. She said the man had called for a break in the middle of a meeting just to watch his debut
stage. Jungkook didn’t reply, but he has to admit he’s watched the video more than a few times
ever since.
It was when Jungkook was about to have his first fan-meeting event that things took a turn.

He had a photoshoot the week before, and when he was done for the day and about to go home, his
manager Jiho asked for a word. She told him that they were going through the list of participants
for the fan-meeting and found a ‘Jeon Jaesung’ among the raffle winners. His father’s name was
well-known and, even if the omega avoided speaking about it publicly, Jungkook’s family history
was not much of a secret. So Jiho wanted to ask him how to proceed with that. Apparently
Jungkook’s father had signed up for a fan membership from day one and even bought his album
and every piece of merch that has been dropped so far. That night, Jungkook asked Namjoon to
have dinner with them so they could discuss the situation. And that was how the beta ended up as a
mediator between Jungkook and his parents.

It turns out that Jeon Jaesung was adamant on meeting ‘JK’, arguing that he won the raffle fair and
square and that he had a lawyer go over the fan membership regulations and that there was nothing
there stopping him from participating in the event. So Namjoon started his mediation. Jungkook
knew his father. He knew that even if the man meant no real harm, he was bound to put his foot
down until he got what he wanted: that Jungkook agreed to meet with them. To be honest,
Jungkook didn’t completely hate the idea, had even mentioned with Jimin one night that he was
thinking about having a coffee or something with his mom at least. There were too many things
unsaid between them, and it was starting to eat Jungkook from the inside out. Even if their
relationship was beyond mending, at least he could get some kind of closure. So he played his
father’s game.

In the end, the man gave up on the fan-signing event on the condition that Jungkook agreed to
meet — the date and place was to be set by Jungkook, provided that it took place in the upcoming
three months. Jungkook agreed to the terms, but established one more condition. It was something
he has been thinking about for a while, ever since the first time he spent Jimin’s rut with him —
when the alpha told Jungkook about his mom and their conversation at the patisserie she worked
at, about how she told the story of Anna Pavlova and the dessert named after her, about how she
kept calling Jimin ‘seashell’.

So Jungkook finally agreed to meet his own parents, but asked his father for one thing: that one of
the Jeon hotels included a new dessert on their permanent menu, created by their best chef. The
omega made sure that Namjoon told his father that the dessert was to be a gift to Jimin, to his
amazing ballet dancer boyfriend, who was once a lone wolf, probably the furthest from what Jeon
Jaesung ever pictured as a partner for his precious son. The man agreed.

After two weeks of trials and tastings with the number one patissier in the capital, Jungkook finally
managed to take Jimin for a fancy dinner on their third anniversary. He will never forget the look
on Jimin’s face that night. The dish was beautifully plated: small shell-shaped pastries, filled with
pastel-colored ganache, inwoven over a shining ocean of white candy-floss. Almost like mini-
macarons, but with thinner and crispier shells, they looked like they were floating, swaying over
the cotton-candy waves. With a special deep fork, Jungkook gave Jimin the first bite, then took one
himself. The crispy pastry and the candy-floss crunched inside the mouth like sand, while the
ganache had a honey-flavor base that resembled the sweet scent of plumeria flowers.

When Jungkook told Jimin that the dessert was named ‘Dancing Seashells’ , the alpha just stared
at him for what must have been a whole minute, fat tears quietly rolling down his face. And when
Jungkook asked him if he liked it, Jimin looked at the omega with shining eyes and replied that he
would never be able to convey how much that meant to him. Every time he remembers the way
Jimin’s smile trembled with emotion, the devotion with which the alpha kissed him later that night,
Jungkook knows he would agree to meet his parents a thousand times if it meant he got to see his
boyfriend happy like that.
“Hey, you ok? You kinda tuned out for a while,” Jimin brings him out of his reminiscing. The
alpha was already used to Jungkook’s tendency to woolgather and even seemed to find it
endearing, always waiting patiently for the omega to come back to the moment.

“Yeah, I–” Jungkook realizes he still hasn’t answered the dancer’s question about what was
making him nervous. “I’m just afraid it will be too weird today… Or that my dad ends up being an
asshole.”

“Oh, well… We can always be assholes right back at him.” Jimin flashes his brows and shows a
teasing smile. “Or even get creative with a kitchen knife and their car tire…”

“You’ll never let that go, will you?” Jungkook asks and chuckles. Jimin had asked, bargained,
whined, practically begged until Jungkook sent him the old video he had filmed of himself while
(as he liked to call it) ‘leaving Doyun a message’ back then. It was a reckless thing. Maybe slashing
two tires with a knife was a bit much, but Jungkook still couldn’t bring himself to regret it.

“It was so hot,” the alpha says with a kiss on Jungkook’s neck.

“Doyun was a jerk. And I was angry.”

Jimin keeps kissing his neck and Jungkook peeks at the alarm clock, wondering if Jin will be too
mad if they are a little late.

“You look really hot when you’re angry, baby.” The dancer then slides a hand under the waistband
of Jungkook’s joggers and grabs a handful of his butt, making Jungkook let out a whispery moan.

Yeah, fuck it. Jin-hyung will have to deal with it.

They get to the lake house exactly forty-five minutes late with the pork belly and several barbecue
sauces, plus the extra ice bags Hobi texted them to buy at the gas station nearby. Jin deals with
their tardiness by dramatically recounting their fears about the meal being completely ruined
without the pork belly. Jungkook just grins an apology, so his cousin and pack leader dismisses
him, knowingly.

The plan was for all of them to spend the weekend at the lake house Hobi rented through a friend.
Jungkook’s parents would arrive soon for lunch and leave some time in the afternoon. So the
evening would probably be spent with drinks, music and chaotic conversation — it was usually
like that whenever the pack got together.

Everything felt oddly peaceful, Jungkook’s previous anxiety practically gone. The clatter of dishes
mixed with loud laughter never failed to put the omega in a good mood. With time, he realized it
was easier for him to find calm in the bubbly chaos that always followed his friends than in the
collected silence he had grown up surrounded by.

So it is under that noisy tranquility that Jungkook carries a pile of plates from the kitchen – while
Seokjin and Soomin Halmeoni are working on the side dishes – to the balcony outside, where
Yoongi is setting up the grill. Soon after, Hobi comes from downstairs with extra chairs. After
placing them around the large wooden table, the dancer leans on the railing and shouts to Tae and
Namjoon to postpone the ping-pong match because he needs help cleaning the room. Jimin comes
back ten minutes later with the napkins nobody remembered to bring and a kiss on Jungkook’s
nape.
It is only when a black SUV approaches the house that Jungkook feels the anxiety reemerge. He
can sense it, like something that burns up in his chest, growing stronger with the crunching sound
of tires rolling over the gravel road.

He goes down the stairs and walks the steep path to the parking lot with Jimin’s hand on his lower
back, the only thing capable of grounding him right now. They stop at a reasonable distance from
the car, granting his parents some space to recover from the trip.

From where they stand, Jungkook watches as his father gets out of the SUV first, stretches his legs
and goes around the vehicle to meet his mother, who is already opening the car door. The couple is
soon making their way towards Jimin and Jungkook, and the omega takes a deep breath before
greeting them.

He doesn’t remember the last time he saw his father wearing anything that wasn’t a suit and tie.
The man has khaki pants and square sunglasses on, a light brown cardigan over a red polo shirt.
His mother is wearing a white shirt, jeans and a beige blazer — her shoulder-length black hair
shines as bright as Jungkook remembers it. As soon as their gazes meet, she purses her lips and
Jungkook can tell how her eyes water.

“Jungkook,” his father greets him after clearing his throat. Jungkook bows to both of them rather
stiffly.

On the next inhale, Jungkook notices it: ginger. He sniffs the air, but doesn’t find any of the woody
fragrance his father always had on. It is just the beta man’s natural ginger.

His shock is interrupted by his mother’s hand on his shoulder.

“K-Kookie,” she calls with visible emotion in her voice. She rubs her hand up and down
Jungkook’s arm and retreats. The awkward tension fills the air around them, but Jungkook is
surprised to find some comfort in the woman’s touch.

“Mom… Dad. This is Jimin,” he doesn’t add any more information. He doesn’t need to. They
know who Jimin is. He had been adamant when he agreed to this meeting: if they wanted to see
Jungkook, they would have to meet Jimin. “Hyung, this is my mother, Jeon Chaewon. And my
father, Jeon Jaesung.”

“Pleasure to meet you,” Jimin immediately bows.

His mother replies right away with a surprisingly warm smile, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, too,
Jimin-ssi.” His father simply nods his head once towards the young alpha.

“Food is almost ready. Shall we head inside?”

Jungkook leads the way, holding Jimin’s hand in his. Their crunching steps fills up the awkward
silence, and he is glad to quickly reach the house.

True to her otherworldly social skills, Chaewon eases her way through the tough crowd, offering
help with the food, extensively complimenting the Yoongi’s ‘Yuzu Makgeolli Mule’ cocktail and
just making conversation with each person in the room. Jungkook will never cease to be amazed by
his mother like that. She seems to be genuinely interested in learning more about everyone, which
somewhat surprises Jungkook. Maybe he just missed her and is watching the woman with a
favorable eye. Or maybe she has truly been sincere in all her relentless attempts to know more
about Jungkook’s new friends and interests on her messages these past months. Either way,
Jungkook finds that he likes it.
Jaesung, on the other hand, seems rather lost and remains silent the whole time. Standing stiffly in
a corner, maybe unsure of what to do with himself, he keeps stealing glances from his son, while
almost not daring to look Jimin’s way. Jungkook can’t figure out what could possibly be on the
man’s mind, so he decides to handle everything with extra caution. Jimin practically mirrors
Jaesung’s stance, guarded, vigilant. Tae is just the same across the room. The both of them have
always been understandably wary around new people, suspicious of strangers’ intentions and
borderline rude. Jungkook feels almost nostalgic to watch it, recalling how during their first
encounters back in University, the two had unceremoniously cut the omega off. Now he was
absolutely certain that neither of them would think twice before going for the throats of anyone
who dared to hurt Jungkook.

It doesn’t take long for everyone to take their seats soon after introductions, with the food set.
Jungkook chooses to stay by one end of the table with Jimin and his parents. Jin is on the opposite
end, closely watching everything from afar, while Namjoon sits right next to Jungkook ready to
employ diplomacy if necessary. Hobi joins them, taking the seat to Chaewon’s left, an inviting
smile on his face helping to ease the tension.

“Kookie, dear. Here, you need some energy with all the work for the concerts.” She stretches her
arm from across the table to offer a generous serving of meat perfectly wrapped in a perilla and
lettuce cover.

He can’t remember the last time the woman offered to hand-feed him — probably in his early
teens, when he would lock up in his room, too lost in playing the keyboard or the guitar to
remember having lunch, and she would come by with a sandwich and make sure he ate a good
portion. It’s been forever and the gesture feels almost foreign to Jungkook. But he allows it. He
opens his mouth wide and takes the food offer.

“Good,” she takes the opportunity to briefly brush her thumb on Jungkook’s cheek. When he opens
his eyes after a longer blink, he notices beside him how Jimin’s face softens a little, with a hint of a
smile.

He is still chewing happily when his mother adds, “You must eat well. All that dancing probably
exhausts you, right?”

“Ah, not really. These days I find the photoshoots more exhausting than any dancing practice, to be
honest.” Jungkook replies after swallowing the food.

“Who would have guessed? Our Kookie, a professional dancer now.” Hobi chips in, teasingly.
“You learned well, Kook-ah. Practiced hard.”

Jungkook can’t help but smile at the praise. “Well, I did have the strictest first teacher,” he
comments, staring at Jimin fondly. His boyfriend smiles back and rubs an affectionate hand up and
down his thigh under the table.

“Ah, that’s right. Our Kookie told me that is how you met,” Chaewon addresses Jimin. “It looks
like you taught him well. Thank you for taking care of our son, Jimin-ssi.”

It is just a common phrase. Something like a ‘Please take care of me’ when you join a new team at
work or school. But hearing his mother say that to his boyfriend, given their whole background
story… It somehow makes Jungkook a little emotional. It’s subtle, but the slight spike of plumeria,
followed by a stronger ocean wave in the air, tells Jungkook that Jimin is just as affected by the
unpretentious statement.

After holding their gaze for a couple of seconds, as if trying to convey her sincerity, Chaewon
moves her attention to the others. “But I’m curious as to how all of you met. You seem to be very
close to each other,” she asks no one in particular, her voice raised just enough to make sure
everyone present can hear her.

“Ah, that can be a long story.” Hobi replies with a heart-shaped grin and volunteers to start. “Since
my family had already spent more than they could afford in prep courses for college, I applied for a
room at the government-funded dorms. I ended up as Yoongi hyung’s roommate.” Yoongi purses
his lips into a small straight-lined smile to acknowledge the mention of his name. “Jiminie I met a
year later as the super talented freshman dancer and new neighbor at the dorms.”

Jungkook knows all of that, but he perks up either way, always happy to listen to his friends’
stories. His parents seem to be listening with genuine interest, too.

“Now, Jimin and Taehyung met each other a thousand years ago,” Hobi carries on, gathering some
giggles around the table. “You’ll have to ask them more details about that, but they grew up
together, thick as thieves. As you know, Soomin Halmeoni is Taehyungie’s real grandmother, but
she couldn’t get his custody, so she worked at the orphanage to be able to be by his side.”

“Oh, I can see how Jimin must have become something like a second grandson to you, Soomin-
ssi.” Chaewon chimes in, directing a wide smile toward the old woman.

“Not something like,” Soomin replies from beside Jin-hyung, with a firm voice. “Jimin-ah is all
the way a grandson to me.”

As practically everyone coos at the comment around the table, only Jungkook hears the emotive
“Halmoni…” whispered through Jimin’s lips. He brings his hand to the alpha’s hair and gently
brushes fingers against his scalp, smiling.

When Hobi speaks again, asking Soomin with a pout if she doesn’t consider the others her
grandkids too, she confirms it with a tender smile. “I have seven fully-grown grandsons.”

The whole table laughs, fondly. Even Jungkook’s father has a hint of a smile. More relaxed now,
Jungkook brings both of his hands to comb Jimin’s long hair. As Namjoon clears his throat to start
speaking, Jungkook moves his chair a little to the back and starts working his boyfriend’s hair into
a braid while everyone listens to the beta.

“Well, I met Jin-hyung at a meeting. I was in charge of a presentation about the company’s next
business plans and he was one of the new stakeholders, interrupting me with every kind of
question.”

“I was trying hard to get his attention,” Jin supplies from the other side of the table.

“It seemed like you were trying to make me nervous,” Namjoon amends, turning to his husband
with a dimpled smile.

“There were dozens of people in the room. I had to make sure you paid proper notice,” Jin goes on,
now with a more fixed gaze.

“Baby, it could have been a crowd of thousands and you would still have my full attention,”
Namjoon retorts swiftly.

“Gee, get a room…” Someone mumbles, feigning annoyance. Probably Taehyung.

The table sprinkles up in laughter again and Namjoon seems to blush a little. He recovers quickly
and carries on, “Now, Yoongi-hyung I met at the label. I was one of the administrative staff—”
“Chief Operating Officer,” Yoongi interrupts for clarification.

Namjoon ignores him, “He was a trainee for Song Writing and Records, then soon promoted to full
time producer. It was through him that I met the others a couple of times. And then Kookie was in
the Business Law class I was an Assistant Professor to.”

A short silence follows. Finished with Jimin’s hair, Jungkook moves his chair again to be able to
rest a chin on the alpha’s shoulder. He notices his parents gaze on them but chooses to ignore it.

It is then that Yoongi takes his turn.

“I left home after my mothers tried to marry me off. By a brush of fate, I met Taehyung and then
Jimin. They helped me getting back on my feet, taught me everything about how to survive as a
lone wolf.” The three of them exchange quick glances of acknowledgement that don’t go unnoticed
by Jungkook. He once again feels thankful to know that Jimin has such loyal and amazing friends
by his side.

“Now Kookie I met at a random party. He kind of stuck around.” Yoongi doesn’t add much more,
probably unsure about revealing the details of that night.

“Hyung, I helped you push your old-ass car in the middle of the night.”

“The King was never ‘old-ass’ , you ungrateful omega. He was vintage. ” Yoongi protests and
Jimin lets out a frustrated sigh beside Jungkook, mumbling something that sounds like “Such a
hunk of junk…”

Whole-hearted laughter takes up the room again and Chaewon uses the break to ask “What about
you two? I know Jimin-ssi used to give you dance lessons, but how did you first meet?”

“Ah, it was at the same party, mom.” Jungkook can’t hide the proud smile as he reminisces. “Jimin
and Tae gave a performance and I had never seen anything like that.”

“Jiminie’s original dance partner got injured and couldn’t make it to the University showcase in the
end of the semester. Tae couldn’t make it that week either,” Hobi adds to the story, noticing how
Taehyung didn’t seem too eager to speak. “Kookie heard about it and volunteered to help. Came in
like a miracle and saved the day,” the dancer retells dramatically, fluttering his fingers in the air in
the shape of a rainbow.

“Saved the whole week,” Taehyung adds rather shyly from the other end of the table. “There was
nothing in it for him, but he helped us just like that. He kept helping for no reason.” The beta meets
his eyes and smiles briefly. “We were very thankful.”

Jungkook smiles back and lowers his head, feeling a bit self-conscious.

“Ah, so that’s how Jimin-ssi ended up giving dance lessons to our Kookie, then?” His mother eyes
the alpha after the comment, seeming to leave some room for Jimin to speak.

“Yeah…” Jimin replies, looking a little unsure about what else to say.

“In the end, it turned out that I got dance lessons for free from the best teacher,” Jungkook chips in
with a wide smile.

Before Jimin has a chance to add to the reply, though, Jungkook’s father joins the conversation:
“So you were always able to pay the bills with dancing then? First teaching dance lessons, now
professional ballet?”
Jimin subconsciously straightens his back and clears his throat, “No, not really… I, uhm… I used
to teach a couple of dance classes in University as part of the scholarship program, but I had to take
an extra job in order to afford the bills.”

“Ah, is that so? Where?” Jaesung asks.

“At the mall downtown,” Jimin replies, looking the older beta in the eye.

“Sales?”

“Cleaning staff,” the alpha answers without batting an eye.

When his father hesitates and silences, Jungkook notices the awkward silence around the table.
Scents are rather neutral, but there is tension in the air, especially in the invisible filament that
connects Jimin’s and Jaesung’s intense gazes.

It is of course his mother the one to defuse the brief restlessness: “That reminds me, since you all
worked hard getting the meal ready, we should do the clean up, right, honey?”

It takes two seconds for the older beta to nod in reply. Chaewon smiles and stands up. “Good. Help
me gather the dishes and I’ll do the washing, so you can rest your knee from all the driving.”

Everyone ends up doing a bit to clean the table. Jin volunteers Taehyung’s help to towel dry the
dishes. Chaewon thanks them and keeps asking questions to the beta about his art projects.

For a minute or so, Jaesung just stands at the balcony, hands in his pockets, looking rather lost. He
looks around awkwardly, before settling down back to the same seat he was before, motioning for
Jimin and Jungkook to do the same. He clears his throat and tries to make conversation.

“So, Jimin-ssi, my wife tells me you graduated from the National Ballet Academy?”

“Yes, Abeo—uhm, Mr. Jeon. I—”

Since the two have only exchanged greetings before, Jimin seems rather unsure about how to
address the man.

“It’s alright. You can call me ‘Abeonim’,” Jaesung interrupts, thankfully settling that.

“Thank you, A-Abeonim. Yes, I graduated from the National Ballet.”

“And that you were selected for an exchange scholarship overseas?”

“Uhm, yes. That’s correct.”

“I understand that you are about to star in ‘The Third Son of the King’?”

“Yes, Abeonim.”

“As the main role?”

“Yes.”

“Is this your first big role, Jimin-ssi?”

“It is. At least in a major ballet production.”

“Ah. You must be nervous, then.”

Jimin pauses to consider the question, probably unsure of where Jungkook’s father is trying to get
to with all the questions.

“Not too much. At least not for now,” he replies honestly. “During rehearsals, I tend to focus on
practice completely so the nerves won’t be a hindrance.”

“I see. That is a good mindset to have.”

Even if his father says it more like a neutral remark rather than an actual compliment, Jungkook
can tell by the way Jimin’s scent slightly sweetens that hearing it affects the alpha.

And it makes his stomach churn.

Because Jungkook knows how, deep down, Jimin wishes he could someday have his parents’
approval… that deep down the alpha craves for some level of acceptance into his boyfriend’s birth
family. He knows because they have talked about it before. Jungkook will never forget the hurt in
the dancer’s eyes that night when Jimin admitted feeling that way. He kept saying that he hated it,
hated feeling like that, but couldn’t help it.

“What are your plans for after ‘The Third Son of the King’, Jimin-ssi?” His father continues with
the same neutral tone, seemingly unaware of Jungkook’s worries.

“I’m not sure yet. Probably try for another role.”

“You’re not sure? Shouldn’t you be at least planning ahead?”

“Dad…” Jungkook hisses in warning, definitely not appreciating the way his father keeps
questioning Jimin like that.

Jaesung notices the displeased look on his son’s face, but quickly averts his gaze when the alpha
replies to the question: “No, I don’t think so.” Jimin is firm in his response, “Performances will
start next month, and the season will last at least eight months, so for now, my focus is on this
current production.”

Jungkook exhales a bit of the tension, happy to see that his father silences after Jimin’s reply.

It doesn’t last long, though.

“How old are you, Jimin-ssi?”

“26, Abeonim.” Jungkook can tell Jimin is starting to tense up with the insistent inquiry.

“And you’ll turn 27 this year, I presume?”

“Dad, stop.”

“Yes,” Jimin replies almost at the same time.

“What?” Jaesung turns to Jungkook, feigning innocence. "I'm making conversation."

"You sound like you are interviewing him for a position in your company."

"I'm showing interest."

Jungkook is about to keep arguing, when Jimin's calm hand on his thigh tells him it's okay.

"Yes, I'll turn 27 in October," the alpha repeats his answer. Jungkook sighs loudly and resigns back
to watching his father's interrogation like a hawk.

Jaesung’s gaze remains fixed on Jimin. It’s a neutral one, almost clinical, as if he is waiting for the
young wolf to crack. Jimin holds the gaze and stares right back at the man, stiff but firm.

"So, does that mean you have… probably what? Ten more years to work as a ballet dancer? Give
or take?"

Again, Jungkook doesn’t like the older beta’s tone.

"I guess so. Around ten years, yes," Jimin confirms.

"And what do you intend to do after that? You must have plans, I'm sure."

Jimin does have plans. Jungkook and he have talked about it several times. Jimin has considered
applying for a teaching position at the Ballet Academy, or maybe going more into choreography
with Hoseok’s help. There was also Jin-hyung with lots of ideas for his company, wanting Jimin to
join the team.

"Nothing very concrete for now," Jimin decides to reply. "Maybe teaching, maybe
choreographing…"

"Would that be enough, though?" Jaesung doesn't stop and Jungkook is hanging on by a thread
here. "Can you really make a living like that? A proper one?"

Sourness quickly takes up the air around them, making Namjoon want to approach the trio,
worried.

"Dad, enough. " Jungkook raises his voice.

"What’s the matter?" Again the man feigns ignorance, but Jungkook can tell his ginger scent
smells a little off.

"You know what the matter is," he replies with a lower voice, jaw clenched.

"What? Can't I show concern about my son's possible future mate and the way his life choices will
impact yours? Or maybe ours?" Jaesung questions, sounding a little exasperated. "Or am I not even
allowed that now?"

Jungkook hisses, absolutely dumbfounded by his father's insensitivity and straight up rudeness.
What did Jungkook expect, really? It’s not like he could say he didn’t see this coming. He actually
knew it from the start. From the very moment he had agreed to this, Jungkook knew that his father
would end up acting like the condescending prick that he is.

He takes a deep breath, trying to calm down and not completely lash out at the man.

It is then that Jimin’s pheromones surround him and repeat that it's okay. The alpha’s hand on his
knee saying just the same.

"Mr. Jeon," Jimin starts. He has that cold expression on his face and his tone is completely
controlled. "I appreciate your concern about my career choices, but I think you are stepping over a
line now."
"My concern has to do with how your choices may affect my son's future," Jaesung interrupts.

"And he is the one I intend to keep discussing my choices with."

Jaesung bites the side of his cheek, a clear sign of discontentment which the man rarely lets slide.

"Of course. What else could I expect from a wolf who has spared no efforts in alienating a young
omega from his own family?"

A lot of things happen in the few seconds that follow the statement.

Jimin lets out a low rumble of warning, his left hand white-kuckling the corner of the wooden
bench. Jungkook outright snarls at his father and stands up with a menacing stance, while Namjoon
comes out of nowhere to hold the omega back. Jaesung startles slightly and the only sound coming
from the inside of the house is a whimper which Jungkook recognizes from his mother.

The tension lingers around them for a few more stretching seconds, the white silence making it
more noticeable. The mix of distress and aggression smells thick in the air, causing Jungkook's
nose to crinkle unpleasantly.

Jimin exhales in staccato and runs both hands down his face, in an attempt to get a grip on his
anger.

"Mr. Jeon," the alpha starts again. The pause lasts longer this time and his face portrays more
frustration than coldness now. "I don't know if you actually mean everything you said. If your
interrogation is all because you are truly worried about Jungkook’s future or if this is just a sick
game to you, if you are trying to get on my nerves and gauge my reaction, to test me or something."

For the first time in a while since the whole convo started, Jungkook allows his gaze to move from
his father and focus on the alpha. He listens closely to what Jimin says, a warm sense of pride in
his chest while seeing his boyfriend speaking up to the rather intimidating man sitting across from
them.

"Either way, I think it is very disrespectful of you. Especially towards your son. You claim that
you want to start anew, to be a part of his life again, yet you come here and completely disregards
his opinion and feelings, while trying to push and make decisions on his behalf like you have been
doing his whole life."

Something stings in Jungkook’s stomach upon hearing Jimin’s words. The truth in them weighs
painfully on his chest. But at the same time it feels… good. With Namjoon’s anchoring hand on
his shoulder, reminding him that his friends, his pack is there for him, Jungkook feels a strange
calmness. He keeps watching the determined look on Jimin’s face and smiles. He smiles because
he recognizes his own feelings in the alpha’s raw words – words he has had such a hard time
finding on his own. It feels like being heard, like being acknowledged.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Jeon, but if anyone here seems to be alienating Jungkook, it is yourself." Jimin
concludes with a steady voice. Jungkook takes the alpha's hand then, trying to convey his
appreciation, his thankfulness.

Jungkook expected his father to lash out, to stand up and leave, to threaten them. Anything but the
question: "Is… this how you feel, Jungkook?"

It is asked tentatively. Jungkook would say even ‘disconcertedly’ had he not known the proud man
in front of him so well. He nonetheless replies to the question, "Yes."
Jaesung takes a deep breath and purses his lip. "Then, I'm sorry," he almost immediately responds.
It sounds hollow to Jungkook’s ears, like something you say without putting much thought to. "I
guess I have a lot to apologize for…" The beta practically mumbles and Jungkook can’t help but let
out a fleering snort.

The man goes on, “That is what I came here for, why I wanted to see you, Kookie. To apologize. "
He seems to deliberately make his tone softer. "But after all this… talk , I’m thinking perhaps it
would be a better idea to ask what you want me to apologize for."

"What?" Jungkook is completely taken aback by his father’s words. He blinks slowly, searches the
man’s eyes for any hint of pretense.

As if sensing the omega’s mistrust, Jaesung assures him, "I mean it."

It doesn’t help in lessening any of Jungkook’s wariness. He is sure there must be a catch
somewhere. Quickly considering possible replies, he ends up going with "Then apologize to Jimin.
For the way you treated him today."

Beside him, Jimin mutters that it’s okay. The alpha’s scent is almost muted, the way it gets when
he is leery of something. Jungkook slips a hand behind him, letting it rest on his lower back before
carrying on. "Jimin is my mate. He respects me, loves and supports me in every way. He inspires
me to work hard and fight for what I want. I don't expect you to see all that, but at least you should
show him some respect."

Jaesung hesitates for a few seconds, but is quick to agree, "Alright."

He then turns his gaze to the alpha. "Jimin-ssi, I'm sorry if I–... No, ” he clears his throat and starts
again. “I'm sorry for being disrespectful. And for the rude questioning. I didn't mean it completely
in a bad way." His tone is surprisingly soft again. "I hope we can somehow get to know each other
better in the future. Maybe understand one another someday..."

Jimin nods in acknowledgement. He tries to keep a neutral stance, but Jungkook noticed how the
dancer’s eyes widened slightly during Jaesung’s apology, as if also taken aback by the words.

"Is this enough?" Jaesung then asks Jungkook. The beta looks rather stiff, but somehow not
completely cold, nor insincere. Jungkook doesn’t really know what to make of it.

"Y-yes… I think so."

He would have asked his father to also apologize for the time when he made Jimin lose the job
opportunity with the dancing team back then, only to send Jungkook ‘a message’, to coerce the
omega to get involved in the pack business. But Jungkook decides to leave that apology for another
time (if there ever is one), for when his father’s stance feels more wholehearted.

"What else, then?"

Jungkook muses on the question. There are so many things he can think of. He figures he should
start with the most recent one, see what the man has to say about it. Trying to keep his voice as
steady as possible, Jungkook determines: "For interfering with the University when I applied for
the scholarship in Music."

Jaesung nods, doesn’t seem surprised by the omega’s request. "I'm sorry. When the dean contacted
me, I just– I should have been more specific, I–… I shouldn't have interfered at all. I am sorry."

It all sounds almost too easy to Jungkook, the way his father so readily offers the apologies. For a
second, Jungkook almost believes the man’s words. Maybe he truly wanted to meet him in order to
apologize.

"Do you think about going back someday?" The beta’s voice interrupts Jungkook’s thoughts. “To
University, I mean.”

"Maybe… I don't know. Maybe a different school,” Jungkook replies cautiously, not wanting to
give his father the opportunity to start an argument over that. “But not for now."

Jaesung simply nods and lowers his head, as if acknowledging the omega’s wish. The man raises
his gaze back to Jungkook’s and asks. "What more? To apologize for?"

Again, dozens of possibilities run through Jungkook’s head. He remembers every argument they
almost had – his father, always busy, always ‘right’, was never one to allow too much room for
arguments. Jungkook, on the other hand, always had a hard time finding the right words or energy
to spar or protest.

But not this time.

For once, he wants to stand his ground. He wants to speak up.

He tries to organize his thoughts, thinks carefully, wanting to find the one thing he wants his father
to apologize for the most. It is not that difficult in the end. "I-I want you to apologize for making
me think for so long that I didn’t have a choice. For assuming that I wanted to take your place at
the company, that that was what I wanted for my life."

He keeps his gaze firm, fixed on his father, even when he knows that his lips, his whole body is
actually trembling. Jaesung listens closely and doesn’t avert his gaze, at least not for a few seconds
after Jungkook is done speaking.

A galvanic silence makes the air around them quiver just the same.

"I am sorry. I-I really am, Kookie," Jaesung speaks with a croaking voice. The man’s whole face
furrows painfully, an expression Jungkook doesn’t remember ever seeing in his father.

The beta clears his voice and carries on, "When you were born as an omega, I was so worried. All I
could think about was how hard it would be for you in the business world, in the family pack.
Considering how hard it had already been for me, as a beta. ” A cumbersome knot wants to form in
Jungkook’s throat, and he tries to gulp it down while Jaesung keeps talking. “So all I could think
about was that I had to work harder, gain more influence, find a way to guarantee you'd have a say
in the company when the time came. I tried to prepare you, tried to make you more interested in the
business. I thought I had to toughen you up… that with time you'd thank me for being strict about
it. I didn't want you to end up marrying an alpha who would take over everything and leave you
powerless. I didn’t want you to become a meek, dependent spouse."

It feels so weird hearing his father talk like that, with such emotion buried behind watery eyes. It is
a completely foreign sight to Jungkook, like there is an imposter sitting across from him, one that
looks exactly like his father yet absolutely not at all.

The pretender keeps on enunciating his apology. "But you are right. It—… I just assumed . I was
just seeing it all from my perspective. I–... I didn’t see it then. That you were not meek at all.”
Jungkook blinks urgently, tries to swallow the tears that threaten to surface as the man continues,
“You were always so determined, you have always quietly found a way to go after what made you
happy – in spite of me… I look at you now and wonder how I could have been so blind to it. I look
at you now and I feel so much regret… So I wanted to truly apologize. For everything I did.”

Fuck.

Jungkook breathes his father’s words in, their significance weighs solid in his lungs. He hates how
much they affect him. They remind him of how many times he wished, he longed to hear them.

“I-I’m really sorry, s-son. ’M sorry… ” The beta’s voice is almost unrecognizable behind the thick
veil of emotion that covers it. “I hope someday you c-can forgive me, Kookie. So that I can finally
allow myself to feel proud of my son, who is so talented and strong."

The awareness that he is already crying himself strikes Jungkook at the same time as he notices the
first teardrops fall down his father’s cheeks. It’s all just… He can’t think properly, too
overwhelmed by everything his father said.

Jungkook didn’t expect it. When he had agreed to meeting his parents again, he thought it would
be a superficial exchange, filled with tension and power games. He wasn’t ready for this.

He uselessly wipes the tears away from his face, making room for more to follow. His breath,
labored. "I–...” He tries to say something, but nothing comes out. His brain is taken by a jolt of
loud thoughts, his father’s words echoing in circles around his skull.

There is a part of Jungkook that wants to forgive the man, one that maybe already did. It’s a part of
him that feels more vulnerable, that has always longed for a deeper connection with his family. But
there is also something that hurts, that wants to offer resistance, not ready to open up yet. Assailed
by the conflicting thoughts, Jungkook struggles with how to respond, his mouth unable to form
proper words.

But a firm hand wraps around his wrist, and the tranquility of waves quickly fills Jungkook’s
lungs. He can almost hear the ocean, feel its warm breath against his face. Jimin has a way of
scenting, so gentle but also so unwavering… it never fails to pacify the omega, to ground him.

He closes his eyes and takes one breath, then opens them again to look Jaesung in the eye.

“O-okay… Okay, dad. Thank you ." Jungkook makes an effort to tinge each syllable with an
earnest tone, hoping it will be enough to convey his sentiment. At least for now.

Another gentle hand rests on his shoulder, a thumb brushing the fabric of his sweater. Jungkook
didn’t even notice the approaching steps, too overwhelmed by the echoes of the conversation with
his father. When the soft thumb passes over the neckband and reaches his scent gland, the omega
is suddenly taken over by a surge of warmth. He looks to his right to find his mom sitting beside
him with a rueful smile.

His mother’s scent has always been almost imperceptible. Only when she wanted to convey
dissatisfaction would she allow it to spread. But during those times, it would smell cloying, viscid.
Her true scent was something reserved for the few people closer to her.

Cotton.

To Jungkook, his mother’s scent has always been like a precious secret. That is why he loved the
feeling of fresh laundry on his skin – it reminded him of her.

“I’m sorry too, Kookie. I know I’ve said it before, but I truly am.”

Jungkook hums and closes his eyes, enjoying the soft scenting from his mom and Jimin. He revels
in the warm sense of safety, takes the opportunity to calm his thoughts down. When his muscles
start loosening up, a large pair of hands cup his ears, caging his whole face. A quick peck is placed
on the crown of his head, leaving a feeble trace of ginger behind.

When Jungkook opens his eyes again, startled, his father is already silently leaving the table, then
the balcony area, seemingly headed downstairs. The omega just watches the man go, still
dumbfounded by the gesture and the whole thing honestly.

What an odd afternoon.

“Jimin,” his mother calls from his right with an even warmer smile. “I’m really sorry towards you,
too. You know that, right?”

The alpha nods, pursing his lips and holding back a smile. Jimin had already accepted her apology,
in an evening weeks ago when Chaewon finally managed to convince Jungkook to let her speak to
his boyfriend over the phone.

“I’m also really thankful to you for taking such good care of our Kookie, for supporting him like
that,” she adds with the same lingering smile. Her hand leaves Jungkook’s shoulder and she
stretches her arm across the omega’s lap to touch Jimin’s fingers briefly. “And for what is worth, I
want you to know that, if you two ever wish to join, associate or even just visit the pack every now
and then, I’ll be happy to welcome you, Jiminie.”

Those are the last heavy words they exchange that day. Words loaded with sentiment and meaning.
Words that, even after his parents leave right before sunset, keep hovering over Jungkook’s,
floating in the air. A weight off his shoulder.

They may not seem much after all those years. They may not even change anything immediately.
But somehow to Jungkook, they feel just enough. Looking around, finding all of his friends, his
family, his pack… Jungkook feels like himself again. Maybe for the first time ever.

━━━━━━━┛ ┗━━━━━━━

From the very first time Jimin saw Kookie step into a stage, he could tell that it was where the
omega belonged at. He remembers the University showcase, how the boy kept bowing and smiling
at the end of the performance, shiny eyes endearingly astounded. Jimin had to practically drag the
other out of the stage that evening.

Watching the singer now, completely at ease in this huge stadium concert, surrounded by a sea of
fans who love him so fiercely… it makes Jimin’s eyes water all over again.

He is watching the concert from an upper balcony on the right, a reserved area for guests. The pack
is there too, cooing over how the alpha refuses to take his eyes off of his boyfriend on stage. It is
the first time Jimin is attending a show from this tour, since he has spent the past month abroad
performing for a Black Swan special with the world's most renowned ballet company.

Blame it on Seokjin. He was the one who wouldn't give up on bringing Opera Garnier into their
most recent project. And Jimin was Connect's Head of Operations after all. So he was sent to cut
the deal. They finally settled when Jimin agreed to star in their Anniversary Special – fourteen
performances in one month. It was all worth it: performing at such an amazing place was like a
dream, plus having them on board with Connect was all they needed to launch their project to bring
the Arts world closer to the pop industry, something Jimin was proud to be part of.

But he was exhausted. Most of all, he was eager to see Jungkook. Eager to kiss and hug his
boyfriend properly after the concert. Plus, he has big plans for tonight.

He knew the entire concert setlist by heart, having watched the online streaming several times,
then every video snippet uploaded by the fans. Jimin was always amazed by each of JK's tours and
performances, but he has to admit he was especially excited to see this one live.

Jimin gets emotional hearing ‘Still With You’, then tries to control his horny wolf while watching
the sexy choreography of ‘My Time’. He sings along to every song, smiles at each verse that
mentions waves, sand or the sea, knowing how they are all meant for him. JK’s fans noticed how
much the singer likes to use ocean references and metaphors in his lyrics, and now there were
whole threads on the blue app about it. When one of them asked JK about it in one of his lives, he
just smiled and said that the sea was his favorite place in the whole world.

Euphoria - BTS

The first notes of ‘Euphoria’ spread through the audience and loud cheers immediately take over
the stadium. Everybody knows what is about to come and Jimin can barely contain his own
excitement. When JK shows from behind the back-up dancers and starts singing, Jimin almost
melts at the spot. The omega’s silky, clear tone will never cease to amaze him. It has this
transparency to it, makes his voice sound sincere and relatable.

In the back of his mind, the alpha starts to notice that there is something odd… The animation on
the LED screens is not the same as the previous concerts’. Instead of the neon blue and golden
lines in the background, it is blue waves instead. Ocean waves.

As the second verse starts and JK is hoisted up in the air by the same pulley contraption, outlines
of flowers start dancing in the background. Not just any flower. Plumeria .

A thrill goes down Jimin’s spine when Jungkook starts flying up in the air, the singer’s smile to his
fans so open and pure. His stretched hand seems to want to reach out to each person in the
audience. It’s more emotional than Jimin thought it would be.

Also lowkey scary.

He has no idea how Jungkook manages to keep his voice steady that high up. Not that Jimin is
particularly afraid of heights, but he would be trembling like a leaf if it was him up there. While
Jungkook seems to be absolutely having the time of his life.

When the singer starts approaching the VIP area, Jimin gets goosebumps. He can’t help but smile
watching his boyfriend float in the air so seamlessly towards him. He is so invested watching the
act that he doesn’t notice his friends stepping back a meter to give room to two or three staff
members who hover around the alpha.

It is only when the device carrying the singer loses speed and lowers down until it stops by the
banister right in front of Jimin that he starts to realize what is about to happen. Swiftly, a staff
member secures the stepping platform to the banister, while another one brings a small step ladder
out of nowhere to place it right by Jimin’s feet.

With a stretched arm, Jungkook offers Jimin his hand and raises his brows, clearly amused. The
alpha is too busy blushing and wondering if that was really happening, so he barely takes notice of
another staff member – Minhyuk, Jimin recalls – who already has a security belt ready for him.
“Come with me, hyung,” Jungkook mouths the words slowly so that Jimin can read his gorgeous
lips.

So Jimin goes. Without protesting or second guessing, Jimin takes the omega’s hand.

He has no idea how he manages to get on that thing and stand with how much his legs shake. In
less than ten seconds, he has a safety belt secured around his waist (a gentle arm wrapped around it
as well) and then he is flying over thousands of people.

The song continues and Jimin’s heart refuses to slow down and follow its tempo. The adrenaline is
all too much and he doesn’t have it in him to look down. But somehow, the way Jungkook seems to
smile even wider now that he has Jimin in his arms helps the alpha relax a little.

Watching his boyfriend sing so preciously, so close, while they float in the air makes Jimin forget
about the rest of the world. He forgets about how high up they are, forgets about the whole
audience seeing them on the LED screen.

After all, it’s not like this is the first time the fans see Jimin – they have been photographed
together a few times, then there was the duo choreo they filmed for one of JK’s songs (the one JK
shared in his social media asking the fans to give it a lot of love, because that man was – and I
quote – the most beautiful and talented dancer he knew, the one who taught him how to dance and
who inspired him every day).

Plus, after what Jimin has planned for tonight, they will probably want to fully disclose their
relationship to the public.

And that is when the idea occurs to him.

Shifting a little, with trembling hands, Jimin uses his left hand to check his jacket’s inner pocket.
The original idea was to do it when they were alone, back at home, to surprise his tired boyfriend
after a relaxing bath.

But Jimin can improvise.

Even while hooked up in the air, the alpha manages to get the thing out of the small box and hold it
safely. He then brings his hand to the singer’s, which is still pressing the side of his waist. With
some effort, he touches until he finally finds the correct finger and slips the ring on it.

Surprised, Jungkook looks down at his own hand to confirm what has just happened. He stares at it
for a second or two, and then brings Jimin even closer to his body, in the closest thing to a hug they
manage to, while flying that high up in a damned small pulley contraption.

“Is this another courting gift, Jimin-ssi?” Jungkook whispers to his ear, after temporarily turning
his mic off.

Jimin only manages to nod in response. His heart beats impossibly fast. ‘Euphoria’ keeps playing in
the background, now only the recorded vocals singing the chorus on loop.

“I thought you didn't do those…” Jungkook teases him some more, while the device starts
lowering down, faster than Jimin would like.

“W-Well, yeah…” His voice falters as much as his legs. “But I k-keep opening an exception for
you apparently.”

Jungkook giggles beautifully against his ear. “Is this just a courting gift or are you trying to ask for
something more specific, Jimin-ssi?”

“You were the one singing to ‘take your hand now’ before dragging me up this thing,” Jimin
manages to tease back.

Jungkook hugs him tighter and now openly laughs, tilts his head back, amused. Then lightly
knocks his forehead against Jimin’s. They are almost at floor level.

Noticing they are the staff members quickly approaching to help them down, Jimin whispers “I
love you, Jungkookie. So. Much.”

Before the singer has the time to reply, their security belts are unfastened and they find themselves
safely back to the ground.

Jimin feels a bit self-conscious, an intruder in the huge stage surrounded by the multitude of his
boyfriend’s fans. But Jungkook holds his hand and doesn’t let go. The omega leans closer to Jimin
and says with a smirk “But, you know... You didn't do it the right way, Jimin-ssi.”

He barely has the time to feel confused by the comment because a quick peck is left on his cheek.
The audience cheers impossibly loud.

Jungkook goes on, speaking closer to Jimin’s ear. “Plus, I'm not gonna let you ruin what I had
planned. A lot of people worked hard to make it happen and we don't want to disappoint them,” he
concludes with a wink.

A fucking wink.

Because of fucking course, Jimin thinks, as he watches his boyfriend go down on one knee and
make the stadium practically shake with how much the fans scream and shout animatedly.

Of. Fucking. Course.

This was Jeon Jungkook. Destroying-the-tires-of-the-guy-who-is-bothering-your-boyfriend-and-

making-a-video-of-it Jeon Jungkook. Finding-a-way-to-make-the-best-restaurant-in-town-add-to-
the-menu-a-custom-dessert-as-a-gift-to-your-boyfriend Jeon Jungkook. He was a man of
grandiosity, his love acts have always been as big as his heart.

Jeon Jungkook is on one knee and staring at him with the most precious smile on Earth, holding a
box, with a ring inside. Jimin is about to combust.

The omega then turns his headset microphone back on, only to sing his final verses: “Please say
‘yes’ now / When I'm with you, I'm in utopia.”

And that is it for Jimin.

Already feeling tears pool up behind his eyes, Jimin falls down on his knees – sloppily, almost
hurting himself – and wraps both arms around the omega’s neck. The other immediately hugs him
back and sighs.

“I already said ‘yes’, silly”. Jimin whines, still attached to Jungkook’s neck.

Later that evening, backstage, surrounded by their friends who keep teasing and congratulating
them, JK posts a picture of their hands: [He said ‘yes’!]

After a tickling fight which Jimin wins thanks to Taehyung’s help, he manages to grab the singer’s
 phone and uploads another photo. This time, it shows the two of them staring at each other with
smiling eyes, flying high up in the air – a beautiful picture taken by one of the staff members: [He
actually beat me to it and asked the question first while we were flying like a 100ft. up in the air.
].

Jungkook recovers the device before Jimin has the chance to post it. The singer reads the draft and
smiles. He posts it himself, adding a [I said ‘yes’, too].

Chapter End Notes

The last scene has always been the plan for ending this story, when it was just an idea
in my mind. It may be a bit cheesy, but cheesy-me is also me, so I am embracing this
side of myself!

I hope this story was able to bring you a bit of joy or distraction. I hope whoever or
wherever you are, you always remember you are a precious existence. Please be well
and take care of yourself.

Please drop by the archive and comment to let the author know if you enjoyed their work!